A wyvern (pronounced: /ˈwɪvɜːrn/ WIH-vurn[7][8] 
listen or: /ˈwaɪvɛrn/ WY-vern[7][8] listen) was a large winged lizard, distantly related to the dragon, with a poisonous stinging tail and sharp teeth.[9][5]
Description[]
These creatures varied in length from 15 to 35 feet (4.6 to 11 meters), weighed around a ton, and were covered in dark brown or grey scales. They typically had either red or orange eyes[6][5] and their jaws were filled with long and sharp teeth.[6]
Unlike true dragons, wyverns only had a pair of hind legs instead of a set four. Their wingspan could get over 50 feet (15 meters) in length.[6] And their tails were often quite long,[5] comprising almost half of their bodies,[6] yet very mobile.[5] These ended in a thick cartilage knot with a stinger protruding out of it, not unlike that of a scorpion.[6]
Telltale sounds that these creatures produced included loud hisses and throated growls, similar to the vocalizations of alligators.[6]
Behavior[]
Wyverns were aggressive and not greatly intelligent.[6][5] They were not averse to attacking anything less powerful than themselves. Their sleek, strong legs proved very useful for an attack.[3][note 1]
Combat[]
When fighting these creatures would dive down from above, grabbing prey with their hind leg claws, and then attempt to sting them to death. They were also known to slash at creatures with their claws mid-flight.[6] Their tails were so long that opponents were typically struck by a wyvern's tail before their legs.[5]
Ecology[]
Wyverns can be both solitary and group animals. They did not have a strong odor, although their lairs often could be tracked by following the smell of their recent kills.[6]
Cloud giants kept griffons, perytons, and wyverns, akin to what humans did with hawks and other birds of prey. These tamed wild creatures could also be often encountered patrolling the cloud giants' gardens, together with other tamed predators like owlbears.[10] Dragons, griffons, and wyverns had a fierce rivalry over hippogriff meat. Manticores, chimeras, griffons, perytons, and wyverns were territorial rivals.[6]
Languages[]
Despite their middling intelligence, wyverns were fluent speakers of Draconic.[6]
Habitats[]
These creatures were typically found in areas that were favored by dragons, such as tangled forests or large caverns.[5]
Many were known to inhabit the Forest of Wyrms,[11] as well as the Cloak Wood forest.[12]
On the Chultan Peninsula, wyverns were a common sight in the jungles of the nation of Samarach.[13]
Relationships[]
Wyverns were used as mounts by various races and cultures, including Zhentarim skymages[14] and the extradimensional marauder Imgig Zu.[15]
The black dracolich Hethcypressarvil kept a pair of wyverns as pets at his lair in the nameless swamp of the Dragon Coast.[16]
Uses[]
Wyvern hide was used in the creation of bookbindings,[17] and its blood was an ingredient in the belarris poison.[18]
The dried blood of a wyvern was one of the components used in create darkenbeast spells.[19]
The meat of a wyvern's tail was said to be particularly delicious, having a taste and texture reminiscent of juicy pork.[20] Wyvern tail meat was a delicacy in Cormyr and the Dalelands, served in places like the Old Oyster in Monksblade,[21] the Fall of Stars in Harrowdale,[22] and the Swordsmith's House in High Dale.[23] As of the mid–14th century DR, a dish known as "jack wyvern tail" was served in Cormyr that was designed to mimic the flavor of real wyvern with a mixture of minced pork, rabbit, and turkey.[20]
History[]
Wyverns were created by the aearee of Viakoo in −30,700 DR.[24]
Cultural Significance[]
Some wyverns served the dark Chultan demigod Eshowdow, and their appearance was seen as a good sign by his followers.[25]
House Dlardrageth, a powerful sun elf family from Arcorar that corrupted their bloodline by breeding with fiends, used the image of a golden wyvern against three red crossed swords as their house's insignia.[26]
Expensive wyvern whiskey from Nimbral had a wyvern scale floating in every bottle.[27]
Notable Wyverns[]
- Trill, companion of Mattias Farseer.
- Two-Headed Wyvern of Stamislot, a unique wyvern with two heads defeated by the hero of Daggerford and Talarenne sometime before 1372 DR.[28]
- Wyvernspur family received a magical ability to be able to transform into a wyvern. Not everyone in the family was able to channel said magic. Giogi and aunt Dorath were the only family members in recent years able to transform using the Wyvern Spur heirloom.
Appendix[]
See Also[]
Gallery[]
Appearances[]
Adventures
Novels & Short Stories
Comics
Honor Among Thieves: The Feast of the Moon
Video Games
Organized Play & Licensed Adventures
Notes[]
- ↑ Although normally depicted with only two legs, some sources, such as the ADD comic "The Gathering", show wyverns with four legs like dragons. The scorpion-like sting on the tail suggests it is in fact a wyvern.
