The Panic of New Forest
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Life is typically calm and slow on the New Forest commons of southern England. The foliage is lush, the brooks babbling, and livestock generally well kept. Both the people and the animals seem to have little to worry about. That was, until Panic struck.
Panic is what they call the creature. Those who have claimed to see it say it appears in the form of a disfigured horse, its flesh partially decayed, exposing bones and rotting muscle, its hooves shaped crudely into claws, and its teeth like those of an ape's. Its existence is disputed, and often doubted or used purely figuratively. What can be confirmed, however, is the disappearance and mass-slaughter of livestock, which is where the myth of Panic comes in. It is unknown whether more than one Panic exists, but whenever dead animals are discovered, very strange phenomena are said to occur in the commons, including the appearance of the cryptic horse.
In order to survive, the herds must work together to stay safe, perhaps even discovering the source of the killings.
~
The ponies grazing the New Forest are considered to be iconic. They, together with the cattle, donkeys, pigs, and sheep owned by commoners' (local people with common grazing rights), are called "the architects of the Forest": it is the grazing and browsing of the commoners' animals over a thousand years which created the New Forest ecosystem as it is today.
The cattle and ponies living on the New Forest are not completely feral, but are owned by commoners, who pay an annual fee for each animal turned out. The animals are looked after by their owners and by the Agisters employed by the Verderers of the New Forest. The Verderers are a statutory body with ancient roots, who share management of the forest with the Forestry Commission and National park authority. Approximately 80 per cent of the animals depastured on the New Forest are owned by just 10 per cent of the commoning families.
Ponies living full-time on the New Forest are almost all mares, although there are also a few geldings. For much of the year the ponies live in small groups, usually consisting of an older mare, her daughters, and their foals, all keeping to a discrete area of the Forest called a "haunt." Under New Forest regulations, mares and geldings may be of any breed. Although the ponies are predominantly New Foresters, other breeds such as Shetlands and their crossbred descendants may be found in some areas.
Stallions must be registered New Foresters, and are not allowed to run free all year round on the Forest. They normally are turned out only for a limited period in the spring and summer, when they gather several groups of mares and youngstock into larger herds and defend them against other stallions. A small number (usually fewer than 50) are turned out, generally between May and August. This ensures that foals are born neither too early (before the spring grass is coming through), nor too late (as the colder weather is setting in and the grazing and browsing on the Forest is dying back) in the following year.
Colts are assessed in their two-year-old year by the New Forest Pony Breeding and Cattle Society for suitability to be kept as stallions; any animal failing the assessment must be gelded. Once approved, every spring (usually in March), the stallions must pass the Verderers' assessment before they are permitted onto the Forest to breed. The stallion scheme resulted in a reduction of genetic diversity in the ponies running out on the New Forest, and to counteract this and preserve the hardiness of Forest-run ponies, the Verderers introduced the Bloodline Diversity Project, which will use hardy Forest-run mares, mostly over eleven years old, bred to stallions that have not been run out on the Forest, or closely related to those that have.
Drifts to gather the animals are carried out in autumn. Most colts and some fillies are removed, along with any animals considered too "poor" to remain on the Forest over the winter. The remaining fillies are branded with their owner's mark, and many animals are wormed. Many owners choose to remove a number of animals from the Forest for the winter, turning them out again the following spring. Animals surplus to their owner's requirements often are sold at the Beaulieu Road Pony Sales, run by the New Forest Livestock Society. Tail hair of the ponies is trimmed, and cut into a recognisable pattern to show that the pony's grazing fees have been paid for the year. Each Agister has his own "tail-mark", indicating the area of the Forest where the owner lives. The Agisters keep a constant watch over the condition of the Forest-running stock, and an animal may be "ordered off" the Forest at any time. The rest of the year, the lives of the ponies are relatively unhindered unless they need veterinary attention or additional feeding, when they are usually taken off the Forest.
The open nature of the New Forest means that ponies are able to wander onto roads. The ponies actually have right of way over vehicles and many wear reflective collars in an effort to reduce traffic fatalities, but despite this, many ponies, along with commoners' cattle, pigs, and donkeys are killed or injured in road traffic accidents every year. Human interaction with ponies is also a problem; well meaning but misguided visitors to the forest frequently feed them, which can create dietary problems and cause the ponies to adopt an aggressive attitude in order to obtain human food.
