Drake

## **Biology**

A Drake is a large Dragon-like creature, often quadrupedal. They may or may not have wings, although biology varies widely based on region. Much like Dragons,  Drakes have evolved to suit just about any environment, even ones most creatures of Mirror Domain can't stomach. It can be difficult to tell the two species apart, as both Dragons and Drakes share a common ancestor, but there's several distinct differences that set them apart. First off is their size. Adult Dragons are often over a hundred feet tall, whereas an adult Drake is usually no more than 60. They also lack the ability to speak. Drakes, while more intelligent than your average beast, are more akin to that of an animal and not a Pure being.

## **Personality/Instincts**

Similar to Dragons, Drakes are extremely territorial creatures with strong hoarding tendencies. Drake hoards are different from Dragons, though. Dragons are intelligent enough to understand the value behind things like gold or gemstones, but Drakes have no reason to care about these things. Their hoards are more "natural". Bones, feathers, insects. Occasionally you'll find one with a more sophisticated hoard, but these all stem from the need for survival and not a deeper understanding of the value of said items. For example, a Drake may have a powerful artifact in its hoard, but only because its smart enough to have a basic understanding of its effects. It may have a totem that wards off demons, for example.

Because they're driven by survival, Drakes are far more violent than Dragons. A Dragon is open to reason and negotiation, but a Drake isn't capable of understanding such things. They know they're big and powerful,  and they'll use that power to the full extent of their ability in order to protect their territory and their hoard. They're also more inclined to use their breath weapons where a Dragon would rather save them for emergencies.

## **Relations**

Drakes and Dragons do not get along. Ever. But, because Dragons have a very obvious advantage over their beast counterpart, Drakes generally tend to avoid Dragons. They're at least smart enough to understand its not worth the effort. Pure beings in the past have attempted to tame or domesticated Drakes, but most of their attempts have either resulted in failure or another separate species being created. Drakes themselves are seemingly untameable, but people have been able to selectively breed them to get a more desirable result.

That being said, while they can't be domesticated Drakes do like pure beings. Or rather, they've learned to benefit from them. Like any wild animals, once a Drake realizes its easier to catch and eat domestic livestock or rummage through trash for an easy meal, they'll simply stop hunting on their own and continue being a nuisance in whatever town they happen upon. Once they've learned this, they won't go back to their natural instincts, and as a result they often have to be put down for public safety.

## **History**

As stated prior, Drakes and Dragons have a shared ancestor. Both species far predate the purity scale, and in the before times when magic was almost nonexistent Drakes were one of very few creatures with any sort of magical abilities at all. They've been regarded as terrifying beasts since the very beginning,  and many ancient cultures regarded them as demi gods, although very few lasting religions have spring up from these misconceptions. If anything, the demi god Drakes were a settlement by settlement thing. If a village happened to be near a Drake lair, they did their best to appease the beast in order to keep their people safe.

Of course, after magic became widespread the mythos of Drakes began to fade away quickly. They went from being terrifying demi gods to powerful but annoying pests. After this, the practice of Dragon and Drake hunting began to rise in popularity. People finally had the means to arm themselves against these creatures, and as such they took to getting rid of them as fast as possible. To this day Dragon hunting guilds are still a widespread practice, although the vast majority of them only hunt Drakes now. The name is more traditional than anything at this point. That, and more people know what a Dragon is rather than a Drake, so the name is less confusing.

## **Adventures**

Drakes are an extremely adventurous species. They've adapted to live just about anywhere. Desert dwelling Drakes have adapted to blend in with the sand and eat smaller prey that live there. Swamp dwelling Drakes have learned to swim in the thick oil. Even mountain dwelling Drakes exist, who've adapted to hunt and eat demons in order to survive. If there's an environment to live in, there's probably a Drake variant that's already settled there.

## **Abilities**

Drakes are one of many beast like creatures to have a large mana pool. They gravitate towards the middle ground, that being Dark, Green, and Light magic. Usually whatever's dominant in the ambiance is what a Drake will learn. Their magic is a fair bit more sophisticated than other magical beasts because of their higher intelligence. They've been known to make very primitive portals or use their magic to paralyze an opponent. Some Drake lairs are only accessible via spell, weather it be by teleporting inside or shapeshifting or size changing in order to fit. That being said, the majority of their magic is used for offensive purposes. Its easier to learn spells that attack or do damage than it is to heal or shield someone.