Agriculture in the Duscarn Range is incredibly labor intensive, and thus Falthringor has a comparatively minimal division of labor. Nevertheless, there are still plenty of lowlanders, halflings, and giants alike whose primary trade is neither farming nor fighting. Craftsmen are expected to join a guild. Rather: they will find little success in Falthringor and the surrounding hamlets unless they pledge themselves to these professional organizations
Guilds serve many purposes in Wenjansk society. First and foremost, guilds give members a means of accessing communal knowledge. The Duscarn Giants razed the great library of Wenjansków, and there has been no meaningful effort to replace it in the mountains. As such, most expertise is exchanged via guild mentorships. Many trades have become more complicated up in the mountains, and thus craftsmen rely on cooperation and the accumulated insights of their guildmates.
The second purpose of guilds is to regulate commerce and to facilitate communication with the Lord Ratchets. A cooper may be an expert craftsman, but they’ll likely need the help of a guild to manage contracts with the High Kestrel. As each guild maintains a guildhall within Falthringor’s walls, each gains access to the Lord Ratchets and can thus negotiate with the highest powers in House Wenjansk. All craftsmen will barter with commoners, but the most lucrative contracts come directly from the noble families.
Finally, guilds provide craftsmen the opportunity to coordinate. Masons can argue for better treatment from the nobility. Potters can decide whether they feel comfortable using Duscarn soil in drinking bowls. Loggers can designate which copses they will leave untouched. Even in the sparsely populated mountains, organized labor serves both the workers and the general populace.
Prior to the exodus from Wenjansków, there were dozens upon dozens of guilds, each with a narrow focus. Today, many of those guilds would only consist of a single craftsman, as many died fleeing the city, and many more had to abandon their former trade to assist in farming. Instead, Falthringor maintains only five guilds, each of which encompass a number of related trades.