## Description

The Wayfarer's Union is a large-scale union of merchants, artisans, craftsmen, and business-owners, that primarily operates out of Marcandria.

Faction symbol/insignia: Two hands shaking in front of a trade vessel, that looks typical of those used to transport goods by sea. The ship is depicted as if seen from the front, and has a single large sail visible.

## Members

The Wayfarer's Union's membership base can be divided into three categories: the merchants, artisans, craftsmen, and business-owners that make up its members; the three delegate families that essentially own the Union; and the workers they employ to operate the Union's Offices and its services.

The members of the Wayfarer's Union are what one could consider the typical merchant, artisan, craftspeople, and business-owners, that one can find all across Marcandria. They can come from any facet of Marcandrian society. Anyone are welcome to join the Union so long as they pay their fees and adhere to the Union's rules and regulations.

The workers who are employed at the Union Offices — and the Union's other facilities (such as its warehouses) — also come from the regular populace in Marcandria. This include people from both the middle- and lower-class in Marcandria, depending on what type of position they have within the Union. They typically live in small tenement apartments. The roles of these employed workers are varied, each playing a role in making the Union function and capable of providing benefits and services that would entice people to become members. These roles include human resources personnel , bookkeepers, accountants, auditors, treasurers, quality control inspectors, compliance inspectors, trade negotiators, market analysts, receptionists, secretaries, liaisons, cleaners, laborers, porters, warehouse workers, inventory clerks, and administrative assistants.

Lastly are the Union's delegates, who lead the Union. While originally an assembly of hundreds of elected representatives from the different locations the Union operated in, this system has since consolidated down to having only three members. These three in practice now co-own the Union as if it was their own enterprise. They and their families are among the wealthiest non-nobles in Marcandria, and enjoy a wealthy lifestyle akin to that of nobility. Their vast influence makes it so their family members are able to mingle and stay in close contact with the Marcandrian nobility.

### Visual identifiers

Most members and workers/employees look like typical lower- and middle-class Marcandrian citizens, though many use their fine attire as work attire in order to look more proper and professional when dealing with suppliers and customers. Workers who do non-physical tasks, such as receptionists, liaisons, bookkeepers, and so on, are typically required to wear finer looking attires while working — again to portray a more proper and professional look. Workers/employees will typically wear a pin with the Wayfarer's Union's sigil — a practice which is also common among the merchants, artisans, and craftsmen who are members of the Union.

The delegates and their families wear attires typical of the wealthy upper-class, being made of the finest material, filled with embroidery and embellishments, and typically includes multiple pieces of jewelry. The level of luxury in their clothing is very much on par with that of the nobility.

### Members List

- Peluzzi family - Delegate family (Rosella and Brevora)
- Marzon Peluzzi
  - Fedell Getili — Administrative assistant of Marzon Peluzzi
  - Joyala — Administrative assistant of Marzon Peluzzi
  - Armmyr Plubonn, "The Coinflipper” — "General Manager" or "Master of the Company." for Pelluzi's part of the Union. Trusted personal friend of Marzon Peluzzi, and friend of the Peluzzi family. Responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations and making decisions on behalf of the Peluzzi family. Involved in tasks such as managing finances, supervising employees, and making strategic decisions for the Union's future. Nicknamed “The Coinflipper” due to his skill handling finances.
  - Finzu Niesenblinch
  - Kaszin
- Rezzori family - Delegate family (Casodonia)
- De Antaneda family - female leader? To have the woman be the bad guy for a change.

## Beliefs

The Wayfarer's Union members do not share a common set of religious beliefs. Though, as an organization primarily located in Marcandria with primarily citizens of Marcandria in its member base, most tend to pay homage to the Marcandrian worship of the Diostri.

The Union, along with the numerous smaller trade guilds that originally united to create the larger Wayfarer's Union, was formed on the notion that even the humblest artisans, craftspersons, merchants, or business-owners can withstand the pressure of giants if they pull together and all contribute to the wellbeing of one-another's businesses. By banding together and speaking as a single voice, they believe they can have enough sway on the markets and the people who engage in them to thrive even when larger players are trying to push them out. Their collective resources lets them protect one another from the more insidious tactics, and gives them more leverage to to making favorable deals with partners. They also believe this banding together allows them to easier and more fluently trade and make business with one another, allowing one to secure stable supplier and customer relationships that are a lot harder for third parties to disrupt than if they each were on their own. While the Union has changed a lot since its original inception, this core belief in mutual gain through deep and friendly cooperation between members still holds firm. The Union is, in a way, advertised as a family. Where the Union will aid you, and you are expected to aid other members of the Union.

