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Literacy in the game world - Labyrinthe Forum
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> Literacy in the game world, for discussion...
post Feb 24 2008, 02:27 PM
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Hi all,

well I'm hungover and not in the mood to do anything productive, so I thought I'd ask a question about literacy. I don't know how far this has been explored in HOTE, or through the live game and I havn't played in a year or so, but I'm writing background and was wondering...

Presumably education in Labyrinthia is neither free nor compulsory (sounds like democracy to me!). This being the case how widespread and easily available is it? Usually when I write backgrounds I make a point of a character not being able to read common unless he has a specific background reason why he would. If I'm playing a mage from a reasonably wealthy family who's been trained for years in school then in a magical universitty, I would be able read common. If on the other hand I'm playing a scout from a rural farming community who hasn't specifically spent time training in a school environment to gain the 'read languages' skill, I assume not.

How does the education system work? In real life I teach literacy and I'm very aware that it's a long period of training- usually 5-6 years full time before a person can read and write fluently (and that's with all the technologies of modern life, such as the printing press and cheap, easy availability of a wealth of reading material).

I've often been on live events where someone playing a random warrior from a not particularly wealthy background will pick up a parchment and start reading it. Now if that person has spent time thinking and writing into the character's background a reason for this it's cool, as far as I'm concerned- sometimes though, I think people just think 'well, my character is intelligent, (s)he's not a half troll, why wouldn't I be able to read this?'.

Matt
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post Feb 24 2008, 03:47 PM
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Literacy is uncommon. Only those of elevated rank ever learn to read and write: Scribes, Nobility, Priests, Mages and Masters in the Empire's Craft Guilds.

In general thecommonfolk do not learn to read or write and the tribes in general despise the concept of writing for a number of reasons.

However, Mercenaries are far beyond the pale, they possess vitae and those often have comprehension beyond the norm so literacy for a Mercenary is not really unusual.

I can't remember off the top of my head by the Gameworld arcticle about Social Status might mention about it.

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Pants
post Feb 24 2008, 06:26 PM
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Also all the Imperial cities have a basic school within them.

This is simply somewhere that the young can go and the oldies hang out. It is not any form of formal education.

So children can learn here through the spoken word. I would assume only the brightest would bother with learning to read or write. Although mercenaries fall into this category.


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post Feb 24 2008, 07:08 PM
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Fair enough... although I suppose financial reasons for having a family or some other benefactor or wealth which was willing and to support you during the several years it takes to learn these skills, rather bthan have you working in the fields or learning a trade, would still need to be thought about and written into background.

Is the education at these imperial schools free and available to all? What sort of level of education are we talking about? Is the empire really willing to fork out for professional (and presumably rare and expensive) teachers to educate just anyone whose interested? If so are they not completely swamped- or are we talking about a situation like cities in parts of africa where we have class sizes of 100+ and teachers who themselves have only primary education and no teacher training?

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post Feb 24 2008, 07:43 PM
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QUOTE(Pants @ Feb 24 2008, 06:26 PM) *
Also all the Imperial cities have a basic school within them.

This is simply somewhere that the young can go and the oldies hang out. It is not any form of formal education.

So children can learn here through the spoken word. I would assume only the brightest would bother with learning to read or write. Although mercenaries fall into this category.


Children generally leave school to take up a craft before the age at which reading and writing would be studied. A handful are taught to read in guilds so that they can read the plans for their crafts to the other guild apprentices.

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post Feb 24 2008, 07:47 PM
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QUOTE(mattway @ Feb 24 2008, 07:08 PM) *
Fair enough... although I suppose financial reasons for having a family or some other benefactor or wealth which was willing and to support you during the several years it takes to learn these skills, rather bthan have you working in the fields or learning a trade, would still need to be thought about and written into background.


If you wanted to be that detailed and thorough. Most classes have a good excuse t be able to read and not just Priests and Wizards. For instance the Warrior Tradition "Privileged" sets that up as an easy one. Pyschics are highly disciplined, which would lead well to learning to read.

Scouts pick up all manner of skills (e.g. reading supernatural scrolls for instance)

QUOTE(mattway @ Feb 24 2008, 07:08 PM) *
Is the education at these imperial schools free and available to all?


Depends really on the city in question more than an Empire wide thing.

QUOTE(mattway @ Feb 24 2008, 07:08 PM) *
What sort of level of education are we talking about? Is the empire really willing to fork out for professional (and presumably rare and expensive) teachers to educate just anyone whose interested? If so are they not completely swamped- or are we talking about a situation like cities in parts of africa where we have class sizes of 100+ and teachers who themselves have only primary education and no teacher training?

Matt



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post Feb 24 2008, 09:34 PM
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I think there are enough avenues to justify it if you want it & to not if you don't
The Empire has a large bureaucracy, Eisenstein in the south has its own University, many of the cities have 'schools' - but I would suggest it is more likely on the basis of what craftguild a child is apprenticed to, if any.
There is the Noble academy in Eartholme - where you could learn to read (but not necessarily)
Do rebirthed mercenaries - remember how to read and write or undead ?

Giles.
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post Feb 25 2008, 09:23 AM
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I think it is probably something I would handwave away in a "whatever makes the game the most fun" way.

Having spent a large chunk of the Companions 'doing the mana glyph encounter' whilst most of the party sat around getting bored, I would much rather have a situation where, if there are doocuments in plain English (or 'common' smile.gif) anyone who wants to read them can read them, rather than tell half the party "if you haven't spent the points, you have to ignore the encounter".

OK, it's possibly wrong for a "realistic medieval background" game, but this is a high fantasy one, in which written texts are important to all the high fantasy power user types. So it seems reasonably in flavour for a lot of PCs to be literate, never mind how they learnt their letters.

Lucy
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Pants
post Feb 25 2008, 09:35 AM
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The schools are basically where the old hang out and talk about whatever takes their fancy, the young go and listen. It is basically somewhere the hard working parents can send their children for day care. It is free as normally it is paid for by the city.

That is the most basic level. Higher levels you would have ask the governor of the relevant city.

In Port Miere we have a basic school. However the people are highly clever and quick witted due to their chosen profession of trying to get one over the scribes.


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