The Censors Guild

“Dwarven knowledge is earned through blood and toil”
~ A simple dwarven truth

 

Born from Necessity

  When the dwarven city of Bakan’Grod was established its ground breaching section was little more than a periscope of an outpost to check for threats while simultaneously enabling the scouting of rare materials. Over time it naturally drew the attention of the surrounding region’s surfacefolk. Initially, all contact was treated with stark scepticism and even led to some false sieges. Eventually, trust grew to a point of regular trade. Even the stubbornness of the dwarves can be blunted given time, diligence and consistency.   The aboveground portion of Bakan’Grod grew during this time of trade and it was bolstered with incredibly effective defences to counter potential threats.   Initially, trade was mainly materials based; The dwarves prized rare woods and sedimentary stone that is otherwise unavailable in the quarries of the deeps. In return, the dwarves would offer high quality stoneworks, mycelial leathers and some basic ales. Over time, the number of goods traded between the dwarves and the surfacefolk expanded to also include prepared foods, ales, spirits, skins, tools, textiles and spices.   However, it was known to be folly to trade away valuable information. Especially that of the incredible craftsmanship that the dwarves had honed over millenia. In order to maintain the level of secrecy they had a problem to solve: The surfaceside city section of Bakan’Grod was expertly crafted from some of the finest stone available to dwarven kind but any crafted or processed goods being traded away were exclusively of inferior quality. To tackle this, a new profession was created.

Foolsmiths

  Once the surface races were aware of the poorer quality of goods being provided, they in turn began demanding higher quality and quantity to balance trades. In order to carry more favour with the surface races, the requirement for higher quality trade goods became apparent. Foolsmiths were cunning artisans who had a deep understanding of materials. Originating from a variety of artisanal guilds from even the furthest reaches of the territories, these masters of craft could pinpoint or even create flaws in materials that the dull eyes of humans or elves simply could not detect. Runesmiths would purposefully craft incredibly minor enchantments on trinkets that gave the impression of powerful magicks.

Reception and Perspectives

  From a dwarven standpoint, the inhibiting of the quality of a craft was always going to be seen as controversial. No craft should ever be carried out shoddily and it gave many of the true craftsdwarves of Bakan’Grod an uneasy feeling. Although it was also frequently admitted that there was a certain level of ‘craftsmanship’ involved with the expert creation of the illusion itself.   From the perspectives of human and elven merchants travelling to the city seeking profitable trade, they were unaware of the steady shift of quality as new goods became available to them. Perhaps in the years or decades that followed, they may become aware of the tactics employed but, for now, The Censors Guild are an unknown entity.

This is a submission for my second Summer Camp - I hope you enjoy the world I am building!