Residency Positions

Dragonriders may seem to get most of the glory in the books, but on NorConMUSH and here at Ista we encourage players to explore everything that the Weyr has to offer. At Ista, there's no such thing as 'just a resident'. Exciting roleplay can come from any person in any postion! Below we've compiled a list of some common jobs found in a Weyr, along with a brief description and some fun perks and RP hooks that you're welcome to use.

Please keep in mind that your character does NOT need to be 'expert' in whatever job they choose; in fact, the flaws and shortcomings can be the most fun aspects to play. A short-tempered nanny? A scribe who has trouble spelling properly? A barber who gets hand cramps and sometimes trims off a little too much? These failings can be much more fun to play, and to play with, than the 'perfect' or 'idealized' characters.

Please note that these are NOT the only positions available - if you have an idea for something else that your character would like to do, just pitch it to us! Keep in mind that jobs are meant to benefit the Weyr (in exchange for all that free room and board), but whatever the idea, we'd love to hear it! If you're interested in any of these positions, or eager to pitch a new idea, just page or +mail the Weyrleaders.

Assistant Headwoman
The duties of assistants to the headwoman are just that - to assist the Headwoman in her myriad tasks and to help her oversee the numerous people in her employment.

-Sometimes an assistant may be assigned to a particular section of duty, such as the kitchens and living cavern, where she may help supervise the use of goods, authorize specialty ingredients (think finer wines or the incorporation of red meat), meal preparation, equipment, service, meal attendence, and foods inventory.

-Other assistants may focus on housekeeping and childcare, making sure that linens are regularly changed, rooms are lit, halls are swept, furniture is in repair.

-Others may work outdoors, overseeing gardens and corrals and keeping the bowl and beaches tidy and paths in good condition.

-An assistant may be assigned to human resources, serving as a contact point for posted crafters, overseeing the care of elderly and invalid residents, tracking weyrstaff and and making certain everyone receives their stipend, and keeping tabs on older children who may need recommendations to crafthalls.

Some assistants may focus on more specific tasks, cover a broader range of duties or be assigned to shadow the Headwoman at her discretion. They are all appointed by and report directly to the headwoman.

• OOC Note: While this position is open to just about anyone, we generally appoint a person to this job after they've been around the Weyr for a few weeks. If you're interested in being an Assistant Headwoman, don't hesitate to let us know but do plan to have your character start with another job. ICly, very few people would go right from their harper lessons to this position, so it's likely that they would have experience with another job before getting to this one.

• Reports to: Headwoman

• Perks and Hooks: Well-versed in gossip related to the Weyr's inner workings. May influence job bonuses. Ability to always look busy, no matter where they are.

Assistant Steward
As the Headwoman and her staff are responsible for the maintenance, distribution and use of goods and services, the Steward and his or her staff deal mostly with their acquisition and the Weyr's finances. Tact and diplomacy are required, as is a head for numbers, as the steward supervises and authorizes imports and exports, oversees tithes and is responsible for supplying the quarterly stipends. The Steward's assistant focuses on any one or more of three areas.

-Bookkeeping: Involving computations and exacting details of expenditures and incomes and the allotment and delivery of stipends.

-Inventory: Keeping track of the ever-changing storeroom supplies and working closely with the stores assistant and headwomen to determine what is needed.

-Tithing and Shipments: Overseeing the arrival of tithe trains and dock-shipments, tracking the quantities of goods and getting everything smoothly delivered to the proper people.

• OOC Note: As with assistant headwoman, while this position is open to just about anyone, we generally appoint a person to this job after they've been around the Weyr for a few weeks. If you're interested in being an Assistant Steward, don't hesitate to let us know but do plan to have your character start with another job. ICly, very few people would go right from their harper lessons to this position, so it's likely that they would have experience with another job before getting to this one.

• Reports to: Steward

• Perks and Hooks: Power to deny or fulfill special orders. Meet folks from all over Pern. Ink stains are the new beauty marks, and make great conversation pieces? Everyone loves a steward on stipend day!

Barber
Hair trimming and styling for all ages of residents and riders alike is a full-time job. Most riders keep their hair short to fit more comfortably under helmets and for simplified lifestyles and that translates to frequent hair cuts for hundreds of heads. Celebrations and gathers may put barbers into high demand from those seeking the lastest fashions and more complicated styles. Those with beards or moustaches may also seek out services of a barber and equipment preparation for blades, curlers, and other tools may also be included in this occupation.

