Page 85 - Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica

in a similar way. The original mission of the conclave
involved conservation and charity, but its focus has long
been on expanding its community, in which all members
are cared for and nature is preserved in harmony with
civilization.
INSIDE THE CONCLAVE

SELESNYA CONCLAVE The Selesnya Conclave is organized into enclaves called
vernadi, which are communes built around central
SELESNYA TROOPS POURED INTO THE STREETS, trees. The vernadi are smaller versions of the guildhall,
emptying the nature temples, wildlife preserves, and other the great city-tree Vitu-Ghazi. A dryad, called a voda,
is called forth from that central tree to be the leader of
green spaces controlled by the conclave. The centaurs'
the community, connecting the vernadi and its devotees
hooves clattered on the cobblestones and the wolf-rid- to the Worldsoul and uniting them with the will of the
ers bounded over stone bridges. Human and elf infantry entire conclave.
flooded through the arteries of the district. streaming past A voda is accessible to all the guild members in her
care. You have regular contact with your voda. who
intersections and flowing around buildings. Criffons and
knows your name and has a good idea of your interests,
their riders swooped down out of a blanket of low clouds, goals, and strengths. And since your voda is mystically
strafing past the spires. Emmara rode on the shoulder of linked to the guildmaster, Trostani, through communion
with the Worldsoul, it's safe to assume that Trostani
a massive creature made of a snarl of marble, wood, and
knows who you are as well.
vines, her hand resting on its great head. Two more of the
In addition to the voda, military and religious leaders
nature behemoths strode ahead of her. swinging their limbs in each vernadi regularly communicate with its mem-
in slow motion, indenting the streets with their footfalls as bers. Ordinary members of the conclave spend a few
hours every day training with a military instructor and
the other Selesnya troops ran between their legs. Below her,
studying with a religious teacher.
Captain Calomir led the Selesnya army. He rode his white
war rhino, driving the Selesnya ranks forward, guiding GOALS OF T HE S ELESNYA
them through the streets toward the Rakdos horde. Despite the growing tensions that now grip the world,
- Doug Beyer, Return to Ravnica: The Secretist in the long view of the Selesnya Conclave, not much
has changed. Ravnica is troubled, but Ravnica has
always been troubled. The Living Guildpact is absent,
Like a thriving garden, carefully tended and abundantly
fertile, the communities of the Selesnya Conclave are but the Guildpact comes and goes. The Worldsoul has
a harmonious union of nature and civilization. The not changed, nor has the will of Mat'Selesnya: the con-
members of the conclave dream of embracing all of clave's main goal is to grow, as it has always been. fts
strength lies in its numbers.
Ravnica in their peaceful union. In the meantime, they
The conclave clings to the ideal of a peaceful collec-
are growing an army, preparing to resist the ambition tive in which individual desires are subordinate to the
and destructive impulses of the other guilds and fight to good of the whole group. The guild wants to see this
defend their way of life. beloved community grow, flourish, and thrive in peace.
At the heart of the Selesnya faith and philosophy is
the Worldsoul, called Mat'Selesnya, which its devotees But as much as it values peace within the community,
believe to be a manifestation of nature itself. At the it displays incredible ferocity when that harmony is
threatened.
signing of the original Guildpact, Mat'Selesnya was
Selesnya's vision is centered on the idea of harmony
embodied in an elemental form and acted as the guild's between civilization and nature. To advance the cause
first guild master. The current guildmaster, Trostani-
three dryads fused together with Mat'Selesnya into a of civilized society, the conclave believes in the need <C
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single being- is said to embody the will of the Worldsoul for an ordered structure that orients the group toward r

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