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The Magic Guild


Bellosh

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The Magic Guild - "Spellbound by Magnificence"

 

In the heyday of the Canterlot trade guilds, one association stood out above the rest to exert economic and cultural dominance over the capital city. Unicorns are defined by their ability to cast spells with their horns, so naturally the local Magic Guild was the most powerful and respected commoner-run entity within the city walls. At its height, the Guild was regarded as Canterlot’s champions, working alongside Princess Celestia and her Royal Guard to protect the realm. Those times may have long since passed, but like a phoenix rising from its ashes, the Magic Guild has resurrected itself in the modern era to again promote relevance for professional magic-wielders in the hearts and minds of all Equestrians.

 

The Magic Guild came about in the early days of Canterlot’s existence, when the growth of the unicorn community increased the demand for wizards of all stripes. Conjuring, alchemy, enchanting, divination: all those disciplines and more were widely practiced in the Classical Era, although many mysteries about the Arcane had yet to be solved by the science of the time. Gradually realizing that a comprehensive understanding of magic couldn’t be achieved unless they all worked together and pooled their resources, the various Canterlot guilds representing each magical discipline all agreed to merge into one single association; the Magic Guild. For the first time in Equestrian history, an institution of learned unicorns possessed the means to collaborate and study the secrets of the Arcane.

 

But studying magic wasn’t the Magic Guild’s only important role in classical Canterlot society. Through its Master-Apprentice system, the Guild could guarantee that all aspiring mages received the proper training and ethical education from a certified master. Municipal laws forbade anypony from selling magical services unless they were Guild members, and only those ponies who’d completed a decade-long apprenticeship could become a wage-earning Journeypony. After paying his or her dues and demonstrating mastery in their discipline, the Journeypony finally became a Master, earning them the right to open a shop and train Apprentices. Businesses licensed by the Magic Guild were marked by a hanging sign: a crescent moon and three stars superimposed onto a sun styled after Princess Celestia’s cutie mark.

 

In the heart of the expanding castle town stood the Turris Alba, the ornate alabaster tower nicknamed the Ivory Tower by virtually everypony not connected to the Magic Guild. It was here where Guild officers convened for meetings, younger member practiced spells in their free time, and scholarly Masters researched the Arcane sciences. As appropriate for the headquarters of a magical society, the Ivory Tower appeared to have much more space on the inside than its exterior would suggest. The Guild jealously protected its trade secrets; it further enchanted the Tower with secret libraries and studies accessible only the proper spell or incantation. Isolated from the rest of the Canterlot populace, the wizards in the Ivory Tower could study in peace without the distractions of outside life.

 

This proved to be a double-edged sword. Despite the good deeds performed by the Magic Guild’s members, the wizarding community earned a rightfully deserved reputation as Ivory Tower elitists, preferring the company of like-minded Guild members instead of bonding with the pony community at large. As the Reinaissance period drew to a close, two developments changed the world of magic forever. First, improvements in royal tax collecting allowed Princess Celestia to fund her School for Gifted Unicorns, giving unicorn pupils the option of learning in a more communal setting than the antiquated Master-Apprentice system. Secondly, the rise of publicly funded research institutions eliminated the Magic Guild’s monopoly over the study of magic. Very swiftly, the Guild found itself perceived as an outdated relic that society no longer needed. Deprived of its importance, the centuries-old Magic Guild declined into irrelevance overnight.

 

Although the Magic Guild was no longer needed per se, it was not forgotten by the magically proficient. As the centuries marched toward the current era, these ponies witnessed how without an association to promote the magical trades, magic itself lost its intrinsic value as Canterlot’s economy transformed to cater to the snobbish tastes of high society. Yet just when it seemed like the Guild would forever join Star Swirl the Bearded in the pages of obscure unicorn history, the emergence of Twilight Sparkle and her Ponyville friends reminded the world of the true power that magic can unlock. Inspired by Twilight’s example a band of magic-wielding enthusiasts along with a network of influential benefactors have vowed to resurrect the once-great Guild.

 

In honor of the Magic Guild’s past legacy, the revived organization has adopted the historic Guild emblem and reoccupied the Ivory Tower, which still stands as the tallest structure in the Old Quarter. However, its members don’t intend to repeat the mistakes of the past; community outreach is the primary aim of today’s Guild. In time, the Guild hopes to assemble a new generation of mages who can both showcase the awesomeness of magic to public audiences and, if need be, employ their talents as guardians of harmony. Most ambitiously of all, the Guild plans to expand its influence to all of Equestria, enabling it to fight everywhere to increase the prominence of magic professionals and advocate for the adoption of magically enchanted technology. In this manner, the Magic Guild hopes to regain its place of honor while evolving to meet the realities and needs of today.


If the Magic Guild’s quest succeeds, Equestria will once more be, as the Guild motto suggests, “spellbound by magnificence.”
 

~The Gilded Guilds of Canterlot 

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