• Reports to: Headwoman and her staff

• Perks and Hooks: Stylish or frequently changing hair styles. Eyeballing scruffy riders. Weyrling Shearing! Runs with scissors.

Bartender
The Sandbar is a favorite relaxing place for many Istans and the duties there include drink service, preparation, inventory and cleanup. Bartenders are expected know good bar etiquette, when someone can have another drink, and when, perhaps, they shouldn't, how to diffuse tense situations, when to lay low and when to speak up. Some bartenders may even help to develop new beverages.

• Reports to: Sr Weyrwoman

• Perks and Hooks: The bar never closes, so there's always something to do. A great outlet for gregarious people. Learn an endless number of drink recipes. Show off your pouring skills. Hear the Weyr's drunken secrets! Blackmail.

Basketmaker
Weaving and interlocking fibers and fabrics is the basis of this occupation. Items of all shapes and sizes are used for laundry, meal preparation, storage, decoration, water transportation, and more. Pattern-making, painting, and decorative embellishment skills may be handy, and methods for cutting, soaking and drying materials such as reeds or textiles for baskets are necessary.

• Reports to: Headwoman and her staff

• Perks and Hooks: Baskets make great gifts. Portable occupation. A ready-made excuse for rustling around in the bushes!

Brewer
While brewers may focus on varying beers, ales and lagers, many make use of Ista's rich supply of fruits, flowers and tea to create unique beverages and fine fruit liqueurs and wines. Selecting ingredients, preparing and blending as well as bottling techniques are all integral to this position and the Weyr’s brewers would work closely with the vintners, cooks and the staff of the Sandbar.

• Reports to: Headwoman and her staff

• Perks and Hooks: Concocting creative drinks. Plying folks with new samples. Encouraging drunkenness. Bumming around the Sandbar.

Butcher
The fine art of plucking, skinning, chopping, filleting, quartering, slicing, dicing, and preparing edible portions of all possible parts of various herd animals, wherries, etc, the butcher would be in charge of the slaughter, draining and processing of animals as well as salting and smoking meats for later use. This person would work closely with the herders and kitchen staff. Butchers would also be encouraged to teach weyrlings how cut meat for their young lifemates.

• Reports to: Headwoman and her staff

• Perks and Hooks: Bloody fingernails. Grossing out the prim girls. Always having jerky on hand. Extorting hapless weyrlings! Oh yeah, and wielding a Big Knife.

Cobbler
Shoes! The cobbler is an individual skilled in the fitting and creation of shoes for members of the Weyr. Materials, such as dyed and plain leather of various types and wherhide, can be obtained from the Weyr's posted tanners and leatherworkers, who manage all leather goods at the Weyr and their tanning and dyeing. Fabrics for lighter shoes can be obtained from the resident weavers. Shoes are made plain, or custom for each person, then embellished to suit the recipients. At Ista, sandals of all sorts are particularly popular. A cobbler is fortunate if he or she has an eye for style and a good hand for choosing soft but durable leathers.

• Reports to: Headwoman and her staff

• Perks and Hooks: Stylish footwear. Scoffing at unshod Istans. Private commissions.

Cook
The Weyr's cooks handle the majority of the actual cooking: the roasting or grilling of meat courses, desserts and pastries, sauces, baking, stews and soups, salads and/or vegetable side dishes. Cooks would work closely with the bakers and headwomen, who have discretion over the menus and the knowledge and skills to produce the fancier foods, and with the kitchen assistants who handle the majority of the cleaning, peeling, herb drying, and dicing-and-slicing preparation. Along with the posted Bakers, cooks supervise residents working at the Weyr's hearths.

The '+info baker' files might be of interest to those who wish to play cooks.

• OOC Note: Younger characters (early teens) interested in becoming cooks would likely start as kitchen assistants.

• Reports to: Headwoman and her staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Luring people with samples of new dishes. Privy to tasty treats and dishes. Work is enjoyed or detested by all of the weyr--what notoriety!

Dockworker
While Ista Weyr isn't a major port, it does have functional docks and a number of vessels find mooring there, bringing supplies to the Weyr and also to a few nearby cotholds. The Weyr employs a number of strong-backed men to help load and unload cargo, working with the harbormaster to keep track of the comings and goings of anchored ships. They are also known for their lack of manners, questionable morals and a tendency to just loaf about the docks between jobs. Oh, and spending too much time in The Sandbar.

