HRW:Weyrlings/Month7/Flights
Flights
| Weyrling Program | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Month7 | |||
- Month 6 - Month 7
OOC Info: Mating Flights
This information here is all OOC, intended to give you a better idea of how flights, for both male- and female-riders, work on NC. It covers all the basics of what to do when you're attending one as a male-rider, or running it as a female one.
The Steps! (in short for female riders)
- Plan your flight. Will it be invite only? Or open to all? Is it predetermined or an open winner? Do you want specific people there?
- Advertise. If it's a public flight, be sure to +bbpost onto the HRW board and add it to +events. If it's a private flight, be sure to +mail those involved.
- Flight channel: We have a channel: flt +me if you'd like to join, and it's open to anyone, even those who aren't riders so coordination for flights can be done between PC riders and NPCs.
- Flight styles: Traditional (dragons in the skies above the feeding grounds, riders in the guest weyr) versus non-traditional (dragon and rider poses incorporated in the guest weyr).
- Nosy people: Nosy people like knowing who the winners are, so if you're up to it, feel free to post a thank you list and a summary with the winner on the HRW board!
- Be sure to read the rest!
The Steps! (in short for male riders)
- Go to flights if invited or if it's public!
- Play!
- Be a good sport if you don't win! Be a better sport if you do win.
Full Details
The first step to running a flight? Getting the word out. NC has handy code that will allow you to enter the time you've picked so everyone can see: just check out +help events. Most people also choose to post an advertisement on their Weyr's bboard, giving any extra details on the flight, especially if it's already predetermined. Of course, you can always decide to host a flight impromptu, just by either using the public channel or the HRW one.
Either way, don't run your flight on the same day as someone else's-in fact, it's generally considered good manners to keep your flight a couple of days apart from anyone flight that is already scheduled, just so more males can chase, and not be burnt out on too many flights right in a row. Greens usually rise three to four times a Turn, though no one is expected to hold all of these flights on camera. In general, it's a good idea not to run on-camera flights too often; most players find flight-RP a 'sometimes food' - running too often can result in lack of interest.
Part of pre-flight RP for female-riders is, of course, proddiness. But as I'daur had been known to say, which Meara concurs with, "Proddy don't mean crazy." At the earliest, a rider will show signs of proddiness one RL day before the flight; and while the effect and severity of proddiness will vary between riders, it is in no way an excuse to have your character essentially go crazy. You will be held ICly responsible for your actions while proddy.
Proddiness is, basically, the draconic version of PMS, and while you might be touchier or grumpier than usual, and people will excuse that, they will not excuse something drastic like pulling knives or screaming at people in the living cavern. Also, proddy riders, while they still have to fulfill their wing duties, are generally restricted from visiting out-Weyr to avoid proddy behavior in an area that may be less forgiving than Weyrs tend to be, and they are in no circumstances at all allowed to let their dragon rise outside of their home Weyr.
The general outline for a flight is to start pre-flight RP at least half an hour before the scheduled take off. Generally, the public channel or the flight channel are used to round up all the chasers. The standard format is to do a couple of rounds of posing blooding, a take-off round, three in the sky, and then catch attempts; but these numbers aren't hard or fast. Before the start of the flight, or at least before catch attempts, it's a good idea to let people know how the winner will be selected and to ask anyone who is not interested in winning to page you to let you know.
Another general guideline most people follow when running or participating flights is for each male to pose once to every female's pose. While flights are generally much too spammy and hectic to keep to a strict pose order, this rule helps keep things from becoming overwhelming, and the female will generally wait until all the males have posed once to hers before she poses again.
As for the mechanics of the flight itself: males will generally start blooding before the female-some greens may not even blood at all. The female's blooding or taking off is also the cue for things to move to a more private space, either the female's weyr or the guest weyr. That room may remain IC, or become a more OOC hang-out while the dragons continue posing, at the female's choice.
Later, when it's time for catch attempts, the female's rider will announce as much, letting all the males get their last shot in before she picks a winner and poses her dragon being caught by that particular male. Even if you don't win, it's good form to pose reactionary poses from your dragon and rider when the catch is made before you leave. Also, be sure to thank the female for hosting, and, for the female, be sure to thank all the males for coming out to support you.
That brings us to the matter of sex. While ICly, there is no escaping that the female's rider and the male's will have sex after the dragons mate, you are under no obligation to play this out in TS. If your partner does not want to TS, respect that and don't press the issue. If someone does attempt to pressure you into TS, please know that you never have to do this and that that sort of pushing can be considered harassment-talk to your admin team if you're uncomfortable. Most people choose to fade to black and pick up again the next morning.
For the males who didn't win, the emotions are still running strong. Most maleriders, faced with this situation, will seek some way to diffuse it: hiding out in their weyr, a cold dip in the lake, a visit to a bar, or finding company of some sort. In this way, you have even more options for some really great RP than if you win. OOCly, though, know that it is never appropriate to page or +mail complaints to the female rider: the winner is her choice and she has no obligation to explain herself to you. In fact, a good attitude when you do lose is often an important part of winning in the future. Be a good sport!
And finally, when all is said and done, the female will generally post up a note on the bboard of the Weyr, to let the curious masses know the results and to thank those who came out to support her.
