Skyfell Geography: Guilds of Highwater

Skyfell Geography: Guilds of Highwater

In my homebrew campaign of Skyfell, there are guilds that provide a variety of professional services to their paying members, including training, access to the tools and supplies of the trade, legal advice, work placement, and social networking. This post discusses a few of these guilds. It covers either those that align with the player characters’ classes or those with which the player characters have interacted. There are, of course, many more than just the few I present here. As the campaign rolls along, I’ll expand this list.

Gearmount Foundry

While the Gearmount Foundry headquarters is located on Akima Prime, there are satellite guilds scattered all over Skyfell. As a general rule, each location manages its own immediate affairs. Its activities are influenced by the local culture and laws. That said, each is also centrally monitored and directed when it comes to larger goals. The guild in Highwater is no different.

Experimenting at the Guild
Source: Eberron, 5e

The Highwater guild is located near the High-tunnel Grind burrow. The proximity to the burrow means the guild’s membership and even politics is dominated by gnome interests. That said, there is a healthy number of non-gnome members who keep the guild from sliding into a gnomes-only clique single-mindlessly (yes, I mean that) pursuing gnome interests. Members enjoy access to the guild’s massive gear hoard, a seemingly infinite collection of spare parts, broken devices, and failed experiments. The hoard is overseen by Rustmeister Scheppen-dunturo (also known as The Rustmeister), a grumpy old adventurer who keeps a close tally of all materials coming into and going out of “his collection.” (See also the cultural note regarding the gear hoard in the Session 13 summary.)

The Rustmeister Recounts His Experience
Source: Heroforge, Designed By Me

Gilengo’s Hovel

Gilengo’s Hovel is an ancient motte-and-Bailey tucked away in a remote corner of the Encampment Green. It was the first permanent structure built by the earliest explorers out of Akima Prime who “discovered” Doraku and immediately began displacing the indigenous kenku populations to settle this "uninhabited land." The structure served as a fortified colony during the Wars of Possession. (See also the Sha-awk Ving entry in my Organizations of Highwater post.) until a peace treaty was signed and The Aerie was built as part of the agreement. 

As it’s importance waned, the motte-and-Bailey became an inn of sorts (called The Squawking Roost) until a cabal of local druid circles and ranger factions took over stewardship of the Encampment Green and declared it a protected area. The structure remained abandoned for a few centuries until Matreh Gilengo quietly started using it as a place of contemplation. Other monks soon heard about the idyllic locale. Monks have gone on pilgrimage there ever since, politely but closely monitored by the Encampment Green’s caretakers (as described in the Protectors of the Green entry of my Organizations of Highwater post) to keep the squatters in check.

Gilengo's Hovel
Source: Pixabay

Hall of Words and Song

The Hall of Words and Song can trace its inception all the way back to the Wars of Possession when the Galifraxis Troupe entertained Tescalain’s army as it waged war against the indigenous kenku population. When a peace treaty was drawn up, the troupe was granted a parcel of land (in what would later become the Bai-ko Dun district) in recognition for all they had done to boost morale both on and off the battlefield. The first “hall” was a green and yellow big-top tent decorated with a flag from each fighting force that had participated in the wars (including kenku banners). Visitors from across Doraku were drawn to the tent not only to be entertained but also to exchange accounts of the war that had consumed so much of their lives. The bards were there to record these stories no matter whose side the teller might have been fighting for.

Recording Personal Histories
Source: Pixabay

The hall’s popularity made it possible for a proper theater to be built, a portion of which was devoted to the quickly-growing collection of war stories and ancillary histories. Today, the core of the Hall of Words and Song is that original theater, which has been renovated and enlarged over the years into a grand structure attracting visitors from all of Skyfell. Dozens of other smaller theaters are clustered around the thoroughfare leading to the Hall's main entrance. Apartments are squeezed in where they can be, offering permanent homes to anyone involved with the theaters. A number of eateries provide service to residents and visitors. As a guild, the Hall offers steady work, training, and legal services to its members. It has close ties with a number of factions, providing its members an alternate source of income should they tire of the limelight.

The Thoroughfare to The Hall
Source: Dungeon Master's Guide, 5e

The Hall also continues its tradition of collecting and preserving local histories. These are curated by The Trust (as described in my Organizations of Highwater post). The collection is available to anyone who is interested in researching what the hall considers the “unadulterated” truth regarding the past, present, and future of the people of Doraku. 

