Dragon

Dragons are powerful creatures native to Gaion. They are among the oldest extant animal species in the world, being one of the few modern creatures that survived the Gaioforce Extinction.  

The Primal Era

  Prehistoric dragons originated sometime during the Ag, presumably alongside the other giant reptiles and monsters of the prehistoric world. They most likely thrived at the top of the food chain, and like other predators of the time, would have come into heavy conflict with (and possibly preyed on) monsters. Dragons gained an edge over other species by connecting to the primordial magic of Gaion. Dragons adapted to their biomes and their magic by branching off into distinct species as listed below. They evolved as solitary creates at first, but through evolution became more sentient and interactive with their own kind (beyond territorial disputes and primal urges).

• Infernal Dragons (Red to Brown) - Inhabit volcanic hotspots and gained an innate connection with infernal fire & geothermal forces. Known for immense power over fire and dominion over volcanic activity, creating storms of fire and volcanic eruptions wherever they please. Chaotic Evil, native to Thagoros & Vulsemar.
• Storm Dragons (Light to Dark Blue) - Inhabit tall mountains and gained an innate connection with lightning & the primordial skies. Known for creating powerful storms with terrible lighting and gusts of wind capable of destroying cities. Chaotic Good, Neutral, or Evil, native to Hythenos & Vulsemar.
• Solar Dragons (Golden Yellow to Solid Orange) - Inhabit deserts, islands, and the skies where the sun shines the longest. These dragons have an innate connection with the solar fire and the sun; they can bring intense drought to the regions they choose. However, they do not use this power lightly, and are generally Lawful Good or Neutral, native to Dalterra, Thagoria & Vulsemar. DnD Attacks: Bite, Claws, Fire Breath, Solar Lightning Breath, Solar Flap (legendary action)
• Forest Dragons (Green to Light Purple) - Inhabit forests and jungles. They have an innate connection with poison & biomancy. Known for their cunning behavior and ranged alignments, as well as their supreme intelligence and arcane understanding. Lawful Good, Neutral, & Evil, native to Dalterra, Thagoria & Vulsemar.
• Reaper Dragons (Dark Green and Purple to Black) - Inhabit dense swamps, dark forests, dank caves, and barren plains. They have an innate connection with acid & necromancy. These dragons are known for their cruel, sadistic nature, and control over acidic matter. Chaotic Evil, native to Thagoros & Vulsemar
• Arctic Dragons (White to Light Grey) - Inhabit arctic tundras and icy mountain ranges. They have an innate connection with cold. Known for being vicious and beastial, rather than intelligent like the other dragons. Chaotic Neutral or Evil, native to Cyregnor & Vulsemar.

Over time, as the Elder Gods displayed stronger acts of sentience, dragons and a select few prehistoric races delevoped sentient minds as well. Dragons are the only sentients that survived the Gaioforce Extinction, and worshipped the Elder & Titan Gods in their early years.

The Draconic Era

  After the Gaioforce Extinction, which wiped out dinosaurs across the world (except for Vulsemar) and most other prehistoric creatures that competed with dragons, the first sentient beasts took near-unparalleled domain over the globe.
Throughout the Draconic Era, many dragons were revered as gods or reviled as monsters. These splits in beliefs led many lands adopting dragons as their deities (especially amongst humans and orcs), swearing loyalty to specific dragons. As dragons grew smarter, they saw this as an opportunity for power. They gifted their most devout followers with essence of their draconic power, creating the first Dragonborns.
Over time, the Dragonborn societies became lustful for power themselves, believing that the world should heed to the greatness of their gods. While accounts for how the wars started are scarce or contradictory throughout draconic lore, it is generally believed that the Dragonborn of the orc and human societies banded together to form the largest Dragonborn army in history. They communicated with dragons across the world to coordinate their first strikes, utilizing the evolved dragons to great advantage over their primitive race counterparts. It is believed that the Tundra and Magma Giants became allies with the dragons, thus joining the conquest in exchange for sovereignty in the new world.
The results were catastrophic. Draconic lore depicts orc strongholds burned to the ground by Volcanic Dragons and their Dragonborn followers, Northern human settlements frozen to death in large blizzards by the Arctic Dragons while their Tundra Giant allies consumed anyone they found. The Woods of Faelaris reeked of poisonous gases conjured by the Wooded Dragons that Wood Elves and other forms of life suffered heavily to. Storm Dragons ravaged the early Sun Elf civilizations with thunderstorms and hurricanes, leading many of them to migrate once again. These elves travelled solely by night to avoid the wandering eyes of draconic patrols, becoming the first Moon Elves.
While it is not known how much land the dragons directly controlled before the tide was turned, it is believed that they had free reign over Gaion and could fly/send their armies wherever they wished. As major civilizations fell, smaller societies submitted to draconic rule to avoid destruction. To even the tide during the war, Auvori fathered children across his chosen mortal races (Humans, Wood Elves, Sun Elves, and some minor races) to create demigods, those who would fight to protect their home nations. Seeing the blatant power play, Denothis followed suit, fathering children amongst the Orcs, Moon Elves, Giants, and some minor races.   See "The Ascension of the Gods" for details on how the gods rose to power and how they defeated the dragons, ending the Draconic Wars.

