Forgotten Realms - Green Dragon By Kerian-halcyon Watch

17 Favourites 2 Comments 838 Views

Name: Green Dragon



Type: Dragon (Chromatic)



Alignment: Lawful Evil



Habitat/Niche: Temperate Forests, preferably deep woods with ancient, old growth



Description: The Green Dragon is a master manipulator, a cunning creature that delights in corrupting lesser creatures such as mortals, hoarding them like playthings. Known for their long neck, snake-like forked tongue, and the long crest of fins along its spine, as well as their notably verdant hue that is their namesake. They particularly delight in secrets and intrigue, feigning diplomacy when dealing with equal or greater foes while relying on intimidation and their characteristic cruelty when they gain the upper hand. They particularly enjoy corrupting and/or consuming elves, along with other fey creatures.



Their breath weapon is a type of foul, poisonous gas, specifically chlorine. The gas is heavier than air, making it incredibly useful when launched from above (and especially useful in that it doesn't cascade back up into its own nostrils when breathed out). Their preferred treasure (besides their mortal playthings) are items that are hand-crafted and ornate in nature - the longer and more painstaking it was to craft, the more coveted the treasure. Green Dragons have been known to allow mortals safe passage in exchange for such gifts (though like all dragons they can just as easily change their minds and devour you instead).



Despite their cruel, manipulative nature, Green Dragons are surprisingly good parents. Both parents will stay close to their clutch of eggs while it incubates, and they will raise their wyrmlings until they reach adulthood (anywhere within a century). Green Dragon hatchlings are often mistaken for blacks due to their dark scales, though this quickly changes as they age and grow, the scales soon acquiring their nominal viridescent hue.



-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Holy hell this took a while to color. Took just about as long to ink too. This is the first time I've sketched and drawn something on a full letter page since...forever, actually. I tend to prefer smaller surfaces when drawing, it means I can use up more of the available space and I'm less likely to cower my drawings in a corner and accidentally draw off the page. This time however I wanted to give myself more room to draw and get all the details I wanted in, and it worked out rather well.



I'm actually not that fond of Green Dragons in terms of their personality. Like nearly all of D&D's dragons their differences seem less about stuff that sets them apart and more about individual concepts like their personality or their breath weapon. It's part of why I absolutely despise Metallic Dragons - save for Silvers and Irons, nearly every Metallic is just a less cool version of a Gold Dragon, which itself is incredibly OP despite being a benevolent creature. This is due to them being based off of dragons from Eastern Mythology, but instead of carrying the mysticism and awe such dragons have they instead just strapped what they thought was cool on a Western Dragon's body and called it good.



Thankfully Green Dragons make up for their lackluster personality (all dragons are manipulative to a fault, being manipulative enough that you prefer to make mortals your toys is hardly something unique) by looking badass and having a cool breath weapon. Chlorine is oddly specific for a toxic gas that can be breathed out by a giant predator, but it also makes the most sense - it's toxic, caustic, and heavier than air, making a backdraft or having a small space fill up with toxins that can affect the dragon first all the less likely.



I'm planning on doing more of these (planning, mind, we'll see if it actually happens or not). I was originally going to do them from 'least favorite' to most favorite, but since I don't actually have a least favorite dragon I decided I'll scratch that in favor of making them smallest to largest. I'll just let this fancy green just sit here as our finicky first course.



Now, if you'll excuse me, it's 3 in the morning and i have a doctor's appointment in 6 hours...criminey...





D&D/Forgotten Realms (c) Wizards of the Coast



Artwork sketched and colored by Kerian-halcyon, inked/colored in GIMP 2.0



-Kerian

IMAGE DETAILS Image size 2172x1661px 1008.82 KB Show More