• Reports to: Steward and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Filling the always needed lout role. Outrageous drunken behavior. Intimate knowledge of all sorts of cargo.

Fisher
This occupation includes actual fishing, either from shore or from an ocean-going craft, bait preparation, rod-and-reel cleaning or forming, forming hooks from bone or available metals, fish cleaning, filleting, or net weaving or mending. May also include trapping and hunting spiderclaws and other crustaceans and digging for clams.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Fish guts! Lazy days fishing. Knowing the mysteries of the ocean, complete with wild superstions. Absences for offshore hauls. Potential for danger on the high seas.

Gardener
Plant the flowers, feed the seeds, tend the flowers, pluck the weeds, cut the flowers, make use of the edibles or medicinals, repeat. Gardeners are employed to prune, water, harvest flowers, vegetables, fruits, and herbs. They dry and store medicinal plants. They mulch fields, likely with herdbeast leavings from nearby stables or corrals and work with farmcrafters to learn the best methods for propagation and to obtain new or rare plants or varieties.

The Healercraft's '+info healer herbs' files contain many descriptions of plants found on Pern.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Dirty hands. Sunburned shoulders. Friends with grubs, who don't talk back. Bouquets!

Handyman
The jack (or jill) of all trades might find him or herself serving as a handyman, making general reparations to items in need of mending. Fixing the reed roof over the Sandbar, replacing loose stones along the paths, retiling the kitchen, banging a dent out of a dropped pot, attaching a leg to a broken stool, mending a fence in the animal pens, fixing little Bragven's broken rocking-runner, helping tend the orchards--all this and more could be in the call of duty for a handyman.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Sharp tools. Ability to fix a myriad of things for fun and profit. Apply problem-solving skills. Work for deft hands that isn't at all sissy!

Herbalist
The herbalist has knowledge of which herbs to grow, tend, blend, distill, mix with creams or lotions, which can help certain conditions, improve hygiene, cure or soothe ills, and which are poison, cause rashes, are not released to the general populace or are restricted access (like numbweed). They work closely with gardeners to procure needed plants and also with healers and apothecaries from the healercraft.

The Healercraft's '+info healer herbs' files contain many descriptions of plants found on Pern.

• OOC Note: While herbalists may have some access to restricted substances, they are not healers and work mainly with plants that have been deemed safe or use stronger plants in extremely low dosages. Think 'off the shelf' instead of 'over the counter'.
• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks: Fantastic skin. Admirable scents and fragrances. Avon Calling!

Hunter
Hunters might use anything from ground traps to crossbows to hunt game, which includes wherries, wild boar and smaller game found in the jungles surrounding Ista Weyr. They may go out to hunt singly or in teams and riders might assist in their free time. The Weyr's hunters track or find good locations for game and often perform gutting and skinning if that's done before returning to the Weyr. They may work closely with the kitchen staff and butcher to determine need and often obtain reconnaisance information from sweepriders before going out to hunt.

Information on the various animals of Pern can be found in '+info beastcraft bestiary'.

• Reports to: Headwomen and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Pointy weapons! Feed the weyr something besides fish. Get yelled at for going off without letting anyone know. Wear necklaces of teeth!

Infirmary Aide
Infirmary helpers tend to the infirmary equipment and the infirmary itself as well as assisting the healers when requested. They keep inventory of the infirmary stores, help to make patient comfortable or to monitor their condition and handle hidework and records. A healer is often accompanied by an aide when he or she makes housecalls and an infirmary aide may also help with equipment during procedures and surgeries.

Information on all things healer-related can be found in '+info healer'.

• Reports to: Posted Healers and Nurses

• Perks and Hooks: Develop new methods to remove bloodstains. Hand over the scalpel! Know if she's really pregnant or not. Enjoy all the guts, and none of the glory!

Kitchen Assistant
Kitchen helpers slice, dice, peel, pare, fetch and carry as needed, restock the chafers and buffet lines for dishware, food, and beverages in the living cavern, take trays to personal rooms or weyrs as needed, wash dishes, scour pots and pans, clean or prepare hearths, and tidy tables.

