Guildmages

Guildmages are mages that have applied and been accepted into one of the Six Guilds of magic within Maesia. Likewise, mages not assigned to a guild are called freemages.

To become a guildmage, a magic user must first apply to the guild of their given element (earth, air, fire, water, white, or black respectively). The testers for the guild in question will then deem if the mage is worthy of taking the Trial, which tests the mage's magical prowess. An applicant can be denied access to the Trial for various reasons, be it inexperience, insufficient ability (the Trials can be fatal to those without enough power or control), or even the testers' personal preference. Thoughout history, more than a few guild testers have been notorious for rejecting the applications of nonhumans.

Those who are granted access to the Trial are tested rigorously, sometimes within an inch of their life. If the Trial is passed, they become a trainee and spend several weeks/months with other trainees in one of the many guild embassies, honing and perfecting their abilities under the guidance of a specially-selected trainer in preparation for their next Trial. If the second Trial is passed, they are then granted official guildmage status and enter the lowest tier (sometimes called a "ring") of mages within the guild.

Guildmages are given a higher level of respect than freemages, as guildmages are required by their tier commanders to accept missions of various difficulty to assist the Guild and/or the citizens of Maesia at large, sometimes putting their lives on the line to protect others. Freemages have no such orders to perform such acts, as as such are more commonly associated with fleeing dangerous areas as opposed to staying to defend, regardless of whether or not this is true.