Sparrow

The crowd falls silent. Far off, in the distance, a lonely church bell tolls. And then the drums begin, an urgent, strident beat that sets your heart pumping and the adrenaline rushing through your body. The crowd cheers. The dragons roar. The Riders, elegant in their battle gear, urge their magnificent steeds into the arena. All falls silent, all those gathered falling silent in anticipation. The Dragonring Master raises his staff. A horn sounds. Flames shoot up around the arena as the order is given, 'LET. BATTLE. COMMENCE!' The crowd screams.... Yup. It's coming soon and on behalf of all the Official Mystical Markets I am proud to announce the formation of the Coalition of Battle Arenas! That's right, all the Official Mystical Markets have joined forces to create a Super League of Dragon Arenas. Very soon, you will get to choose your house and ride into battle on their behalf. Each Sim will have its own team and we will all battle for the glory that comes with being the last standing dragon and rider. Maggie Mae has designed awesome banners for each sim and we will all work together to create a fantastic battling experience for you all. There will be trophies, trinkets and triskets for your troubles - and you are guaranteed a fun time. But remember..... THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE!

If you weren't at the last Town Hall Meeting you missed a real treat. And when you read the final line of this Connection, you will literally lay a little eggie of your own. Place was packed cos we heard on the Dragonvine that we were going to get a demonstration of ACTUAL BATTLING DRAGONS. And boy, we weren't disappointed. I'll be honest with you... I was worried that it might all look a bit, well, you know.. pants. Sometimes in SL, things get hyped up, but there are limitations due to LL and ... well. You hear what I'm saying. But OMG. As well as the amazing texture designers at Mystical Creatures, there are also some seriously hot programmers who are also gamers. And this was reflected in the display of Dragonpower on show. We got to see the Player Versus Player (PVP) mode and it was savage. The moves of the dragons, the attacks are awesome. It felt real. I was blown away and even more excited for this incredible new update. The noises they made were vicious and it really did feel like you were watching two ancient beings battling it out to the death. When one dragon lay down 'dead' there was an audible gasp from the crowd. It made the scenes from Gladiator look like an episode of The Muppet Show. The new hud looks easy and intuitive to use and will take up a little less space. There are options for battle attacks - claw, bite etc - and you can train your dragon from birth to gain prowess in these discrete abilities. And if that wasn't enough, we also got to see the Player Versus Environment (PVE) designs, where you can battle against nasty kritters and hone your dragon skills from the comfort of your own living room. Or den, in my case. And are you ready for the final line? Get this: The stats of your dragon WILL stay with the dragon. So if you create the Ultimate Battle Dragon and want to give him a new home, then it creates a whole new market for these incredible beasts. Have a great day. Wait, that wasn't the last line. The last line I meant was the one above. Two sentences ago. So not quite the last line, but a nice one all the same. Have fun! Sparrow xx

Came from a Dashing Reindeer and an Arctic Aurora Icy!

