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 Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2007 6:23 am
Here is a place to share ideas and ask questions about what Crafters can/can't make, what materials they have available to work with, and those sorts of issues!
A few points about the Crafters, to help clear up some questions we've been getting from time to time:
1 - Crafters tend to be specialists. It's not common at all for a Crafter to try to do a bit of everything, especially since the profession itself is so vague and can encompass a huge variety of things.
2 - Crafters can work alone or in groups. Some might specialize in creating raw materials, such as cloth or cut jewels; they would tend to work with those who are skilled at finishing those materials.
3 - There are, unfortunately, some limits on what a Crafter can do. Most notably - hard/heavy metalwork is not within the realm of the Crafters. This is a skill that has been lost to the Sentinels, and almost all items made of iron/steel/etc. are in the possession of the Elites.
In terms of technology level and the sorts of tasks that a Crafter might choose to specialize in, it's safest to assume that the Sentinels have a medieval level of technology. The main limitation is in the use of fire, since feathers are extremely flammable. Any Crafter who wishes to use fire to aid in his or her works must live outside of the enclave, and as far away from the heavily-populated areas as possible. As such, working with fire is extremely uncommon.
Now, neither Jaeger nor myself are experts on every aspect of every craft known to man. So it's entirely possible that there are things we've left out or glossed over - if you're not sure (or you have some ideas) then PM the mule or ask here!
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Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2007 6:49 am
Ye Olde Liste of Theoretical Raw Materials
For use by the Crafters - may be gathered by the Crafters themselves, or by Gatherers, or both! Many Gatherers will keep a sharp eye out for anything they think a Crafter might like, so they could barter for a piece of jewellry or some other such adornment.
Metals found in their native state in Noctua:
Copper
Gold
Lead
Silver
Alloys which can be made using available technology:
Brass
Bronze
Electrum (can also be found in its native state)
Pewter
Sterling Silver
A list of gemstones could easily become somewhat ridiculous, so let's just say for sake of convenience that almost any semi-precious gemstone could be found. If you really want a list or some ideas, then feel free to PM me - I've got a slightly exhaustive collection of semi-precious gemstones, and am always happy to babble on about them.
Please note that these lists are in no way representative of the occurrence of metals on Earth. Part of the convenient aspect of creating your own world is that you can bend the rules a little bit!
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Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2007 11:43 pm
What sorts of tools do Crafters use? Do they do things by sheer Will alone, or will they take a pointed rock and carve something or shave a piece of wood? Also, how do they get wood? Do they just use branches and/or fallen limbs?
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Posted: Tue Jan 01, 2008 9:47 am
Most Crafters would use deadfall, but if the piece they are working on requires fresh wood for some reason they'd strip branches from a tree.
As for use of Will versus tools, that comes down to personal preference, ability, and the task. Weavers would work using Will alone, whereas metalworkers would use Will for bending and manipulating, and a Will-held tool for carving or cutting. It's probably easiest to imagine Will as being like a pair of invisible hands - you can't carve wood with your bare hands, but you can hold a tool to carve the wood.
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Posted: Wed Jan 02, 2008 8:04 pm
'Nother question: What's the largest thing crafters make? Do they make just personal items, or do they, for example, make full-size sets for bardic performances?
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Posted: Wed Jan 02, 2008 8:20 pm
I suppose that if we wanted to be more specific we could say that there are Crafters and Builders and have them be too separate groups. But we didn't want to divide things too much, and Crafter sounds better. So we're considering the building of larger structures as a specialization - and one that usually involves a group of Crafters working together.
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Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 9:47 am
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Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 7:43 pm
You said that semi-precious stones are obtainable, but what about pprecious ones?
And another question, around how far away can a crafter be from the place that he is using his will on? I'm thinking about the usage of fire, and obviously a sentinel wouldn't stand just next to the burning fire... so, what's the 'safety zone' I can experiment on before I'll decide if it's a skill my Mag would learn?
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Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 8:02 pm
Precious gemstones (diamond, sapphire, emerald, ruby) could be found as well, but the Sentinels wouldn't really attach any extra value to them. A pretty rock is a pretty rock, after all! They might actually feel that diamond is less valuable, for example, because it would be a bit harder to work with than other gemstones.
