Maker's Mark
A roleplaying Free Company on Mateus
Dedicated to creation in all its forms - artisanal, artistic, literary and more - our cause is to light a flame against the darkness of ignorance and despair.We stand united not as Disciples of Hand or Land, or War or Magic...
...but as Disciples of Creation.
The Lavender Beds, Ward 26, Plot 27Nestled in the shady comfort of Gridania's Lavender Beds, the Maker's Mark Guildhall welcomes any with the spark of the creative.
Make Your Mark
Nominally a Free Company under the auspices of The Order of the Twin Adders, Maker's Mark operates as a guild in the traditional sense, offering support and work for the advancement of characters' creative pursuits or ambitions. These can include - but are by no means limited to - smithing, engineering, magical artifice, alchemy, cooking/baking, painting, writing (poems, novels, plays, essays and so on) and performing disciplines such as storytelling, singing, music and dance.As nothing is ever truly created alone, the guild's doors are open to more than crafters. It is not merely the armorer who forges steel and aether into masterwork mail, the apothecary from whose alembics pour wondrous draughts, or the minstrel whose harp-coaxed tunes bring legends to life, who may claim membership - it is also the humble forager whose talents lie in gleaning from wood, field, and stream the materials that every artisan needs, and even the sell-sword bodyguarding that forager, should he wish to further his knowledge of caring for the blade he makes a living by. (And maybe learn how to tell better tales around the campfire on his next job!)United as Disciples of Creation, the makers of the Mark travel lands 'rent by tooth and claw', kindling hope for a better tomorrow with every swing of their forge-hammers, every spark of aether harnessed, and every stroke of quill, brush and harpstring.
The Guild Vision
Maker's Mark aims to offer an RP experience with an emphasis on the artistic and industrious pursuits of characters, through the Creator/Collector dynamic.In guild parlance, Creators can be craftsmen, engineers, artists, performers, or any who embody the soul of creation.On the other hand, Collectors can be miners, foragers, hunters, dealers, or any who help procure the materials - raw and rare - that go into Creators' work.These two types of guild members work in tandem to fulfill regular levequests and special commissions, from both PCs and NPCs. Such collaborations can fall into the following categories:
Artisanship
Synthesis of bespoke items (arms, armor, accessories, furnishings and more) through consultation and collaboration, delving into such details as the precise materials and processes used as well as their historical, spiritual and aetheric significance.
Foraging
Forays into wilds and towns to gather raw materials and components for the fulfillment of work orders. These can, and often do, include rare and difficult-to-procure specimens that require martial, diplomatic or esoteric talents to acquire.
Uplifting
Public performances and discourses, aimed to entertain and educate through the act of creation. These may take the form of open storytelling nights under the stars, impromptu concerts or recitals in towns and roadside inns, masterclasses on craftsmanship and engineering hosted at the guildhall, and more.
Guild Events
This page will be regularly updated with current and upcoming events held by Maker's Mark, both private and public.Check back now and then!
Maker's Mark is currently:
Expanding operations in Eorzea, aiding in levequests submitted to the Guildhall.
Guild Chronicle
Events and milestones in the history of Maker's Mark.All information on this page may be treated as IC, though not necessarily public knowledge. Feel free to inquire if you would like to reference any of it in RP!
Past Events
Levequest: Arms of Banishing
Creating innovative new armaments for a Wood Wailer anti-ashkin task force.
Levequest: A Goobbue Graveyard
Obtaining special moss from a long-dead goobbue - and opening up new business frontiers.
Levequest: A Festival Most Fine
A summons from the colorful city of Radz-At-Han sees Maker's Mark aiding in restoration and revels in kind!
Charity for Garlemald
Supporting the Aetherwatch Society in its efforts to succor victims of the Garlean civil war.
The Faculty of Innovation
Reviving a foundering Faculty to forge ties with the nation of Sharlayan.
Milestones
Makers Rise
Having taken their leave of the caravan business, Castle Stoneforge, Namida Wyrmsong and Cordelia Harper sojourned in the Twelveswood - where, under the fireworks of the Rising, the seeds of a new guild for creators were sown.
Warm Hearts
Under the auspices of Houses Fortemps and Hallienarte, the first Annual Maker's Mark Starlight Donation and Toy Drive was held at Ishgard's Last Vigil to uplift spirits and raise funds for community initiatives in the Brume.
