Dragons have been with mortals for millennia. Some are feared as destroyers of cities and villages alike, some are revered as gods, and some are respected as fellow keepers of the world. A dragon is a Great Beast, perhaps the oldest to be categorized as such and the most common - though seeing a dragon is always an awe-inspiring event.

Appearance-wise, dragons are massive creatures with a mostly reptilian appearance. They may have anywhere from zero to four legs and may or may not have wings. All dragons are sentient with intellects equal to or greater than mortals, though they have many lesser kin - such as drakos and wyverns - which are just animals. Lesser dragonkin are detailed at the end of this page.

Dragons are capable of wielding great elemental power, drawn from the natural magic which suffuses the world. They are most well known for their breath weapons, though many are also adept spellcasters. Some myths state that the first mages in the world, long before magic was taught through schools and guilds, learned from dragons.

Dragons are as diverse as they are widespread, though there are a few general types they fall into. These have been compared to the different races which exist amongst mortals. All true dragons can live thousands of years, with the oldest recorded dragon being more than ten thousand years old. Their souls are powerful, and have been known to linger and remain in the world after defeat or death.

Usually referred to simply as a dragon, this type has four legs and two wings and a distinctly reptilian appearance, with bright scales and a head crowned with horns. They are what most think of immediately when the word “dragon” is mentioned. These dragons come in many forms, though many are attuned to fire or lightning and tend to nest high in mountainous caves.

Also spelled “Lung”, this type of dragon is somewhat more mammalian. They have four legs and no wings, yet fly anyways via magic. They tend to have a mane of fur down their backs and a tufted tail, as well as branched horns. These dragons are an important cultural icon in Ruefang, Cahyali, but some also exist on Jaern. It is unclear if Jaernian Long originated from Cahyali, or if they are an offshoot of regular Jaernian dragons.

These are important to distinguish from sea serpents, which are not sentient creatures. Sea dragons are far larger than other dragons, often bigger than even the largest sailing ships. They are thought to be native to Jaern. They may or may not have legs and wings, though either way they rarely have more than two pairs of either. Sea dragons also sport gills.

This type of dragon may or may not have wings, but they do all have multiple heads. Sometimes, these heads all agree, and sometimes they fight amongst each other fiercely. Many hydras live near the coast and prefer rocky shorelines, while others are fully aquatic and only rise up to terrorize passing ships which disturb them. Prevailing wisdom advises to be careful cutting off a hydra's head, as two will grow back.

Jaernian dragons originated with semi-aquatic lizards on Jaern. Not much is known about how they came to be, or how the Onivero and nascent lizard civilizations interacted with them. What is known, though, is that when Jaern's impact to Torandor was imminent, they pooled their magic to escape into a safe pocket dimension, where they would remain in slumber.

A deal was struck with mortals: after two hundred years, a return portal was to be opened and the dragons would be let into the new world - assuming one was found. However, in the chaos of Jaern's advent, this deal was forgotten and the dragons would remain in slumber for more than two millennia more.

In 10061, four obelisk artifacts keeping the dragons' slumber active were activated, making good on the forgotten promise. The portal opened, the dragons were awakened, and they returned to the world. Ever since, dragons have mostly been keeping to themselves, and those which cause problems are usually dealt with rather quickly by adventurers.

Jaernian Dragon Worship - The Cult of Kelvar: On Jaern, there is an esoteric religion spreading which worships dragons, particularly one named Kelvar which ascended to divinity in ancient Jaern. Most of this worship is now centered on the island of Keer'Levex. Most Jaernian dragons do not give much heed to dragon worshipers, though some enjoy being the subjects of reverence.

The god Kelvar was well-known in ancient days, though she has been almost entirely forgotten through millennia of slumber. Her people were nearly destroyed by a faction based out of Centralia and the Great Rice Patty calling themselves the Kingdom of Derago, which sought to drive dragons to extinction and siphon their magic using a captured piece of Kelvar's soul. The Kingdom was brought to its knees, and the threat to Jaern's dragons ended in the late 10070s.

Draconic Lizards: This race, resembling small bipedal dragons without wings, was found within Kratalian mountains in the early 10070s, having lived in subterranean cities unknown to the world all that time. It is thought by some that close proximity to draconic magic transformed semi-aquatic lizards into new forms, more similar to dragons. Some also believe that dragons created the draconic lizards, much like they did with the drakos.

Cahyalian dragons originated on the continent of Esrior. Before mortal civilization existed, they ruled Esrior, having their own civilization. Some dragons came into contact with nascent mortal civilization, particularly in the islands which are now Ulos, and elected to teach them elemental magic.

Millennia ago, Esrior's Fold did not exist and dragons traveled outside, to the lands of Akhior and Nidaior. There they made contact with the Strygarii, another form of Great Beast.

A war would spark after a long time of tense cohabitation, named the Stormwing Calamity. So bloody and destructive was this war that it nearly destroyed burgeoning dwarven and human civilization, sending some of them running across the sea into modern-day Pthora and Shinneok. Dragons would flee back to Esrior alongside them, with some humans and dwarves even escaping on dragonback.

After the war ended, many dragons isolated themselves, fearing total destruction. Some left behind their mortal forms, leaving in spiritual form for the Kurago or striking deals with gods to become servitors. Others fled to the great expanse, seeking out other, safer worlds to inhabit. Those which remained would become significant in the cultures of Ruefang and Vervand, or would sequester themselves in deep solitude.

