Dragons

Erebor, one of the Primordial Dragons.

Drakes

### Description

Huge, reptilian beasts which are possessed of wings, immense intelligence, and are imbued with a great deal of elemental magic.

Dragons, also known as Wyrms, are one of the Elder Races, among the most ancient of creatures to walk the earth. Gifted with tremendous attunement to the magic of the land around them, great physical might, powerful telepathic powers, and an infinite lifespan, dragons are among the most powerful creatures in all the world.

## Appearance

### Body Structure

Though the appearance of dragons varies a great deal from individual to individual, they do share certain consistencies in appearance. A dragon possesses a lizardlike body and head, with a long tail, and a pair of batlike wings which sprout from their back. Their bodies are covered with bright scales that come in all variety of colors, and often gleam like metal, with it being possible to see distorted reflections in well polished dragons scales. While the arms of a dragon's wings are scaled, the membranes of the wings are leathery. Their mouths are filled with gleaming white teeth, which curve inwards and are serrated. Most dragons meticulously clean their teeth, keeping them bright and shiny.

A dragon's wing is usually around the same length as the distance from the tip of its nose to its tail, making the overall wingspan about twice the length of the rest of its body. Each wing is tipped with a clawed "thumb spike. Several other "fingers" stretch out, from the wing limb, with the space between them filled with the wing membrane, which is the most vulnerable part of the body. However, this is less a problem for elder dragons, as over time, the membrane thickens and becomes tougher, though it still remains flexible. When a dragon is walking or on the ground, they tend to tuck their wings against the sides of their body.

The bodies of younger dragons are more serpentine than those of elder dragons. Upon their heads, dragons possess a pair of rear facing horns, and additional, smaller sets tend to sprout as they grow older, especially in the case of males, who have larger and more upward facing horns than females, whose horns tend to lie more flat. A line of spikes that starts at the base of the dragon's skull goes all the way down to the tip of their tail. As dragons age, they tend to sprout additional rows of spikes on their backs, and old dragons grow additional horns and spikes from their jaws, chins, and noses.

Younger dragons possess a neck that is around half the length of their torso, though as they age and fill out, this decreases to around a third. In younger dragons, this neck is rather serpentine, thin and flexible, but as the dragon ages they thicken, and become stronger at the cost of flexibility.

The tails of dragons are long and sinewy, more flexible and light in younger dragons, more powerful and strong for older ones. An adult dragon's tail is around the same length as it's torso, and a young dragon's tail is half again as long. While not prehensile, the tails of even older dragons are quite dexterous.

The rear legs of a dragon are thicker and stronger than their forelimbs, possessed of four forward talons upon their toes, and one upon a backwards toe, which enable them to pick up objects or kick at foes with crushing force. The primary purpose of the rear limbs is to aid in jumping and taking off into the air with expediency. The forelimbs, while less strong, are far more dexterous, and can be used much as the two legged races would employ their hands.

### Coloration

Dragons come in every conceivable shade, with the only color consistency being their white teeth. Commonly, dragons are relatively monochromatic, with their scales, horns, wing membranes, and eyes all being the same color, if in differing shades. Sometimes, however, more varied color combinations exist, and one might have, say, a green scaled dragon with golden eyes, bronze horns, and amber wings. The fire that a dragon breathes usually matches, at least in part, the color of their scales.

## Traits and Behavior

### Intelligence

Dragons are comparable in intelligence to any sentient race, and in the case of older dragons, often exceed the intellectual capabilities of other species. They form friendships, make enemies, and fall in love as other races do. Notably, every dragon is possessed of an eidetic memory, which allows them to recall the events they experience throughout the ages with perfect clarity.

The thought process of dragons is notable in that when they think of individuals or objects, they also tend to think of their traits of associations with them. This stems from the fact that dragons, especially wild dragons, primarily communicate through telepathic impressions, rather than direct use of language. An example would be "two-legs-round-ear-humans" or "warm-bright-sun", or "mirth-make-friend-Edric".

### Life Cycle

All dragons hatch from eggs, which are about the size of a human head, ovoid, and completely smooth, patterned with a swirl of color which matches the scales of the dragon within. Dragon eggs are extremely resilient to brute physical force and temperature extremes, and most mundane creatures have no hope of doing it any harm. A dragon within its egg is dimly aware of its surroundings, as it employs its innate telepathic abilities to sense the minds of nearby creatures. As they are capable of remaining in their eggs near indefinitely, they do not attempt to hatch until they sense that they are in a safe environment with plenty of nearby prey available, or until telepathically contacted by an outside mind, and successfully convinced to emerge.

Upon breaking forth from its egg, a dragon will be about the size of a cat, gangly, awkward, and ravenously hungry for cooked meat, which is usually provided by their parents. If their parents are unavailable to provide cooked meat, the hatchling will likely manifest its fire breath for the first time, to avoid the indignity of having meat that is not cooked. Hatchlings are usually not capable of full flight, but instead may only hop about or perhaps glide with their wings.

Initially, a dragon's growth is quite explosive, and within around a month, they usually will have doubled in size. Two or three months after hatching, most dragons will have progressed from the size of a cat to the size of a large dog, and will have become able to fly, if only for short distances. At around half a year old, the hatchling will have grown to be comparable in size to a lion, and after a year, the size of a horse. The growth of yearling dragon slows considerably, and their appetite decreases in accordance. Though dragon will continue to grow as long as they live, the rate of that growth becomes slower the greater their age.

