Physical Description
Dragons are enormous, winged, elemental lizards. They are the largest and most threatening monsters in all of Cimmeria. The only greater power than dragons are gods and creatures touched by divinity. In addition to their great size, many dragons can breathe elemental energy to devastating effect. A calculating intelligence guides the greatest dragons. They are fearsome beasts without peer in the mortal world.
Dragons have many terrifying natural weapons and defenses. Sharp claws and teeth are the primary weapons of all dragons. Large dragons are able to use their powerful wings to beat down enemies or to start windstorms. The tail of dragons is also a dangerous tool, even having a poisoned tip in some dragon varieties. Draconic connection to elemental magic gives many of them the ability to cast spells. Along with their many offensive powers, dragons are also impregnable defensive towers. Their scales are immune to all but the most enhanced magical weapons. They are naturally resistant to spells of all kinds. The largest dragons are shrouded in a supernatural aura of fear that frightens many hardened warriors away from even approaching the monster.
Dragons possess particularly sharp senses in addition to their other advantages. They can see further in the dark than most other species. Their senses of smell, touch, and hearing are so precise that they can accurately locate creatures that are close to them, even if those creatures are invisible. Sneaking up on a dragon is almost impossible due to this natural ability. Their amazing processing of incoming signals also allows dragons to sense when someone is lying to them. The slight changes in sweat, pheromones, and tone are all things that dragons pick up on and intuit unconsciously to determine a speaker’s intent and truthfulness.
Culture
Dragon culture values one thing above all else, treasure. Dragons have a pathological need for treasure. Gold, silver, jewels, magic items, and works of art are best, but anything of value is worthy of a place in a dragon’s hoard. Long-lived dragons often own collections of an esoteric item. Poetry, official seals, or luxury garments from a particular seamstress. Whatever it is, dragons are known to forgo all other things in their greed.
Draconic social relationships are minimal. They spend much of their time in solitude, either hunting or overlooking their hoards. Dragons typically only interact with others of their species when they feel the urge to breed. Beyond that, they have little tolerance for another dictatorial apex predator sharing their space. Female dragons are often forced to care for their eggs until they hatch but rarely provide any assistance beyond incubation. Once hatched, a dragon is typically on its own until death.
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