Conclave Rankings

Ranks of the Conclave. This is exluding special branches such as the Inquisition. Like our own goverment however the more senior ranking the members of goverment the more likely they are to be put in a position of power for a special branch. Highest rank at the top and lowest at the bottom.

Grandmaster

The public figurehead of the Conclave. The head of the Conclave is handpicked by the members of the Masters Circle to take on the mantle of leadership for the Conclave. The Grandmaster has historically always been chosen from one of the members of the Master Circle, though this is not inherently required. Anyone the Master Circles views as worthy of becoming the Grandmaster can be chosen. Aside from being picked by the members of the Masters Council the Grandmaster must undertake and pass three rigorous and deadly tests. A test of might, mind and spirit. Any mage capable of passing these tests is viewed as nothing short of extrodinary and thus the Grandmaster is generally viewed by most of the world as the most powerful mage in the world. The Grandmasters duties include affairs both foreign and domestic, and while their powers are not unlimited, they are expected to act as the firm guiding hand of the Conclave's direction.

Circle Master

To become a Circle Master is viewed by many as the pinaccle of a Conclave mages career. Being a Master suggests magical prowess but to become a Circle Master is to be gifted with absolute prestige. Circle Masters are those who command respect not simply in the realm of magic but in the political world as well. These men and women make up the Masters Circle, which acts as the head advisory body of the Conclave is responsible for most of the major macromanagment of the Conclave. A Circle Master is picked from the ranks of available Masters. A Master is raised to a Circle Master by a two-thirds majority vote of the existing Circle of Masters. At that point he mantains the position permanently barring death, retirement or a two-thirds vote by the Masters Circle for his removal.

Master

Master’s are the head instructors and micromanagers of the Conclave and occupy nearly all of the senior positions in the magical organization. Multiple avenues to achieving the rank of Master exist. The most common rites of passage is completing the Masters Trial or by giving many years of service to the Conclave. Twenty-years of honorable service as an adept or thirty years as journeyman is the general standard. One can also be promoted to the rank of Master by special designation of the Circle Grandmaster or by a majority vote of the Masters Circle. Masters command a position of respect and distinction and are generally regarded as above menial fieldwork. However, on occasion they can be called on to take command of situations judged as out of control or take on field tasks of extreme import.

Adept

Adepts are the skilled martial experts and scholars of the Conclave. Though not yet provided distinction of Master, they have proven their skill and worth to the Conclave higher ups. Adepts are the last pit stop before becoming a Master and it is the rank at which most members of the Conclave make their name. For most Conclave mages, their most dangerous missions and most recognized magical breakthroughs were accomplished during this period of their career. While not carrying out more important missions for the Masters Circle, Adepts are forced to deal with menial task work needed to get by in their day to day lives. They often find themselves at the whims of Masters in need of completing simple tasks that require more experienced hands then those afforded by apprentices.

Journeyman

Journeyman, as the name implies, is the stage at which a mage is sent out to journey and experience the world. It is here that most mages gain their first bit of recognition for their service to the Conclave. Ones time as a journeyman is also where mages truly begins to find themselves. Do they serve well as an attaché or assistant in one of the Conclave’s many embassies? Do they prosper as enchanters helping to bring in the coin that has allowed the Conclave to grow? Do they have an eye for spotting rare herbs or a knack for potion making? Or are they one of those few who show a talent for battle? This is where most of the Conclaves production comes from and where most mages find their niche in the Conclave’s magical machine. Journeymen tend to serve exclusively outside of the Conclave’s island fortress and provide most of the gruntwork needed to keep those operations outside of the Conclave's center of power going.

Apprentice

Apprentices serve as the metaphorical boot camp stage of a mages career. No longer the starred eyed babes of initiatehood but neither capable of commanding respect, they undergo a grueling regime. This is where most mages begin to truly craft and use magic to the point where it could be considered dangerous. Many an apprentice have spent their nights retching up their innards after a spell went wrong, only to get up bright and early the next morning, to fetch tea for their superior and begin another day of harsh instruction. It is here that the Conclave instills the iron discipline needed by all mages to cast magic and drills out the childish rebellion of their pupils. In its stead it replaces obedience toward the Conclave and the iron will resolve necessary to represent themselves as members of the Conclave across the world. The life of an apprentice is not completely pitiless however. It is also a time of rare but relished revelry, friendship with fellow mages and late night sojourns with significant others. Apprentices vary widely in years for many a mage are taken to the service of the Conclave at an older age. Those senior apprentices who may lack discipline toward the Conclave but possess more refined magical techniques can often be assigned to Masters for more advanced magical instruction.


Initiate

Initiates or as they are more fondly and widely called “magelings” is the start of a mages careers. The process can be quite different depending on the age of the mage. For those initiating at a young age they may spend years serving as initiates completing menial tasks here and there, learning the basic theory of magic though rarely its practice, and kept from killing themselves at an early age. These younger initiates are treated with considerable discipline but are not treated unkindly. The older initiates share a different fate. They are given a crash course on the workings of the Conclave and given the finer points of magical theory they had likely already grasped unto intuitively but had not yet grasped firmly enough. They may serve a few days in relative comfort before quickly becoming apprentices.