- Against monopoly, even though the Union is sort of trying to do it themselves.
- A member of the Union cannot refuse doing business with another in the Union, as that defeat the point. Does not mean they are forced to do business with them, as it does of course have to be lucrative to them as well. it simply means they cannot refuse business due to personal reasons. Consequently, those who do not play nice with other members of the Union are kicked out.
- Meritocratic. Don't like underhanded business, even though some members of the Union do engage in it in secret regardless.

By speaking with a single common voice, one can have enough sway on the market and the people who engage in it to stand firm against the larger enterprises who wishes to

- Roots of having all the “little guys” band together to stop large enterprises still dear to the core of the Union, even though they have technically become one themselves (the leadership tends to hush this fact).
  - Believes that by cooperating, those of small and medium businesses are able to survive even in a market that include giants. Lets them protect one another from their more insidious tactics.
  - Power in numbers. Many small contributions can stand against a monolith.
  - Banding together gives them greater influence and sway on the markets. Allows them to resist attempts by larger enterprises to push them out. Also allows the Union to make more favorable deals for its members, since they represent such a large volume. Being members of the Union also lets members more easily cooperate and trade with each other (such as a merchant selling raw materials to a craftsperson), allowing both to further facilitate their business.
  - The Union is, in a way, advertised as a family. Where the Union will aid you, and you are expected to aid other members of the Union. → Wont save your business per say. The Union will aid you in the sense that they'll give you an environment where you can secure steady suppliers for a good price, and can often find steady customers of your goods within the Union (thus having you also act as supplier for someone else). If your business falls on hard times, the Union will lend a hand in trying to get you back on your feet, but it won't go out of its way to save you – that's your job.

- Org/history note: The small unions that eventually formed the larger Wayfarer Union were initially formed by fellow artisans etc so they could pool together their resources to protect and support each other from other larger enterprises.
  - “The Fulcrum's increasing dominance in Marcandrian markets caused numerous groups of artisans etc to band together, creating small unions where they could all contribute resources to help protect and support one another, and to have them all speak with a single voice in the market, thus giving their opinion/voice more influence and weight in it.”
  - A member of the Union cannot refuse doing business with another in the Union, as that defeat the point. Does not mean they are forced to do business with them, as it does of course have to be lucrative to them as well. it simply means they cannot refuse business due to personal reasons. Consequently, those who do not play nice with other members of the Union are kicked out.
- Stronger together.
- Monopoly is bad
- Believes in merit - though most members believe in at least some level of fairness.
- Union still does some more shady activities to get market dominance, similar to that of the Fulcrum.

FULCRUM TEXT, FOR REFERENCE:

The Fulcrum's members do not share a set of religious beliefs that bind them together. The organization's primary concern is not the origins or beliefs of its members but rather whether those beliefs pose challenges to the organization's operations. While members of Marcandrian nationality tend to have a close affinity with the Marcandrian Diostri, especially the goddess Meranzi, who embodies commerce, trade, and exceptionalism, religious beliefs are not a central focus. The Fulcrum generally adheres to meritocratic principles, holding individuals who have achieved success and demonstrated exceptional skill in high regard, often recognizing them as peers.

The Fulcrum's core purpose revolves around enhancing the wealth and influence of its members. Individual members may have additional personal goals beyond amassing wealth and market influence, with the aforementioned often being the means to their other goals, though the Fulcrum itself does not concern itself with what these additional goals are so long as they do not pose a threat to the Fulcrum's endeavors. Many members subscribe to the Marcandrian concept of striving for the pinnacle of society, with most members of the Fulcrum viewing economic power as the most effective means of achieving this goal. Economic power is considered the most versatile form of power by Fulcrum members, often surpassing other forms in its ability to enact their will.

