Dragon

This article is about the dragon race. For the pet wyvern, see Dragon (wyvern).

Dragon
Basic Information
Creator deity	Shakkan
Type(s)	Beast
Lifespan	5,000 years
Region(s)	Zeal (First Age) Northern Miletos (Second Age) Southeastern Aison (Third Age)
Language(s)	Dragonish, Common
Appearance
Height	Huge
Weight	Large
Skin color	From white to black
Distinctions	Scaly, capable of flight, can cast powerful spells, nearly impossible to kill, reclusive keepers of knowledge, like to hoard treasure
Historical Information
Age	First Age Second Age Third Age Fourth Age

Dragons are a huge, scaly and intelligent race that can fly, breathe fire and cast powerful spells. They know many things but prefer to keep to themselves. They lived in the Roost in Southeastern Aison throughout the Third Age but have seemingly vanished after the Catastrophe in the Fourth Age.

History

Origins

Little is known about the origin of dragons. It's believed that they're creations of Shakkan, the God of Beasts such as many monsters of the Land of the Living are, although this is only conjecture. What is known, however, is that dragons quickly made their mark on the world, sharing the world with races such as the faerfolc and sirithai before humans, elves and dwarves emerged and before the Andain's rise to prominence.

First Age

Dragons initially interacted with other races, sharing their knowledge openly. However, this stance changed in the early years of recorded history of the First Age when a rebellious and power-hungry black dragon tried to usurp power from Dragon Patriarch Khellendros the Blue. This dragon, who would be known with the cursed epithet Frazzn'korth, or Dark One, nearly succeeded in goading several younger dragons to his side with promises of power.

Human, elven and dwarven sages of the Stormborn cult and citizens of the city-state of Dar'Cenrath cast a spell which resulted in the destruction of their city and its people but also imprisoned the spirit of Frazzn'korth into the Dragon Diamond. The diamond was hidden, and dragons weren't allowed to utter the Betrayer's true name out loud ever again, instead referring to him with his infamous epithet.

The Betrayer's open and defiant rebellion had been unheard of, and Khellendros forbade sharing of knowledge with other races in order to prevent any other insurrection attempt and to better keep an eye on his dragon kin. Since then dragons lived in mountains and caves, hoarded treasure and distanced themselves from other races, eventually becoming known as feared beasts among several weaker races.

However, when the human mage-king Raistlin I beseeched the Dragon Patriarch Khellendros and asked for his help regarding the magic of the Floating Continent of Alent which he had discovered, the Patriarch chose to help Raistlin as he looked into Raistlin's heart and realized the king was a just ruler who could guide the world to peace. However, dragon involvement in various conflicts remained rather minimal as a whole with Khellendros acting as their spokesman.

Second Age

Dragons continued their reclusive life in the Second Age as they had done in the previous age, preferring to live in the mountainous areas of Miletos near dwarven colonies. They only offered sage advise to mortals in the direst of times, guiding them along and making them solve their own problems such as various conflicts which ravaged the world at the time.

They did break the rule of noninterference once during the Manster Rebellion, choosing to aid the mage Raistlin II, successor of the first Raistlin, in the war against the demon lord Yurius. Once Yurius was banished, the dragons returned to their mountain.

Patriarch Khellendros sacrificed his life to protect his dragon kin from the effects of the Explosion which slew all the Andain and rearranged the continents at the end of the Arawn Losstarot War. His wife, Matriarch Katla the White, became the new leader of the dragons after the Patriarch had passed away.

Third Age

Dragons once again chose to live in their own territory which had become the Roost, a mountainous area in Southeastern Aison, in the Third Age. During the Yamatian Invasion, dragons met with the Fellowship of Magestar and Abel Highwind who sought out the Cricket Ball of Magic to stop the spreading of the dark power of the fallen god Mardük. Dragons, including their Matriarch, offered advice to Abel who shared draconic magic in his blood due to his lineage, and they told the fellowship where to find the Cricket Ball in the Roost.

However, dragons didn't aid the fellowship or the Grand Alliance against the forces of the dark god Mardük in the Great War that engulfed the world; instead they preferred to observe the conflict from the safety of their mountain like they had already done for millennia.

Dragons weren't affected by the Cataclysm which ended not only the war but also the lives of two prominent gods. However, they sensed the disappearance of Innate Abilities and the shifting of the continents. What troubled them more, however, was the emergence of the Godslayer who was not fully a dragon or a demon but something horrific in between. Realizing that the beast had slain two gods, the dragons became wary and made sure to stay out of the Godslayer's way until it fell into a deep slumber in Myridia.