Oh-helka’s Campus

When it comes to the study of magic, The Kalraka School of the Weave asserts its intellectual dominance across all of Skyfell (see also my Doraku Geography post). The school's faculty, and some would say the school itself, has its own agenda that it forces onto its students and staff. Of course, not every spellcaster agrees with the school's close management of information and prefer a more democratic pursuit of knowledge. This was the case for a small group of wizards, sorcerers, and warlocks (led by an idealistic and clever genasi named Pulmavalio Oh-helka) who left the school some 200 years ago to establish their own center of thought. This group of dissidents occupied the remains of an old guard tower in the Bai-ko Dun district, refurbished it, and filled it with all manner of magic, hoping to create an environment of open debate and free exchange. This center was called The Tower. (Sometimes, mage-users are not the most creative of folk.) Over the years, additional structures were added around The Tower to accommodate the growing number of spellcasters who were attracted to its philosophy. The residents started referring to both The Tower and the buildings that encircled it as “Oh-helka’s Campus” in honor of the center's founder.

The Tower of Oh-Helka's Campus
Source: Pixabay

In its early years, The Campus (again, magic-users are not that creative when it comes to names) was under constant political attack from Kalraka. A number of spies and saboteurs were also captured skulking about its halls. In response, the residents agreed that rather than being a separate school they would instead organize as a guild, fulfilling all the needs a school would fulfill while also providing the professional support that would guarantee an income. This would also secure the Campus’ position in Highwater not as a competitor of the Kalraka School but as a professional organization. Now, there is a strange sort of cooperation between Kalraka and The Campus that lays out a direct career path any up-and-coming spellcaster in Doraku.

The Tower is still the primary structure at Oh-helka's Campus, rising above all the other structures that ring it. The main entrance is an imposing set of doors with The Campus’ moto “Weave. Ethics. Progress. Freedom.” etched into an enchanted placard that sparkles in the late twilight. Those who enter through these doors find themselves delivered to the correct location within the building. Staff arrive at their places of work. Visitors, on the other hand, walk into a pitch-black chamber whose only light source is a glowing cone that bathes a reception desk in the gentle ambiance from outside. Ariel, the lone receptionist who seems to be on duty regardless of the time of day, always greets visitors with a charming smile and a bit of small talk before channeling them to their ultimate destination.

Ariel, Lead Support Staff at the Campus Tower
Source: HeroForge designed by me

Slah-gionnaire

Slah-gionnaire was originally a slapdash mob of rogues, soldiers, thugs, rangers, and peasants who came together to turn back a massive Reaver incursion a few centuries ago. The invasion, which raised Tanya’s Retreat and threatened to lay waste to the Mayraki Flats before storming up the side of Mount Doraku to sack Highwater, came at a time when the politics of Doraku fractured its leadership. All organized response was hampered by petty squabbles, old vendettas, and power grabs that left Doraku an easy target for the thousands of Reavers that swarmed the western top-side and burrowed through the under-side

Gnoll Invasion
Source: Eberron, 5e

Despite brutal losses, the makeshift army succeeded in their task. The bulk of the surviving fighters returned to their “normal” lives. A core few, however, settled in the Na-Narn Ku district in Highwater in an abandoned warehouse. Their purpose was simple, to train anyone in matters of combat who might want to acquire such skills. The intent was to have a ready-made fighting force to repulse another attack should the ruling elite fail once again to respond. Over the years, their numbers grew as did the grounds they occupied until the organization eventually transformed into a full-fledged fighters’ guild. While the guild continues to offer training to anyone with the will and the coin, it also offers contract management, mediates disputes, and regulates the general activities of its members just as other guilds do. It has nurtured important ties with the city watch, the market watch, and a number of the more influential mercenary cells.

The Slah-gionnaire
Source: Pixabay

Additional Stuff

I have a few Spotify playlists that I've built out that either are for or are applicable to the guilds in this post.

Gearmount Foundry
Gilengo’s Hovel
Hall of Words and Song
Oh-helka’s Campus
Slah-gionnaire

Also, don't forget to check out the session summaries of the current game where you can read more about these guilds and how they have affected both the game and the player characters.

Note About the Header Graphic

There is no day or night in Skyfell. There is a waxing and waning of the general brightness, but there is always light in the sky. The header graphic implies a nighttime setting. It's kind of dark and the windows clearly show that the rooms are lit up by candles, fireplaces, torches, or some other source of light. I went with this image though because it does sum up the ambiance of Highwater. I suppose I could just say that this is on a very foggy day, but that feels like a cheap verbal trick. Instead, I'd rather simply acknowledge that while the lighting is incorrect for Skyfell its mood is spot on for Highwater.

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