Phýr’estár (Forest Dragons)

Phýr’estár (Forest Dragon, lit. “Forest Giant”)

Categorization: Animals -> Dragons, Dragons

Basic Overview
Living in the Yllon Wood in Cartash, the Phýr’estár, or Forest Dragons, were once thought to have inhabited the woods all across Caelereth. Due to other races' exploration, the great dragons decided to move to woods where they would be less likely to be disturbed. They are one of the larger dragons, their length being able to be up to 32 peds. Because of the great difference between the adults and the hatchlings, for many years the two were thought to be two different species. The hatchlings were on the small side, and tended to glide from tree to tree, using their large, translucent green wings to assist them. On the other hand, the adults are so large, they would break any tree they attempted to scale. Their wings are used more in the mating rituals as well as ceremony purposes.

Appearance
For many years, researchers thought there were two different species of dragons living within the Yllon Woods. The first one, which later turned out to be the hatchlings and younglings, look completely different from the full-grown adults.

Hatchlings/Younglings: When first hatched, the hatchlings are only about 3 palmspans long. Their wings are large, but shriveled until given given enough time to dry, typically 1 to 2 hours. At hatching, their wing span is 1 fore, 2 palmspans, and some odd nailsbreadths. (It was hard for this researcher to find the exact wingspan of these hatchlings, for at the time of hatching the parents are very overprotective of their young, especially while the wings are still drying.) Before the wings are fully dried, the membrane appears to be wet and shriveled. At the end of each wing is a small hook or claw. This is very useful when climbing trees or holding onto their parents.

Their scales are a beautiful sognastheen. They appear to shine and glisten in the forested sun like precious emeralds. Yet, even so, they do not appear to be Almost immediately, their styruine eyes are open and taking in the sights of this new world. Their snout is long, but rounded at the end with a tooth or two poking out at the side.

Ears are merely small holes on the side of their head. Tiny spikes start at the base of their head and go to the tip of their tail, starting off small and getting larger, becoming the largest near their haunches, after that, decreasing in size once again. Their claws are long and sharp, making it easy for them to hang onto trees.

Younglings look the same as hatchlings, except they are bigger and continously growing. In humans and other species, the “hatchling” stage would be equated with infants and toddlers, while the “younglings” would be associated with childhood.

Adults: Somewhere around age 200, the younglings start to grow at a much faster rate and they even start to look different. They gain an amazing pygge a week, until they weigh up to, but not limited to, 34 pygges! Yet, even with this sudden growth spurt, their wings don’t grow as quickly as the rest of their body. Rather, they only grow to a wingspan of only 28 peds, making the wings fairly useless to lift their enormous bodies. Some people who have seen the full-sized dragons often comment on how useless the wings appear to be.

Starting at the sognastheen colour, they slowly turn into more of a herne colour, thus blending into their surroundings better. Also with age, the spikes upon their neck, tail, and back become less pronounced, appearing to be merely bumps upon their skin. Because they don't move around very much once they reach adulthood, sou'cald moss begins to grow upon their backs. This makes excellent natural camoflauge for the dragons, who prefer to keep to themselves as much as possible. Often, whenever a lost traveler wanders into the far reaches of the Yllon Woods, they will walk right past a settlement of the dragons without ever realizing it, thinking the adults are merely hills in the forest.

Special Abilities
Younglings are able to glide through the forest, thanks to their wings. As mentioned before, the adults are not able to do this due to the fact their wings are much smaller than their bodies and would be unable to life them up off the ground.

Wind breath

Earth manipulation

Territory
The Phýr’estár Dragons can only be found deep in the Yllon Woods on the Peninsula of Caael'heroth. The younglings tend to wander away from the adults, venturing very close to the edges of the forest. The adults, however, tend to stay in settlements deep within the woods, away from all contact with the outside world. They are content to pass the time with family and friends.

Habitat/Behavior
The younglings differ greatly from the full grown Phýr’estár Dragons in how they interact with the world around them. Younglings are very curious and are often drawn to the edges of the woods to catch glimpses of the outside world. They are very active and one can often see them gliding from tree to tree, high above one's head.

If you were to see these creatures, what kinds of things would they be doing? Challenging the pack leader for control, or wandering by itself? Get into as much detail as you can.

Diet
Meat eaters
Don't have to eat a lot due to lack of movement

What do your creatures eat? And if they eat a lot, what is their favorite food? Also make sure that what they eat can be found where they live, otherwise it just isn't practical

Mating

What are their mating behaviors or rituals? Do they mate at all? Is there maybe some sort of dance? Which gender is the aggressor usually? Again, detail.

Myth/Lore/Origin (Optional)
Do they come from anywhere special? Applicable e.g. at supernatural creatures like demons, ghosts, spirits etc.

Researchers (Optional)
Morcanaan or Kalina

Usages (Optional)
In case products or parts of this animal (like milk, hide etc.) have a special use, let us know who uses them, where and why.

Anything Else (Optional)
Can you think of any details to make this even better?