Dragon

"The Battle," an artist's depiction of Hraesvelgr (bottom right) fighting his son Nidhogg (upper left), a story often told in the Holy See of Inverhond.

## General Information

### Homelands

Nathrost

A **dragon**, also known as **wyrms** or **great wyrms** historically, is a being that originally hails from the plane of Nathrost, but now reside on Rosenwelt. Massive and powerful magical creatures, dragons are both respected and feared across Rosenwelt for their might and ancient wisdom. Dragons are intelligent and sapient creatures, and are quite long lived - many surviving countless millenia. Due to their long lifespans, dragons tend to see mortals as fleeting and have little problem holding grudges against them, as many still do.

## Description

Dragons are inherently magical and alien beings. While appearing similar to the reptiles of Rosenwelt, they are decidedly far from them. In fact, in terms of biology, dragons hold more in common with felines; their movements and hunting styles share many similarities, as do their eyes and locomotion. A dragon's body is covered in tough, armored scales, each imbued with natural magicks to give it an extra boost of protection. Further, most dragons possess long bodies with strong tails, and at least one pair of wings upon their backs, as well as at least four legs. This is what anatomically sets them apart from wyverns, which are native to Rosenwelt, as wyverns only have four limbs with their forelimbs and wings combined into one extremity.

A dragon's maw is full of sharp teeth, and their jaw muscles are intensely powerful. Their saliva, as well, has magical properties, preventing the internal flesh of the dragon from being impacted by elemental damage. This is a result of their most notable feature, which many mortals tell stories about even in the Third Era- the dragon's breath weapon. Each different "color" of dragon possess a breath weapon unique to their lot, ranging from a red dragon's flame to a white dragon's frost. These weapons are absolutely devastating against nearly any foe a dragon may come across, and is one of their preferred ways of dealing with their opponents.

A dragon's brain, however, is nothing to scoff at either. As creatures that can live effectively indefinitely, they have far more time than mortals to learn and experience, something they take great pride in. All dragons, to some extent, are naturally curious and driven to learn more knowledge, especially that of a magical nature. Nearly any dragon worth their salt is *also* a spellcaster, having gained knowledge of countless spells, both from the mortal realm and magics of ancient Nathrost, or even beyond.

### Broods and Colors

Dragons are often categorized into various "broods" - largely, these broods determine what lineage the dragons hold from those of the First Brood. Each brood also consists of dragons of various different colors - these colors each have their own general personalities, appearances, and breath weapons.

* The First Brood are the first dragons to reach Rosenwelt from Nathrost, consisting of 5 individual dragons - Bahamut, Tiamat, Hraesvelgr, Fafnir, and Drakon. These dragons all fled from Nathrost together, taking millenia to reach Rosenwelt before landing.
* The Second Brood were the first dragons born on Rosenwelt, the children of Bahamut and Tiamat. These dragons - known as the "*chromatic dragons*" by scholars - possess scales that appear matte and typically with one sole color. Red dragons, blue dragons, white dragons, black dragons, green dragons, brown dragons, purple dragons, yellow dragons, pink dragons, gray dragons and orange dragons are all examples of these dragons. Second Brood dragons tend to lean more chaotic and evil, however not all hold these beliefs. Those of the Second Brood tend to be quite standoffish and solitary, and hoard valuables like coin and gold.
* The Third Brood were the children of Drakon and Fafnir. These dragons are commonly known as "*gemstone dragons*" by scholars and reserachers. They possess scales that have sheens not disimilar to those of gemstones like rubies and amethysts. By their nature, those of the Third Brood are scholars and sages, preferring to hoard knowledge over gold. They typically will make their lairs in ancient ruins or libraries, and live closer to mortal society than other dragons. Unlike the other broods, most Third Brood dragons are neutral, and many could care less about the ancient betrayal of humans towards the First Brood - rather, they do concern themselves with threats to their collections of knowledge. Notably, most gemstone dragons possess a form of psionics, not unlike that employed by Psions. Emerald dragons, ruby dragons, sapphire dragons, topaz dragons, and amethyst dragons are all examples of these dragons.
* The Fourth Brood were the children of Hraesvelgr and Fafnir. These dragons possess metallic scales that shine like fancy metal ingots, and hence are called the "*metallic dragons"* by scholars. Generally, those of the Fourth Brood are quite sociable and friendly, and tend towards good alignments. Despite this benign nature, they actually hold grudges against mortals perhaps even stronger than that of the Second Brood, but rather than hunt or harm mortals tend to simply turn a blind eye to them unless necessary. These dragons tend to hoard things that they see as sentimental and holding memory, whether those memories be theirs or that of someone else. Gold dragons, silver dragons, bronze dragons, copper dragons, brass dragons, iron dragons, steel dragons, and platinum dragons are all forms of the Fourth Brood.
* The Fifth Brood were the children of Bahamut and Drakon. These dragons were unique compared to other dragons, their wings almost entirely atrophied - not simply the vestigal wings of the Third Brood, but naught more than stubs on their backs. However, they were far more capable of manipulating magic that would allow them to fly. These dragons settled in the Far East and became known as the "*celestial dragons*" as a result of the starry sheen on their scales. Most of the Fifth Brood possessed lawful alignments, and similar to the Third Brood were relatively unoffended by mortals, and are actually quite friendly towards them. In fact, many of the Fifth Brood are known to polymorph and partake in human society regualrly - making them shunned by other broods.

