Lifewardens
Overview
The Lifewardens were one of the Seven Great Guilds of the Orethan Dominion and counted among the so-called crystal guilds — those organizations whose practice was founded upon the channeling of a specific crystal type. According to A History of Rislandia, the Lifewardens were regarded as the rarest of the seven guilds, numbering approximately 10,000 members at their height. Their symbol was "a green tree on white field," and their headquarters were situated in the city of Viridian.
The guild's leader held the title of The Breath Giver.
Role and Practices
The Lifewardens served the Orethan Dominion primarily as healers, animators, and researchers into the nature of consciousness. Their work was made possible through the use of life crystals, which they employed to achieve feats beyond the reach of conventional medicine or craft. According to A History of Rislandia, the guild's documented achievements included the healing of mortal wounds, the development of early automatons, and advances in life-extension.
The Lifewardens did not operate in isolation from religious institutions. They worked alongside priests in Church of the Great One-operated hospitals, suggesting a cooperative relationship between the guild and the church during the Dominion period.
Fall of the Guild
The Lifewardens' existence as an organized body came to a violent end with the Night of Shattered Crystals. According to A History of Rislandia, "The Lifewardens scattered into the jungle" in the immediate aftermath of that catastrophic event. Many were hunted down over the months that followed. A few survived in hidden sanctuaries, though the sourcebook does not name these refuges or identify any survivors by name.
Legacy
The Lifewardens' contributions to early automaton development and life-extension research represent some of the most significant technological and arcane achievements attributed to any of the Orethan guilds. Their dispersal and near-destruction during the Night of Shattered Crystals marked the effective end of organized life-crystal practice within the Dominion. Whether any lineage of their knowledge survived into later eras through those few members who reached hidden sanctuaries is not addressed in A History of Rislandia.