New Forest ponies are raced in an annual point to point meeting in the Forest, usually on Boxing Day, finishing at a different place each year. The races do not have a fixed course, but instead are run across the open Forest, so competitors choose their own routes around obstructions such as inclosures (forestry plantations), fenced paddocks, and bogs. Riders with a detailed knowledge of the Forest are thus, at an advantage. The location of the meeting place is given to competitors on the previous evening, and the starting point of the race is revealed once riders have arrived at the meeting point.
[ source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Forest_pony#Ponies_on_the_New_Forest ; text belongs to rightful owner(s) ]
Rules
➸ ALL BYC rules apply
➸ PM your forms to me; do not role play until I accept it
➸ No god-modding. In fights, only one blow per-post; wounds don't heal instantly
➸ Be realistic. No pink, perfect Gypsy Vanners with a "tragic!!11!one1!!1" backstory, no Mary-Sues/Gary-Stus or bland personality tropes, no invincible characters, etc.
➸ Only make as many characters as you can handle
➸ In this role play, we will need more mares and geldings than stallions. Stallions are only turned out for a limited time each year.
➸ No explicit scenes. Get the picture?...
➸ No one-liners. Try to be creative (though I get it if the juices aren't flowing that day)
➸ PM your forms to me; do not role play until I accept it
➸ No god-modding. In fights, only one blow per-post; wounds don't heal instantly
➸ Be realistic. No pink, perfect Gypsy Vanners with a "tragic!!11!one1!!1" backstory, no Mary-Sues/Gary-Stus or bland personality tropes, no invincible characters, etc.
➸ Only make as many characters as you can handle
➸ In this role play, we will need more mares and geldings than stallions. Stallions are only turned out for a limited time each year.
➸ No explicit scenes. Get the picture?...
➸ No one-liners. Try to be creative (though I get it if the juices aren't flowing that day)
➸ Take serious arguments and fights to PMs
➸ No drama/guilting
➸ Keep your language as clean as possible; at a PG rating
➸ Finally, I'm going to be holding people up to higher standers here. Try to make rounded, realistic characters, use your best grammar and spelling (I'll let that slide if you're not a fluent English speaker, though), and so on.
Ranks
Lead Mare - The mare who leads her herd. She is responsible for moving the herd to new territories and establishing the hierarchy.
Mare - A female horse over the age of 4.
Gelding - A castrated male horse. He is free to roam the commons with the mares, and may join their herds.
Stallion (limited spaces) - An intact male horse. He is only allowed to roam the commons freely once a year. Off season, he is turned out only in designated pastures and in his owner's paddocks and stables.
Colt - A male horse, castrated or intact, under the age of 4.
Filly - A female horse under the age of 4.
Donkeys + Mules/Hinnies - Other members of the equine family who roam with the ponies. They may join their herds, or form their own. Mules/Hinnies are incapable of reproduction, and donkey stallions are under the same restrictions as horse stallions.
Loners - Horses, donkeys, mules, and hinnies who live alone or in pairs or trios.
Mare - A female horse over the age of 4.
Gelding - A castrated male horse. He is free to roam the commons with the mares, and may join their herds.
Stallion (limited spaces) - An intact male horse. He is only allowed to roam the commons freely once a year. Off season, he is turned out only in designated pastures and in his owner's paddocks and stables.
Colt - A male horse, castrated or intact, under the age of 4.
Filly - A female horse under the age of 4.
Donkeys + Mules/Hinnies - Other members of the equine family who roam with the ponies. They may join their herds, or form their own. Mules/Hinnies are incapable of reproduction, and donkey stallions are under the same restrictions as horse stallions.
Loners - Horses, donkeys, mules, and hinnies who live alone or in pairs or trios.
Form
Name:
Rank:
Herd:
Age:
*Breed:
Personality:
**Appearance:
History:
Other:
Username:
* New Forest ponies are the most common. New Forest pony crosses, other large pony breeds, Shetland ponies, donkeys, mules, and hinnies are also allowed.
** Detailed descriptions only, please. No pictures.
Rank:
Herd:
Age:
*Breed:
Personality:
**Appearance:
History:
Other:
Username:
* New Forest ponies are the most common. New Forest pony crosses, other large pony breeds, Shetland ponies, donkeys, mules, and hinnies are also allowed.
** Detailed descriptions only, please. No pictures.
Character Page
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