Dragons (Race)

Introductory
The demonspawn, the experimental demons created originally by Malceras, are among the most powerful and intelligent beings in all of Black Worlds. They are known for their elegant and terrifying designs, perplexing and sometimes chaotic ideologies and marvelous cities spanning entire planets and star systems. Dragons are also known for an almost "universal" complex of cultures and vast mental dynamics that can make them seem no less different than a felaain or a human, or completely alien with lesser views and opinions of others and their cultures or religions.

Dragons are among the largest and most populous sentient creatures in all of Black Worlds. Their primary populations come in the form of mass collections in specific sections of a galaxy or star system, preferably a place rich in the elements in a primordial state. Areas abundant in air, heat, earth, water and various gases allow them to practically terraform wasteland planets into lush, thriving habitats of animals far and wide.

To most, dragons are mysteriously curious and a potential threat to all economies and politics. They generally have a very high standard for almost everything, but especially on what they deem "informed" and skilled. Dragons are known to suddenly step into failing or potentially harmful political parties or too against their values and completely changing or improving them for the better. They hold money and bribes to a fairly lower standard than most people, holding the content of one's character above all as well as their achievements. Things like appearance and opinion in menial things have little if any impact on their decision making when it comes to politics - as they tend to see the irony in such statements and views. They are able to put themselves into others shoes fairly well and have a decent idea of what they might be thinking.

Their cultures evolve and adapt to others around them quite well, as well as the individuals. They can pick-up and adopt the interests of others and share similar issues as others. What might be fancy to orcs or elves, may be fancy to this group of dragons with time.

Dragons are also hidden among the other races since they have the ability to shapeshift into winged, fire-breathing monsters as well as shift into a humanoid guise - the form they take as humanoid as well as dragon is often times decided by the dragon's parents. Many dragons can camouflage perfectly in societies and no one would ever know a dragon is walking among them.

Early History
Dragons have a complex history that in places, is fragmented. Their earliest beginnings are told by the Dragon Mother Gaeamus.

Countless millennia ago, when stars and planets were young and expanding, the Demon Father Malceras created a group of bizarre, winged reptilian creatures that were swift, durable and powerful. They were, in many ways, superior to most forms of demons at the time. They were designed to reproduce asexually and replace their ranks within days or weeks. Once Malceras had an army of these reptiles, he created one special variant and one alone - this being was Tathamat. Tathamat's purpose was to further continue Malceras' work and guide these creatures throughout the cosmos for whatever purpose Malceras deemed worthy.

Tathamat was flawed - he suffered loneliness and depression. Interactions with these carbon copies of proto-dragons were stagnant and didn't help him. Later, Tathamat created one of his own by stealing Malceras' designs. His personal design was flawed - it had chromosomes and a defined gender, female. This dragoness was not as interested in fighting as the others, and had it's own sense of free will and basic morality. Tathamat interacting with this new dragon often; whispering to her and having conversations. He was satisfied more than ever, but it still wasn't enough. He wanted to connect even more. Tathamat convinced this dragoness to follow him to his lair and manipulated her into mating with him. They spent weeks during the ritual, and the dragoness became pregnant.

As time went on the dragoness gave herself a name, Gaeamus, and learned that Tathamat was simply using her as company and a sex slave. Her own free will convinced her to flee from him, taking a brood of future elemental dragons, all possessing a bit of Tathamat within each and every one of them, to a new land untainted by corruption.

Carem Culture and History
Carem's culture is vague, but it was described as a perfectionist society that encouraged people to embrace their true selves and to become what they wanted to be. There was little in the way of opposition, so the society and population was allowed to grow. The natural drive to fight gave rise to the first dragon warriors, and a form of entertainment had been born: wrestling and gladiator matches. It is also noted that a sort of elf race existed on Carem and some of the dragons began breeding with them, allowing them to shift between dragon and elf forms.

Sometime down the line, Dul'Gon of Sanctuary won a tournament that would dictate who would become king. He and his mate, Herinn, would eventually have a child together. This child was the future Dragon Queen, Archmaflesia.

A grief lord suddenly appeared, forcing the fit fighters of Carem to combat the grief lord's forces. Sanctuary would win, but with heavy losses. Several years later, the grief lord's corpse would decay and give rise to a chaotic storm that would completely destroy the dragon's cities, and nearly eradicate all of the dragons. Archmaflesia would narrowly escape to the second Zarothian moon of Arok.

Arokian Culture
The Arokian Dragons are a proud and shamanistic focused people. Groups of dragons would come together and make professions more defined and mainstream among their kind. Archaeology, engineering, blacksmithing and leatherworks became the primary crafting jobs and the greatest sources of income.

The people themselves live a life of adventure and spirituality. Most individuals are fond of nature in all of it's forms and appreciate and understand the cycle of life and death. The people are known for going on spiritual journeys into forests, mountains and sometimes treacherous locations to find their purpose in life and how to better themselves.

