#dragon kings

[jellisdraws]

“Speak softly lest my fangs find you.”

Recent comm of a badass Saurian character and his signature weapon, Mancatcher. Lineart is below the cut!

I have a few slots available for commissions!

Anything I can’t post here is on my Patreon, Patreon.com/JellisDraws

[neoninky]

I'm watching The Mario Bros Movie (the newest one) while sketching badly on my Cintiq All I can see when Bowser talks about his plan to marry Princess Peach is Malleus talking about the MC in an Enemies-to-Lovers-ish Evil Overlord AU lololol *accidentally gives self idea for possible oneshot/headcanon post* ....alright if anyone wants that to become a thing, lemme me know in either the comments or my ask box lol.

[paragonrobits]

have a consideration of the thought I had as I woke up today, going from asleep to sudden lightning-eyed alertness as a single thought flooded my brain:

"WHAT IF INSTEAD OF BEING AN ALCHEMICAL IN THAT ATLA/EXALTED AU I KEEP THINKING ABOUT, AANG WAS A DRAGON KING?"

some explainations for those not familiar with Exalted; it is a tabletop fantasy game heavily influenced by a mixture of several mythologies and classic epics, and high-action anime series, set in a fantastical bronze-era world of competing politics, spirits mired in a divine bureaucracy, and mighty heroes using their power as they see fit. The game is named for the titular Exalted; mortal humans who have been chosen by the Exaltations, shards of divine power seeking out mortals with the will and desire to use this power (regardless of what they intend to actually do with it), which come in a variety of types that have different skills and criteria.

However, the Dragon Kings are NOT among the Exalted, though the word itself is a translation of a similar concept where their ancestors once widely channeled spirits in partnerships. The Dragon Kings are a nonhuman species of humanoid dinosaur-like beings that predate humanity; they were created to be the species to dwell in the world, and humanity created as living prayer batteries to fuel the gods that lived under the power of the Dragon Kings. When the gods rallied against the titans that made them, the DKs (who mostly revere the mightiest of the gods, the Unconquered Sun, as the ultimate paragon of heroism and virtue) sided with the gods, and were almost completely wiped out in such a way that they can never reach the population they once had.

This is because the DKs serially reincarnate in a way unlike humans, who are born, die, have their memories washed away by the process of Lethe, and are born again. The Dragon Kings instead are born as beasts and functionally just animals, but as they grow older and wiser, their elders train them and help them to awaken their true spirit, becoming intelligent again, and as they grow wiser still, they remember all their past lives, all the way to the dawn of existence, and pick up where they left off. The titans unmade most of the Dragon Kings, and they can never reincarnate from that, thus their population is permanently capped.

They are a shadow of what they once were, and they can never again return to the days they remember so clearly. Never again will the people created for the world ever be able to dwell in it as they once did; their cities lie in ruins, populated only by beasts or the bestial remnants of their people. The humans who profit on their ruin know nothing of the people who had to die for humanity to prosper. Many a Dragon King awakened, only to see the horror of their people's decline, to see cities that were once thriving metropoli of philosophy and culture, and see only ruins.

And yet, there is heroism all the same; in finding something to fight for in the modern day, or to strive to rebuild the infrastructure their people so desperately need, and build something new, however far from the glory of their ancestors but still something worthwhile.

In this regard, Aang fits incredibly well as a Dragon King. Particularly he resonates well with the Pterok, whom are a flying breed physically inspired by flying non-dinosaurs like pterodactyls, and are naturally skilled at more spiritual paths of enlightenment metaphysically associated with the element of air, powers of sensory empowerment and communing with the spirits. Additionally, the specific nature of how the DKs are reborn also nicely fits with the Avatar's reincarnation, though somewhat different in nature the basic ideas can still be applied.

The other interesting detail is that the DKs are considered underdogs by Exalted standards. They are inherently powerful and far stronger than any human can EVER be. However, they themselves cannot become Exalted under any circumstances, and it takes them a VERY long time to fully train their powers, well over a century of training, wisdom and understanding, while the Exalted can achieve superior power within months. The DKs have a hard cap on their power that cannot be worked around, while the Exalted are superweapons that can defeat any foe or achieve any goal; accordingly, while they have a potential for wisdom beyond the Exalted, and are also able to learn a form of sorcery, they will always be far weaker, which is also a deeply interesting idea.

So I present this notion; Aang as a newly awakened Pterok Dragon King, either as a mundane member who has recently spontaneously gained sapience (which does sometimes happen) or an ancient sage of some sort who was placed into stasis to wait out a terrible calamity, only to emerge eons after he was supposed to wake up, and finds himself in a dark time where his people have lost themselves, sword and violence are the only rule respected by the world, and the wisdom he values has been ignored.

Never the less, he must try.

[welcome-to-fernweh]

I like to think of the present dragon gods of Eleturn are, like, chill with weird mortal stuff as long as it isn’t a serious threat to them. So like, yeah, anonymously gift them short FanFics of them and they’ll be like, “Eyup, same shit as always.”

Zhí Míng

Jiān Bīng

Xuānyuán

Mèng Zhāng

Líng Guāng

I’m sorry milord, but the peasants are nailing erotic artwork of you and your court jester to the church doors again

[babycatlix]

i'm just curious bc i'm watching How to Train Your Dragon and i always forget how happy and calm it makes me feel. i mean, i did name my cat after Toothless the dragon. but i also love Lion King, that's my Disney comfort movie. and my Ghibli comfort movie is Spirited Away. watching any of these when i'm in a foul mood or my anxiety is high always helps 🥰 but i watch them just for fun too, not only when i'm in a mood. what about you?

[sandythereadingcafe]

REVIEW:

THE BASTARD KING (The Bastard King duet 1/ The Dragon Kings) by Donna Grant at The Reading Cafe:

'The premise is detailed and complex; the romance is passionate '

[redbelles]

#how to train your dragon

HOUSE OF THE DRAGON 2.07 ⬩ The Red Sowing

[rhaenyrathecruell]

“Aegon the realm’s delight” is the saddest line ever. Aegon wants to be a daughter so bad. To be coddled and gazed upon with love and affection rather than distain and fear. Rhaenyra wishes to be a son. She wants the loyalty everyone has to be unwavering. She wants to be feared and respected like a man. They are truly two sides of the same coin.

[thereadingcafe]

[afnandragon]

[onebadnoodle]

cuphead related doodles

[artnoonewants]

Poor delusional Viserys 😔

[paragonrobits]

i’ve been doing Exalted character growth simulation AND now i was just watching some people react to Primal episodes and suddenly i was seized by the compulsion to come up with a character inspired by Spear the neanderthal in an Exalted vibe and after initially contemplating a mutated human that is from a remnant of a human-based soldier variant Exalting as a Zenith Solar, i thought about neaderthal vibes and now im thinking about an awakened elder Dragon King (Anklok, I think) who was sealed away before the Primordial War and has awakened into a terrifying and strange world less dangerous than what he remembers, his people either gone or faded away into mindlessness, and the curious species his people he periodically saw during his battles in the vast desert of his homeland have taken over the world with horrifying levels of cruelty and inhumanity

(actually now i’m thinking about incorporating him into the Circle I’ve been ideating for a bit)

[morebird]

how could I resist mr. dark, complex and intriguing

[arcane-gold]

the inquisitor has far too much on his plate these days

[erinmakesgifs]

King Aegon II Targaryen trying his best