This is a site for discussing roleplaying games. Have fun doing so, but there is one major rule: do not discuss political issues that aren't directly and uniquely related to the subject of the thread and about gaming. While this site is dedicated to free speech, the following will not be tolerated: devolving a thread into unrelated political discussion, sockpuppeting (using multiple and/or bogus accounts), disrupting topics without contributing to them, and posting images that could get someone fired in the workplace (an external link is OK, but clearly mark it as Not Safe For Work, or NSFW). If you receive a warning, please take it seriously and either move on to another topic or steer the discussion back to its original RPG-related theme.

Author Topic: [General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe  (Read 3012 times)

AsenRG

  • Bloody Weselian Hippy
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5036
    • http://storiescharactersandsystemsinrpgs.blogspot.com/
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #30 on: April 03, 2017, 11:01:18 AM »
Quote from: saskganesh;955163
According to Terry Pratchett, who sold 70 million books -- and I suspect those books were read -- the common "swamp" dragon is about 2 feet long and is prone to indigestion.

Variety in size and power is nice, especially in a game.

They are also prized pets for noble women. You could even win a competition with your dragon, especially if it's parents were also winning, which you no doubt have the required documents to prove.

Just, for the sake of whatever you believe in, don't let them eat anything they want...:D
« Last Edit: April 03, 2017, 11:05:34 AM by AsenRG »
What Do You Do In Tekumel? See examples!
"Life is not fair. If the campaign setting is somewhat like life then the setting also is sometimes not fair." - Bren

saskganesh

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • s
  • Posts: 233
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #31 on: April 03, 2017, 11:20:08 AM »
Indeed. They tend to explode then.

AsenRG

  • Bloody Weselian Hippy
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5036
    • http://storiescharactersandsystemsinrpgs.blogspot.com/
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #32 on: April 03, 2017, 04:53:34 PM »
Or worse, they grow bigger and hotter;).
What Do You Do In Tekumel? See examples!
"Life is not fair. If the campaign setting is somewhat like life then the setting also is sometimes not fair." - Bren

Black Vulmea

  • No. Appearing: 30-500
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3770
    • http://black-vulmea.blogspot.com/
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #33 on: April 03, 2017, 05:41:08 PM »
Quote from: Tristram Evans;955149
That moment when you realize someone online obviously faps to pictures of dragons....

"Spit acid, Great Wyrm!" *fapfapfapfapfap*
"Of course five generic Kobolds in a plain room is going to be dull. Making it potentially not dull is kinda the GM's job." - #Ladybird, theRPGsite

Really Bad Eggs - swashbuckling roleplaying games blog  | Promise City - Boot Hill campaign blog

ACS

Elfdart

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1653
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #34 on: April 16, 2017, 06:35:00 AM »
Quote from: Tristram Evans;955149
That moment when you realize someone online obviously faps to pictures of dragons....


Yikes.

Vermithrax from Dragonslayer was scary enough and she was 40' long. The Night Scather from Beowulf was 50' and was a real terror for the mightiest hero of that age. Smaug is depicted at somewhere between 60' and 80', depending on which Tolkien sketch you want to go by, and he was an iconic dragon and villain. The really huge Godzilla-style dragons always struck me as silly. While I'm not one for fiddling with a detailed ecology for a fanciful creature, I do find it odd that humans would have much to worry about from such a gargantuan creature unless they somehow provoked the beast. If you're a mouse, you have plenty to fear from cats, owls, snakes and other small predators and little to nothing to fear from a tiger. If anything, you'd be glad to have a tiger nearby because it will kill or drive off the smaller predators that do regard you as lunch. The "small" dragons like Vermithrax and her hatchlings are scarier because they are the right size to make regular meals of humans and livestock, making them a far bigger menace than something bigger than a 747, which would need elephants or whales to feed itself and its offspring.

