The Guild Union (ギルドユニオン Guirudoyunion?) is a congregational association settled in Dahngrest that thoroughly operates as the leading source of power for guilds in Tales of Vesperia. The Union's headquarters are located in the northern area of Dahngrest, and their authority is dictated through the guild-based influence of the city, as well as through the representation of the Five Master Guilds, the five most powerful guilds in the Union. Approximately ninety-percent of all guilds are part of the Union.
History
Origins and Oath
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The Sewer Tunnels of Promise.
Several years prior to the events of the story, the Empire occupied Dahngrest, forcing guild members to hide in a complex underground canal eventually known as the Sewer Tunnels of Promise (誓いの地下水道 Chikai no Chika Suidou?), waiting for an opportunity to perform a counterattack. Before the Union was formed, guilds were scattered and unorganized, unifying only in the case of a serious problem; when the problem was resolved, the guilds would scatter again, primarily doing whatever they please. When the Empire possessed control over the city, the guilds were compelled to join together in forces to effectively oppose the Empire, giving birth to the Union. Don Whitehorse, who successfully influenced the guilds into forming the Union, created the Union Oath (ユニオン誓約 Yunion Seiyaku?), a famous motto among guild members that originated during the formation of the Union. The Pledge of the Union states:
- Long ago our ancestors abandoned their nations for forgetting their duty to protect their people and thus became the true defenders of freedom. That is how the guilds first began. But now the iron shackles of oppression threaten to strangle us once again. It is because we have forgotten the oath of our ancestors and spent our time fighting one another for our own self-interests. Therefore, we must once again return to the basic principles behind the guilds and join our strengths together as one. We offer our swords for freedom, our shields for friendship, and our lives for the common good. Here we renew our ancient oath.
Purpose and Conduct
The Union serves as the primary source of employment for guild members associated with it; however, non-Union guild members are able to seek employment with the Union as well, albeit through the Union gaining thirty-percent of whatever profit earned. Fighting and other forms of conflict between guilds, as well as any form of intervention in another guild's business, are strictly forbidden by the Union. Union guilds must be registered with the Union itself for business-related purposes.
A non-Union guild is typically formed through informal means of mutual understanding among its founding members, while a single founding member serves as the guild's leader. Guilds possess their own list of laws for their members to uphold, established during the guild's creation; failure to uphold these laws may result in direct action in the form of punishment or banishment from the guild. Those who consider themselves guild members have sworn away their rights as imperial citizens, granting them freedom from the Empire's control. Freelance in their visions, these members seek to dictate private laws and philosophies for the sake of establishing order.
Members
The following is a list of guilds in or associated with the Union. Known members of the guilds are provided in bulleted lists, and the leaders of each guild are bolded.
Five Master Guilds
Other Guilds
- The following guilds are listed alphabetically.
- Bunny Guild (ラブリーウサギルド Raburiiusagirudo?, "Lovely Usaguild") is a guild dedicated to protecting rabbits. One of its members can be talked to in the Guild’s Union HQ, on the left side of the main hall. He requests that the party spreads word of his guild by earning Grade points in battle. The more Grade points earned, the more accessories he gives the party.
- Clouds of Dawn (暁の雲 Akatsuki no Kumo / "Ouraubiru"?) is a guild that sought to take control of the Union after the Don's death. Its members argued with Altosk's members over the Union's position after the Zaude crisis.
- Trendy Sweeties is a "celebrity guild" of which Sassoon de Mohren (サスーン・ド・モホルン?) is a member. Sassoon can be spoken to in Tavern "Sagittarius" after Belius's death to gain new accessories and titles based on mixing existing accessories and titles.
- Sassoon de Mohren
- Evergreen (四季折々 "Paapechuaru"?, "Perpetual") is a guild that promotes seasonal enjoyment. One of its members, Lewis (ルウィス?), can be spoken to in Deidon Hold after the Adephagos appears, when he is given one last chance to promote winter before he is kicked out. He comes up with the idea of dogs snowboarding as a way of advertisement and has Repede snowboard through eight courses on a snowy mountain.
- Lewis
The primary members of the Hunting Blades, from left to right: Clint, Tison, and Nan.
- Hunting Blades (魔狩りの剣 Magari no Tsurugi?, "Demon Hunting Sword") is a guild of hunters who seek to eradicate all monsters, including the Entelexeia, claiming that monsters are the root of all evil in the world. Its guild members are frequently hired to kill a particular monster or exterminate an entire nest, which they oblige without remorse. Several of the guild's members, notably its leader and top officers, all possess particular justifications for their hatred of monsters.
- Leviathan's Claw (海凶の爪 Kaikyou no Tsume / "Rivaiasan no Tsume"?, "Claw of the Sea's Misfortune") is a shady weapons and hoplon blastia-selling guild that has its headquarters in the Manor of the Wicked near Dahngrest. Lower members of the guild who carry out minor missions, often of sabotage, are referred to as "red eyes".
- Serpent's Dream (海竜の夢 Kairyuu no Yume / "Saapento no Yume"?, "Dream of the Sea's Dragon") was a pirate guild led by Granclay (グランカレイ?). It was split into Leviathan's Claw and Siren's Fang when Granclay died.
- Siren's Fang (海精の牙 Kaisei no Kiba / "Seiren no Kiba"?, "Fang of the Sea's Essence") is a pirate guild led by Aifread. The guild disbanded after the "Black Hope" incident, in which the crew were turned into monsters due to Alexei Dinoia's betrayal. This guild is exclusive to the PlayStation 3 and Definitive Edition versions of the game.
- Aifread/Patty Fleur
- Seifer
- Jim (ジム Jimu?)
- World's Cellar (天地の窖 Tenchi no Anagura?) is a surveyor's guild. It gives information about synthesis.
- Kozakura (コザクラ?)