By Krister Sundelin (with help from Rasmus Hansson (a94rasha@ida.his.se)
The Dragons have mystified mankind through the centuries. Some think of them as monsters, others as a superior and more beautiful race. Whatever they are, they are not going to fall into such simplifications as "good" or "evil".
This text is meant to introduce the Dragonkin into the World of Darkness.
This is what you need to make use of this text:
Author's note: As many other things, there is a beginning. This beginning is so far away in the past that Mankind will not remember it.
For my part, it began with a ball -- you know, that kind of party where there are no men or women, just gentlemen who wear suits or uniforms and ladies who wear elaborate dresses, when the main event is waltzing -- where I met a charming lady that called herself Rithka.
Something happened this night that still puzzles me, something lady Rithka did. I wanted to know how it was done, and the lady disappeared. Six months later, a letter arrived. When I opened it, I found a letter from the lady at the ball and a bunch of paper. I was even more puzzled when I recalled that I never told her where I lived. Then I started reading...
My friend,
Our conversation six months ago is still intriguing my mind. Smiling, I recall your words; "It is like magic. How are you doing it?". And when I avoided the question, you asked for the truth. Then we parted, not on the best terms.
The Truth, that ungraspable thing -- you asked for it and I could not give it to you. The truth, only the truth and all of the truth.
There's so much to tell you.
I remember the plains of Ukraine, several thousand years before the name was conceived. I recall your kin, barely able to communicate. And now, you have harnessed powers that you barely comprehend. It is astonishing to see your kin develop so rapidly.
But forgive me, I am stalling.
The truth is, that there are worlds within worlds. There are legends and lore, and somewhere in the inner core of the legends, there is a small grain of truth.
I am the truth of the legend. I am of the Dragonkin.
I can see your face as you are reading this -- believe me, I do see it! It is a simple thing to conjure an image of the future when you will receive this letter. You are, right now, slowly putting your glass of that dark brown, bubbly beverage down on the table, fully concentrated on this letter to the point that you will not notice that the glass will fall to the floor.
I apologize for the inconvenience this surprise will cause you when you will have to clean the floor at your desk.
Alas! now that I have put doubt in your conscious and scientific mind, let me proceed. I have the full consent of my superiors, lady Sinyé, her ally lord Draconis Vermithrax, and the sovereign of our Court, Lady Alaria, in writing this. I will here explain the nature of myself, our purpose and and our actions. I cannot prove all that will be here revealed, at least not in writing, but if it is proof you want, I will tell you how to find them.
Now, turn the page and read the Truth of the Dragonkin, the Truth which you requested.
Author's note: When I turned the page, I found a long text describing the nature, origin and strength of the Dragonkin. It was not easy to read, written by hand in old English (late 18th century, by my best guess).
When I was finished, I decided to let others share this knowledge. I did not care whether I played along with the plans of the Dragonkin or not, I simply wanted to pass this knowledge on. But to whom?
When I thought of it, I found that if I simply passed the text on, it would be perceived as a piece of fiction. Then all my role-playing experience flowed through my head, and I decided to re-write all of it to fit some role-playing system. It is better, I thought, to present a truth within a lie than something that will be perceived as a lie within the truth.
The choice of game fell on the Storyteller system, and this is the result.
Enjoy!
Once upon a time...
With those words, many a story have begun -- as will this.
Once upon a time, briefly after the Flood and before the First Covenant, all the Immortal Races gathered at Mount Ararat to discuss the future of the world they were inhabiting. The Immortal was struck with a crisis -- there were no way that all of them could inhabit the world and roam freely as before. Some of them said that the Flood was the result of God's Wrath upon them -- that the Immortal was the target of the Flood. Whatever the reason of the Flood was, the Immortal were -- paradoxically-- dying. This was debated over and over again -- legend says that the debate went on constantly for seven weeks, and that the sun did not show itself during the gathering. It was a dark time for the world, and it ended with a new dawn for the Earth, the First Covenant.
At that time, it was the only Covenant and thus The Covenant. The Covenant was simple -- all the Immortal Races should withdraw from the world, limiting themselves as much as possible in action as well as in numbers. The Covenant was to be supervised by the most powerful of the Immortal Races, the dragons.
The dragons assumed their role as the guardians of the Covenant, and pooled their immense powers together. One of their kin should always be awake, harnessing the Power and the Authority as the Guardian. The Authority was passed from dragon to dragon, century after century, until Christendom came.
Sometime during the early Dark Ages, Europe was christened. In the mythology of the Christians, the dragons were servants of Evil, all-engulfing world-destroyers in the time of Harmageddon, battling among the Legions of Darkness.
So, when a christian warrior found a live dragon in his vicinity -- somewhere on the borderlands of Caledonia and Britain -- he rode to it and challenged it. With faith, steel and the Wrath of God, the dragon was slain.
The slaying of the Guardian was never reckoned with. At that time, the Guardian was the only dragon awake, and the event passed... unnoticed.
Until recently.
Somewhere east of the land-mass known to man as America, a dragon awakened in the late nineteen-eighties. Her human name was Alaria if ever a dragon's name or sex is relevant, this particular dragon was more female than male, and her name would be conceived as Alaria among humans -- and she had been asleep for more than six thousand years.
She stretched out with her senses, searching for the Guardian to learn of the world. She found nothing. Except for a lot of humans, of course, but she never reckoned them to be a threat.
Several years was spent looking for the Guardian, but Alaria never found it. She gathered knowledge of the Mortal world as she looked, learning their language, and eventually, she knew that the Guardian was not only dead, the other Immortal Races were spreading around the world like a disease.
This enraged the newly awakened dragon's mind, and her body woke as well. She drifted to the nearest shore and walked, in human form, up on a moonlit beach. On this beach, there were only one living being, and one dead. The vampire was feeding on the human, and before Alaria recognized the event, the human died. Alaria understood, but not the vampire. The vampire thought the naked woman was but another victim and approached her with blooded fangs and gleaming eyes, trying to dominate her and seduce her in order to take her blood as well.
Alaria was astonished. Never had a vampire ever tried to feed on the Dragonkind, and here one came trying to do this. And if this wasn't enough, he was also trying to control her mind.
The vampire quickly learned a lesson that night "never stare into the eyes of a dragon". Alaria stared back, paralyzing the vampire with her gaze. The vampire stopped in his tracks with a silly-looking face.
Alaria dropped her guise, spread the golden-red wings in the night and accelerated, partly by flapping, partly by magick, and grabbed the vampire in her fangs. She flew to the roof of a tall human-built building and landed.
You, Alaria said, speaking for the first time in millennia, Who are you to ignore the Covenant? Know you not the Strictures? And who are you to dare to Embrace one of our kin?
"Say again?" the vampire asked.
The Covenant strictly forbids your kin to move as open as you do, she continued. The Covenant forbids your kin to raise challenge towards the Guardians. These are written in the Strictures of the Covenant, and your kin agreed to join it or be destroyed. Now, you dare to break them, and even claim ignorance of their existence?
"Hey, man, look..." the vampire stalled. "I follow the rules, like. I ain't broken the Masquerade. I didn't hunt outside me turf. I ain't broken the Prince's laws."
You lie, Alarias mind roared. The Strictures are broken. The Dragonkin will not look lightly on this.
"The what?" the vampire exclaimed and continued whispering "The dragonkin? Like, there are more of you?"
Yes. And Alaria raised her long slender neck to the moon and sung. It was a complex song, beautiful and horrific beyond belief, almost impercievable for the human ear and unencompassable for the human mind. The song was beautiful, the vampire could not stand it, and with the end of the song, every dragon was awake.
You shall present me to your Prince, Alaria said.
"No way, man," the vampire answered, "he'll kill me, like."
You shall present me to your Prince, Alaria repeated, else you will not exist to see the next night.
"I don't mean to make you angry or disappointed, lady," the vampire insisted, "but I ain't introducing you to the Prince. See, I like my neck. I don't know if you can destroy me here and now, but I know sure as hell that he can."
I see, Alaria said almost regretfully.
Then she grabbed the vampire, and flung herself to the skies. She gained altitude quickly, raised above the clouds and stayed hovering in the air. Do you think you would survive a fall from here? she asked. Or have your kin forgot the dragonkins breath?
She exhaled a long breath of fire, rendering the vampire strucken by panic. She held him still with both claws until he became calm again. Or should we stay here until the sun rises, Childe of Cain? Do you still not know I could destroy you as the bug you are?
"Okay, okay," the vampire begged. "Just don't hurt me, okay? I'll show you to the Prince, and then you let me go, okay?"
I'll give that event a thought, Alaria answered and sunk herself to the sleeping city.
The Prince met Alaria, and as the vampire caught had said, he was hostile. The Prince had bested all other supernaturals that he had met, from Garou to Mages. He was certain that one more could be bested, especialy this foreign naked lady.
This attitude is certainly not the best to wear when talking to a dragon. Before the night was passed, the city was in need of a new Prince and Alaria had left with the vampire she had caught.
The arrogance of the Kindred convinced Alaria that her decision was right. She called a Gathering of the Dragonkin to discuss the events. The Dragons came, one by one, to Mount Ararat as before, and one year after the Waking, there was the Second Gathering.
The debate went on for a night and a day, the air filled with the strange and eerie sound of dragonsong. The vampire could tell of the strange debate, four hundred naked men and women standing, sitting or lying on the ground. No sound could be heard, and the people gathered spoke only with their minds. Some of the dragonthoughts leaked to the vampire and he thought it resembled song.