One of the fundamental tenets of the Fulcrum's belief system is that securing an undisputed market dominance or even a complete monopoly is the most effective way to safeguard their positions within the market. This conviction leads them to make strategic decisions, even at the cost of operating their businesses at a deficit for a period, to bankrupt competitors and establish market supremacy

Image holds immense importance for the Fulcrum. They aim for respect from others and often desire that their competitors view them with a degree of fear. They also value their public image, though not in a universal sense. The Fulcrum strives to maintain positive relationships with business partners and seeks to sustain at least a satisfactory rapport with customers, ensuring they do not shy away from their products. As for those businesses that fall victim to the Fulcrum's aggressive pursuit of market dominance, they are often perceived as failures by Marcandrian society. This societal perspective is fortunate for the Fulcrum, as it results in minimal public backlash against their practices, provided they remain discreet and that their actions do not negatively affect the general customer base.

## Goals

asd

- Protect one another from being pushed out of the market, done through numbers – power in numbers.

## Organization

The Wayferer's Union exists in a middle-ground between a federation of merchant, craftsmen, and artisan guilds that are lead by a delegate assembly; and a business jointly owned by three powerful Marcandrian families.

The Wayfarer's Union traces its origin back to a large number of small local guilds spread among Marcandrian settlements. These were formed by smaller merchants, craftsmen, and artisans of similar professions, typically all operating in the same settlement, in order to protect themselves and allow them to compete with larger companies and organizations — most notably against larger businesses that were part of the Fulcrum. These local guilds provided a level of organization and support that helped members set fair prices for their goods, better negotiate with suppliers and consumers, and establish standards for quality and craftmanship. Through the guild's shared resources, guild members could pool their resources to invest in new projects and ventures, and could provide mutual support in times of need. This helped the smaller businesses of its member create a more level playing field, and helped prevent its members from being pushed out of the market by larger competitors.

As time went on, these guilds would start cooperating with one another — first with other local guilds from the same settlement; then with guilds local to neighboring settlements. This created a large number of growing confederations of guilds to emerge in Marcandria. These gradually evolved into behaving more like federations — forming a larger centralized organization, where individual guilds would retain some level of authority, but all agreeing to work together and be governed by a central authority. As time went on, these federations continued to grow and merge together until they eventually formed a single nation-spanning organization called the Wayfarer's Union.

These federation — and later the Wayfarer's Union itself — was originally governed by a delegate assembly. Each guild would elect one delegate, who'd both act as the guild's leader and as their representative at the assembly. They would bring matters to the assembly on behalf of the guild, where they'd discuss and vote on proposed solutions for said matter. Each guild would have a single delegate at the assembly, and the delegate for each guild was given a single vote. However, it was possible for multiple guilds to each pick the same delegate, in which case the delegate would have one vote for each guild they represented at the assembly. The intention here was for multiple guilds from the same area to pick a common delegate to unite and strengthen their voice at the assembly.

This is in part what caused the Wayfarer's Union to evolve into its modern form. The position of delegate was originally an addition one's regular work as a merchant, artisan, or craftsman. Every member of a guild would give part of their profits to their guild. These funds would then be divided up, with some going to the guild itself, some being given to the federation/Wayfarer's Union, and with a small portion going directly to the delegate. The portion going to the delegate was intended to compensate for their work, and incentivize skilled individuals into the role. However, several delegates eventually figured out that the compensation alone would be rather lucrative if one acted as delegate for multiple guilds. This created a new class of professional delegates, who all tried to grab more and delegate positions, with the most successful ones eventually forming their own businesses with their own employees to handle all the workload that came with it. This created a cascade effect where the seats at the assembly would be held by a ever fewer but more influential number of people. This eventually caused the assembly from having hundreds of delegates, down to only three.

The Wayfarer's Union of today is essentially owned by three powerful families — each of which are essentially the delegate for a large portion of what used to be the Union's numerous guilds. While the procedure for selecting a delegate technically still exist for each of the old guilds, it's not been practices for generations. The power and influence of the three remaining delegates became so great as to there being no point in electing someone else, which eventually caused a cease to the actual election of delegates, and later to the position of delegate being inherited within the families of the remaining three.

Re-implementing the old assembly with its hundreds of delegates is also no longer a straight-forward task, even if the assembly still technically exist with its three members. The distinctions between the old guilds have been so eroded over time as to make it hard to even determine what portion of today's Union belongs to which of the historical guilds. Cities who used to have multiple guilds now have a unified operation under whichever of the three families control it, making it close to impossible to determine what would belong to what guild. The Union has also expanded since the three families took control, with it being unclear whether the new locations would act as separate guilds in the assembly. The notion of who would get to vote for each delegate is also unclear, as members of today recruited as direct members of the Wayfarer's Union itself, and not members of a guild within the Union.

