HEADLINES

The Ultimate Guide to Pern

It's the ultimate guide to pern! Okay maybe not the ultimate but its helpful to anyone who's new to pern or needs from refreshing on certain things. If something isn't answered in here, feel free to ask the staff.

Creating a Character

So you want to create a character for Cove Weyr? Well there are several steps involved in order to create your character.

YOU CAN ONLY HAVE 6 CHARACTERS HERE!

A Good Guide to Creating a Character

-Your character's name
-Their rank
-Their personality and history
-Hsitory and where they come from
-Picking a dragon color
-Pets

Choosing a Rank:
Pern has more then a dozen ranks to choose from. You can be a dragonrider,harper,holder, etc. But be sure it's the rank for you. Higher up ranks may needed to be earned through roleplay such as Weyrleader or any Jr. Weyrleader/Woman which can only be earned by dragon impression and winning flights. Read the ranks available to decide what best fits your character.


Picking A Name:

Everyone's gotta have a name. But make sure you know some of the rules that go along with making one.

When picking a name, please know that Terran names are not allowed. Terran means names coming from earth such as Tom or Katherin. These are not allowed. Remember that Pern language has changed a lot since the colonists originally landed so Terran names are unheard of.

For girls names, you just have to remember to keep it non-terran since they will never have their names changed or shortened. Now depending on what rank your character wants will depend on your male characters name. If you want to be a harper,smith,holder, etc then you can just pick a non-terran name like girls. However if you want to be a dragonrider, you have a think a bit more.

Dragonriders who are men use shortened/honorable versions of their original name. An example would be a young candidate named Salven impresses a dragon. His named would be shortened to S'ven or S'lven. This is because during the first dragonriders, they would often slur the names and shortened names are easier to call out while fighting Threadfall. So pick a name you can shorten if you make a candidate,rider, or weyrling.

Personality:

Giving your character a deep, good personality makes them not only more interesting for you yourself to play but also a fun character for other members to interact with. The cliche personalities are not well liked and certain ones are overused making characters stale and unoticable. So we advise staying away from the perfect princess, angsty people, or constant jokers. Give your character some flare and have fun with them!

Mentally ill or unstable characters have no chance of impressing a dragon because they require the right mind and stability. But if you want someone outside the Weyr, go right ahead. When writing your personality, here are some things to think about. How does your character act towards other people? How do they handle emotions and certain situations? These are some things you can write about.

History:

One of the most important aspects of your character. Their history helps shapes their character and why they act and who they are today. Character's can come from many different places such as holds, craft halls, rougues, traders, etc. Depending on what you want, you can use that in your history.

Depending on your rank again will help with your history. For example, a holder character might have been born in Coral Hold or Tide Hold. A crafthall character could have been born in a hold then discovered and taken to their crafthall. The possibilities are endless basically.

Dragonriders can come from anywhere. Searchriders will go anywhere. Take for example our Weyrwoman Eva. Her mother was harper sent to Cove Weyr to be the weyr's harper. There she met her father and later on, Eva came. She was talented in singing and so she was sent to Harperhall to train. When the last queen of Cove Weyr laid her clutch, there weren't enough candidates so they took Eva back home where she impressed Moth. Of course you can write your history in more detail.

Pets:

There are a variety of animals that live on Pern, some which can be pets. However there are limits to what you can have and how many.

If your a holder, weyrfolk, crafter, or any person who is not interested in becoming a dragonrider, there is no restrictions on pets since you don't have a dragon to look after. Remember that dragons take a great deal of work and care so having tons of pets will not make the job easier. All firelizards must be roleplayed so keep that in mind.

Cats:
First off, there are NO cats. There are larger wild cats but on Pern, there are no domesticated cats so your out of luck there.

Dogs:
There are domesticated dogs but no exact earth breeds. Many of them resemble terriers or the larger hunting/working dogs. You are welcome to own them but any dragonrider/weyrling/candidate is not recommened to own one because of a dragon.

Runnerbeast:
Close resemblence to a horse. Again, if your in beastcraft, farmer, holder, etc you can own one for either riding, working, pet, etc. The weyrfolk and dragonriders have no need for these guys except food for their dragons lol.

Firelizards
Okay this is where people need to read.
Firelizards are a privledge to own in Pern and aren't that common. Usually Lord Holders and craft Masters have them but they are usually on a long waiting list. Impressing one from a wild clutch is very rare so it won't happen much on here.

Firelizards can usually be obtained from the Weyr or the Weyr's Firelizard Master. So if you have a holder,crafter, etc who wants a firelizard, get in touch with the Firelizard Master to reserve an egg from their next clutch.

