Adventurers live apart from the ordinary people of Avendar, and a handful of institutions span the world to train them, recruit them and hold them to account. Every adventurer is a graduate of the School of Heroes and learns their class from a guild. Many go on to join a Great House or a smaller organization, which offer roleplaying opportunities and mechanical benefits: Great Houses carry additional responsibilities, while smaller organizations allow more freedom. Adventurers who attack one another in civilized lands answer to the law.
Great Houses
The world of Avendar is home to several great and ancient houses. Representing the important political, economic, and moral forces that shape the world of Avendar, each has come to fill its own niche in Avendarian society.
Characters may petition to join houses, offering their services to factions whose interests and beliefs match their own.
Houses each have a center of power located somewhere in Avendar. In each of these locations a mystical vault has been erected, where the houses store their treasures, and focus the energy of the mystical stones of power.
Great houses generally exist in a state of conflict with one another; ceasefires or alliances are possible, but rarely last long, and housed characters are expected to defend their house in PK and proactively weaken other houses opposed to their interests.
Champions of Avendar
The Champions are crusaders for the weak, champions of the downtrodden, and perhaps even destroyers of evil, they are cradled in the hands of the gods of light, and unleashed upon the wicked.
Coven of the Shunned
The Coven are practicers of witchcraft and drinkers of blood, slayers of the innocent, even summoners of demons. The dark gods laugh as they ply their evil powers against the innocent, corrupting and tainting all they encounter.
Guardians of Law
Closed to new members. The Guardians brought order out of chaos, as their God Iandir stood over them in pride as they made cities safe. He spake out the law, and they steeled themselves to enforce his will.
Raiders of Twilight
The Raiders seem bred of a lust for possessions to sate the greed of their god. They are those who strike hard and fast, stealing away with gold, arms, and lives. They are rovers, they are bandits, and they are deadly and swift.
Grand Federation of Merchants
The Federation is dedicated to the accumulation of wealth and prestige. Ayaunj the Sterling smiles upon them as they use coin to spread their influence and bring ruin upon their enemies.
Guilds
Guilds are established throughout the land to train adventurers in their class's abilities. Each city keeps its own guilds, which answer to that city rather than to one another, but they share common conventions in how they take on and advance adventurers. In the human city-states, scholars and templars train under a guild apprenticeship; elsewhere the institutions look quite different, as the Magic page describes.
Other Organizations
It is possible to join smaller organizations. These have automatic entry, provided you can pay the fee. Each character may only join ONE of these organizations.
Wanderers of Avendar
Wanderers seek adventure in all places high and low. Explorers and daredevils, the Wanderers reward those members who delve into dangerous locales.
Location: southwest corner of the savannah
Leader: Olnan
Entry cost: 10 platinum
Seekers of Knowledge
Seekers are intellectuals, researchers, and champions of knowledge as a key to victory in any sort of challenge. Traveling the world over in order to be more aware and better prepared, they pride themselves on order, on rationality, and on understanding.
Location: west of Corvandil Square, Earendam
Leader: Enha
Entry cost: 10 platinum