Long of Ruefang: In Ruefang, a group of Long would assist in driving off a demonic invasion in the late 7800s. This act elevated the Long, and dragons as a whole, to a position of extreme reverence. For centuries, they ruled Ruefang as benevolent kings. Even today, the Long remains the primary symbol of Ruefang as a nation. Dragons are considered to be god-like beings by Ruefangren, and shrines across the country are set up in their honor.

The Long would mysteriously disappear in the 8200s, and would not be seen again in Ruefang until 10081. A group of five arrived to assist in calming the disturbed Ruefang leyspring and cleansing a group of corrupted spirits which had been driving the Ars Machina Engine, a magical train which threatened the integrity of the leyspring and all of Ruefang.

Dragons of Vervand: In Vervand, dragons are referred to as the Dawnstrom. They have a long history of association with the people of the Vervish tribes. In ancient Vervand the Dawnstrom were revered as the sky dancers for the way they moved across the night sky, scales shimmering in the Làn-Dìom: lights caused by the elemental energy diffused from Mistik Ravine in Ulos. Unlike their Ruefang counterparts, the Dawnstrom were seen are a part of the natural cycle of the land, as they kept the plant life vitalized and in return benefited from the land.

Sightings of the Dawnstrom became less common after the Shinnean invasion of Ruefang, and altogether stopped in the age of the Dahabu empire. There have been trace reports of Dawnstrom sightings but nothing substantial. The druids of Vervand believe they will reemerge when Vervand is in dire trouble.

Many dragonlike creatures exist across both Jaern and Cahyali: cousins of dragons, but not dragons proper. These are referred to as lesser dragonkin. Some are simply relatives of dragons in the same way that monkeys are relatives to humans, and some are lesser creations of dragons. The status of draconic lizards as lesser dragonkin is hotly debated, so they are not included here.

Lesser dragonkin are usually not considered Great Beasts, and are usually classified as draconic, as well as terrestrial or aquatic depending on habitat.

Also known in some places as drakes, drakos resemble classical dragons, with the exception that they have no wings. They are also attuned to elemental power, though to a significantly weaker degree than true dragons. They are usually about the size of a horse or bear, though under certain circumstances they can become far larger.

Drakos come in a few variations, named for their elements: Aerodrako (air), Terodrako (earth), Fajrodrako (fire), Akvodrako (water), and Glaciodrako (ice). A drako is about as intelligent as a bear, and most are solitary creatures. They are predators, hunting larger game such as deer and tuna in their natural habitats. They can be tamed, though this is rare and usually only possible through magical power such as that granted by Osiris.

Drakos were created by true dragons through powerful magic thousands of years ago, when mortals were only barely starting to settle down into agricultural villages. As for Cahyali, drakos were created before the Stormwing Calamity, when dragons were the undisputed masters of the continent, and have become just like regular animals since.

The wyvern is the flying cousin of the drako. It has two back legs, and its front limbs are wings. They come in all the same elemental variations as drakos and are believed to have a similar origin, being created by true dragons millennia ago. The names for the elemental variations are Aerovern, Terovern, Fajrovern, Akvovern, and Glaciovern.

They are slightly smaller and more social than drakos, and form packs of family groups to hunt and raise young. They tend to eat smaller game, and people often see them as “wolves of the sky”. Due to this social aspect, wyverns are far easier to tame than drakos. Some nomadic rondos on Jaern and the people of the Oxis Alliance on Cahyali have tamed wyverns, using them as flying mounts.

Wyvern tamers say that they are quite intriguing creatures, each with their own colorful personality, but one thing you have to watch out for is the breath weapon. And the piss - the piss reeks something awful.

With no legs and no wings, the wyrm is a subterranean cousin of the dragon which is believed to be a natural ancestor. It is somewhat smaller than a true dragon, and few are over ten feet long. They live in large cave systems, feeding on whatever they can find.

Some wyrms live on the surface, though they still dislike bright lights and tend to stick to densely forested areas. Many of these forest-dwelling wyrms have two front legs, and are referred to as lindwyrms.

Wyrms are rare, with about the intelligence of a snake or bird of prey. Due to their relatively poor intellect, attempts to tame wyrms have never quite succeeded, save for particularly bold young druids and Osiris worshipers who make a game out of riding them and seeing how long they can stay on the feisty creatures' backs.

These are thought to be a unique type of drako or wyrm, having been modified by powerful earth magic and imbued with alchemy. They are rare, and have only been seen in certain parts of Geleia, Lojem, Vervand, and Arenti.

As the legend goes, someone bit by a basilisk or who fails to resist its magically-infused hiss will, slowly but surely, turn to stone. Restoring someone who has been petrified by a basilisk is the subject of many old adventuring tales.

These are tiny creatures, with no actual connection to the faerie or the Dreaming. Some have gossamer, insectile wings, while others have leathery wings like a true dragon's. It is mostly agreed that the origin of fairy dragons is magical. Instead of a half-spade on their tail like some dragons do, most fairy dragons have a small toxic stinger, much like a scorpion's.

They are easily tamed, friendly, and playful creatures. They act much like foxes in the wild, making warrens in the earth and in trees and running about in loosely organized packs. Mages and priests often tame them as useful and adorable familiars.