Briartove

The **Briartove** is a medium Fear Class dragon that lives in jungles and deserts.

## Official Description

In the depths of the steamy limestone hollows beneath the endless jungles lurk the hidden Briartove brood. With a fearsome appearance, a chilling roar that echoes through the lands, and a body built for defense, the Briartove has gained an incredible reputation among residents of The Claim. Only the truly bravest trainers will attempt to take on and tame this beast.

## Physical Appearance

### Egg

The Briartove's egg is quite a strange phenomenon, as it has a normal ovular shape, but across its surface are large round growths, colored orange and brown. These bumps are very soft, and can even indent if you press down hard enough, though they will retake their original shape in a minute or so. There are also multiple small, curved claw like thorns growing out of the surface of the shell.

### Hatchling to Adult

From their wide, round heads to their sickly yellow flail-capped tails, Briartoves bristle with sleek, needle-like spines. Their mouths yawn snake-wide, and corpse-pink forked tongues lash the air before them. Huge paw-like feet are capped with razor claws, and on each wing is a talon, each a meter long, tipped in ebony.

## Abilities

### Firepower/Thorn Breath

Like most other dragons, the Briartove can breath short bursts of fire, but this is only for offensive attacks.

The Briartove is also able to shoot a stream of needle-like thorns forward in a line, riddling any threats with a spiny death. This dragon has a special organ called the Aekti Sac, where the thorn patches and tree bark that a Briartove eats will be stored for future use. The Briartove has a different mouth hole from where these thorns will shoot from, located under the tongue *(see figure to the left, marked with a 1).* This is the Briartove's preferred method to defend itself.

### Reflexive Thorn Defense

When a Briartove is attacked, it will either stay and fight using its fire and thorn breath, or if it is unable to fight due to the challenger being more powerful or the dragon itself just being in a weaker state, it will reflexively cast a cloud of irritating thorns in all directions. A Briartove will usually shoot these thorns from its body, then make a quick escape while the threat is distracted.

### Hallucinogenic Body Oil

The Briartove's body is covered in a light oil that is hallucinogenic to humans. Contact with this oil will heavily incapacitate a person, rendering them immobile from severe dizziness. Some people have even reported that they could feel their organs shifting around in their own body, or that multiple insects were crawling underneath their skin.

### Camouflage

The thorns and spikes lining the Briartove's body allows it to blend into thorn patches within jungles and deserts. Some individuals have been seen sleeping inside cocoons of thorn branches, making nests to rest in so they can both be camouflaged and protected by the prickly exterior while they're resting.

## Personality and Behavior

The Briartove has an instinctual defensive nature, as their bodies are built for defense, not offense. Most are reclusive and stay away from humans, but it has been noted that a few wander around human villages to study their behavior.

Briartoves are very protective of their loved ones. They will battle on the front lines in order to protect their kin. If a trainer has bonded with a Briartove, it'll be nearly impossible to separate the dragon away from its trainer.

## Training

Approaching a Briartove without getting hurt is the most difficult part of training one. As they are naturally reclusive and wary of humans, the first step is to disarm yourself before even approaching it. Prep yourself with a good enough food offering (stick to meat, giving it tree bark is a bad idea if the dragon decides it doesn't like you) and preferably a pair of gloves if you plan to pet the dragon.

Once you find a Briartove, slowly approach it while holding out the food. When you are close enough, but still a good distance away (preferably ten or so meters), set down the food and step back to your previous position. Wait for the dragon to take the food, and if it does, it will more likely than not approach you and sniff you out to make sure you aren't dangerous.

If you have gloves, this would be the time to put them on and hold out your hand, giving it a respectful hand on its snout. Otherwise, simply doing a kneeling bow will do the trick.

## Trivia

* The Briartove is originally from a now shut-down MOBA game known as Dragons and Titans.
* The Briartove's roar is the Crabsnake's roar from Subnautica.
* When a Briartove fires it's thorn breath, it will rapidly flick its tongue.
* The Briartove is also known as "The Hidden Needle."

## Image Sources

1. Warcraft Dragon Egg Sculpture by DragonCid on DeviantArt