Guild-Master Elara Song Quest Chain
“The Guild doesn’t deal in morality. We deal in value. Everything has a price—including secrets.”
Overview
Character: Guild-Master
Elara Song
Location: Ironhold (Guild Quarter), Floating Market,
The Periphery
Total Quests: 3
Themes: Economic power, hidden agendas, the cost of
ambition
Reputation Impact: Sky-Guild
Guild-Master Elara Song’s quest chain reveals the machinations behind the Aetherium’s most powerful economic force—and the personal obsession driving its leader toward a dangerous goal.
Implementation Status
| Quest | Status | Stages | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Economic Puzzle | ✅ Implemented | 4 | High |
| Elara’s Secret | ✅ Implemented | 4 | High |
| Elara’s Choice | ✅ Implemented | 3 | Very High |
Quest 1: The Economic Puzzle
File:
data/vignettes/ironhold/elaras_economic_puzzle.json
Trigger: Sky-Guild reputation 30+
Stages: 4
Synopsis
Your reputation with the Sky-Guild earns an audience with its leader. Elara Song has a problem: someone is manipulating Guild markets, and she needs an outsider to investigate.
Stage 1: The Audience
Location: Ironhold (Guild-Master’s office)
Elara’s office is covered in trade charts and shipping manifests. Something is wrong: shipments arriving late, prices fluctuating without cause, profit margins shrinking. She needs you to find out who’s responsible.
Choices: 1. Accept the investigation - Receive Guild seal for archive access 2. Negotiate for better compensation (Cunning DC 30) - Advance payment + percentage
Stage 2: Floating Market Investigation
Location: Floating Market (Archives)
Hours of analysis reveal a pattern: three specific routes are consistently delayed, correlating with price spikes. The routes all pass through a checkpoint controlled by Factor Darius Crane.
Choices: 1. Investigate Crane directly - Proceed to his waystation 2. Analyze the financial trail deeper (Cunning DC 28) - Discover Crane isn’t working alone
Critical Discovery: Success at the deeper analysis reveals Factor Marlena Swift—one of Elara’s inner circle—is Crane’s partner.
Stage 3: Gathering Evidence
Location: Ironhold (Crane’s waystation)
Factor Crane runs a waystation on the Ironhold-Eos route—perfect for delaying shipments. You need evidence.
Approaches: 1. Steal documents from strongbox (Cunning DC 32) - Direct evidence 2. Bribe a guard (-150 gold) - Guaranteed access 3. Confront Crane directly (Courage DC 26) - Force a confession 4. Approach worker Sera (Piety DC 24) - Insider help (if heist failed)
Evidence Found: Records of delayed shipments, price manipulation, and payments to “M.S.”—Marlena Swift.
Stage 4: Report to Elara
Location: Ironhold (Guild-Master’s office)
You present your findings. Elara’s composure cracks when she learns about Marlena.
Choices: 1. Reveal Marlena’s involvement - Full truth (500 gold, +25 Guild) 2. Hide Marlena’s involvement - Blame only Crane (300 gold, +15 Guild, Marlena owes you) 3. Report only Crane - Partial truth (300 gold, +15 Guild)
Consequences: - Full reveal: Elara handles Marlena “personally” - Hide Marlena: You gain leverage over a Factor Council member - Crane only: Conspiracy continues (may resurface)
Rewards Summary
| Outcome | Gold | Guild Rep | Flags |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full reveal | 500 | +25 | elara_knows_about_marlena |
| Hide Marlena | 300 | +15 | marlena_owes_player |
| Crane only | 300 | +15 | - |
Quest 2: Elara’s Secret
File:
data/vignettes/ironhold/elaras_secret_expedition.json
Trigger: Complete “The Economic Puzzle” with full
reveal
Stages: 4
Synopsis
Your loyalty has earned Elara’s trust—and access to her greatest secret. She’s funding expeditions to find the Nexus Spire, the site of the Shattering. She needs someone to lead a rescue mission for a lost expedition.
Stage 1: The Revelation
Location: Ironhold (Elara’s private quarters)
Elara reveals her secret: she’s been funding Nexus Spire expeditions for years. The latest expedition has gone silent in the Periphery. She needs you to find them—and recover what they discovered.
Motivation: Elara’s mother died in the Shattering. She was born into catastrophe and believes the Nexus Spire might hold answers—or the power to undo what was done.
Choices: 1. Accept the rescue mission - Journey to the Periphery 2. Question her motives - Learn about her personal stake 3. Refuse involvement - Too dangerous
Stage 2: The Periphery
Location: The Periphery (edge of mapped space)
The Periphery is dangerous—reality frays at the edges, time behaves strangely, and few who enter return. You track the lost expedition to a cluster of anomalous islands.
Challenges: - Navigate reality distortions (Cunning DC 28) - Survive temporal anomalies (Endurance DC 26) - Find the expedition camp
Stage 3: The Discovery
Location: The Periphery (expedition camp)
You find the expedition—or what’s left of it. Most are dead, killed by… something. The survivors are traumatized, barely coherent. But they found something: coordinates to what might be the Nexus Spire itself.
