Line #6 Literature/TheGuildOfSpecialists


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/9780763626341_2510.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Intricate multi-page diagrams aren't even the start of it.]]
3
4	''The Guild of Specialists'' trilogy is a series of novels by children's author Joshua Mowll, published by Walker Books. They are designed to look like diaries and are filled to the absolute brim with maps, diagrams and sketches, some folding out to as much as four or five pages. There are antique photographs (purportedly) of the characters and settings and museum-style photographs of objects that appear in the books.
5
6	The premise is thus: after the death of his grandmother, Rebecca [=MacKenzie=], the author discovered a hidden passageway behind a bookcase in her house. This led him down a flight of stairs to a series of vaults (there are colour photographs and diagrams of everything described). After "persuading" one of them to open, the author enters it to discover a rich and varied treasury of objects, artifacts, notes, and diaries that tell the story of her life. The three books that follow are that story, and the objects, diagrams, and photos contained therein all come from that secret collection.
7
8	The series follows the lives of Rebecca and Douglas [=MacKenzie=] in their quest to find their parents after they disappeared while on an expedition to the Sinkiang desert in China. The children soon discover that they were members of a secret society known (where it is known) as The Honourable Guild of Specialists.
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10	The books have been widely praised for their elaborate setup and their incredible ability to make you wonder [[RecountedByTheMainCharacters if you might not, somehow, be reading a real account]].
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12	----
13	!!General Tropes:
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15	* AffectionateNickname: Liberty da Vine calls Becca and Doug "cuz" since they pretended to be her cousins when they first met.
16	* AppliedPhlebotinum: Zoridium. A few grains can do anything from serve as an accelerant in a torpedo to power a machine capable of changing the planet's atmosphere.
17	* AttackAnimal: The Dutchess, a great big white tiger trained to kill people who enter the room without knocking. ''And she belongs to the heroes''.
18	* BadassCreed: The Guild of Specialists have one that is recited whenever one enters into the Guild: Honor, Duty, or Death.
19	* BaldOfAuthority: Master Aa is the LargeAndInCharge bald leader of the Sujing Quantou, a Chinese military order.
20	%% * BookcasePassage: It all started with one.
21	* TheCaptain: Fitzroy [=MacKenzie=] is the captain of the ''Expedient''.
22	* CoolShip: The ''Expedient''. A research ship with a submarine on board and heavily armed to boot with massive disappearing guns, torpedo tubes and a 12-pound machine gun.
23	* DeadAllAlong: Three of the Sujing Quantou orders have long-documented histories and influences, with the exception of the Southern Chapter which vanished c. 326 B.C. Their fate is revealed in [[spoiler:the second book: their ship ran aground and was buried in a mudslide]].
24	* DeadlyDisc: The Sujing Quantou's Eastern Chapter (the first one introduced) use a number of discus-type weapons with a number of effects: explosive, smoke bombs, gas bombs, etc. This is intended as a nod to their Greek ancestry.
25	* DirectLineToTheAuthor: And how. ''The entire setup'' is that everything in the books are a documentation of real events. It is ''incredible'' how well done it is.
26	* TheEngineer: Wolfgang Schmidt for the ''Expedient''. When Captain [=MacKenzie=] finds himself forced to fight in a ship-to-ship duel with Sheng-Fat in the first book, he insists on having Schmidt freed so he can operation the engines.
27	* FamilyBusiness: The [=MacKenzies=] have been involved with the Guild of Specialists for at least 200 years by the time the books started, oftentimes in a SiblingTeam.
28	* ForceAndFinesse: Becca and Doug's preferences in swordsmanship. Becca prefers a rapier, while Doug is much more comfortable with a heavier weapon like a saber (during the climax of the first book Becca specifically finds him a cutlass to use).
29	* HandicappedBadass: Captain [=MacKenzie=] has a limp in one leg, but that doesn't stop him from battle.
30	* KatanasAreJustBetter: The Eastern Chapter of the Sujing Quantou use [[DualWielding a pair of katanas]] as their primary melee weapons.
31	* LargeAndInCharge: Master Aa, the leader of the Sujing Quantou, is even larger than his hulking bodyguard.
32	* LivingMacGuffin: Hamish and Elena [=MacKenzie=], Becca and Doug's parents. Their primary reason for the kids going on this adventure is to find their parents.
33	* NoHuggingNoKissing: Four married couples appear, but nothing more romantic than that ensues.