The Gathering was more of a council of war. Try to imagine the frustration of lady Alaria when she in her regal position founds herself cheated of the throne of the Covenant. And imagine her asking the most noble of the Dragonkin if she would raise the bloody flag to reconquer it and with conscience could make this claim. Imagine the pride of the regal dragon when all of the dragons accepted her as their sovereign. One may think that the Swan from Avon was psychic when he described the council of war that Henry V of England held before the war against France.
And at the end of the Gathering, the Second Covenant was settled.
Much of the Dragonkins power had been invested in the Guardian. The Guardian had been slain and the invested power was lost. Once again, the Dragonkin had to pool their resources together. This time, the power should not be concentrated. The Dragonkin would not risk another loss.
Three strictures formed the Second Covenant. The three Strictures are called the Prides, the Quest and the Custos.
The Dragonkin was split into eight fractions that night, called the Prides, all named after one of the eight dragons of the Second Waking who shared the Pride's thoughts. The eight prides immediately started to debate among them in what way the Second Covenant should be introduced to the world.
As for the lost power of the Guardian, this should be quested for. Some would quest for it to release all the power and restore the Dragonkins former might. Others would quest for it to gain all of that power for themselves. All would, however, quest for the Power.
The last stricture of the Second Covenant was the Custos. Alaria prompted for the Dragonkin to resume their role as Guardians of the First Covenant, and several of the Prides agreed. But not all. Some of the Prides do not wish to chain the other kin to a covenant long lost and no longer remembered, especially since the Earth has survived more than one and a half millennia without a guardian.
Other prides claim that something is happening. The Immortal Races are changing, rapidly growing in numbers. The Guardians are again needed. The Custos will ensure that the growth is controlled.
What does a dragon look like? It is a very hard question to answer, since no dragon is exactly alike any other dragon. There is also a great difference between the dragons of the court of Alaria and those of the Eastern Court.
All dragons has at least two forms, the human form and the dragon form.
The Mortal form looks exactly like a human. It has exactly the same anatomy, to the point that it is possible to treat a dragon in mortal form with modern medical science and get a predictable result. The mortal form is better than the average human, but still not different.
The only difference lies in the eyes. Being the eyes of the dragon, the whites are too white, the irises too clear in colour and often too wide -- not exactly inhuman, just alien. This gives ordinary mortals (and other supernatural creatures too, such as vampires) the creeps, since it is quite clear that the being in front of them is a little different. Add to this the sensation of power that lies in the gaze of a dragon. This does not identify a dragon in mortal form -- it only gives a sensation of being in the wrong end of something extremely powerful.
It is possible to identify a dragon by looking at the shadow, which still is the shadow of a dragon, not that of a human. Some dragons creates an illusory shadow, or changes it's shadow, to resemble that of a human, but many supernatural creatures can sense this use of dragon magick and point out the dragon by this.
Since dragons do not dress in dragon form, they seldom dress in human form either. Instead, they create an illusion of clothes, which fools mere mortals but seldom supernaturals.
The dragon form is impressive; it is a combination of lethality and beauty. It has a slender body, not the clumsy lizardlike body of old stories but more that of a bird or dinosaur, with two strong back legs and two more slim forelegs that doubles as hands. The hands and feet are clawed.
There is a third pair of appendages, the wings. Although the wings are sometimes used for propulsion, the dragons are more likely to use their magick to propel them through the air and the wings only for lift and maneuver. Thus, it is possible for dragons to fly at supersonic speeds and with a maneuverability that surpasses most modern jet fighters.
A typical dragon is forty feet long and has a wing span of sixty to eighty feet. Of this length, one third is neck, one sixth is body and one half is tail. The tail ends in a spiked growth, much like the one of a flail. The back of the dragon is covered with lethal spikes, which makes sitting on the back of the dragon very uncomfortable, not to mention falling onto it. If a dragon ever carries a human passenger, the passenger would prefer to be carried in the dragon's forelegs, and the dragon would not like to have a human on it's (relatively) vulnerable neck anyway.
The head is small in comparison to the body, and is not the flat crocodile mouth. It looks more of a bird's beak than that of a reptile.
The eyes of the dragon is a chapter of it's own. They are narrow and ovoid in shape. They are protected by two sets of eyelids, the inner closing horizontally and the outer closing vertically. There are no pupils, and those who think there are often mistakes the half-shut inner eyelids, which shut from the sides, as pupils. The eyes reflect light much like those of a cat, creating an illusion of glowing eyes. Staring into the eyes of a dragon is to stare through the gates of Magick itself -- the eyes reflect the nature of the dragon's soul as pure incarnate magic, the very essence and fabric of space.
The colour of a dragon varies. Some are simple-coloured, others have elaborate patterns of colours, and still others shift colours like gasoline in a puddle of water. There is no connection between the dragon's power and it's colour.
Dragons do not need to eat, sleep or breathe. They may fall into a great Sleep which may last for centuries, but when they are awake, they are awake for a millennia or so. Food and air are unimportant to a being that is nutrified by the flows of Magick in the world. They may eat for the fun of it, they do breathe if they speak the mortal's tounges and they may sleep (or at least meditate or simulate), but none of these are necessary. Dragons may well survive in a submerged cave for centuries without food or air.
Although dragons are sexless in dragon form, they have a gender in mortal form. Since there are no sexless humans, there are no sexless dragons in human form. The mortal gender is more of a function of the dragon's attitude. A dragon which behaves "female" often has a female mortal gender. The dragon "language" does not have any gender, but in "translations", the dragon's mortal gender is often used. Thus, a mortal would address Alaria and percieve her name when presented to her as "Lady Alaria", even if she's in the sexless dragon form.
The dragon in human form is capable of having and enjoying sex. It is possible for a female dragon in mortal form to get pregnant, as well as a male may reproduce with human females. Any offspring from human form is always all human, even if both parents are dragons in human form -- no "dragon genes" will ever appear in the offspring.
The dragon has always one great secret -- their names. They take a name which humans can pronounce, but each of them has a True Name. If "spoken", a True Name would resemble a song or a complex harmony. This is a secret which a dragon would never reveal to any mortal (nor any other being, and certainly not a dragon), since knowing one's Name will give the mortal a powerful device to control a dragon.
The dragons are not creatures of the world. It is said that they are what remains of the Nephilim, that they are angels outcast and fallen to Hell, that they come from beyond or from Heaven (or the Heavens), that they are mortals who have eaten a dragon pearl, and a thousand other theories.
The truth is this; dragons are incarnations of Magick. As long as there is magick in the world, there will be dragons, and as long as there are dragons, there will be magick. If either is lost, then the other is gone forever.
When the Guardian was slain a long time ago, the magick in the world faded away and fell into sleep as the dragons were asleep as well. But magick did not vanish. It faded and was almost gone in the world, but not entirely.
As the magick faded, so did all those who lived on the magick forces. The Order of Hermes lost it's power. Mages was forced to abide the laws of Paradox or move their magick to the spirit world, as did the Garou. The Tremere bound its magick to that of blood.
But lately, the number of supernatural creatures have greatly increased, also increasing the flows of magick in the world, to the point that the most powerful of the sleeping dragons could wake. Now, lady Alaria has wakened the other of the dragonkin and assembled them to her court. Now, the magick is returning to the world.
It took eight hundred years for the magic to fade away when the last dragon awake was slain. Now, when all four hundred and nine dragons are awake, the magick will return in a little less than two years.
The dragon's language is in form of the Dragonsong. It is the voice of the fabric of magic, the way that a dragon persuades the universe to conform to it's will. It may be spoken, sung or thought -- that does not matter to the dragon, nor to the universe.
This language can be fairly well transcribed into Enochian -- that is, rather poor, but still better than any other mortal language -- but this has not been done for several thousand years for some reasons. When listening to the actual spoken language it would resemble music in the richness and volume that only a symphonic orchestra can produce.
It is good to think of classic music or to various film scores when describing dragonsong.
| When the dragon is... | Think... |
| Changing Form and Growing Angry | John Williams; "Incident at Isla Nublar" (Jurassic Park) |
| Closing In | Trevor Jones; "Main Title" (Last of the Mohicans) |
| Content | Ludwig van Beethoven; "Ninth Symphony, Fourth Movement" |
| Divine | Elliot Goldenthal; "Agnus Dei" or "Lento" (Alien 3) |
| Flying | Trevor Jones; "The Elk Hunt" (Last of the Mohicans) |
| Furious | Elliot Goldenthal; the first part of "Explosion and Aftermath" (Alien 3) |
| Generous | John Williams; "Theme from Jurassic Park" (Jurassic Park) |
| Majestic | John Williams; "Arrival of the Emperor" (Return of the Jedi) |
| Present | Elliot Goldenthal; "The Dragon" (Alien 3) |
| Performing Magick | Jerry Goldsmith; "The Shadow" ... orJerry Goldsmith; "Warlock" ... or Modest Moussorgsky; "Night at the Bald Mountain" ... orAlan Silvestri; "Bud on the Ledge" or "Back on the Air" or "Finale" (The Abyss) |
| Seductive (dragons love romance) | Trevor Jones; "The Kiss" (Last of the Mohicans) |
| Surprisingly Changing Form | Andrew Lloyd Webber; the ouverture of "Phantom of the Opera" |
| Thinking | Trevor Jones; "Sarah" (Labyrinth) |
| Threatening | John Williams; "Imperial March" (Empire Strikes Back) |
| Violent | Jerry Goldsmith; almost the entire "Alien" soundtrack ... orElliot Goldenthal; "Wreckage and Rape" (Alien 3) |
When a dragon talks, it is not in the simple tongue of the common folk today. It is more like the regal speak of Shakespeare's dramas. Not even the playful dragons of lady Sinyé's court speak like simple folk, if it does not serve their purpose.
