FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT PERN FANDOM AND MORLEVAN WEYR

Do yourself a favor and read these carefully please! It will make all our lives much easier!

Morlevan Weyr is an email-based fan-fiction writing club. The whole club writes stories about their character(s) in their day-to-day lives as they interact with other members. These email stories, referred to as 'posts,' are sent to the whole club. There can be between 2 to 5 posts or emails coming in every day as the members follow up each other's stories. Each post is about half a page long on average.

If you want to learn more about fandom, we recommend reading A DragonLover's Guide to Pern Fandom, by April Masters. (http://people.delphi.com/pcarbone/jcp/pern-am.htm)

Why was Morlevan Weyr founded?

Morlevan Weyr was founded in 1999 so that fans of Anne McCaffrey's work could further enjoy her planet. We are not a MUSH or a MOO and we do not have live role-playing sessions. We are a group of people who create personas and interact with each other through email as though we actually were those personas.

Is there any way I can read some of the posts before signing up so that I can see if this is the right community for me?

You may subscribe to our mailing list without creating a character and read the posts for a time. We don't generally like to have people "lurk" for more than three months, but joining with no responsibility is a great way to get a feel for the group and our style without committing yourself. We want to make sure that we're a good fit for you and that you understand how we run as we're somewhat different than many fandom Weyrs -- it's part of why we've been so successful!

How does the Board feel about drama queens or teenage angst-filled lovelorn storylines?

Glad you asked because we hate them. They are generally the refuge of people who can't think of anything else for their character to do or who have an overwhelming desire for attention. If that's the way you want to write, please look elsewhere -- we won't be a good fit for you.

If, however, you'd like to explore how life on Pern might be, with the occasional boredom of everyday life, with bumps and pimples and ripped pants (on occasion!), please apply. We're looking for people who want to create full character with complete personalities and real lives... not a crisis du jour. If you do lapse into the drama queen area, don't be surprised if one of the Board of Directors contacts you by email with a request that your storyline be toned down or ended. We reserve the right to do so. Similarly, we will ask that you revise any and all Mary Jane characters.

Do you have any problems with Spam?

Because the Board of Directors approves every single person who requests a membership to our mailing list, we haven't had any problems with spam at all (thank Faranth!) We hope it stays that way!

When was the initial jump forward (when this timeline was created) and who came forward in time?

Our best guess is that the time jump occurred approximately 15 Turns prior the hatching of the First Clutch (in 1999 -- you do the math.) The ONLY people who came forward in time were a very few dragonriders (none of whom are Player Characters), Lord Lucaren and Master Healer Elora. No one else was part of this crazy experiment and many assumed those who jumped forward would lose their lives. Clearly this was not the case.

There were non-dragonriders living in this timeline but the ONLY riders are those who came forward and those who've Impressed since. Please do NOT give your character dragonrider parents - it can't happen. Plus it would be tough to roleplay because as new player won't know all the background that a rider living for Turns in the Weyr would have at their fingertips. Don't even ask.

What, exactly, is a 'character' or 'persona'?

A persona, or character, is a person that you create to act as you on Pern. You use this character to speak and converse with other personas. (The word 'persona' comes from an ancient Greek word meaning 'mask.')

How do I create my 'persona?'?

To create your persona, fill out the application form on our website. Be sure to include detailed information on the physical and emotional descriptions, as well as on childhood and young adult life. **Remember: you cannot use the names of any of the characters in the Pern books, and please do not use a typical Earth-type name of the name of a major character in any other popular book, TV series, or movie, or any of our existing characters. And try not to use a long, crazy name that no one could possibly pronounce. It drives the BOD bonkers. Thank you!**

Can I have more than one 'persona?'?

Certainly! However, new members can only apply for a second persona after their first three posts or a month, whichever comes first. Of course, if you have never posted, the BOD will probably turn down your application for a second persona. Even though you are already a member, your new character will have to be approved also! Generally speaking, older Weyr members may have multiple personas, as long as they aren't all greenriders or weyrlings, since those types of personas are very much in demand. We don't want anyone to get overwhelmed with characters and then not write for any of them! IMPORTANT!! We also recommend that if your first persona is a female, that your second one should be male to maintain balance in the storyline.

Can I have non-playing characters or NPCs?

