Greater drake

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Greater drakes were a group of species of drakes that were known to be trained as steeds.

Description
All greater drakes were typically draconic in form, with four legs, two wings, tails, et cetera; they were scaly, although the color and texture of their scales differed between species. Greater drakes were much smaller than true dragons, however, being only about the size of a large horse at most.

Behavior
Greater drakes possessed a level of intelligence similar to that of a horse and they were not naturally inclined to be either good or evil. At most, their behaviors took after that of their riders.

Abilities
All greater drakes could fly and some could also swim. Most, though not all, possessed breath weapons. Greater drakes were strong enough to easily carry a rider while flying.

Ecology
Greater drakes uniformly lived in wilderness regions far from civilization, making them relatively obscure creatures, particularly because they were often mistaken for true dragons. Most were carnivorous, except for the arsalon, which was omnivorous. The average lifespan of greater drakes was about 50 years.

Greater drakes could all be domesticated and trained as steeds; their relatively small size (compared to dragons) and animal intelligence made training and keeping them more feasible than other dracoforms. Elves, orcs, and lizardfolk were all known to ride greater drakes that shared their habitats.

Biology
All greater drakes laid eggs. They had scaly skin that they shed several times during their lives as they grew. In greater drakes, the breathe weapon originated from a bladder-like organ in the throat. This bladder could expand, similar to a bullfrog's throat or pelican's beak, and was present in all the greater drake species.

Species
There were six known species of greater drakes. Additionally, the smoke drake, or fumarandi, was sometimes classified as a greater drake.


 * Arsalon : The arsalon, or hive drake, was a peculiar species that had a symbiotic relationship with wasps. Because of this, they were the least-often domesticated species. They lived in temperate woodlands and were primarily yellow or light grey in color, with darker vertical stripes.


 * Kavainus : The kavainus, or ghost drake, was sometimes trained for message-running or scouting by elves, as their ability to turn ethereal at will ensured their safety and that of their rider. Kavaini lived in mountains or hills, and were bone-white in color; they also glowed faintly at night.


 * Retchenbeast : The retchenbeast, or muck drake, was the smallest of the greater drakes and were predominantly tamed by the lizardfolk or bullywugs that shared the muck drakes' swampy habitat. Retchenbeasts were also the ugliest of the greater drakes, being grayish-brown in color when clean, but were more often covered in a layer of mud and slime.


 * Rivilithis : The rivilithis, or river drake, was a freshwater-dwelling greater drake that was closely related to the silislithis. They could not tolerate seawater and tended to be green or grey in color.


 * Silislithis : The silislithis, or sea drake, was a greater drake that lived along ocean coasts. They were known to be trained both by aquatic peoples and by coast-dwellers. Coastal land-dwellers especially favored sea drakes, as their breath weapon of a jet of water made them excellent firefighters.


 * Vandalraug : The vandalraug, or battle drake, was easily domesticated and trained as a fighting steed. They were extremely loyal to riders who treated them well and were fearless in combat. They were also the largest of the greater drakes.