As for distance from the work, the best analogy (again) is the invisible hands concept. Almost all Sentinels would need to be fairly close to the object - generally within a wing's reach - to be able to manipulate it with their Will with full strength and accuracy. Ability decreases at an exponential rate as the distance from the target increases, so only the strongest and/or most accurate of Sentinels (as in, the Mystics) can hope to accomplish anything from further away.
Working with fire is one of those more restricted things, since (as I said) feathers are kinda extremely flammable. Most Crafters will happily limit themselves to working with materials that can be manipulated through the use of Will and tools alone. Working with fire would be something best done in pairs or groups, as the Will 'range' would increase as the number of Sentinels working together increases.
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Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 8:38 am
How would Sentinels make fire in the first place? Would they use flint and a piece of hard metal, or friction, or something else entirely? Also, is making fire from nothing some of the wacky crap Mystics can do?
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Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 11:04 am
Scaramouche Fandango How would Sentinels make fire in the first place? Would they use flint and a piece of hard metal, or friction, or something else entirely? Also, is making fire from nothing some of the wacky crap Mystics can do?
Any of the campfire methods we could use, they could use via their Will. Friction (with a bow drill, for example) would be among the most popular methods as it's a bit easier to control - striking flint will produce sparks that could too-easily land on feathers, see. Once the fire is going, Sentinels would probably try to keep a smoldering coal if they plan to do frequent flame-related work.
As for 'creating' fire from nothing, it could be possible in theory - but that would definitely be a Mystic-level talent!
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Posted: Wed Feb 27, 2008 12:24 pm
Can crafters use wax/beeswax molds? Make something out of wax, cover it in a flame-retardent mix, melt the wax out, melt metal into the mold, and crack the mold off? The mix standarly used wouldn't be available to Sentinals because of certain ingrediants, but could we say they made it out of acorn paste and something sooty they found on the ground?
And what about repeating wax molds, where you don't need to make a new wax base each time, but can make multiple copies out of one mold? (mould bends, isn't brittle) Ingredients for this mold would be more common in Noctua I suppose, it's basicaly a type of rubber soaked in soap.
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Posted: Thu Feb 28, 2008 9:02 am
The Silver Falcon Can crafters use wax/beeswax molds? Make something out of wax, cover it in a flame-retardant mix, melt the wax out, melt metal into the mold, and crack the mold off? The mix standardly used wouldn't be available to Sentinels because of certain ingredients, but could we say they made it out of acorn paste and something sooty they found on the ground? The Silver Falcon And what about repeating wax molds, where you don't need to make a new wax base each time, but can make multiple copies out of one mold? (mold bends, isn't brittle) Ingredients for this mold would be more common in Noctua I suppose, it's basically a type of rubber soaked in soap.
Repeating molds could be formed in one of two ways - flexible molds, or two- or three-part molds. The former would break down more quickly over time, and the latter would require extensive chasing to remove the residue.
Most mold-making would be reserved for items that need to be mass-produced with little to no variation, such as bolts and whatnot for assembling the large platforms. There probably wouldn't be much of a call for casting of jewellry, since most Sentinels would be most interested in a 'personal' piece.
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Posted: Wed Oct 29, 2008 8:15 am
Just a quick thought. Flint was mentioned here earlier as an aid in fire-making, but is flint actually common or available in Noctua?
Flint knives seem the sort of thing that'd be useful in many cases (tanning, for instance, and also carving). They seem a bit more practical in some ways, too, since a lot of the metals Sentinels have to work with are a bit soft for cutting/carving implements.
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Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2008 5:45 am
Nodules of chert could be found within Noctua, certainly, usually within riverbeds and exposed limestone/chalk rock formations in the mountainous areas. We've conveniently made the world so that almost anything can be found, just so that we don't have to fuss with details.
It's probably good to note that flint-knapping is something that most crafters should be able to do well enough to create tools that 'serve their purpose' and most of the items that would be made of flint would be used by the crafters. So it'd be relatively rare for a crafter to specialize in making tools out of flint - not to say that it's not possible, mind. Medics and featherstylers would have a use for sharp cutting tools, and so could several other tasks. It's just more likely that working with flint would be something that most crafters did, to a certain degree.
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