Mortal Dragons

  The following species of dragons are known to inhabit Gaion's mortal plane:

• Infernal Dragons (Red to Brown) - Inhabit volcanic hotspots and gained an innate connection with Rouzhai & Pluronis, as well as fire & geothermal magic. Known for immense power over fire and dominion over volcanic activity, creating storms of fire and volcanic eruptions wherever they please. Chaotic Evil, native to Thagoros & Vulsemar.
• Storm Dragons (Light to Dark Blue) - Inhabit tall mountains and gained an innate connection with Goultani and Sky magic. Known for creating powerful storms with terrible lighting and gusts of wind capable of destroying cities. Chaotic Good, Neutral, or Evil, native to Hythenos.
• Solar Dragons (Golden Yellow to Solid Orange) - Inhabit deserts, islands, and the skies where the sun shines the longest. These dragons have an innate connection with Goultani magic and are known to bring intense drought to the regions they choose. However, they do not use this power lightly, and are generally Lawful Good or Neutral, native to Dalterra. DnD Attacks: Bite, Claws, Fire Breath, Solar Lightning Breath, Solar Flap (legendary action)
• Forest Dragons (Green to Light Purple) - Inhabit forests and jungles. They have an innate connection with Waria and Organic magic. Known for their cunning behavior and ranged alignments, as well as their supreme intelligence and arcane understanding. Lawful Good, Neutral, & Evil.
• Reaper Dragons (Dark Green and Purple to Black) - Inhabit dense swamps, dark forests, dank caves, and barren plains. They have an innate connection with Pluronis and Necrotic magic. These dragons are known for their cruel, sadistic nature, mastery of Necromancy, and control over acid/toxic sludge. Chaotic Evil, native to Thagoros & Vulsemar
• Arctic Dragons (White to Light Grey) - Inhabit arctic tundras and icy mountain ranges. They have an innate connection with Blaidrin & Cold magic. Known for being vicious and beastial, rather than intelligent like the other dragons. Chaotic Neutral or Evil, native to Cyregnor & Vulsemar.
• Sand Dragon - wingless Brass Dragon (DnD monster). Native to Dalterra, Thagoros & Vulsemar.
• Coast Dragon - semi-aquatic Bronze dragon (DnD monster). Coast Dragons inhabit islands, coastlines & shallow oceans as solitary beings, sharing the hermit lifestyle with their Dragon Turtle & Storm Giant peers.
• Freshwater Dragon - wingless semi-aquatic Gold Dragon, breathes blue fire and can control the waters in their domain. These creatures remain Lawful Good & Neutral, and are often sought after for wisdom or act as direct patriachs/matriarchs towards small waterside societies.

Interplanar Dragons

  In addition to the dragons that roam the mortal plane, various dimensional tears between Gaion and the Five Realms were littered throughout the mortal world, allowing some dragons to venture to Dakia. Some sages and scientists believe that when Denothis crossed over to Dakia and took his monsters with him, the dragon that previously hunted monsters followed, leading two species of Dakian Dragons to develop. Dakian Dragons are untamable by mortals and most monsters, only being tamed by gods and powerful demons/devils.

