Guildmasters Guide to Ravnica

(Nancy Kaufman) #1

the pursuit of the common good. At the same time, the
guild's connection with the natural world gives the con-
clave a fervent appreciation for the interconnectedness
of all things. Selesnya doesn't tolerate selfishness or
ambition, instead urging its members to put the needs of
others ahead of their own desires and to use the power
of nature- including nature's wrath- to drive away those
whose selfishness threatens the coherence of the group.
The greatest danger that Selesnya faces lies in the
ambitions of other guilds, which are flourishing in the
absence of the Guildpact. Selesnya's way of curbing this
grasping selfishness has always been to outnumber the
other guilds. Its members aren't naive; they fully realize
that the ambitions of other guilds will lead to violence.
And they aim to be prepared for that violence when
it erupts.
'·For my seedlings to survive," Mat'Selesnya says, "we
must grow an army capable of overwhelming such ambi-
tions." Some of that army is literally grown, in the case
of plant creatures and elementals. A great many mem-
bers grow up in the guild from childhood and learn their
martial skills at the guild's training grounds. And still
more join the guild through recruitment- especially in
these troubling times. when rumors of war and a sense
of imminent doom make Selesnya's message of harmo-
nious community sound ever more appealing.


Selesnya Characters

Alignment: Usually good, often neutral
Suggested Races: Human. centaur, elf(wood), half-
elf, loxodon
Suggested Classes: Bard, cleric, druid, fighter, monk,
paladin, ranger, warlock
You might enjoy playing a Selesnya Conclave character
if one or more of the fo111owing statements are true:


  • You like the idea of being part of a huge, peaceful
    community.

  • You like playing druids, rangers, or spiritual monks.

  • You believe in victory through respectful teamwork,
    overwhelming numbers, or both.

  • You want a spiritual connection to something bigger
    than just your character.


JOIN ING T H E SELESNYA C O NCLAVE
New initiates come to the Selesnya Conclave as chil-
dren, to be brought up by the guild's members, or as
recruits drawn from the guild less or the membership
of other guilds. Regardless of the path you took to get
here, you start out in the role of initiate. As an initiate,
you must subsume your desires to the needs of the
guild while finding a way (under the guidance of your
enclave's leader) to put your talents to use in service to
Mat'Selesnya. This effort isn't so much a process of car-
rying out orders, but of gradually discerning the will of
the Worldsoul and finding your place in it.
ln your search for communion with the Worldsoul,
you are part of a worldwide community, but you are also
part of a smaller local community-an enclave called a
vernadi, which is led by a dryad called a voda. Your role
in the conclave is specifically oriented toward your ver-

nadi, at least at the start of your career. Your voda helps
you in your process of discerning the will of Mat'Sele-
snya and your place in relation to it.
The Selesnya Conclave is both a community of wor-
shipers and a militia, and thus its leadership includes
both military and religious figures.

MILITARY ROLES
Selesnya looks from the outside like a peaceful commu-
nity, but it is also an army. If you are a fighter, a ranger,
or a paladin (usually having sworn the Oath of the An-
cients), your place in the guild is a military one. Unlike
in the Boros Legion, though, the conclave's milicary
ranks aren't highly structured; each enclave has its own
forces, with a single commander and one other layer of
command (at most) above the troops. A variety of special
military roles become available to you as you prove your-
self useful to your vernadi and the conclave. You might
aspire to be a votary standing watch over the temple
gardens, a sagittar archer, a pegasus-riding equenaut, or
a wolf-riding Ledev guardian.

RELIGIOUS ROLES

If you are a druid (perhaps of the Circle of the Land),

a cleric (of the Life or the Nature Domain), a warlock
with the Archfey (Mat'Selesnya) as a patron. or a devout
monk (who might follow the Way of the Open Hand), you
might be drawn to a role of religious leadership. These
leaders mediate the relationship between the members

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