Face the Wind~

I really don't think there's ever been anyone else in Greenfinger's exact position – that is, rubbing elbows with Big A-tier players in the cosmic arena and essentially speaking on behalf of the Floran as a whole. I would've expected Florans to be somewhat better integrated into the space community by the time the beta lore opens up, if they'd already had at least one well-connected influential Floran representative of similar scale prior to Greenfinger. Even in the release, where they're part of the Protectorate, their standing feels somewhat shaky, what with all the ssssstabbing and the constant focus on how primitive they seem compared to literally everyone else, even the Avian.

Still, there definitely would've been massive leader figures within the Floran society before Greenfinger (the individual). I just doubt those would've been greenfingers (the plural). I mean, someone had to lead the invasion on the Hylotl, but that role requires slightly different skills and mindset. Greenfinger's Notes: Treetop Dwellings mentions tribesmasters, and it would make sense if those attained leadership based on actual physical strength, battle prowess and hunting technique. I imagine the earlier Floran leaders would've been exactly that, vicious and experienced fighters powering the expansion effort. Later, as greenfingers started to gain more authority, tribesmasters would either have to lead side by side with them, sharing tribe management and dividing responsibilities, or gradually cease to exist as obsolete. At least, that's the current system I see in which beta and release work together the best.

The thing is, the role of a greenfinger as a tribe's diplomatic representative and education provider only has merit as long as their people actually feel the need for diplomacy and education. The former clearly wasn't their priority for a good while, as evidenced by their history with the Hylotl and various bits and segments of both release and beta; and the latter, according to beta, only managed to begin en masse with the arrival of the Glitch, whom the Floran couldn't bite through for metallic reasons.

And, curiously, Greenfinger (the individual) supervises the process while keeping rather eloquent notes. Where did he get his education from, if it wasn't from the Glitch missionary campaign? Who knows. Perhaps he's got no formal education at all. The first educated Floran, at least by and according to the Glitch, is my boy Treeio Floorstab.

One way to explain it without throwing any extra conspiracies in the mix is that greenfingers are distinct in their exceptional command of plant life, which allows them to reverse-engineer and replicate other races' technology (on this note, if greenfingers already existed during the expansion stage, the research and adaptation of alien tech for use in battle might've been their main purpose). And Greenfinger (the individual) is a distinctly exceptional greenfinger who very well could've reverse-engineered heaps of data from various salvaged devices and taught himself everything he knows.