Sornian Hatch Sign - aka DRAGON ZODIAC
I have been thinking on and off PRETTY HEAVILY about Flight Rising zodiacal signs…and i didn’t want them to relate to our signs at all. like, i didn’t want to make Water flight Cancer and Fire flight Leo, etc, i wanted to pretty much invent an entire groundworking of lore and go with that. i’ve been musing in this post as a draft for a while now, and i think i’ll go ahead and post it up.
this is the intro, hope you enjoy the post! the rest is just data points
headcanoned rules & basic info
for dragons, a month on Sornieth begins at the start of one festival and ends the day before the start of another. their calendars align with this, but ours do not, which is why we appear to have the festival taking up the last week of a month and sometimes “bleeding into” the next deity’s month
a sign BEGINS the day a flight festival begins, with each new month. on our calendars, this varies from year to year, so a bit of work is needed to back-track and divine a sign from years past on the Gregorian system
a sign ENDS the final day BEFORE the next flight holiday, the last day of the Sorienth. so for example, a single sign would begin the first day of Wavecrest Saturnalia and end the day before Greenskeeper Gathering
the final “blank” month of the year follows this pattern as well - the december sign would begin the last week in december and go until the last day before the last week of january
i’m a bit torn where to have the year begin. on the one hand, in my spare time, i’ve divided the flight holidays into ACTIVE (Greenskeeper thru Riot) and PASSIVE (Rockbreaker thru Wavecrest), based on common elements and ideologies of the flights. in this way, Greenskeeper Gathering makes a good beginning to the year. on the other hand, the site itself begins its “year” in June, the month of Brightshine. however, for the sake of my own lore i’ve built, i’ll make the year on this list begin with the Greenskeeper Gathering. (pls see chart at end of post for a detailing on this concept)
the names of the months and signs are translated into english from the draconic common tongue. “true” names will have to be on hold until the staff finally releases some more language details for us lore-hungry knowledge grubbers
those are the basics. i would make it planetary rotational* based, but seeing as we do not have canon information on seasons** i am going with the one piece of canon time-based information i have, which is flight holidays. this is an important distinction from the tropical/sidereal zodiac, which uses the position of the sun to determine the sign, or the chinese zodiac, which is a mathematical procession of years. in the Sornian zodiac, the sign is only ruled by the deity’s associated month, and the procession of the sun throughout the year is incidental.
(*although we have to assume that Sornieth does have some kind of rotation to it if there exists a base for day/night and for 12 months - it is, after all, basically an alternate universe earth. but i digress.)
(**in fact i am pretty sure they don’t fully exist in Sornieth because of the magical biomes enforced by the powers of the deities)
THE HUNTER & GATHERER - The Month of Germination (LAST WEEK IN MAY THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN JUNE)
Symbols of the Gladekeeper’s strength and ferocity, but also her ability to tend and cultivate life. The hunter and gatherer are depicted as two dragons rearing up, usually back to back, with the hunter baring their teeth and claws and the gatherer holding a basket overflowing with the fruits of the Viridian Labyrinth.
Can be… Capable, hardy, generous, loyal
But also can be… Alienating, ostracizing, controlling
THE CANDLEBEARER - The Month of the Sunbeam (LAST WEEK IN JUNE THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN JULY)
Symbol of the Lightweaver’s goal for her flight as a beacon of unbiased truth and dutifulness in the world, The Candlebearer is depicted as a dragon holding a single white candle.
Can be… Peaceful, radiant, ethical, warm
But also can be… Judgmental, self-important, jealous
THE TECHNICIAN - The Month of the Tempest (LAST WEEK IN JULY THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN AUGUST)
Symbol of Stormcatcher’s rampant, unstoppable progress. The Technician is depicted as a dragon with its front limbs aloft, a bright spark between their claws.
Can be… Inventive, goal-oriented, charismatic, clever
But also can be… Calculating, condescending, a perfectionist
THE IRON BLADE - The Month of the Smith’s Hammer (LAST WEEK IN AUGUST THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN SEPTEMBER)
Symbol of the Flamecaller and her brood’s tenacity and blazing strength. The Iron Blade rarely has a dragon depicted alongside it, and is typically shown as a curved blade in profile.
Can be… Masterful, keen, firey, straightforward
But also can be… My-way-or-the-highway, aggressive, negative
THE SCHOLAR - The Month of Starlight (LAST WEEK IN SEPTEMBER THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN OCTOBER)
Symbol of the Arcanist’s dedication to cataloging the stars, and the aura of curiosity that surrounds him. The Scholar is depicted as a dragon with a telescope in one claw and a scroll in the other.
Can be… Studious, intense, imaginative, tolerant
But also can be… Secretive, absent-minded, prone to tunnel vision
THE CARRION CROW - The Month of Contagion (LAST WEEK IN OCTOBER THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN NOVEMBER)
Symbol of the necessity of the Plaguebringer as death in the cycles of life, and an image of survival in the harshest conditions. The Carrion Crow is simply depicted as a jet black crow.
