Erdan Island Chain

White Sands Weyr is located on the island Essal in the Erdan Island Chain.
Its closest neighboring Weyrs are Southern Weyr to the west, Great Cliffs Weyrs leagues and leagues to the east and north on the Western Continent and much further north Igen Weyr. Aside from Southern Weyr, it is the only other Weyr in the Southern Hemisphere.

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Images of Our Pern

Present Happenings...

During the terrible Storm that recently struck the Weyr, some of the Weyrbowl collapsed, blocking the main entrance of the Healers' weyr, two dragon weyrs and filling in half the Weyrlake. The Weyrbowl floor has become a mire and there are many injured... and dead. The worst damage done was the Eye Rock being knocked over and completely out of position. Holdfolk, Weyrfolk, Crafters and dragonriders work together in an effort to put the Weyr back to right.

Recent Past

The new Weyrlings training and the Weyr were struggling to over-come the void of having no Senior Weyrwoman. To add to the tragedy that befell the Weyr, fire-head struck, crippling many of the new dragons as their riders fell ill. Everyone in the Weyr suffered. The first to fall was the Weyrling Master (Ubaiduella). Aurora from Great Cliffs Weyr came to train the Weyrlings as a substitute.

Melorath Rose at last, making Niamh the Senior Weyrwoman... she was caught by Kaloraynth... and his rider N'olan became the new Weyrleader. However, the vast majority of the Weyr considered Or'west a great Weyrleader, and many were disheartened by his forced step-down. The legacy he left as the Weyrleader will be a difficult one to live up to.

With the outbreak of fire-head in the Weyr, some of the dragonriders have been evacuated to Southern Weyr for their safety and health. Among them are Mishra and her gold Telasyth. The Master Starcrafter, Beryl, left for the Starcraft Hall, leaving a void in that most important of Crafts and two apprentices behind.

The Sr. Weyrlings have graduated and are now part of the Weyrlings' Wing! They cut their battle teeth during the first Threadfall of this Turn, which was successful however many injuries were reported including one unlucky bluerider (Z'marin of Aventyth) loosing his arm.
Melorath's clutch has Hatched! And although there were some tragedies (three did not hatch and one turned out to be an albino which didn't live long), it was a good clutch that produced strong dragons. Hopefully her next Clutch will be better!

Foundation:

While grubs protect most of the Southern Continent and there is also the very active Southern Weyr itself, there was a rich supply of coal veins on one of the islands. In order to exploit these new sources of coal, a few small mining camps were set up. When a heavy vein was broken into and the people there began to export it, the camp became a Hold. This being the case, and the fact there were so many other camps in the area, it became necessary to think about creating a Weyr.

So White Sands Weyr was born. With a Weyr in place, still more people came until almost all the islands were populated. In the not too distant past (Sixth Pass) the White Sands Weyr was created, and populated. So newly extinct is the volcano that houses this small Weyr, the molten fluid underneath it has yet to cool. So the Weyrlakes and indeed the ground off the Weyrbowl itself are always warm. This makes the Hatching Sands almost impossibly hot to walk on and the leatherworkers have been forced to come up with very special Candidate boots to allow those potentials to make it to the Clutch itself let alone stand there for the length of time a Hatching takes.

Even being so surrounded by water, and the forest of the Continent protected by grubs, White Sands would often get amazingly devastating 'Falls. It was in fact known, though not all the residents knew it, as quite a deathtrap. With their devastating Threadfalls, few ‘riders live to the age of seventeen without being scored, often seriously. It is not uncommon to lose a dragon to Threadfall, every time Thread tumbles from the sky. Because the weather is so terrible and the Weyr itself is too small to support a very big population, the dragonriders have to compensate. They have become known as the best trained Threadfighters on all of Pern. Or they would be if they were fighting Thread anywhere else. That was one of the reasons Whers were introduced into the islands.

Coal and firestone are a high-traffic commodity and in demand all around the world. With the discovery of so many veins, the islands became a popular if not well known source. Not well known by the general populace, but the merchants and traders know them well.

With the harshness of winter comes the snow and ice, and the majority of the southern part of the Island Chain is covered. Leaving no room for the Thread, this halves the Weyr’s territory, giving them ample opportunity to indulge in the other thing they are known for - parties. If there is a reason, and sometimes if there is not, those that inhabit the Island Chain are known for their celebrations.


History of the Weyr:

The founders of this Weyr were Detri of gold Mericath and Sh'iren of Bronze Anderynth. It was founded near the end of the Sixth Pass to protect the growing miner population and the other people who lived in the extensive island chain.

It was discovered by Nori (Green Kelmoyeth) and Journeyman Starcrafter Ersonan in the second generation who lived at the Weyr, that the Southern lights can be observed here during the winter months. Which is surprising as the Weyr is not very close to the southern pole. Another remarkable thing about this Weyr is the fact that the Dawn sisters can be seen very clearly in the sky and it is actually the most clear they can be seen in most of Pern. Along with the fantastic view of the sky and stars from the Weyr, the white sand from which the Weyr and Hold received their name is excellent for making glass. It is some of the purest sand in the southern hemisphere, broken down from the quartz crystals and other white hued minerals and rocks that lay embedded in the walls of the Weyr and island.

Five Turns ago, an epidemic of 'fire-head' broke out on Essal Island and Kylista was one of the many who were struck down by it. She and her Queath had just witnesssed the Hatching of Queath's sixth Clutch not four sevendays before.

During the Hatching of Illiardrith's final Clutch, when gold Merolath was Shelled, one of the newborns was injured badly (a brown) went between. Kaine and her Illiardrith were the Senior Weyrwoman for many successful Turns. In the end, Kaine was injured rather badly in a Threadfall and so decided to step down. As luck would have it Perla and her gold Jieranyth Rose soon there after. It was Jieranyth's maiden Flight, but she was the older of the two remaining gold dragons. So the mantel of Weyrwoman-ship passed to them.

Less than three months passed before tragedy struck again. In a devastating Threadfall almost a dozen riders were killed, and two Weyrfolk. More than simply a bad judgment call on the Wingleaders' parts, the winds were fierce that day and the Thread changed direction unpredictably. Among the causalities were two Wingleaders (K'relyn and Ya'quin), but worst of all....Perla. Threadfall seems to be a dangerous time for the Queens of White Sands Weyr. For during the last Threadfall Perla and Jieranyth were both grievous injured. Despite the work of the Weyrhealer, Perla could not be saved. The Queen was gravid with her eggs then, it would have been her last Threadfall before she Clutched. So she was forced to remain behind, an empty shell of what she once was. As soon as her eggs were Shelled and Impressed, she left to join Perla, taking an unhatched Egg with her.