Ancient Dragons
Ancient dragons were a species created by the The Eldest to govern the whole world alongside him, as he decided that it's simply to big for him to rule it personally.
The entire species was decimated during First Darkness War, nearly perishing at the hands of Kashya the Dragonslayer, with her nickname coming exactly from the massacre she did to them. What's more, with her dying breath she casted a terrible curse, causing their offspring to devolve into beings that can be only described as horrifying abominations.
Surviving ancient dragons, now devoid of The Eldest wisdom made several attempt to ensure their own survival as a species, even as their First Empire crumbled around them. They ended with creation of kobolds, drakons and high dragons (from which then dragons were born) making them a progenitors of all drakonic mortal races. In the end their attempts ended with failure, with most of the few surviving ancient dragons disappearing from the world through combat, while the rest in most cases succesfully Ascended, giving birth to various dragon deities and demons.
The last known surviving ancient dragons were Volkhar the Incendiary and Volund the Firewing. While the curse of Kashya weakened overtime, they were both males, with last female dying approximately in early Preimperial Era. While Volund did managed to have several children with her, they, too, were all males. With Volkhar slain by Falon the Conqueror, with archdemon Hzahrik taking over Mount Crematorium and killing Volund's offsprings (with Firewing sacrificing himself to keep it bound in dungeons below), the species can be considered extinct.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Six limbs - four legs and two massive wings. Covered in scales much tougher than steel, with hardness equaling titanium (while being notably lighter). Their whole body was in fact much lighter, capable of using raw aether in air to lowering its own weight, which was the only reasong they could fly.
Genetics and Reproduction
Ancient dragons reproduced by females laying eggs, then fertilized by the males. The ancient dragons as a whole were a specie heavily divided - with subvariants like fire dragons (then not called ancient dragons but just dragons), ice dragons, and so on. The subvariants were unable to crossbreed. Their eggs also required completely different habitats to succesfully hatch, with for example fire dragons laying eggs in places hot (for example deserts or volcanoes).
Growth Rate & Stages
Dragons could live forever, never ceasing to grow, with the biggest having lenght measured in kilometers. Their growth was ceaseless, but its exact speed was based mainly on the ammount of food the dragon could gather, and could vary heavily.
Ecology and Habitats
Ancient dragons created their lairs in a places that could be inhabited by other races, that were to become their servants, each ancient dragon basically a living deity of his/her people.
Such lairs were surrounded by vast areas of primordial forests and jungles, where ancient dragons hunted the megabeast of that long forgotten area. While much more nutritious than typical meat, they still needed a quite big intake if they were to survive (not to mention growing further).
Dietary Needs and Habits
Meat. And lots of it. The number required to ensure their survival and further growth was one of the reasons of dragons settling and creating cities around them - the cities produced regular offerings of meat to ensure that their 'dragon-god' grows in powers and can continue to protect them from harm.
The best meat was, off course, one aetherwarped, as it possesed much bigger nutrition value, however with the strenght of beasts that it could be harvested from their main source was dragons own hunting.
Additional Information
Uses, Products & Exploitation
It is believed that their scales, bones and intestines are of next to unmeasureable value in alchemy and crafting, with last known dragon - Volkar the Incendiary - used to craft armors of karadian emperors' personal bodyguard, known to be nearly weightless and practically impenetrable.
Average Intelligence
Very intelligent, sentient and capable of speech. Used to lord over inferior species as not only the strongest beings around but also the wisest.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Eyes and hearing extraordinary, also possesing ability to detect heatsources similar to snakes. They were also naturally capable of feeling and identifying magic power, with even the weakest of them detecting weakest of spells from many kilometers while immediately understanding what sort of magic that was.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
It is believed that each subspecies had its own, 'private' letter its members used to start their names. For example, 'V' belonging to fire dragons (with Volkar and Volund being examples).
Major Organizations
Beauty Ideals
If their descendant high dragons can be considered an example, rather than to the beauty they were drawn to another things, like strenght, magical prowess and power. Exact details are, however, unknown.
Courtship Ideals
it is believed that they used to duel their to-be-spouses as a part of some sourt of mating ritual. It served to show off their strenght and established who was the stronger in the pair, with both sides fully capable of refusing the relationships if during the fight they came to believe the opposing side was... unsatisfactory.
Relationship Ideals
Rather than wifes/husbands they had mates, in most cases temporary, ending after the eggs hatched and united by the need to protect them.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Dragon Speech, wedge language that could be sculpted with their claws on stone surfaces.
Historical Figures
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Considered all others to be inferior to them, while also believing it is their 'job' to lead and protect them in exchange for offerings.
EXTINCT
Genetic Descendants
Lifespan
Infinite
Average Height
From 0,5m to 1km.
Average Weight
From 50kg to several hundreds tonnes (their power to supress their own weight allowed them to fly even then).
Average Length
From 1m to 5-6km.
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