The Resource War began in earnest 28 turns ago, with the Telgar occupation of Crom Hold. Since then, the war has been a long series of territorial skirmishes interspersed with only occasional pitched battles; Pern is not a weaponized society, and most Holds simply don't have the manpower to spare on a standing army.
Nonetheless, it has radically altered the state of the world. Many times in the past, Holds have made seditious noise about no longer supporting the riders - but it was never acted upon. This is the first time in recorded history that dragons have been ordered to turn their flame onto pastures instead of Thread, the first time that troops of whers have mustered to tear dragons out of the sky. The riders are no longer untouchable, and without a common enemy to unite them, the Holds are fracturing as well.
Life in Larger Holds
It is the largest population centers on Pern that have suffered the worst from the shortages. During the rapid post-AIVAS expansion, the great Holds all tried to ride the upward surge of wealth and luxury that the Techcraft brought. Now the urbanized city-Holds depend on modern industry to survive. Without metal ores in the forge and fuel to keep the engines running, their economies will collapse.
For the most part, lines have been drawn along the same ancient lines as during Threadfall: Fort is allied with Ruatha, for instance, Benden with Lemos, High Reaches with Tillek, and so on. Relations with their former protector-Weyrs, however, are strained at best. Check the Weyrs of Pern and Holds of Pern pages for more details.
Currently, none of the major Holds are willing to declare public opposition to Discovery Weyr. The Green Star is too valuable, and no Hold wants to risk missing out on the potential payoffs by alienating the first settlers. Courier dragons may pass undisturbed, as long as they fly Discovery's colors, although some Holds may offer a friendlier reception than others. And rumor has it that a handful of Pern's Lords have already sent agents to do reconnaissance and report back on what they find…
Life in Smaller Holds
Life in the smaller Holds goes on. Long before the war broke out in earnest, the poorer Holds accepted their place in the world: they could not compete with the massive economies of Fort or Telgar, so they returned to more traditional Pernese ways of life. There are still beasts in the pasture, crops in the field, and fish in the sea, so they won't starve. They still have global communication in the form of messenger firelizards, but no telegraph lines. They lack advanced technology - engines, electricity, central heating. Sometimes someone dies who could have been saved with modern surgical equipment. But the small fishing ports and farming communities continue as they always have.
And they are largely left alone for it. For the most part, the small Holds are of no interest in the war at large. They might be called on to house a passing wher patrol for a night, but other than that… Unless they are unlucky enough to sit on a contested border or near a mine, the little cotholds are more trouble than they are worth to fight over.
Life in the Weyrs
Life is getting tense for the Weyrs. For millennia, they have relied on the Holds. Dragonriders do not tend crops or produce goods, and they require outside assistance to replenish the herds that feed their dragons. Since the end of Thread, the dragonriders have placed themselves in a position of authority - Pern's highest body of law enforcement - as a means of maintaining their old way of life. But since the war began, tithes have dried up almost entirely. More and more Holds are simply turning their back on the riders; dragons can't keep the lights on, and thus are no longer relevant.
To survive, the Weyrs do whatever is necessary: beg, borrow, or steal, as the saying goes. Although in their case, it's more like threaten, bargain, or raid. Some Weyrs still have enough force in their former Threadfall territories that they can still demand what they need from smaller Holds. Others have offered dragons' services - as transport, defenders, excavators - in exchange, as much as the proud traditionalists might call putting dragons to heavy labor demeaning. And some still have declared outright war, engaging their wings in raids on nearby Holds… and provoking retaliatory strikes from packs of combat whers.
The Green Star is a critical bargaining chip for all the weyrs of Pern: a vast and untapped paradise which only dragonriders can freely access. They have permitted Aulen her autonomy - for now - until Discovery is fully established and the threats of the new world have been appropriately assessed. But the supplies required to create a Weyr from scratch did not come cheaply, and someday soon, they're going to start calling in those debts.
Life on the Southern Continent
The Southern Continent wants no part of any of this. The Weyrholds of Southern are peaceful, but increasingly desperate; their continent is lush, but notably lacking in suitable mining sites. They have declared their isolationist intent: they will not trade with the Northern Holds, they will not send forces to the North, and any Northern dragon who attempts to Search from within their borders will be taken captive. The war will not move south, under any circumstances.
The exception to this rule is the Crafthalls and the AIVAS archives at Landing. Crafters and archivists seeking knowledge are still welcome at Landing Weyrhold - but only on a peaceful, research basis. They are still convinced that a way forward can be found via technology: renewable sources of energy, better plastics made from plants, less wasteful consumption and more scrupulous recycling of what they already have. They have made little progress thus far. The ideas are there, but the necessary technology simply hasn't been invented yet.
It was at Landing where the original texts that led to the Green Star were found, even if it was a Benden rider who did the finding. In the spirit of exploration, Southern has lifted its ban on outside Search for Discovery riders, and Discovery riders only.