The '+info baker' files might be of interest to those who wish to be invovled in food preparation.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Dishpan hands! Great chances to snoop on all the goings-on in the Living Cavern. Personal weyr deliveries!

Laundress
Lots of riders and nearly twice their number of support staff make for a lot of dirty clothes, dirty sheets, and dirty towels needing to be cleaned and replenished. The residents working with laundry would spend a good deal of time boiling and washing clothes in huge cauldrons within the Weyr, and readying their secret substances for cleaning fabrics. Though some riders and weyrfolk might choose to personally handwash some of their more delicate clothing (thus the possibility of clotheslines stringing across ledges), but the greater bulk is taken care of by these residents who would be working off a lower caverns complex with tunnel-access to the bowl for breeze and cavern space to string up and dry laundry, hearths and smoke-holes for heating water and making soap. A section of the bowl is reserved for line-drying and sun-bleaching whites.

'+Info weaver e-index' will provide information on various cloth types found on Pern, as well as at Ista in particular.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Very clean hands. Ability to remove stains with a single treatment. Access to replacement linens. Red face and hands from the heat and steam. Ability to short-sheet a cot at will. More gossip than you can shake a posser at!

Leatherworker
Leatherworkers are those learned in the methods of Tanners, but without crafthall affiliation. Tanning hides, stretching hides on hoops or other objects, plying and working the leather to a suitable stage of stiffness or softness for its next incarnation takes up much of a leatherworker's base preparation time. From there, items useful and decorative could be created, including clothing such as riding gear, gloves, jewelry or jewelry cords, riding leathers or footwear and also straps, saddles, saddlebags, and more. Leatherworkers also help create several varieties of threads made from gut, some for use on leather projects such as dragon straps, some used by herders, others for dragonhealers, and still others are specially treated for use by healers on human patients.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Dyed hands. Sharp pokey objects. Can modify own clothes and shoes with ease for fashionable styles. Access to one of the most versatile materials on Pern!

Messenger
Running here, running there, the messenger may be sent by just about anyone to deliver information either spoken or in writing. Messengers must be in excellent physical condition, have a good head for direction, and be trustworthy as often messages are of a private or personal nature. While many messengers work only in the Weyr proper, many travel on foot from hold to hold or area to area as climates and conditions permit, or may travel by runner, cart, with traders, or dragonback, depending on their opportunities and interests. Bringing tidings good or bad, the messenger would aim to develop a good foundation in hierarchies, political expectations, and politeness, to be used at their discretion and as appropriate. Messengers are sometimes called upon to gather information from the areas they visit, including recent events and social climate, thus they often report directly to the Weyrleaders. This position is often considered dangerous during a Pass.

• Reports to: Weyrwomen

• Perks and Hooks: See Pern! Or at least, see Ista Island. Know the news first. Bring tall tales from beyond! Boast racing speed. Know the best routes through the jungle, and which Halls make the best pastries!

Midwife
Versed in women's lore, pregnancy prevention, pregnancy counseling, prenatal and newborn care, techniques for comfort and safety during pregnancy and for birth, preparation and dispensation of painkillers, as well as triage and emergency procedures when things don't go so smoothly, the midwives are a precious resource. Some may also aid with gynecological issues, or with pediatric advice and care, depending on levels of training, specialization, or comfort. Midwives would work with or learn from healers to become proficient in their area of work.

'+Info healer ranks2' gives information on becoming a midwife, with '+info healer child' and '+info healer birth' supplying knowledge on the details of birthing and infancy.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Be on call at all hours. Sooth terrified young ladies... or scare them. Witness the miracle of life! Catch babies!

Nanny
Nannies tend both the young and old, serving as the general caretakers of children and sometimes of the aged or infirm. Anyone who requires fairly constant supervision might be in their care. Nannies could benefit from patience, firmness, fortitude, skills at diaper changing, general childcare and discipline skills, and the capacity for imagination and invention. Nannies who specialize in elder care might take up knitting or other stationary hobbies as they serve as companions and caretakers. Nannies might also supplement harper lessons, and help see to placement of children in fostering situations, apprenticeships, or occupations.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Eradicate messy diapers! Learn stories of the past from the elders. Make up wild stories for the children. Tend a horde of sticky hands and faces.