When the update comes.... we'll be able to battle our dragons - and the whispers on the dragonvine are saying it will be soon.... 'HELP' you say, to nobody in particular, 'I don't know how to prepare!' Well, let's just go over what we know already - and some top tips for success. Firstly, if you have designed your UBD (Ultimate Battle Dragon) DO NOT HATCH IT! Leave it in the egg. Keep it somewhere warm, like a south-facing window, conservatory or specially heated breeding platform and let it be. A;ternatively, you could send it to a friend that lives somewhere nice and warm and dry. Like Bournemouth. 'WHY?' you ask, to nobody in particular, 'Why don't I hatch it?' Well, you will have the best chance of levelling up if you train your dragon from birth. That's right. Once the update comes, you will be able to interact with your dragon and begin its training. This will give it more skills and a better chance of levelling up. The new hud, that will come out with update 2.0, will have new functionality to allow you to interact with your dragon. Secondly, let's talk about levelling up and that all-important Leader Board. 'HOW?' you ask, again to nobody in particular, 'HOW can I level up and get to the top of that soon-to-be-Hallowed board?' Well, here's how. Only Dragon Arenas at Official Mystical Creatures sims will have the functionality to allow you to level up on the Leader Board. You will be able to practice at home, but this won't give you points to creep up that board. This is to stop people gaming the system - it has to be fair. It will be free to battle, but some sims are likely to offer prizes to attract the battlers... It will add a whole new perspective to owning a dragon. Thirdly, you will be able to battle against SOME SERIOUSLY SCARY LITTLE BOOGERS. Yup, the MC team are coming up with some NLCs (Nasty Little Critters) that your dragon can go up against. You'll have seen some hints on the home page.... I already have a Sensible Adult lined up to hold my hand when I try it for the first time. I won't be eating cheese before I go to bed, after trying it..... that's for Mystical Certainty. So get designing! I've already seen some AMAZING designs for battle dragons and I think this is going to be a fantastic addition to the whole dragon-keeping experience. And I, for one, just can't WAIT! Sparrow x

Let's talk about the Secondary Market.* WAIT, why on earth have I chosen a picture of a dog? Hmmm. I guess that question will be answered at some point. Let's carry on. So, let's talk about breeding and selling. There are many types of breeders. There are the vast majority who breed for pleasure, sell their dragons here and there and rarely go to auctions. Then there are those who are 'big breeders' who breed to make a profit, regularly go to auctions and have a big market presence. And there is a whole spectrum within that, of those that dabble with markets, those that infrequently try out auctions, those that never sell an egg but see breeding as a hobby that costs less than skiing or golf in the real world. Few things in life are certain, apart from taxes, more MCU films or death. But one thing is certain; if an egg or dragon is sitting in your inventory, it's not making any money for you. Does that matter? Well, it's a fabulous hobby, but wouldn't it be nice if you got some return on your investment? I've been in Dragons since the beginning. I wouldn't count myself as a 'big' breeder but I have a fair few breeding at the moment. This is my hobby, one that takes me away from my RL job and lets me solve puzzles, market my goods and meet some amazing people. Sure, there's a bit of drama here and there, but that's SL for you. Most importantly, I have fun and I love the dragons I have created or have seen others create. And I haven't uploaded Lindens for months. I use a range of strategies to run my little dragon breeding enterprise. I see my breeding as a hobby business - I factor in costs of food, tier, rent at markets and advertising. From that model I tend to make a little more than it costs me to breed. Those of you that know me will know that I am an auctioneer as well as a breeder. But the 10% I get in tips represents about 10% of my income in dragons. I am a breeder first and an auctioneer second. Let me tell you how I do it. All breedables operate as a 'trickle-down' economy. Something new comes out, it sells for big money. Then the person who buys it sells some more of that commodity at a lower rate and the rate slowly reduces over time. That's normal market economics, a powerful demonstration of supply and demand. When there's only ONE of a thing, it is in OOAK - one of a kind. And that's worth a lot. When everyone has one, then it's not worth as much. Buying at the right time to maximise returns is important. I don't tend to wait for the price to hit rock-bottom as everyone has it by then. Getting in early and buying from a reputable breeder is key. When I came back into Dragons a few months back, I did have a small pot of money that I'd made from other breedables. I spent the first few days walking around markets, going to auctions and working out what was selling and what was not. I also had hundreds of eggs from before. I spent a few days sorting the eggs, then hatching some 'clean' dragons, like perfect Tolraes or Zemraidus to act as a palette on which to daub my new dragon designs. I certainly hatched my favourite Datentuds with Ukeinth eyes - they are great at taking any trait. I then started buying up some of the new markings and skins. At that point, Flarenacht and Molten Soul were still going for decent prices, so I concentrated on those. I built up pods, sometimes double pods of 8 to speed up the breeding process, then slowly built up my stock. So there is some initial investment - and the more you invest (wisely!) the more you make back over time. As I up-traited my dragons, I sold off the ones I no longer needed. I do that very quickly, to ensure that I don't waste precious market time. Sometimes, I have managed to sell a dragon for what I bought it for 10 days previously (and once or twice for a little more!). I also rented market stalls and started selling some of my old stock - it seems there is always a market for clean dragons. With regards to that initial investment - sometimes it is daunting forking out 30K for a