This post is in response to Jack's public post 10193 which
he made through Glor, a secretary in the warlock guild, but
it is truly addressed individual Warlock guild members.
I do not know how much any of you have been informed about the
enchantment treaty, the negotiations surrounding them and
the consequences of your guildmaster's chosen course of
action. Jack has already shown that he is perfectly
willing to use his own guild mates unwittingly and to put
them at risk to further his own ends. (Speak to Glor
about why he was enemied to Shallam if you want an example).

Against the possibility that Jack has misinformed you or kept
you ignorant on these matters, I feel compelled to set forth
the facts about how we came to be in the position we now find
ourselves in, and what the consequences will be if he continues
on this course of action. Jack has decreed that his guild will
not respond to anything written here. I have no doubt that Jack
himself will ignore what I have written. However, I trust that
as individual Warlocks you have both intellect and free will.
I am certain that you are capable of assessing the facts,
formulating your own opinion and deciding on an appropriate
course of action. You may decide you agree with Jack, you may
decide that you don't, and that's fine. I only ask that you
think and decide for yourselves.

So what is the enchantment treaty and how did we come to find
ourselves in this position? The enchantment treaty has a
long and often tortured history, but the short answer is
that it is a two part agreement between the Sorcerers, Warlocks
and Magi guilds that fixes a price floor for enchantments and
that prohibits the sale of certain enchantments to non-magi
class individuals.

The price floors are obviously intended to benefit all enchanters,
as it ensures us reasonable compensation for the work that we do
enchanting. The prohibition on selling pestilence rings, resistance
rings, cube sigils and knife sigils is aimed at the protection of
magi class members. Knife and cube sigils are particularly dangerous
for us as they deprive us of our ability to access the elements and
dampen the vibes we depend on in combat. The treaty prohibits even
the creation of these deadly sigils.

There has been a need to renegotiate the price floor aspect of the
enchantment treaty for quite some time. The prices and system for
selling commodities changed drastically several decades ago, but the
treaty prices were never reevaluated to reflect this. The change
in comm prices resulted in higher profits on nearly all enchants,
and perhaps this is the reason that the guilds were not inclined
to take action. In any case, the formation of the Arcanists guild
underscored the necessity of updating the treaty. As a new guild
they are not bound by it, and they decided to offered a small
discount when selling directly to Cyrene citizens. They have
willingly abided by the illegal enchants portion of the treaty.

Several attempts have been made to progress on the negotiations.
A forum for discussion was created outside the realms, and although
the warlocks were slow to participate (I believe as a result of
political upheaval going on in the guild) a dialogue did get
underway. That forum was unfortunately closed because access to
it stopped being free and the negotiations stalled. Perhaps two
years later, the Magi guild purchased a clan for the express purpose
of giving senior magi class people a place to meet and hash out
the issues surrounding the treaty as well as other matters important
to us as a group such as skills upgrades.

Sometime within seven months of the formation of that clan, Jack
decided to break the pricing aspect of treaty. I do not know
precisely when he decided to "formally withdraw" the Warlock
guild from the treaty, because he did not bother to inform anyone
that he was doing it. He says he sent a personal message to
Caleth. I know for certain that I received nothing. My first
inkling that the treaty had been broken was an ad placed by
Kyle advertising astoundingly low prices for enchantments.
The Sorcerer and Magi guilds were outraged, and we demanded
that the Warlocks revert to the pricing of the original treaty
while the negotiations continued. Jack expressed his desire
that the negotiations be completed in a timely fashion and
indeed within six months all four guildmasters met and began
to establish new prices. Jack left that meeting before we
completed our task. I don't think it was an unwillingness
to finish, he simply had to leave the realms for a time, but
the fact remains that *he* was the reason that it was not
finished at that time.

Since then we have been attempting to find a time and place
when all four of us could meet to wrap up the negotiations.
I told Jack that Greywolf had the authority to parlay for
the Magi guild, hoping that would afford some additional
flexibility and would facilitate getting this thing done.
Last month, ad 75 appeared. Kyle resumed (or perhaps he
never even stopped) selling enchantments at discounted prices.

