Falconry

Trade Skill
Falconry

Abstract
Falconry is the art of using trained falcons or hawks to capture wild game or foul for the hunter. A falconer must first obtain a bird of prey. If the person captured the bird from the wild or obtained an untrained domestic falcon or hawk then they must follow the necessary steps to train it before the owner can use it to hunt.

During the training, if a bird is left alone or has not been practiced with in more than a few brightenings, there is a risk that it will go wild the next time it is released. A bird of prey should only be used to hunt when it is hungry; otherwise if it is not in the mood to hunt it will simply fly away. There are many precautions a falconer must take to avoid the risk of their bird returning to the wild, but they must keep in mind that in many cases early in the training process there is a good chance that a bird will simply fly away and not return. This is one of the most common problems amongst beginners.
Usually one must train and practice with their falcon nearly every brightening for it to remain trained when dealing with regular birds. But there are some special cases where many of the rules for training and maintaining the birds may not apply. Training becomes much easier with very little risk of the bird flying away in any of the following situations: 1) If the bird is a familiar or in other ways magical, 2) If the owner has the right skills of arcana, such as druidism spells to charm animals, or 3) In many cases if the person is a ranger they will already have the talents of befriending an animal.

Background
The Ancient Aelyrians were the first to capture birds of prey and use them to hunt. They discovered that falcons were choice predators because of their distinctive notched beak that has a hook shape for tearing their prey apart. Falcons are also the fastest among all birds. With their speed, sharp beak, and talons combined, a falcon’s first blow is often so violent that it instantly kills its prey. In the wild a falcon’s diet consists of small birds: doves, sparrows, etc. that they catch in mid-air. But falconers have trained the birds to hunt other small game such as rabbits, squirrels, and quail. Falconry was a useful hunting skill either for food or trade as well as sport. Through the patterns, it became very popular and spread all over Telath, although few were able to advance far in the skill without the use of arcana. Rangers and druids or other spell casters with skill in nature or charm magic could tame and care for wild animals, so for them falconry was much easier to master. However the original methods were still practiced by those without arcane abilities and over time techniques and equipment developed which helped in training and caring for the birds.

For many years now, falconry has been considered by many to be a sign of nobility. In certain parts of the world only royal families are allowed to have a Gyrfalcon, the largest and noblest looking falcon. Other nobles and those of elite status would be allowed to use Peregrine falcons, which are actually the fastest animals in the world. The next down the line would be the smaller brown-feathered Merlin falcon and then various types of hawks that anyone might obtain. However, in the Aelyrian Empire there are no laws that restrict the more noble species of falcons to only the elite class citizens.


Training
When a wild bird is first captured it must be kept hooded to keep it from flying away. If a hood is not available it is not unheard of for the falconer to carefully stitch the eyelids together, but if they do this they must be extremely careful because sight is of course very important to the falcon when it hunts. The falcon is kept hooded until it gets used to being around people and is no longer frightened as much by noises and crowds. The hood is at first removed only during training and still worn when around others. After a much longer time the bird may get used to people enough to not be hooded around crowds or while it is not performing.

Training starts slow. For several brightenings nothing can be done until the bird gets used to being hand fed. The falcon must become dependant on the owner for its food. Over a long period of time the falcon is trained every brightening of every cycle. It is first simply introduced to the lure. While still secured it is taught to go after the lure and it is then rewarded with food every time it catches it. It is important that the falcon is taught that its food comes from its owner as a reward and that it does not associate the lure or prey as its meal. Later on when hunting if the bird is allowed to eat its prey it will discover that it can survive on its own and it will go wild. The falconer has to recover the bird quickly after it strikes the lure and take it away from the falcon before giving the bird its meal, this must be done the same way when the falcon catches game out in the wild. When the falconer thinks the bird is ready they will make the most risky step in the training: letting the bird fly free for the first time. The bird should only be allowed to go free when it is on an empty stomach, when it is willing to hunt. The falconer runs with the lure dragging it over the ground as they had already showed the bird many times before. If they are lucky the bird will return and swoop down to catch the lure. The falconer recovers the bird and rewards it the same way they always do. As long as the falcon remains dependent on its owner for its food there is little chance it will try to escape.

Once the falcon has trained enough with the lure it can be used to hunt for wild game. Bells are fastened to the falcon whenever it is set free and the falconer uses the sound of the bells to track the bird. The falconer has to reach the bird shortly after it has caught something and they must always follow the same procedure of rewarding the bird with a meal other than the game. The biggest risk when hunting is getting to the bird in time before it eats the game.


Tools of the trade

Hood- Until a bird is comfortable around its owner it is hooded to keep it from flying away. Wearing the hood also calms the bird. Trainers often keep their birds hooded whenever they are not in use. Hoods are usually made of leather, but cloth can also be used as long as it is firmly secured. Sewing the bird’s eyelids shut is another alternative to using the hood, but that is more recommended only for the period after a bird is first captured.

Lure- A piece of leather tied to a string to represent the prey when training the falcon.

Bells- Small bells are attached to the bird so that the falconer can follow and recover the bird once it has landed. It is best to attach the bell under the bird’s wing, if it is tied around the foot it may get in the way when the bird hunts because it uses its talons to attack.

Gloves- Falcons have sharp talons. It is necessary to wear a thick glove when carrying the bird perched on one’s forearm.

Jesses and swivel– The names of the leather straps that tie around the bird’s feet and secure it to the leash when the bird is not out hunting.