Levequest: Arms of Banishing
Maker's Mark's first big order came from one Renette Auclair, Lieutenant in the Fifth Spears of Gridania's Wood Wailers, who was supervising the formation of a troop of ashkin hunters in response to recent sightings of undead and evil spirits in the woods around Quarrymill. To arm these elite soldiers, she ordered spears, swords, shields and bows specially crafted for the banishing of both corporeal and incorporeal ashkin.Pooling their knowledge and experience, guild members and partners plotted out the steps required for the creation of these unique armaments.
A survey of the Floating City of Nym to uncover any secrets the ancient Nymians may have used to stave off ashkin attacks
A delegation to the Holy See to obtain dispensation from the Ishgardian Orthodox Church for the procurement and use of high-purity holy water
A foray into the Twelveswood to harvest the lumber necessary to fashion the armaments, along with reagents for poultices and poisons that may aid in combating ashkin
With these steps complete, Maker's Mark convened in the guild smithy for the work of crafting the 'Arms of Banishing'. In addition to an array of silver-edged arms tempered in Ishgardian holy water, the innovation and ingenuity of the artisans involved resulted in the following.A strange plant found growing around the crystal formations at Nym, dubbed 'ashbane', was made into a lacquer for arrow shafts to increase the missiles' effectiveness against ashkin. The arrows themselves were equipped with explosive heads, intended to detonate once embedded into undead flesh.A collection of thaumaturgical foci found in a buried coffer at Nym was identified as wards that the ancient Nymians likely carried to repel ashkin while abroad at night. These were fashioned into talismans for the protection of ashkin hunters. In addition, the runic 'code' behind their enchantments was deciphered for further production of anti-ashkin accessories.The remainder of the holy water procured from Ishgard was incorporated into grenades, designed to explode with just enough force to shower ashkin with the purifying liquid without reducing it to steam (or causing collateral damage).
Charity for Garlemald
The civil war in Garlemald left many settlements abandoned or in terrible disarray. Ordinary Garleans were left to fend for themselves amid the brutal Ilsabardian winter as battle lines shifted and resources dwindled.The Aetherwatch Society, an ally of Maker's Mark, stepped in to provide humanitarian relief. But as the undertaking was too great for any one organization, a call went out for any willing and able to venture north and aid the victims of war. Houses had to be rebuilt, warmed, and supplied. Families had to be sheltered and fed.Maker's Mark was among the companies that answered this call, committing labor and various resources towards helping innocents in villages throughout Garlemald regain their feet in the wake of war.
Levequest: A Goobbue Graveyard
In the wake of the Final Days, Maker's Mark was hired by Coerthan merchant Kenward Tyler to procure a special type of moss, highly valued by alchemists, that grows on the skin of goobbues. Rallying collectors and creators alike, the guild dispatched a caravan to Thanalan to seek this specimen in an old goobbue grave.
Despite their carriage getting bogged down in the marshy terrain of the Rootslake, the team made good time over the Thanalan border, passing through Wellwick Wood without incident and making camp just outside Highbridge.With rumors of recalcitrant Amalj'aa in the area and a nest of buzzards nearby, various measures were carried out to secure the camp and its food stores - from simple sentries to makeshift scarecrows to sprinkling provisions crates with pepper in order to repel hungry cloudkin.
Continuing on to the goobbue grave - identified as none other than the Lonely Giant - the team employed some human catapult antics to reach the long-dead goobbue's back and harvest the valuable moss.An unexpected diversion arose in the form of a visit from an unfamiliar Miqo'te, who introduced himself as a gleaner from Sharlayan on a similar errand. Swiftly determining that lending him a hand would open doors up north, the team parted with some of the moss - wrapped in guild-branded packaging to raise awareness of Maker's Mark among the Sharlayan's handlers.
The rest of the moss was duly delivered to the client in a special chest, hand-made with ferberite and fire crystals in the lining for optimal presentation as well as preservation.The team's little gambit at the goobbue grave paid off; word arrived a mere sennight later from the Sharlayan Gleaners' Guildship, inviting Maker's Mark north for talks. With a whole new frontier open before them, the artisans began work at once on procuring gifts and making preparations for a flight to the Northern Empty.
The story continues in "The Faculty of Innovation".
The Faculty of Innovation
Having obtained an invitation to Sharlayan after assisting a Sharlayan gleaner in the field (see "Levequest: A Goobbue Graveyard"), Maker's Mark brought a refitted Garlean airship up to working order for the trip. A successful test flight from the Twelveswood to Coerthas later, the team christened the vessel Horizon's Edge, appointed an Acting Captain and a Helmsman, and set off for the Northern Empty.
