Used to indicate whether you are taken, or available, or neither. Oddly enough, despite having a way of signifying having multiple mates, I don't see a specific way of saying “I have a mate, but I'm looking for more!”, a result of taken-ness and availability being compressed into one spectrum.

There are no indicators for sexual or romantic orientation as such, either here or anywhere else in the Code. Is that merely a product of the time, or did the designers simply feel that which, how, and whether you loved wasn't something to dwell on too much?

This is honestly a bit of an odd scale, since it mixes together things like commitment, availability, and feelings about mating together in a way that makes them difficult to untangle, and also offspring as a proxy for commitment, despite being also covered in a different tag. One could imagine much of this information being separated out somewhat more clearly in the modern day: sexual orientation, romantic orientation, availability, current level of commitment to mates (or to not having mates).

I'm mated in real life to my on-line mate's real life self as well!

Am I mated? Ask my hatchlings!

Ask my significant other!

Ask my mate-to-be!

Ask me, and I might just say yes!

Don't ask!

Ask my (poker/football/bridge/Trivial Pursuit) buddies!

I'm single and very proud of it!

Not only am I single, but I despise the idea of mating.

Ask me, and I'll ask your snout to meet your kidneys!

A note from Wyrm's site: “The XX and XY Conspiracies are long running in-jokes on alt.fan.dragons. The XX Conspiracy members (mainly if not totally female) attempt to pursuade (sic), black-mail, or otherwise cajole male dragons into becoming mated whilst staying single themselves. The XY Conspiracy members (mainly if not totally male) attempt to prevent the XX Conspiracy succeeding in their evil plans!”

Put before the plusses (doesn't apply to minuses), this indicates that one is distant from one's mate. For example M ++ indicates “Ask my significant other, who is far from home!”

Put after the plusses, this indicates the number of mates one has. For example M++3 indicates “Ask my three significant others!”

Put after the plusses (doesn't apply to minuses) or the number of mates if specified, this indicates that one is separated (e.g. divorced). If you have more than one mate, one should put the number of separated mates after the |, for example M+++2|1 indicates “Am I mated? Ask my hatchlings of either of my two mates, one of which I am separated from.”

Identical to | above except that it indicates one was bitter about it.

Identical to | above except that it indicates one's mate is dead.

Put at the end of the tag, this indicates that one is a card-carrying member of the XX Conspiracy!

Put at the end of the tag, this indicates that one is a card-carrying member of the XY Conspiracy!

Put after the M, this indicates that one is specifying one's real-life mating status. For example Mr- indicates “Don't ask me in real life.”

Put after the M, this indicates that one is specifying one's virtual-life mating status. For example Mv+ indicates “Ask my mate-to-be on the 'net.”

One can use both of the above in separate tags to specify both mating statuses, but one can also use a short-form method by just putting the r and v parts within parentheses. For example Mr-Mv+ and M(r-v+) both indicate “Don't ask me in real life, but ask my mate-to-be on the 'net.”