When Alaria was recognized as the sovereign of the Dragonkin, she created herself a throne. It is located in the north-west of Austria, in a castle that she called from the very living rock, shrouded in mysteries and in mists, not to be beheld by mortal eyes.
Here, in this magnificient castle, crafted by Dragon Magick, Lady Alaria resides with her most trusted advisors, the lords and ladies of the eight Prides, and her train of forty trusted minor members of the Dragonkin. Here she has greeted ambassadors from the other immortal races. From here, she will rule the Covenant through her servants of the eight Prides.
The castle is enormous, created to not only fit mere humans but also the huge dragon forms. The Royal Hall of the Castle alone is a full one thousand feet long, three hundred feet wide and the ceiling is two hundred feet tall. From the ceiling hangs four hundred and ten great banners, each bearing the coat-of-arms of one of the Dragonkin. Above the throne hangs the greatest of all, that of Lady Alaria herself. Then comes the eight banners of the lords and ladies of the Prides. Further back in the hall hangs the four hundred banners of the living dragons in order of their rank from Wake, Name and Pride. At the far wall of the hall hangs the Black Banner, the one of the dragon that were slain to mortal hands, to remember him and his failure.
The Dragonkin has adopted the custom of having a coat-of-arms from the mortals. Lady Alaria was intrigued by the idea of having a symbol for every royal and noble family and thus adopted the custom for the Dragonkin as a symbol of their nobility of the other species. The Dragonkin have not adopted the rules and laws of heraldry and blazonry -- they simply created a coat-of-arms that they liked. The lords of the Lyon Court of Scotland -- Scotland's highest instance for heraldry -- would turn into rage if they ever saw some of the banners that hangs in the ceiling of the Royal Hall.
No roads lead to the Castle, and it appears on no maps. The only way in or out is the wings of the dragons.
He wills you in the name of God Almighty,
That you divest himself, and lay apart
The borrow'd glories, that by gift of Heaven,
By law of nature, and of nations, 'long
To him, and to his heirs ; namely, the crown.
[...] He bids you to resign
Your crown and kingdom, indirectly held
From him, the native and true challenger.
-- William Shakespeare; Henry V
The Court of Lady Alaria has sent embassadors to other immortal races, declaring the revival of the Covenant and demanding their obediance to it. Some have complied -- of recognition of the Covenant or abiding a time to wreak it -- others have refused.
So far, the Embassy has resulted in sorting out to Lady Alaria who will be her allies and who will be her enemies -- and most important, who will stay behind and wait to see the result of this royal battle.
Gaining Rank: It is possible that the dragon's Name will raise during the game. This happens when a dragon performs an action which all dragons consider to be praiseworthy. If the Name trait ever raises to four, the dragon will be asked to work for the lords and ladies of the Prides, being their embassador to the mortal world. If the Name should raise to five, lady Alaria herself will propose to the dragon that he will become her personal ambassador.
With such a Name, the dragon's banner will be moved forward in the Royal Hall. His words will be listened to with great care, and his friendship to the lords and ladies of the Prides and lady Alaria is guaranteed as long as the dragon stays loyal. Wake is also considered when speaking of rank, as is Pride to a lesser degree, but first of all loyalty to the Court and Name is considered.
When being a trusted councilor, the dragon will inevitably be drawn into the royal politics of the Dragonkin, and if he works as an embassador, he will also be drawn into the Machiavellian politics of the other kins. This will be somewhat confusing for a dragon.
When the conspiratory politics of, for example, the Camarilla resembles that of the Illuminati combined with that of the Cosa Nostra and an early Italian city state, the politics of the Court resembles that of a medieval king's. The plots are still there, as are the conspiracies, but it is sweetened with etiquette, manners and noble behaviour. There are seldom false alliances and theatre in dragon court. Enmity is open and sometimes leads to duels, instead of conspiring in the background against your enemy while being sweet and gentle -- and above all, false.
This fashion of court politics derives from the dragontongue -- remember that there is always truth in the words of a dragon. It also explains why dragons are so poor when conspiring within the Camarilla.
There are eight prides among dragons, signifying their relation to the mortal and supernatural world. Each pride shares basically the same opinions as their leaders. The prides are not a "lineage" -- they are much more of a political party.
The prides are more or less significant to Lady Alaria. Since she is the leader and sovereign of the Dragonkin, her opinions of the ranking of the prides counts very high in the Court.
The prides do not accept anyone. Since there is no lies in Dragonspeak, only truth, it is impossible to join a pride which do not share goals and motivations with the aspiring member. It is possible to change pride later in the game, but this must be role-played out.
Draconis Vermithrax is most of all interested in maintaining the Third Stricture, the Custos, and in that assumes the highest regarded position at lady Alarias court. The dragons of this pride joins lord Vermithrax in supporting the Custos and the Order of the Second Covenant. They act as ambassadors and envoys to the other Immortal kins.
Directly opposed to lord Vermithrax stands Lady Alexis. The world has maintained their controlled chaos for one and a half millennia without our supervision, she says. It is a proof that the chaos of the world is balancing in its own ways. Let it be that way, she says.
Alexis sees no need to get involved in the politics between the Immortal races, at least not as guardians. It might be amusing to enter the Game for amusement only, and perhaps to add some of the chaos wich in the end will balance itself.
Lord Rekhem stands allied to Vermithrax as his executive arm. Although Rekhem would rather see the Dragonkin standing alone against all other Immortals, he also knows that the present day is unfit for attacking the lower creatures. Thus, he is allied with Vermithrax, as Vermithrax is the most powerful pride of Dragonkin, and Rekhem's station as Vermithrax's armed branch gives him opportunity to slay some of the Immortals from time to time.
Lord Morkeleb was a great friend (if that concept is ever possible in the minds of dragons) of the dragon that had the Authority and was slain, fifteen hundred years ago. He sees the mortals as his sole enemy. The other Immortal races are dependent on the mortals, he reasons, so wiping the mortal existence out will also wipe out the Immortal races. This makes him unofficially allied with lord Rekhem, and there is an uneasy alliance between Morkeleb and Khuril. That alliance will probably end if Khuril ever reaches his goals.
Lady Sinyé is, in the eyes of the other dragons, immature. She thinks that this new amazing world is a great experience with great amusement potentials. In that she is the wildcard of Lady Alaria's court, since she supports those who she for the moment thinks poses the greatest possibility for fun.
Sinyé is active among all the Immortal races. She, and the dragons of her Pride, are connoisseurs and artists and joins with mortals and Immortals alike, to explore the pleasures of their world. In this, Sinyé is allied with Vermithrax.
Lord Thrakhinde supports a fraction of the Dragons who think that the world has passed them. Thrakhinde has an idea of his own -- to leave this world for another one, more fit for the desires of Dragonkin. This would take the effort of all the Dragonkin -- he would not be able to leave alone.
There are those who are frantically opposing this idea. Among these are lady Sinyé, who believes the Dragonkin to be a part of this world. Without the presence of the Dragonkin, the magic in the world would die, and with it, all things created.
Lord Khuril believes that the dragons are superior to every other kin on Earth. He refuses to use the word "immortal" of any other creature but the Dragonkin. He thinks that the Dragonkin are the natural lords of Earth, and would like to put all other kins under their rule.
His greatest ally is for the moment lord Morkeleb, who would like to slay all mortals. It is easier to slay the oppressed, Morkeleb thinks, and thus has joined lord Khuril. For the moment.
Lord Khanara's only position in Lady Alaria's court is that of the court mage. The few followers he has are seclusive hermits and viziers. Their magical powers are unmatched, but they are very few. Furthermore, they are not trusted by anyone but lady Alaria herself, and that trust is extended to only lord Khanara and only in times of need. Khanara is not loyal to anyone, save Lady Alaria.
Wide awake
I'm wide awake
I'm not sleeping
-- U2; "Bad"
Although the Dragonkin are a bit too powerful to use as player characters, it is still possible for a player to play a dragon character, especially if he is experienced or if the campaign has been going for a while and the other characters have become more powerful.
This section is for those players who would like to play one of the Dragonkin, but to do this, you need your Storyteller's explicit permission -- you'll have to ask him, and he'll have to agree, knowing what he is to unleash.
Step One: Character Concept
Step Two: Select Attributes
What are your basic capabilities?
Prioritize three categories; Physical, Social & Mental (7/5/3)
Prioritize the three Add-on categories; again Physical, Social or Mental (4/2/0)
Step Three: Select Abilities
What do you know?
Prioritize your three categories; Talents, Skills & Knowledge (13/9/5)
Step Four: Select Advantages
In what way are you unique?
Choose Powers (5), Elements (5) and Backgrounds (4)
Step Five: Last Touches
Distribute Freebie Points (15)
Step One: Character Concept
Sit down for a minute and put this text aside for a short time. Think what kind of dragon you want to play. It could be a good idea to look at the different Prides to find what group you would like to belong to. If you can't find any Pride that suits you imagined dragon, don't worry. It is possible to play a prideless dragon.
Think about how the dragon would act in certain situations. Will it try to rule the other players? Perhaps a Judge demeanor or nature should suit the dragon. Is it reclusive and doesn't care of the mere mortals? The Hermit should fit fine for you. Does your dragon want to enjoy the Mortal World before judgement is passed? Choose Bon Vivant as demeanor and Judge as nature.
There are a total of four hundred and nine dragons and each of them is unique. Think of this when you are designing your dragon.
Step Two: Select Attributes
As in the previous storyteller games you should decide in which category you are best, which one you are second best and which one you are worst in. Then you are to divide a number of dots within the categories. The difference is that this is done twice; once for your Mortal form and once for your Dragon form.
