Who are the dragonkin?

The people known as dragonkin are a reptilian species from the Dragons Claw archipelago, far to the east of the continent of Atoyatl.

Scaled, tailed, horned, snouted and winged, they possess large, intimidating frames with clawed hands and feet. Their forms are impressive, and thanks to their heavily militaristic culture, they are all, without exception, solidly built, with females being notably more lithe, with shorter snouts.

The dragonkin have the ability to fly, and their reptilian scaled biology makes them hearty enough to weather harsh conditions.

Naturally charismatic, the dragonkin have a force of personality that when combined with their impressive physical forms mean that they stand out in a crowd.

Heavily draconic in mean and aspect, the dragonkin have an affinity, and a deep connection to the fundamental elements that make up the world, and to that end, they most heavily find themselves drawn to Seija and Khyron as objects of worship, who are themselves, deities of the elements and resonate deeply with the dragonkin people.

Proud, arrogant and highly self sufficient, the dragonkin believe themselves to be the superior beings, and thanks to their militaristic successes, this “fact” has only been entrenched in their cultural personality, with no sign of changing any time soon.

The dragonkin are exceptionally literal, perhaps to a fault and though they understand and appreciate artistry, most commonly incorporating it into their armorcraft, they are simply not creative enough to do anything truly original; To it, a dragonkin bard would be a lorekeeper in the most literal sense. A cleric would preach to the letter of their deity. A paladin would be exacting to their oaths and a mage would take the teachings of their masters to heart. Thus, though they are an adept people, they dislike change, even to the smallest degree– A dragonkin may become unreasonably upset if a work of theirs is imperfect, or if their possessions are shifted even slightly.

The dragonkin are masters of their craft, with a strict caste systems that sees magecraft, weapon and armor smithing, farming, ranging or combat savants in great number; a lifetime turns into a family line of crafters and these crafters do not deviate from what brings them their notoriety.

So prideful are the dragonkin in fact, that they will memorize their entire generational line, recounting exactly what gave them their station in the first place, and some may even keep the first mastercrafted item their progenitor ever made as an icon to live up to.

The dragonkin do not shift socially without a lot of effort however. Bloodlines are heavily monitored with soldier dragonkin only breeding with their kind, the elementals likewise, though between the segregated casts, interbreeding may take place, for example a stonekin and a flamekin may mate, producing an egg with affinity to both fire and earth. The tidekin are the most rare, overall about ten percent of the population and are, without exception, nobility, lawfully and rightfully hatched in keeping with dragonkin dictate and law. Each bloodline is monitored and there is no such thing as bastard born in dragonkin society. Births happen for a reason, and they are to fill a specific role.

Dragonkin breed true, and the idea of homosexuality is as alien to them as the most fanciful tale of curio from distant lands. They do not condemn such practices by any means. In fact, some may take a scientific interest in the phenomena, but as a concept, they simply do not understand such behavior. Likewise, mating for enjoyment; To produce an egg is an honor and a privilege and something to be done during the mating season. The dragonkin libido, as with their imagination is lacking– they are creatures of instinct, logic and superiority. If it is not their way, it is imperfect and wrong.

Dragonkin society is heavily regulated; everyone has their job in the culture, from farmers to soldiers, from mages to clergy and each craft is respected for the understanding that all aspects create the whole. The dragonkin are monarchical, of course, and their caste systems allows for little flexibility, though this does not matter to them in the least, as dragonkin will always give their task their all. An adept farmer is as prized as a master weaponsmith or a clerical apotheosis.

Though not imaginative, dragonkin enjoy their craft, be that militaristically or artistically, and those who fight the never ending war against the monsters that swarm their homeland see great merit in that, turning to the tactics and pure beauty of battle in Cevahir, as the more academic or those gifted in craft may devote themselves to Kismet.

The culture is rigid and exacting, a well oiled machine and the dragonkin to that end dislike chaos. This removes the need for inquisitors from their society as thieving is a craven act that no dragonkin would ever accept, let alone engage in.

Because of this rigidity though, depending on how the kin resonate, it is not unheard of for them to devote to Kreysneothosies or Lord Shadow, seeing a simple elegance in the black-and-white outlook.

The five names known by all dragonkin are Orthos, Roghar, Raiona and Falkati, their Elemental Princes, though Orthos is either lorded or condemned dependent on which side of the conflict (Khyron or Seija) the individual falls, as in 769, Orthos delivered a storm to the Dragons Claws as he aimed to wrestle the kingdom away from his father, an ancient polychromatic tideborn only known as the Elemental King.