The Magi and Sorcerer guilds are weary of Jack's repeated
violations of our good faith. I will not even begin to address
the suspicions that he has provided illegal enchantments to
non-magi class individuals, as that would require an entirely
separate post. His cavalier disregard for basic tenants of
the treaty has made bargaining in good faith very difficult.
Caleth, Cree (both of whom have much longer histories with
Jack than I do) and I began to wonder if there is a point to
having a pricing treaty at all, since Jack seems unwilling to
even temporarily restrain himself and his guild during the
negotiations. We all voiced that concern at a meeting
attended by the four guildmasters last month, Caleth more
vociferously than Cree and I, but it was a concern that
all of us had. When faced with that possibility, the
possibility that indeed his actions might have harmed the
negotiation process beyond repair, what was Jack's response?
Was it to agree to have Kyle pull ad 75? No. Was it to apologize
for violating the good faith of three other guilds? No. His
response was to leave the meeting after about 10 minutes and
within 30 minutes of leaving announce his intention to flood
Sapience with illegal enchantments.

So that is how we came to be in this position. Jack's
assertion that "as the Sorcerers no longer care for a treaty,
the Warlock guild must assume it is because they wish to
sell illegals." is completely disingenuous. The Magi and
Sorcerer guilds have held to the pricing treaty. The Magi,
the Sorcerers and the Arcanists have been committed to not
sell illegals. Jack decided to break the floor pricing. Jack
has decided to make available to the public the very enchantments
which harm magi class individuals the most.

More than few people have wondered why Jack would choose to
create and distribute enchantments that he stands to be hurt by.
I can only speculate, but I have considered a few possibities.
He definitely stands to profit tremendously by this, since he
is one of the few people in his guild who can create these
enchantments and to my knowledge is the only one that supports
this course of action. Additionally, if he has engaged in
creating and distributing illegal enchantments in the past,
flooding the market with them now will certainly cloud that
issue to the point that it can never be fully resolved.
Even if the treaty is restored, he could in fact continue
to make and distribute illegal enchantments and simply say
that they were created during the time the treaty was
broken (by him). That would explain his motivation to create
pestilence and resistance, but cube and knife sigils are
another matter, since these things harm him directly. Perhaps
he doesn't care if he dies more. He was recently relegated to
Minia by the Gods for his unconscionable "accidental" dropping
of holocaust globes (although how someone accidentally drops more
than one holo is beyond me) at an event attended by more than
200 people. He doesn't lose much in the way of experience when
he dies, unlike you high level people against whom these sigils
will also be turned. Or perhaps he does not intend to stay magi
class at all but is turning his thoughts and attentions to a new
class. You might want to start paying attention to how much time
he spends in the enchanting room.

Whatever Jack's true motivation for this decision, the bottom
line is that it hurts every single magi class person in the
realms. Expect for your staffcasts to do less damage to
your enemies. Expect to have your vibes dampened by anyone
with 2000 gold and your channels severed by anyone who can cough
up a spare 500. Expect to receive afflictions from pestilence
rings being turned against you. That is what Jack's decision
will bring us to unless you individual Warlocks decide to act
as a group and put a stop to this.

Although we have received many, many requests to do so, the Magi
guild has not sold illegal enchantments. The Sorcerers and the
Arcanists have not sold them either. The issue of these harmful
enchantments should transcend any concern we have for pricing
or profits. I can live without a pricing treaty if I have to.
Unlike Jack, profit is not my primary concern. My concern is
protecting the people who are magi class from having their own
enchantments turned against them.

While I don't think they should be linked, the Magi guild
is open to restoring both the pricing and illegals treaties.
I cannot speak for the other guilds. Regardless, I hope that
you Warlocks carefully consider the actions and motivations of
the man who is currently leading your guild, and ponder exactly
whose interest it is that is foremost in his mind: the guild's
or his own.

I thank you for taking the time to read this, and for your
intelligent consideration of these matters.

Most sincerely,

Solar Stormcrow Skar'Akai
Guild Mistress of the Magi

Penned by my hand on the 9th of Mayan, in the year 318 AF.