Name: Dundurth

Age: 105

Gender: Male

Dragon Appearance: Stoic and tall, he carries himself with his head up and chest arched at a height just shy of 10ft. When including his tail, which is barren of any garnish or spikes, his length reaches 15ft. Instead of the spikes most other dragons yield, he is donned with the large ivory ram horns associated with his breed as well as two lines of plates on his back and underbelly that run from the top of his neck to his hips. Then as the dull maroon plates on top are blended into the leathery texture of his legs and tail with petal-shaped scales, the silver and gold plates underneath continue along the bottom of his tail to further shield his underside. The structure of his torso and legs are similar to a tiger’s, apart from the dark elongated paw pads and the thicker claws extending from his toes, built to deliver powerful blows.

Human Appearance: He stands at 6’5, rectangular in form, average in build. His head amounts to a healthy dark brown straight hair cutting off around his forehead, angular eyebrows with big angular brown eyes to suit, two stiffs of hair under his nose constituting as a mustache and a beard weaved into one braid. If anything else were to stand out about him it would be his hands, palms big enough to cover the face of a rabbit and fingers thick enough to balance two gold coins stacked on top one another. Back in his homeland his clothing was especially meant to blend in with the peasantry, donning simple clothes made of wool and boarhide. However as life goes on he might start to take on more vibrant, elaborate clothing.

Personality Traits: Righteous, Prideful, Good-willed, Naive

From the customs imprinted on him throughout his life, Dundurth grew up to have the black and white mentality of a soldier: disciplined and respectful to those alongside him, devoted to those above him, merciless to those against him. This mentality shows prominently in his behavior, remaining humble in interactions with strangers and friends but not always considerate as he settles on one task at a time without regard to much else. Alongside this he has the tendency to submit to stronger dragons that seem to align with ideals of equity and righteousness, this loyalty dropping at the drop of a dime if they ever play dirty; he opts for fair fights between warriors rather than deceptive mind games or rounds of cat and mouse. At times however, something arises that tempts him to deviate from the honor code ingrained in his subconscious, gnawing away at its influence. In the past the reasons mainly stemmed from his lust for glory. A lover for eyes staring in awe of his deeds, the promise of glory and recognition paired with valor fuels the inner ego within him. Though he did his best not to seem vain and selfish as that was not a good look on anyone, he was always more inclined to test his odds if it meant compliments.

Having only lived on the southern islands and seen few dragons that deviate from them, his bloodline is naive to the cultures found on the rest of the continent. To try to counter this inexperience and abide by his given mission, he seeks to learn more about the world and the other inhabitants he shares it with, starting with the stories they tell. It's possible that in the future his experience in travelling could wear away what his home culture has taught him and reveal more of his true nature.

Magic/Abilities: Unlike many island-based dragons, his species adapted to take on powers relating to the earth and remained wingless. Despite this all dragons in his bloodline can take to the sky through the radiating magic on the soles of their feet, which allow them to ‘gallop’ through the air and maneuver just as they would on the ground. They’re able to match the same- possibly better agility than they have on land, however any missteps or trips could result in them falling out of the sky which is why they’re less inclined to be reckless while on air.

Dundurth’s own magic centers around heat, capable of breathing fire like many other dragons yet he’s able to heat his body up to about 300 degrees Celsius without causing any severe damage. Not only does this allow him to sear anyone who comes in contact with his skin at the wrong moment, but he recently realized that it gives an extra surge of concentrated firepower to his breath, unleashing a powerful laser that has caused great destruction in the past. While he does have magic in human form it´s considerably limited, only capable of heating the palms of his hands. Though it still helps since he is not as adept in the martial arts or weapon training as those back at home, usually resorting to the grapples, throws and palm strikes that mimic his feral fighting style in dragon form. Lastly he’s able to withstand temperatures up to 600 degrees Celsius in both forms, steam streaming from his skin as magic deflects the excess heat.

History: A wounded dragon, weak and exhausted, was soon to meet death much too early. Yet he was approached by an empathic man who had once been on the verge of death as well. The man took him into the vast emptiness of the sea, to an island that housed the man’s own family hidden away in the deep forage surrounding the mountain. There they cared for the dragon’s wounds until he gathered enough strength to stand, continued caring for him until he gathered enough strength to walk, and when he had gathered enough strength to leave they bid him farewell. Touched by the man’s selfless actions, the dragon watched over the man high in the mountaintop. Several months later the family was attacked by a wild boar which threatened to kill the man. And as the boar was about to finish him, the dragon descended from the mountain and in one powerful smack swatted the boar away, sending it flying and running back into the woods.