### Sociology

Different dragons have different interests in social interaction. Some colors of dragons, notably purple dragons, have very tight family relations and regularly communicate with one another. Others are friendly with other dragons they may meet, and others still are entirely antisocial and prefer to exist alone. It is worth noting, as well, that dragons can reproduce both sexually and asexually - as a result, socialization is not inherently required for the continuation of their species. What is, however, is a steady supply of a significant amount of resources to be able to take care of their young. It is also noteworthy that dragon gender is not binary nor related to mortal concepts of gender *or* sex whatsoever, and dragons of any combination of chromosomes can reproduce.

### Lairs and Hoards

Dragons have a habit of living in reclused areas far from bustling mortal society. Caves, mountains, forest groves, swamps, deserts - anywhere notably isolated from the races of man are preferential to the great wyrms. Typically, the more ancient the dragon, the further away from society they live - those of the First Brood making their homes in places that are nigh inaccessible to mortals. In these lairs, dragons tend to form hoards of things they find interesting and valuable. These stereotypically take the form of giant stashes of gold, gemstones, and currency, however not all of a dragon's hoard consists of these standard valuables. Oftentimes, these hoards also include magical items, books and scrolls, historical artifacts, and sometimes captured animals or people. What each individual dragon collects can be completely different, but whatever they manage to hoard is typically rare and sought after material.

### Humanoid Forms and Polymorphing

As powerful magical creatures, dragons are capable of many a thing - one of the most notable being able to transfer their consciousness into a humanoid form in order to easier interact with mortals or enter small areas. This is primarily beneficial to dragons due to the fact their bodies are often massive, and many places a dragon may wish to go - such as ancient ruins or cities - are too small for them to enter without damaging. Other times, a dragon may wish to interact with mortals - perhaps they wish to explore a mortal culture, to decieve a group of adventurers, or in some cases, become leading political figures of city states or small kingdoms. Regardless of their reasonings, dragons are capable of two forms of performing this - polymorphing themselves, and forming homunculi.

Dragons are more than capable of simply casting a *polymorph* spell and transforming themselves into a humanoid form. However, many prefer to avoid doing this - they find it uncomfortable and unnatural, described as if their entire massive forms have been wrapped under layer upon layer of rope and felt to fit into the form of a humanoid. As well, unique to dragons, the effects of a *polymorph* spell cast by themselves seem to actually limit a dragon's power in this form.

Rather than undergo this uncomfortable experience, many dragons will instead construct a homunculi; an advanced artificial body in the form of a humanoid - and perform a ritual that allows themselves to transfer part of their soul into the homunculi. By doing this, a dragon essentially creates two of their own body - their true, draconic form, and a much smaller humanoid form - both of which they can swap their attention to at will. While they can only focus on one of these bodies at a time, and it leaves their draconic forms at risk while they are "piloting" their homunculus, it allows them to explore the world much more comfortably. As well, they still maintain their magical abilities more effectively while using their homunculus; while they may not be able to use their breath weapons or fly, they will still be more than able to use spells and magic items.

### The Great Game

The Great Game, known as *Ziknibel* in Draconic, is the system of "government" that dragons use to organize themselves. Effectively, each dragon views itself as the player at the head of a great game of trade-offs and balances against other dragons, using their minions, hoards. agents, and even armies as pawns. While this form of governing amongst dragons was common during the Second Era, in which the dragons found themselves with significant amounts of power over large swaths of Rosenwelt, in the Third Era the game is primarily played between dragons and impacts mortal races to a lesser extent. Each dragon participates in the Great Game to an extent of their own choosing; some ignore it altogether, content to stay out of the power-grabbing games, while others actively take part in it, their whole lives revolving around attempts at "winning" the game. Purple dragons, specifically, tend to be extremely focused on the Great Game.

### Hatchlets and Merkels

While dragons can typically be split into growth categories based on their age, ranging from juvenile to ancient, there are also two different forms dragons may take based on their egg development - that of hatchlets and merkels. These two forms of dragons are still full-blooded dragons, however do not take the forms of other adult dragons and develop drastically differently. Both are typically laid in extremely large clutches of smaller eggs, sometimes in the hundreds, rather than the typical draconic reproduction which involves the laying of one to three eggs. These dragons are often laid to act as minions for an adult dragon, typically in times of conflict with other dragons or with mortals. Rather than treating their parent dragon as a mother or father, they are often found treating them similar to how a soldier would to a general or commander, or a servant their lord.

