The Ancient Archive

If we recovered the sum of all ancient knowledge it would surely challenge everything we know.

— Alicia Ravenwood, Historian.

Overview

One of the great tragedies of The Great Collapse is the loss of knowledge. Sapients have since had to relearn every aspect of the world largely as if no prior civilization existed. Fragments of =Ancient Order knowledge have been discovered here and there which has accelerated civilization's recovery somewhat, yet it is understood that the recovered fragments of knowledge are but tiny fractions of what used to be known. Many have speculated what would happen should a complete record of ancient knowledge was discovered. These speculations have spawned the myth of the Ancient Archive.

Archive's Form

What form this archive is in is up to debate. Some say that it is a massive library. Others believe that ancient technology and knowledge of magic was so great that they could imbue a single item with the sum of all they knew. If the archive is of a traditional form then identifying it once found should not prove difficult. If it is an object, like a crystal ball, then it may never be discovered by virtue of being unrecognizable.

It is common in our world to use magic to protect valuable treasures. Would it not be so for the Ancients?

— Sanev Vensandoral, Master Mage

Archive's Survival

How such an archive could survive the calamities of the Great Collapse would be a mystery. It could be entirely due to luck or destiny if your beliefs are so inclined. It could also be entirely planned by the Ancients as soon as they understood there was no stopping their demise.

Many are quick to point out the hubris and folly of those that come before. It can be easily forgotten that the old ones were not monolithic in mind and spirit and that there were those who practiced foresight.

— Alicia Ravenwood, Historian

Archive's Location

The first candidate is that the archive lies somewhere in the many ruins that have survived the collapse. However, no expedition to these ruins has yet to find anything like the archive described by this myth. It is possible that the archive is indeed some kind of object. Whether such an object could be correctly identified once found remains to be seen. Another possible location of the archive is in a place that was far removed from the old cities. Whatever the exact location, it can be safely reasoned that either boasts impressive integrity of structure to survive the collapse or it remained untouched by destructive forces.

Archive's Origins

It is commonly held that the archive was cultivated by the Ancients. Another theory that is quickly gaining traction is that the archive itself did not originate from our plane of existence. Some varients of this theory state that it fell from the heavens, other varients claim it was sent through a portal, others say it was outright stolen from another realm.

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Proposed ideas for the archive as an item theory:

• Crystal ball
• Tablet
• Disk
• Box

Basically, it could be anything.

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Proposed Locations for the Archive

• Inner city archival building
• Underground
• In the Sky
• Through a doorway to another realm

Basically, it could be anywhere.

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Note(s) from the Archivists:

If this archive were to ever be discovered us archivists would be out of the job. - Archivist Theta
I disagree, finding this archive would be an amazing opportunity for archivists everywhere. - Archivist Enna