Our Pern's Geography- Holds, Halls, and Weyrs

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readr.ru/tmp_images/mccaffrey_anne_the_renegades_of_pern_map.jpg

Using the above map as a reference, here is what Pern's general make up currently resembles.

All major holds are still occupied. There are many new, minor Holds in the Southern continent.

Thanks to overcrowding and a dwindling dragon population, the only occupied Weyrs are High Reaches, Igen, and Southern (our Weyr). The other Weyrs have become human occupied, thanks to the need for more housing.

Life on Southern remains largely coastal, thanks to fear of what lurks in the jungles. The north is heavily polluted. Southern is much nicer, but regarded as more provincial and savage. There have been recent motions to investigate the Western continent for habitation.

On the Southern continent, in the Western Barrier range, rich deposits of copper, zinc, and iron were found, allowing for a more broad use of metals. Wood has also become more common, thanks to the lack of thread. Unknown to most Pernese, the metal deposits are now running dangerously low, and the Red Star is pulsing in the sky.

Southern's climate is tropical and lush. Fruit grows in abundance, and there is plenty of wild game to be found. The Weyr itself is different from the traditional stone ones of yore. It sits on a grassy plateau with a river running through, forming the lake and eventually falling off one side in a waterfall. There is an extinct volcano on one side that makes up the Hatching Grounds. One cliff wall faces the ocean. The beach and the jungle are accessible through steps built into the plateau. The dragons do not live in stone Weyrs, but spend most of the time outside, with the trees and some wooden lean-tos providing shelter. There are wooden structures built for everyone else.

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Holds and their Beholden

Fort Hold, located to the West of the Northern Continent, is Pern's oldest Hold. It is the location to which the Pern colonists evacuated upon abandoning the Southern Continent ten Turns (years) after arriving on Pern. Colonists Sallah Telgar and Tarvi Andiyar discovered the cave network. In Pern's early history, the colonists established a College at Fort Hold which evolved into the Harper Hall during the Second Pass. The Masterhealer is located at Fort Hold as well.
*Contains Harper and Healer Hall

Ruatha Hold is believed to be Pern's second Hold, although in fact it was the third established. It is located east of Fort Hold. Colonists Peter "Red" Hanranhan and his wife Mairi established the Hold nineteen Turns after the Landing on Pern. Hanrahan's group needed to cross a difficult ford to reach their site from Fort Hold, which led to the new settlement's name: "Rua Atha" means "Red's Ford" in Irish, (though using correct Irish grammar, the name would actually be Áthrua). Hanrahan bred horses (runnerbeasts in Pern's idiom), and throughout Pern's history Ruatha has been known for its runnerbeasts. Ruatha also has a reputation for providing the Weyrs many famous dragonriders, particularly including queenriders.

Southern Boll Hold was the second Northern Hold founded, although this fact is not known to modern Pernese. It occupies the southern end of the Boll peninsula in the West of Pern, south of Fort Hold, with the Hold itself located near the peninsula's tip. Colonist Peter de Courcis established Boll Hold in the seventeenth Turn after Landing. He named it after his wife, the recently-deceased Governor Emily Boll. Boll, a hero of the Nathi War as a planetary governor, led the initial Pern colony with Admiral Paul Benden. It is not clear whether the current Hold is in the same location as de Coucis' original settlement.
*Weavercraft Hall

Benden Hold is located in the East Coast of Pern's Northern Continent, with its southern reaches extending to the edge of the Nerat peninsula. The last settlers to leave the Pern's Southern Continent established Benden Turns after the rest of Pern had moved North. They named their Hold after Admiral Paul Benden, a hero of the Nathi War, co-leader of the early colonists with Emily Boll, and original captain of the expedition that brought the colonists from Earth. Benden is best known for its wines.
*Vintner Hall

Bitra Hold is located to Benden's northwest. The hold was founded after the end of the First Pass by dissidents from Benden Hold that held a different view of Avril Bitra's actions and place in the history of Pern.

Lemos Hold occupies the mountainous territory to Bitra Hold's west, approaching the center of the Northern Continent. The circumstances of its founding have not been revealed.
*Printer Hall

High Reaches Hold lies on Pern's Northwest Coast, in the wintry High Reaches Mountains. The circumstances of its founding have not been revealed.

Nabol Hold is located in the center of Pern's Northern Continent. The circumstances of its founding have not been revealed. Nabol Hold's primary industry is mining, and it is often regarded as an unpleasant place by other of Pern's inhabitants. Fax, self-styled Lord of Seven Holds, was Nabolese.

Tillek Hold occupies the Tillek peninsula on the Northern Continent's West Coast, south of High Reaches Hold and west of Fort. Colonist Zi Ongola founded Tillek Hold in the twenty-second Turn after Landing, but the Hold went nameless for at least three Turns until the death of Jim Tillek. Tillek was one of the colony leaders and captain of one of the ships that brought the colonists to Pern. Tillek also established Pern's first fishing fleet and maintained contact with the genetically enhanced dolphins the colonists brought with them. Modern Tillek produces wines, but they are not as well regarded as Benden Hold's; they have been described as acidic, foxy and very unpleasant.
*Fishercraft Hall

Keroon Hold sits in the prairie east of the center of Pern's Northern Continent, south of Bitra and Lemos Holds, west of the Nerat Perninsula.The circumstances of its founding have not been revealed, but presumably the Hold was named in honor of Ezra Keroon. Keroon captained one of the colony ships from Earth and served the colony as a scientific advisor. Keroon Hold is known for its livestock, particularly its runnerbeasts, though they are said to be not as good as Ruatha's.
*Beastcraft Hall

Ista Hold occupies the whole of Ista Island, a large, partly desert island to the Southwest of the Igen Hold coast. The name Ista comes from the initials of the four families that settled there. Due to its temperate climate and low humidity, Ista, like the American Southwest, has served as retirement destination for those suffering from the symptoms of old age. Ista Weyr, on the island, has traditionally been a place for the recuperation of injured dragons and riders.
*Glass-smith Hall

Igen Hold is a largely desert region in the South of Pern's Northern Continent. Although on the eastern half of the continent, Igen Hold has a long western coastline. During the Ninth Pass, sandworms infesting Igen's plains were discovered to offer some protection from Thread.
*Tannercraft Hall

Nerat Hold occupies the Nerat Peninsula on Pern's East Coast, south of Benden Hold. It is separated from Keroon Hold to the west by Nerat Bay. With its extensive coastlines on both the ocean and the bay, fish are Nerat Hold's main product.
*Farmer Hall

Telgar Hold is situated at the northern end of the longitudinal center of Pern's Northern Continent. Telgar Hold evolved from the mining facilities founded by Pern contractor Telgar (née Tarvi Andiyar) and named in honor of his wife Sallah Telgar.
*Smithcraft Hall

Crom Hold is located in the low mountains west of Telgar Hold, north of Nabol and Ruatha Holds. The primary industry of Crom Hold is mining, and in the Ninth Pass the Masterminer is located there. A group of miners established Crom Hold near the end of the First Interval; similar to Ista, the hold's name is derived from the first initials of these four.
*Minecraft Hall

Southern Hold was the first southern Hold established, and is known for its tropical climate and lack of stone buildings.

Other major southern holds include: Cove Hold and Paradise River Hold.