So You'd Like to Impress Gold?

By their nature in the books, golds were considered rare commodities for the Weyrs — protected, coveted and desired. The only female dragons capable of producing eggs, laying clutches and perpetuating the species, dragons would always obey the golds, particularly the senior queen. And for that reason, riding gold on PernWorld MUSH is something that many players would strive towards as a goal. Currently at Half Moon Bay Weyr, there are three PC golds and while we strive for quality over quantity, this page exists for those who would be interested in the allure of a queen dragon, while helping them best understand the policies of Half Moon Bay Weyr.

What Does Half Moon Bay's SearchCo Look for in a Gold Applicant?

There's no set formula that Half Moon Bay's SearchCo uses when we scrutinize gold applicants because each and every time, our needs around a given cycle will be different, and we'll all have different ideas about what we expect in our decision to Impress (or not) a gold candidate. However there are some guidelines that we do look for and are things to consider:

  • A player with creativity, initiative and a drive to make things happen. Someone who can bring something to a plot or scene, and leave it better off.
  • An active player. By this we don't mean someone who has massive and massive hours on the activecheck, as we do not require our applicants to treat the game as if it were a full time job. We all have lives, activities and hobbies (not to mention actual full time jobs) and would rather see people make the most of their time on the game while they can rather than treating it as a chore.
  • A player who will spend time roleplaying even if she only has a few hours online a night rather than sitting idle in a room for a long span of time.
  • A player who is able to take the role of junior goldrider (something not commonly touched upon in the books) and go beyond it, where the dragon is just a dragon who happens to be extra big, shiny colored and can lay some eggs every now and then rather than using the dragon as a crutch for roleplay.
  • Someone for who the area comes first — who will pitch in and participate regardless of the color of dragon she rides, or even if she has a dragon at all.
  • And last, but not least, someone who is fun and integrates well with everyone in the Weyr on an OOC basis. ICly, not so much (it might be a twist to have a character who some people just can't stand)

Expectations of a Half Moon Bay Goldrider

  • Activity

Participate! Goldriders are expected to make the activecheck list every 30 days and goldriders who fail to do so for 3 RL months without a set vacation will be removed from the knot and relocated to Ierne WeyrHold. However, simply logging in and idling for the required amount of hours to make the activecheck list will be frowned upon, as goldriders are encouraged to roleplay at least several times (+2) per month. In addition, activity may be required from a goldrider if we are in the middle of a TP as her input and expertise may be a key role in the plot.

  • NPC Clutches

Goldriders are encouraged to hold NPC clutches from time to time. While goldriders may use the proddy code on the game, with a 4:1 ratio, golds tend to go proddy every 3 months. While this is fine should the player choose, as PernWorld is a post-Thread timeline, golds will rise less frequently. A good pattern to follow is to use the +proddy code every other time for an NPC clutch. Goldriders are encouraged to roleplay out as much of a NPC clutch as they would like; from flight to announcing the clutching to announcing the hatching results. The use of the Hatching Sands code may be available on a case by case basis, goldriders will need to ask permission of the leadership to use it, and would be responsible for descing the eggs and the hatchlings (or recruiting others to participate.)

  • OOC Administration

While PernWorld follows an IC leadership=OOC leadership model where most of the Weyr's admins will be comprised of ranking characters such as goldriders, bronzeriders, etc. this is not always the case, and a goldrider may not be needed as an OOC admin. A goldrider should be expected to step up and assume an OOC leadership position should it be required of her, but assignment to the Weyr staff is not automatic.

  • PC Clutches

Half Moon Bay Weyr is normally on a single cycle per RL year calendar. Occasionally, the calendar will allow for two cycles per RL year. The role of clutch mother will be drawn from the pool of available goldriders who meet the activity requirements. Idle goldriders will not be considered unless they meet the requirements and maintain them two months prior to the start of OOC Search. Newly Impressed goldriders can expect to wait 6 months to a year before they will be considered for a PC clutch.

Applicant Do's and Don'ts.

DO:

  • PCreate early

If you want to ride gold at Half Moon Bay, you need to know if the area is right for you. And we would like to know if you are right for the area. By creating your character as early as possible prior to the start of OOC Search, HMW's SearchCo can better get to know you as a player, and your strengths and weaknesses that you'd bring to the table. That's not to say that Half Moon Bay won't consider someone who joins the game at the beginning of OOC Search, but generally the more familiar you are to us, the more likely it will be that you'll be considered a stronger candidate for the job.

  • Have Fun!

Remember, this is only a game, and a chance for you to exercise your creativity. You will not pass go, nor will you collect $200. You might get a puppet that happens to have some fancy dragon coding that says she's supposed to be a big shiny creature that can pop out eggs, but that's not really a physical object for you to have. So really,just enjoy yourself, have fun and get along well with others (at least on an OOC basis) and everything will be worth it.

  • Stick Around

Even if you don't get chosen by SearchCo this go around, you might very well be in the running for the next clutch — which can happen as soon as 6 months later if we're in a double cycle year. Sticking around and being active instead of running off to the next area in Search shows SearchCo that you're more interested in the area rather than just getting a dragon, and shows them that you're willing to commit to the area and be a part of Half Moon Bay. Of course, we don't expect you to treat the game like a full time job, and if you have to handle stuff in RL, that's not a problem. But staying around, staying on the activecheck and roleplaying and participating in TPs in the Search downtime can really be a benefit. It won't necessarily mean you'll absolutely impress gold the next go around, but it certainly puts you in the running.

DON'T:

If you create an alt and don't impress, don't immediately discard them and make a new one! Keep them around and develop the character. You might not have been what we were looking for this cycle, but that doesn't mean you won't be what we need at the next.

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