Flits(firelizards) require a lot of attention so having 9 or more like Menolly in the books is crazy. All flits have to be roleplayed so don't go having tons of them. No character can start out with them. You must earn one through a hatching. Golds and bronzes can be handed out only at hatchings to people who deserve them.

FLITS ARE RESTRICTED FOR WEYRLINGS AND CANDIDATES
Reason? You're either preparing for a dragon and have other things to do rather the looking after a firelizard. Weyrlings can have firelizards but only two since you have a dragon to look after. Dragonriders can have more but be warned, you got a dragon to look after more.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

NPC - Non-Player Character, labelled, are played only by the staff or admin

AC - Adoptable Character, labelled, are up for adoption. Submit a message to Hannah to adopt one of these characters!

What is Pern
So what is Pern? Well here's the basic introduction to it.

Pern was a planet colonized by people wishing to leave Earth and the surrounding colonies which were going through war. They wanted to more peaceful place. So they came upon Pern and settled there. They had the minimum technology and lived an almost farm like life style. In the first book about the colonization, "DragonsDawn", who young kids impressed the illusive firelizards. As the story goes on, more and more people began to obtain them. One day Thread falls onto the planet. Thread is a voracious organism dropped off by the Ort Cloud that travels in the Red's Star erratic orbit. When it gets close enough to Pern, Thread is dropped and eats anything organic from plant to flesh.

The colonists were saved slightly by the litter firelizards who breathed flame, the only other thing able to kill off Thread other then water. They also learned that only stone and metal could really protect them and that Thread could not burrow into it. So they began using the "sleds" (flying transpiration) and flamethrowers to fight it off. However fuel began to run low and since they would be out soon, a geneticist named Kitti-Ping used firelizard DNA and created the Pern dragons to fight. And thus leading up to this point.

If you read the books, you'll know what happens between that time and up till the end of the series so far which is in the 9th pass. (SPOILER!! In the 9th pass, they use the original colony ship's engines to move the Red Star just enough so that it doesn't come near Pern ever again. They also discovered AIVAS, an intelligent computer left behind by the colonists who helped the people rediscover their history and technology, though recreating it slowly.)
However Cove Weyr does not take place then. In Cove weyr time, AIVAS was never discovered and the Red Star continues to be a menace.

For further story on Pern, refer to this very good site.
http://www.roedinofpern.co.uk/pernintro.html

The Pernese Glossary

In the world of pern, some words and things aren't familiar to those who haven't read the series. So here's a colleciton of things you might here in the weyr. If we forgot one, feel free to pm us and we'll add one.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alehold: A pub or tavern

Agenothree: A common chemical on Pern, HNO3. It was used in flamethrowers to produce a charring gas that burns Thread.

Bambu: Bamboo. A tall, treelike shrubby grass that grows mainly on the Southern Continent and only in marshy areas of tropical and semi-tropical regions. It is used for fashoning fishing rods, wicker like work and food.

Basic Rights: The rights given to every Pernese person. An example is a candidate that is Searched has the right to stand at a hatching, and choose to remain at the weyr is they do not impress in hopes at impressing at a later clutch.

Belior: Pern's largest moon

Between: The strange, cold, black area of nothingness. A dragon may go between and come out in a different location.

Birthing Woman: Pernese equivalent of a Terran midwife, a woman who assists at (human) births.

Black heavy-water: analogous to Terran oil.

Black Rock: Coal

Bovine: Cattle. Some are used for milk (milchbeasts), dome for meat (herdbeast) and some for work (draybeast)

Bubbly Pies: A common dessert at gather. It's sweet pie with berry (usually blueberry) filling

Bubbly (Bubbling) Wine: Champagne

Candidate: A person, typically between 12 and 20 years old (although they can be as young as 10) that stands at a hatching in hopes of Impressing. Queen candidates tend to be more mature, 18-22 years of age.

Caprine: A goat. They may be used for milk and meat. The angora types may also be used for their hair.

Cartbeast: oxen

Cereal: on Pern cereal is eaten (often hot) as breakfast in the form of porridge (made by boiling oatmeal, or other meal, in water or milk until it thickens; originally called pottage)

Chilblains: Pernese name for itching fingers because of the cold

Cleansing sand: sand used as soap. See also sweetsand and sweet soap.