This tale has become the baseline for the way of life on Hayermeda island. Deemed ‘Guardians’ by what is now Hayermeda’s village, the ever elusive dragons only reveal themselves in times of danger, protecting the village from those that wish to cause harm. However their presence is always looming, shrouded by fog where they stalk in the coverage of the forest. Their proud stature demanded respect from all inhabitants residing within Hayermeda, and in turn respect was given. The people didn’t inch any further with the territories of the dragons that overtook the north half of Hayermeda, leaving said territories as safe havens for magical creatures both native and foreign. In perpetuating the Legend of the Wounded Dragon through acts of subtle intimidation and dramatic heroics, the guardians have managed to maintain peace in their small piece of the world.

As the nations of humankind began to grow around them however, the number of newborn guardians were decreasing year after year. Alongside the decrease of guardians came a decrease in faith. Faith in the legend that the dragons were meant to protect them as the onslaught of foreign merchants over the centuries diminished its strength with their own draconic rumors and tales from their lands. And thus Dundurth’s training began earlier than the previous generations in order to keep up the fragile peace between humans and magical creatures within the island. Along with the rest of his sisters and brothers he learned the basic principles of their role and how to properly carry it out, honing his skills in the claws, bite and brutal charge either meant to intimidate or if all other means failed, to kill. Though it took him longer than his siblings to realize his magic affinity, it wouldn’t take long for the signs to show: The footsteps imprinted on charred rock, the streams of steam flowing from underneath his scales, the burning forage he’d desperately try to put out before anyone noticed. He was proving to be more of a clumsy nuisance as the days went, and a dangerous one at that. It came to the point where he was held back from visiting the base of the mountain in fear that he might be tracked.

When he finally gained better control over his heat, his parents were quickly approaching the last years of their lives. It was only a matter of time, considering they have been keeping up the status quo diligently for the last 3 centuries. They trusted that their last cluster of children would be able to uphold their legacy, and their descendants made the promise to honor that trust. So by the time they took their last breaths, they’ve taken to their obligations as soon as they could. Some took on the lives of humans to live on as vigilantes while others kept within the territory and kept humans from wandering too far up the mountain and too deep into the forest. Dundurth kept to the outskirts of the island with two of his best brothers: Torrance and Tormier. Together they patrolled the perimeter of the island, preventing blood from spilling before it ever had the chance to. Little did they actually travel through Hayermeda’s village as they felt proud to stride as the towering dragons in the forest and bath in what they perceived as admiration from the humans. If they were to go they could only go in the village as inconspicuous no-names, only interacting if any trouble was to stir and then immediately disappearing.

By the 104th year of his life, life at home became much more restless. With work divided amongst the dwindling dragons to protect both magical creatures and human, the humans were pushing into the territories where the fae were supposed to be kept safe. In turn, creatures are becoming distressed and fearful which has resulted in humans getting harmed. And in turn, the humans pushed even further than before. The pressure of the situation had weighed down on his eldest sister Alsandare the most; being the new leader of the family she became prone to carrying responsibility for all that happens on the island, building a burden in her mind that fueled her temper. No one intervened when she unleashed it against her siblings, being part of an unspoken code not to resist from the leader’s judgement. Hope diminished that they could gain control over the direction the humans moved, and it became evident that the lesson in the legend was not only forgotten within the humans but within the guardians themselves.

Yet Dundurth remained hopeful that they could still keep harmony within Hayermeda, proposing an idea to help ease the tensions between all parties. He aimed to rekindle faith in an indirect approach, patrolling closer to the village in dragon form and letting them realize that they were to value them and the other creatures. She didn’t like the idea since only a few would be able to get close as to not arouse suspicion of their sentience, and it would have to be done in a way that seemed natural. Though at this point Alsandare was willing to test anything that could result in reclaiming a calmer life. So the dragons that were already patrolling the area edged closer to the humans. The plan went in motion for the next few days, though they were unsure if it was actually working as intended. Then when nightfall fell, a grand opportunity exposed itself in the form of a big boar moving towards the village. A quick roar would’ve scared it away, but it was too good of an opportunity not to exploit. They let the bear come into view and put on a brief show of theatrics, excited to relish in awe-inspired gazes and relinquish the lost respect. Everything was going swell: the people looked on as they snapped at the boar, pushing it around before allowing it to run off into the woods. Dundurth was to finish off the routine with the roar he was praised for as they chased after the boar and disappeared into the darkness. But instead of a mighty roar, out came a blinding laser which blew up the path of forest and chances of winning over the village’s hearts into flames. The people ran back in fear and panic. Helpless to salvage the progress they made, the only thing they could do was retreat back to the mountaintop and face the ever so generous wrath of their leader.

