Beast Dragons

Race: Dragon (Beast)
Wyvern: Petric
Region: Nirim
Languages:

• Draconic
• English (Telepathic)

History

Long before Xanth's arrival some twelve thousand years ago, dragons ruled the Earth. For a time, their wisdom was shared among the human population and peace thrived. As civilizations grew and the humans began to discover things on their own, they began to lose the awe they had held over the dragons and to chafe at the restrictions placed upon them. By the time Xanth arrived and began to experiment with human DNA, there was already discord and the situation was only made worse as her children began to spread. Growing fear turned to superstition and hysteria. Soon, all non-human species were hunted down as demons hellbent on destroying the world.

Many dragons gave up on the humans they had once governed like benevolent parents. Angered by the destruction wrought upon their race, they begged Xanth for a retreat so they may live in peace without being forced to retaliate. Most of the dragon population moved to this new world as soon as it was available. However, others stayed behind, refusing to give up hope that humans and dragons might one day live in peace again.

Those dragons who stayed behind split into separate factions. There were those who decided that violence was the only answer, turning against their own kin in order to destroy humanity. Most, however, made every attempt to actually become human in order to better understand these errant creatures, hoping to encourage sympathy among the population as humans themselves. Some even achieved their goal, creating the first ancestors of the humanoid Dragons who, to this day, still populate Elysia. Unfortunately, the majority either perished or only managed to morph partially, thus creating the imp and unique dragons.

Dragon Species

There are several types of dragon not counting the Elysian Dragons who live as humans. Each species of dragon is a glorious sight to behold with powers other Elysians can only dream of. Collectively referred to as 'beast dragons', they are a vastly misunderstood race with a complex social structure and a culture steeped in ritual.

