[h1][url=http://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/88264-dragons-of-caerel-accepting/ooc]we still need new players at the ooc![/url][/h1]

[i]These days, no one leaves the island.

Oh, it used to happen, in ages past—you can still find the ruined, rotting remains of the docks on the southern coasts, the northern beaches; hear the elders tell stories of the galleons and schooners pulling into port. There was even a breed of couriers—sleek little beasts, with brightly colored feathers and plumed tails, oversized wings to catch the thermals. But these days...these days, the ports are gone. The couriers don’t fly. The Isle of Caerel hasn’t seen the outside world in nearly a hundred years.

And, apparently, it’s killing us.

There was no reason for the rain to fail. Caerel has been self-sustaining since the Flood, hundreds of years ago, even if we don’t have the silkworms of Qiandr or the mounts of Kullath—our farms are good and our people are better; the climate is temperate, the sea winds have always been kind to us; the rainy season is steady and predictable as clockwork. Plus, we have the one thing no other island has.

But five years ago, the spring rains were late. There were mutters, of course, but plenty of the farmers joked about Mother Nature finally hitting a hiccup. The jokes stopped last year, when finally, the storms didn’t come at all. We haven’t had a good thunderstorm in months—the farms are turning brown, and even the trees are brittle and dry. This has never happened before, not that anyone can remember, and we don’t know what to do—so we’re going to try something no one can remember doing.

We’re using the one resource no one else has, and we’re sending our dragonriders to get help[/i]

alrighty! there’s our intro! here’s a tl;dr list of where i plan to go with this rp:
[list]
[*][b]Caerel is an island[/b]—one of many! this particular fantasy world is entirely made up of archipelagos, but these days, only a few other islands are known, and the maps that still exist are extremely limited.
[*]it is also [b]the only island that has dragons![/b] (probably. as far as we know. MOVING ON) also, dragons without riders are [i]extremely rare[/i], so we get to play kickass dragonriders!
[*][b]something is wrong with Caerel![/b] the climate is going all wonky! for an isolated island nation, this is, understandably, pretty diastrous!
[*]to try and find out wtf is going on and possibly get help, [b]a team of dragonriders is being sent out[/b] to one of the known islands, and then beyond!
[*]you can be any age (within reason...no geriatrics or children please), come up with any reason why you might be sent away from the island as a last resort in a time of crisis, decide whether or not you were even born on Caerel, choose your breed of dragon—[b]the character sheet is going to be pretty freeform[/b]! 
[*]we'll [b]start off with the characters[/b] being informed of their assignment to The Mission, then about a week of time on Caerel so everyone can get acquainted, and then we'll be off for some exploratory fun!
[*]exclamation points!
[/list]
and here’s some worldbuilding!
[hider=Maps of Caerel]
[img]https://40.media.tumblr.com/5691cc7776e273a6f7dac5c6972c6995/tumblr_nxmoifMMj91unhk4bo4_400.png[/img]
(i'll be adding some markers/regions to this map once we get going. but here, have it in threEEEE DEEEEEEEEEEE)
[img]https://40.media.tumblr.com/ad59020190e71af60b6e6b6c0a44e0c8/tumblr_nxmoifMMj91unhk4bo1_1280.png[/img] [img]https://40.media.tumblr.com/b240ded20350f9401d77df36b92698b0/tumblr_nxmoifMMj91unhk4bo2_1280.png[/img]
(if you really want to see it in all its glory, go to [url=http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~amitp/game-programming/polygon-map-generation/demo.html]this site[/url] and put [b]83878-2[/b] in the box!)
[/hider]
[hider=On Dragons]
if you’ve ever read one of the pern books, that’s what i’m modeling the dragons after—with a few modifications.
[list][*]dragons are born in large clutches of eggs. each egg is attended by a handful of potential riders when they hatch, and the [b]new baby dragon chooses[/b] who is most suitable to their personality and [b]bonds with them permanently[/b].
[*][b]this bond is empathetic[/b]—you can do pretty much everything with your dragon EXCEPT read their minds. you feel echoes of their emotions, can communicate on a basic level, and some legendary partners have even been able to use each other's senses in battle.
[*]dragons mature to flying/riding size in five years—on caerel, during those five years, [b]young riders and dragons are trained[/b] so they don’t hurt themselves or others and so they can be the best riders they can be. [b]riders cannot be under age 13 when they first bond with a dragon, nor over age 30![/b]
[*]there are [b]many different breeds of dragons[/b]—regal metallic dragons, bred to impress; sea breeds that can morph colors to blend in with the coral reefs; massive earthmovers that burrow huge caverns and can find ore seams without fail; sleek highflyers made specifically for insane aerial maneuvers. i will provide a list of pre-made breeds at the beginning of the rp, but [b]feel free to make suggestions![/b]
[*]dragons eat a LOT. half of the livestock on caerel is dedicated to feeding them. most farmers who supply the dragons are very proud of their jobs!
[*]there are females in every breed, but some are rarer than others—for instance, female bronzes—and [b]dragons tend to bond with the same gender[/b] of rider, although there are exceptions. [b]dragon breeding is carefully managed[/b] so the island isn’t overrun by well-meaning but ravenous hatchlings.
[/list]
[/hider]
[hider=Other Islands]
[list][*]Qiandr - think: feudal japan. an archipelago within the archipelago, a set of smaller islands that specializes in luxury goods. the qiandri people regard caerel as an island of simpletons, mostly, but they respect dragonriders.
[*]Kullath - think: northern africa during the empire days. a large island, mostly flat, that specializes in livestock, especially horses, which few other islands have. kullath is...understandably wary of an island full of livestock eating megabeasts, but they used to regularly pay for the services of dragonriders as guards on cargo ships.
[*]Kendrigan - think: ancient celts. used to have a good relationship with caerel—were especially envious of the dragons, regarding them as amazing and fantastic creatures. traded lots of warm textiles back and forth! DRESS THE WHOLE WORLD IN KILTS![/list]
there are more to come—and feel free to make suggestions!
[/hider]

alright, so that’s that—what do you guys think? in the mood for dragonriders exploring the world? cause i sure am!