Cobbling

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Cobbling is an artisan guild skill that allows a character to make footwear.

Cobbling workshop locations

There are three cobbling workshops. They are:

Joining the Guild

Find the foreman and ask him about joining. The foreman is the master cobbler of the guildhall, and among his responsibilities is that of teaching new cobblers. When asked about joining, he will demonstrate the first pattern, how to make a basic pair of shoes.

>ask foreman about joining
"Ah, so you'd like to take up the trade of the cobbler, would you?" the foreman says to you. "Not an easy task, becoming a master cobbler, but everyone needs shoes, and some people even appreciate good ones."

The foreman pauses for a moment before continuing, "First things first. Start off with the registrar, who can set you up with a book to hold your cobbling patterns. Since you're just learning, we'll start you off with the basic shoe pattern. It looks like this:"

The foreman spreads a piece of leather on his worktable and, holding a piece of chalk in his hand, gazes at his pattern book and copies the lines onto the leather. He produces a measuring cord and presses it down on the leather, its small beads leaving distinct marks on the soft surface. Drawing from his boot a small knife, apparently made just for this purpose, the foreman carefully cuts out the pieces of the pattern he has drawn on the leather. He picks them up and studies them momentarily, finally nodding in satisfaction.

"So, that's how to cut out the pieces for the upper. Repeat the process for the leather of the sole, and you'd then put them on a form in one of the workshops and JOIN the pieces together," he explains. "When you're ready for a workshop, just ask me about one."

As the foreman turns back to his work, he pauses for a moment to say, "Oh, and you'll find all the supplies you'll need in the storage area. If you prefer to work with your own pelts, you'll need to see the tanner at the town furrier."

Roundtime: 20 sec.

Supplies

Patterns

To get a book to hold the patterns, find the registrar. A book costs 2000 silvers. ASK the registrar about book, and then GIVE the note to the registrar and they will give you a book. The registrar will also give you new or replacement patterns, keeping track of those you have learned. (The registrar will also keep track of the individualized hallmarks of master cobblers, once these are developed.)

All registrars have the basic four patterns available: shoes, boots, slippers and sandals. Each will also have a selection of other patterns for more advanced cobblers. You can see what patterns are available in a particular guildhall by flipping through the book of patterns in the registrar's office. You can specify a page number (FLIP PATTERN 2), or just flip to the next page (FLIP PATTERN).

To use a pattern, you will need to have a copy of it in your book. Each basic pattern costs 200 silvers while more advanced patterns costs 1000 silvers. Patterns will last between 40 and 70 uses. To select a pattern, flip the registrar's book of patterns open to the pattern you want, and TAP it. Then ask the registrar about patterns to have the pattern put in your book. This must be done in quick succession.

>flip pattern 6
You flip through the book of patterns to page 6, which contains the pattern for a pair of shoes.
This pattern is familiar to you.

>tap pattern
You tap the pattern for a pair of shoes found in an oversized book of patterns. Tamariya glance over at you expectantly.

>ask lass about pattern
Tamariya consults a large tome, scanning long columns of names before finally settling on one entry. After a moment, she looks up and nods her head, saying, "Yes, that'll be fine. Just give me a note for 200 silvers, and I'll set you up with that."

>give note to lass
You hand Tamariya your book of patterns, who takes it and opens the binding. She scans the labels on various drawers, finally opening one and pulling out a sheet of heavy vellum, which she inserts into your book. Tamariya closes the book of patterns, dusts it off quickly, and hands it back to you, saying "Enjoy!"

Tamariya accepts your note, tucks it away in a lockbox, and writes out a replacement note for 178743 silvers in perfect, though cramped calligraphy.
Roundtime: 5 sec.

Cobbling novices can only get the basic patterns added to their book of patterns, and only those taught by the foreman. Asking about patterns not taught by the foreman gives the message "You need to learn the basic patterns before you can work with an advanced pattern like that."

Once you are past the novice stage, you will be able to choose to learn a new pattern from time to time. Master cobblers can know as many as 24 additional patterns, in addition to the basic four.

Available patterns

Page Wehnimer's Landing
1 -buttoned
2 - laced
3 -toed
4 -lined
5 -strapped
6 shoes
7 moccasins
8 open-toed shoes
9 round-toed shoes
10 square-toed shoes
11 high-heeled shoes
12 spike-heeled shoes
13 batts
14 revelins
15 boots
16 half-boots
17 basins
18 thigh-boots
19 workboots
20 riding boots
21 slippers
22 chopines
23 dancing slippers
24 clogs
25 scarpines
26 sandals
27 ankle-tied sandals
28 calf-tied sandals
29 crincs

Leather

Shoes require at least an "upper" piece of leather. Not using a second piece of leather for the sole significantly reduces the quality of the shoe and skips an opportunity to gain an Aha, or a rank more skilled in cobbling. Each cobbling attempt fully uses up the piece or pieces of leather used.

Shoes cannot be made from the hide of a humanoid creature. This includes kobolds, hobgoblins, orcs, hisskra, and others.

There are two ways to obtain leather for cobbling:

  • Bring pelts (hides, etc.) skinned from creatures to the tanner in town. In Wehnimer's Landing and River's Rest, the tanner is located in the furrier's shop. In Cysaegir, you will find the tanner downstairs from the storage room in the guildhall. If you GIVE your pelt to the tanner, she will assess its suitability and ask you some questions about how you want the pelt tanned. The lowest quality tanning process is cheapest and quickest, but will markedly detract from the quality of the finished cobbled goods.
The three curing processes are:
  • Oak: Cost is 50 silvers and takes 7 days
  • Alum: Cost is 400 silvers and takes 10 days
  • Oil: Cost is 800 silvers and takes 14 days
The quality of the tanned leather depends on the quality of the pelt. When trying to produce best-quality shoes, seek out skilled skinners who can provide magnificent pelts.
  • Leather can be purchased from the storage room in the guildhalls. The supplies there are ready to use, but they are more expensive than having the tanner tan a pelt. Although there is a range of pelt qualities available, none are as good as a top-grade pelt tanned using the best tanning process.

Other supplies

Cobblers will also need some marking chalk, a cutting knife and a measuring cord. These three items are available in the storage room in the guildhalls. The knife and cord are tools are purchased once and used for the entire cobbling career. They each cost around 5,000 silvers. The chalk is used up slowly and costs 100 per piece.

Progressing

Novice or apprentice cobblers (fewer than 200 ranks, checkable with the ARTISAN (verb)), are tightly constrained by guild training rules. You will first start off making basic shoes, then move on to boots, and so on, until you have achieved sufficient basic skills. When you gain skill by practice, you may also be told that it's time to check in with the foreman, who will review your work and may advance you to the next stage.


External Links

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