Dragon
True dragons, also known as 'full' dragons, are the leaders of the entire dragon race, the wisest and most powerful of their species. It is from these true dragons that all the other subspecies evolved and they are highly intelligent creatures. There are two classes of true dragon, each with differing physical forms and abilities that have developed from their natural habitats and their history on Earth.
Siphae, a young western dragon, frolicks while taking a bath.	Genus: Dragonus Maximus Family: Dragon Class: Western Favoured Habitat: Mountains Lifespan: 3,000 years Physical Appearance: Four legs Two bat-like wings Spaded prehensile tail Wedge-shaped head Multi-faceted, jewel-like eyes Colours vary: Infants are born white or pale blue Adults change colour upon joining a Sept Male forms differ from females, with: Twisted horns instead of smooth ones Tail spade is sharp with a serrated edge and spikes Abilities: Sept-dependent abilities Fire-breathing Telepathy Teleportation Description: Western dragons are massive but magnificent creatures. Taking their name from their original habitats in the western hemisphere of Earth, Western dragons are found frequently in Medieval legends. Building great nests in hard-to-reach places, they live alone for the majority of their lives and fight bloody battles to the death in order to defend large territories against intruders. Western dragons mate infrequently and only lay one egg every few decades so their young are cherished and fiercely protected. Loss of fledglings is felt deeply, not only by the parents but by the entire dragon community, which is why they guard their realm so closely even against their own kind. In addition, fledglings mature slowly, only reaching adulthood at the age of 150 when they choose their Sept and thus Sept-dependent abilities.
A Chinese drawing of an Oriental dragon.	Genus: Dragonus Maximus Family: Dragon Class: Oriental or Eastern Favoured Habitat: Rivers Lifespan: 2,500 years Physical Appearance: Four legs No wings Bearded face with fringe and long spines Rectangular head Multi-faceted, jewel-like eyes A long prehensile tail Colours vary: Infants are born white or pale blue Juvenile hides are pearlescent Adults change colour according to their chosen Sept but often have a mixture of other colours mixed in Male forms differ from females, with: More colourful and vibrant More spines around the face Abilities: Sept-dependent abilities Ice- or water-breathing Telepathy Teleportation Description: Eastern dragons are smaller, usually only reaching a human's shoulders, but can reach up to thirty feet in length. Vibrantly colourful and far more decorative than their western counterparts, they take their name from the habitats they favoured on Earth, specifically the Japan and China regions of the Orient. Oriental dragons are effectively water dragons, preferring to live in and around wide rivers or large lakes where they spend most of their days submerged. Able to breathe underwater, they nest along the riverbanks but hide their most prized treasures beneath the water to keep them safe. Oriental dragons mate more often than western dragons, laying half a dozen eggs every three or four years. Fledglings mature much more quickly, reaching adulthood at 50. However, the lifespan of an oriental dragon is much lower than that of westerns.
Drake
Drakes are often called half dragons because they lack certain abilities or physical features that full dragons possess. Slightly less intelligent, they are treated with respect by other dragons but are not afforded quite as many rights or privileges. They cannot join a Sept or, as a result, gain Sept-dependent abilities, nor do they have a great deal of sway over political affairs. They are content, however, to mind their own affairs and are not concerned by interracial issues.
A female wyvern assessing a new treasure.	Genus: Dragonus Maximus Family: Drake Class: Wyvern Favoured Habitat: Any Lifespan: 2,000 years Physical Appearance: Two forearms but no rear legs Two bat-like wings Arrow-shaped prehensile tail Triangular head Multi-faceted, jewel-like eyes Wyverns are born a paler shade of their adult colour which is dependent on their element Earth wyverns are shades of brown Air wyverns are shades of white or silver Fire wyverns are shades of red Water wyverns are shades of blue Males differ slightly from females: Smooth horns sloping out from skull Bony plates at the back of the head forming a 'mane' Abilities: Element-dependent abilities Earth wyverns can spit acid Air wyverns can breathe poisonous gas Fire wyverns can breathe fire Water wyverns can spit water or ice Telepathy Teleportation Description: Wyverns are the most intelligent of the drake family and the gentler, though should not be mistaken for harmless. Their colours are subtle with a mixture of pastel shades that, combined with their slender shape, makes them majestical and beautiful. They are far more sociable than most other dragons and tend to live in small family units with the parents and offspring together in a single nest. Wyverns mature far more slowly than other dragons, reaching adulthood at the age of 300. However, they gain access to their element at infancy which means they are far from defenceless. Because fledglings stay with their parents well into adulthood, wyverns mate only once every hundred or so years, laying up to a dozen eggs at a time.
A male wyrm yawning after a nap.	Genus: Dragonus Maximus Family: Drake Class: Wyrm Favoured Habitat: Underground Lifespan: 1,500 years Physical Appearance: Wyrms are the largest of all dragons Two rear legs Two wings like arms Spiny horns around the snout Wedge-shaped head Reptilian eyes A long, thick tail Wyrms are born a paler shade of their adult colour which is dependent on their element Earth wyrms are shades of brown Air wyrms are shades or white or grey Fire wyrms are shades of red Water wyrms are shades of blue Males and females look alike Abilities: Element-dependent abilities Earth wyrms can spit acid Air wyrms can breathe poisonous gas Fire wyrms can breathe fire Water wyrms can spit water or ice Telepathy Teleportation Description: Wyrms are the fiercest of the dragon species as well as the largest, as evidenced by the sharp horns and spikes covering their bodies and the mass of fangs in their beak-like jaw. Ferociously territorial, they live in nests burrowed underground, guarding their homes with intensity. A wyrm would rather destroy their nest than allow an intruder to enter it! Blending into their underground homes with dark hides, they easily burrow through dirt and even soft rock such as sandstone. Very solitary creatures, wyrms rarely come aboveground and only then to mate once every decade or so. Once pregnant, the female leaves the male to return to her own nest where she lays one to four eggs and tends to them alone. Once the eggs hatch, the fledglings burrow out of their mother's nest to fend for themselves, reaching maturity quickly at 10 years of age.
Other
During the Great Split when the majority of dragons migrated to Nirim, a few remained on Earth in an attempt to mend bridges. Some of those dragons tried to take human form and in the process created two new subspecies. One, the imp dragons, retained much of the form and abilities of their ancestors but lost a great deal of intelligence. The other is merely a name, an umbrella that covers a lot of unique dragons, each one mutated and different from each other and the rest of their species. Imp and unique dragons have absolutely no say in political matters and are frequently considered little more than a nuisance on the rest of the dragon population. They are not permitted to join a Sept at all and, with the exception of rare black imps, are not allowed to answer any Summoners' calls.
Faroah claims another pretty for his nest.	Genus: Dragonus Impus Family: Dragon Class: Imp Favoured Habitat: Any Lifespan: 500 years Physical Appearance: Imp dragons are only 6-8 inches in length Four legs Two bat-like wings Spaded prehensile tail Triangular head Multi-faceted, jewel-like eyes Imp dragons are born a paler shade of their adult colour which is dependent on their element Earth imps are shades of brown Air imps are shades or white or silver Fire imps are shades of red Water imps are shades of blue Males and females look alike Abilities: Element-dependent abilities Earth wyrms can spit acid Air wyrms can breathe poisonous gas Fire wyrms can breathe fire Water wyrms can spit water or ice Telepathy Teleportation Description: Imp dragons are the simpletons of the dragon species, easily tricked and with the attention span of a goldfish. The majority of them spend their entire lives simply collecting 'shinies' for their nest which they then polish and rearrange repeatedly. Drawn to anything metallic or shiny like bees to honey, they have earned a name for themselves as thieves. Not deliberately destructive, they are clumsy creatures and can create havoc without even trying. However, they are incredibly cute and enjoy being petted (though not by strangers) so they are tolerated and even liked by many Elysians, including Xanth herself. Imp dragons breed rather like rabbits, mating frequently and laying up to twenty eggs at a time. These eggs hatch quickly and the three-inch fledglings are fully formed, gaining adulthood at the age of six months when they reach their full size. Imps usually flock together like birds, living in communities of up to a hundred in a large nest built by collective effort.
A white unique staggers to his nest.	Genus: Dragonus Maximus Family: Dragon Class: Unique Favoured Habitat: Any Lifespan: Various Physical Appearance: Various Abilities: Various Description: Unique dragons are, quite simply, unwanted mutations. These dragons are the last survivors of the Great Split, the dragons who failed to take human form or even morph into imp dragons. Their bodies have become twisted or deformed, they have lost limbs (or even in rare cases gained them!) and intelligence, cursing themselves to a quite often pain-filled existence until they die. Other dragons pity them but will not interact with them if it can be avoided, and will most certainly not mate with them. For that reason, unique dragons are lonely, quick to befriend those who are kind to them, and eager to please. With their cumbersome bodies and simple minds, they are often clumsy but unswervingly loyal. Shamed by their unnatural forms, they prefer to live outside of Nirim away from their ancestral race and can usually be found in isolated pockets in Elysia.

