I have no problem with providing more useful adventuring knowledge in game, whether that be via the Adventurer's Guild or inn-based loremasters or books or what have you. It's just a matter of builder inspiration, I suppose.
I do want to add one more possibility here, though, since Galthryn alluded to it: Ask a staffer to give you some hints.
Here are a couple examples of how I've personally let this play out:
1) I overhear char #1 asking char #2 about some piece of kit he's located. Char #2 has no clue. So I drop in with a heavy hint in the guise of a demon, who happens to guard said kit, taunting char #1 with visions and creepy tells.
2) A representative of a player group contacts me on the forums regarding some piece of lost lore. I (eventually) arrange a seance in which I inhabit the spirit of a former char and directly offer a pile of hints, steeped in history (as I recall it) to said player group via RP.
RP your quest for knowledge and stay IC, and I bet a lot of us would be happy to facilitate. It's the kind of thing I like to do, anyway. And if I don't personally know anything about X, I can ask other folks who know, or may have even built X. I'm doing that right now, in fact, for one of the religions I patronize -- unbeknownst to them.
I'm not suggesting this is a substitute for the Wisemen idea at all. But it's another option. We're sympathetic to your plight.