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Chapter 7: BESTIarY
Daragkon
(Khitan Dragon)
teeth and claws, either of which can rend foes to death
with a single attack. Beyond those attributes, daragkin
have extraordinary abilities and can both wield natural
magics and belch forth deadly blasts from furnace-like
digestive organs, each type having its own attack.
Daragkish magic is an inborn asset, akin to that wielded by
lesser mages. While limited, it provides sufficient recourse
against spell casters who seek out dragons, perhaps a holdover from ancient times when other magic-capable beasts
also wandered the world to challenge its dragons for mastery.
Daragkon inhabit wild places. They are all reputedly
aggressive and unpredictable. They hunt and even raid
settlements frequently enough that many common folk
catch a glimpse of one at some point in their lives.
Wizards of the Dramidge college spend considerable
time seeking out daragkon to further their magical
studies. They seek to control wild dragons to serve their
nefarious purposes. Penmai believe daragkon are the
Dragon Kings reduced to animal form.
Daragk’gael (Wind Dragons)
Wind dragons buffet the ground with the tremendous
power of their wings, and rouse tremendous, cyclonic
storms that knock enemies off their feet and bury them
beneath quickly forming dunes. They sweep down on the
lower parts of the world from mountain-peak aeries where
they hoard the tidbits they have stolen from weaker species.
Wild daragkin loom large across Khitus, the largest of
them more powerful than any other natural creatures on
the planet. Even the smallest daragkon can be a magnificent, awe-inspiring beast, which explains why it is the
physical form most desired by powerful wizards and magical creatures. Sorcerers aspire to dragon form as a symbol
of near god-like power. The departed Dragon Kings did
such, as do several wizards who choose these fearsome
forms yet today. These daragk’honin (“feign-dragons”) are
still artificial in one sense or another, no matter what power
lies behind their form. They all assume the form of savage,
animalistic Khitan dragons, which still reign supreme in
their scattered environs. Unfailingly, Daragkon recognize
their own, and no daragk’honin escapes their notice.
A Khitan dragon relies more on instinct than on raw
cognitive intelligence. Its very being revolves around its
unique nature, dependent on species and geographic
niche. Its region and subspecies determines how each
one lives, what it feeds on, and what it covets most deeply. Barring those differences, all Khitan dragons can fly
on enormous, leathery wings, have thick, protective
scales over nigh-impenetrable hides, and fight with
Daragk’huck (Coal Dragons)
Coal dragons live where the world’s flammable elements lie naturally exposed on its surface. A coal dragon
can unleash a blast of liquid fire so hot and so richly fuelled that it roasts the land and blackens everything,
even stone, with robust combustion. They gather coal,
oil and tar into massive pits where they wallow with the
gems and precious metals they so desperately desire.
Daragk’ralsh (Mud Dragons)
Mud dragons understand the inherent value of moisture
and gather it jealously. Any naturally-occurring accumulation of water—a spring or trickling stream—may attract
a daragk’ralsh to make a claim over its ultimate ownership.
They breathe scorching blasts of steam that can roast a
man in his armor and blister the skin from his bones.
Daragk’reg (Rock Dragons)
Rock dragons wedge slate and stone among their scales.
This increases their bulk tremendously and adds to their
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