sonder winter 1711

Guidebook

Breeding & Aging

General

Timeline: Until 1710, breeding occurred only in winter. Due to sudden changes in the land, which superstitious wolves assert are the Fae, breeding now occurs all year.

Requirements

Breeding should be a planned affair. Be sure that you're established on the site and ready for the commitment.

2+ Years

Breeding age is from 2-8*
30 Posts

30 per litter (60 for 2 litters, 90 for 3, etc.)**
IC Justification

Give us a reason to believe they banged***
Time

Your previous litter is at least 2 seasons old


*: Yearlings in the winter before they turn 2 are canonically 18-19 as a human equivalency and may breed
**: If all of your pups die for any reason, you do not need 30 extra posts the next season.
***: IC justification can come from any season but your characters are assumed to have bred, offscreen or on-screen, in the season when you fill out a breeding request. IC justification can be a breeding thread, wedding, and/or a romantic moment. NOTE: One night stands must have IC justification in the same season

WARNING: Pups need guardians at all times. Pups, NPC or otherwise, without a guardian die after one week. Ensure that both parents do not go to jail/die/go missing/travel without alternate guardian arrangements!

Litter Information

You've met the breeding requirements! Now it's on to figuring out what your litter will look like. On Sonder, litters can either be customized uniquely or rolled. With rolling, there's more risk, fanfare, and praying to RNJesus. Read below to find more detailed information about both of these processes as well as other useful bits of information.

Custom Litters: You pick the number of puppies you want and everything about their appearances. Note: Merle puppies are more than welcome but the merle item must be purchased for them in the market. This purchase can be made by anyone, just like all other items.

Rolled Litters: Litters can be rolled for any number of the following features. In all cases, you give staff the range of colors, sizes, etc. that you want rolled. This gives you complete control over your final color, size, sex, and mutation options. If for any reason you want aspects of a pup re-rolled, you can purchase a re-roll from the market:
  • Number of puppies
  • Fur Color
  • Eye Color
  • Heterochromia chance* — Note: you can have this rolled or elect a puppy into heterochromia after they've been rolled. Taste the rainbow
  • Size
  • Sex
  • Mutation* — Note: if at least one parent is mutated, you can have up to a 50% chance of mutated puppies. If neither are mutated, you can have up to a 25% chance of mutated puppies. Additionally, rolled merle puppies are FREE

Litter Maximum: Each year, a wolf can have a maximum of 3 biological pups***
***: Stillborn puppies do not count toward your total pup count
Fathering Multiple Litters: Is perfectly allowed however the father is still limited to 3 pups per year (split across the litters). Therefore, a father may have at most 3 baby mamas in one IC year.
Single Litter, Multiple Fathers: Also allowed but all 3+ parents will have the pups count toward their maximum of 3 pups and all biological parents are required to participate in the breeding check (see below).

Puppy Guilds: All pups start off in the Commonwealth until they turn 1 and can elect to join a different guild
Puppy Nationality: In mixed-nationality couples, the nationality of the pups is largely determined by the culture in which they are raised. Pups born in a pack are members of that pack.

Survival

All pups have a 50% chance of dying within the first month of life.

To ensure that your puppies survive, parents complete a Breeding Check for each litter. This serves the purpose of ensuring breeding wolves are active and, for involved wolves, adds more IC memories for the parents and/or pups. Each post from the parent reduces death chance by 25% (unless there are more than 2 parents, then the reduction percentage decreases). The requirements are below:

  • One 300-word minimum post from each biological parent (in the same thread or posted separately as one-shots)
  • The intended post is labeled as "Breeding Check" at the top
  • Posted within the timeframe between pregnancy and the pups being 1 month old (~9 weeks)
  • The post must be related to the litter
  • It can be anything from: two parents interacting with their young children*, the parents reflecting on their relationship, a careless ruffian leaving from a one-night stand and not giving a single care, a wolf reflecting on their pregnancy, etc. Note — In order for a breeding check to be about a parent interacting with their children, it must be posted after the pups are born.

At 1 month of life, the survival of the pups will be rolled.
  • The default death chance is 50%
  • Pups with parents that each completed the breeding check have 0% chance of dying
Pups that survive are adoptable as early as 1-2 months of age and are immediately playable. That said, you can keep pups as NPCs when they are not currently being played for as long as you wish.

Same-Sex Breeding

Same-sex couples may choose to fulfill the breeding requirements and submit an application in winter. If approved, they will find children in the Fae Forest, ones allegedly left by the Fairfolk. An NPC wet nurse will provide milk for the children and may be minimally interacted with and referenced in posts. Survivability and adoption rules are the same as for heterosexual couples.

Requesting & Checklist

Are you ready to rumble? Have a roll in the hay if you will? See the fruits of your labor? If so, all you need to do is post a new thread in the DISCORD #breeding channel!




Aging

Feel free to use this guide to help gauge the relative age of your characters

0-11 Months
Dawn

At 1-2 months when pups are playable, they are the human equivalent of a 5 year old. They can give all the cuddles, snuggles, and sneak into the cookie jar. However, they can't travel far so keep that in mind.
At 6 months, they're roughly 9 to 10-year-olds. They're eagerly considering what guilds they'll join and they're becoming model citizens (or menaces, depending on the pup).
1 Year
Morning

At 1 year, your pup is no longer a pup. They can travel freely, hunt small game with ease. The first year is equivalent to a 16-19 year old making their way. Your character joins the guild of their choice.
2-4 Years
High Noon

At this stage, each year of life lived is the human equivalent of 5 years. At 2 years, you're a fresh, 20-year-old chicken. At 4 years, you are a 30-year-old with a mid-life crisis.
5-6 Years
Mid-Day

At 5 years, you are roughly 35 and hitting the peak of your midlife crisis. At 6 years, approx. 40, things begin to level out. This time has been spent cultivating various skill trees such as guild-life, political advocacy, and practicing pick-up lines. Maybe you've even started a family by now and are watching your own pups grow up.
7-8 Years
Sunset

Now, each year your character ages is equivalent to 10 human years of life. At 7 years you'll hit your 50's. At 8 years you'll hit your 60's. Perhaps retirement and 401k benefits are on your mind as you face the reality of age. Is that some salt and pepper I see on your muzzle? No more breeding after the age of 8. The junk in the trunk just ain't what it used to be.
9-10 Years
Twilight

At 9 years you are in your 70s. At 10 years you are in your 80s. Health fades faster and faster and most end up leaving their guilds (except for the College which believes wolves' minds ripen with age). Hopefully you have some grandpups to keep you company because no one else wants to hear your stories.
11-12 Years
Midnight

You are old. You've lived a full life... or maybe you're a shut-in that never saw the ocean and you just had a late expiration date. Either way, it's time to settle your earthly affairs and prepare for that eternal sleep. At 11 years you are in your 90s. At 12 years, 100 human equivalent, you die (or laugh in the Grim Reaper's face and buy an extra year of life because capitalism).