DRAGONS

Dragons are considered to be the greatest of all magical beasts. They are incredibly intelligent and ageless beings that take the form of great winged reptiles and are said to have existed for as long as the world of Vaira itself has. The mountains of Apteros, back when they were still known as the Maw of Dragons, were once home to the majority of dragonkind. When the Hellgate was inadvertently created in times past, the massive outflow of mana from the demon’s homeworld killed or warped much of the life in the area. While dragons themselves are resistant to mana corruption, most were forced to migrate to find more suitable nesting and hunting grounds. When dragons first arrived in Kriterra they were thought of as horrific beasts and great hunts were organized with knights and mages to slay any dragons that had taken up residence near human or elven lands, as the elves were no less wary of the new arrivals.

In the East, the lizardmen of the desert already had the occasional dealings with dragonkind in the past and the few that moved into the great desert caused them little concern. Some of the humans that had taken up residence in the region during the Great War in the west would come to worship those selfsame dragons as guardian spirits. These same human tribes in modern days consider themselves to have been blessed with the blood of dragons, which allows them to thrive in the harsh conditions of Al-Nhamli compared to the ‘softskins’ who dwell in the city of Nham and its satellite villages.

Tales of dragons crop up further south as well: The plains Zev have myths about great beasts that feasted upon the herd animals that the tribes traditionally hunt. In the forests there are stories about shadows from great birds cast across the Deepwoods. However, despite the common presence of myths about dragonkind, one thing is quite clear: The population of dragons has fallen immensely after their forced migration. Competing with the settled races for food, and dwelling in areas less suited for their physiology than the great mountains, it seems that the dragon race is doomed to slowly dwindle out of existence, like many other races from the age of myths.