Dragons (Beasts)

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Revision as of 07:05, 9 January 2008

Occasionally, nature itself could manage to outperform even the greatest engineers of the First Age. The riding dragons came about due to such a feat, though the Exalted have molded them into creatures of surprising effectiveness in an offbeat field.

Origin

First Age scientists theorized that the base race of flying dragon came about when the breeding ground of a group of river dragons dried up, while managing to cut off travel to other water sources. Whether by Wyld mutation, Primordial tinkering, or simple evolution the dragons lost their aquatic traits and instead gained ones suited to the wide canyons and near-vertical sloops. Strong, sharp claws let them cling to walls, while wings evolved from the flipper-paws. The dragons would use the massive air currents much as smaller raptors did, and would swoop down on their prey, which had adapted to live in the bottoms and walls of the canyon.

It was shortly after the Primordial War that expedition teams, tasked with charting the whole of Creation, first came upon the beasts. Named after the powerful elementals that they bore resemblance to, they were curiosities until one group of Genesis crafters began working with them. The final result were five distinct breeds of dragons, each aligned with a particular element. The dragons were typically more intelligent than their feral forebears, and could easily take off from the ground under their own power. These beast would serve as mounts for the Dragonblooded; with their elemental affinities they could easily weather the effects of Terrestrial anima flares, and their unique breath attacks bolstered their combat prowress.

Usurpation and Second Age

Sadly, most of these majestic beasts were slain in combat during the Usurpation. Many survived this and even the Contagion and Invasion. However, the one force they could not reckon was that of the Immaculate Order. The Order considered the dragons to be idolatry of the Immaculate Dragons. Not to mention the sacrilege of forcing a "dragon" to act as a submissive mount to the Exalted. Thus, dragons are a rare sight in the wild and the denizens of Creation consider them to be legends, much as the mythical Sun Anathema that haven't shown their faces in nearly a millenia.

However, the Souls of Gaia did much to protect the dragons, and continue to use them for their original purpose, much to the chagrin of Immaculate supporters...

Names: Northern Clouds, Eastern Vines, Southern Embers, Western Typhoons, and Central Crags
Breath: A natural, flurryable attack with +1 accuracy, 6L damage and a range of 10 yards, Rate 2