Choices: 1. Rescue survivors and recover data - Primary objective 2. Investigate what killed the expedition (Cunning DC 30) - Learn about the threat 3. Press deeper toward the coordinates - Risk everything for discovery
Stage 4: Return
Location: Ironhold
You return with survivors and data. Elara is grateful—and more determined than ever.
Revelation: The coordinates point to something real. The Nexus Spire may exist. But reaching it will require resources Elara doesn’t have—yet.
Rewards Summary
| Outcome | Gold | Guild Rep | Flags |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full rescue | 600 | +20 | nexus_coordinates_recovered |
| With investigation | 600 | +20 | periphery_threat_known |
| Pressed deeper | 400 | +15 | expedition_losses |
Quest 3: Elara’s Choice
File:
data/vignettes/ironhold/elaras_choice.json
Trigger: Complete “Elara’s Secret” + Arc 4
progress
Stages: 3
Synopsis
The Factor Council has learned of Elara’s secret expeditions. They’re moving to strip her of power. She needs your help to survive—and to make a choice about her future.
Stage 1: The Vote
Location: Ironhold (Guild Hall)
The Factor Council is convening to vote on Elara’s leadership. Marlena Swift (if she survived) leads the opposition. Elara needs allies, evidence, or leverage to survive.
Choices: 1. Gather allies among the
Factors (Cunning DC 32) - Political maneuvering 2. Find
evidence of opposition corruption - Turn the tables 3.
Use Marlena’s debt (if
marlena_owes_player) - Leverage
Stage 2: The Confrontation
Location: Ironhold (Council Chamber)
The vote proceeds. Your preparation determines the outcome.
Possible Results: - Strong preparation: Elara survives, opposition defeated - Moderate preparation: Elara survives, weakened position - Weak preparation: Elara removed, you lose Guild access
Stage 3: The Choice
Location: Ironhold (Elara’s office)
If Elara survives, she faces a choice: abandon the Nexus Spire quest for political stability, or press forward despite the risks.
Your Influence: 1. Encourage the quest - Support her obsession 2. Counsel caution - Prioritize stability 3. Offer to lead the expedition yourself - Take the risk
Consequences: - Quest encouraged: Arc 4 accelerates, Elara becomes more reckless - Caution counseled: Arc 4 slows, Elara stabilizes - Self-led expedition: You become central to Arc 4
Rewards Summary
| Outcome | Gold | Guild Rep | Story Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elara survives, quest continues | 800 | +30 | Arc 4 accelerates |
| Elara survives, quest paused | 600 | +25 | Arc 4 delayed |
| Player leads expedition | 400 | +20 | Player central to Arc 4 |
| Elara removed | 0 | -20 | Guild access lost |
Character Development Arc
Elara’s Journey
- The Economic Puzzle: Elara as pragmatic leader—efficient, calculating, powerful
- Elara’s Secret: Elara as obsessive seeker—driven by personal loss
- Elara’s Choice: Elara at crossroads—ambition vs. survival
The Obsession
Elara’s mother died in the Shattering. She never knew her. Her entire life has been shaped by an event she couldn’t control: - She built an economic empire partly to fund her search - She believes the Nexus Spire might hold answers - She rationalizes that reversal won’t erase her (denial)
Player Influence
Enabler Path: Support her obsession, help her quest - Arc 4 accelerates - Elara becomes increasingly reckless - Potential for discovery—or disaster
Moderator Path: Counsel caution, prioritize stability - Arc 4 slows - Elara remains powerful but frustrated - Safer but less dramatic
Replacement Path: Take the quest yourself - Player becomes central to Arc 4 - Elara becomes supporting character - Maximum player agency
Moral Complexity
Questions Raised
Is the past worth the present? Finding the Nexus Spire might undo the Shattering—erasing 287 years of history and everyone born after.
How far should ambition go? Elara’s quest has cost lives. Is the knowledge worth the price?
Can obsession be healthy? Elara’s drive built an empire. It might also destroy her.
No Right Answer
- Supporting Elara enables dangerous obsession but might lead to profound discovery
- Opposing Elara protects stability but abandons the quest for truth
- Taking over the quest puts you at risk instead of her
Connections to Other Content
Related Quests
- The Periphery Expedition - Arc 4 main quest
- The Luminar Device - Arc 4 continuation
- The Guild’s Gambit - Arc 2 connection
Related Characters
- Factor Marlena Swift - Political rival
- Factor Darius Crane - Corrupt subordinate
- Archivists - Knowledge seekers
Related Locations
- Ironhold - Guild headquarters
- The Periphery - Expedition destination
- Nexus Spire - Ultimate goal
Document Status: Complete
Last Updated: December 3, 2025
Implementation: All 3 quests fully implemented
“My mother died before I was born. The Shattering took her. I’ve spent my life building power to find out why—and whether it can be undone.”