WEEK 3: Begins Monday August 8

What's happening with your dragon this week:

Growth:
Although your dragons are now probably telling you they're full size, that's not quite true yet. The DLG tells us that they're 70% of full size at one year of age, and reach full size at 18 months. Therefore, assume that your dragon is still growing a little, slowly now (you wouldn't notice a change from day to day, or even week to week sometimes). So you still need to be on the lookout for hide that needs particular attention as your lifemate grows.

Because we're doing ummounted flight, your dragons might also be a bit sore and sorry, using muscles that never got used before.

What's happening in class this week:
1. Hope you were listening to all those boring talks on imports, exports, major produce, Lord, Ladies and geography! It's test time. Suffer through exams!

2. Formations: Even though Pern is Thread-free, formations are still practiced, for two reasons. The first is simply to preserve the knowledge - the more people know it, the harder it is to lose. The
second is that thread fighting formations are also useful at times when conducting search and rescue. Lessons will be taking place in two forms:
- Unmounted: weyrlings complete the drills on foot, taking it in turns to play at wingleader - the wingleader will call out formation names, and the weyrlings will jog into position for that formation.
- Mounted: on your dragons, on the ground - no flying yet! Again, formations called out, and the dragons will walk (not jog, can you imagine it?) into position for each formation.

3. Wing Inspections. If your dragon passes their wing inspection (weyrling staff will be looking for any sign of weakness, strained muscles, soreness), then they're good to take to the skies on their
own! This'll first happen with a rider at each end, watching their take-off and landing (and a weyrling running nervously in circles on the ground nearby). If that's fine, they'll be taking their first circuits around the bowl, and making their first kills. We're talking messy, here.

5: Straps! Your dragon has now out-grown the first, practice set of straps you made, so it's back to the drawing board to make a new set. These will be the ones you keep for good, so make them nice!

RP ideas for this week:
1. Cramming for tests - moan, panic, attempt to force vast amounts of knowledge into the space between your ears, and retain them long enough to pass.

2. Wing inspection - if you grab us we'll do it, if you don't, assume it's happened.

3. Practicing formations - this can be done in a group. Obviously more fun if someone's constantly messing it up and marching in the wrong direction, and someone's trying to read it out of their manual and colliding with people...

4. First kills! Take your dragon to the feeding ground and watch them mess up. Limbs and guts flying everywhere! Hope you're not weak-stomached...

5. Strap making! Why? Because we LOVE gigantic needles, we really do.

6. You're still running those $%&* fitness circuits S'ver believes to be so important. Moan, marvel at your new-found fitness, do as you please!

Homework:
One weyrling-related log to xaweyrlings@yahoogroups.com