As you may have noticed, each attribute has two groups of circles for marking your dots. The first one, with the already filled dot, is for your Mortal form. The second, without a filled dot, is for you Dragon form. When in Dragon form, the two rows are added together to one dice pool, so if you have a Strength rating of four in Human form and another three in Dragon form, you should roll seven dice for a Strength feat.
Note that if one group is selected as Primary in Mortal form, it has not to be Primary in Dragon form too. It could as well be Secondary or even Tertiary.
Attributes:
Mortal Form: 6/5/3
Dragon Form: 4/2/0
Step Three: Select Abilities
Now it is time to choose what you know and what you can perform. The abilities are divided into three groups, Talents, Skills and Knowledge. You will have to choose one group as Primary, one as Secondary and the remaining will become Tertiary. You will get thirteen dots to divide among the Primary abilities, nine to the Secondary and five to the Tertiary.
Some of the abilities are marked with an asterisk ("*"). These are abilities that has been developed or changed during the last millennia. Since you have just recently woke, you have not learned or re-learned them. No dots may be divided among these abilities and you may not place any experience points here during game, with these two exceptions: you may place dots or experience points here, but the rating in the ability may never exceed your rating in the Wisdom trait. You may also spend freebie points to buy these abilities.
Abilities: 13/9/5
Step Four: Select Advantages
You have five dots to divide among the three Powers; Song, Art and Might. You also have five more dots to divide among the Elements, and four dots to divide among the Backgrounds.
Powers: 5
Elements: 5
Backgrounds: 4
Step Five: Last Touches
Your Wisdom trait is equal to your Name rating, and your Wrath trait is equal to your Wake rating. These ratings may be increased with freebie points.
You have fifteen freebie points to divide to your liking. The dots cost a certain number of freebie points, depending on were you place them.
Point pool cost
Powers: 7 points per dot
Elements: 5 points per dot
Attributes: 5 points per dot
Abilities: 2 points per dot
Backgrounds: 2 point per dot
Wrath: 1 point per dot
Wisdom: 1 point per dot
This is a good time to design a coat-of-arms for your dragon. Do not worry if you don't know the rules of heraldry and blasonry. Most dragons don't know either, they simply design a coat-of-arms that they are fond of.
There are several different traits that are unique to the dragonkin. Other traits are described in one of the Storyteller games but not any other. All traits that do not appear in all Storyteller games are described here.
Remember that it is possible for a dragon in dragon form to get a total of nine dots in any attribute, ten if you use freebie points. This makes the dragons sort of powerful. The entire score is rolled for when using such an extreme attribute, but in addition to that, all dots above the first five gives some extra effects. Some of these effects can be translated into Vampire disciplines, and since most Storyteller players came in contact with the Storyteller system through Vampire: The Masquerade, we refer to the vampiric disciplines when possible.
| Attribute above five | Equals |
| Strength | Potence of Strentgh - 5 |
| Dexterity | Celerity of Dexterity - 5 |
| Stamina | Extra health levels (see below) |
| Charisma | Dominate of Perception - 5 |
| Appearance | Presence of Appearance - 5 |
| Perception | Auspex of Perception - 5 |
The extra health levels from a high Stamina lies between Bruised and Hurt. These health levels do not disappear if the dragon changes form to mortal and thus loses his extra health levels, nor are they added to the higher wounds. They are simply dormant until the dragon resumes it dragon form again.
Some of the abilities in Dragon: The Waking Wrath are not described in Vampire: The Masquerade. We provide a short description of them here, mostly taken from other Storyteller games (Werewolf: The Apocalypse and Mage: The Ascension). All abilities that are described in Vampire: The Masquerade are omitted from this text.
Awareness
This Talent represents a character's ability to detect things that are not of the physical world. Sensing things that are not of the physical world often requires a roll of Perception + Awareness.
* Novice: You can see strange things out of the corner of your eye.
** Practiced: Odd things are revealed to you.
*** Competent: All things have a deathly aura that you can easily identify.
**** Expert: You could find a lucky four-leaf clover in seconds.
***** Master: You can see the bizarre everywhere.
Possessed by: Paranormal Investigators, Gypsies, Psychics
Specialities: Animals, Magic, Supernatural creatures
Expression
The Expression Ability represents your ability to get your point across through speaking or writing, whether you're writing a book or debating social issues. Characters with high Expression are unforgettable, but only in their ability convey their feelings; intelligent or meaningful expression is the purview of other Traits. Expression at its highest form can be art.
* Novice: Tabloid reporter
** Practiced: College debate team captain
*** Competent: Successful comedian
**** Expert: Best-selling novelist
***** Master: William Shakespeare
Possessed by: Orators, Politicians, Novelists, Actors, Demagogues, Protesters
Specialities: Poetry, Impromptu, Radical, Innuendo, Meetings
Intuition
The Talent of Intuition reflects a character's ability to guess correctly and follow her "gut feelings". Intuition is kind of a safety net for characters, and it is up to the Storyteller to keep it from being abused.
High levels of this Talent also indicates some aptitude in certain areas of ESP, like precognition. A rating in Intuition means that the character probably can guess the result of a cointoss more often than not. She might also have a sense of when someone is lying to her.
* Novice: You have good instincts.
** Practiced: Always go with your first answer.
*** Competent: You're a con man's nightmare
**** Expert: A sixth sense seems to tell you when something's amiss.
***** Master: You could bankrupt Vegas and Atlantic City.
Possessed by: Fortunetellers, Gamblers, Entepreneurs, Bodyguards
Specialities: Horse Races, Ambushes, Dice, Honesty
Flight
The ability to fly by your own power, usually by using wings or magic. You may use this skill with some machines, like hanggliders, parafoils or jet packs, but usually not and always with high difficulties.
* Novice: You can land without scrubbing your knees.
** Practiced: You can land on an aircraft carrier in full storm at night.
*** Competent: You are able to outmaneuver a British, Swedish or Israeli air force pilot.
**** Expert: You are competing with the Red Arrows.
***** Master: Baron von Richthofen.
Possessed by: Dragons, birds, bats, intelligent helicopters and other free-flying creatures.
Specialties: Aerobatics, air combat maneuvers, gliding, nap-of-earth
Meditation
Meditation is the Skill of calming the emotions, controlling the mind, and relaxing the physical body. Meditation is usually preformed in a spacial position, like the lotus position, but with practice, it can be preformed in a variety of situations or positions.
Meditation can be used to isolate the mind from distractions, allowing the character to focus on matters of importance. Meditation can also be used to catch up on lost sleep, if you need sleep, a Stamina + Meditation roll (difficulty 8) determines how many effective hours of sleep are gained per hour of meditation.
* Novice: You can sit in one spot for a while without fidgeting
** Practiced: You can sit still and attain peaceful state of mind
*** Competent: You can relax in any position
**** Expert: People have to go out of their way to break your concentration
***** Master: You could stand on you head in gunfire and approach inner calm
Possessed by: Martial Artists, Monks, Athletes, Psychologists
Specialities: Relaxation, Focusing, Memory, Zen, Centering
Research
Every good student or seeker of knowledge knows how to find information he needs or desires, In the civilized world much of this information is available through libraries. A successful roll with this Skill means a character has ascertained where to get the information she requires. It doesn't necessarily mean that the information has been gained, though that is usually the case (especially at libraries, although even then the required book may be checked out or missing).
* Novice: The Dewey Decimal system has been mastered.
** Practiced: You know the workings of most standard reference resources.
*** Competent: You have access to many private libraries.
**** Expert: Given time, you could find almost any reference material.
***** Master: If it's been written, you know where it is.
Possessed by: Writers, Scientists, Editors, Lawyers, Librarians
Specialities: Philosophy, History, German
Technology
The Skill provides practical knowledge concerning the function and repair of technological items of all sorts -- cars and security systems, and computers.
* Novice: The on-off switch is no problems.
** Practiced: You know all the basics.
*** Competent: You can figure out nearly anything given enough time.
**** Expert: You understand many complicated machines and devices.
***** Master: If man made it, then you can use it.
Possessed by: Repair, Security Experts, Hardware designers, Inventors
Specialities: Electronics, Computers, Cars, Security Systems
Culture
Understanding the behavior, beliefs, art, institutions and general thought patterns of a society is part of this Knowledge. Possessing such information allows more than just knowledge of how people act, but why as well. This is extremely important if a person wishes to interact with a culture, or, as many powerful character wish, to change or influence a culture.
This Knowledge provides an understanding of past and present cultures, an ability to quickly pick up cultural details of a new society, and indicates a talent for blending into the local society.
* Student: You know a few taboos of the culture.
** College: You probably won't get lynched.
*** Masters: You can understand all levels of many cultures.
**** Doctorate: You can recount the past and predict the future of a culture.
***** Scholar: Indiana Jones
Possessed by: Archeologists, Pollsters, Artists, Politicians
Specialities: Religion, Politics, Ancient Rome, Faerie, Garou, Kindred
Enigmas
Puzzles and problems occupy your imagination - in fact, you may even enjoy being perplexed. Solving riddles of all sorts is a passion, and this interest has given you a knack for piecing together and remembering information vital to many kinds of problem-solving.
The Enigma Knowledge assists players in solving the mysteries created by the Storyteller. It is essential for the divining secret pathways to lost realms, answering the riddles of mystical guardians, or riddling of one's soul a malevolent spirit.
* Student: You can put together a 100-piece jigsaw puzzle.
** College: You can guess the outcome of a mystery novel.
*** Masters: You can do Rubik's Cube in an hour.
**** Doctorate: You'd have whipped Gollum without hobbit trickery.
***** Scholar: You understand the deepest mysteries
Possessed by: Crossword Puzzle Devotees, Zen Enthusiasts, Game Players, Mystics
Specialities: Ancient, Riddles, Visual, Verbal
Notes on some abilities There are some abilities that must be mentioned. All abilities marked with an asterisk (*) are limited for dragons -- they must have a Wisdom trait equal to or greater than the score in these abilities.
