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View Full Version : Wanted: Suggestions for Guilds and Unions in a Steampunk Fantasy World



RufusCorvus
2010-10-03, 01:17 AM
I'm currently in the early stages of building a new fantasy steampunk world. I haven't yet gotten to the point where I need to flesh out various orders and special interest groups in the setting, but I know I want to involve guilds and unions as power-players in the setting.

Problem is that right now I've hit a sort of stumbling block in coming up with ones that might be worthwhile. I do have two, though: a necromancer's union and a railway union. I understand that the various sundry professions will likely have their own (teamsters, wainwrights, etc.). What I'm looking for are ones that would be more... well, interesting, I guess you could say.

As of now the world is fairly unformed, with only a few bits standing out.
-I know it's going to be set in the wake of an empire's collapse with individual lords creating their own nations and city-states and then duking it out with one another for an arbitrary number of years until they settled into a state of uneasy peace.
-All nations are being aimed at a tech-level somewhere in the mid/late 19th century--factories and trains are for sure. Airships may be a recent invention.
-One nation is quite fond of using zombies for manual labor. (Hence the necromancer's union.)
-One or more nation-states will be under occupation.
-I'm planning on various religions to exist, but the dominant one will be a form of monotheism. Right now I'm liking the sound of Inquisitors.
-There will have been a magical catastrophe around the time of the empire's collapse, resulting in most of the land being covered in an ever-present magical fog that produces monsters to be slain and mutates any who linger within it.
-There will also be sentient golems.

TL;DR: I'm looking for suggestions for guilds/unions/orders/whathaveyou for a steampunk fantasy world. Names, goals, whatever. Just something to get my creative juices churning.

Thanks, everyone!

Randel
2010-10-03, 02:56 AM
Name:Tinman Order
Goals: To turn people into living constructs by replacing weak human tissue with construct replacements.
What they do:
Research new medical or magitech methods of curing people of injuries and/or replacing limbs with mechanical parts. People who are injured or mutating can get replacement parts.
The new parts are somewhat expensive, but the guild can make a profit and help people afford the treatment by giving them low-interest loans and seeing that they get work in various businesses. Also, the new parts are somewhat modular so if a person with a mechanical limb dies then the mechanical part can be preserved and brought back to be repaired.
Building nonhuman constructs is also part of their business.
Members:
The Tinman Order works to eliminate bias or violence against people with replacement parts. They also work with businesses who have repedative, strenuous, or dangerous jobs who could use workers who are modified to operate in those conditions.

They could modify people with special breathing apparatuses so that they can confortably work in the areas that normally mutate people. Or those with replacement limbs could get new stronger limbs that don't tire and are hired in jobs with lots of manual labor. Guards, adventurers, or soldiers might even get special parts that increase their power.

Terrible Secret:
All the mechanical parts they create can be remote-controlled by the guilds leaders or used to spy on or influence those who use the parts. They plan to convert as many people as possible so that they can eventually take over the world (or at least mind control everyone into being nice to eachother and only fight the monsters attacking them). They might even have less grand schemes that just involve making lots of money by having profitable businesses that mainly hire people with enhanced limbs, thus poor people may need to get new limbs to get decent jobs and then pay them off over time.

The disenfranchised may find themselves with a choice between going hungry or getting 'upgraded' into tinmen who gradually have their body parts replaced to increase efficiency for their jobs.

The Tinman Order may have a rivalry (or perceived rivalry) with the necromancers. Tinmen retain their minds and intellect (though they may lose their emotions and 'hearts' in the process) while zombie workforces are usually mindless. However, when limbs are removed for the tinman conversion process then they can be sold to necromancers and stitched up to make undead or flesh golems.

The Tinman Order may also make large monstrous constructs that incorporate human parts and brains in their construction. Like Cadaver Collectors who go about collecting dead bodies or searching ruins. Brains in Jars may also be alive somewhere where their knowledge or spellcasting powers can be used. A long-term goal would be to create a powerful army of constructs immune to poison or corrupting magic and lay waste to the monsters of the world (and possibly the planes beyond). Mankind will be remade in undying bodies immune to disease, corruption, and the ravages of age!

