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The Archive

The basements under the Chronicles large South End headquarters are packed full of back issues of the newspaper and case files detailing hundreds of stories that were never written, and these are a treasure make no doubt. Every now and again a local Changeling comes down to the basement and digs around for a bit, looking for something of interest. These visitors are seldom even watched that closely by the staff, for the basement is only of marginal importance compared to the Archive.

First cobbled together by James Dorian Bookbinder, mostly called The Archivist, in 1968, the Archive didn't grow into its present form until sometime between then and 1973, when the Chronicle acquired its Headquarters. Most of the Freehold knows that the Archive existed before Norus Neveria bought the newspapers South End home, but nobody knows exactly what it was put together or anything of the sort. If the information is somewhere in the Archive itself somewhere, its never been found by anyone outside the Motley. The Archive itself is primarily the domain of the Archivist, but it definitely seems to accept Norus as well. The other members of the Motley are generally tolerated by the Hollow, if not accepted wholly, and anyone else needs the invitation of either Norus or James in order to avoid the Wards or use any of the magical Amenities.

Related Links- Boston Chronicle

Game Information
 Hollow Size 3

Roughly the size of a large warehouse or library, the Archive is located inside a literal hollow - the ground is carefully laid stone brick, but the walls and ceiling are tightly woven brier that don't provide even the occasional glimpse of what lay outside. The "walls" might have some give, and a determined hand could attempt to cut his way out, but otherwise the entire structure is perfectly isolated. The interior spaces are largely delineated by bookshelves, filing cabinets and the odd low-lying stone wall. The ceiling is just as thorny as the walls, but looks much more wild, an impossible tangle of thorny vines. It's no more accessible, however.

 Hollow Amenities 2

The Archive is generally comfortable and well-organized, with tables, chairs, and the odd creature comfort to make it more useful. Most of its features, though, relate to a repository of information rather than a home. The chairs are situated as to allow reading, the tables are places to study and take notes, the rows of bookshelves are carefully indexed by year or subject, there are several aids to help one find what your looking for, and so forth.

 Hollow Doors 0

The Hollow has, as far as anyone knows, only two doors. One of these is in the basement of the Boston Chronicle, and is the one usually used, though given how the Archivist seems to come and go most suspect there to be another entrance somewhere in his apartment. The keys to either of these gateways are not widely known.

 Hollow Wards 4

While not the most secure hollow in Boston (that honor probably goes to the Beacon Hollow), the Archive is very well defended. No one has ever located it in the Hedge, and there doesn't seem to be an exit there either. It's peculiar nature would probably be pretty particular, too, which means its probably hidden well off of any path and surrounded by particularly wild and overgrown Hedge in every direction. Even so, the Archive has been found by the Fae on a few occasions - usually the Gentry enter through the ceiling, rather than the outer walls, but even then they find a nasty surprise. The very substance of the Hollow acts to aid its masters, giving them every advantage.

Magical Niftiness
  • Helpful Growth (••) The wild vines that seem to droop down from the ceiling are not just for show; the Archivist can command them to grab books for him, and they tend to naturally keep the Archive neat and well-organized on their own. Some visitors have even seen them working a broom and dustbin.
  • the Master Index (•) A positively HUUUUGE book, in a central position in the Archive, keeps a record of everything in both the Archive and the Chronicle's basement. While not particularly automated in terms of finding anything, its quite well indexed and organized, and automatically updates to include anything added to either store of information. There's also a place to sign out books that are being borrowed, should the Archivist give permission for such (or there isn't, if he hasn't).
  • Hey now, What's This? (•) The Archive can be...helpful. When you're working on something, its not uncommon to find a related piece of material nearby. It wasn't there a few minutes ago and its probably best not to consider too closely how it got there in the first place. Still, it turns out to be at least useful if not relevant. This adds a +1 to the Research rolls of anyone doing Research in the Hollow, provided they have the approval of either Norus or the Archivist.

Other Merits, and Related Stuff

  • Archive (•••••) The Archive is among the greatest depository of information in Boston, and contains information on many topics including: The True Fae, The Lost, Urban Legends, Unexplained Events, and The Weird. All of this information relates specifically to Boston, or areas abutting or closely neighboring Boston such as Brookline, Cambridge, Quincey or Salem. I.e., you can appending "of Boston" to each of the categories listed above.
  • Yet Even More (?) The Archive has a good bit of additional information above and beyond what the merit above might otherwise suggest. This information isn't in defiance of the rules or unattainable to the players, its just not something I've gone ahead and made rules for yet (assume it requires stats close to those listed above). There is a lot of stuff kept down here, almost in defiance of reason. Changelings have reported finding everything from odd corporate memos filed away with a couple of years of back issues for the Boston Globe, to the most personal of correspondence between long dead famous people tucked away next to a little girls diary from 1833.