Dragonwank sucks.
Jesus Fucking Christ, is this guy honestly that goddamned stupid? He can't understand the plot of a Star Wars film? We're not talking about "Rashomon" here, for fuck's sake. The plot is as linear as they come. If anything, the film tries too hard to fill in all the gaps. This guy must be a flaming retard.  --Mike Wong on Red Letter Moron's review of The Phantom Menace

Shipyard Locked

  • -
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2685
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #35 on: April 16, 2017, 08:04:01 AM »
Quote from: Elfdart;957508
The "small" dragons like Vermithrax and her hatchlings are scarier because they are the right size to make regular meals of humans and livestock, making them a far bigger menace than something bigger than a 747, which would need elephants or whales to feed itself and its offspring.

An excellent point, and a good example of the frustration that started this thread: the trend these days is to make dragons just another part of the ecology, but it often feels half-baked. I wouldn't mind a less-scientific, more fantastic explanation for their presence, but that often feels half-baked too. As I think about my current setting project, I wonder what approach to take.

The Butcher

  • Cyborg Shock Trooper
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 7183
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #36 on: April 16, 2017, 08:50:35 AM »
For my Dragonlance send-up, tentatively named Grimdark Dragonthing, I decided dragons were created as living weapons by the otherwordly, all-conquering serpent folk (think the kaiju in Pacific Rim). This is why they were color-coded for convenience.

While dragons were created initially as dumb beasts, in time (when their empire collapsed) some serpent folk downloaded their extraordinary, magic-adept intelligence into dragon bodies built to support speech and sorcery. This is why some dragons speak and cast spells, and some don't.

Of course, as their dominion crumbled and survivors grasped at the last straws of power, a cadre of particularly crafty serpent folk sorcerer-scientists created (or maybe just unearthed) the ultimate control mechanism for their biological flying tanks, including those piloted by the consciousness of their rogue comrades; the orbs of dragonkind.

The nascent human empires beat back the serpent folk and their dragons, at the cost of countless lives. Surviving dragons sought refuge in the desolated wilderness, typically in the terrains and climates they were specifically designed to operate on. But every now and then the orbs resurface at the hands of some would-be conqueror or doomsday cultist.

Black Vulmea

  • No. Appearing: 30-500
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3770
    • http://black-vulmea.blogspot.com/
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #37 on: April 16, 2017, 10:41:55 AM »
Quote from: The Butcher;957527
. . . Grimdark Dragonthing . . .

"Of course five generic Kobolds in a plain room is going to be dull. Making it potentially not dull is kinda the GM's job." - #Ladybird, theRPGsite

Really Bad Eggs - swashbuckling roleplaying games blog  | Promise City - Boot Hill campaign blog

ACS

Shipyard Locked

  • -
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2685
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #38 on: April 18, 2017, 06:30:01 AM »
Quote from: The Butcher;957527
For my Dragonlance send-up, tentatively named Grimdark Dragonthing, I decided dragons were created as living weapons by the otherwordly, all-conquering serpent folk (think the kaiju in Pacific Rim). This is why they were color-coded for convenience.

I rather like this whole premise.

Nihilistic Mind

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 834
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #39 on: April 18, 2017, 02:41:46 PM »
So, an oddball thought I had the first time I watched "How to Train Your Dragon" in the scene where all the dragons bring something to dump into their nest which is a huge volcano:
I immediately thought that Dragons gain their fire-breathing from some relationship with that Volcano, channeling the power of the volcano via regular offerings/sacrifice.
Of course, that's not at all what it turns out to be in the film, but I really liked the idea at the time. I think it is worth exploring in a special setting:
Dragons are flying lizards who get their fire-breathing abilities from a Greater Power that they respect, whether through reasoning, tradition, or even instinct (if they are just brutish creatures rather than the sentient beings that are often depicted).

The film, Dragonslayer is a great inspiration for how fierce and devastating a dragon can be, and how important your weapon and armor might be as well!

Finally, I love the concept of Dragons having to rest before brewing another devastating fire or acid, which is described in the Elric stories by Michael Moorcock.
Running:
Dungeon Crawl Classics (influences: Elric vs. Mythos, Darkest Dungeon, Castlevania).
DCC In Space!
Star Wars with homemade ruleset (Roll&Keep type system).

Christopher Brady

  • The Voice of Raisin
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • C
  • Posts: 4733
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #40 on: April 18, 2017, 04:29:45 PM »
Quote from: Elfdart;957508
Dragonwank sucks.