Halaster
2010-10-03, 04:02 AM
@Randel:
I assume that the heads of the Order would be brains in jars inside construct bodies themselves? Would make sense. Awesome idea, either way.

Name: Arcanomechanic Fraternity
Goals: Form a perfect combination of magic and tech
What they do: Build items that combine mechanical and magical components. The items could be powered by magic, but have moving mechanica parts (airships powered by elemental magic), or vice versa (battery powered lighting guns). Research into parallels between magic and science, trying to create a scientific theory of magic (or an arcane theory of science).
Members: Weird scientists of all stripes, mostly wizards and sorcerors that specialize in elemental effects and force stuff. Might be allied with the Tinman Order, helping them improve their constructs and receiving construct or tinman workers in return.

Terrible secret:
The magical mishap that collapsed the empire was the result of similar efforts to what the Fraternity is attempting, though most (or all) of them are unaware of that. If permitted to complete their magnum opus, they might cause another cataclysm. Some members may have been tipped of by the fact that their more powerful creations emit the same mutation stuff that is found in the fog. They may or may not care.

WinWin
2010-10-03, 05:16 AM
Divinity of Man. Shamelessly ripped off from Ravenloft.

A quasi-religious order. They believe divine beings have departed from the realm (if they ever existed) leaving humanity as inheritors of all creation. Large cities, sciences and industrialisation are proof of the divinity of humans. They are staunch supporters of rationality and academia. They tend to be parochial and look down on 'unsophisticated' magical traditions, but their membership contains many innovative members capable of modifying or reverse-engineering such magics for the use of their order.

At their best, they are empassioned scholars with access to a broad spectrum of knowledges and sciences. They use this knowledge for the betterment of humanity.

At their worst, they are remorseless bigots. Any magic or technology that does not conform to their worldview is dismissed as superstition or trickery. They unashamedly put the interests of humanity above that of other races, even friendly ones.

FelixG
2010-10-03, 05:27 AM
Steampunk is one of my favorite genres, so good luck!

But lets see....

May i recommend that your railway union be a sub-sect of the Transportation Guild or just The Guild (Dune rip off XD)

They can control or represent every form of transportation from magical teleportations for massed goods to airships boats and trains.

You would obviously want an Inventors union, something along the lines of current patents office, the union would make sure credit is given where its due with new inventions in the world and make sure those who steal these things pay dearly.

Depending on how magic oriented the world is you may also have a rare but expensive flesh-crafter guild, people who make custom pets and servants (another dune tribute) "No matter your need, we have the breed" these ones could also be underground or outcast because they are taking one of gods domains into their own hands.

Aside from various criminal organizations and cartels for various goods perhaps "The Velvet Glove Guild" who are information brokers and professional spys, they have the information...for a price... They spy on all nations equally and sell their information to whoever can afford it, no nation has made a concerted effort to wipe them out yet as every nation guild and leader makes use of their services.

RufusCorvus
2010-10-03, 10:29 AM
Excellent suggestions so far, everyone!

Randel
2010-10-03, 12:33 PM
Name: Sisterhood of Sorcerers
Goals: Fight descrimination against sorcerers and others with magical bloodlines.
What they do:
Whenever a person manifests magical abilities without having studied magic before than the Sisterhood of Sorcerers investigates and offers to help them control their powers.
Most sorcerers manifest their abilities at a young age and either have sorcerers in their family or were somehow exposed to raw magic. Under normal circumstances their powers could be hard to control or dangerous, the Sisterhood offers to teach them how to control and use those powers for the betterment of mankind.
They also work to protect victims of prejudice or abuse, primarily sorcerers but also people who were mutated by the fog or even members of monstrous races.