If the dragon does not wish to be forced to use Dragonspeak -- with which no lies is possible and nobody is able to misunderstand, but also very revealing of the dragon's nature -- and telepathy, the dragon must pick at least one dot in Linguistics. This is popular among the prides Vermithrax and Sinyé, but there are others that scourn this habit, Khuril and Alexis for example.
Politics is a good ability to have, because of the workings of the Court. Flight is also a good ability to possess, but not necessary. All dragons have an innate ability to fly, but some are more practised than others.
Melee has quickly become a fashion of the Court. Many duels are resolved with the rapier, and many dragons show great skill in using archaic weapons like swords. Besides, skills in close combat will put the dragon in a better position when dealing with the Immortals of the Shadow War.
Dragonkin only have four Background traits. These are Pride, Wake, Name and Form.
Pride The Pride is the group or fraction to which you belong. The more dots you place in this trait, the greater your name becomes. If you want to convince another dragon, you often have to succeed with a roll of Pride + Name, against a difficulty based on your relation to the other dragon's Pride and the feat you want the other dragon to perform. You will almost never use Intimidation, Leadership or Subterfuge against another dragon. First of all, your Pride and Name exceeds the mortal skills, and second, there are no lies in Dragon Talk.
- Prideless
* Khanara
** Thrakhinde, Khuril
*** Sinyé, Morkeleb
**** Alexis, Rekhem
***** Vermithrax
It is almost impossible to raise your Pride score. This must be done through being accepted by another pride, and acceptance is not lightly taken. It is almost impossible to trick one's way into a pride, since there are no lies in Dragonspeak.
Wake
The order in which you were awakened are important to Dragons. Since Alaria was powerful enough to not only wake all other sleeping dragons but also powerful enough to wake herself, she is the most powerful dragon of all. She is also the only dragon of the First Waking. All other dragons came awake in order of their power. The eight founders of the Prides are dragons of the Second Waking. All other dragons falls into the Third to Eighth Waking, indicating the importance and power of the dragon. Almost two hundred dragons belong to the Eighth Waking. Around one hundred dragons are of the Seventh Waking, fifty of the Sixth Waking, twenty-two of the Fifth Waking, eighteen of the Fourth Waking and only ten of the Third Waking.
- Eighth Waking
* Seventh Waking
** Sixth Waking
*** Fifth Waking
**** Fourth Waking
***** Third Waking
The Wake rate is used when speaking at the Gathering -- use your Wake + Name to get a dice pool. Second, your initial Wrath rating equals you Wake rating. Wake may never be rased, but it is possible to raise wrath.
Name
You Name is a rating of how well the other dragons think of your name, and are one of many factors that establishes your position in Dragon society. All other dragons know of your name -- this trait represent how much they respect you.
| - | You are above the mere Mortals, but still as low as the other Immortal races. Your Name is scorned at, and you are unworthy of calling yourself a true Dragon. |
| * | You are accepted among Dragonkin as one of the populace. You are not noteworthy of anything special, but you are at least accepted. |
| ** | Your feats are remembered; the ones with lesser Names bow to you. |
| *** | Your name is respected and your opinions will be listened to by the Higher Ones. |
| **** | Your advices are of weight when the Council takes decision regarding all Dragonkin. Your name -- but not necessarily you nature -- may even be known to other Immortals. |
| ***** | When you talk, all other dragons fall into silence. Dragons parts to let you pass, and even the royal Alaria herself invites you to council her. |
Your initial Wisdom is equal to your Name rating. It is possible to raise the worth of your Name, but this is left to the Storyteller's discretion. The dragon will have to prove himself worthy of the higher rank.
Form The Form rating indicates not only how easily you slip between your Mortal and your Dragon form, but how many different Mortal forms you may hold. It also governs your ability to leave your body and travel in the Umbra, as well as your astral body's damage resistance.
If your Form rating is two or more, some of your forms may be of non-human shape,for instance Crinos or Vampire forms.
- One form
* Two forms
** Three forms, one being non-human
*** Four forms, one being non-human
**** Five forms, two being non-human
***** Six forms, two being non-human
The first of the Powers of Dragon Magic, the Song is the base of vocal enchantments. It is also with the Song that the dragons speak among themselves and sometimes to others. The Song is always true -- no lies could ever be spoken in a Song. The Song is mainly used for communication.
The rating of the Song trait does not only measure the dragon's ability to use the supernatural forces of the Song, but also how the music sounds in itself. The trait could be used to perform music, but no human musician would ever be able to place it.
| * | The Song is of the simplest tune, and very little control is provided |
| ** | The Song contains more harmony. |
| *** | The Song contains complex harmonies. |
| **** | The Song is so complex, so harmonic and so spontaneous, it no longer can be achieved on any single human instrument. It is possible to recreate that kind of music with a full symphony orchestra or a very complex synthesizer. |
| ***** | The Song surpasses any physical instrument ever created. |
Specialties: Perception, Communication, Singing, Performance, Beethoven etc.
The Art is used for crafting magic. Unlike Songs, which are active only as long as the Song lasts, works of Art last practically forever. The works of Art are often crafted into the existence with such skill that it is almost impossible to find them. One of the most obvious Arts is Stonehenge. Art is used for creating.
Specialties: Healing, Crafting, Creating Water, Creating Food etc.
The Might is the strength of the mind and the origin of sayings like "never gaze into the eyes of the dragon". Might is used for changing or control.
Specialties: Mind control, Levitation, Changing, Air control, Invisibility, Illusions etc.
The four Elements is the second part which forms the Magick of Dragonkin. They are always combined with one of the powers -- they seldom stand alone. The exceptions are listed below.
Air
The Air element is mainly used for flying. It is added to all rolls for Speed or Maneuverability. When used in dragon magick, Air represents not only the element of Air, but also the ether, spirit world and images.
Fire
Fire is used for the fiery breath of the dragon. The damage from a fire is equal to three, plus the Fire element rating, sustained for a number of rounds equal to Fire rating +1. This damage is soaked with a difficulty of nine (equal to chemical fire). The rating is also added to Stamina when soaking fire, including fire from another dragon.
Fire in magick sense also includes the soul of Man, the fire within his heart.
Water
The Water element is used the same way as Air is used, but below the water surface. It is added to all rolls for Speed and Maneuverability.
Earth
Earth is used as Fortidude to resist physical damage, for instance from blade weapons or projectiles. Earth within magick also includes the body.
There are two traits which are used for measuring the enlightenment of the dragon, Wisdom and Wrath. The traits are rated with a circle; if every one of the twenty dot in the circle if ever filled, the dragon has realised his potential and freed himself from the weariness from the long sleep. He is from that point in full control of his mental as well as his physical powers.
Either Wisdom or Wrath can be used in the same manner as Willpower, but Wrath is used for physical actions and Wisdom is used for intellectual actions.
Wisdom and Wrath may be regained as Willpower. All Wisdom and Wrath is recovered to the extent of the characters' level at the end of a story. It may be gained through nature and demeanor, with the addition that the trait gained is the one that suits best for the action.
Wisdom and Wrath may be raised permanently through experience points. They may also be lost permanently as with Willpower, that is, when a botch occurs from a roll from a roll for Wisdom or Wrath.
Whenever you are to roll for Willpower in any other Storyteller game, you roll for either Wrath och Wisdom, whichever is highest.
Experience is gained as in Vampire: The Masquerade and may be used in the same way. As in Vampire, backgrounds may not change through experience points. Wrath and Wisdom are explained above.
| Type of trait | Cost |
| New Ability | 3 |
| Wrath or Wisdom | Current rating |
| Ability | Current rating x 2 |
| Mortal Attribute | Current rating x 4 |
| Dragon Attribute Add | Current rating x 6 |
| Power or Element | Current rating x 5 |
When working dragon's magick, you always combine one of the Powers with one of the Elements to get a dice pool. Every effect desired has a difficulty, ranging normally from 2 to 10 as usual. Since there are a lot of possible effects, we provide only guidelines for deciding the difficulty number.
Note that dragon's magick is extremely powerful. This is intentional, since dragons are extremely powerful. If you think these dragons are powerful, then think of how powerful a dragon that has completed the Quest and restored the authority as the Guardian must be. Then again think of how much luck -- or faith -- St George must have had when he slew the Guardian 1500 years ago.
As said before, there are few limitations of dragon's magick. As the Storyteller, you may do almost whatever you like and find appropriate. Most Kindred or Garou don't stand a chance against an enwrathed dragon -- a few ancient ones may stand even in an encounter with a dragon. Mages would not like to be in the wrong end of a creature of pure magic incarnated, which wields it freely as one would wield a sword and is not limited by forces as Paradox.
As a player, you will have to think in dragon terms when crafting magick. Although you as a dragon has incredible powers, you would stand alone if you unleashed them, since no dragon in the Court of Alaria would aid you. It would end in that the entire mortal world would turn against you, as would the supernatural world. And not even a dragon would stand a chance against the combined forces of an army of mortals as well as vampires, Garou, mages etc.
Thus, a dragon is more interested in being subtle. The dragon does not wish to be exposed. As a player, you must remember this. Use your dragon's magick in a more subtle, clever and creative way instead of burning down everything in your way. The idea of suffocating a jet fighters engines using Might + Air to control the air currents instead of simply tearing the fighter into small metal pieces is a very good example of creative use of magick.
