I feel like a choice is being presented to us here: The continuation of our efforts to influence Runesmith society.
If you'll cast your mind back to the past, there were two, or perhaps three, distinct moments where we rallied the local Runesmith community into a single cohesive working unit to get shit done.
While incorporating the living areas into an actual campus is less overt than that, it's essentially proposing the establishment of a Runesmith University, where enlightened minds and masters alike gather to converse with each-other and learn.
It is, to put it lightly, pretty fucking radical. It doesn't directly subvert the bond of Master and Apprentice, but even just opening up a forum for Master Runesmiths to talk to their peers more than once every few decades would have incredibly long lasting effect.
The entire quest has carried a subtle -at first- element of Snorri moulding the Runesmiths of the North into his idea of what a Runesmith should be, one who carefully works around certain traditions of the old ways that are incredibly limiting to Runesmiths for the better of the Dawi race. One could consider it a subtle re-interpretation of tradition for the good of all Dawi. The most obvious of this was an example presented to us in the very beginning of the story: The Rule of Pride, that states that a Dawi must never copy their past works.
This is, of course, completely ignored by pretty much every Runesmith because it's hideously impractical. Snorri's ethos seems to work along these lines, tactidly ignoring or working around these problematic elements.
This comes nicely into the proposition of the Burudin, there has been some quiet muttering over quite how radical Snorri is being, though never particularly loud because by god does he get results. It could be considered a subtle show of approval by Alric, that he sees that our ways are divergent and still sees fit to admit us into the big club that actually decides Runesmith politics. This could be seen as Alric as a way of avoiding a Schism within the Runesmithing guild between the North Hold and the South Holds.
Again, an ongoing theme of this quest has been the changing of traditions that stifle the Dawi when presented with the practicality of their existence. One only need compare how the Runesmiths of the north act compared to the "typical" Runesmith you might learn about a few thousand years in the future of the Canon timeline.
In conclusion: I think that the choice here will effect how we want to leave our mark on the Dawi on a whole. By creating this "University" and accepting the Burudin, we could have a significantly greater impact on the entire Runesmith community at the cost of having even more of or precious time taken from us and having to deal with nasty politics.
On the other hand, if we create this "University" and reject the Burudin, it could be seen as us rejecting the ways of the South at the same time we do yet another rather radical yet very practical thing. It's sure to ruffle more than a few feathers, and it might just deepen the divide between those who follow our way and the rest.
Of course, we could do neither if we really don't want to stick our fingers in the time bomb just yet.
The most important question to ask is: Is it actually a bad thing if we create a schism in the guild? The "traditional" guild is frankly an impractical abomination, more fit for creating the occasional piece of fine art for the rich to coo at than actually serve any practical purpose. It was designed this way on purpose after all, it is called the art of Runesmithing and many of the rules go out of their way to make sure that Runesmiths are always striving to create singular pieces of art rather than more practical pieces.
Perhaps having a traditional faction and a "Snorrism" faction could lead to changes or reforms that benefit the Dawi as a whole, in exchange for losing some of the magic that makes Runesmithing "special". It's rather like the choice between a hand-crafted chair and one slapped together by a factory line, chances are there isn't that much difference between the two but you can make significantly more of the latter.
[X] [Burudin:] No
[X] [Home:] Embrace
My vote goes here, because I do not believe getting involved with the Burudin is a good idea, but I believe that fostering a closer community within the Runesmiths is a fantastic idea.