The dragons remained in the Roost since the Cataclysm and kept an eye on Myridia, although they chose not to act despite the threat the Godslayer would pose to them in the future if left unchecked. They were only spurred into action after their newest hatchling, Delphyne, was kidnapped by Totenkopfs who had also raised the recently deceased Matriarch Katla as a dragolich which helped the interlopers escape unscathed from the dragons' wrath. It is unknown whether the dragons pursued the kidnapped hatchling to Alent and participated in the Battle of Alent which ended in the Catastrophe, but they vanished from the Roost not long after.

Fourth Age

Dragons had not been seen out in the wild for decades after the beginning of the Fourth Age. It remains unknown whether most of them perished in the magical fallout that affected the world or if they hid themselves in the far corners of the world. Their power is still sought after decades after their disappearance, but whether it leads to any findings remains unknown.

In 20 AC, a group of adventurers led by Osmond Cordae Locke managed to witness a dragon emerging from the Pool of Radiance on a magical islet under which the dragon had slumbered for a long time until the group's meddling with the runic tidestones of Tiamat had awakened the dragon. Impressed by this sight, Osmond and his companions Uriel Antares and Isis Antares would name their group, which would later involve other people in the Restored Nation of Aison, as the Order of the Dragon in honor of the dragon sighting.

Appearance

Dragons are huge, scaly and winged lizards comparable in size to large humpback whales. They're tall enough to threaten armies but also small enough to be ridable should they allow any other race to sit on their backs. Their eyes and scales vary in colour, and dragons are often named based on their base colour such as Katla the White, Khellendros the Blue, Nidhogg the Black and Zirnitra the Golden.

They have tough scales, but are physically penetrable in certain vulnerable areas which dwarves sometimes jokingly refer to as the 'voonerables'.

Biology

Dragons are few in number in the Land of the Living; estimates range between 12 and 25 dragons in the Third Age. Being as big and powerful as they are, dragons understand that too big a number of them would force them to expand their territory from the Roost in search of food, so they deliberately avoid having too many hatchlings. This is why a dragon usually lays just one egg.

The oldest known dragon was reportedly 5,000 years old, and it's presumed that this is the maximum age a dragon can reach naturally.

Personality and Traits

Dragons are reclusive in nature and stay out of worldly matters, preferring neutrality. They like to study history and pass on stories orally from generation to generation to keep the knowledge of the past alive in the changing world. They have chosen to reside in the Roost, a mountain range in Southeastern Aison where few other races ever venture into.

Whenever dragons leave their nests in the Roost, it's done only to hunt for food from the mountains and the ocean. Their preferred food is giant mountain llama (as found in Korstalven and the Roost) which are roughly 1-3 times the height of a human of average height, but they also feed on other large creatures such as whales, giant squids and such if they happen upon them. They use their magic to subdue their prey and tend to take them back to their nests if they have hatchlings.

They are wise and patient and willing to offer words of wisdom to other races who approach them as long as those races show them proper respect and don't act in a hostile manner. They only eat intelligent and cultured races such as humans if they feel those races pose a threat to them. This includes, for example, humans who attempt to set up some kind of town in their territory, large groups of humans entering their territory, humans who are offensive to them etc. Anyone who fits into these categories is as good as dead as far as the dragons are concerned, and they more than happily burn down any offending party if they see them as being disrespectful to them.

Powers and Abilities

As big as their wings are, dragons' bodies are still too big and heavy to enable them to fly via natural means so they use magic to help their wings carry their physical mass. They're also powerful spellcasters, capable of casting devastating spells with little effort depending on their age and wisdom. It is a common belief that dragons are the most powerful mortal race living in the Land of the Living.

Relations

Dragons have been generally tolerant of dwarves in the past, and in the Second Age many of them even lived near the underground dwarven kingdom. Even by the Third Age, rumours persist that the mountaineous areas near the dwarven kingdoms have had dragons every now and then, although they're only rumours.

They view humans with suspicion, only allowing a select few to approach them as long as those people don't act with hostile intent. They do seem to be curious of what they refer to in their tongue as Dovahkiin, or Dragonborn, members of other races who seemingly share draconic traits through their bloodline such as Abel Highwind and who can communicate with dragons mentally.

Dragons appreciate elves who study history but other than that aren't too concerned of their actions unless they intrude on their nesting territory. They seem curious of the faerfolc and demons appearing in the world in the Third Age but have chosen not to act on it as long as those forces don't trespass on their territory.

See also

• Dragonborn
• Dragon Diamond
• Races
• Roost
• Shakkan