In the next moments, he was verbally beaten down by his sister in the presence of the rest of the clan. They sat with heads lowered while she screeched in rage, screaming that he killed their chances of ever regaining control. Whether it was true or not, no one dared to confront her about it. She was angry, outraged, but then out of nowhere, she grew quieter. Her face unnerved into a mix of unease and agitation, as if a thought lingering in the back of her mind reared its ugly head. A still minute passed before she stared him in the eyes and spoke again. ”Here’s how you can reclaim your dignity…” She gave him a set of demands that have never been spoken amongst the siblings before. Though he was hesitant as it meant the others would have to solve this worsening problem alone, he couldn’t back down from his sister. Not with the shame cutting into him. And so he raced across the sky high above the ocean, her orders resonating in his mind, ”...Head towards the north. Observe the state of the world, soak in all you can. Only then can you return to us.”

Name:
Droka

Age:
124

Gender:
Male

Dragon Appearance:


A relatively small dragon, Droka is only 8' tall with a 31' wingspan. While part of this is due to his relatively young age, the sad truth of the matter is that he was always somewhat of a runt when it came to his kind. Covered in beautiful obsidian scales that reflect light with a beautiful sheen to them, it is a point of pride for Droka that if he decides to sit down and stay very still for an extended period of time that he can (and has) been mistaken for an awe-inspiring piece of sculpture. There is a frill that travels from the top of his head to the tip of his tail that takes on a deep red color, contrasting beautifully with his black scales.

His eyes are black, a fact that often causes them to blend in with his scales and makes them hard for others to see or figure out what Droka is truly focusing on at a given moment.

Human Appearance:


Droke's human form is rarely seen by the naked eye these days. He looks like a somewhat older gentleman who has lived a life of not only having to make hard decisions and sacrifices, but who has also had plenty of time to consider the larger, daunting questions of life as well. It does still occasionally see use since, much like beggars and the mentally ill, few actively want to see him.



His preferred 'humanoid' form is the hybrid illusion that he has crafted for himself and uses in relation to his cult. Physically speaking by human standards he would be flawless and beautiful... however, 'human' standards go out the window due to the presence of his dragonic additions; The horns on his head that at a glance appear just to be hair sticking up, his clawed hands and the various scales that run along his body. While the effect is clearly inhuman, it still presents a majestic and awe inspiring visage.

Personality Traits:
Cunning, Manipulative, Long Seeing, Survivalist, Devote, Romantic, Prideful

Magic/Abilities:
A breather of fire and able to fly in his dragon form, Droka's real strengths as far as magic goes lays in illusions and rituals. While his illusionary magic tends to be more complex and powerful when he is in dragon form, he finds the enhanced ability to refine the details of ritual circles and runes that his humanoid form offers him to be a great boon.

History:
The dragon race was dying. It was a slow death that would take the course of generations to finally come about, but it was a death that was coming all the same. The signs were their and Droka's parents ensured that their son saw them and understood what they meant; Each generation less dragons were born and thus there would be less dragons to create a new generation to follow after them. The fact that there were more male dragons then female in his home region made it difficult to ignore the issue as the young drake matured and discussions turned to him making a family of his own.

Exactly why this was happening wasn't that well understood either. Some pointed to there being less of their numbers while others suggested that the ascension of humanity and their push back against magic and nature that was somehow the root of the problem. Regardless, the Masque was clearly not offering a long term solution and appeared content to continue the current state of affairs until there were no dragons left to govern.

So Droka spent a lot of his youth thinking of the issues facing his kind and what might be done to solve them. Aware that he was still a child in the eyes of his people, he offered his elders the respect they believed they were due and asked them for their wisdom and guidance about the world and what path he might walk in it, rarely reveling his actual thoughts while they were still in development. When he finally reached adulthood, he left his family behind as expected; He did not however, join in the fight to find a mate and make a family of his own through.