Leash– Long leather strap or rope tied at one end to other straps around the bird’s feet. The leash allows the falconer to let the bird go out for a short distance while still maintaining control. The leash is worn during training or whenever the owner is carrying it around between hunts.


Special cases

Druids, rangers, or anyone else who has a spell or special ability that deals with befriending or charming animals will spend very little time at the intermediate level. As soon as they fulfill the basic knowledge and requirements for a beginner and obtain their own bird they only have to practice training with it a short while before they reach the advanced level, this is because training the birds is much easier when the animal is under its masters control or has a special bond with them. Likewise, it takes them significantly less time to advance to expert level, however they still must meet all the requirements.

Note: As long as the bird is charmed or has through some other special method formed a bond with its owner where it will obey their commands then there is no need to follow any of the steps in training it. However if they proceed in this way they cannot advance to full mastery of the skill because they do not have the full knowledge of traditional falconry. If the falconer reaches expert level without the required knowledge of the traditional way of training a bird then they are not capable of taking on and training an apprentice.



SKILL TREE:

To become a falconer one should first start out as an apprentice and learn the skill from someone who is expert level or master. The apprentice watches as the master shows them how to train with the birds and they also help the master care for and maintain them. When their master decides an apprentice is ready, then he can go out in search of a bird of his own. If a person has enough knowledge of falconry they may not need to serve as an apprentice, but it is usually difficult for one to develop the skill on their own. Self-taught falconers are usually those with links to nature, certain races like elves for instance will be able to advance in the skill in less time. Rangers and Druids who already have spells or skills involved with befriending or charming animals may not even have to train their birds depending on their own skill level with arcana. Likewise, if the bird is a familiar it does not have to be trained nearly as often. There is a risk taken each time a bird is set free that it will return to the wild. While becoming more advanced in each skill level reduces the chances of losing a bird, the risk it is still always there, unless of course it is charmed.


NOVICE
A beginning student under an expert or master falconer. At this level the apprentice has observed and knows the basics about caring for and maintaining the birds. He has studied the techniques of the master. An apprentice usually does not yet own a bird of his or her own and will be taught by the master how to catch a bird once the master thinks they are ready. Or if not serving as an apprentice, a beginner is one who has read or studied the subject of falconry enough to understand the procedure and the techniques involved so that he can attempt to develop the art on his own. If a beginner tries to train or hunt a falcon on his own there is a very high chance that the bird will fly away and return to the wild. To advance to the next skill level the beginner must obtain his own bird, train it and manage to use it on a successful hunt. Average time to reach intermediate level: 3 - 5 cycles.

APPRENTICE
Once someone owns their own bird of prey and has the basic knowledge of falconry with a minor amount of experience to go with it, they are at the intermediate stage. However, without much experience the chance of the bird escaping during training is still a significant risk, and the risk of losing the bird is increased when hunting. Intermediates can only handle one bird at a time. The chances of recovering a lost bird are low, an average of 35% chance of reuniting with their bird if they are very dedicated in searching for it. At this point unless it is one of the special cases dealing with a charmed bird, the falconer might lose several birds before he will ever reach the advanced level. The intermediate will get better with more experience, and if he is still an apprentice to an expert or master it is up to their teacher to decide if they have become advanced. Average time for an intermediate to become advanced: 6 - 10 cycles.

JOURNEYMAN
The journeyman falconer has all the book smarts and has enough experience to become quite good at hunting with his bird. Advanced falconers normally can still only handle owning one bird at a time, perhaps two. But owning more birds causes the falconer to spend less time with each and increases the risk of the birds to escape. The chances of recovering a lost bird depend on how extensively the falconer searches and how much time has passed since the bird flew away. If the falconer is very dedicated the average chances of recovering their bird is about 70%. To become an expert the falconer has not only all the knowledge of the skill but also a knack for it so that he tames wild birds and trains them in less time. He has a special bond with his birds that keep them from getting lost because they will come back when they are called. If the falconer has not already done so, they have to catch and train a bird successfully on their own before they can call themselves an expert. Average time for an advanced to reach expert level: 2 – 3 eras.

MASTER
When a falconer becomes a Master at the art there is very little chance that he will make a mistake and most of the time if a bird does escape it is for a reason beyond the falconer's control. The bond an expert shares with his bird makes recovery easy, but the falcon still must not be allowed to eat its prey or its chances of going wild return. At Sage level the falconer can take on an apprentice and teach him or her the skill. Sages commonly can own more than one bird. Owning up to three or four birds is not unreasonable, but again the more birds that one owns, the less time they spend with each bird which lessens the bond that was formed and increases the risk of each one to escape. Very few falconers reach master level. It takes at least another year of experience and the expert must have mastered the talent completely. They also have to have taken an apprentice and instructed them until they reach at least the intermediate level. A master falconer is able to tame wild birds in a very short time, and can easily handle any trained birds even if they are not his own. An expert falconer must also be very well known with a high reputation before he is considered a master. Average time for an expert to reach master level: 1 - 2 patterns.

GRANDMASTER
The Master is the Authority who knows everything there is to know about falconry. They have developed several of their own techniques for training and maintaining their birds. They rarely make any mistakes with the care of their birds or when teaching an apprentice. A master can handle up to five or six birds without a problem and can also take on two or three apprentices at a time.

Average Length for Mastery:
Three Patterns.