marking or trait - especially as you will see that price drop over the next few days (like buying a new car - it loses 20% of a its value as you drive it off the forecourt). But, for example, I paid 30k for a marking, then used it to make some nice designer dragons and have easily recouped my costs, 5 or 6 times over. And when you drop a nice designer dragon onto a market stall, even as the rarity of that marking is fading, you have a decent chance of getting a sale, even months after your initial investment. People buy the marking for the marking at the start. Then they pay for the designs later. So there's our first part of the process - the markets. There are a number of Official Mystical Creatures Markets. You can get a listing of them off this website. These markets abide by the Ameretto rules on pricing and operating, so you know your precious eggs won't be next to a stall pumping them out for next to nothing. The dragons that sell well on these stalls are often the really striking designs that look fairly unique and of course the dragons that everyone needs for their breeding projects. Not many breeders go to auctions (see below) but most breeders will visit a market from time to time. All markets do a good job of advertising what is going on in their markets and do various things to drive traffic - which brings me to the next part of the marketing process. Advertising. You could spend all day sending out notices in groups (and generally annoying people if you spam it too much!), but the most effective way I have found of marketing my dragons directly to the buyers is the marketing system that I use called Petrades. There are other products available, but I use that one; it's a kiosk system that you buy into, then pay fees each time you sell your dragons. You can also 'boost' your listings (rather like Google AdWords) and make sure your babies are prominent when people search. If it costs me 80L to sell a 5k dragon, I see that as money well spent. And people do search. Sometimes I list a dragon and within a few minutes it is gone. If the price is right, or it is super rare, you will see those hawks that regularly flick through the listings, see what's just been listed and then TP direct to it. I can't tell you the number of times I've seen a juicy listing and TP'd there, to see the person who got there before me TPing out, with my intended goal in their dragon robbery sack. It does cost. But if you use it well, you can get your dragons seen by the people that are actually searching for exactly what you have. That is very powerful direct advertising, reaching the consumer precisely. I use it all the time to find specific traits I am looking for in a project. Sometimes there is literally only one of that trait available - and more than likely, that seller will get my business. Think of it as an ongoing cost, like food and tier. It's a part of any business strategy and without good advertising, a business will struggle to stand out. I know for a fact that the money I've spent on advertising is dwarfed by the returns in the long run. And here's a sneaky tip: if you've got a lot of Sterling Steel dragons, you don't have to pay to list every single one. Get a 'headline stealer' dragon out, then put eggs around it. Once they've committed to TPing to your wares, they are in buying mode. Make the system work for you - you need to get every bang you can for your buck. So what about Auctions? Auctions can be scary. How do I price my dragon? What is it worth? Do I want to actually sell it? What if I price it too low and am ambushed by a mob of angry villagers with pitchforks, flaming torches and a desire to marry a close relative? Well, best advice is don't price too low - look at the prices in the market, work out a price that is tempting but not ridiculously cheap and start there. Don't open bid a 20K dragon, you'll not get 20K because of consumer perception. If you start at an open bid (usually 500L) you are sending a clear message to the punters; you don't value your dragon at 20K, so they won't either. If you've spent months building an amazing line of designer dragons, value the time, love and effort that has gone into that. Think about those 'luxury' items in the store. They are boxed up all fancy, with gold and ribbons, in a sleek shiny box and the price tag reflects that. You've done the boxing up, you've added the ribbons, you've shoved in the love - now give that dragon a price tag to match. Don't just slap a yellow sticker on it and wait for the bargain hunters to arrive. If you don't value your dragon, neither will the crowd. And if you get a reputation as a 'market crasher' then people will be wary of buying off you. After all, if you sell someone something for 40k then offer it out at 20k the next day, the person who bought off you has instantly lost 50% of their margins. Believe me, they won't thank you for that.... BUT I'M STILL SCARED OF AUCTIONS..... Don't be. It's nerve-wracking waiting for your turn to come up, but auctions are fun with some wonderfully zany, friendly people. They're not cliquey at all and you can make some lovely new friends. Dragons bite. People don't. Well most don't. And some may give a little nibble, but a little nibble between friends can be fun. The almost-final part of your little hobby business is your image. I like to make a striking logo, then dress my stall to make it look attractive. If you just scatter your eggs across a barren platform, as if you've chucked a handful of sand across a crowded beach, people will cam past it. And finally.... Don't send out weekly 'leaving dragons' sales or 'all prices slashed' or 'RL has eaten my toes and I need new socks' messages. Think about that all important consumer perception - if you sell fire-damaged stock, your reputation will be commensurate with that perception. People tend to buy off the breeders that value their stock and the market's opinion of them. You wouldn't buy a dog from a disreputable puppy farm, would you? Virtual pets are just as valued as the lovely dog called Barney sitting at my feet as I type this. Oh, so that's what the picture was for! * Please note that the views presented in this article are the personal opinions of the author and do not represent an endorsement by Amaretto Mystical Creatures of any market, third party product or service.