One success is all that is needed to activate a magickal effect. If it is possible to create a greater effect with more successes, then each success gives an extra effect equal to creating the magickal effect once more. For example, gaining three successes while healing heals three wound levels. Gaining four successes while causing damage causes four wound levels, et cetera.
You only get the effects you declared. If you get more successes than needed, these are wasted and may be used only on resisted rolls. If you get fewer successes than needed, no effects will appear at all.
Example: Rithka is flying in dragon form and suddenly realizes that she is clearly visible when two F-16 fighters moves in to attack. She decides to vanish, at least for the eyes and radar of the fighter jocks and any other mortal -- including the radar crew on the ground. This is two sources of perception (vision and radar), which craves two successes. The difficulty number is 6, and Rithka will have to use Might + Air. The dice hits the table, and she comes up with three successes. Since she only needs two successes, one is wasted. The resulting effects is however that Rithka vanishes before the eyes of the fighter pilots, much like a Klingon Bird of Prey.
If another person is directly affected, this can be resisted with a roll for Willpower with difficulty equal to the dragon's Might + 4. If the successes from the Willpower roll is greater than the successes from the Magick, the Magick is resisted and nothing happens. Except that the dragon might get upset and uses a more physical approach to get it's will done.
Example: Rithka would like to incinerate a vampire while she is still in human form. She could use Art + Fire to light the vampire directly, but the vampire could resist this with a roll for Willpower with a difficulty of 8 (Rithka's Might score of 4 plus 4). Rithka decides on an indirect approach; she lights the bed in which the vampire is lying instead. Thus, the vampire cannot resist the effect.
A dragon may concentrate of a number of effects equal to its Intelligence score. Each roll for equals one "slot" -- that is, if two effects are gained with two or more successes in one single roll, this counts as one "slot". The effects may be of any kind, but only one of them may be of Art Magick. There can be as many effects of the Song or Might type as there are slots.
Example: As Rithka holds one effect to make her invisible (one slot), she decides to joke with the pilots. She creates an illusion of a naked woman sitting on the nose of the aircraft. This fills one more slot. Since she has an Intelligence of 3, this means that Rithka has one more slot to fill.
The dragonsong is not only the language of the dragonkin, but also the basis for all forms of Song magick, the perception and communication magick in the dragon's own language. It need not be spoken, but all people with some kind of supernatural senses (clairvoyance, Auspex, Heightened senses etc) will hear the Dragonsong anyway.
Song magick usually has a duration of Concentration, that is, it lasts as long as the dragon thinks of it.
Song magick is used for communication or perception.
Song + Air
| 2 | Listen to the whispering conversation at the next table |
| 4 | Listen to radio broadcasts, without receiver |
| 6 | See television broadcasts, without receiver. Listen to the echo of the song as a radar. |
| 10 | Listen to conversations on the other side of the earth |
Song + Fire
| 2 | Dragon speak |
| 3 | Silent communication |
| 5 | See a specific soul, wherever it is |
| Willpower | Receptive telepathy, eye contact |
| Willpower + 3 | Receptive telepathy, regardless of position |
Song + Water
| 2 | Listen to a dolphin |
| 10 | Listen to a crawfish at the bottom of the Marianer-grave, while at the springs of Mississippi |
Song + Earth
| 2 | See footprints on the rock |
| 6 | Find a person's body somewhere on Earth |
| 10 | Talk to the Eternal Fire in the centre of the Earth |
Art Magick usually has a Permanent duration. It lasts virtually forever or until destroyed. The dragon must touch whatever he is working on, but when the magick is complete, it stands forever. The dragon can only work on one Art Magick at one time. He may hold Song or Might magic at the same time. The Art Magick only fills it's slot while it is crafted. When it is complete, the slot is free.
Art Magick is based on creation or destruction.
Art + Air
| 2 | Create a light breeze |
| 10 | Call a tornado |
Art + Fire
| 2 | Light a match |
| 10 | Incinerate a building |
Art + Water
| 2 | Fill a glass with water |
| 10 | Fill a building with water |
Art + Earth
| 2 | Create a handfull of dirt |
| 6 | Heal one level of damage, cause one level of damage |
| 10 | Raise a mountain |
Might Magick has a duration of Concentration, as for Song Magick. It ranges as far as the dragon can see.
Might Magick is based on control and changes.
Might + Air
| 2 | Blow away fumes of perfume or toxic gases |
| 4 | Blow a person into the wall; create a lightly distorted illusion (roll Intelligence + Awareness difficulty 6 against Might + Air) |
| 6 | Control the winds to suffocate a jet engine; make one unnoticable to one source of perception (vision, radar, heat, smell, hearing etc) |
| 8 | Create a perfect illusion |
| 10 | Make one completely invisible |
Might + Fire
| 2 | Control a candle flame to dance |
| 10 | Control a volcano |
| Willpower+4 | Tame a person's soul |
Might + Water
| 2 | Making a puddle of water to return to the bucket |
| 5 | Raising a mile high pillar of water |
| 10 | Raising a five mile high tsunami to drown New York |
Might + Earth
| 2 | Making a rock lift |
| 5 | Lifting Stonehenge |
| 6 | Change one's appearance |
| 10 | Forming a mountain to a castle |
| Willpower-2 | Levitate someone's body |
| Willpower | Control a person's body |
Although dragons mostly prefer to solve problems in other ways than physical combat -- any fool can be a great warrior, but it craves much more to be a conqueror -- it is very likely that a dragon will have to defend it's status as being superior to any other creature.
The dragon's most offensive weapon is their flame. The fire is in form of a long flame, much like the one from a incinerator but much larger and hotter. It's range is up to 90 feet and it may be set to cover a 15° arc is the dragon wishes -- a little more than 20 feet wide at longest range. If the flame touches anything it sticks to it and burns for a short while. It can only be projected while in dragon form -- the human form lacks the organs needed to produce the flame.
There is no need to roll to hit when using the flame. If the dragon may want to avoid to hit something, a roll for Dexterity + Fire may be made with a difficulty of 6. If the object avoided is larger, the difficulty is higher, and vice versa.
Dragon Breath damage: 3 + Fire element score, sustained for 1 round + Fire element score. Difficulty to soak: 9.
The dragon does never take any aggravated wound. If the dragon is Incapacitated, it lies unconscious and may not move nor take any physical action. It is possible to send it to Eternal Death when the dragon is unconscious with a good blow through the heart, neck or head, but if this does not happen, the dragon will start to heal. It is sent back to Sleep within a day and stays sleeping if not called -- this might be done with Song or if knowing the dragon's True Name.
The Sleep will last for two thousand years, minus one hundred year for every dot in either Wrath or Wisdom. A dragon with a full circle does not fall into Sleep, any other dragon is effectively out of the game for at least one century.
Any wound that does not send the dragon to Sleep will heal one wound level per day resting. If the dragon does anything but laying still and almost motionless, it heals one wound level per week.
It is possible that a dragon may come in a position of air-to-air combat with a fighter or another dragon. These rules are used to solve most such situations.
Initiative
To gain initiative, you need to maneuver into position. This is done in the same way as rolling for Initiative, though the difficulty is based on the position of the combatants and the maneuverability of the aircrafts. The one that gains initiative does not only act first, but also puts himself in a better position in relation to the enemy.
| Position: | Difficulty |
| Enemy dead ahead | 4 |
| Enemy ahead and at the side | 5 |
| Enemy at the side | 6 |
| Enemy aft and at the side | 7 |
| Enemy behind | 8 |
| Distance | Diff Mod Typical weapon used |
| Gun distance | < 1000 meters+1(Dragon flame, vulcan guns) |
| Close distance | 1000 - 3000 meters±0(AIM-9 Sidewinders) |
| Medium distance | 5 - 10 km±0(Sparrow) |
| Long distance | 10 - 20 km-1(AMRAAM) |
| Extremely long | 20 km or more-2(Phoenix) |
| Maneuverability | Difficulty Modifier |
| Dragon | 0 |
| Large commercial or cargo aircraft, eg C-5 Galaxy, Boeing 747 | -6 |
| Commercial or cargo aircraft, eg C-130 Hercules, Boeing 707 | -4 |
| Small cargo aircraft, eg Cessna, Piper Cub, Lear jet | -2 |
| WWII fighter aircraft, eg Spitfire, Mustang | +1 |
| 1950 fighter aircraft, eg F-4 Phantom, F-104 Starfighter, MiG 19, MiG-21 | -1 |
| 1960-1970 jet fighter aircraft, eg F-14 Tomcat, MiG-23 Flogger, Saab 37 Viggen | 0 |
| 1980 jet fighter aircraft, eg F-16 Falcon, F/A-18 Hornet, MiG-29 Fulcrum | +1 |
| 1990 jet fighter aircraft, eg F-22 Lightning II, Saab 39 Gripen, EFA, Eurofighter | +2 |
Both combattants roll for Wits + Flight (dragons) or Wits + Piloting (aircraft pilots), with difficulty defined by the tables for Position and Maneuverability above. Also modify the difficulty number regarding to the speed of the aircraft -- this figure is gained from the table below. If either side is flying in formation, only the wing leader makes this roll. The wingman stays behind the leader. This formation may be split at any time, when the rolls becomes separate for all combatants.
| Speed | Difficulty modifier |
| 200 km/h (WWI Fighter) | -3 |
| 300 km/h (attack helicopter) | -2 |
| 500 km/h (Cargo or commercial aircraft, WWII fighter) | -1 |
| 700 km/h (Dragon, fighter/bomber speed) | 0 |
| 900 km/h (Typical attack combat speed) | +1 |
| 1100 km/h (just below Mach 1) | +2 |
| 1300 km/h (just above Mach 1) | +3 |
| 1800 km/h | +5 |
| 2400 km/h (Mach 2) | +7 |
| 2800 km/h | +9 |
The combatant that wins this opposed roll gains initiative and may act first. He also improves his position. A "better position" is defined by distance and relative position. As the one that gains initiative, an attacker can choose to alter the opponents position relative to him, his own position in relation to the opponent, or, if engaged in air combat maneuvers, the distance. See "Speed" below.