Can be… Independent, strong-willed, expansive, unstoppable
But also can be… Explosive, dangerous, inscrutable
THE TIMEKEEPER - The Month of the Stonewatch (LAST WEEK IN NOVEMBER THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN DECEMBER)
Symbol of the Earthshaker’s endless vigil and of his flight’s monumental achievements. The Timekeeper is depicted as a dragon holding an hourglass with builder’s tools at their feet.
Can be… Task-oriented, patient, reliable, realistic
But also can be… Stubborn, grudge-bearing, rigid
THE LOOKING GLASS - The Month of the Dragon’s Rest (LAST WEEK IN DECEMBER THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN JANUARY)
Symbol of reflection, and of illusion. This is a reference to both the emergence of the Nocturnes at this point of the year, and as a period of reflection for dragons - with no elemental leanings to celebrate, it is a quiet, contemplative period.
Can be… Contemplative, fascinated, self-sufficient, unconventional
But also can be… Fleeting, esoteric, irreverent
THE SEALED TOME - The Month of Hoarfrost (LAST WEEK IN JANUARY THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN FEBRUARY)
Symbol of the Icewarden’s endless, labyrinthine fortress and the secrets contained within it. The Sealed Tome is depicted as a large, leatherbound book with a lock binding the covers together.
Can be… Intelligent, logical, precise, matter-of-fact
But also can be… Frustrated, intolerant, unfulfilled
THE TRICKSTER - The Month of the Umbral Flow (LAST WEEK IN FEBRUARY THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN MARCH)
Symbol of the Shadowbinder’s irreverence and dark humor, with a subtle undertone of her more sinister side. The Trickster is depicted as a dancing dragon, with its mouth open in laughter, fangs on display.
Can be… Adaptable, quick-witted, good-humored, lucky
But also can be… Impulsive, unreliable, cryptic
THE FOUR WINDS - The Month of Skysong (LAST WEEK IN MARCH THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN APRIL)
Symbol of the Windsinger’s itinerant nature and of his love for creation and high spirits. The Four Winds are depicted as a vortex of four differently colored gusts swirling into each other.
Can be… Optimistic, lively, likable, talented
But also can be… Impatient, irreverent, unconnected
THE ORACLE - The Month of the Whirlpool (LAST WEEK IN APRIL THRU PENULTIMATE WEEK IN MAY)
Symbol of the Tidelord’s penchant for prophesy and of his remoteness. The Oracle is depicted as a dragon with a hooded cloak obscuring their eyes, clutching a scrying basin.
Can be… Pensive, sagacious, focused, visionary
But also can be… Aloof, unsociable, pessimistic
notes on active vs passive flight alignment
here’s a handy little chart so i can detail what is probably an obscure & weird concept
elements of an ACTIVE ALIGNMENT
active searching or desire to change
focused outward rather than inward
elements of a PASSIVE ALIGNMENT
passive studying and desire to encounter
focused inward rather than outward
so, earth and ice are focused largely on the past and preserved things, while lightning and fire are constantly changing and moving towards tomorrow. water observes while light actively intercepts, shadow subtly modifies while plague and nature actively modify, etc.
arcane and wind are the two flights who fit least comfortably into this assignment range. i find it interesting that they end up across the chart from each other - perhaps it reflects some kind of dynamic or exchange
xtra tidbits and other stuff
(other things i’ve thought of that don’t fit anywhere else)
it is my personal headcanon that dragons have two deities that are significant to them at any given time: the one they were born under and they one they were born into.
so, a dragon may have a birth sign in shadow but a magic alignment of wind, or a birth sign of fire and a magic alignment of ice. if the birth sign doesn’t match the magic sign it may lead to quirks in personality - a dragon with a birth sign in lightning but a magic alignment of nature may find themselves a bit less enthusiastic about living among the trees than their peers. maybe a dragon with a light birth sign may find their shadow brethren to be somewhat unscrupulous, and might be considered uppity. it’s fun to imagine!
since this brand of zodiac has nothing to do with the stars, arcane doesn’t really have much do with the studies surrounding it, despite seeming like the obvious choice. the flight that studies it the most is water, and the flights that care for it the least are plague and lightning, who think the idea of anything determining your destiny other than your own claws is a foolish waste of time.
some clans consider being born in the blank, resting month to be unlucky, and think that hatchlings born in this time risk turning into directionless adults. conversely, many clans will aim for their hatchdays to land within their flight’s respective month, because it is considered lucky for the hatchling in question to have a double deity alignment - like a boon from their respective god(dess)
(and finally: don’t take it personally if you or your dragons don’t fit their zodiac alignment. like any broad stroke zodiac chart, it’s bound to be incorrect from time to time. remember, the point of all of this is to HAVE FUN)
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