Artisans

The scrap-piles are of interest to others besides Neoprimitives.

In an age of machine-production hand-made goods are a luxury and Artisan Collectives fiercely compete for this lucrative market. Often the Collectives will go to war for scarce materials; metals, precious stones and highly-coveted wood. Artisans in search of rare tools undertake quests which carry them miles from home and they take up with Trash Runner gangs in the hope of increasing the chances of finding what they seek.

Handmade items are an expensive luxury inworld, but few artisans ever make it inworld themselves. Most operate in collectives outworld and trade their goods inworld through dealers. This is generally considered a good deal among the artisans who view the somewhat sterile life inworld as no place for their creativity. Of course, the dealers do substantially better from the trades than do the artisans.

Raw materials for use by the collectives are scarce as they command neither the wealth nor influence of the ReFrat, so collectives frequently bribe or ambush Trash Runners to acquire stock of scrap. Even so, there are those things you just can’t get from recyc. Frequently an artisan will find he or she needs a vital piece of equipment or material that eludes them and so they venture out from the collective on a quest to locate, among the ruins and wreckage of outworld, that elusive resource.

Artisans will often seek out Neo Primitives or Trash Runners who cover wide ranges and know where the hordes of wreckage lie. They may even convince a ReFrat Don to let them sift through the waste before processing in exchange for some custom item or a share of the profits. Artisans are considered extremely useful people to have on-side since they can turn their hands to pretty much anything. Only in tech-heavy centres such as the GenCities are they regarded as an eccentric nuisance rather than a welcome resource. Even there the workers are usually glad for a bit of extra maintenance in the neglected and run down tenement blocks.

Artisans tend to shun printed goods and will often dress in and carry only clothes and equipment they have made themselves. Their works are of varying quality but since only the best survive for any time outworld, and the less-good get better very quickly, they are usually much more durable and finely honed than anything printed inworld. Collectives guard their skills and artists very closely and are suspicious of other groups who may be potential rivals. The luxury market is limited and the collectives are dependent on being able to trade inworld to survive.