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Dragons are powerful and intelligent serpentine creatures from across the multiverse. They are huge, flying reptiles with formidable physical strength, and many of them also score high on intelligence and magical capabilities. They can be found in all facets of the Color Pie, although more dragons are aligned with red than with any other color.

Baby or miniature dragons are referred to as "whelps".

Ancient dragons

Elder Dragons

The Elder Dragons were ancient dragons of Dominia. Their vast power rivaled that of planeswalkers. The chronologically oldest bit of Magic lore we have is that about the Elder Dragon Wars, a conflict that shook the planes and killed most of their kind. The winners of the war became the ancestors of all dragons and drakes, while the losers were stripped of their wings, limbs and most of their power and became the Elder Land Wurms, which spawned all other wurm species. Viashino are also descendants of them, although it is unknown how.

The Elder Dragons that survived the Elder Dragon Wars were the siblings Nicol Bolas, Chromium Rhuell, Arcades Sabboth, Palladia-Mors, their cousin Vaevictis Asmadi and possibly Piru. However Nicol Bolas is the only known Elder Dragon that still lives and is the most powerful of the Elder Dragons.

Lesser Elders

Also known as Lower Dragons. Their name suggests that they are insignificant or weak, but this is only the case when compared to the Elder Dragons. The Lesser Elders where the firstborn children of the Elders. They were less powerful than their parents but still very mighty and they sired the many races of dragons we know today.

Known Lesser Elders are Scarzam dragons, and possibly Piru.

Scarzam dragons

The Scarzam dragons were a race of dragons sired by the Lesser Elder Scarzam and used by a woman, Sivitri Scarzam, to wage war on Corondor. They were nearly wiped out by a magical, poisonous flower created by Sol'Kanar to destroy Sivitri's power. Only one, and the biggest of these dragons survived.

Alaran dragons

Grixian Dragons

In the Shard of Alara known as Grixis, there is one known dragon, the demon-dragon Malfegor.

Jundian Dragons

In the Shard of Alara known as Jund, dragons are the dominant race on the top of the food chain. They are worshiped by the goblins who consider it an honor to be eaten alive by them.

Dominarian dragons

Primeval Dragons

The five Primeval Dragons were self-proclaimed gods and once ruled Dominaria until the Numena managed to imprison them and steal their power. The Primevals were ordinary dragons until all of them were awakened, when their combined magic unlocked their magnificent powers.

During the Phyrexian Invasion, Tevesh Szat revealed the existence of the Primevals to Rhammidarigaaz, also known as Darigaaz, who was in fact a reincarnated Primeval himself. After they were all reawakened, they went on a rampage against both Dominarians and Phyrexians, until Karn convinced Darigaaz of his folly. Darigaaz committed suicide by plunging into a volcano after which the other Primevals could be defeated.

Their names had a special meaning in Old Draconic describing the stages of a dragon's life. The first Primeval was Rhammidarigaaz ("conception"), the second was Rith ("childhood"), the third was Treva ("youth"), the fourth was Dromar ("adulthood"), and the last was Crosis ("death").

In addition to being godlike themselves, each dragon has a characteristic associated with belonging to the Ur-Dragon, the spirit of all dragonkind. Each characteristic can be found in the flavor text of its respective attendant golem.

Dragon species

Alabaster dragons

The Alabaster dragons were white-aligned dragons from Argive. They were said to be at home among the clouds.

Artifact dragons

Draco is a powerful artifact dragon. It is not known what Draco is or originally was, but the artwork suggests that it might had been a natural dragon (Instead of a pure artificial construct) that was later modified with certain metallic parts.

Canopy dragons

Canopy dragons are native to the Mwonvuli Jungle in Jamuraa.

Hellkites

Hellkites were among the most powerful dragons of Dominaria. The dragons that destroyed Rashida Scalebane's village were Crimson Hellkites.

The hellkites of Bogardan survived even in the post-apocalyptic rift-tortured Dominaria.

Powerful Hellkites known as Hellkite Overlords inhabit the shard of Jund

Krosan dragons

The Krosan dragons of Otaria have no wings but have six legs, are covered in thorny armor and breathe a magical vapor that causes wild vegetation to grow in their presence. Smaller Krosan dragons called dragonettes were used in the Cabal's pits. However, this caused a fully-grown dragon to come to Cabal City to try to avenge its kin.

Nalathni dragons

The Nalathni dragons are small but intelligent dragons. They helped their Olesian allies fight against the goblin hordes of Pashalik Mons.

Nekoru

Nekoru, or Cat-Dragons, are cat-like beings with reptilian wings from Jamuraa. It unknown whether they where actually descendants from the Elder Dragons, although their non-reptilian bodies seem to suggest otherwise.