• Bloodfire Dragons (Black with Dark Red Veins)- The Infernal & Reaper Dragons that fled to the Thugoran Chaos during & after the Gigadragonomy. The most ferocious of the Dakian dragons, these creatures are larger than Volcanic Dragons and proportionally as strong. They have claws and spikes all over their bodies, and their scales are harder than any metal found on the mortal plane. These dragons have evolved through the Dakian magic around them to predate the powerful monsters of the realm. They are the original users of Bloodfire magic, channeling it through its devastating breath. Because of this, these dragons are considered to be the most powerful draconic beings to exist in Gaion's history. They draw Dakian power from the blood of their kills, viciously tearing through its victims to cause sadistic agony. Bloodfire Dragons are less intelligent due to their monstrous nature. Despite this, only incredibly powerful gods and demons have proven capable of taming these beasts to their will, the most notable being Thatos .
• Shadow Dragons (Black with Dark Grey Skull/Top Jaw)- The Infernal & Reaper Dragons that fled to Darthalheim during & after the Gigadragonomy. A terrifying presence, with a head representing a skull, two horns on its head and two on its jaw, and glowing purple eyes, this creature is a pure being of skeletal death. Necrotic Dragons feed on the souls of the underworld, animals and sentient races alike. It breaths purple fire of burning souls, which can be heard screaming as they are incinerated. They have an innate connection to Necromancy, allowing them to raise and command the undead and achieve immortality from feeding off of souls, presumably among other unknown necrotic powers.
• Aqui Dragons (Light to Dark Blue with fins for wings) - Deepsea Dragons that fled to the Ominoid Seas during & after the Gigadragonomy. Deepsea Dragons were once evolved to inhabit Gaion's oceans, but were driven to mortal exinction by the seafolk & Akana's pantheon. These dragons were replaced by the Dragon Turtles, whose isolated nature led to less conflict with the seafolk.
• Celestial Dragons (Gold & Orange to Blue with angelic/glittering wings) - Solar & Storm Dragons that fled to the Skies of Hytheria during & after the Gigadragonomy.
• Fey Dragons (Green & variable colors with fey/nature features in their wings & structure) - Forest & Reaper Dragons that fled to the Aurovian Wilds during & after the Gigadragonomy.

Other Dragons/Draconic Creatures

Extinct Dragons & Greater Draconic Creatures

• Deepsea Dragon (extinct) - fully-aquatic Silver dragon (DnD monster), wings evolved to fins. Extinct in the mortal realm, replaced by Dragon Turtles in far fewer numbers.
• Dragon Turtles

Wyverns

• Infernal Wyvern - stinger deals fire damage
• Solar Wyvern - stinger deals radiant damage
• Storm Wyvern - stinger deals lightning damage
• Frost Wyvern - stinger deals cold damage
• Forest Wyvern - stinger deals poison damage
• Reaper Wyvern - stinger deals acid damage
• Shadow Wyvern (Darthalheim) - stinger deals necrotic damage

Drakes

• Infernal Drake - charge attack deals fire damage
• Solar Drake - charge attack deals radiant damage
• Storm Drake - charge attack deals lightning damage
• Frost Drake - charge attack deals cold damage
• Forest Drake - charge attack deals poison damage
• Reaper Drake - charge attack deals acid damage

The Divine Era

  After the Draconic Wars, dragons mostly abandoned their Dragonborn followers, who were ferociously hunted by the forces of Hytheron and Thatos. However, while Thatos completely wiped out the Orc Dragonborn, Hytheron chose to bring their society to near extinction, rather than kill them. He then forced the few pockets of Dragonborn left to swear loyatly to him, or risk being destroyed by his storms. Most Dragonborn submitted, but some refused to denounce their draconic overlords and either went into hiding or were killed.   Dragonborn continued to be a rare species on Gaion, but the ones who submitted to Hytheron eventually found a place in human society. As general outcasts, they served as mercenaries and soldiers in Hytheron's military. Dragons, on the other hand, chose to return to their isolated lifestyles and remained powerful forces in their respective corners of the world, never attempting mass conquest or additional war against the gods. Some dragons were even forced into servitude by the gods as punishment for their crimes, the most notable being Zathor (Storm Dragon bent to the will of Hytheron as his mount) and Drainoth (Volcanic Dragon bent to the will of Thatos as his mount).   Over time, other dragons were known to openly worship the gods, such as Wooded Dragons serving Sina and Arctic Dragons serving Cyr. Dragons that served Arcian Gods became more benevolent, while dragons serving Dakian Gods acted as malevolent forces of evil. The dragon species worshipped the gods in the following manner:  

• Volcanic Dragons served Vulca and Thatos and were chaotically evil
• Storm Dragons served Hytheron and his children, and were neutral or chaotically good
• Wooded Dragons served either Sina or other woodland spirits, and ranged from lawfully good to lawfully evil depending on their respective deities
• Arctic Dragons served Cyr and were mostly neutral evil
• Bloodfire Dragons are chaotically evil due to their lives in Dakia and were more monstrous rather than religious, but many serve Thatos since they share the same magic power source (Bloodfire). These dragons willingly followed Thatos in any battle he wished, as it came with the promise of near endless kills. They would also serve high power demons and dark beings if the promise of kills was good.
• Soulfire Dragons are chaotically evil due to their lives in Dakia, but their reputation as necrotic beings led most beings to stay clear of them. As a result, the only god these dragons worshipped (at the time) was Denothis.

