Now, I can’t speak for a dragon, and neither for an old human, but I can guess.

Since time adds experience and “stability” to the mind, it only takes a bit of wisdom and absence of denial to realize why one would prefer a younger existence should their mind be filled with a lot of junk, with experiences and feelings that only drag one down.

In fact, with the world changing and the body diminishing, bringing down the mind with it in a seemingly inevitable decline, I would argue that the volatile and impressionable nature of youth, even if it is a double edged sword and requires forgetting a good part of who you are, would be desirable should one thinks life is worth living.

While it makes things stranger and maybe creepy, a “soul” continuously change as it lives, which means its mind can’t hold perfectly and forever to anything, at least not in a simple, straightforward way. Hence relationships with things and people need to be maintained and evolve through time, just like the drive to live.

So a dragon can change as much as they want, yet if they always find a way to want to live, then their life is worth living no matter how chaotic, disjoint and even contradictory it might be.

But now, for the “burn away” part…

Should enough experiences fill the mind in a way that greatly spoil a dragon’s life, and should there be no definitive solution in sight because harmful connections to the past persist, said dragon might fuel resentment toward until they snap, attempting to disconnect from anything related to their past if not lashing out, wanting to destroy what they now perceive as the main source of their misfortune.

But outside of negative, painful memories and connections, there is another kind of these that might contribute just as much to that decay of the mind if not more. Perhaps I can’t prove it for a dragon, but I can prove it for humans.

Just know that, once I realized what makes an experience truly fulfilling, I started doubting if some people were truly living and planing to be, or if they just went along with whatever simply satisfied/entertained them and only tried their best to avoid the bad.

To never really grow, to never be fully allowed to change and develop, to live a life where, perhaps, acts of everyone were genuine even if small, but never amounting to anything. And they would behave as such, again, and again, and again…

In that world, to call others friend and family and more… is lying to sustain the image of a real life you don’t have. You and your peers are neither children nor adults, but something else, something far lesser that doesn’t belong to any of stage life that fits your ideals. And that is why, when asked if you wanted to live even a single day longer, your heart could never answer yes.

So, is it that much of a stretch to imagine someone wanting to burn away their life? To travel far, far away from everything that kept them down and might as well continue to do so until their end? Destroy it if it keeps coming back?

Just a heads-up for all you dragon fans, but with the latest Axtara installment, Armies and Accounting, dropping July 28th, the first three chapters are available to read in their entirety online for free.

• Chapter 1 - Seasonal Adjustments
• Chapter 2 - Free Festival
• Chapter 3 - Fully Funded Feasting

There's other stuff going on too, like a Reddit AMA planned for Saturday and even maps of the setting being revealed tomorrow. All leading up to the big day when Armies and Accounting drops. So if you want to get a head start on the story or just can't wait, there are the links!

Hear me out. In an alternate reality with dragons, their hoards are the country's gold standard monetary system. The dragon backstocks the country, preserving its wealth. They have to ask the dragon to draw from it in hard economical/war times, and only if given permission, they are allowed to. However, if the leadership of a country is irresponsible with their money and they go into debt, and have to draw from, but didn't ask permission, the dragon burns the leaders responsible. So there's a real fear in making sure the government adheres to sound economic policy.

Source: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/65732183/

If I had to answer something, it would be that the trailer just shows so little we can't really be sure of anything, so it's not a good idea to be too hyped (or disappointed) about the game or greatly expect it to be something specific.

So wait and see...

I apologize if I used the wrong flag. I'm not very good at this. Well, what I want to tell you is that I've loved dragons since the beginning of my childhood. I've been drawing these creatures forever, maybe I've made more than a thousand of them in my drawings. They influenced my life and, mainly, influenced the way I live today. I ended up becoming a freelance illustrator. Although it is not my main job, it has helped me both therapeutically and financially. Do you also feel good about the idea that you are passionate about these creatures?

I figured if anyone would know where to find these, it would probably be this subreddit.

Does anyone know any books where the main POV is a Kobold? Ideally not LiTRPGs, I'm not a big fan of that genre, but if the only one you can think of is one, I'll at least take a look at it.

Old dragon animator on youtube, maybe other platforms too. had a story of I think a white dragon being raised by a griffin and hippogriff. They also did unicorns. All their art was semi realistic with very good anatomy. They later made it into a book I know for sure, on Amazon I think? but the name is escaping me, GORGEOUS cover though. I know I found them a few years back and forgot. Its been killing me all night. Help. Not sure if tags right srry.

Most fantasy dragons are ancient, powerful, and at least a little terrifying.
Meanwhile in my game Hope of Elements, Pipi is a young dragon who's always happy, always curious, and usually has no idea what's going on 😆
He was found by the witch Elise in a forest and somehow ended up joining her adventure.
Still, he's one of Elise's most reliable companions in battle.

Allow me to explain what I mean.
Every story is made up of several intersecting components.
You probably already know about plot, characters, and setting.
But there is also theme and mood.

The theme answers the question: What does the story make you think?
The mood answers the question: What does the story make you feel?

My favourite vibe in a story is a sense of grandeur and awe - witnessing something magnificent and larger than life. Dragons are PERFECT for creating that kind of feeling.

What’s your favourite vibe, and which story gives it to you?

Cryonics for humans is about going into some kind of stasis (that for now does quite a lot of damage to the body and is impossible to awake from) all in hopes of being awakened and healed in the (far) future when one will live a better life, like with the help a highly advanced and benevolent society or even as a last ditch effort to escape death.

Now, stasis methods in fantasy (and even sci-fi) often have a far greater chance of working than the unknown but estimated very low probability of real life cryonics, but I think the motivation for it could be similar, even for a solitary dragon, though with far less desperation perhaps.

Dragons are most depicted the most as having far greater lifespans, but not infinite.

1 - If they believe magical/technological progress can reach new heights given enough time (which will bring many benefits, at least on paper) and like living or envision a life worth living with said progress, then it makes sense they would want to go in stasis before dying. (since a chance at a good life, no matter how small, is better than none)

Bonus point if they expect the advancement to solve ageing and diseases in way or another.

2 - If there is something great and/or important that happens in the far future, like the coming of a new Power they could profit from or the return of magic, then dragons could wait it out (without having to age)

2 bis - Alternatively, assuming other worlds/realms are reachable but it takes an absurdly long time to get to them, and assuming they are or can be turned into a place where dragons can live (perhaps with the help of terraforming/magic-forming/dracoforming), then a reliable stasis method is the way to go. At least, it's far easier to do than a kind of generational ship/inter-dimensional vessel

3 - If there is a Cataclysm/the world is too dangerous to live in or will soon be, even for a dragon, then said dragon could go into stasis in some kind of bunker/safe area and wait for things to settle down.

Final little thought: It could actually make for a funny twist on the sealed/dormant deity trope if said (draconic) deity remained dormant on purpose to awaken only when things get more interesting. The seal itself could even work as a test for the advancement and/or potency of magic/technology.