Yes, you can. There are two limitations on this, though. First, if the NPC has high-rank (Weyrleaders, Queenriders, Wing Leaders, Lord/Lady Holders), you need to ask the Board of Directors for permission -- we may have a character already that you can use. Please check the database on YahooGroups. We have a database of Holds and Halls with the Masters and Headwomen of each as well as a character database with lots of NPCs as well as PCs. Secondly, NPCs don't need to have persona sheets submitted unless the NPC has been used on a regular basis. Why is that? Because by then, that NPC is used often enough to qualify as an important part of your persona's life, and not just a prop.

What is the view on gay personas?

Gay and bisexual personas are very welcome! However, there can be no gay brown or bronze riders, and no lesbian greenriders, as stipulated in Anne McCaffrey's correspondence with fandom.

Can I have ten firelizards?

No. You may not have a 'Menolly-type' persona. We hold firelizard hatchings from time to time and these are open to all players. You may apply to Impress additional firelizards as long as you are not planning to be a candidate shortly afterward as weyrlings and candidates are not allowed to have firelizards. The maximum number of firelizards any character may have is five, and very few people will ever have more than three!

What kind of other pets can I have?

We prefer new characters not have any pets at this time (we reserve the right to change our minds later.)

Why does the application ask my age?

Your real name and real age will be viewed only by the Board of Directors, and only for mundane, administrative purposes. There is no age limit, although our storylines are generally rated PG-13 and we do prefer mature players with the ability to develop their characters through their posts. We've found that maturity doesn't necessarily correlate with chronological age, but knowing your real age helps us in our interactions with you.

Can my persona be a dragonrider?

If you want a dragonrider, you will have to adopt one of the already existing "adoptables" of Morlevan Weyr. Many of the available dragons clutched at Morlevan Weyr are listed in the adoptables database at YahooGroups. The name of the rider, dragon color, and wing position are noted on that page as well. Please check to see if the character you want is available as these personas are popular. You should also check to see when our next clutch is planned to see how long your wait will be if you create a candidate persona. We have some adoptable personas that are not listed on the webpage as well. Please let [email protected] know if you would like to adopt one of these candidate/personas.

***Bronze and gold dragons are only allocated by the Board of Directors to deserving members. This means that though you can't have one right now, if you write well and often enough, you may get one in the future!***

What if I want to join a craft?

Go ahead! If you want to be a Master of your particular craft, then you have to get permission from the Board of Directors first (preferably only if you've been with the club for a few weeks and written several posts). Apprentices and Journeymen are all welcome! Apprentices must be at least 12 years old and Journeymen should be at least 18.

Can I live at one of the Holds?

You can join as either a drudge, or a resident in one of the holds. Crafters are also welcome in the Holds. If you are joining a PC hold or Hall, please notify the Lord or Lady Holder or the Master Craftsman of the Hall and ask about any storyline considerations you should be aware of. There is a complete listing in the YahooGroups database of the various holds and Halls (major, minor, and cothold), the characters at each, as well as whether they are NPC or PC holds.

If you wish to join an already established area (i.e. Morlevan Weyr, Harper Hall or Nebella Hold) you may not add high-ranking NPCs without first discussing it with the leading member of that area or the Weyrleaders. Most likely that position has already been taken -- or it has been left empty for a reason.

May I create my own crafthall?

Possibly. Crafthalls are a special case. If that craft attracts a sufficient number of followers, and if there is an active master of that craft or you want to create one (and there isn't one already), then a new crafthall may be built.

How do I begin participating?**

After completing your persona, you must wait for a reply from the Board of Directors to find out when or if your persona sheet is approved. If they indicates there are changes needed, please make them and return your sheet. Once approved, you can see where your persona will end up living among the club locations. All new players' posts are monitored by your assigned mentor (if you have requested one) and by our Board of Directors. This ensures that you are writing appropriately for our storyline as well as saves you from making any embarrassing errors. We also have mentors available --if you would like to be assigned to one, please ask us!

What do I write about?**

Write about your character. How that character interacts with people. What that persona likes and dislikes, etc. Members are asked to write about the current storyline (e.g. major Weyr events, gold mating flights, helping to Search new characters, Gathers, Hatchings, etc.) If there is anything major involving another character (e.g. falling in love, getting hurt, getting pregnant), ask that person first! Please try to avoid the lingering illness storylines -- they get very tedious and limit your character's interaction with others. Sappy love stories and 'drama queen' RPing is discouraged. Life isn't a soap opera, not even in the Weyr! Also, if you want to meet new people, please don't run into them, trip over them or spill hot klah on them-- it's been done to death!