Summoning Dragons

Summoning dragons is a large part of a humanoid Dragon's life as they then have access to all the knowledge the beast dragons possess as well as the use of their summoned dragon's abilities. If a dragon bonds well with their summoner, they become a dual force to be reckoned with. Even Unbonded Summoners can learn to exploit each dragon's strengths in any given situation. However, not all dragons can be summoned.

Beast dragons are the most commonly summoned, in particular Western dragons. Seemingly more powerful and more easily accessed, Westerns are more popular among Summoners and statistically more acceptable to humanoid Dragons. Smarter and wiser than the other dragon breeds, they are more tolerant of their Summoner's commands and requests, and thus far less likely to turn on their Summoner. They are also cheaper to satisfy.

Drakes are Summoned less often than full dragons and are usually more difficult to work with. Wyrms, in particular, are unfriendly and difficult to barter or befriend. For these reasons, drakes are more often bonded with Black Dragons who are stronger and better able to deal with them on level footing. However, this does not mean that drakes cannot and are not Summoned normally. They can actually be more rewarding then beast dragons and, with proper training and care, a true bond of friendship and unswerving loyalty can be formed.

Unlike dragons and drakes, imp dragons cannot be Summoned. They are not powerful enough to perform the tasks that Summoners usually require and do not have the attention spans necessary to heed Summons. However, in rare cases a black imp will hatch and these are treated as full dragons even though they are, for the most part, just as simple and flaky as the rest of their kind. These black imps are bonded during the Black Dragon ritual and are responsible for teaching the Summoner about their new powers.

Unique dragons are not permitted to answer Summons at all.

About Nirim

At the behest of the then Wyvern, Xanth created an entirely separate dimension for the dragons to inhabit, a planet larger and far more abundant than Earth. They named this planet Nirim and flocked to claim their own territories upon it, building and burrowing nests that were bigger than those they had left behind. With more space and the freedom to roam where they pleased, they could spread out wherever they chose and revelled in the knowledge that they, alone, controlled their realm once more.

For several millennia, Nirim was untouched by humans or even Xanth. Cut off from the portal nexus, the only way in or out was by teleporation and defended against intruders viciously. However, as Earth shrank under the weight of the global media, humanoid Dragons began to fear for their safety. Trapped in Paris, France where they could no longer use their abilities freely or even summon their dragons, they scrambled for an escape. Xanth and her Aides mediated negotiations between the leaders of each race and the dragons agreed to accommodate their humanoid descendents.

Work began on the building of a large city in a long valley mostly uninhabited. Within a year, it was finished and ready for its new occupants. Grateful for a place to live uninhibited, the Parisian Dragons left Earth much as their ancestors had done so long ago, carried to their new home by teleporation on dragonback.

The architecture of Nirim City is carefully styled to accommodate both beast and humanoid dragons with thick, reinforced limestone walls and low rooves large enough to act as landing areas. Each street is wide enough for a full dragon to maneuvre around the city but there are laws forbidding any drake from burrowing underground while within the city limits. Guard towers dot the perimeter wall to defend against rogue dragons and prevent humanoids from wandering out of the city without an escort. The monotonous, though beautiful, white of the limestone is broken up by small gardens dotted through the streets and on the occasional rooftop, and at the very centre of the city is a beautifully tiled festival square where many rituals are held.

Not all Dragons are happy in Nirim, however, and chafe at the restrictions placed on them by their ancestral race. For this reason, the streets are patrolled frequently and a small section of the city is reserved for humanoid dragons, where no beast infringes on their privacy.