Contract Hold: a term for a Hold to which somebody has contracted (or indentured) himself to do certain work or labor

Contract worker: a contract worker is a laborer that sells his or her labor for a set amount of time. It is a rule that a contract worker must have his basic needs supplied by the Hold he indentures himself to

Cooky: a small, thin, dry cake, usually sweetened; often taken with klah

Crafthall (Hall): Crafthalls are the 'guilds' of Pern.

Crawler: Type of Pernese insect that humans find really annoying

Day Sisters: A trio of stars visible from Pern. Also called Dawn Sisters

Dragonet: A young dragon.

Direct flight: direct flight means a flight without going between.

Draybeast: An animal used for draft work. Usually oxen, donkey or mules

Drudge: a worker. Usually not intelligent enough to be apprenticed in any craft. They do the menial tasks such as food preparation and cleaning.Fellis Juice: A narcotic painkiller that can be addictive. It is created from Fellis Tree fruits.

Espousal: engagement/bethrotal or marriage

Firestone: A phosphorous-bearing mineral which dragons chew to produce flame.

Firelizard: They are like miniature dragons, their DNA being the basis of the process that engineered dragons. They are small, usually an arms length at full growth, growing up in a matter of weeks. They have thinner and streamlined bodies than those of dragons, and can only communicate by pictures. They are extremely intelligent, though don't always understand humans. They come in the same colors of dragons, and develop unique personalities, Impressing anyone of their choice.

Flamefly: firefly

Furs: bedding or blankets

Gitar: guitar

Glow: a light-source which can be carried in a hand-basket.

Hatching: A public event where a clutch hatches and the dragonets impress

Harpers: The teachers and entertainers. They educate the young of  the hall, hold, and weyr through the Teaching Ballads. The Masterharper is responsible for training the younger harpers, the appointment of harpers to Weyr, hold, and hall, and the discipline of the harpers.

Herdbeasts: Refers to bovines, in particular those used for meat.

Hold: They are generally built into a cliff or a cave system, and are where the common people live and work. A Hold is administered by a Lord Holder.

Impression: The choice of rider made by a newly-hatched dragon, which occurs at a Hatching. The dragons choose their riders, and the lifelong bond between dragon and rider begins through the joining of their minds.

Interval: The period of time between passes where no thread falls. They are normally 200 turns but there may be the occasional Long Interval lasting up to 400 turns.

Jr. Weyrwoman: A female dragonrider who rides a gold, and is understudy to the Senior Weyrwoman.

Jr. Weyrleader: A male dragonrider who has flown the queen of the Jr. Weyrwoman

Klah: A hot stimulating drink made of tree bark and tasting faintly of cinnamon.

Llama: An animal used as a beast of burden. Llama's hair is also used.

Looking metal: mirror

Milchbeast: A bovine used for milk

Month: Four Sevendays

Needlethorn: The needles of the plant can be used as syringe for injections and to draw blood.

Numbweed: It's a medicinal cream which, when smeared on wounds, kills all feeling it is used as an anesthetic. If too much numbweed is used it will cause bleeding and scarring. To prepare the salve, it requires 3 days of stewing, then 1 day to strain it, and the juice skimmed to the right consistency for the salve.

Ovine: A sheep. They may be used for milk (which is typically made into a cheese), meat and wool.

Pass: A period of time during which the Red Star is close enough to drop Thread on Pern.

Pern: Third of the star Rukbat's five planets. It has two natural satellites.

Porcine: A pig. They are used for meat.

Poultry: The birds of Pern used for meat are tamed wherries, geese, chickens, quail, and the very rare duck. Tamed wherries are most common, as the Terran birds did not adapt as well to Pern (and so are rare).

Records: archives

Red Star: Pern's stepsister planet. It has an erratic orbit.

Rukbat: A yellow star in the Sagittarian Sector, Rukbat has five planets and two asteroid belts.

Runner: Usually a courier, however it can also bea shorted name for a runnerbeast

Runnerbeast: An animal adapted to Pern's conditions. There are racing, farm working beasts, and placid riding types that are distinctly bred for these conditions. A runnerbeast is frequently called 'runner' for short.

Sanding: lathering

Sevenday: A week on Pern

Shipfish: dolphin(s), rarely used by the informed, since the dolphins have made it clear they don't like to be called fish

Sky-broom: The wood is difficult to work, but highly prized in the WoodcraftHall. Its used for some harps and other instruments. It's also the highest quality of material for a painter's 'canvas'

Sleeping furs: bedding, blankets

Snowstaves: skis

Starsmith: astronomer

Star Stones: A figuration of stones set up on the rims of a weyr used to foretell the arrival of a pass, which is when the red star can be seen through the eye rock.