Certain storylines should be presented to the Weyrleaders or the Board of Directors if they will affect the entire Weyr/Hold/Hall. For example, all goldflights are strictly planned and the Board of Directors reserves the right to pre-plan the outcome. This is a rare and important event in the life of the Weyr. For most other storylines, players should just have fun!

Mating flights? How often do green and gold dragons rise?

Gold dragons normally rise (engage in a mating flight) once per Turn in our storyline -- we don't have Thread and have no need for large numbers of dragons. Green dragons normally rise three to four times a Turn, evenly spaced. Green dragons do not produce viable clutches. Greenriders should notify the BOD when it's time for their dragons to rise. We try to space the mating flights out as much as possible, however who wins your flight is up to you!

Note: Anne McCaffrey has stipulated that no mating flights would occur at night or during Threadfall, with the reasoning that the heat of the sun often causes dragons to rise to mate and no dragon would ignore her obligation to fight Thread to rise.

Do I need Board of Directors' permission to post?

Generally speaking, no. You need permission only if you're writing a major storyline that affects a large number of the people living in your Weyr, Hold, or Hall. Deaths, loss of limb, major dragon injury, and firelizard clutches also need Board of Directors' approval. If you're a new member, your posts will be reviewed and approved before being sent out to the rest of the group.

How often should I post?

At least once every four weeks for each character. If you have character A, you post for A once a month. If you have A and B, you post once a month for A and another one in the same month for B. Of course, we encourage you to post more frequently and you may post as frequently as you wish.

How do I play Dragon Poker?

Thanks to Wikipedia, we have a very helpful guide right here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_Poker

May I go *between* time?

No, you may not go *between* time. Although most of the Weyr leadership and many older riders know this is possible, it is far too dangerous an activity for any to attempt. Should your persona feel daring and go *between* times anyway, be prepared to face the wrath of the Board of Directors.

Can my persona hear all dragons like Lessa did?

No, this is severely restricted by Weyr Management. We currently do not have any 'hears all dragons' (HAD) personas in the Weyr. Should you desire to create a HAD persona, please contact the Board of Directors. If your reason and storyline are compelling enough, we will consider your request.

Note: While your persona may not hear all dragon conversations all the time, he or she may hear an individual dragon when that dragon speaks directly to him or her. It is a very *rare* occurrence, and the person to whom the dragon has spoken usually feels very honored.

As far as speaking to your dragon or firelizards, we have developed a slightly different convention from many PBeM Weyrs. In Morlevan this speech is designated thusly: Human thought/human to dragon speech: >>I love you, Resanth!<< Dragon to human: ~~I'm hungry.~~ Flitter speech: Please refer to the Flitter Guide elsewhere on this website.

What if I go on vacation and can't access my email?

You can go on leave for up to three Earth months, provided that you inform the Board of Directors that you will be away for that period of time. You may also post an OOC note to let the other players know you're leaving if you wish. If we don't hear from you after three months, we will mail you a reminder. If we still get nothing from you, we will assume that you've decided to leave the club. Likewise, if you delete Weyr emails, you risk being deleted from the Weyr. You may rejoin, of course, but you will need to fill out a new join form and we do not guarantee your old personas will be available.

**IMPORTANT** Personas created by players who leave the Weyr (for whatever reason) shall become Weyr NPCs and may be put up for adoption or otherwise used to fulfill storyline considerations. After all, a person wouldn't just disappear from the Weyr just because their player left the storyline. The player will forfeit all rights to the persona upon leaving the Weyr. Likewise, personas may not be killed, maimed, seriously injured, or contract a lingering illness without permission of the Board of Directors.

Who are the Board of Directors?

The current Board of Directors consists of five players, two of whom took over management of the Weyr when its founders left. This group handles all the decisions and administrative duties of the Weyr and approves major storyline-wide events. They hold permanent, non-elected positions and together, make up the Board of Directors.

Other things to know: Since Morlevan is a fairly large group you may sometimes get more email than you want or like. That's usually only a problem when we have a hatching, but it also depends on your tolerance level. Most people solve it by reading posts from certain writers and skimming others or changing your mail preferences to Daily Digest.