Upon landing in Old Sharlayan and passing through Worldly Affairs, the team started their tour with a taste of the nation's notorious archon loaf before presenting themselves at the Studium. A surprise awaited, for their invitation turned out to be from the Studium's Faculty of Innovation - a foundering, underfunded operation in dire need of skilled hands.Wasting no time, the artisans set about making themselves useful by helping the Faculty justify its existence.
An opportunity was swift in coming. Sharlayan lacked a means to maintain law and order on its own soil, which, while an acceptable omission during its isolation, meant growing security concerns now that its borders were open to all kinds of travelers. Asked to propose innovations to help make the city safer, Maker's Mark polled citizens before developing two prototypes.The first was a skyborne lantern buoy, inspired by Doman tento-okuri lanterns, to help guide incoming airships to a safe landing as well as alert those on the ground of airborne approaches. Standing almost the height of a Lalafell, this buoy carried a crystal designed to shine a brilliant green at the approach of large flying objects - be those airships or monsters. The color green was chosen to prevent confusion among Sharlayan astrologians watching the sky, green not being the color of any known star.The second was a safety call box, to be installed throughout the city for citizens to call for help more easily. Made from steel plates greased with pulped fire crystal to withstand the Sharlayan winter, this call box housed a clutch of linkpearls connecting callers with local emergency services. Enchanted high durium ink was applied into finely etched channels within the box's frame to amplify the linkpearls' range and clarity, and rods of stabilized earth crystal added to keep the call box powered using ambient energy drawn up from the earth.A third proposal - a fleet of flying mammets equipped with searchlights and water cannons for use against lawbreakers - was scrapped due to ethical and privacy considerations as well as the difficulty of prototyping a flight-capable mammet within a short timeframe.
When the Faculty of Medicine challenged the Faculty of Innovation to conceive a dish superior to the archon loaf using at least one unique ingredient from Labyrinthos, Maker's Mark rose to the occasion with not one but two entries.Working with a massive and highly nutritious specimen of Labyrinthos carrot dubbed the 'Grandeur of the Gods', team members resorted to utilizing nature's own digestion to overcome the obstacle of the root vegetable's tooth-chippingly tough skin. Digestive sap from one of Labyrinthos's Northern Snapweeds not only broke down the carrot but added to it a rich sweetness that recommended it for use in cake baking. Mixing the softened Grandeur with raisins, decadent coconut cream cheese frosting, and a helping of Prince's Pecans - another unique product of Labyrinthos - the team produced the 'Nature's Own Grandeur' carrot cake, which won the approval of the Studium's Council of Culinary Assurance.Maker's Mark followed up this success with a dish designed for portability as well as nourishment. Banking on the Sharlayan stereotype that books are more precious than gold and that even the crumbs of the archon loaf could sully their pristine pages, the team incorporated northern herring - freshly caught in Scholar's Harbor - and the softened Grandeur carrot into a fish stew that was safe for in-library eating. Featuring a rich broth made with merino dairy and a medley of vegetables including celery, garlic, parsley, various spices, and Labyrinthos's unique alienon onions, the stew earned acclaim for its nutritional value and ease of preparation.
The artisans then descended into Labyrinthos as a guild for the first time, marveling at the Sharlayans' man-made underground world even as they embarked on their next task for the Faculty of Innovation: testing a new batch of 'cloud skiffs' developed for field researcher transport and evacuation.Equipped with a bevy of on-board tools such as portable aetherytes, water cannons, and stasis grenades, the skiffs served their purpose admirably when an elemental reactor accident in the Central Circuit spawned a rampaging horde of ice-aspected aetheric constructs. Maker's Mark got a rare taste of action pivoting from test flight to rescue operation, pushing the experimental vehicles to the limit as they ferried reactor staff to safety.
The team's final task was a joint project for the Faculties of Innovation and Archaeology, involving the examination of a draconic slab unearthed in Sharlayan's Dravanian colony years before. A dragonet bonded to one of the team's members proved key to this endeavor; by augmenting its aether with their own, the artisans empowered the wyrmling to unleash a blast of dragonbreath powerful enough to unlock the slab's secret.Said secret turned out to be a message left by an elder wyrm to its progeny in the first century of the Dragonsong War - a paean of peace and reconcilation accompanied by images of a glorious skyborne civilization where man and dragon once lived in harmony. As the long-dead wyrm spoke its last, the slab cracked in twain to reveal a trove of artifacts from that bygone era, which the team duly chronicled before handing over to their Sharlayan hosts.
