The Sensualist Guild:

The Sensualist Guild is the organization responsible for licensing and representation of professional sex workers in the Empire of Metamor. While receiving payment for sexual services is legal in the Empire -- a reflection of Kyia's libertarian attitude toward matters of personal moral choice -- the business is tightly regulated by the Imperial Ministry of Health.

Safety Precautions

Individual sensualists must have a complete physical examination done every year in order to have their licenses renewed, so as to insure that they are not carrying any contagious diseases that could be transmitted to their clients. Businesses employing multiple sensualists, called sensualist parlors, must submit to routine inspections of their premises to ensure that they are conducting business in a safe and healthy environment. Parlors are also required to provide health benefits for their employees, whose terms are negotiated by the Sensualist Guild with the businesses in question; at minimum, these include coverage for routine checkups, major medical incidents, and maternity leave. The Sensualist Guild works in conjunction with the Ministry of Health to insure that these regulations are being followed, and conducts random, anonymous interviews of parlor employees to verify that they are being treated properly.

Licensing Requirements

Individuals may apply for a sensualist license at any local Guild office -- of which there are thousands around the Empire -- or at one of the Guild training colleges (see Education & Training, below). Persons wishing to receive a basic license must meet a number of requirements:

1. Age 17 or older. Pedomorphs are forbidden for safety reasons, according to guidelines passed in 1957 CR in the wake of a number of high-profile cases of mistreatment of pedomorph sex workers by their clients.
   
   
2. Clean bill of health, as determined by a certified doctor or healer in a full physical examination.
   
   
3. Must not be currently pregnant.
   
   
4. Must either be unmarried or have a notarized letter of consent and approval from spouse(s).
   
   
5. Vampires and incubi/succubae may be licensed, but their true nature will be indicated on their license card, and they must notify their prospective clients prior to providing any services or taking any payment.
   
   
6. Must purchase liability insurance to cover the risk of harming clients accidentally in the course of conducting business. This is usually quite reasonably priced, given the stringent health examinations, and many parlors will cover the cost of insurance as part of their benefits package. Liability insurance is notably higher for vampires, true werewolves, and other "at-risk" (read: dangerous) species than it is for human sensualists. (Succubae are not generally considered at-risk; while their clients are drained of energy during sexual activity, this has little or no long-term effect provided that the same person is not drawn upon repeatedly over a long span of time. Incubi, on the other hand, pay higher premiums, as they will almost certainly cause pregnancy in their female clients unless magical birth control is employed.)
   
   
7. Must pay Guild dues. These run about 20 marks per year for a basic license, and cover the cost of licensing fees, collective bargaining, legal representation, and Guild administration. Those with higher certifications (see below) pay correspondingly higher dues.

Training & Education

The Sensualist Guild recognizes that sex workers have an inherently limited "shelf life" (if the crudity of the term can be forgiven). Enthusiasm only counts for so much in this business, especially as the sensualist grows older. Accordingly, the Guild has established a number of training colleges to provide further education opportunities for licensed members, both to increase their earnings potential in the sex industry and to provide them with additional skills that will be useful after their term as active sex workers has ended.

The two most famous and prestigious Guild schools are Elysium College, in Breckaris, and the Sutt Institute of the Sensual Arts, in Metamor City. Each of these schools has several thousand pupils at any given time. The cost of tuition is comparable with that of much larger schools, but many scholarship opportunities are available for economically-disadvantaged Guild members, supported in large part out of Guild licensing fees.

The Guild schools provide certifications in four levels of increasingly advanced sexual techniques, the two highest of which require the sensualist to have magical aptitude. They also provide certifications in several types of massage, chiropractic, aromatherapy, acupressure and acupuncture, alchemy and herbal medicine, and marital and psychological counseling, as well as degrees in music and dance and instruction in a wide variety of musical instruments. This should give you some idea of the kinds of services offered at sensualist parlors, beyond the obvious, as well as the career paths commonly pursued by older sensualists.