Guild of Shadows
Also known as: The Puppeteers
Look up high at the high-ups, berk, and tell me what you see. A blood you envy? Someone who’s power you wouldn’t mind having? Rulers are always vulnerable to the worst of their flock, exposing themselves to assassins, poison, and accidents. Much better to rule from the shadows behind the throne.
A ruler in the shadows is a safe ruler. When figurehead after figurehead dies at the hands of irritated citizens, the true ruler lives securely in the lap of luxury and the seat of power. Power isn’t to be challenged, but to be controlled—from behind the throne.
And all rulers are susceptible to council. Proud, individualistic rulers are swayed in the right direction with false assurances, propaganda, and personal compliments. Weak conformists can be moulded like clay in the hands. Most rulers have advisors and the rest have friends. Find the chink in the government’s armour, and, under cover of darkness, worm your way in and dig into the heart.
Sect History: The Guild is around 550 years old. It has always held small sway on the factions, but the complexity of the kriegstanz and the small number of numbers makes the task of pulling the strings of a whole faction nigh-impossible. After the Great Upheaval, a fledgling shadow mage of a faction called the Magicians named Penumbra learned, after years out-of-touch travelling the planes, of his faction’s destruction at the Lady’s decree. Feeling bitterly betrayed by being abandoned, Penumbra came to the conclusion that the Magicians, which would later be reborn as the Incantifiers, were too forceful, and too heavy-handed. Their power was open, displayed to all, and that made it vulnerable.
Penumbra, upon returning to the Cage after the Upheaval had ended, observed the remains of the factions he had known. He knew that they all subtly vied for power (the Harmonium was still the twinkle in some prime’s eye at that stage). Retreating to a stronghold on Gehenna, he began to gather followers around himself. For a century, Penumbra, kept perpetually young with his new metabolism, led a group of shadow mages in research on the spell keys of shadow magic throughout the planes. When they had collected the darks they required, Penumbra hopped through a portal in the stronghold, and set up secret shop in Sigil.
The Sectol: For the last 350 years, Penumbra has lead the Guild with a velvet fist, demanding total devotion from the members of his small sect, and unity to the cause of controlling the factions. An example of their manipulations was the Anarchist Omar, who they helped get into the Hardheads and greased up the ranks. Though no Anarchist today knows it (or would admit it if they did), Omar owed his success at least in part to the Guild’s machinations.
Sect Headquarters: The Shadowfell, where nothing is as it seems and everything about its power structure is dark. Also the source of most of the Guild’s stealthy magic, and a major part of ruling unseen. Also, in Gehenna, under the shadow of Baator and right under the ‘loths’ noses, the Guild has clawed their way to influence. Their stronghold, a day’s climb up the slope of Mungoth from Portent, is equipped with a large library dealing with shadow magic, its effects, and its keys, a large food supply, and the Guild’s own personal birdcage.
Membership: To join the Guild, a basher must meet the following requirements: They may not be either Chaotic or Good in alignment (individuality and compassion are frowned upon). They must have an intelligence of 14 or more. They must be willing to sever all other social contacts—including family ties—permanently. Anyone who meets these requirements may join, but few do because the Guild is so well hidden. It’s much more likely that a Shadow will spot a potential recruit and then test them to see if they might be a suitable candidate. If a priest wishes to join, they must worship a power of darkness, manipulation, or subterfuge.
Allies & Enemies: None of the factions are actually aware that the Guild really exists, but some of the more perceptive factols suspect there’s something amiss in the political scene of the Cage. Because of its manipulative position, however, the Guild would—if known—find instant enemies in nearly every faction. The Guild actually depends on the Cage’s triumvirate of law (Harmonium, Guvners, Mercykillers) to succeed, so it cannot fight them. But these factions would hate to know that their just and lawful goals were being perverted by the Guild. The factions of chaos (the Indeps, and the Hands of Havoc—Xaositects and Anarchists) would look down on the Guild’s dependence on others to succeed and their support of oppressive factions. Only the Dustmen and the Bleakers might not care, but since no faction likes being manipulated, that’s an iffy suggestion at best.
Benefits: The Guild’s association with shadows is apparently more than just symbolic, for any member of the sect gains duskvision, which is to say their eyes are more sensitive to light, and they can see as if it were broad daylight at dusk. The effective range of torches, lanterns, and magical light are tripled. Absolute darkness is still dark to those without infravision, however. Warriors and priests who belong to the Guild gain the ability to Hide in Shadows. Their score is 20%, +4% per level. Needless to say, the Guild has some very capable assassin-warriors. Wizards gain full access to the research materials in the Gehennan stronghold, and any spells researched by other members, as well as a list of spell keys for shadow magic for just about anywhere. Rogue members gain access to training, and get +10% to their Hide in Shadows Ability.
Restrictions: With sensitive eyes, Guild members do not function well in full sunlight. Fortunately, the weather in the Cage is usually overcast enough for Guild members to get away with it. All members suffer a -1 to THAC0 and a +1 to initiative when exposed to full daylight, continual light, or the equivalent. Also, Guild members must obey orders from their superiors without delay, and must always strive toward the faction’s goal of ruling everything from the shadows.
Source: Belarius; Jon Winter-Holt. This is a homebrew sect.