The Sisterhood of Sorcerers maintains a school for teaching students to use their magic. Also they work alongside businesses who can use magic and would employ sorcerers who can get the job done. Charities, community service, and other non-profit or low-profit organizations are also used by the Sisterhood.
Members:
Many members are sorcerers or others who gained magical powers primarily through heredity or accident and needed guidance to properly use them. Other members include monsters or slightly mutated people who have trouble fitting in with society. Normal humans and members of other spellcasting classes are welcome as well if they want to help.
Terrible secret:
Many of the Sisterhoods high ranking members consider sorcerers to be a new race superior to common humans. As sorcerer ability is hereditary and passed through genes, a breeding program could be employed to ensure that children of sorcerers inherit their parents abilities.
While sorcerers, mutants, and monsters are somewhat rare in civilized society and subject to discrimination, with sufficient time and planning then they could become more numerous and become the dominant species in the world.
This goal is kept a secret by only the highest ranking members who refuse to inform those below them (those people who attained actual evidence about their plans were either discretely eliminated, mindwiped, or discredited through other means). The best way for them to see the propagation and eventual domination of the sorcerer race is to appear harmless and benevolent while keeping all sorcerers united together. It will take generations to increase their numbers and attain the power needed for a clean takeover but they have time.

An even bigger secret is that the Sisterhood knows of powerful non-human forces who might attack the world and humanity. If sorcerers replace standard humans then there might be enough magical power in the human race to ensure its survival and defense of the world (at the very least, sorcerers who can cast rope trick and have everful rations and everful mugs could hide in extradimentional pockets in the event that a swarm of mindflayers try to take over the planet).

The Sisterhood plans to protect and nurture all the human offshoots that might be strong enough to resist a possible invasion. Even if technology becomes more powerful than sorcerer magic then a population entirely made of sorcerers with technology would have that much more magic to throw at invaders then normal humans with that same technology.

elpollo
2010-10-03, 12:53 PM
I had an idea for an artificier guild who were set up by five members and are now the leading technological powerhouse, both creating machines and using them to enhance people. Their name? The Augmented Fifth.

RufusCorvus
2010-10-03, 01:44 PM
I had an idea for an artificier guild who were set up by five members and are now the leading technological powerhouse, both creating machines and using them to enhance people. Their name? The Augmented Fifth.

Oooh--a group of four swordmasters called... the Sharp Four. :smallbiggrin:

Storm Bringer
2010-10-03, 04:13 PM
Or, a deminished sixth, depending on your outlook in life [/bill bailey]

Name: the Drakesblood Family

What they do:
thier a mages guild, or more precise, a Sorcerers guild. All members hace "the Blood", as they call it, the ability to cast as a Sorcerers. they offer most of services of a normal mages guild. they only offer membership to those of The Blood, though many members have extentsive cross classing (to the point where several are just 1 or 2 level "dip" Sorcerers.)

Terrible secret: thier leader is a polymorphed dragon, seeking to create his own army of spellcasters for world domination. he sired several of the founding members (what, you think they pulled that name out of a hat?)


Name: The Union for Liberation of Oppressed Kobalds (more commonly the Kobald Union)

goals: to libearte kobalds form past streotypes and current prejudice, and to get rich in the process.

what they Do: make things, mainly. kobalds make great factory workers, with a strong sense of hierarchy, a group focused culture, and a long tradition of skilled artisanship. kobalds are small, good with thier fingers, and used to cramoed and uncomfortable working conditions, making them prefect for the semi-skilled jobs that dominate modern mass production. with thier ownership of the mineral rights to many good mines, and thier own marketing brand and retailers the union can control the life of a product form its mining form the earth, though smelting, to manufacture and sale to the end user. main goods are clockwork items (an outhgrowth of thier trapmaking skills), weaponry and cheap, durable metalwork.

they channel some of the funds form this business to improve both the image of kobalds in society, and the lot of kobalds in those factories they don't control, improving safty records, living quarters, etc.

basically, a lanshire workers union, but 3 foot tall.

(walks off with image of kobalds in flatcaps.:smallbiggrin:)

RufusCorvus
2010-10-04, 09:10 AM
Interesting suggestions, everyone. Giving this a little bump before I let it go.