Options of Defection

Or Guild Switching Options

Author:  Flosha
Written: 02.09.2024
Update:  08.09.2024

Now that we have an overview of the joining conditions, we can consider all the different possibilities of defection for each guild. This is relevant for the story-writing insofar as that we have to know which other guild the player should be able to turn to if he decides that he wants to or if he is banned from his current one.
Being banned (or even wanted dead as a traitor) can happen almost at any point in the story. For instance if the player kills an important guild member, this will (in the majority of cases) not be forgiven and will lead to the harshest consequences. Therefore it is important to know which options remain for the player at a given point in the story, coming from a specific position or rank within the current guild.

We can list these (theoretical) possibilities, deduced from the analysis before, as shown below. They are theoretical insofar as in practice there are also other conditions at play which may exclude him from these guilds (such as having ruined his respect by them already through former encounters). Also please note that the summary below is not necessarily what we will end up with in PHOENIX, it is just a descriptive summary of what Mike suggested in abstract form in his handwritten Guild system notes.

Shadow: A shadow can decide to join the mages circles, the thugs, bodyguards, rangers and the sect novices up to level 3. To the mercs and templars he can either only defect at guild level 1 (in V1) or also up to level 3 (V2). Only at level 1 he may have a chance to disguise as a digger in the Free Camp. And to the Organisation he can defect at up to level 5. While at level 6 the only decision left is the one between the secret thieves guild and the barons.

It seems as if a change in class by joining a warrior guild of the New Camp and the Psi Camp is avoided by limiting it to level 1, while more freedom is given in regard to the thugs as the warriors of the Old Camp, which suggests a possibility for the player to change his class in case that he did not really embrace the thief playstyle he was supposed to adhere to, although a turn towards the mages path is not restricted in that manner. The shadow is (in theory) never forced to remain guildless, as he has always an option to defect to another thief guild until being high enough in rank to join the secret thieves or barons.

Thugs: A thug (OC guard) should have been able to join both magic circles, the snitches, the organisation, the sect novices, the templars (V2), the bodyguards and the rangers up to level 3. The mercs and templars (V1) he could only join at maximum level 1.

As seen at this example, opposed to what the findings about the shadow may have suggested, where it seemed like they wanted to restrict a change from thief to warrior class, the same conditions for the thug make it clear that these restrictions are not class-related, but attitude related, due to the bad relationships to these guilds. When a thug would be banned from his guild at level 4 or 5, not yet high enough to join the barons (at level 6), he would have no option to turn to, needing to finish the game as a guildless character.

Organiser: An Orga could join the two mages circles, the thugs, bodyguards, free thieves, the sect novices and templars (V2) at level 3. The mercs he should only be able to join at level 2. The shadows (V1) and templars (V1) at level 1. But at V2 he should have been able to join the shadows at up to level 5. So, like the shadow, the orga has always the option to turn to another thief guild.

Mercs: Should be able to join the two circles, thugs, shadows, orgas, templars (V2), bodyguards and rangers up to level 3. Psi novices and templars (V1) they should only be able to join at level 1. And the only later option is to defect to the barons (which they highly despise) at level 7. Thus, the mercs, at level 4-6, when being banned from their guild, would have no other option than to remain guildless.

Rangers: They could join the two circles, the thugs, snitches (V1), bodyguards, mercs and templars (V2) at up to level 3. The psi novices and templars (V1) only at up to level 1. They could defect to the shadows (V2) and orgas (V2) at up to level 5. And like them they would not have to remain guildless and can always turn to one of the other thief guilds until ready for the secret thieves.

Bodyguards: As a very underdeveloped guild (and removed in V2 already), they would have been able to join basically every other guild up to level 3, including the templars to which they have a positive relationship (in opposition to the mercs). As they were removed so early it is unclear how they could progress; as a fighter guild as the other three it may be that they would have been given the option to become a baron. In any way, they too would have been forced to remain guildless between at least level 4-6, if being banned.

Battlemages: A battlemage can theoretically join the thugs as well as the shadows, the bodyguards, the rangers and the Organisation up to level 3. He could also defect to the water circle up to level 3 (which means that a defection to the water circle as in the release version would not have been possible in this early concept; please notice that at this point in time the murder of the firemages and all of that was no part of the story conception yet).
To the mercs, the sect novices and templars he could only defect at level 1, as they don’t like the fire circle. And the evocator they can only join at level 7. That said, the battlemages have three levels (4-6) at which they have no option whatsoever to join any other guild when being banned from the circle of fire. In that case, they would need to finish the game as an exiled firemage.

Healingmages: A healing mage should have been able to join the thugs, the shadows, the mercs, the organisation, templars (V2), bodyguards, the rangers and the fire circle at up to level 3. The psi novices and templars (V1) they should only be able to join at up to level 1. Identical to the battle mages except for the possibility to join the mercs until level 3. Based on this scheme, just as the battle mages they would be forced to remain guildless if being banned from the circle between level 4-6.

Sect Novices: At up to level 3 they can join the thugs, shadows, orgas, bodyguards, rangers and templars. The mercs they can only join at up to level 2. The mages circles up to level 1. As other guilds, a sect novice would be forced to remain guildless if he is banned from the sect between level 4 and 6, as there is no option to join any other guild before reaching level 7 to become a guru.

Sect Templar: Could apparently join the fire circle at level 3, as well as the thugs, shadows, bodyguards, rangers, mercs, orgas and novices. Healing mages they should only be able to join at level 1. Same here; forced to remain guildless at levels 4-6 when banned.

Summary

All of these findings, after we have now collected them in this form of an overview and compared to each other, we can now summarise in much shorter and more general terms:

Conclusion

It is important to notice that we can only really get an understanding of what these options of defection mean, if we understand at which point in the story a player would (or could potentially) achieve the respective level that these options are linked to. Only then we can understand what it means to e.g. defect to another guild, potentially to another camp or even to another class at a specific level. With this question we will deal in abstract form in an article about the Guild Progression (in the section about the Guild Ranks in particular), and later in more concrete terms in our plot documentation.

/story/factions/options-of-defection.md