Instead he traveled north to Nihn to set the groundwork for his grand design. Slipping into one of the oldest settlements of the region, Droka quickly claimed one of the abandoned manors of the upper crust that had moved to the recently finished capital of Jorgun and got to work prepping the stage for his entrance into the society of the kingdom itself. He would spend decades exploring and learning about Nihn and its culture in order to tailor his approach to best win over the locals. When the time was deemed right, the building he had claimed for his plans exploded in a destructive surge of incredible magical power that was heard and seen all throughout the settlement, through the damage itself was limited solely to the estate in question.

When the locals came to investigate the wreckage and what caused it, they discovered Droka in a strange humanoid form... and he had quite the story to tell. He spoke of a simple hedge wizard who started to have visions of rituals and rites that were complex and unknown and beautiful to behold. Of a trance like state as he followed these visions to a location where they claimed the resources he needed could be found. Of the dazed like state in which he completed the final rune and triggered the surge of magic that ascended him beyond his former frail humanity and turned him into something far greater. And finally of a promise that, despite the knowledge of how he achieved the first step towards ascension had been misplaced or destroyed, with time and effort it could be done again...

The promises of power (both physical and magical) alongside a major extension of the length of their brief lives were temptations that few salesmen would have struggled to sell to humans and Droka proved a very good salesman. Before the night was over, he had already developed the groundwork for his grand innovation and established a cult following in Nihn dedicated to the goal of ascending humanity into dragons... through his followers were kept blind to the truth glory that he desired for them.

After a few years of establishing the cult to the point where he could leave for a period of time and it wouldn't unreval in his absence, now seemed like a good time to recruit other dragons to his cause to get more input and other magical talents in the project since those humans of Nihn both higher rank and stronger magical connections proved somewhat more... resistant to the dragons pitch then expected. Droka made a show of having a vision to go on pilgrimage south in order to 'Uncover ancient magical secrets of Huldern long abandoned and forgotten in Kaelis.. and to get the most answers from the trip as possible, he needed to go alone'. With a cover story in place, Droka has finally started to head back home.

Name: Nari
Age: 71
Gender: Female

Dragon appearance:
While in dragon form she has a 49 ft wingspan, is 65 ft in length and 18 ft in height.
She has a rigid face largely made up of bone, with large horns on the skull and large spikes covering the vertebrae. Together they form good protection to the spine.
she has a powerful jaw which is prominently used to snap bone and grab targets.
her teeth are slightly blunt while the incisor teeth are relatively small.

the arms are fitted with additional spikes on the elbows while the claws feature sharp talons.
The hind legs are fitted with similar talons.
On the tail end more spikes can be seen. they can give a tail-whip a concentrated force of impact, enabling them to cut materials when enough force is applied.
The body is overall muscular, sturdy and covered with tough scales. Its shape is rather generic, with a slightly increased body length because of the long tail.
Her small wingspan length, limits her flying capabilities and in order to compensate, the muscles are mostly made up of slow twitch muscle fibers, increasing total flight distance while further decreasing top speed and mobility including climb speed.

The joints and body structure do not allow for stationary flight motion.

human appearance:
her human appearance somewhat reflects her current age conversed into human standards, looking just a moments notice away from maturity.

personality traits
Shy, timid, reserved, polite, aloof, a bit deadpan.
description (wip)

Magic/abilities:
In dragon form she's able to spew fire, and has increased vitality and strength.
she's of relatively large size and has good mobility on land but limited mobility in mid-air.

Beside this she has the ability of Power bestowal and sharing.
The ability to transfer her strength and vitality with multiple individuals including other beings that aren´t dragons.
All power shared with others gets transferred and removed from the dragon.
Initial usage costs a lot of energy and time and the same applies when withdrawing the power that was initially lend out.

In human form her abilities manifest by increasing strength and vitality to a fraction of her dragon form. Enabling her to break metal and send humans flying, while swords have trouble slicing through flesh and are unable to sever bone.

