What follows is a bit of an introduction… essentially, the players, in a stock late medieval world, have through one avenue or another joined the Guild, a large corporation that manages to hold sway in a surprising range of areas: medicine, research and development (both conventional and magical), exploration, trade, and the like. The guild also retains a sizeable number of mercenary companies, most of whom are employed as private police in various domains.
Upon joining, everyone must undergo an intense battery of exams intended to test for competency in various areas and help determine where each new operative’s skills and personality would best be put to use. Having completed their initial tests, each party member has received a memo as follows:
Guild Memo
ATTN - Team 6499 Serial #714 Dept. 25 (SEC) Sect. 2 (SLVG) Spec. 7 (Delving)
Welcome to the Guild. <Editor’s comment: sounds a bit upbeat. Strike and revise to sound more impersonal; half our operatives won’t last to see a second memo, we shouldn’t encourage false optimism.>
Having graduated the induction process, you are to be assigned to a small unit comprised of skilled operators whose skills have been tailored to complement each other. Teamwork is of utmost importance, and as such it is imperative that you learn the skills of your coworkers, such that the team might carry on if specialists are lost during the course of a Salvage.
Your particular skills, and consequently those of your teammates, have been found to be of rather questionable use in polite society. As such, you have been assigned to the Delving division of Section Two, Salvage, which specializes in the identification, retrieval, and revaluation of relics and artifacts retrieved from Abandoned Sites. Section Two operates under the auspice of the guild’s Security Department, the unquestionable leader in Treasure Reacquisition and Retention technology.
You and your fellow operatives have yet to achieve Level One clearance, and as such you will only have access to basic support services. Successful missions may qualify you to apply for higher clearance levels, at which point you may be entitled to services from the various friendly, operator-oriented services run out of the Guild. Please note that any attempt to involve non-Guild contractors in Guild contracts will result in immediate termination.
At the present time, you and your team are cleared for the following services:
Company Store – Sundries, basic equipment, and rudimentary weapons will be made available to all employees. Credit lines are also available.
(the following is hastily scribbled on the memo) ADDENDUM: Team 6499 is to have access to Corpse Reclamation services at all times. If an operator is killed during a mission, their body (or what remains of it) will be retrieved and expedited to a medical specialist in the Guild’s Medical Department. Retrieval and revival fees will be assessed at the time, and outstanding debts will cycle into existing credit accounts.
Report to Briefing Room 617 at Junction 12 to meet your team and receive your first Abandoned Site assignment. Good luck!