34	* PolarOppositeTwins: Xi and Xu. Xi is impetuous and arrogant while Xu is quiet and introspective.
35	* {{Portmanteau}}: The gyrolabes were named by combining the words "astrolabe" and "gyroscope".
36	* RedOniBlueOni: Doug is the red, Becca is the blue. Doug is outgoing and sociable while Becca is quiet and withdrawn.
37	* RuthlessModernPirates: Sheng-Fat and his Tong operate mostly in the South China Sea.
38	* SiblingTeam: At least three sets throughout the [=MacKenzie=] family. Cameron and Duncan quelled the Northern Chapter's rebellion in the [=1700s=], Fitzroy and Hamish are involved in expeditions, as are Becca and Doug.
39	* SpeechImpediment: Posh Charlie has a noticeable stutter.
40	* TeamChef: Mrs. Ives is the cook onboard the ''Expedient''. Also the only woman crewman.
41	* TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow: A pervading discussion throughout the books, as there are constant debates over zoridium and its potential, which have been raging since 326 B.C.E., leading to the founding of the Sujing Quantou. In this case, when Alexander the Great reached the Indus Valley where the gyrolabes and 99 elements texts were found, the decision was made to separate the materials so they could not be used for war, which were given to the best reconnaissance units in Alexander's army and taken as far away as they could.
42	* TheTriadsAndTheTongs: The main villains of the first book are a tong led by Sheng-Fat, who have just acquired a set of highly dangerous torpedoes.
43
44	!!Tropes that appear in Operation Red Jericho:
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46	* {{Angrish}}: Inverted with Posh Charlie, whose SpeechImpediment disappears whenever he's in danger.
47	* BigBad: Sheng-Fat, who ordered the creation of the zoridium torpedoes that the crew of the ''Expedient'' seeks to destroy.
48	* BroomstickQuarterstaff: Xi uses a broomstick to fight the cook on Chung-Fat's ship.
49	* CharacterTics: Ives mentions that his nose twitches whenever there's danger ahead.
50	* ChekhovsGunman: Xi first appears as a mischief-maker in the Sujing Quantou's fireworks shop.
51	* CollateralDamage: [[spoiler:A missed shot by Sheng-Fat's motor torpedo boat winds up blowing up one of his junks.]]
52	* DeathGlare: Sheng-Fat and his brother Chung-Fat are described as having extremely cold eyes for their default expressions.
53	* DisneyDeath: [[spoiler:Wireless operator Sparkie is initially believed dead thanks to the telegraph office being bombed in the battle at Wenzi Island. He's later found alive, having been blown into the secret cabin, providing Captain [=MacKenzie=] with another set of hands.]]
54	* DistressedDude: Chambois is chained to the ''Expedient's'' hull for Sheng-Fat to use as target practice.
55	* DontTryThisAtHome: The diagrams for the fog generator are listed with warnings against making a similar device due to the high possibility of electrocuting oneself.
56	* DramaticSlip: Xi's fight with the cook ends with him slipping on fish guts and getting captured.
57	* {{Fingore}}: Sheng-Fat likes to [[CreepySouvenir collect the pinky fingers of his victims]]. Enough to have a whole necklace.
58	* FollowThatCar: Becca and Doug attempt this to follow Julius Pembleton-Crozier, but the rickshaw driver gets too tired and they have to follow him on foot.
59	* GhostlyGape: The dead prisoner in a neighboring tide cage has his jaw hinging up and down depending on where the tide is.
60	* HeKnowsTooMuch: [[spoiler:Julius Pembleton-Crozier murders the captured Sheng-Fat before leaving Wenzi Island]].
61	* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Happens twofold with Sheng-Fat; he is captured after the back-blast from one of his torpedoes flips his boat, then his fortress is destroyed when the rest of his torpedoes are detonated.
62	* ImprovisedWeapon: Xi and Xu take out a gun emplacement with a flaming basket.
63	* InertialImpalement: Master Aa takes out one of Sheng-Fat's pirates by sticking his katana out into the hallway and letting the man walk into the blade.
64	* InSeriesNickname: Julius Pembleton-Crozier is initially referred to as "Linen Suit" before his name is revealed.
65	* KnockoutGas: Mrs. Ives and the Duchess were gassed by the villains and brought to Wenzi Island.
66	* MundaneUtility: The Sujing Quantou also use their expertise in explosives to create spectacular fireworks.