Hi, Sparrow here! Just wanted to share with you a little project I've been working on. I wanted a Datentud with all Ceondet traits with the Citrine Ripple. I figured it might be pretty funky. It's taken a long time! Sometimes in breeding, you get really lucky and traits stick really quickly. A lot of the time, it's a labour of pure love, choosing the best dragons to mix to try and pull the correct traits. Obviously, I wasn't lucky enough to find a Citrine Ripple on a Datentud (I am sure they are out there now) but when I bought my drake, he was one of the only ones out there. And he was on an Iakuss, with a whole load of other traits. I managed to get my hands on a bunch of Ceondet/Datentuds (or CeonDats as I like to call them!) and began the process of drawing down the traits I wanted. It was a long haul. I started off by putting the male Iakuss, with the Ripple to 3 females that were CeonDats. One of them pulled the Ripple, but copied the father with his rather funky mix of traits (imagine your Uncle turning up to a nephew's birthday party wearing what he thinks are 'cool togs' but actually make him look like he stripped himself naked, covered himself in glue, and ran through a fire-damaged sale at Walmart) and put her to the CeonDat male that I had. By now, the original pod had produced a couple of females with the Ripple, so I put them back to the male CeonDat and crossed my fingers and waited. I may as well have waited for the Titanic to be raised. Sure, I was getting Ripples but on such a mix of coats and traits that I thought I might have to give up. But a Dragon Designer never gives up. FINALLY I pulled a drake - all Ceondet traits - with the Ripple..... .... on a Water Gayvrenth. And yes, I checked the ancestry (really useful tool!) and I couldn't see any Gayvrenth in the back, but put him back to a CeonDat that hadn't pulled the Ripple but WAS the DOS with all the right traits. And behold! A DRAKE! First breeding.... with the same funky traits of his great grandaddy. Did I give up? A DRAGON DESIGNER NEVER GIVES UP (see above for details). I managed to get a few more females that were DOS of the Ripple and the right traits and finally, after weeks of work I pulled the drake in the picture. As you can see, he is more than worth the wait. And his 'girlfriends' around him are all DOS of the Ripple... so.... fingers crossed! I'm now working on another project with is going to be an even longer job, I think. The goal? Flarenacht skin, all Regal Fang traits and lemon smolder. So far, I've got the offspring of a mix of smolder, flarenacht and Regal - 3 pods on the go at the moment. Soon I will be bringing them all back together and then I will be a happy Sparrow. But what if it takes ages, you ask as you munch on the Pretzels you had left over from New Year's Eve? Well. A Dragon Designer Never Gives Up! Work on those projects in this New Year. You CAN do it - you just have to have faith. HAPPY BREEDING!