Hatchlets appear similar to a wyrmling, or baby dragon. They typically grow between 1 to 2 feet in length, have smaller wings on their backs, and no ability to use a breath weapon. Notably, hatchlets often lack any form of distinct coloration, typically appearing brownish black or gray despite their parent's colors, in distinct contrast to both normal dragons and merkels. Hatchlets typically travel and attack in swarms, or ambush their victims from the skies. Due to their small size, numbers are the primary threat hatchlets pose. Hatchlets are treated by dragons as scouts and light attack forces, using them to overwhelm weaker opponents and cause distractions in combat.

Merkels, also known as lindwyrms, are much larger than hatchlets, typically reaching between 7 to 10 feet in length. They are skinnier than normal dragons, with longer tails, possessing weaker wings but retaining a weak breath weapon attack. Merkels often travel in small groups and pose a much greater threat than hatchlets - being larger and more predatory, as well as more intelligent, with roughly the same level of intellect as an average human. Dragons often treat their merkels as shock troops, using them to engage opposing well-armed foes.

It is unknown *what* purpose, exactly, hatchlets and merkels served on Nathrost, or if they were even extant on the dragon's home plane before it was destroyed. Due to the general lack of knowledge that Nathrost was even the home of the dragons, only held among a small number of scholars and adventurers, it is unlikely the world at large will ever know what purpose - if any - they served.

## Combat

In combat, each color of dragon will tend to act differently, employing their own tactics and preferred combat situations. However, this does not mean a dragon's style of combat cannot be generalized. Many dragons attack in violent, aggressive manners, using their overwhelming power to crush their foes. Their bodies are so large compared to most other creatures that they can easily overpower most of them in melee combat, and even swallow some whole. Their breath weapon, as well, is a grand asset to dragons - whether it be freezing or scorching their foe, a dragon's breath weapon is one of their preferred methods to remove of their foes. Should both of these matters fail, a dragon always has access to their repitoire of spells and magic.

## Cults and Followers

Due to their awe-inspiring nature, dragons tend to attract followings of mortal beings. Each dragon tends to have different feelings towards these formations of mortals that come to worship them; many find them as annoyances, and will simply burn them away or consume them. However, some view them as helpful, especially those with grand ambitions for conquest or power. As such, many of these dragon cults will grow to worship and follow the whims of a specific dragon or group of dragons without question. These followings can vary greatly between dragons - some have quite literal cults, religious organizations that worship dragons as gods like the Second Era. However, others have other forms of following. Some hold organizations of knights and monks under their claws, or leadership of cities. Others take the forms of thieves guilds and mercenary organizations. Some dragons will only keep a few individuals close by at hand who they know they can trust. Even some elven houses are entirely dedicated to serving a specific dragon.

## History

Dragons were originally native to the plane known as Nathrost, and were the dominant species on the planet. They lived carefree lives free of politics and concern of any threats, and thrived in a golden age where they were nearly all scholars and researchers. Their thirst for knowledge was endless, and as they rarely hungered for any material needs, many grew complacent. Their society continued in this fashion for hundreds of thousands of years, until The First destroyed their world in a failed attempt to save themselves. Nearly all of the dragons of Nathrost died, save for five - who would become known as The First Brood, travelling across the void in order to reach Rosenwelt.

Settling upon Rosenwelt in the late First Era, the dragons became seen and worshipped as gods. Hence began the Second Era, many thousands of years in which dragon cults and religions flourished. During this period, the most powerful dragons created their own servants in the appearance of mortals of Rosenwelt, who would become the dragonborn. Elves, too, became notable worshippers and servants to dragons, many city-states and kingdoms forming from the two races interacting with one another. In fact, the dragons granted the elves immortality for their loyal service to them, which would one day be stripped away. Of course, the close-knit ties of elves and dragons began to nip at the patience of the dragonborn, who - while still loyal to their creators - would hold a grudge against elves for millenia to come. Humans, orcs and lizardfolk would also serve some dragons in various capacities, however never became as attached to the dragons as the elves or dragonborn were. Other races still, such as the dwarves and the gnomes, would seldom interact with the dragons and have little history or opinion of them.

This dragon-ruled Rosenwelt continued for most of the Second Era, until, inevitably, a betrayal occured. An elven summoner would choose to seek the power of the First Brood, and attempted to capture one of these great wyrms in a summoning stone. However, their plan failed spectacularly, and clearly the dragons did not take kindly to this transgression. So great, they viewed it, that they chose to sunder themselves from mortals entirely. The dragons ushered in the Draconic Cataclysm - the disatorous, apocalyptic event that changed the very Focus currents of Rosenwelt, forever altering the world's ecology and destroying the order of Second Era nation-states. Empires fell, cities collapsed, kings became peasants and peasants became warlords in the wake of the destruction. Elves had their immortality taken from them, and the dragons retreated away from mortals, finding their homes in remote locations like mountains and deep lakes. Hence, the Third Era began - one in which mortals feared and hated the deceitful dragon, forgetting their own betrayals; and the dragons hated and spited the mortal, judging them as knaves and untrustworthy.