Other Stuff

  Social Hierarchy amongst Vulsemar reptilians •Dragons (top, almost god-like) •Dragonborn •Lizardfolk, Yuan-Ti •Kobolds   Precautions amongst Nations   After the Age of Dragons ended and the Gods took domain of the world, each nation developed their own branches of military specifically for hunting and combating dragons. These branches were different for each nation, as their dragons were specifically evolved to their environment:.   •The Dragonbone Clan (orc military division to combat Infernal Dragons) •Wooded Sentinels (elf mage/warrior group to defend against Wooded Dragons if necessary, but otherwise keep the peace) •Arctic Stalkers (Naelin mage group to combat and tame Arctic Dragons) •Stormriders (human military division to combat and tame Storm Dragons)


Dragon additions Due to the Gigadragonomy, dragons are mostly limited to Vulsemar, the eastern/unpopulated edges of Thagoron, and the scattered wastes of Cyregnor. Other than that, dragons are incredibly rare usually hiding out as: 1. matrons/patrons to a particular humanoid society (such as Gothicca and other benevolent Forest, Storm, Solar or River Dragons), or 2. societal influencers/behind the scenes manipulators (malevolent Forest, Storm & Solar Dragons)   Due to their alignments & personalities, Infernal, Frost, Reaper & Terra Dragons do not influence humanoid societies this way; they either subjugate or terrorize them. Leviathans (Sea Dragons) typically have a similar relationship to undersea societies, but can occasionally be benevolent.
  Draconic Worship (worship can generally be counted towards the Old God’s entire pantheon) [partially non-canon] 1. Infernal Dragons - Maku (Age of Monsters and Age of Primal Gods), Thatos   2. Storm Dragons - Orva (Age of Monsters and Age of Primal Gods), Hytheron   3. Solar Dragons - Orva (Age of Monsters and Age of Primal Gods), Dahli   4. Forest Dragons - Gathon (Age of Monsters and Age of Primal Gods), Syna   5. Swamp Dragons - Gathon (Age of Monsters and Age of Primal Gods), Naela   6. Frost Dragons - Gathon (Age of Monsters and Age of Primal Gods), Cyr   7. Bloodfire Dragons - Thatos   8. Necrotic Dragons - None (formerly Denothis)       The Gigadragonomy [partially canon]   1. Orva and the Solar/Storm Dragons vs. Hytheron & Man 2. Waryuk vs. Akana & Seafolk 3. Gathon vs. Vulca & Giants 4. Maku and the Infernal Dragons vs. Thatos & Orcs 5. Cyr vs. Dahli   Outcome   1. Victory to the gods, gained dominion of the mortal plane 2. Imprisonment of Waryuk deep beneath the sea 3. Imprisonment of Maku in Dakia 4. Imprisonment of Cyr in Arcia 3. Deaths of Gathon & Orva 4. Discovery of all 6 Gaiostones       Miscellaneous   Chosen by the Titan Gods to carry the Primordial Elements. Before Dragonborn, sentient elementals that fell under that elemental blanket often followed the dragons, second to the Titan Gods or their titanic children.   In the final years of the Gigadragonomy, after the deaths of the Wyrmkings and the gods’ offensive to push the dragons back to Vulsemar, some dragons used their innate magic to create portals to their elemental dimensions, flee the mortal realm for a better life amongst the immortals. 1. Storm & Solar Dragons escaped to Hytheria, twisting into Sky Wyrms (hybrid celestial/dragon), controlling air, lightning & solar fire & light 2. Forest Dragons escaped to Aurofae, twisting into Faerie Wyrms (hybrid fey/dragon), controlling life, nature & poison magic alike. 3. Infernal Dragons escaped to Thugora, twisting into Demodragons (hybrid fiend/dragon), native to the Chaos and Hell alike. Controls infernal fire & volcanism. 4. Reaper Dragons escaped to Darthalheim, twisting into Death Wyrms (hybrid undead/dragon), apex soul predators in the Underworld that control death, unlife & acidic magic. 5. Sea Dragons escaped to Ominor, twisting into Aquidrakes (hybrid aberration/dragon), controlling water & dark matter. They are the most aberrant dragons of the bunch, taking on the form of various eldritch horrors. The remaining Sea Dragons were hunted to near exinction, with a few surviving as deep-sea leviathans and the others evolved into Dragon Turtles or Coast Dragons. River Dragons evolved from these Coast Dragons. 6. Terra Dragons escaped to Aurofae, twisting into Stone Wyrms. This replaces their breath weapon with Petrifying Breath (replace acid breath for this on the statblock).  

