The Printing Collective

It started as one of Nina’s campfire seminars, and quickly became an emergent tradition. People gather here to share whatever valuable knowledge they’ve collected and wish to preserve from the corruptions of hearsay and poor hearing.

The Printing Collective has two main sections. First is what appears to be a large marketplace of primitive writing mediums and implements, ranging from vellum to tree bark, and from quills to styluses for wax tablets. The most advanced mechanism for writing so far is a sort of “printing press” based on engraved wooden keys, which allow for the rapid printing of universally useful pamphlets, such as survival guides and recipes for preservatives. But beyond providing materials for recording valuable information, the marketplace also serves as an outdoor forum of learning and oral traditions. People regularly give “seminars” of their own, from rabbit hunting tips to lessons in what little rune-scribing the mists will allow. There are also craftsman and artists who gather here to sell their wares, mostly related to art and expression.

The second section is a more conventional library of sorts, a central wooden structure where the more durable and valuable books and scrolls are kept. The structure is open to the public, though it is guarded by volunteers and Argentium Inquisitors to prevent theft. A Naoki-appointed “librarian” “checks” some of the texts for “quality assurance purposes”. The structure has several floors filled with shelves of books, all carefully binded and stored, with methods improving every month. Sweepers, sharp smelling flowers, and low-power magic runes help keep bugs away. Advances in preservation magic are also being implemented to help protect the books.

(Cats also roam the Collective to help keep mice away. This has led some of the populace to joke that Naoki’s Emissaries are watching over the future of Port Agentium.)

Although the Collective developed somewhat organically, it has benefited from the organizational, engineering, and logistics skills of the former Isran Empire. It is gradually becoming something of a proto-university.

The Argentium leadership has requested that a vacant plot of land be reserved close by. Although the current central library is adequate for the moment, both Lady Naoki and Coatl of the Imilla believe that one day their people will be able to erect a more grandiose structure of stone.

Notable figures:

Coatl of the Imilla was the architect of the central structure. He’s widely considered to be the founder of the Collective even though it honestly sorta developed on its own. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say he was one of the main catalysts of its development.

Mikele , determined to write herself into the history books, also encouraged people to do more “writing and reading stuff”, occasionally even yelling at them. She also helped design some of the preservation runes, with the assistance of a certain Grandma .

Nina is one of the early true founders of the collective, whose campfire seminars inspired more people to want to share and acquire knowledge. She currently paints and is still one of the collective’s chief orators.

Katiana Graves is a resident book binder and orator on archery and exploration.

Lady Naoki is of course the omnipresent font of authority and organization. She keeps the place clean and orderly through her staff, guards, and Inquisitors.