Remember that dragon characters may add their Air score to their dice pools.
Example: As Rithka flies to England above the Atlantic Ocean, two F-14s decide to check out the strange and unidentified object. They gain visual contact at a range of twenty miles, thanks to their long range video sensor, and decides to move closer as they "can't identify the target" (honestly, if you were a naval air force pilot, would you report that you had a positive ID of a dragon?).
About this time, Rithka decides to play with the Tomcats. She turns towards them, and the air combat maneuvers begin at long range. The Tomcat pilots arm their weapons, but before they can get a lock, Rithka is upon them.
The F-14s have a Wits of 3 and a Pilot skill of 4 (specialty: carrier based fighters), total of 7. Their difficulty is 4 (dead ahead), modified with -1 (long distance) and +1 (attack speed) for a total of 4. Rithka has a Wits of 4 plus a Flight of 4 (specialty: aerobatics), and because she is adept with the Air element, another 2 for that score, total of 10. Her difficulty is 6 (enemy at her side) -1 (long distance), total of 5. No other modifiers apply.
In the opposed roll, the F-14s gets 4 successes, while Rithka gets 5 successes. She gains initiative and also chooses to overshoot a bit, making the F-14s shot a bit harder. This makes her position relative the F-14s "Ahead and side". The distance closes automatically one pip to Medium range (see below).
Distance Distance may be changed at will only when dogfighting. If both combatants are heading towards each other, distance is decreased two pips every round. If one craft is flying towards the side of the other, distance is decreased one pip every round. If the distance ever gets closer than "close", the crafts have passed each other and must engage anew with the enemy behind. If one craft is trying to disengage, a pursuit situation occurs and resoluted with an opposed roll for speed. Either use Strength + Flight (dragons) or Wits + Piloting (aircrafts) with a difficulty from the table below. Again, dragons may add their Air score to the dice pool. The winner of this roll may choose to reduce or increase the distance one pip, or to keep the distance.
| Speed | Difficulty |
| WWI Fighter, heavy commercial aircraft | 10 |
| Cargo or commercial aircraft | 8 |
| Attack helicopter | 9 |
| Fast attack helicopter (AH-64 Apache) | 8 |
| Dragon | 6 |
| WWII fighter | 8 |
| Supersonic aircraft, eg Concorde, 1950 jet fighter | 5 |
| Mach 2 fighter (1960 +) | 4 |
| Mach 3 aircraft, eg XB-70 Valkyrie, SR-71 Blackbird | 3 |
| Aurora spyplane, Shuttle orbiter, any anti-aircraft missile | 2 |
Example: The F-14s closes in on Rithka. Although she out-maneuvers them and moves into a worse position (from the F-14s point of view), they are suddenly within Medium range, since they are flying towards Rithka's side. At that distance, they are quite clear of what they are facing. This information is beamed back to the carrier via their JTIDS data link, who in return clears the fighters request for permission to fire.
Attacks
Attacks are made in the usual way. Roll to hit, and if you hit, calculate damage. Jet fighters, although rigidly constructed, are sensitive to damage; most hits from a modern air-to-air combat system will render the craft useless. Fortunately, direct hits are rare.
For any aircraft without a turreted weapon, the enemy must be ahead of the attacker to hit. Turreted weapons have a fire arc; WWII bombers usyally have a 360° by 180° or 90° by 90˛ fire arc for each machine gun, attack helicopters and dragons have a 180° by 45° fire arc.
To hit, roll Dexterity + Flight (dragons) or Wits + Aircraft Gunnery (fighters). The roll may be opposed with evasive maneuvers -- roll for maneuver as described in Initiative above. To hit, the attacker must get more successes than his target. If using a guided weapon (most modern missile systems), you don't get a lock if the roll to hit fail and the weapon is never launched. If you get a lock, the weapon is fired.
Difficulties for different weapons:
Machine gun or auto-cannon, one sec. spray (Vulcan gun): 8
IR homing missile (Sidewinder): 6
Semi-active radar homing missile (AMRAAM): 5
Fire and forget radar missile (Phoenix): 4
Target is jamming radar, dropping chaff (SARH or radar homing only): +2
Target is dropping flares (IR homing only): +2
Target is "cold" (helicopters, combustion engine or turboprop, dragons; IR homing only): +2
Target is stealthed (stealth fighters or bombers): +2
All missile weapons have a travel time to the target, based on the distance. During this travel time, the target may try to take evasive actions. The roll is Wits + Piloting (aircrafts) or Wits + Flight + Air (dragons), with a difficulty of 8 modified by maneuverability and speed. There is a -1 modifier of the difficulty for dropping chaff or flares, and additional -1 if the target is "cold" or "stealthed", depending on the nature of the missile.
If the target gets more successes than the attacker got in his launch, the weapon is evaded and the target is clear of the weapon's lock.
| Distance | Travel time |
| Gun distance | No travel time |
| Close | 1 round |
| Medium range | 2 rounds |
| Long range | 3 rounds |
| Extreme long range | 4 rounds or more |
Example: The next round, the F-14s gain initiative and moves in for the kill. They have her dead ahead, and they're flying towards her side. They closes in one pip to Close range and the wing leader gets an IR lock (clattering dice behind the Storyteller's screen, gaining two successes) at Rithka with an ASRAAM and launches the weapon. At close range, the weapon will take one round until it hits the dragon.
Next round, Rithka folds her wings and turns towards the sea in an attempt to avoid the flaming spear launched at her. She knows that the weapon will hit her in this round, so she concentrates entirely on evading, hoping to fool it. She has a total of ten dice in the pool, and a difficulty of 7 (8 as base difficulty, modified with -1 for being "cold"). The player rolls the dice, and gains four successes! The ASRAAM overshoots and misses, and Rithka decides to vanish. The next round, she uses her magick to disappear from radar, vision and heat.
The F-14s scan the area for a while, finding nothing, and then turns back to their carrier while listening to the extensive chat between USS Nimitz and CINCLANT (Commander-In-Chief Atlantic ocean). When the wheels of the undercarriage touch the flight deck of Nimitz, two DIA agents are already waiting aboard the carrier to debrief the two pilots and their radar officers of their UFO encounter.
As the Dragonkin awakened, they cast themselves headlong into the politics of the other supernatural races. It is difficult for a race that has been absent for fifteen hundred years to resume their former position in the politics, but they are doing what they can, taking one step at a time and slowly gaining a foothold in the supernatural political world.
Vampires: The relations between Dragonkin and the vampires are strained at best. The vampires do not remember the Covenant. Most of them refuses to recognize and reenter the Covenant. The Camarilla plots against the Dragonkin while acting innocent -- a falseness that the Dragonkin despises. The Sabbat is somewhat easier to handle. Since they are open enemies to the Dragonkin, the dragons know where they have the Sabbat. In fact, there have been occasional alliances between Dragonkin and the Sabbat against the Camarilla.
Garou: Garou was never but an honorary member of the Covenant, but still they have held to its strictures longer than any other kin. They still remember some of the Strictures, such as the Impergium that was declared over the mortals long ago. They do not remember the Covenant itself, but is that surprising for a basically mortal -- but powerful -- species?
The Dragonkin and the Garou work quite well together. There is no official alliance between them, but the Garou has kept the door open. The Garou will not submit themselves to the rule of the Dragonkin, but neither do they oppose them.
Mortals: Hrmf.
Immortals: There are several different immortal kins. The Immortals of the Shadow Wars have been speaking of the dragonkin and sometimes remember them. Most are of recent origin and behaves like most humans when they hear of dragons -- they think of them as creatures of legend and lore. Basically, the dragonkin thinks them to be mortals with an extremely long life and a stupid habit to cut each others heads off.
Mummies did not exist by the time of the First Covenant and are thus not covered by it. Since the mummies were first created, the Dragonkin have been working to have them join the Covenant. So far, they have not succeeded. The mummies have not joined, but on the other hand, they do not work against the Dragonkin either.
The Fair Folk is a different case. They did join the Covenant, but by the time the Dragonkin was sleeping, they left the Earth. They are returning as the dragons, but now it seems they are grasping for power instead of obeying the Covenant. This is not looked upon lightly by the Dragonkin, who really wants to force them into re-joining the Covenant. Tha Faerie Lords are of a different opinion.
The Dead: The Dragonkin has little to do with the Dead. They sometimes commune with spirits, wraiths and other phantoms, but they do not involve themselves in the politics of the Dead. S far, they are ignored as they pose no threat to the Covenant.
Mages: Mages (dragons usually call these "magi") are looked upon with contempt. Their strife for power leads to a destructive path. They must not be allowed to proceed in their misdirected ways. It makes little difference to the Dragonkin that they actually oppose the Technocracy, since the dragons sees all wielders of magick as potential enemies. The Dragonkin knows that the Magick has declined and will return with them. If magi of the present day are as powerful as they are, what would they not be if the learned to use the full power of Magick restored?
Eastern Court: The Eastern Court of dragons was never under the sleep. Neither did they ever pool their powers to a guardian. They have stayed on their territory for so long and respected the boundaries -- even when the dragonkin were asleep. Lady Alaria and her court will return that favour.
There are several possible and actual conflicts for the Dragonkin. Below is a list of some of the possibilities.
Camarilla vs Dragons:
"A new force has arrived. The Dragonkin has already killed the Prince of Miami, gained control of several kindred and threatened us to join a Covenant which only they and the Methuselah remember.
