Dragons

Living Legends

Of all the creatures to grace the ground of Arxios, none were as legendary as the dragons. These great creatures are the subject of many myths and tales, with a variety of truths.

At the beginning of civilization, when the first mortal creatures set foot on Arxios, it is said they were given gifts from the gods that helped them advance their societies. Fire, technology, and magic, all supposedly boons from the gods. And the messengers that delivered these gifts were the dragons: Creatures from the astral sky that communed with the gods and served as their proxies when communicating with mortal people.
However, not all of these gifts were meant to be given...

The Draconic Heresy

Dragons, as part of their nature, are incredibly intelligent and self-assured. And there were dragons who disagreed with the plans of the gods. These dragons are mentioned in dark, foreboding myths as deliverers of evil knowledge. Dark magic, the true nature of gods, names of powerful beings, knowledge to warp the universe to one's will. Secrets that mere mortals were never meant to know. For their treachery of their species, the dragons were cast out of the astral realm, doomed to mortality.
Yet the gods' ignorance would be their greatest mistake; Anima created dragons to be their reflection. Dragons had great power, intellect, and scarcely aged. Their powers were on par with the gods, and so could not be rescinded with ease. Some of the most ancient dragons retained their world-altering abilities even after the fall.

Many of these betrayer dragons garnered worship among mortals for their acts. They began to gather armies from their followers, teaching them magic to attack the gods themselves, and led a revolution against the astral plane. Little detail of these events has been preserved, but the consensus of contemporary historians is that the revolution was a failure. In the aftermath, Anima severed the connection between the material and astral plane, forbidding herself and the other gods from manifesting on the material, while simultaneously rendering mass invasions from the material plane impossible.
Post-Heresy, some dragons worked tirelessly to regain the gods' favor, while others chose to leave the path of godlihood entirely, resolving to sit back and watch the world evolve. Still others chose to make the gods and their creations their enemy forevermore. It is these vengeful dragons that spawned the most myth about their species. Greedy, destructive beasts that shook the earth and ravaged civilizations. 

Disappearance

In the Current Era, dragons are unheard of in Arxios. Most believe they died off. Though some theologists suggest that dragons chose to leave the great valley, abandoning the so-called womb of the gods to explore the rest of the material world. Still, their presence remains ingrained in mortal civilization. Dragons were the first to teach mortals how to harness arcane magic. Their tongue, Draconic, is still the primary lingua arcana among magic users, though very few know its true meanings.

And yet, many believe dragons have simply hidden. In the highest reaches of the Bolcan Mountains, into the Frozen Hearth, or even deep within society, in mortal disguise. Myths such as these have spawned many tall tales, of strange folk helping a town during a natural disaster, or protecting them from bandits with otherworldly strength. Many climbers and mountaineers who have survived great falls have raved about being saved by a gargantuan winged beast.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Dragons were massive reptilian creatures, with four legs and two wide-spread wings that let them soar on the winds. Their hides were covered in hardened scales capable of turning away all but magic weaponry or the teeth and claws of other dragons.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Documented interactions between dragons are non-existent. Scholars hypothesize that dragons rarely interfered directly in each other's affairs. Though a common workaround was to send a proxy. Mortals could become envoys of dragons, conducting their business in the mortal world by proxy. These envoys could range from simple messengers, to knights and mages fighting battles for their draconic masters. A common theory on the proxies is that dragons lived in a perpetual stalemate. Any direct action taken by a dragon would provoke the others, causing a full-scale war. The use of proxies was the safest way to keep the peace while advancing their desires.

Average Intelligence

Dragons were incredibly intelligent and wise. Many loved and craved conversation and debate. There are tales of dragons sponsoring bards and wizards of old for their great conversation skills.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Dragons were said to have uncanny hearing, smell, and sight beyond the material plane.

Civilization and Culture

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Dragons who interacted with mortals sometimes chose to mate with them, spawning hybrid creatures known as dragonborn. Nowadays, dragonborn are a rare sight, and most if not all are born from dragonborn themselves.

EXTINCT

Genetic Descendants

• Dragonborn

Scientific Name

Caelestis Draconus

Origin/Ancestry

Divine Creation

Lifespan

Indefinite

Average Height

Legends say the largest dragons stood up to 40 feet tall