Dragons (War Wyrms)

The War Wyrms, more commonly known as dragons, are a race engineered as living weapons by the mages of the ancient Atlantean Empire. Each of them has their True Name inscribed in the Book of the Wyrm, a magical tome which updates itself as their true names are altered, and to include any new War Wyrms that are created.

## Variations

There are two variations of War Wyrms, known as breeds. Those breeds are the Great Wyrms and Lesser Wyrms. The Great Wyrms are the first generation of their kind, physically and mentally mighty, and capable of spawning Lesser Wyrms with their teeth. Their Lesser Wyrm broods are in large part, physically inferior, but each Lesser Wyrm is gifted with their own unique blend of abilities, in addition to the traits common to all War Wyrms. Rather than spawning other Wyrms, the teeth of Lesser Wyrms each create some sort of unique entity or effect.

## Physiology

### Appearance

War Wyrms come in innumerable shapes and sizes. However, they do share certain common traits, such as being scaled, reptilians monsters of tremendous size and power. Other than that, their physical forms vary tremendously. Some are limbless, serpentine creatures, others have wings, and others still have multiple heads, one set of legs or several. The dragons are also all capable of shape shifting, though some are more adept at doing so than others, with the most limited of them only being capable of shifting between their true form and their human shape.

### Aging

The War Wyrms are unaffected by the ravages of time. They do not age or weaken as centuries or millennia pass. In essence, their lifespans are limitless.

### Diet

Dragons eat far less than what would be needed to sustain a creature of their size. In truth, hardly not need to eat at all, and can go for hundreds of years without eating, especially if they enter a hibernating slumber. However, extensive periods without sustenance does weaken them and cause discomfort.

### Reproduction

Unlike the common misconception of dragons hatching from eggs, war wyrms are created from teeth. When a Great Wyrm's tooth is planted into the earth, a Lesser Wyrm of the same breed will be birthed from the ground sometime later, with the terrain having its life and fertility drained to provide life force to the growing Wyrm. This is the only method of War Wyrm reproduction. Lesser Wyrms can also spawn creatures from their teeth, but these will not be true dragons, and instead, random monstrosities will be produced, each different according to the individual Lesser Wyrm whose teeth were used.

#### The Binding

A War Wyrm tooth can only be successfully planted by a human, or one of their supernatural offshoots. A Wyrm attempting to implant a wyrm tooth into the ground will have no effect. When a War Wyrm is successfully spawned, they are magically compelled to obey the orders of whoever planted the tooth that sprouted them, an effect known to the Wyrms as the Binding. The Binding prevents a Wyrm (or the creatures spawned from a Wyrm) from directly attacking the individual who planted their tooth, and forces them to follow any commands given by their master to the letter (Wyrms and their spawn instinctively understand any language their master speaks). However, an abused or otherwise alienated Wyrm is capable of interpreting their orders in ways their master might mislike, if they are not specific enough.

### Slumber

War Wyrms are able to enter a vegetative state, designed to allow them to rest, regain energy, and recover from grievous, magically inflicted wounds. Slumbers can also be entered voluntarily, if one wishes to simply pass away the ages, as slumber can last for centuries or even millennia at a time.

## Powers and Abilities

The powers of the various War Wyrms vary greatly, but there are some abilities which are common or even universal.

### Universal Powers

**Immortality:** Dragons are immune to the ravages of time, and unless they meet some sort of violent end, their lives continue on without limit.

**Regeneration:** Resilient as they are, the dragons are still able to be injured. Fortunately for them, they have been endowed with tremendous powers of recovery which makes them even more difficult to kill. The lowest of them can heal from most mundane injuries within minutes, and are capable of regrowing limbs and most organs, while the more potent wyrms can heal injuries within seconds and can recover from absolutely horrific damage.

**Supernatural Durability:** The War Wyrms are all known for tremendous resilience, a necessary quality for beasts that are bred for battle. Mortal weaponry has little effect on the weakest of them, with tremendous force or potent magic being required to do them harm. The more powerful of them are even more resilient, and require absolutely astounding levels of power to be brought to bear against them in order to be physically threatened.

**Supernatural Senses:** The senses of a war wyrm are given precision and sensitivity far beyond any mundane creature. Most of them can easily determine everything of note within their immediate vicinity, whilst others have senses that extend for miles.

**Supernatural Strength:** As beasts of war, the dragons are all possessed of tremendous physical might. The weakest of them are able to batter through the average building without trouble, whilst the more powerful of them have been known to cause earthquakes with the force of their attacks whenever they enter combat.

**Teethspawning:** Each War Wyrm is possessed of teeth that, once planted in the ground or exposed to some other specific condition, will create or summon some sort of entity, which the planter can then control. Such creatures might include anything from stone golems to raising a corpse as a draugr.

## Weaknesses

**The Binding:** All War Wyrms are compelled to obey the individual who planted the tooth that created them. Should their master die, however, the War Wyrm will be free unless rebound by the necessary spells to a new master. Seeing as said spells have been largely lost with the fall of Atlantis, this is usually not a concern for any freed wyrm.

**Progenitor Teeth:** Any wound dealt by the teeth of a Lesser Wyrm's progenitor Greater Wyrm is horrendously lethal. Even a minor injury caused by a Progenitor's tooth can be deadly to a Lesser Wyrm.