As far as how much time you'll spend, it varies greatly. I work online, so I'm here many hours a day, while other people post once a week or so. I think the majority of our members fall somewhere in between -- an hour or so per week although we welcome more active players.

IN REPLY TO A WHOLE LIST OF QUESTIONS FROM JOZI-PLAYER: (Just the answers!) The weyrs (lower case for individual living quarters) are of different sizes, with bigger ones for bigger dragons.

ONLY the goldrider weyrs (which gold weyrlings get right away) have private bathing areas and sitting rooms or offices. Everyone else gets a one-room weyr with a communal bathing area (one for males and one for females) down the hall. All weyrs have a ledge overlooking the Weyr Bowl for the dragons to sun themselves on. The dragon's couch is along one wall (pick one) and is carved out of the stone. The walls are not totally smooth, but the Weyr was previously lived in and years of habitation have worn them mostly smooth.

Furniture: The weyrlings already each have a trunk to store their stuff in. There isn't a lot of room in each weyr so while most of the items on the list are available, you won't have room for all of them. Of the things on the list, I'd say director's chairs and dressers would be the least likely to exist. The wardrobe too might not exist... basically, there isn't a lot of wood for woodworking on Pern so wooden items are scarce. Alea has a wardrobe or armoire in her weyr which was an Impression gift. It is a rare item. If your character has a wealthy family or great connections at WoodCraft Hall, you might get one of these. But Jessany will not have them lying around the storage rooms.... And desks will be in short supply too, but then no one's writing letters (no paper, remember) so you don't really need one unless you're a goldrider, Weyrleader, WeyrlingMaster, or wingleader.

There's only one weyr I know of with a curtain and it's spoken for. You could certainly erect one if you wanted, but all the weyrs come with stretched hide doors that latch for privacy. Every weyr is accessible by hallway as well as by the dragon's ledge.

No windows in weyrs! Right! There is however, light from the opening to the dragon's sunning ledge. Depending on which side of the Weyr Bowl you're on, it may even wake you up in the morning! If you want that, great, if not, pick another weyr!!

Try to picture this... (better yet, see the map on the Maps Page!!) the Weyr is in a great donut-shaped cinder cone. In the center (which is oblong) is the hatching grounds, Weyr Lake and weyrling classroom area. This is a big cinder cone! The walls rise up two hundred feet or so and along those walls facing the center of the Weyr Bowl -- all the way around except a small area just over the hatching ground where the wall is a bit shorter -- are the ledges on which the dragons sun themselves. These are also the openings you will use most often to enter and exit your weyrs since it's so much easier than climbing a bunch of stairs or walking long hallways.

Beds/mattresses -- it's my understanding that the bed itself is a stretched hide affair with furs for blankets. I guess if someone wanted more padding they could have a cloth mattress stuffed with feathers or grasses or something....

There is no roof on the Hatching Grounds -- it's outdoors in the weather. Period.

Clothes hangers -- doubt if they have them. Most of the fabric is fairly coarse and durable and would be hung on pegs or folded into the trunks. Or maybe folded on shelves....

Ventilation shafts? Never thought about it... just assume that there's sufficient air and it's not a problem. Besides, volcanic rock is fairly porous anyway, we won't suffocate!

Since all weyrs open onto hallways (except K'raina's weyr which is only accessible from the air), all weyrs have an inside route to get to the main rooms of the Weyr: kitchens, Great Hall, etc.

Serving shafts: they had these in F'lar and Lessa's weyr at Benden, but we don't have these... too bad!

Craftspeople may have more than one weyr so they have adjoining living and working space. Again, check out the map page.

Candidates who do not Impress are always welcome to stay and may remain in the guest weyr to which they were assigned. They still perform chores as assigned by Jessany.

This is just my take on things. The BOD will add more information as we develop it. If you have questions, please send them to [email protected] and I'll see what I can do about satisfying your curiosity!

For Sam: I always assumed there were other Weyrs in the time of the plague. According to Damacea and L'saaric, the plague affected dragonkind as well as riders and many were lost. The Jump forward in time was a last ditch attempt to escape the ravages of the plague and re-establish dragonkind on Pern. Thus while there were other Weyrs on Pern, the plague wiped them out.

I've got a whole lot of other questions, and they aren't on this page.

For additional information and questions, please email any member of the Board of Directors: Alea ([email protected]), K'lysta ([email protected]), or Kira ([email protected])

Links & Information