We've been waiting for it... and it's almost here. Yes the BATTLING update is on its way and it's going to be AWESOME. What do we know? Well, there is a battling platform which will be supplied by Mystical Creatures. Battling will be based on turns.... and you can train your dragon from birth. That's right; from the minute the dragon is born, you can train it to enhance its skills. Imagine that! It adds a whole new layer of interactivity with these beautiful Mystical Creatures. There will be a leader board and I am guessing there are a lot of people who want to be top of that. Ok.. yeah.. I do... so I am getting ready. We are gonna start training our dragons... That's right! Toothless look out, we are going to learn how to Train Our Dragons! So what can we do to prepare? Well, I guess we need to create the ULTIMATE battle dragons. Let me tell you what I am up to. So I have been concentrating on getting some Sterling Steel traits going. My endgame is to get a Sterling Steel boy or girl with all Bloody Phantom traits. If I can get the Ruby Fissure or Charcoal Smolder on there, to make it look battle damaged, even better. I've been schmoozing the skin back and forth with some high-traited Bloody Phantoms. It's a long haul but I am getting there. I now have a Sterling Steel boy that is DOS of all the Bloody Phantom Traits and he's now being bred with some high traited females. Once I have the ULTIMATE battle dragons I will not birth them. No sir! Why? Well, you have to train them from birth. So they will sit there, the Battling Brood until the Horn of Draconis sounds, the Battle Drums begin and we say... LET BATTLE COMMENCE! Ok... and did I mention, I want the MOLTEN eye, Sterling Steel Skin and Bloody Phantom traits... Yeah. She gonna look BADDASSS. Happy breeding, Mystical Family!

Prologue…. *Idiot! Fool! Pegleg! Devil!” The boy slammed into a tree in the semi-darkness, the words of the children still ringing in his ears, the snow and mud they had flung still clinging to him, an ensemble of shame. Too tired to cry, too tired to fun any further, he turned and slid to his haunches, the rough bark scratching his back. Silence. Not silence. He could hear his heart, crashing in his chest and something else…. The Song. A beautiful, lonely, magnificent song that filled his chest with dread and wonder. Where was it coming from? He closed his eyes and tried to pinpoint the Song of the Siren. It seemed to be coming from deep, deep within the ancient forest. Turning his head, his neck frozen from the snow and ice that dripped down his back, he could barely see the lights of the village, flickering fireflies pricking the gnarled shadows of the trees. He turned his head towards the song. She was calling him. And he knew; he would go to Her. Heaving himself up, he allowed himself a grunt, then started limping in the direction of the song. Dragging his crippled leg, he picked a sturdy stick from the ground and made a frozen fist around its hilt, and using it as a crutch, he soldiered on. The singing was getting more urgent. It seemed to come from the very belly of the earth, it seemed to fill the air, the air surely crackled with its mystery and every ice crystal around him reverberated with the Song as a new fire flickered in his soul. Every element, every creature, every thing in the forest resonated with the Song as it got louder and louder, urging him on, beckoning, calling. Inviting. And then it stopped. Silence and sadness descended. And then the warmth that emanated from the mouth of the cave struck his face. How far had he run? Did it matter? He’d never find his way home now, snow was falling, covering his shuffled tracks and he knew there was No Way Back. Holding his hands up to the mouth of the cave, he shivered with the primal, delicious, tingle of adventure that drove the first souls to look to the heavens and wonder, ‘What might be?’ He stumbled into the mouth of the cave. Deeper and deeper he limped, following the strange warmth, longing for the heat, but longing ever more desperately for the Song, the Song he knew to have been sung at the Beginning of All Things and so it would be sung again, at the End. He paused. Although he couldn’t see anything, his senses told him he had entered a vast cavern. He opened and closed his eyes, then concentrated, searching with his senses for the echoes of the song, the source of the heat. And then he heard the Word. Spoken, not as a command but as an invitation and a fire sprang to life in front of him. And there she was, coiled around her treasures with a smile on her ancient face. “Well, hello there,” she purred. “I’ve been waiting for you…..” Stories for a Mystical Christmas, by Sparrow. To be told around the firelight this Yule at the Mystical Creatures sim. Happy Advent Sunday, one and all!