Editing Wisdom

|music = [https://failbettergames.bandcamp.com/track/sunless-sea Sunless Sea]}}<blockquote>''"Ships from the Khanate are most common, but you see Chelonite vessels, Polythreme triremes with chained and sulky Unfinished Men, corsairs disposing of their miscreants, even one furtive Iremi skiff. The wardens pay them well for their prisoners."''<ref name="port report">{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Compile a Port Report|Sunless Sea}}</ref></blockquote>

<blockquote>''"Nuppmiddt built this place as a prison for the Khanate. Now it answers only to its Governor, and its Governor answers to no one."''<ref name="wisdom">{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Wisdom|Sunless Sea}}</ref></blockquote>

'''Wisdom''' is a prison complex in the [[Unterzee]]. It was originally built by an individual named '''Nuppmiddt''' for the [[Khanate]], but it is now considered independent and managed by its '''Governor'''.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Wisdom|Sunless Sea}} ''"Nuppmiddt built this place as a prison for the Khanate. Now it answers only to its Governor, and its Governor answers to no one."''</ref> Ships from all across the Unterzee drop off their miscreants here, and the wardens purchase prisoners as if they were slaves.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Compile a Port Report|Sunless Sea}} ''"Ships from the Khanate are most common, but you see Chelonite vessels, Polythreme triremes with chained and sulky Unfinished Men, corsairs disposing of their miscreants, even one furtive Iremi skiff. The wardens pay them well for their prisoners."''</ref> They also ransom prisoners to other parties for high prices.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Ransom a Prisoner|Sunless Sea}} ''"Wisdom will release prisoners, on payment of an [...] high redemption fee. It's not entirely clear whether this constitutes bribery, or a legal instance of Khaganian mercy."''</ref>

Wisdom is guarded by voracious [[Knot-Oracles]], who snap up failed escapees and prisoners offered as meals.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Rescue a Prisoner|Sunless Sea}} ''"One crew-member does, in fact, fall out of the pipe on his return, straight into the mouth of a knot-oracle. It munches him ruminatively while his twitching leg protrudes [...]"''</ref><ref name = "poor soul">{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Interactions|Some Poor Soul|Sunless Sea}} ''"I was at the top of the list for the oracles' dinner. They can't speak in human language unless they're fed human life - and if they can't speak in human language, the Governor can't trade the secrets, can she, now?"''</ref> The knot-oracles can speak human languages after consuming a person, so they relay their secrets to the Governor, who sells them for huge profits.<ref name = "poor soul"/> It is not clear whether the knot-oracles glean secrets from the minds of their victims, or if the secrets they relay were collected in other ways.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Ocular_Toadbeast|Ocular Toadbeast|Fallen London}} ''"The eyes [...] What have they seen? What do they know? [...] A rare and precious secret [...] Who's a clever little monster then? [...] Reflected in a thousand yellow eyes [...] What have you seen, you amphibian menace? [...] Good God, No!"''</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Throw away the Sprightly Visionary's letter|Sunless Sea}} ''"A knot-oracle lazily blinks its many eyes; in that half-second, its tongue tongue shoots outward, and snaps up the message."''</ref>

The Governor of Wisdom is a Khaganian man who wears a smooth mask covering a scarred face.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Exchange a Secret for a Prisoner|Sunless Sea}} ''"The Governor sits rigid in a high-backed chair. His manner of dress is Khaganian; his face is concealed behind a smooth mask."''</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Unmask the Governor and present the summons to Hideaway|Sunless Sea}} ''"The Governor is a ferocious, feared man. [...] You've seen his scarred face elsewhere [...]"''</ref> He was once a subordinate of [[Arik]] of the [[Seven Against Nidah]], and helped capture a fleet of living ships from [[Polythreme]].<ref name = "bounty">{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/Wisdom#Wisdom|Unmask the Governor and present the summons to Hideaway|Sunless Sea}} ''"[...] you leap to his desk, and rip off his mask. [...] Polythreme has a high bounty on his head, after he captured their vessels long ago, and led them to their doom in some forgotten escapade. The Governor roars, and pulls a pistol from beneath his desk; [...] you relate the Sprightly Visionary's orders. [...] "I will begin gathering my men at once!" [...]"''</ref> Arik used these ships to zail up the river of [[Adam's Way]] in a war against the [[Presbyterate]], but the invasion failed,<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.miraheze.org/wiki/The_Seven_Statues|The Captain|Sunless Sea}} ''"Engraved on his plinth are the words 'THE SECOND OF THE SEVEN'. [...] Arik seized the Polythremi vessels we needed to navigate the red river. He commanded our fleets. After our defeat, [...]"''</ref> and the Governor was forced into hiding with an enormous Polythremi bounty on his head.<ref name = "bounty"/>