Because of the gender ratio, polygamy is and was very common among Arokians especially around major cities. It was not unheard of to see one male with seven wives, or two males with three wives - attitudes between individuals within these relationships or formerly part of them are generally quite positive. Arokians believe and accept why they might be pushed away from a member of the opposite sex or why they were not chosen over someone else. If anything, it brings them closer.

For instance, Neeran Odindorr was dating Jexkarvia Zinj and Novi Moonflare. The women both competed against each other for Neeran while remaining friendly and loving to each other. Neeran chose Novi, and Jexkarvia was no longer an option for mating. Jexkarvia was happy for both of them, and decided to continue her own career and look for a new mate elsewhere while remaining friendly and in touch with Neeran and Novi. Relationships like this were common.

Arokians have developed a sort of cultural work to where, to increase ones odds for being trained or hired for a certain, skilled position, they have to have worked in a set amount of other workplaces for a set amount of time to earn points or tokens. This idea was created to encourage individuals to make the most out of agelessness and experience as many sides to life as possible.

Every dragon is forced to learn how to hunt and properly prepare food and basic self-defense measures.

Religion
Most dragons claim to be non-theistic. However, most dragons pray or have deep respect for Maeanystra, Tathamat or the Dragon Mother.

Radical religion is extremely rare in dragons, but it has happened. Most forms of radicalism are a result of literal mind control or extreme misguidance from a young age. Examples include Neeran Odindorr and Ves'Kara Odindorr.

Appearance
Dragon Form: Dragons are large quadrupedal reptilian-like creatures with either a long or short neck and tail, a pair of large, leathery, bat-like wings, scaly or leathery skin, a predatory head of many different shapes and equally as diverse teeth. At the end of their toes and fingers, they have sharp talons designed to grip prey and rip it apart as well as fighting with other dragons. Their eyes shine a metallic glow that often matches their skin, and their pupils are vertically slit.

Their skin and eyes can be all colors regardless of elemental or magical alignment, but the colors are often decided first by the gender of the dragon, and by the parents. If the gender of the dragon is female, then the dragon will have it's mother's skin and eyes most of the time. And if the dragon is male, it will have it's father's skin and eyes.

Most dragons have wings built and designed to be large enough to support at least their own weight for flight. Some dragons can swoop effectively and others can soar for weeks at a time without every beating their wings. The wings are often times wider than the dragon itself is long from head to tail.

Differences between sexes: Most dragons in dragon form, or dragons as winged animals have little in the way of obvious distinctions between the sexes. Both sexes grow endlessly until death, but slows down after fifty years of growth. Upon further and thorough examination, the females seem to have large hips and larger bellies to support the safe carrying and passage of eggs. This sometimes passes onto their humanoid forms - females may appear potbellied. Male dragons in dragon form have smaller hip to body ratios and a leaner appearance on average. Both genders also have fairly similar behaviors.

Humanoid Forms: 

Dragons with humanoid forms share the same appearance as their humanoid givens have with the exception of horns at times and shining pupils with vertically slit eyes. Some dragons can hide their shining eyes and pupils and saw off their horns to disguise themselves better among others.

Genders are generally easily distinguishable. Dragons borrow the shape and form of their given humanoid forms, so many female dragons would be distinguished by their facial features, universally established female breasts, wider hips etc. Males are distinguished usually by facial hair, broader shoulders, wider and thicker chests, larger general size etc.

Crossovers (Humanoid, with dragon features): 

These are simply humanoids with their dragon form scales. They might have a stereotypical humanoid shape but possess dragon scales, talons etc.

Cross-Breeding and Relationships
Dragons see people as similar or equals when it comes to love and breeding. To them, sex for either pleasure or reproductive purposes with an elf, orc or human is no different than with a dragon.

Dragons' only breeding restrictions is the intelligence or sentience of the creature in mind. They can only breed with intelligent life like humans, orcs, elves etc.

Elemental Variants

 * Rek'ar (Fire Dragons)
 * Altairus (Air Dragons)
 * Gron'Jaar (Earth Dragons)
 * Dul'Gon'ar (Water Dragons)

Dragon Deities and Notable Figures
Primary Evils: Gods: Demi-Gods:
 * Tathamat
 * Kondorus
 * Gron'Jaargon
 * Gaeamus
 * C'Thon
 * Kalgoros
 * Xal
 * Morgothius
 * Baalazond
 * Erozand
 * Archmaflesia Troladossa
 * Jexkarvia Zinj
 * Ves'Kara Odindorr
 * Butterfly
 * Altimus
 * Aerogus
 * Ragmyr Renoc
 * Shen Odindorr
 * Neeran Odindorr
 * Novi Moonflare