All references to worlds and characters based on Anne McCaffrey's fiction are copyright© Anne McCaffrey 1967,2000, all rights reserved, and used by permission of the author.

The Dragonriders of Pern® is registered U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, by Anne McCaffrey, used here with permission. Use or reproduction without a license is strictly prohibited.

elcome to Pern!

he Dragonriders of Pern is a science fiction/fantasy series written by Anne McCaffrey. Pern is a planet in the Rukbat system; it's a parallel Earth and follows Terran laws of physics. Colonists settled Pern; about ten years later, "Thread" fell on the planet.

hread, as the Pernese coined it, is an organism that devours all organic material it comes in contact with. Thread is carried to Pern by the "Red Star", a planet with an erratic orbit of about 250 years. The Red Star travels through the Oort Cloud, where the Threads are thought to originate. The planet then travels near Pern and Threads spin off to enter the atmosphere. Each time Threads fall on Pern is called a Pass; this period is between forty and fifty years. The time between two Passes is termed an Interval. Twice in Pern's history there has been a skip in pattern: a Pass did not occur, causing a Long Interval of 400 years.

ern's atmosphere removes the hard outer casing, causing the inner material to form long, silver colored strands, similar in appearance to thread. Thread can be halted by stone, fire, and water. The settlers had to find a way to destroy the organism. Either at the source or in the skies of Pern.

o this end an indigenous species, the firelizards, was genetically altered to be larger, more empathic, and retain the capacity to breathe fire. Several attempts were made to accomplish this, the most successful of these is the base for all draconic existence on Pern. They were named "dragons" because of the similar appearance to the dragons of Terran legend. Another creature produced by the experiments was the watchwher.

he dragons form a strong empathic bond with a human at hatching; this is called Impression. This connection remains for the rest of their lives and carries through to death. Dragons are also telepathic; they can speak to their riders in the mind. They also have the ability to travel from one place to another in the time it takes to cough three times. They travel between, a non-space, from images of the place they are going to. The ability to breathe flame is a genetic trait. The dragon digests "firestone", a phosphine bearing rock. The flame produced then chars the Thread. The dragons and riders protect Pern -- and the Pernese -- from death.

ragons, and their relatives, have five color varieties. Gold and green are female; the golds reproduce while the greens are sterile. The males have three color variations: blue, brown, and bronze. Dragon size is also dependant on the color. In order of smallest to largest: greens, blues, browns, bronzes, and golds. Greens are quick and agile, but don't have great endurance. Blues and browns are steady and dependable, and have greater endurance than the greens. Bronzes are the natural leaders and often take this role. Golds can't chew firestone, and their riders carry a flame-thrower in Thread fighting. These color varieties do not vary or blur. There has been one instance of this in Pernese history (Jaxom and Ruth), but normally this doesn't occur.

he firelizards of legend survived to present-day Pern; they were recently rediscovered early in the Ninth Pass. They are also known as flitters, flits, or 'lizards. They lay their eggs on warm beaches, mostly in the Southern continent. They have a slight empathic bond; they do not speak, but convey emotions and images to their Impressor. With these exceptions, they are identical, genetically, to their larger cousins. They are becoming more common as pets, and are frequently used as messengers. Firelizards are not Pern's pigeons however.

ern has developed a complex socio-economic-political structure with three separate, autonomous organizations: the Holds, the Crafthalls, and the Weyrs. Each can operate without infringment by either of the others.

he Holds: the homes of the "regular" people of Pern. This is where the most basic of all activity occurs. These are the farmers, the common folk, the base for the rest of Pern work, live, and interact. As Pern grows and develops, the Holds are where most of the activity and growth occurs. There are several layers of subdistricting within the entire structure. The broadest layer is the Lord Hold. A simple comparison of Pern to Earth would place the Lord Holds as nation-states, independent of each other in most ways. Beneath this level are the Holds, a division of the Lord Holds. This is where most of the people live in the hold structure. A Hold is comparable to a province or state of Terra. Each is independent of their peers, but all are pulled together by the Lord Hold. Yet another level in Hold society is the cothold. The cothold is the last and lowest in Hold rank. They are dependant on a Hold or Lord Hold, and are the residences of the individuals who support a Lord Hold or larger Hold. The Lord Holds do not maintain a large number of people, rather they organize and maintain the vast space with many Holds and cotholds in exchange for the support those systems supply.

he Weyrs: the inhabitance of the dragons and their riders. Weyrs are usually located in the old craters of volcanoes. The crater provides the warmth necessary for dragon eggs to harden and mature to the point of hatching. The dragons and riders live in cave systems, either natural or carved out, and these individual homes are weyrs. The riders are not the only inhabitants of the Weyr. Support staff called weyrfolk also live within the Weyr itself. The areas around the volcano is very barren, and no one lives there, in general. In exchange for protection from Thread during a Pass, and because the riders can't have occupations due to the care needed by the dragons, the Holds provide food and supplies to the Weyrs.

The Holds as bound to the Weyrs

he Crafthalls: Almost every major Hold hosts a Crafthall. The Hall brings prestige and new people to the area: it has a draw Pern-wide for the respective talent. The main Hall of a Craft is the center of learning and discipline taking pupils to raise up into the Craft. Apprentices are the lowest rank of Crafter. At first they are educated at their Hold or Weyr, or even Hall if they are born into the Craft. If their ability and talent warrants it, they may be sent to a larger Crafthall, possibly the main Crafthall. There, they can progress to Journeyman rank. From there they train further and may be sent to a Hold or Weyr to work their craft. They might then return to the Hall to attain their Mastery. Crafting is similar to a professional degree, with various levels of knowledge to obtain.

It is suggested by Anne McCaffrey that the series be read in the following order.

Dragonflight
Dragonquest
Dragonsong
Dragonsinger: Harper of Pern
The White Dragon
Dragondrums
Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern
Nerilka's Story
Dragonsdawn
The Renegades of Pern
All the Weyrs of Pern
The Chronicles of Pern: First Fall
The Dolphins of Pern
Red Star Rising/Dragonseye: The Second Chronicles of Pern
The Masterharper of Pern

visitors thus far.

Last Updated: 1 January 2002
This site maintained by: [email protected]

Black&White Art by: Teddy

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page