Well, yes.  But the real question is...  Do they swallow?
"And now, my friends, a Dragon's toast!  To life's little blessings:  wars, plagues and all forms of evil.  Their presence keeps us alert --- and their absence makes us grateful." -T.A. Barron[/SIZE]

Nihilistic Mind

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 834
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #41 on: April 18, 2017, 04:45:19 PM »
Quote from: Black Vulmea;957536

Hey, he said it was a working title!
Running:
Dungeon Crawl Classics (influences: Elric vs. Mythos, Darkest Dungeon, Castlevania).
DCC In Space!
Star Wars with homemade ruleset (Roll&Keep type system).

RPGPundit

  • Administrator - The Final Boss of Internet Shitlords
  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 48855
    • http://therpgpundit.blogspot.com
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #42 on: April 22, 2017, 03:58:57 AM »
In Dark Albion, Dragons are hugely important, even though they appear to be all but extinct.  Along with Elves, they were the other most ancient race.  In the long-term Albion campaign, assuming a DM wants to follow with it, the resolution of the campaign involves the reappearance of Dragons.
LION & DRAGON: Medieval-Authentic OSR Roleplaying is available now! You only THINK you've played 'medieval fantasy' until you play L&D.


My Blog:  http://therpgpundit.blogspot.com/
The most famous uruguayan gaming blog on the planet!

NEW!
Check out my short OSR supplements series; The RPGPundit Presents!


Dark Albion: The Rose War! The OSR fantasy setting of the history that inspired Shakespeare and Martin alike.
Also available in Variant Cover form!
Also, now with the CULTS OF CHAOS cult-generation sourcebook

ARROWS OF INDRA
Arrows of Indra: The Old-School Epic Indian RPG!
NOW AVAILABLE: AoI in print form

LORDS OF OLYMPUS
The new Diceless RPG of multiversal power, adventure and intrigue, now available.

crkrueger

  • Hulk in the Vineyard
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 12559
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #43 on: April 22, 2017, 05:39:25 AM »
Quote from: RPGPundit;958730
In Dark Albion, Dragons are hugely important, even though they appear to be all but extinct.  Along with Elves, they were the other most ancient race.  In the long-term Albion campaign, assuming a DM wants to follow with it, the resolution of the campaign involves the reappearance of Dragons.

You doing anything with the Red and White dragons of Welsh myth or a celtic/druidic Earth Dragon (which they tried to show in Excalibur)?
Even the the "cutting edge" storygamers for all their talk of narrative, plot, and drama are fucking obsessed with the god damned rules they use. - Estar

Yes, Sean Connery's thumb does indeed do megadamage. - Spinachcat

Isuldur is a badass because he stopped Sauron with a broken sword, but Iluvatar is the badass because he stopped Sauron with a hobbit. -Malleus Arianorum

"Tangency Edition" D&D would have no classes or races, but 17 genders to choose from. -TristramEvans

RPGPundit

  • Administrator - The Final Boss of Internet Shitlords
  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 48855
    • http://therpgpundit.blogspot.com
[General fantasy] The place of dragons in a universe
« Reply #44 on: May 01, 2017, 12:49:43 AM »
Quote from: CRKrueger;958737
You doing anything with the Red and White dragons of Welsh myth or a celtic/druidic Earth Dragon (which they tried to show in Excalibur)?

A little of both, but particularly with Henry Tudor, claiming descent from Welsh royal blood and bearing the standard of the red dragon to battle with him.
LION & DRAGON: Medieval-Authentic OSR Roleplaying is available now! You only THINK you've played 'medieval fantasy' until you play L&D.


My Blog:  http://therpgpundit.blogspot.com/
The most famous uruguayan gaming blog on the planet!

NEW!
Check out my short OSR supplements series; The RPGPundit Presents!


Dark Albion: The Rose War! The OSR fantasy setting of the history that inspired Shakespeare and Martin alike.
Also available in Variant Cover form!
Also, now with the CULTS OF CHAOS cult-generation sourcebook

ARROWS OF INDRA
Arrows of Indra: The Old-School Epic Indian RPG!
NOW AVAILABLE: AoI in print form

LORDS OF OLYMPUS
The new Diceless RPG of multiversal power, adventure and intrigue, now available.