Potter
Gifted with ceramic and clay, a potter would learn and know the best places to find clay or barter with other areas to acquire it. They would have understanding of different building methods, tools, wheel-throwing, glazing and firing to produce practical items such as vessles, vials and dishes, and decorative items such as flower vases, hair beads, or statuary. Keeping the living caverns stocked with plates is a feat for anyone.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Hunt up the good dirt. Play with fire. Experiment with styles, colors, and shapes. 'You break it, you buy it!' Dirty fingernails!

Scribe
Good penmenship? Maybe being a scribe if your calling! Sure, older records and archives need to be recopied as hides decay and important documents may need to be duplicated, but there's more to being a scribe than just copying and copying. Scribes often need to mix their own inks and fashion their own writing utensils. Some scribes may have a talent for preparing fresh hides or making paper for sophisticated clients. In addition, a large number of Weyr residents may be illiterate or have such poor writing that they need to dictate their letters to a scribe, or they may need received letters to be deciphered and read aloud. Weyrleaders may also need speeches to be recorded, or official letters to be writen and sealed. Scribes may work closely with harpers , messengers and the Weyrleaders. Junior scribes will also frequently serve as messengers within the Weyr and may work with slate and chalk for less important recording throughout the day. Scribes are expected to exercise discretion, as they often encounter sensitive information.

• Reports to: Weyrwomen

• Perks and Hooks: Ink-stained fingers. A deep firsthand knowledge of musty old records. Possession of important secrets. Papercuts!

Tailor
Nimble fingers and attention to detail are attributes of the best seamstresses and tailors, who sew, stitch, design, mend, or alter garments. Frequently, seamstresses or tailors may be asked to make an older garment from stores fit a new owner, to fashion a new item for a special day (on commission), or to repair or apply patches to older outfit, blankets, riding gear, swaddling clothes, or other sewables in order to make them last longer. They work closely with the Weavercraft to obtain materials and keep up on the latest trends.

While Seamstresses have no formal training from the Weavercraft, information on textiles, clothing styles, and stitching can be found in '+info weaver e-index'.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Deft hands and pricked fingers. Customize your own garments. Bring in extra marks for commissions. Surf through stores for salvage and entertainment. Haute Couture!

Stablehand
Tending the beasts of the stable includes combing, currying, hoof-cleaning, shoveling dung, mucking stalls, pitching hay, measuring feed, maintaining tack and equipment, cleaning up carcasses after dragon flights, and other such tasks pertaining to care of the stables and corrals. Stablehands work under the stablemaster and posted Herders and also work closely with cooks and butchers for animal products and with messengers and the general populace for local transportation needs.

Ista has two stables: the main one is inside the bowl by the corrals, where the Weyr's animals are kept, and a lesser one on the outer face of the bowl at the Weyr's entrance, where visitors who come by land may stable their animals. With more limited space than other Weyrs, Ista maintains bovines and wherries predominantly for her dragons, as seafood makes up the majority of prepared meals. A small number of dairy bovine are kept for milk production. Due to the difficulty of shipping these animals over seas, the Weyr also has a closely monitored breeding program. Runners are kept for light transportation across the island, a coop of chickens provide eggs and a few porcine are reserved for special feasts.

More information on the Beastcraft and Pern's animals and their care may be found in '+info beastcraft'.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.
• Perks and Hooks: Strong arms from pitching, scrubbing, combing, etc. Unmistakeable smell. Random peices of hay. Befriend the silent types.

Stores Assistant
Stores are like a giant library. A library of stuff! People are always coming in to drop off unwanted items or to borrow or pick up items they need. The excellent stores assistant is both meticulous and organized, with an innate sense of the method used to catalogue and place items in stores. A good stores assistant should also be well-versed in methods for keeping stores dry but not too dry, and also tunnelsnake-free. Some stores assistants work almost solely with foodstuff, running back and forth between the kitchens and the stores to retrieve smoked meats, herbs, wines, grain, you name it. Others deal with textiles such as fabric, clothing, linens and rugs and work closely with the weavers, tailors and laundresses. Still others handle goods such as tools, furniture, toys and odd nicknacks with the aid of the Weyr's handymen to keep everything in good order. There are still others who dabble in a bit of everything and help oversee the inventory of all departments.

• Reports to: Headwoman and staff.

• Perks and Hooks: Possess the mind of a librarian. Find anything almost instantly. Hide things no one will ever locate. Keep the best for yourself! Vanquish tunnel-snakes. Or run from them.