They are powerful. Their powers are matched only by the strongest of mages; they have their innate ability to breathe fire, and they are strong in mind as well as in body. We should not strike at them, but avoid them."
This sums up the Camarilla's thoughts of the Dragonkin. The Covenant seems unnecessary for the Camarilla and do not want to rejoin it. On the other hand, they know that unless they attack a dragon en masse, they would hardly match a dragon in fight. The Camarilla has decided to leave the Dragonkin untouched... for now.
Sabbat vs Dragons: "What?! A new enemy? And they want us to join their Covenant with other Kindred? How amusing -- I think it's time to teach those lizards a lesson, boys!"
Unlike the Camarilla, Sabbat thinks of Dragonkin as a new opponent on the stage. They may be allied with (for a shorter time), but since the Dragonkin seek control of the supernatural world, Sabbat's ultimate goal is to get rid of these upcomers. Their open enmity against the Dragonkin makes the dragons trust the Sabbat more than the Camarilla since they know where the Sabbat stands.
Mortals vs Dragons: "Look, Commander, I know what I saw up there. The tapes from the camera should well prove my case. It was about forty feet long and organic. You don't like the word 'dragon'? Fine, it's no dragon, but whatever it was it was forty feet long, organic and flying in Mach oh-point-nine."
"Flight Lieutenant, listen carefully; you fly a long range patrol, gets an object on visual which the Nimitz can't even see on the radar, and identifies it as a creature of lore and legend -- and lands here with a tape that proves you're right? How am I supposed to present this report to CINCLANT without me losing my command of the Nimitz and without you losing your Tomcat? I'd like to believe you -- especially after watching this tape -- but I can't. At least not officially. For the sake of our both best interests, I think you should forget the entire incident. Understood?"
"Understood, sir."
The mortal world, or at least it's military organisations and intelligence agencies, know of the Dragonkin's existence from several encounters when the dragons became awake en masse. 1991, there was a total of 670 dragon sightings within NATO alone, all classified most utterly top secret. Since then, the number of dragon sightings have clearly dropped to a mere fifty sightings a year. The few intelligence analytics who have studied the phenomenon have come to the conclusion that the dragons are learning to hide from the mortal world's electronic and biologic eyes.
The American FBI, DIA and NSA know that something is stirring up the Undead society and have concluded that this "something" probably is the Dragonkin. The british JIC have confirmed this through it's contacts with one of the Dragonkin who has settled in Scotland -- not at Loch Ness if you thought that. It is an information exchange only -- no alliance is so far settled. It is possible (and to some extent likely) that the SVD (ex-KGB) has made contact with one dragon in Siberia, but this is unconfirmed. NSA have been monitoring of the Middle-East with the Keyhole satellites, and believes that Mossad has indirect contact with the Dragonkin.
Mages vs Dragons: Dragonkin does not like mages, since they are one of the few really dangerous threats to the dragons. Also, the nature of magick has changed during the Sleep, and the paths have turned away from those that the Dragonkin knew. Thus, mages are looked upon as a wildcard and potential enemy.
Some of the Dragonkin accept mages outside the Technocracy, others dislike all mages, Technocrats or not. The Dragonkin tries to hide themselves from mages, but mages have recently learned that the Dragonkin have returned -- and they do not know how to interpret this.
Dragons vs Dragons: Dragons work for power among themselves. This means that dragons will be opposed to other dragons, which in turn will lead to internal conflicts among the Dragonkin. Lady Alaria tries to keep the troops in line, since she knows that a civil war will severely weaken the Dragonkin. She tries hard to find an external enemy towards whom she can direct the wrath of the dragons. It seems that the vampiric species and mages are selected as the new arch-enemy of the Dragonkin.
This does not prevent internal conflicts and occasionally combat and bloodshed between dragons. Lord Draconis Vermithrax and lord Rekhem stands opposed to Lady Alexis and Lord Morkeleb -- more than once has this opposition led to a duel; luckily, no duel so far has ended with death.
Since Dragon: The Waking Wrath is based on the Storyteller system and the World in Darkness, it is easy to integrate it with the other Storyteller games.
Dragon: The Waking Wrath fits best in a high level Vampire: The Masquerade campaign more based on role-playing and intrigue than conflict. Dragons fit equally well in both the Camarilla and the Sabbat. Dragons have two powerful weapons -- their flame and their magic -- but these are balanced by the vampire's sheer numbers and their complicated politics.
It is possible to combine Dragon with Werewolf: The Apocalypse, but this is only partially tested. The dragon is physically very strong and superior to even the Crinos form of the Garou, so the dragon does easily take the alpha position of a Garou pack. The rest of the pack may become pawns of the dragon if the players and the storyteller are not careful.
It is much harder to combine Dragon with Wraith: The Oblivion, because of the non-physical Shadowlands and the barrier between it and the physical world. Add to this the fact that neither dragons nor wraiths are interested in each other's politics. In fact, it is hard to combine any Storyteller game with Wraith because of this.
The combination of Mage and Dragon has not been fully tested, but it might be possible to create an alliance between dragons and mages against the Technocracy.
Finally, there are a lot of Storyteller adds available on electronic media, written by fans of the World in Darkness and the Storyteller system (like Dragon: The Waking Wrath). There are at least two versions of Immortal, describing immortals of the kind that appear in Highlander, which does not disturb the Dragonkin that much. There are several adds for Vampire, including one that imports magic from Ars Magica to Storyteller. Since there has been a decline in magic, I have assumed that this magic will be useful in the mediaeval world (to around 1300 A.D.) and after the return of the Dragonkin.
There is a text describing a kind of Dragonlords from Tibet, called Drukpa. Because of the nature of the dragons described here and the relation between the Drukpa and their dragons, it must be assumed that the dragons of the Drukpa are of a different court -- they are not anyone of the four hundred and nine dragons of the court of Alaria.
There is also one text describing Faeries, called Changeling: The Eternal Game. As they are described, these Faeries will come in opposition to the court of Alaria and will make excellent opponents.
The greatest worry is the forthcoming Changeling: The Dreaming. Very little is known about this game. It is possible that Dragon: The Waking Wrath will have to be revised as soon as Changeling is released.
Author: Krister Sundelin
Helping Hand: Rasmus Hansson
Bold enough to allow dragons in his campaign: Fredrik Einarsson
Cover: Michael Whelan
The Storyteller system was designed byMark Rein·Hagen
Robert Asprin - M.Y.T.H.Inc. Link
Terry Brooks - Magic Kingdom For Sale - Sold!
Robert C. Fleet- White Horse, Dark Dragon
Esther M. Friesner- Take Me Out to the Ball Game in the anthology Dragon Fantastic
Barbara Hambly- Dragonsbane
Tanya Huff- Shing Li-Ung in the anthology Dragon Fantastic
I. Edelfelt & M. Karlin- Bröllopet i Marsipanien
Donn Kushner- A Book Dragon
Ursula K. LeGuin - Earthsea Quartet
The Rule of Names in the anthology The Wind's Twelve Quarters
R.A. MacAvoy - Tea with the Black Dragon
Anne McCaffrey - Dragonriders of Pern especially Mnementh and Canth
Evelyn E. Smith- Gerdain the anthology Dragon Tales
J.R.R. TolkienThe Hobbit Patricia C. Wrede - Dealing with Dragons
Searching for Dragons
Roger Zelazny- The George Business in the anthology Dragons of Light
There is of course a lot more to say about the Dragonkin.
Like, the Quest. Is it possible that the Authority is already restored? And how will the return of the dragonkin and magic affect the world? Will the supernatural races be joined in the Second Covenant, and how will this affect the world?
Good questions, all of them. But you won't get an answer, not now. Time will tell.
Of course, little of the Dragonkin will ever be noticed, at least not by the mortals and not in the beginning. It is possible that the world will turn into a dark fantastic future where magic and technology will exist side by side, but I find this unlikely. The Dragonkin will work to prevent this, since it is harder to gain control of the Covenant if the magic is unleashed. And that is what almost all of the Prides wants -- control, direct or indirect, in one form or another.
But the dragons won't stay in the shrouded shadows of mysteries forever. Sooner or later, the veil will be lifted and the dragon's presence announced. It is possible that Mankind will pose a great threat to the Dragonkin, possibly even going to war against the dragons. It is possible that the dragons already have a firm control of the mortal world at that time, and that nothing will happen. It is possible that another race will challenge the authority of the Dragonkin and use the Earth as their battlefield.
But rest assured, the Dragonkin are already here, hiding silently among the shadows, spreading their wings among the supernaturals and gaining influences in the mortal world as well. Sooner or later, the Second Covenant will apply to all.
Sooner or later, you will hear from us.
Yours sincerely,
-- Rithka
PS: If you do not believe me, just look out through the window. You will see something that will convince you.
Author's note: Lady Rithka never described what the dragon looked like. The appearance that I have described above is based on a cover painting by Michael Whelan -- a scanned image accompanies this text as the "front cover" -- and descriptions in the book "Dragonsbane" by Barbara Hambly.
I haven't seen lady Rithka since the ball. I would like to see her again, and present this text to her. And then again, I do not -- if I have offended her and her kin, it is possible that I will never write anything again. But I don't think I have to worry. If they want to seek me out, they will probably find me, and if I had offended them, they would already have come.
Did I look out through the window? Oh, yes, I did. My curiosity sparked, I opened the window and watched at the nighted sky. I saw nothing but trees, stars, the full moon and the lights from my home town. Then, suddenly, in a short instance, something covered the moon. Something huge, with large flapping wings, a long tail and a slender neck. For a short time, there was a flame in the sky.