The nekoru Wasitora played an important role in the second Legends Cycle. The race was revisited in Time Spiral — when Teferi's host is transported to Madara near Talon Gates thanks to the call of Nicol Bolas, the party meets the nekoru prince Yurei-teki.

The name "Nekoru" comes from the Japanese word "Neko", for "cat", and "ru" (or "ryu"), for "dragon". Literally translated it means "cat-dragon".

Shivan dragons

Shivan dragons were the most powerful red-aligned dragons and hailed from the island of Shiv. Sometimes they allied themselves with the Viashino of their homeland; sometimes they fought against them. After Teferi phased out a large chunk of Shiv, some of these dragons tried to rebuild their native land, many journeyed away to seek any opportunity to restore the broken pride of their race; Rorix Bladewing was one of those dragons. Rorix fought and died in the Grand Coliseum, but after his death he was reanimated as Bladewing the Risen.

Rhammidarigaaz and his mother Gherridarigaaz were also shivan dragons.

Teeka's dragon

Teeka's dragon was an artificial dragon created by the artificer Teeka in the short story "Better Mousetrap" in the Distant Planes anthology.

Vampiric dragons

A vampiric dragon wreaked havoc on Otaria in the short story "Seasons of Slaughter" in the Monsters of Magic anthology.

Viashivan Dragons

Viashivan dragons were Jamuraan dragons rivaling the Shivan dragons in power.

Mercadian dragons

Two-headed dragons

Two-headed dragons can be found on Mercadia.

Mirrodin dragons

Clockwork dragons

Clockwork dragons are artificial dragons found on Mirrodin.

Furnace dragons

The furnace dragons lived on Mirrodin. They were probably brought there by Memnarch's soul traps and parts of their bodies where turned into metal by the mycosynth that grows inside Mirrodin. A known (although possibly mythic) furnace dragon is Chiss-Goria.

Kamigawa dragons

Spirit dragons

The spirit dragons are powerful kami of Kamigawa. There are five, one for each color of magic. During the Spirit War, they did not side with O-Kagachi, but remained true to their pledge to protect several important places of the mortals.

  • Yosei, the Morning Star protected Eiganjo. He was ripped apart in the battle against O-Kagachi, but survived and helped the Eiganjoan refugees in the battle against the hordes of the Myojin of Infinite Rage.
  • Keiga, the Tide Star protected Minamo. She was killed (if kami can be killed) by Hidetsugu and his yamabushi minions during their attack on the school.
  • Jugan, the Rising Star protected the forest of Jukai. In the initial stages of the war, he was summoned by the monks of the Order of the Sacred Bell to fight in the Battle of Silk. He was killed, but blessed the monks with power even after he was gone. During the final stages of the war he was summoned by Sosuke and Sachi to aid the Orochi against the Soratami invaders. Apparently he had the ability to come back from the dead (perhaps all kami can).
  • Kokusho, the Evening Star was the guardian of the Takenuma swamp.
  • Ryusei, the Falling Star was the guardian of the Sokenzan mountains.

The Kamigawa vignette on Kiki-Jiki reveals that there are more dragons on Kamigawa and that not all of them sided against O-Kagachi. Nothing more is known about them though.

The planeswalker Ugin is also known to be a spirit dragon, though it is not known whether he originated from Kamigawa.

Phyrexian dragons

Dragon engines

Dragon engines were dragon-like creatures of unknown origin that lived in the first sphere of Phyrexia. They were used by Mishra during the Brothers' War (he used real Phyrexian dragon engines and his own versions which were inferior) and by Phyrexia itself in the Invasion.

Remains of them can still be found in Dominaria among the wreckage of the Invasion.

Ravnican Dragons

On the plane of Ravnica, with dragons deemed too dangerous to exist, the Guildpact was signed in part to rid the world of such beings; around the Decamillennial almost all of them were dead. The most significant exception being Niv-Mizzet, the parun and Guildleader of the Izzet guild. Niv-Mizzet does have many cloned dragon underlings, however. He likes his dragons to look like him, but the giveaway is in the size; Niv-Mizzet is at least three to four times larger than his clones.

Zomaj Hauc tried to revive some ancient dragon eggs some years after the Decamillennial, but was foiled by Agrus Kos, Teysa Karlov, and their allies.

There are also lesser dragons still free, who are either hunted (Hunted Dragon) or trained as pets (Rakdos Pit Dragon, by the Rakdos).

Shadowmoor Dragons

In Shadowmoor there is a Knollspine Dragon who is believed to be hidden in the Spinerock Knoll during the Lorwyn phase.

Shandalar Dragons

Astral dragons

Also known as faerie dragons these dragons were unique to the plane of Shandalar. One of them defeated planeswalker Faralyn.

Dragon tokens

Dragon tokens are produced by:

Trivia

See also

References

  1. Template:Arcref

External links

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