Dragon stuff to incorporate into this article

  General Steps to refining the article: 1. Consult handwritten notes on dragon worldbuilding (throw them out after doing so) 2. Detail their prehistoric origins, worship of Gaios & the Titan Gods, reign over the world before & during the Gigadragonomy, their development of Vulsemar, how they ensured their survival during the Elder Wars & their role in the modern world. 3. Make statblocks for the draconic subclasses you came up with (see below) 4. Finish the Draconic spell list with Gaioforce spells that deal each respective damage type, should they be appropriately primal   Draconic Subclasses   1. Sorcerer: Draconic Bloodline. You get access to the Draconic spell list for your Draconic ancestry.   2. Warlock: The Dragon. A mortal creature can be granted power from a Legendary Dragon (including the Wyrmkings) or especially powerful ancient dragon. •Level 1: Expanded Draconic Spell List for your patron’s Draconic element (Fire, cold, lightning, acid & poison). •Level 1: Wyrm’s Blessing. You can add your Charisma modifier to the damage of cantrips & spells dealing your patron’s draconic element. •Level 6: Wyrm’s Resilience. You have damage resistance to your patron’s draconic element. •Level 10: Dragonflesh: You have an AC of 13 + Dexterity modifier when you aren’t wearing armor, taking on a scaly-hardness to your exterior. In addition, you have advantage on saving throws against your patron’s damage type or concentration saving throws to maintain spells dealing your patron’s damage type. •Level 14: Wyrm’s Avatar: Once per day, you can use your Action to transform into an adult dragon matching the type of your patron for a number of rounds equal to 1+your Charisma modifier. In addition, you can swap out one of your Mystic Arcanums for a Breath Weapon spell once per level up, replacing the formerly occupied Mystic Arcanum with another spell from your spell list. •Eldritch Invocations: Dragon Wings (level 14)  

Other Facts

  Madrakor Write a character article for Madrakor, the ancient Reaper Dracolich that ruled large swaths of Vulsemar before finally being destroyed a couple centuries before the main series.     Differences between draconic bloodline sorcerers & draconic warlocks   1. Draconic warlocks can use powerful abilities such as transforming into a dragon (high level subclass ability) and using Dragon Breath (scaling subclass ability). 2. Many of the Draconic sorcerer abilities (Draconic resilience, dragon wings, Draconic presence) are available as class abilities or invocations. 3. Draconic warlocks have unfettered access to the Draconic spell list matching their patron, whereas Draconic sorcerers do not     Draconic presence in the other continents   The Wyrm Migration   After the Elder Wars, the gods had no direct methods to keep the dragons from re-entering the lands they once terrorized. However, with societies armed with arcane magic and any remaining magical defenses from the Elder Wars, these lands proved much harder for dragons to conquer. That did not stop some from soaring across the oceans to try reclaiming what they once had, with variable results:   1. Thagoria: Being the closest to Vulsemar, many Storm, Solar, Infernal, Forest & Reaper Dragons resettled in the area, though they were actively hunted for glory by the war-mongering societies of the continent. This left them to be mostly pushed to the remote regions, unable to truly conquer humanoid society on a large scale. These dragons did hold power over isolated settlements, continuing to do so unless slain by ambitious adventuring parties.   2. Dalterra: Only Storm, Solar & Forest Dragons dared to cross the seas for these lands. With successful repulsions from the dominant societies of the continent, however, Storm & Solar Dragons were forced to war for remote pockets of desert, while Forest Dragons isolated themselves deep within the remote woods of the continent. Forest Dragons disguised themselves or remained hidden while pitting elven & gnomish factions against each other (political intrigue & deceptions), while Storm Dragons forged their own pawns/militias to wage war against desert-locked/bordered societies.   3. Hythenos: Only Storm & Solar Dragons dared to cross the seas for these lands. With successful repulsions from the dominant societies of the continent, however, Storm & Solar Dragons were either driven from these lands, wiped out, or captured for experimentation/study by humans and dwarves alike.   4. Cyregnor: Only Frost Dragons entered these domains, competing with Frost Giants for territory. Gorofax the Blizzard King, a legendary Frost Dragon, dominated most of these dragons, but they mostly lived as isolated hunters.   5. Infernal Dragons preferred the volcanic lands of Thagoria & Vulsemar over those within Dalterra or Hythenos, but some raided Western Hythenos only to be killed, repelled or captured by the dwarves.