Candidacy

Fort Weyr prides itself on being the first Weyr founded on Pern. There's an annual event hosted (the Connell Festival) to celebrate the pride Fortians have. As such, the tradition of dragonriding continues with new blood, new candidates, and new adventures. The Weyr is known to be a bit both conservative in some ways and forward thinking in others.

With the change in attitudes of Holders and Crafters alike, there are fewer and fewer who desire to stand for clutches, as there are limitations on how far a person can go with a dragon these days. In days long past, the heroism of the fire-breathing dragons might have caused several to dream about the day they could stand for a gold's clutch. Presently, young people have so much more ambition. Even the sky is no longer a limit to the imaginations and the inventions of the clever minded. Families see brighter futures for their children than standing in front of a dragon clutch. So it's no surprise that without Thread as their main purpose, dragons have been producing fewer eggs, and the candidate groups decline in numbers.

It brings the Weyr to battle against the economy, old ways struggling against new. How does one convince an apprentice or a journeyman who make decent marks to come away to the Weyr to labour away for a quarter of that as the eggs harden? Only with new strategies, old tales, and hope can Fort Weyr fill its sands.

In Fort, those who are searched (males ages 12-25, females 14-30) become candidates, each of which hope to impress a dragon from the clutch on the sands. The candidate, upon search, is brought back to the Weyr and given new lodgings in the candidate barracks until the time of the hatching. For the following sevendays, the candidates are expected to perform chores to prepare themselves for the rigorous life of weyrlinghood and to contribute back to the Weyr that houses them. If a candidate has any skill (a ranked crafter), they are allowed to continue their training or put their training to use for Fort Weyr. The Weyrwoman, Jr. Weyrwomen, and the Headwoman are all responsible for the well being of the candidates during their stay. Any disputes or incidents during candidacy are brought up the chain of command. Sometimes, authority over the candidates falls to the Weyrleader or a ranked member of the Weyr, but generally only with the consent of the Weyrwomen.

There are rules and expectations a candidate must follow during their stay with Fort Weyr. Records do not fail to show the consequences of what happens to candidates who do not feel the need to heed the rules of Fort Weyr. In some extreme cases, individuals have been removed from the Weyr and disallowed at the hatching.


Things to Know

IC candidacy is a player's opportunity to discover if an area is correctly matching their character's needs. It's also a time to develop a character and to forge relationships with other players, candidate and non-candidate alike. Often, candidacy can be stressful, especially in large groups. Fort Weyr does encourage as much role-play as possible, so that you, the player, can determine if Fort Weyr is really the place you want your character to Impress at. We hope to keep the weyrlings we impress at Fort, so we really want to stress that you should have a certain comfort level here - candidacy is a great time to discover that.

Things to do once you've been searched:

  • @link yourself to the barracks: type @link me=here when in the Candidate Barracks
  • Update your +sheet/+finger/desc
  • RP - Network, get to know who you'll be around!

Other Things:

Pranks/Personal Events/TPs - You're encouraged to help keep your time as a candidate involved. Remember to first get approval from the staff for major TPs or pranks.

The FPM (Fort Preference Machine) was coded for the purpose of choosing colors when Fort decided to have a random hatching. However, SearchCo uses the FPM to also see just how much a Candidate is interested (or not!) in a particular color, so please use it. Of course, we also look at your questionnaires, so feel free to elaborate on your choices there.


IC Rules

  1. Candidates are expected to keep their personal area in the barracks tidy at all times. Inspections rotate on a regular basis and those not keeping the minimum for tidiness or following personal hygiene will likely earn themselves some stern lecturing.
  2. Candidates are also expected to behave in a manner which speaks well of the Weyr. While personalities can and do clash, verbal arguments and disagreements are often overlooked (unless they escalate). Minor scuffles are frowned upon, but may only result in stern warnings. Fighting that results in physical injuries (beyond minor bruising or scrapes) or against anyone of rank above a Candidate will result in heavier punishments. Shirking of chores can result in varying disciplinary punishments equal to the unfinished chore or task.
  3. Drinking is permitted, with a heavy reminder of common sense and discretion! Candidates are expected to remain sober and to be aware of their own tolerances regarding alcohol. Regular abuse of this rule will result in a cascade of consequences (think 3-strike rule, dependent on severity of each infraction). Common sense and discretion are also applied to sex. It is preferred that sex is abstained from entirely. Barring that, Candidates are expected to take the necessary precautions and to be respectful (i.e. seeking privacy and not engaging in any physical acts in the barracks), as well as being reminded that a Candidate who becomes pregnant will be ineligible to Stand and removed from Candidacy.
  4. Candidates that have been ill or injured will need to be cleared by a Healer (Journeyman and up) before they are cleared and permitted to Stand. Physicals are routine, but not heavily enforced.
  5. Candidates are expected to attend necessary lessons (run by the WLM Staff and occasional guest instructors) about what to expect should they Impress . There is one ‘rest day’ given per sevenday. Candidates are also expected to keep busy contributing to the Weyr with *chores aimed at giving better understanding of how the Weyr functions.
  6. Those with a Craft background will be permitted to continue on during their Candidacy. This includes attending any classes necessary for their Apprenticeship (or working under their assigned Journeyman). For Journeyman, they will be allotted time for their projects or work and, alternatively, be offered the choice to host a class for fellow Candidates if there is suitable interest.
  7. Candidate excursions (think field trips!) happen on occasion to various areas around Pern but are left to the Candidates discretion to attend. They may not leave the Weyr without a **dragonrider escort who is capable of bringing them back. This rule changes within the predicted ‘hatching window’ and travel becomes restricted within the Weyr walls only.

* The coded chore board in the Candidate Barracks offers suggestions, but feel free to play what is fun for you!
** NPC riders can be used for excursion scenes, but feel free to ask if a PC escort would like to tag along!


OOC Rules

  1. We encourage all kinds of RP flavor at Fort and want our players to have a positive and safe atmosphere in which to enjoy their character's stories to their fullest potential! Fort SearchCo and Fort Staff are always open to inquiries or ideas regarding scenes or scenarios that may push the boundaries of ICA=ICC! All we ask is that this is discussed prior to the scene being played out, so we can work out potential or possible consequences that will see all parties involved consenting to the outcomes. Please remember that expulsion from Candidacy could be a consequence but on an OOC level, that is the last thing we wish to aim for — with the exception being if that IS the desired result!
  2. If you wish for your character to be sick or injured before the Hatching, like the rule above, all we ask is that you speak with Fort SCo beforehand concerning any ICA=ICCs. Anything that might render your character unable to tolerate the extended heat of the Sands or the exertion of caring for a young dragon may see them ineligible ICly.
  3. Please run any pranks by Fort SearchCo before you run them, so everybody can be on the same page regarding any ICA=ICC. Use common sense! Minor pranks between fellow Candidates are usually fine, as long as consent is given OOCly. Larger scale pranks can be done, but we ask that they are executed in a way that gives the player base a choice whether or not their character(s) are affected. Remember, Weyr's carry military influences and this is no different for Candidates. Pranking targeting ranking Weyrmembers (or any rank above a Candidate intentionally) may have unexpected and far more serious reaching consequences.