Dragons

"Dragons are wonder and magic incarnate. There are few things as terrifying as a dragon who is your enemy... or one who is your friend."

— Jerem Silkbloom, Elven Ranger

There are countless myths and legends which speak of the power and majesty dragons represent, such that even elves are wary about dealing with them. Dragons rule the sky on great wings with a surprising agility for their size, and even when on the land they are incredibly dangerous. However, they are not "beasts" in the sense of other such creatures - they are frightfully intelligent, often possessing a wisdom impossible to match, and live long enough to make plans which last decades in the short term. All these things are combined with a seemingly-effortless mastery over arcane magic, being able to use it in fashions which elude most practiced arcanists.

Yet for as much as such beings could rule Erisdaire with little to stop them, dragons do not involve themselves directly as often as one might expect. They pursue goals through layers of servants and minions, obfuscation and misdirection, such that it is frightfully difficult to even be aware a person is doing the bidding of a dragon without very broad and specific knowledge. Sages and scholars have supposed this is done as a means of safely assuring plans remain difficult to thwart completely, and to make it even more difficult to confront directly. As powerful as dragons are, they are still mortal and can be killed.

Those lucky (or unlucky) enough to meet dragons in the flesh speak about an aura of majesty around them, the feeling of powerlessness which can crush the soul. They speak their own language almost exclusively, but they do understand most other spoken and written languages. Most who are not dragonkin cannot speak Draconic in the same fashion, as a portion of the language is dependent on things which cannot be replicated by humanoid bodies. Punctuation and inflections are provided through the use of their wings, posture, taps of front claws or cracks of the tail. There are numerous different styles of exhaled breath carrying import, lending emotional context to a statement which is usually missing from other languages. Sometimes dragons have "translators" who have come to understand these clues through long collaborations and help pass along pieces of a conversation to those who have been granted an audience.

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Basic Information

Anatomy

The body of a dragon is distinctive, and few can mistake anything else for a dragon once they are aware of the details. They possess eight limbs: a pair of wings, four legs, a tail, and a long neck ending in their head. Their hide is composed of a tough pebbly skin with thick scales over vital areas, with both these aspects becoming tougher to get through with age. Other details tend to vary widely among dragonkind, as they have developed very different sub-species well-adapted to particular habitats.

These sub-species are divided into those who have a metallic luster to their hides, and those with simple colors. No scholar has successfully managed to explain how this divergence happened, as dragons are not known to discuss their secrets or history as a species. Each particular "color" of dragon keeps within a favored habitat (or two), though they can easily survive outside of these habitats.

As individual dragons age and survive hardships, these events leave marks on their bodies which can tell stories about their life. This is notable, because dragons as a species are notoriously quick to recover from severe injuries and have been known to heal from what should have been life-threatening wounds with only faint scars to show for it. The healing could be complete, and yet the dragons allow pieces to remain missing or scars to exist at all. The motives for such behavior is unknown, perhaps tied to whatever culture these beings share amongst themselves.

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Additional Information

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

No matter what sub-species of dragon is being spoken of, it should be noted their bodies are tuned to be predators first and foremost. They possess incredibly strong senses of hearing and smell, able to detect beings using invisibility to move about. Their sight is quite sharp, being able to discern fine details from a distance most find unbelievable. This vision is also reportedly able to detect active magical fields, which can be paired with arcane studies to make dragons a serious hazard to arcanists. There is one particular place of divergence, depending on sub-species, and this is in the sense of touch. Dragons whose habitats and hunting behaviors rely on patience and ambushes when younger develop a strong attunement to their environments, allowing them to discern changes easily enough to determine whether prey or danger is moving around. Those sub-species built more to be active aerial predators lack this sharpness, though they make up for it in other adaptations which assist in their hunting style.

The combination of these senses also give dragons a considerable edge when dealing with other sentient creatures, giving rise to a claim they have the ability to peer into your mind. While this is not impossible considering the time which may be devoted to arcane studies, more often it is a dragon being able to read body language and other aspects in order to make conclusions based on these additional facts. Their ability to sense magical fields also allows them to determine when someone is utilizing arcane efforts to conceal detection, making it a poor idea to try to use arcane magic as a means of hiding.

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Civilization and Culture

Common Etiquette Rules

"When a dragon asks you a riddle, tread lightly. There are seldom times when there is only one answer, and wrong answers are punished."

— Selena Brashel, Myrisic Sage

It is rare to meet a dragon directly, but enough Sages and scholars have done so over the ages to generate a list of things to do (or not do) when in the presence of a dragon. Most of these guidelines hinge on understanding how dragons are often many hundreds of years older than the ones permitted into their presence, and so have almost certainly had every simple deception or misdirection attempted on them. Therefore, it is advised not to be dishonest to their face - be it saying something known to be untrue, or merely using lies of omission. They also have no patience for those who refuse to show respect for their power, being known to eliminate those who are disrespectful (at best). What counts as "disrespectful" varies depending on the mentality of the individual dragon, but they often give a warning before inflicting punishment. This warning can be something as direct as stating "I am warning you to stop that", attempting to guide someone into reinforcing bad behaviors, or more subtle indications of mood.

Since each individual dragon has likely had over a century to hone their understanding of non-draconic beings, they are prone to understanding social cues and patterns of those coming to meet with them. Some dragons will choose to use this to "meet on the same level", expecting to be treated with a deference similar to people in the highest station for any given culture. Others will weaponize this against visitors, having an expectation of how their guests will behave and making plans accordingly. It is strongly advised not to put faith in loopholes or creative interpretations of social laws to protect you from a dragon who has gotten angry at (or simply bored of) your presence. As intelligent and knowledgeable as a dragon is, they are still predators.

Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals

The Dragon's Hoard

The following is an excerpt from "Dragons: Myths and Reality" by Sage Famerial of Hanholt
Stories are one thing, but recorded history supports a different view amidst the embellishments and myth. According to legend, each dragon whose lair has been found has contained a vast store of wealth - enough to make those who found it either very rich or very dead. Records suggest this wealth simply does not exist, as dragons are the oldest species to claim dominion over Erisdaire. And it is very well-established they do not utilize tools in the same fashion as other cultures which would follow. Therefore they would not have always kept stores of gold, lacking both the tools and the context which would give rise to such objects to barter with.

Dragons are notorious hoarders, but they tend to keep treasure around more as a means to pay (or bribe) followers who cannot be threatened into continuing to do their bidding. What they hoard often tends to have personal significance to them, attached to strong memories or emotions. When one considers dragons have not necessarily been found to die of old age, the idea of them keeping certain objects in order to remember them starts to become logical.

The oldest known dragon to have a hoard examined in depth is Ruari Auricama, certainly as a great deal of treasure accounted for but the hoard itself also contained objects which certainly weren't valuable in and of themselves. These were things such as a bust made of platinum and marble resembling no known dragon, which had apparently been lovingly cared for until the hoard was abandoned. There were several copies of fairly common books which were old editions and yet available with minimal editing in shops across Erisdaire. Tapestries which were quite gorgeous renderings of ancient and forgotten history, but otherwise had a value no greater than what may hang in many Valorian households.

It's not about the value we assign these things, it's about the value the dragon does. That is what turns their hoard from unremarkable objects to true treasure. The same could be said for us, after all, for what value does gold have other than what we assign to it ourselves?

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Lifespan

Unknown.