Post by Kit on Jul 27, 2010 13:59:49 GMT -5
A lot of people have been asking questions about whers, so I thought I'd make a topic about them here.
Whers (or watch whers) are a variant of dragonkind created to fly Thread at night. They are considered rather ugly. They have armored scales rather than skin, large non-faceted eyes, and pointed folding ears as well as the typical headknobs. Their bodies are long and low, the largest ones being no taller than a large pony but about twice as long. Their wingspan is about half their length and the wings look ridiculously small. They are heavily muscled, but extremely quick. They have only two digits per foot.
Whers are photophobic, they dislike bright light very much. They can fly at night, though not as well as a dragon and the larger whers can carry their handlers as well, though its considered somewhat risky as a common practice. Their senses are very sharp, especially smell and hearing. They also have a thermal sense that overlays their vision. Whers can go between as well, and unlike dragon and firelizards, they usually teleport directly from the ground and reappear on the ground as well. They have better memories than dragons and do not need the guidance of their handlers for visualization of reference points.
Like dragons and flits, whers can be bonded at birth. But they do not have to be. They are somewhat less discriminating than dragons about who they bond, but more so than firelizards. To cement the bond of the wher and handler, the handler gives some of his/her blood to the wher. A wher can be bonded to a single person, in which case the bond is almost a close a dragon-rider bond, or they can be bonded to a group of people, such as the family of a Hold or the masters of a crafthall. In that case there is no true bond in the emotional sense, but the wher will only obey the ones whose blood they have tasted. Whers can also live just fine unbonded, although they tend to be vicious and unmanageable that way. There are a few wild whers living in both the South and the north.
Once bonded, a wher takes its name from its handler, plus -sk...so the watch wher of Nova Hold is named Novask, and a wher bonded to someone named Talon could be Task or Talosk. Whers are about as intelligent as a human toddler or very young child. They can speak telepathically in sentences and grasp some abstract concepts. Their memories are somewhat better than dragons but not close to firelizards. They are a little more independent from their handlers than dragons are, but they tend to be fiercely protective. The wher-handler bond is somewhat in between that of a dragon and a firelizard in closeness. A wher can switch handlers occasionally, and when their natural handler dies, they just pick a new one. The average life-span for a wher is 75 Turns.
Whers mate in Runs..they do not fly, but the concept is the same, only on the ground. They tend to lay fewer eggs than dragons but more than flits, and they are very protective of their clutches. It is usually the mother wher who determines the suitability of Candidates, because a wher can be bonded to anyone whose blood it tastes. Bonding in whers is not gender-specific, so a man could potentially bond a gold or silver, or a women a bronze or black. To prevent the wher from going wild, it is best to bond them within a few days of Hatching. Newborns tend to be unpredictable and are usually bribed into docility with food before being given the blood of their intended handler. Very rarely is the bond rejected, although there is always a chance the wher might form an attachment to another later. If the bond was rejected, the failed handler might be expected to come away with scars.
Whers (or watch whers) are a variant of dragonkind created to fly Thread at night. They are considered rather ugly. They have armored scales rather than skin, large non-faceted eyes, and pointed folding ears as well as the typical headknobs. Their bodies are long and low, the largest ones being no taller than a large pony but about twice as long. Their wingspan is about half their length and the wings look ridiculously small. They are heavily muscled, but extremely quick. They have only two digits per foot.
Whers are photophobic, they dislike bright light very much. They can fly at night, though not as well as a dragon and the larger whers can carry their handlers as well, though its considered somewhat risky as a common practice. Their senses are very sharp, especially smell and hearing. They also have a thermal sense that overlays their vision. Whers can go between as well, and unlike dragon and firelizards, they usually teleport directly from the ground and reappear on the ground as well. They have better memories than dragons and do not need the guidance of their handlers for visualization of reference points.
Like dragons and flits, whers can be bonded at birth. But they do not have to be. They are somewhat less discriminating than dragons about who they bond, but more so than firelizards. To cement the bond of the wher and handler, the handler gives some of his/her blood to the wher. A wher can be bonded to a single person, in which case the bond is almost a close a dragon-rider bond, or they can be bonded to a group of people, such as the family of a Hold or the masters of a crafthall. In that case there is no true bond in the emotional sense, but the wher will only obey the ones whose blood they have tasted. Whers can also live just fine unbonded, although they tend to be vicious and unmanageable that way. There are a few wild whers living in both the South and the north.
Once bonded, a wher takes its name from its handler, plus -sk...so the watch wher of Nova Hold is named Novask, and a wher bonded to someone named Talon could be Task or Talosk. Whers are about as intelligent as a human toddler or very young child. They can speak telepathically in sentences and grasp some abstract concepts. Their memories are somewhat better than dragons but not close to firelizards. They are a little more independent from their handlers than dragons are, but they tend to be fiercely protective. The wher-handler bond is somewhat in between that of a dragon and a firelizard in closeness. A wher can switch handlers occasionally, and when their natural handler dies, they just pick a new one. The average life-span for a wher is 75 Turns.
Whers mate in Runs..they do not fly, but the concept is the same, only on the ground. They tend to lay fewer eggs than dragons but more than flits, and they are very protective of their clutches. It is usually the mother wher who determines the suitability of Candidates, because a wher can be bonded to anyone whose blood it tastes. Bonding in whers is not gender-specific, so a man could potentially bond a gold or silver, or a women a bronze or black. To prevent the wher from going wild, it is best to bond them within a few days of Hatching. Newborns tend to be unpredictable and are usually bribed into docility with food before being given the blood of their intended handler. Very rarely is the bond rejected, although there is always a chance the wher might form an attachment to another later. If the bond was rejected, the failed handler might be expected to come away with scars.
