Portal Engineer
Whenever you come and go from the Sunless City, it's the work of Portal Engineers to make sure you get where you're going. These arcane engineers manufacture and maintain the permanent Portal circles in the Sunless City. This allows the Department of Transport to do its important work of shipping people, items and goods to and from Limbo and to the various worlds of the multiverse.
I constantly worry that my packages for my business won't arrive in their required places on time, but because of the Department of Transport and their incredible staff they arrive there, well, in a flash!
Qualifications
To become a POrtal Engineer, one must be in good standing with the Seven, including having completed the Gauntlet and gained their Mastery. In addition, the Department looks for well-seasoned travellers and those with a keen memory in order to memorize locations and coordinates of Portal destinations. Personable and friendly sophonts are also encouraged, but it isn't as necessary as some people may think.Duties and Responsibilities
Portal Engineers are the backbone of the Department of Transport; without them, the Department would be constantly failing at basic tasks. For Portal Engineers take the raw data of the locations of hundreds of permanent Portal circles throughout the multiverse and craft Portals to those circles. While much of the important groundwork in collecting that data is still ongoing - especially for places like Kerath on Orkanis or some of the more remote Sanctuaries on Earth - Portal Engineers still have to do the equations and draw the actual runes and symbols required to bridge the two places. Some Portal Engineers also accompany delegations from the Department of Outreach when they go discuss forming ties with groups of mages out in the multiverse with the express purpose of harvesting the location data for Portal construction. This is, of course, done with the permission of the mages themselves and allows the travel and communication between them and the Seven to be much more fluid. It also gives the mages a way out if they come under attack and need somewhere to retreat, which has happened before in the organization's history. Portal Engineers then often become an important person of reference for mages outside the Seven, as they often travel to and from the Sunless City.A Day in the Life
Most Portal Engineers work long hours drawing and forming Portal circles as part of their job. Each one has to fit the circle and preparatory runes on the ground, engraved by the architects who built the Central Portal Office. It's not overly tiring as far as magic goes, but those who don't have a strong source of magic will often go home exhausted at the end of the day. On their frequent breaks, Portal Engineers chat with Worldguides or other Engineers about the day's work, and they get many opportunities to travel as part of their job.I love travellin'! It's why I'm 'ere, honestly...
Type
Engineering
Other Associated professions
Related Locations
Used By
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Possible Portal Mishaps
Most mistakes made in the line of duty are simply error on the part of the person requesting travel. Perhaps they wanted to go to the city of Lerdelore, but ended up in the wrong part of that city's many districts. Or maybe one planned to go to the city of Sunport in Endaman, but mistaken got a Portal leading to the city of the same name on Orkanis. Occasionally, though, a more critical mistake is made on the part of the Engineer. Thankfully, very very few end up in a dangerous situation, often disembarking in another place on the same world or in a place in the multiverse where they can easily get help returning back to Limbo. However, there is one recorded instance of a Portal Engineer causing a citizen to be lost in the void between dimensions, and a handful have ended up in the harsh desert landscape of Limbo far from the city.Complaint: Gerin Misana (she/her) would like a refund for a crate of rare fish that was lost mid-shipment to her laboratory on Dreandril. Administration has been dispatched to negotiate a settlement with Gerin.
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