Interguild United Front (Lorica)

Interguild United Front
The Interguild United Front, commonly called the Front, or IUF, is an arm of the United Guilds. It is charged with presenting a united front or "face" for all the guilds in their dealings with nations and national spellcasters. In this way the six guilds essentially form a monolithic power bloc that commands great power, enough to force the nobles and kings of Lorica to give them great deference and respect in the dealings that the guilds may have with the nations. The guilds pledge not to be involved in international affairs, except through decisions reached by the IUF, or in the event that the nations attempt harm to any guild or try to steal a guild's secrets. The IUF's decisions are not legalling binding according to their treaty, but but are almost always followed, as all the guilds and the masters in the guilds recognize the importance and political advantage of dealing with individual nations from such an impressive position of interguild unity. The IUF, for its part, only rarely favors intervention, not even to start a war between kingdoms.

The associates of the IUF are called Heralds. They are essentially ambassadors who communicate with the nations and between guilds. Heralds are generally treated with the utmost respect by any ruler wise enough to understand the danger of invoking the guilds' ire.