History:
the province of Kaelis (wip)

Name: Nari
Age: 76
Gender: Female

Dragon appearance:
While in dragon form she has a 49 ft wingspan, is 65 ft in length and 18 ft in height.
She has a rigid face largely made up of bone, with large horns on the skull and large spikes covering the vertebrae. Together they form good protection to the spine.
she has a powerful jaw which is prominently used to snap bone and grab targets.
her teeth are slightly blunt while the incisor teeth are relatively small.

the arms are fitted with additional spikes on the elbows while the claws feature sharp talons.
The hind legs are fitted with similar talons.
On the tail end more spikes can be seen. they can give a tail-whip a concentrated force of impact, enabling them to cut materials when enough force is applied.
The body is overall muscular, sturdy and covered with tough scales. Its shape is rather generic, with a slightly increased body length because of the long tail.
Her small wingspan length, limits her flying capabilities and in order to compensate, the muscles are mostly made up of slow twitch muscle fibers, increasing total flight distance while further decreasing top speed and mobility including climb speed.

The joints and body structure do not allow for stationary flight motion.

human appearance:
Her human appearance somewhat reflects her current age conversed into human standards, looking right on the edge of maturity.
She's 5 ft tall and weighs 110 lbs.
She Has Dull reddish hair and ussually wears yellow or green commoner outfits.

personality traits
Shy, timid, reserved, polite, aloof, a bit deadpan.

description:
Her upbringing used to be strict and disciplined but when her parents got to know her, she was gradually given freewill.
She let smaller dragons boss her around and acted shy and docile.
She rarely opposed anyone and usually responded subjective toward friends and elders.
Along the few friends she had, she was reserved and occasionally responded with deadpan jokes and reactions.

When she got older she lived an uneventful ordinary live in the village, supporting her kind.
As her fellow dragons occasionally went out for business regarding tasks given by the masque, her family members sometimes went out as well.
She started to keep up with the news and what was going on around her living place, as she developed her sense duty for the wellbeing of dragons around the province.

Magic/abilities:
In dragon form she's able to spew fire, and has increased vitality and strength.
she's of relatively large size and has good mobility on land but limited mobility in mid-air.

Beside this she has the ability of Power bestowal and sharing.
The ability to transfer her strength and vitality with multiple individuals including other beings that aren´t dragons.
All power shared with others gets transferred and removed from the dragon.
Initial usage costs a lot of energy and time and the same applies when withdrawing the power that was initially lend out.

In human form her abilities manifest by increasing strength and vitality to a fraction of her dragon form. Enabling her to break metal and send humans flying, while swords have trouble slicing through flesh and are unable to sever bone.

History:
Nari was born in a village in the northwest of the province of Kaelis.
The village of Sunderburg lay at the edge of the large forests that covered most of the province.
in the north, large mountains and plains could be spotted behind the several hilltops close by.
The surroundings were a mixture of groves, rocky hills and creeks with a few small lakes as well.
There were orchards and many pastures spread out in the area while the closest town lay far to the south east.
The weather and climate were considered temperate with snowfall during the winters and plenty of green during the summer.

To the north and west were; hard to traverse hills and rocky terrain covered with undergrowth.
the village lay nearby the convergence point of the province kaelis and the other 2 nations, the empire of huldern and the kingdom of nihn.
the area was rather secluded and offered plenty of open space for dragons to stretch wings and to hunt for wildlife like wild goats and boars.

In this region the dragons lived in human form as well as in their natural form.
To adapt to what future society was appearing to look like all dragons in the clan were told to start living like humans while encouraging them to feed and stay fit in dragon forms.
The village had traders who set out to other nations to collect tools and cultural knowledge in order to learn from it and integrate it into their own.

Nari's breed was one of the prominent species in the village.
The breed now united under a clan and was known to be fierce and vigorous. They were involved in plenty of conflicts between other dragon species in the past. Most of which were territorial disputes.
The breed was especially differentiated for their high coherency. With their ability to empower their comrades with strength and vigor, They offered incredibly tough fighters able to withstand large amounts of blows.

As the dragons had to withdraw from their old homes and started working together during the great departure, their leading figures decided on settling the large border area in the north west while serving the masque in defending their territory when force was ever required.

Nari grew up in this area and didn’t turn out as one of the smaller ones either. In contrast she acted in no way as expected of her appearance.
Back from when she was young and even until later on she always preferred to let others slay her prey, she disliked having a squirming screeching animal in her jaws and couldn’t bring herself to kill anything, despite her imposing appearance.
She was a real oddball out and never took over her group's fighting spirit in spite of peer pressure.
However she was still loyal and greatly appreciated for her sense of responsibility and willingness to help her kind.

Addressing her inate abilities while in human form, she has not managed to gain them yet.
This will likely change in the near future.

Although most of her species live in sunderburg. Not all of them do.
Nari is currently in whistle hill to visit relatives who live there.