Thanks to the hard work and ingenuity of Maker's Mark, the Faculty of Innovation gained newfound standing in the Sharlayan academic establishment. As a reward, the guild was officially recognized as a partner of the Studium, and its members given honorary Sharlayan citizenship in a small ceremony held at the newly renovated faculty.
Levequest: A Festival Most Fine
With the chill of the Northern Empty behind them, Maker's Mark returned to the Maker's Guildhall only to have received another summons abroad: to the warm shores of Thavnair. The price for a lucrative contract granting access to giantsgall, Maker's Mark would need to provide their presence to a cultural festival held in celebration of the Thavnairian Restoration underway. With representatives from across Eorzea, The Far-East, and beyond, Maker's Mark boarded The Horizon's Edge once more and set off for Radz-At-Han!
Thavnair was a buzz with excitement for the upcoming festivities, and the team at Maker’s Mark set about experiencing the colorful wonders that the tiered city had to offer. Trekking the jungles for inspiration from the wilds, sampling the food and drink of Mehryde’s Meyhane, and witnessing the specialized techniques employed in The High Crucible of Al-Kimiya were only the start!
When Maker’s Mark caught wind of a local fashion icon and dancer, **Jirih Metme **, looking for a unique and eye-catching ensemble to wear for her upcoming performance at the festival, the tradesfolk got to work! Employing their trademark interdisciplinary approach to synthesis, Maker’s Mark composed a finely tailored dress of deep blue--enchanted to take on the appearance of flowing water that moved with one’s movements. Accessories including a woven crown of vermillion flowers, and a set of hand-crafted fans painted to accent the azure ensemble.
As the venue preparations continued, Maker’s Mark found opportunities calling them beyond The Wakeful Torana and into Thavnair’s coastal settlements. With markets reopening, the influx of supplies are a precious resource to the communities and people recovering. Contracted to support, Maker’s Mark aided in the verification of artisan goods, provided salvage and relief operations with The Horizon’s Edge, and supported the reconstruction of Svarna for its new Arkasodara inhabitants.
Maker’s Mark took up the opportunity to man a stall at the **Cultural Festival’s **
grounds, joining the myriad of stalls from businesses and trade guilds both local to Thavnair and from shores far beyond. The artisans of Maker’s Mark supplied several refreshments including a ** grandmother’s spring tonic** from the Twelveswood, an Abalathian **stone soup **, Far-Eastern styled ** dumplings and tea **. Each of the goods on offer, such as an intricately carved bookcase sporting the totem creatures for the Seeker tribe, displayed the diverse cultures which compose the membership of Maker’s Mark.
As the sun began to set, **Jirih Metme ** took center stage, adorned with the garments and accompaniments crafted by Maker’s Mark. A dazzling performance highlighted by live music, copious amounts of colorful **gulal **, and the cheerful spirits of a nation communing brought the festival to a lively end!
Guild Policies
In addition to FFXIV's Terms of Service, Maker's Mark observes the following general policies.Inactivity
We seek friends who will join us regularly for both RP and content, and help the FC grow. As such, ingame FC members are liable for dismissal after 6 (six) months of inactivity without notice. This policy applies on a per-character basis, main or alt.Lore Adherence
We are a lore-respecting FC, with allowance made within reason for points the lore does not cover. We strongly believe in rooting our RP in the shared foundation Square Enix's writers have created for us all, and expediting community RP through minimal deviation from that.Community Engagement
We love making new friends and finding new audiences! Open-world and public RP are definitely on our menu, as opposed to exclusively RPing in the FC hall or within FC circles. This does also mean that all members are considered FC representatives, and are requested to be mindful of this fact.RP Style
We are not a conventional 'tabletop-style' RP FC, and do not mandate the use of rulesets and dice systems. In addition, there are no DMs running scripted story arcs here. Folk who join us should come prepared for a more freeform RP experience where taking the initiative is welcomed.Fantasia Use
We do not acknowledge the IC existence of fantasias. OOC use of fantasias will be treated case by case, based on the impact it may have on FC RP.
Guild Recruitment
Maker's Mark is currently seeking the following types of characters:Artisans and craftsmen
Entertainers
Experts in resource acquisition
Creators of all stripes!Please reach out to a guild contact below if you feel your character would be a good fit for us! Even if your character is already part of another FC, we would still be happy to welcome them as one of our non-member Guild Partners.
Guild Contacts
Namida Wyrmsong
Guildmistress
Bami#2690
Castle Stoneforge
Guildmaster
Feyloch#2173
Vellace Deran
Flight Officer
Hexxian#6659