After the applause went on for an appropriate amount of time, the headmaster continued. “Yes, thank you. Settle down now, we have more to cover. The first years may be wondering why the houses? Each guild house has a purpose. It is a way to group you with like minded individuals to aid in your training. Research has shown that compatibility of styles can help stimulate your skill unlocks and growth. It has also been shown to aid in the awakening of additional abilities. This of course will be covered further when you start class in a couple of days. For today though, we will discuss diversity and it’s effects. The houses exist as opposing forces to push one another.”
The students each looked around at their opposition. Headmaster Dagon gave them that opportunity to soak in his words before he continued. “As you saw earlier today in the trial, there are many types of students. Their abilities and skills are as varied as their personalities. The trial is designed to show you your weaknesses. To give you a better understanding of where growth needs to occur. Or if you lack the possibility of growth, you may be able to find a complimentary partner. If an individual has great offensive ability, but there is a lack of a defensive ability, they can be beaten easily by an opponent with a moderate strength and defense. They will shed enough of the damage, then deal a fair share. Inversely, an individual with a great defensive ability may find themselves unable to damage their opponents due to a lack of offensive abilities. We hope to teach all of you the best way to survive in this harsh world. Let us talk of the guilds and our new recruits. Please stand as you are introduced.”
The headmaster held up one finger. “The academy prides itself on balance, these students are of The Syndicate. Let us meet the Syndicate freshmen class. Blake Hansen, Razor Black, Allary Cochran, Sirius Cain, Devlin Winslow, and Titus Payne.” The six stood as the rest of the hall applauded them.
He held up two fingers. “We need those with a willingness to step up and defend others, these are the students of The Ronin. Let us meet the future guardians of the academy, The Ronin freshmen. Grifter Durgan, Madrigal Hunter, Ulrich Pellegrino, Tapia Bastian, Silva Vanegas, and Xavier Green.” The hall continued there applause.
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He held up three fingers. “Lastly, but most important, we need students with the nerve to adventure where others haven’t, all in the name of expansion and growth. These are the students of The Delvers. Let us meet the Delvers of the future, may they bring us great riches from beyond the void. Riley Gunn, Maximus Killian, Hank Steel, Phoenix Cross, Primrose Verao, and Gideon Daniels.” The crowd applauded loudly, many of them recognizing Gideon and Primrose from the trial earlier.
“Give them all a final round of applause. Thank you everyone for providing such a warm welcome. You all may be seated.” The first years took their seats as the applause died down. They all smiled, soaking in the warmth of the greeting.
Headmaster Dagon held out both hands in a gesture that encompassed the room. “These three groups make a dynamic fighting force. But first you need to learn to crawl before you learn to walk. To do that we have a competition of the houses. The leader at semesters end receives the Cup of Houses. The competition is judged on multiple facets of your daily life here. First will be your class assessment. You and your classmates will be awarded merit points for performing well in class. The second will be delving efficiency. Delving will be covered in class and how gaining merit points can be achieved. The third will be a social aspect for your contributions to the community and the school. Finally, we will be holding duels. The initial rounds will be individual battles. Each house will have six battles. Three against each opposing house. Each victory will be worth a merit point. Your first round match will be posted in the main hall by the end of the first class day. A running tally of merit points will be posted in the dining hall and by the guild banners in the main hall. This will be updated before every evening meal. On that note. We have spent too much time already on business, lets eat.
Gideon was shocked by the groups of workers that came into the dining hall. They carried large plates of food out to the tables, several of each dish was placed around the room. The conversation began, starting a little strained, but once the reservoir opened and people found comfort in their groups, it flowed. They talked and joked about the day and the events that had occurred. The excitement was more than any of them have had in their lifetime. A big topic of discussion was the bidding war on new students. The debate on their pick rankings and who the number one pick had been was a hotly discussed topic. Gideon heard his name brought up a few times, but he never caught the context. He looked up at the tally of scores and saw the single point that the Ronin had. That should have been my house's merit point. I earned it.