67	* PragmaticVillainy: Sheng-Fat orders his men to disable, not sink the ''Expedient'' because he wants the guns.
68	* ScaryTeeth: Sheng-Fat has filed his teeth to sharp points.
69	* SiblingsInCrime: Sheng-Fat and his two brothers Chung-Fat and Li-Fat. The latter is a PosthumousCharacter who was killed when Chambois escaped Sheng-Fat.
70	* StuffBlowingUp: The Battle at Wenzi Island ends with Sheng-Fat's fortress being completely vaporized when the zoridium torpedoes are detonated.
71	-->"In a blinding blue flash, Sheng-Fat's fortress ceased to exist."
72	* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: Sheng-Fat declines to just stab Chambois. Instead, he decides to try and avenge his brother's death (caused by Chambois) by blowing him up with a zoridium torpedo.
73	* WouldHurtAChild: When Sheng-Fat learns that the [=MacKenzie=] siblings are of no value to him, he tries to take Becca's finger, only to be interrupted by the ''Expedient's'' attack on the fortress.
74	* WreckedWeapon: When Xu attempts to cut the tide cages, the rusted blade he uses eventually snaps.
75	* YouKilledMyFather: Sheng-Fat has a grudge against Chambois for sabotaging a torpedo so it blew up the ship that Sheng-Fat's brother was on.
76
77	!!Tropes that appear in Operation Typhoon Shore:
78	* AbandonShip: What happens to [[spoiler:the ''Expedient'' at the end of the book. Already beached, an explosive charge set off during the battle with the Kalaxx rips a large hole in its hull and the crew is forced to scuttle it offshore.]]
79	* BigBad: Julius Pembleton-Crozier's mining operation with the Kalaxx is the force that the crew of the ''Expedient'' seeks to stop.
80	* CainAndAbel: [[spoiler:Julius Pembleton-Crozier and Posh Charlie are brothers. Charlie wants to defend the secrets of the Tembla and zoridium, while Julius seeks to make a profit]].
81	* EvilCounterpart: The Coterie of Saint Petersburg was founded as an offshoot of the Guild who wanted to profit off zoridium.
82	* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler:Alfonso Borelli betrays the Guild and steals the Eastern gyrolabe to give to the Coterie of Saint Petersburg.]]
83	* GivenNameReveal: [[spoiler:Posh Charlie's surname is Pembleton-Crozier, making him and Julius Pembleton-Crozier brothers]].
84	* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Posh Charlie manages to free Captain [=MacKenzie=], Becca, Doug and Liberty from the gravitational pull of the gravity machine, but is severely injured from the pressure]].
85	* HoistByHisOwnPetard: The original Coterie of Saint Petersburg was destroyed when their gravitational machine exploded thanks to unstable electronics.
86	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler:Posh Charlie's translation of Tembla texts allowed the Cotiere of St. Petersburg and the Kalaxx to find the Tembla zoridium mines. This is why Charlie sacrifices himself to free Becca, Doug, Liberty, and the Captain from the gravity machine]].
87	* PrivateMilitaryContractors: The Kalaxx, the disgraced Northern branch of the Sujing Quantou. After losing a war with the other two branches of the Sujing Quantou where they tried to take over the order, they sought employment with the Russian government, serving them from 1720 to 1861. What that ended, they became miners and mercenaries for hire.
88	* ShellShockedVeteran: Posh Charlie has unpleasant memories of his time in the trenches during the Battle of the Somme in World War I and cites this as an example of humanity's inability to use technology wisely.
89	* SwordAndGun: The Kalaxx's main weapons are a single-shot pistol and sword.
90	* VillainTeamUp: The Coterie of Saint Petersburg teams up with the Kalaxx to mine zoridium.
91	* YourDaysAreNumbered: Alfonso Borelli says he has a year to live, and is determined to make his mark on history, specifically as the "greatest scientist since Newton".
92
93	!!Tropes that appear in Operation Storm City:
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95	* AlasPoorVillain: [[spoiler:Despite the centuries-long feud between the Kalaxx and the other orders of the Sujing Quantou, the Sujing Quantou and the crew of the ''Expedient'' feel that the Kalaxx didn't deserve to be mowed down]].