In simple terms: the procedures around incorporating new guilds, expansion of current guilds, and the overall procedures of the assembly have been unused for so long as to have eroded to the point of requiring a make-over before being implementable again.

The Wayfarer's Union of today operates as a large business jointly owned by three families who are both partners and rivals. They each thus operate their own geographic section of the Union mostly independently, cooperating and negotiating where necessary to maintain the Union's image of being a large, strong, and united force. They of course maintain these partnership due to it being beneficial in their own endeavors — but also because they fear cracks in the Union's perceived unity could cause a cascading effect that could threaten to tear the Union itself apart. They three families are at the same time rivals who try to grab territory from one another.

Each of the union's three “delegate families” operate the Union through a number of Union Offices — many of which used to be guild halls that belonged to the historical guilds. These are all staffed by people employed and salaried by the family who controls said area. Each of these locations operate similar to what one would expect of a guild: providing support, training, and loans to its members; providing benefits and assistance during hardships; setting fair prices for goods; negotiate deals with suppliers and customers; enforcing standards for quality and craftmanship, and so on. The difference here is that each office acts as a business providing these benefits, rather than the members themselves pooling their funds together to provide it for themselves.

Each Union Office is typically lead by a single representative whose directly employed by one of the three delegate families. He'll/She'll then appoint their own assistants, managers, accountants, receptionists, inspectors, warehouse workers, and so on. This leaves the door for each of these locations potentially becoming the new “guilds” should the Union ever re-introduce a proper delegate assembly Each of the three delegate families also have their own massive headquarters from which they control and operate their portion of the Union. These locations tend to have a large number of employees holding similar positions as those mentioned for the Union Offices.

Members still pay a portion of their income as a fee for being members of the Union. A portion of this goes directly to whichever of the three families own the Union Office where said member pays their fee. The rest is split between the Union Office, the headquarter of said delegate family, and the Union as a whole. The portions that go to the Union Office, the delegate headquarter, or the Union as a whole technically belong to the Union, and are therefore not directly available for use as personal funds. Though, since the three remaining delegates technically control the Union's rules and regulations, they have the power to overturn this when they want.

## Operations and endeavors

Delegate families offer transportation of goods.

Has warehouses where members can store their goods for a cheap price.

## Locations

Offices (Guild Hall like)

Warehouses

Owners compounds.

Members' homes and shops - can be basically anything.

## Relations with other factions

## Stance of Succession conflict

# Profession List from earlier:

- Human resources — responsible for hiring, training, and compensation of staff.
- Bookkeepers — responsible for recording transactions and maintaining financial records. Also the ones who receive the membership fees.
- Accountants — responsible for preparing and analyzing financial statements and other reports.
- Auditors — responsible for checking the accuracy of financial records and making sure they comply with regulations
- Treasurers — responsible for overseeing the company's financial operations, including the management of cash and investments
- Quality control inspector — makes sure members adhere to the Union's quality requirements, both for goods and services.
- Compliance inspectors — makes sure members adhere to the Union's rules and regulations. Also makes sure the Union stays in compliance with local and national laws and regulations.
- Trade negotiators — Negotiates agreements on behalf of members.
- Market analysts — Monitors market conditions. Includes coming with recommendations for what ventures to pursue, both on local and organization-wide level (depending on where said analyst is located).
- Receptionists — greets and directs members and other visitors at the Union Offices. Performs administrative tasks such as appointment scheduling and maintaining records.
- Secretaries — responsible for record-keeping and correspondence.
- Liaisons — Communicates with Union members, taking in their needs and requirements, and help them find solutions to any problems or requests they have.
- Cleaners
- Laborers — perform general menial tasks.
- Porters — Carries goods and assist in loading and unloading
- Warehouse workers and inventory clerks — Moved and handles goods in the Union's warehouses. Clerks maintain inventory of warehouse
- Administrative assistants — Does support activities for the Union's managers and leadership. Example of tasks include scheduling appointments, meetings, transport, and calendar for the manager of leader.

Lastly are the delegates — of which there are currently only three. They and their families are among the wealthiest non-nobles in Marcandria, and enjoy a wealthy lifestyle akin to that of nobility. Their vast influence makes it so their family members are able to mingle and stay in close contact with the Marcandrian nobility.