Stone-clean: bare, free of greenery

Sulfure sticks: Matches

Sweet oil: perfume

Sweet soap: sand used as soap, see also cleansing sand and sweetsand

Sweetsand: sand used as soap, see also cleansing sand and sweetsoap

Thread: Now beleived to be gone by almost all of Pern, thread was a parasitic organism that originated from spores from the Red Star. It descend on Pern and burrowed into it, devouring all organic material encountered. Only stone and metal are impervious to Thread. Thread was fought by burning it out of the sky before it could hit ground; however water can also drown the silver strands.

Timor: The smaller of the two moons of Pern

Tubers: a root vegetable, possibly potatos

Tunnel Snake: Technically not snakes because they do have six pairs of legs, these creatures are a minor annoyance to the people of Pern.

Turn: a Pernese year.

Turnover: A two-day period at summer solstice (actually, it was winter solstice in the North) where the calendar changes to the next year. One day is counted as the previous year, the other the new year, though they are not part of any month. Pern has 362 days, and each month is thirty days long - the extra two days of a year are at the beginning to the year and the end, for Turnover.

Watch-dragon: the dragon whose rider has pulled a watch duty on the Weyr roster. A watch is generally 4 hours long. During a Pass, they watched for any erratic Threadfall that might, by chance, occur. Also watch for anyone entering or leaving the Weyr.

Watchwher (also Wher): An ungainly nocturnal creature, a cousin to the dragons. They are vicious when aroused, protective of those they see as friends. They are used as a watch dog in the holds and halls, but can also be used in mining ventures

Weyr: a home of dragons and their riders.

weyr: a dragon's den

[b]Weyrleader: The rider of the dragon that has mated to the queen of the Weyrwoman during her flight. The Weyrleader is in charge of the fighting wings of the Weyr, responsible for their conduct during Falls, and the discipline of all riders.

Weyrsinger: the Harper for the dragonriders, usually a dragonrider him or herself

Weyrwoman: the rider of a dragon queen, and co-leader of the Weyr, along with the Weyrleader. She is responsible of the conduct of the Queen's wing during Fall, under the Weyrleaders orders; for the care of the dragons, riders, and all Weyrfolk; and for the peace and tranquility during Intervals. She appoints all subordinates, insures that all tithes are delivered and collected, and mediates all disputes except honor contests among riders. As any dragon or rider will obey the queen dragon of the Weyrwoman, or the weyrwoman herself, she is one of the most powerful people on Pern.

Wherries: a type of fowl roughly resembling the domestic turkey of Earth, but about the size of an Ostrich.

Wherhide: leather

Wingleader: The dragonrider in command of a Weyr's fighting wing, the Weyrleader is in charge of all the fighting wings, usually in the main one.

Wingsecond: the dragonrider second in command to the Wingleader.
----------------------------------
Pernese Curses, Oaths, Explicatives
Begreened
Benighted
By the Egg
By the Egg of Faranth
By the First Egg
By the Shell
By the shards of my Dragon's egg
Crackdust
Deadglow
Eggshells
Fardles
Great Faranth
Great shells and stars
Scorch it
Shards
Shells
Through Fall, Fog and Fire

The Ranks of Pern

Weyr Ranks:

Weyrwoman: the rider of a dragon queen, and co-leader of the Weyr, along with the Weyrleader. She is responsible of the conduct of the Queen's wing during Fall, under the Weyrleaders orders; for the care of the dragons, riders, and all Weyrfolk; and for the peace and tranquility during Intervals. She appoints all subordinates, insures that all tithes are delivered and collected, and mediates all disputes except honor contests among riders. As any dragon or rider will obey the queen dragon of the Weyrwoman, or the weyrwoman herself, she is one of the most powerful people on Pern.

Weyrleader: The rider of the dragon that has mated to the queen of the Weyrwoman during her flight. The Weyrleader is in charge of the fighting wings of the Weyr, responsible for their conduct during Falls, and the discipline of all riders.

Jr. Weyrwoman: A female dragonrider who rides a gold, and is understudy to the Senior Weyrwoman. When the original weyrwoman steps down, the first Jr. Queen to rise will make their rider the new Sr. Weyrwoman.

Jr. Weyrleader: A male dragonrider who has flown the queen of the Jr. Weyrwoman. They shadow the Sr. Weyrleader to learn the job. If they catch the fist Jr. Queen who rises to replace the old queen, they will become the new Weyrleader. A weyr rank.

Dragonriders: The defenders of Pern who ride their dragons and fight Thread. They live in the Weyr with their dragons. They can run errands, take passengers back and forth, along with other tasks.