96	* BigBad: General Nikolai Pugachev, a Romanov loyalist who seeks to use Ur-Can to wipe out the Bolsheviks for the death of his family. He's also the GreaterScopeVillain for the present events because he captured Hamish [=MacKenzie=] and his wife, fueling their children's search that is the driving force behind the entire trilogy.
97	%%* CoolTrain: The Maharaja's train, which is powered by zoridium.
98	* DeadlyGas: Pugachev's forces used mustard gas to [[spoiler:kill the Western Chapter of the Sujing Quantou.]]
99	* DiscOneFinalBoss: Capulus serves as TheHeavy for the first third of the book, then [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse disappears]] when the protagonists board the Cotiere's zeppelin.
100	* DisneyVillainDeath: [[spoiler:Julius Pembleton-Crozier kicks Pugachev off the control platform to his death. Pembleton-Crozier [[DrivenToSuicide does the same to himself]] a few moments later]].
101	* DisposablePilot: Some of Capulus' men are caught disposing of the crew of the Maharaja's train. When confronted, they [[DrivenToSuicide choose to follow their victims off the train]].
102	* DueToTheDead: When the [=MacKenzie=] siblings, Xi, Xu, and Liberty catch up to Captain [=MacKenzie=] and the Sujing Quantou, they're in the midst of [[spoiler:burying the warriors who accompanied Becca and Doug's parents.]]
103	* EndOfAnAge: [[spoiler:This book details the fall of the Sujing Quantou as their weapons prove inadequate against modern technology like machine guns and flamethrowers.]]
104	* EnemyMine: [[spoiler:Becca and Doug team up with Julius Pembleton-Crozier to stop Pugachev from activating Ur-Can]].
105	* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Pugachev's family was killed by the Bolsheviks during the Russian Revolution and his plot is to avenge them by causing mass climate change to kill the Bolsheviks.
106	* EverybodysDeadDave: [[spoiler:Xi and Xu reveal that the Western Chapter of the Sujing Quantou was murdered by Pugachev's forces. The rest were killed on the expedition headed by Becca and Doug's parents]].
107	* FireBreathingWeapon: Pugachev's forces use flamethrowers mounted on horses alongside their machine guns.
108	* FlayingAlive: Pugachev had a man flayed alive for speaking out against the Czar.
109	* TheGhost: Dante, a NativeGuide in the Sinkiang. Pugachev sought him out when he looked for Ur-Can in 1912 and Becca told the Cotiere to find him, but Captain [=MacKenzie=] tells Becca and Doug that the Kalaxx killed him after getting information from him before they meet him.
110	* LastOfHisKind: [[spoiler:Xi and Xu are left as the only surviving members of the Sujing Quantou.]]
111	* NotQuiteDead: [[spoiler:Professor Zorid, the scientist Chambois was framed for killing back in the first book. The only difference is that he's taller than before as an effect of inhaling too much of the fumes from zoridium, which explains the great size of the members of the Sujing Quantou]].
112	* NumberTwo: Capulus was General Pugachev's deputy on an expedition to find Ur-Can in 1912.
113	* PutOnABus: [[spoiler:Posh Charlie is still recovering from his wounds received in the previous volume]].
114	* RedShirtArmy: The Maharaja's guards are all KilledOffscreen by Capulus' men before attacking the rest of the train.
115	* RobbingTheDead: [[spoiler:Pugachev's men take the northern gyrolabe from the Kalaxx after slaughtering them.]]
116	* RunningGag: Liberty's blunderbuss misfires throughout the book. It winds up being more useful as a blunt weapon until it breaks.
117	* SchizoTech: The flamethrowers used by Pugachev's men as a cavalry contingent are a peculiar blend of new and old technology.
118	* SideEffectsInclude: [[spoiler:Inhaling too much of the vapors from zoridium will make you taller, as evidenced with the Sujing Quantou and Professor Zorid.]]
119	* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler:Master Aa and his wife, with Master Aa's last instructions to bury them together at Ur-Can]].
120	* TrickArrow: The Western Chapter of the Sujing Quantou use arrows as their ranged weapons, from arrows tipped with zoridium explosives to standard explosive arrows to regular arrows.
121	* UndyingLoyalty: One of Pugachev's trademarks is his fanatical loyalty to the Romanovs.
122	* WeatherOfWar: [[spoiler:How Pugachev intends to use Ur-Can: Create a massive storm that will disrupt Soviet agriculture and bring down the Bolsheviks.]]

Context Literature / TheGuildOfSpecialists