Guildmasters Guide To Ravnica

shows of the Rakdos (in part because the Azorius are

frequently ridiculed by Rakdos performers) and attempt

to curb them with new decrees about public perfor-

mances. In response to attempts by other guilds to edge

their way around the system, the Azorius routinely cre-

ate new laws to support or countermand old ones.

AZORIUS CHARACTERS

Alignment: Usually lawful, often neutral

Suggested Races : Human, vedalken

Suggested Classes: Bard, cleric, fighter. paladin, wizard

You might enjoy playing a character who belongs to the

Azorius Senate if one or more of the following state-

ments are true:

• You're drawn to the idea of a hard-bitten police officer
  trying to impose order on a chaotic world.


• You like the idea of using magic to control enemies.


• You like playing enchanter wizards, clerics of law, or
  unbending paladins.

j OINING THE AZORIUS SENATE

As a recruit to the Azorius Senate, you were quickly

immersed in the law. You might have clerked for a judge

or a legislator, been an apprentice to a practitioner of

law magic, studied rhetoric with diplomats, or t rained to

patrol the streets and enforce the law. As your training

comes to an end and your adventuring career begins,

you must decide whether to focus on law enforcement

or to operate primarily within the bureaucracy of

the senate.

LAW ENFORCEMENT

Most Azorius adventurers belong to the guild's police

force. They are soldiers or spellcasters who patrol the

city in teams or singly, preventing crimes or stopping

them in progress. If you want to pursue a career in law

enforcement, choose the path of the Iawmage, the pre-
cognitive mage, or the arrester.
Lawmages. As a spellcaster in the Azorius Senate,
you use your magic to compel or restrain malefactors
and scofflaws (perhaps as a wizard specialized in the
School of Enchantment). You might also use your magic
to protect Azorius soldiers and innocent bystanders
from harm (perhaps as a wizard specialized in the
School of Abjuration or as a cleric of the Order Domain,
which is described in chapter 1). In any case, you're
called a lawmage, and you can aspire to the title of jus-
ticiar and then deputy as your standing within the guild
increases.
Precognitive Mages. If you are a spellcaster with
some ability to glimpse the future (perhaps a wizard
specialized in the School of Divination or a cleric of the
Knowledge Domain), you can use this ability to try to
prevent crime before it occurs, serving as a precognitive
mage. These mages occupy a small niche on the periph-
ery of the guild, and the guild hasn't developed a bureau-
cratic structure to accommodate them, so they advance
through the same ranks as lawmages.

Arresters. As a martial character, you can serve as an

arrester in the Azorius Senate. You might be a fighter (of

any martial archetype) or a paladin who has sworn the

Oath of Vengeance, for example. Arresters maintain the

peace by removing threats-both actual and potential-

identified through regular patrols, citizen reports, and

occasionally alerts from the precognitive mages. As you

gain the respect of your superiors, you can be promoted

to the rank of officer or imperator.

BUREAUCRACY

Bureaucracy might seem like the opposite of adventure,

but it is possible to immerse yourself in the life of a civil

servant in the Azorius Senate and still live an adventur-

ous life. You might be a mild-mannered judge's clerk or

scribe who got caught up in a whirlwind chain of events

beyond your control, or you might moonlight as a vigi-

lante in defiance of the law you are supposed to uphold.

Or you could serve a diplomatic function as an elocutor.

Elocutors. As a skilled orator and diplomat (perhaps

a bard of the College of Lore), you can put your talents

to use in the guild as an elocutor. The Azorius are

known for their measured, patient speech, and the elo-

cutors are the primary voice through which the senate

communicates with the other guilds and the people of

Ravnica. Thus, you might serve as an emissary from the

Azorius to another guild, working to settle trade or ter-

ritorial agreements, temporary alliances, and the like.

You might have the task of securing the support of key

senators for a particular piece of legislation or treaty.

Well-established elocutors can be rewarded with the

rank of scribe or emissary.

Background: Azorius Functionary

The brutes are at the gate, chaos is looming, and the

only thing standing in the way of disaster is the founda-

tion of la w and order-as embodied in the Azorius Sen-

ate. You're a proud member of the Azorius guild, which

both enacts and enforces the laws that make Ravnican

society function smoothly and safely.

Skill Proficiencies: Insight, Intimidation

Languages: Two of your choice

Equipment: An Azorius insignia, a scroll containing the

text of a law important to you, a bottle of blue ink, a

pen, a set of fine clothes. and a belt pouch containing

10 gp (Azorius-minted 1-zino coins)

FEATURE: LEGAL AUTHORITY

You have the authority to enforce the laws of Ravnica,

and that status inspires a certain amount of respect and

even fear in the populace. People m ind their manners in

your presence and avoid drawing your attention; they as-

sume you have the right to be wherever you are. Show-

ing your Azorius insignia gets you an audience with

anyone you want to ta lk to (though it might cause more

problems than it solves when you're dealing with incor-

rigible lawbreakers). lf you abuse this privilege, though,

you can get in serious trouble with your superiors and

even be stripped of your position.

CU\PlER~ <,UILDSOI R\\NIC,\ 33