Watch-dragon: the dragon whose rider has pulled a watch duty on the Weyr roster. A watch is generally 4 hours long. During a Pass, they watched for any erratic Threadfall that might, by chance, occur. Also watch for anyone entering or leaving the Weyr.

Weyrsinger: the Harper for the dragonriders, usually a dragonrider him or herself

Headwoman: They bascially run the show and command the weyrfolk. While their weyrleaders are busy with riders, they ensure that the general population is happy and doing their jobs. The Headwoman may sometimes look after the weyrleaders children.

Candidate: A person, typically between 12 and 20 years old (although they can be as young as 10) that stands at a hatching in hopes of Impressing. Queen candidates tend to be more mature, 18-22 years of age.

Weyrling Master: Senior dragonrider in charge of overseeing and training the weyrlings until they graduate into full dragonriders. Weyrling masters have a busy schedule and sometimes enroll one or more assistants if there are several groups of weyrlings needing to be trianed. Gold weyrlings work with the Sr. Werywoman and the Jr. Queens instead.

Weyrling Master Assistant: Experienced riders who work with the Weyrling Master to help train weyrlings and their dragons.

Firelizard Master: Typically a rider or weyrfolk appointed by the Weyrleaders to be in charge of distributing firelizards eggs as well as offering training. This person tend to have a few themselves and are in charge of keeping records of who belongs to who.

Firelizard Assistant: Assistant to the Firelizard Master. They help keep the records and distributing eggs.

DragonHealer: Rider or weyrfolk who specializes in healing injured and sick dragons.

Weyrfolk: The general population who lives at the weyr and are not riders. They cook food, clean, teach, etc. Their children are called weyrbrats.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Craft Ranks:
Click for crafthall descriptions


Master Harper: The leader of HarperHall and one of the best skilled harpers. They decide who becomes journeymen and Masters. The MasterHarper is always a good source of information and tends to know everything thats going on.

Master: The top rank of any craft. They can take on apprentices at this stage.

Journeyman/woman: No longer an apprentice but still leanring their trade. Harpers tend to travel around and gather information. Once the MasterHarper/Miner/etc. feels they are good enough, they will be premoted to Master.

Harpers: The teachers and entertainers. They educate the young of the hall, hold, and weyr through the Teaching Ballads. The Masterharper is responsible for training the younger harpers, the appointment of harpers to Weyr, hold, and hall, and the discipline of the harpers.

MasterMiner/Smith/Tanner/Herder: Oversees their halls. They premote ranks like the Master Harper.
(there are other masters but I can't think of them XD.)

Beastcrafters: Care,breed, and raise pern livestock.

Tanners: Tan pelts and create clothing. They know how to hunt and catch animals used for their trade.

Smith: People who work creating swords,daggers, etc.

Miner: People who mind coal, firestone, and other valubale minerals.

Healer: Taught how to heal and know all about herbs and othe rmedicines used to help with injuries and sickness.

WherMaster: Usually the owner of the oldest gold watchwher. They oversee their wherhandlers and clucthes. They stay at the Wherhold and help distribute their ranks to asking holds and halls.

Wherhandler: People who take care of the watchwhers. They are the dark loving cousins of dragons who are useful in mines and fighting thread at night. Wherhandlers either live at the Holds who employ them or live at the Wherhold.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hold Ranks:
Lord Holder/Lady Holder: The leader of the Hold who oversees everything. The leadership is passed on through family lines. Lord Holders are to make sure that supplies are given to the Weyr in return for protecting them.

Holder/Holdfolk: People who live in the holds (basically the normal people as holds are like towns and cities) They live out their daily lives and tasks. Many candidates are children from holds.

Drudge: a worker. Usually not intelligent enough to be apprenticed in any craft. They do the menial tasks such as food preparation and cleaning.Fellis Juice: A narcotic painkiller that can be addictive. It is created from Fellis Tree fruits.

Runner: Usually a courier, however it can also be a shortend name for a runnerbeast. A hold rank.

Helpful Sites and Guides

Well since Pern and everything about it can't be sumarized so easily, here are several very good links to help not only new readers but older members remember the facts and tips.

Reodin Of Pern
(Great website with lots of information)

Wikipedia- Pern
(Good overview of the series. Also includes characters)

Plants of Pern
(Good if you want to be a Dragonhealer or Healer Crafthall)

Dyes of Pern
(Good for tanners or any characters who make their own clothes)

Crafthalls
(Provides excellent descriptions of the various crafthalls)