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From Fax Encyclopedicus

Powerful organizations are at work in the world, eager to reward loyal service and punish those who would defy them. Access to some prestige classes requires characters to either join these organizations or attempt to steal their secrets, invoking the wrath of the order in question and any allied guilds. ====Associated Spellcasting Classes==== Spellcasting is a secret art, jealously guarded. To belong to a spellcasting class, a character must have at least done a great service to, if not outright joined, an organization that teaches members of the class in question. =Secret Societies= These groups have no guild halls nor banners, but a member will instantly know another by a secret sign or phrase. Any secret society worth its salt will have a myth that surrounds it, and members are encourages to bolster the society's prestige by leaving clues that desirable acts were performed by it (and hiding all involvement in any acts its members may find shameful). ==Whispering Winds== Anyone with a pouch of silver can find some hoodlums with clubs and aim them at someone they don't like. But those who desire that a job be performed with precision and discretion will try to make contact with the Whispering Winds. This shadowy cabal of thieves, assassins, and spies is concerned with moving things - whether that involves moving contraband across borders, moving daggers into hearts, or moving large sums of gold into their own pockets. Individual members rarely come to prominence even within the society, but there are a few who are known as the elite among the elite, and whispers of their deeds reach even the uninitiated. ====Associated Spellcasting Classes==== Assassin, Ebonmar Infiltrator, Hoardstealer, Temple Raider of Olidammara, Consecrated Harrier, Justice of Weald and Woe, Justicar of Taiia, SLayer of Domiel, Shadowsmith ==The Knights of the Thistle== There is a purity of sorts in the vagabond's lifestyle, one that these skilled warriors have embraced. Knights of the Thistle are wanderers who seek to perfect their combat arts against all manner of foes, and share their discoveries with their fellow knights whenever they chance a meeting. The Knights seek neither honor nor glory, and frequently obfuscate the very existence of their order as a safeguard against various kings and bishops who would compel them to service. ====Associated Spellcasting Classes==== Unseelie Dark Hunter, Suel Arcanamach, Knight of the Weave, Champion of Gwynharwyf, Consecrated Harrier, Holy Liberator, Knight of the Chalice, Windrider, War Mind, Fist of Zuoken, Zerth Cenobite, Shadowsmith =Churches= The gods may have no mouths of their own, but there are plenty earthly ones who would speak for them. While society at large is polytheistic, these organizations dedicate themselves to a particular god above all others, and offer various services related to their deity's domain. While the various gods of the pantheon are not truly opposed to one another, the members of a god's church will often try to sway others to their way of thinking, since this directs more recruits and tithes to the cause. ==Taiia: Chaos, Upheaval, and Change== No mortal work can last forever, and this is both right and just - for when one thing is destroyed, another one can be created in its place. Taiia's disciples can be found tending elaborate orchard-graveyards, or behind the scenes trying to bring down a government (at which point they would do well to disguise their affiliation). Taiia's rituals take place at the change of the seasons, coronations, births, and funerals. Taiia's disciples hate the undead, who not only hold on to the world beyond their time but take away the lifeforce of those whose time is not yet up. ====Associated Spellcasting Classes==== Assassin, shade hunter, knight of the weave, champion of gwynharwyf, vigilante, cyre scout, blackguard, disciple of thrym, pious templar, justice of weald and woe, justicar of Taiia ==Elishar: Light, Balance, and Order== Understanding one's place in the world is the path to true happiness. Elishar's followers seek to set things right in the world, so that others might go on living as they are supposed to. There is no need for a peasant to trade his shovel for a sword if Elishar's templars are there to take care of the goblin menace for him. Elishar's church holds weekly rituals, as well as a single great feast every year. Elishar's churches also provide healing for the suffering, a basic education in smaller towns and villages, and patrols in areas where the dangers present outweigh the skills of those who combat them. ====Associated Spellcasting Classes==== Shade hunter, Thayan slaver, court herald, soldier of light, holy liberator, knight of the chalice, pious templar, vassal of Bahamut, emissary of Barachiel, Windrider, Vadalis Beastkeeper, death delver =Guilds= Claiming to have everyone's best interests at heart can be useful, but discarding the pretense that you take care of everyone except your own is very liberating. Guilds are associations that move only when it benefits their members, usually to extend their dominance over something valuable. Guilds hold significant sway in both economics and politics, and a guild member of prominent standing might be considered the equal of a minor noble in many social matters. ==The Keepers Guild== If knowledge is power, then the greatest army in the world is bound in leather and stacked floor-to-ceiling in the vast archives of the Keepers. While the public face of the Keepers resembles elderly, nearly senile sages, the guild has many researchers toiling behind its gates, and just as many agents out in the field attempting to unearth forgotten lore. The Keepers command a great understanding of magic items, and maintain excellent supply lines for the ingredients necessary to enchant them. The sale of these items gives the guild a reliable revenue stream to maintain its grandeur, fund its operations, and occasionally slip a hefty bribe in the right pocket when someone asks why the realm's great knight has suddenly set out to hunt dragons and pilfer their hoards while he was supposed to be defending the king. ====Associated Spellcasting Classes==== Ebonmar infiltrator, fatemaker, hoardstealer, suel arcanamach, court herald, cyre scout, vassal of Bahamut, temple raider of Olidammara, consecrated harrier, emissary of barachiel, death delver, shadowsmith ==Ribaldiers== Anybody (with some exceptions) can have fun, but it takes some dedication to well and truly ''carouse''. The ribaldiers began as an entertainers' guild, but over time became more interested in entertaining themselves. The parties of these hedonists are both legendary and abrupt, and woe be to any who went out for a drink and suddenly finds themselves in the middle of a banquet. While they are a nuisance to pretty much everybody, their skill at court intrigue and the entertainment they provide to the nobility give them a tenuous license to continue operating, at least in most places. ====Associated Spellcasting Classes==== Celebrant of Sharess, Fatemaker, Hoardstealer, Court Herald, Champion of Gwynharwyf, Temple Raider of Olidammara, Emissary of Barachiel, Vadalis Beastkeeper ==The Adventurers Guild== While any authority figure who's ever had dealings with the Adventurers Guild has many reasons to resent them, they are still grateful that someone else has the job of keeping the realm's good-for-nothing nobodies in line. Officially, the Guild of Adventurers is supposed to serve as a way for wealthy citizens to efficiently request properly remunerated help for dealing with matters beyond the government's power or purview. Unofficially, it's a good place to go when you want someone with too much personal power dead - and not just dead, but properly dead, with the enchanted dagger nailing their body to the coffin, their soul sealed away inside a gem, and any resurrection contracts with Elishar's priests annulled. ====Associated Spellcasting Classes==== The Adventurers Guild provides training for all known magical traditions.

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