Alchemists' Guild

"We perfect our ancient arts in darkness, forgotten by the world. We are masters of the fire, but we live only to serve. All we need is the right... spark."

- Wisdom Hallyne

The Alchemists ' Guild is an ancient Westerosi organization based in the city of King's Landing, claiming magical and arcane knowledge. If they ever did possess such powers, their knowledge and abilities have waned over the centuries, and they have been largely eclipsed by the order of maesters, who focus on scientific knowledge and disdain belief in magic. The Alchemists have also drastically dwindled in number during the decline of their order, and unlike the maesters who have at least one representative at every major castle or town, it is uncommon to encounter the Alchemists outside of one of the major cities of the Seven Kingdoms. The Guild is based in the Guildhall beneath Rhaenys' Hill in King's Landing.

They are the only people in the Seven Kingdoms with the knowledge to create and handle the exceptionally dangerous concoction known as wildfire, which members of the Guild refer to as "the Substance". Because of their ability to produce the volatile flammable substance, alchemists are colloquially known as pyromancers.



History
The Alchemist's Guild achieved the patronage of House Targaryen during the reign of Maegor the Cruel, who was interested in the pyromancers' mastery over wildfire. They remained faithful servants of the royal house for decades, but lost influence to the order of maesters. The death of Prince Aerion Targaryen, who killed himself by drinking wildfire believing it would turn him into a dragon, caused the Guild to loose the royal favor.

The Guild entered into a period of resurgence during the reign of the fire-obsessed Aerys II Targaryen, who employed pyromancers such as Wisdom Rossart to execute his enemies. During the final stages of Robert's Rebellion, Aerys named Rossart as his Hand commissioned the Guild to create a weapon to be employed against Robert Baratheon. King's Landing, however, was sacked before it could be used. Many Wisdoms dissappeared.

Ranks

 * Wisdom: Full ranked members who oversee the preparation of the Substance and ensure its purity. Adept at the alchemical mysteries. One of the Wisdoms acts as the head of the order.
 * Acolyte: Tasked with preparing the Substance employing "magic".
 * Apprentice: Newly initiated recruits tasked with transporting and storing the Substance.

Known Members

 * Wisdom {Rossart}, made Hand of the King by Aerys II Targaryen.
 * Wisdom Hallyne, the current head of the Guild.

In the books
In A Song of Ice and Fire, the Alchemists' Guild of King's Landing is an old and honored institution which exerted significant power and influence under the Targaryens, reaching the zenith of their power during the reign of the Mad King, with the head of the Guild, Lord Rossart, even serving as Hand of the King during the final days of Robert's Rebellion. Aerys' penchant for burning people alive saw him make much use of the alchemists' skills, but King Robert had little use for them and they faded away in terms of power and influence after Aerys' death.

The alchemists also used to boast that they had abilities even the maesters of the Citadel did not have, such as the ability to transmute metals. However, they have not demonstrated this ability in living memory and many of their claims are today regarded as fanciful.