Artificers' Guild

Like all the guilds in the city the Artificers' Guild is led by an elected Guild Master. Rank and file members are primarily magewrights. These relatively low talent magic users are recruited by the guild as apprentices. Unlike their more talented cousins, the mage apprentices, it requires very little training to be a magewright. Magewrights learn only one or two spells, which they will cast over and over again, during the construction of magic artifacts. A significant fraction of members are artificers, whose training is much more intensive. Most artificers have some level of formal magical training. The Toresta Polyarcana Academy runs a two year technical arcana program whose purpose is to train non-mages in magical theory. Graduates of the course are welcomes as Artificer apprentices into the guild. Upon completion of the apprenticeship program members become journeyman, fully qualified to perform as a magewright or artificer in any of the arcane factories in Toresta, or anywhere in the world.

Experience and additional knowledge opens up the opportunity to fill one of the master slots in the guild. Guild Master Artificers are qualified to manage their own arcane factory, or to manage one owned by another, such as one of the Funding Families or the upcoming industrial moguls of Toresta.

Quality is the end-all, be-all of the Artificers' Guild. A string of shoddy work is all it takes to be booted out of either apprenticeship program. Even a journeyman can find their membership in the guild under review if too many ill-made items come from their work. This has led to a reputation of quality. Most owners, buyers and merchants look for the Artificer's Guild makers mark on item produced in the city, and if it's not there have little interest in the product.

This leads some guild members to likewise view with suspicion magic items, particularly those from unknown or unrecognized sources, that come their way.

The Artificers Guild Hall is an expansive structure with meeting rooms, classrooms and its own arcane library. The library is a fraction of the size of the TPA's Lenner Library, but does contain some materials on magic item fabrication not present in that more famous collection.

The guild's history stretches back to 561 ATC, to a time when most magic items were still bespoken hand made articles, made by mages. The vast amount of magical essence present in Toresta, available to anyone who knew how to take it from the Danilov Leyline, ensured that arcane artisans would eventually find their way to the city. The guild remained relatively small until the discovery of industrial leyline farming became possible in 690 ATC. This discovery revolutionized arcane factory production, allowing mass production of all but the rarest of magical devices.

These advancements led to the productive utilization of even modest magical skills, which up to this time were little more than tricks individuals used to light a fire, or clean garments, or create temporary magical toys. Such individuals could now parlay their modest talents into a paying occupation in an arcane factory. Most still needed some kind of formal training to reach that point and the guild was concerned with the quality of such items made by such individuals. So was created the magewright apprenticeship program, to train low level magic users and ensure they produced quality products.

In modern times the Guild has used its monopoly on a source of arcane workers to achieve a level of political power in the city.