Even above family or state, dwarves and gnomes revere their membership in one of many guilds. Their role within their chosen guild is of primary importance. There are many stories of children who are disowned just for choosing to join a different guild to pursue other goals than the rest of their clan. Over the centuries, some guilds have risen and others fallen or been lost to time. A few guilds have been disbanded because of tragedy or blasphemy or both. A few of these “lost” guilds have been re-constituted in hiding, creating a number of secret societies within the dwarven heritage.

The best known guilds include:

• The Arcanists Guild
• The Armorers Guild
• The Capitalist Guild
• The Explorers Guild
• The Healers Guild
• The Image Guild
• The Scriveners Guild
• The Stonecutters Guild
• The Subterraneous Guild
• The Steel Guild
• The Tanners Guild
• The Teamsters Guild
• The Tinkerers Guild
• The Varrik Guild

Each individual guild generally recognizes four ranks below Guildmaster. In ascending order of rank they are: Members, Apprentices, Journeymen, and Directors.

The guild system are powered by a number of clans of various peoples. The Mountainborn and Hillborn dwarves, the Rockbred and Deepbred gnomes, the hearty outlander Giants, and the rare synthetic heritage of the Automatons.