Despite possessing a lifespan that is endless, dragons grow up quick. By the time they are around ten years old, they are usually comparable in size to an rhino, and become capable of mating and producing offspring. Still, most other dragons would not consider them adults until a century or two later, by which time their slowed growth would see most dragons to be the match of a house in size. At the age of seven or eight centuries, a dragon is considered to be an elder, and would usually be anywhere from three to five times bigger than a young adult dragon. Somewhere between fifteen and twenty centuries old, dragons enter a new stage of their life, and they begin to enter periods of slumber known as torpor, which last for years or even decades at a time. A dragon is marked as "ancient" by their peers the first time after they enter torpor. From then, on, the ancient dragon will begin going through cycles of activity and torpor, with the periods of torpor growing longer and longer while active periods continue to shorten.

### Diet

Dragons are generally carnivorous, subsisting largely on a diet of meat. However, their immensely powerful digestive systems also allow them to devour gems, precious metals, and a variety of plant life. Despite their enormous size, dragons do not need to eat nearly as much as one would expect, and are mostly sustained by the potent magical energies flowing through their bodies, which they obtain from ambient heat and the light of the sun. As a result, a dragon who lives in a colder, darker region will have to hunt more frequently than one who resides in a location that is hot and sunny.

## Abilities

As one might expect, dragons are formidable creatures, even when young. There is no sense of theirs that is not superb, for they can hear the tiny heartbeat of a mouse across a field, or track the faintest of scents over miles, aided by their tasting tongues, while their sight is more keen than a falcon's, even in pitch blackness.

The reflexes of a dragon are cat quick, and large specimens especially have been known to shock attackers with speed disproportionate for their size, though younger dragons are usually more nimble. In terms of strength, even young dragons possess frightful power in their muscles, being a danger for a grown man even as a cat sized hatchling. Grown dragons are able to shatter stone with their blows or crunch through steel with their teeth, or send a pair of oxen flying with a swipe of their tail. Dragons are also tremendously resilient, with an enormous tolerance for pain, which enables them to endure wounds that would kill other creatures. As a dragon grows, its body becomes more and more resistant to damage, with the scales of an adult dragon being able to turn aside most any conventional weaponry.

Dragons are also innately capable of healing at rates far beyond most creatures, allowing them to mend wounds and even regrow limbs within a few short days. Most injuries leave no lasting marks upon a dragon's flesh, apart from those which are enhanced by magic. The claws and fangs of a dragon are weapons which can inflict such harm, and any wounds dealt by them are slow to heal. For non-dragons, such injuries are even more severe, as the flesh around the wound heats and chars, making it likely that anyone so wounded will perish bereft of the aid of magic.

### Fire

All dragons are capable of magically producing fire, which is brewed within their belly and erupts out through their mouths in a bright inferno. This fire is usually summoned forth by feelings of anger and aggression. Young dragons can usually only breathe fire when under pressure, but more experienced dragons are able to train themselves to recall the feelings of wrath associated with bringing forth the flame, and summon it at will.

The fires of older dragons are hotter and more magically potent than those of younger ones. While hatchling dragons might be able to burn straw, an adult dragon can melt steel and stone, while an elder dragon is capable of annihilating even potent magical artifacts with their fiery breath. Older, larger dragons are, as one might expect, capable producing larger amounts of flame, and can also expel fire for longer periods of time.

The fiery magic of dragons does not end with their burning breath. Their blood also quite literally runs hot, making it a deadly hazard to any who manages to wound them. Like their flames, a dragon's blood grows hotter with age. A young dragon's blood might scald the flesh, while that of an elder might reduce a man to melted sludge.

Lastly, dragons are also completely immune to flame and heat. In fact, it empowers them, filling them with vitality and strength. Dragon parents often breathe fire upon their offspring if ever they manage to injure themselves, as a healthy infusion of flame speeds their recovery. As a result, any dragons who fight one another are forced to rely on other means, usually their claws and teeth. Other creatures are not so fortunate, as burns from dragonflame are unlikely to heal without the aid of magic.

### Telepathy

All dragons are inherently telepathic. While they are able to produce a manner of vocalizations such as roars, growls, purring and grunts, dragons rely on their telepathic abilities for higher communication. Dragons inherently are able to convey impressions, memories, and feelings to those nearby, though if given the opportunity, they are able to learn to speak using language.

Dragons can also instinctively defend their minds from psychic attack, and if they so choose, drive back at the aggressor's consciousness, even as hatchlings. Older, more experienced dragons have been known to simply mentally dominate nearby creatures into offering themselves up to them if they do not feel like hunting.

A more common use of their telepathy that dragons employ is projecting waves of terror onto their enemies, which is frequently known as "dragonfear".

### Wild Magic

Dragons are the most potent magical species in the world, and one of the Elder Races of the land. They exude magic, with their body parts being powerful ingredients for any mystical potion or components to an artifact. All magic within a dragons presence is enhanced, the older and more potent they are, the greater the enhancement. They fill the land around them with vitality. Animals and plants grow larger and at greater rates, disease is less common, and the seasons are more intense.

In moments of great passion, dragons are able to summon bursts of wild magic to produce a variety of effects, and can easily perform feats of mysticism that would leave most mages of other races exhausted. If a dragon trains themselves rigorously, they can learn to summon forth the particular feelings and sensations they associate with a magical effect, and learn to recreate their acts of spontaneous magic at will. Such things usually take decades to accomplish, especially for more complex work of magic. While a dragon easily surpasses a mage in raw magical potency, most are utterly unable to match the level of control and precision that a mage can work with their spells.

One of the more common abilities that old dragons train is the ability to breath out an element other than fire, such as ice or lightning. Many elders achieve this by spending years meditating in a frigid tundra, or constantly venturing into thunderstorms, and enduring the fury of the elements.