Further Reading[]
- Spike Y. Jones (1996). “Ecology of the Wyvern”. In Pierce Watters ed. Dragon Annual #1 (TSR, Inc.) (1)., pp. 8–12.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford, Christopher Perkins (2014-09-30). Monster Manual 5th edition. Edited by Scott Fitzgerald Gray. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 303. ISBN 978-0786965614.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Mike Mearls, Stephen Schubert, James Wyatt (June 2008). Monster Manual 4th edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 268. ISBN 978-0-7869-4852-9.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Skip Williams, Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook (July 2003). Monster Manual v.3.5. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 259. ISBN 0-7869-2893-X.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Doug Stewart (June 1993). Monstrous Manual. (TSR, Inc), p. 366. ISBN 1-5607-6619-0.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 Gary Gygax (December 1977). Monster Manual, 1st edition. (TSR, Inc), p. 102. ISBN 0-935696-00-8.
- ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 Skip Williams, Jonathan Tweet and Monte Cook (October 2000). Monster Manual 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 186. ISBN 0-7869-1552-1.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Frank Mentzer (January 1985). “Ay pronunseeAYshun gyd”. In Kim Mohan ed. Dragon #93 (TSR, Inc.), p. 30.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Dungeons & Dragons FAQ (HTML). Wizards of the Coast. (2003). Archived from the original on 2017-07-09. Retrieved on 2018-05-22.
- ↑ Skip Williams, Jonathan Tweet and Monte Cook (October 2000). Monster Manual 3rd edition. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 186. ISBN 0-7869-1552-1.
- ↑ Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford, Christopher Perkins (2014-09-30). Monster Manual 5th edition. Edited by Scott Fitzgerald Gray. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 150. ISBN 978-0786965614.
- ↑ Tim Beach (October 1995). “Encounter Tables”. In Julia Martin ed. Elminster's Ecologies Appendix II (TSR, Inc), p. 8. ISBN 0786901713.
- ↑ BioWare (December 1998). Designed by James Ohlen. Baldur's Gate. Black Isle Studios.
- ↑ Obsidian Entertainment (November 2008). Designed by Tony Evans. Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir. Atari.
- ↑ Jason Carl, Sean K. Reynolds (October 2001). Lords of Darkness. Edited by Michele Carter. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 102. ISBN 07-8691-989-2.
- ↑ Michael Fleisher (December 1988). “The Gathering”. Advanced Dungeons & Dragons #1 (DC Comics) (1)., pp. 3–5.
- ↑ Troy Denning (April 1996). The Veiled Dragon (Paperback, 1996). (TSR, Inc), pp. 200–201. ISBN 0-7869-0482-8.
- ↑ James Lowder (November 1992). The Ring of Winter. (TSR, Inc), p. 145. ISBN 978-1560763307.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (October 2012). Ed Greenwood Presents Elminster's Forgotten Realms. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 43. ISBN 0786960345.
- ↑ Jean Rabe (December 1991). Red Magic. (TSR, Inc.), p. 11. ISBN 1-56076-118-0.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Ed Greenwood (July 1995). Volo's Guide to Cormyr. Edited by Julia Martin. (TSR, Inc.), p. 102. ISBN 0-7869-0151-9.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (July 1995). Volo's Guide to Cormyr. Edited by Julia Martin. (TSR, Inc.), p. 101. ISBN 0-7869-0151-9.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (January 1996). Volo's Guide to the Dalelands. (TSR, Inc), p. 145. ISBN 0-7869-0406-2.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (January 1996). Volo's Guide to the Dalelands. (TSR, Inc), p. 170. ISBN 0-7869-0406-2.
- ↑ Brian R. James, Ed Greenwood (September 2007). The Grand History of the Realms. Edited by Kim Mohan, Penny Williams. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 8. ISBN 978-0-7869-4731-7.
- ↑ Eric L. Boyd (September 1997). Powers & Pantheons. Edited by Julia Martin. (TSR, Inc.), p. 81. ISBN 978-0786906574.
- ↑ Steven E. Schend (March 1998). Hellgate Keep. (TSR, Inc), p. 23. ISBN 978-0786907861.
- ↑ Ed Greenwood (January 1993). Volo's Guide to Waterdeep. (TSR, Inc.), p. 153. ISBN 1-56076-335-3.
- ↑ Ossian Studios (June 2018). Neverwinter Nights: Darkness over Daggerford. Beamdog.
Connections[]
Chromatic dragons: Black • Blue • Brown • Gray • Green • Orange • Pink • Purple • Red • Salt • White • Yellow
Gem dragons: Amethyst • Beljuril • Crystal • Emerald • Obsidian • Sapphire • Topaz • Ruby
Neutral dragons: Amber • Jacinth • Moonstone • Pearl
Lung dragons: Chiang lung • Li lung • Lung wang • Pan lung • Shen lung • T'ien lung • Tun mi lung • Yu lung
Ferrous dragons: • Cobalt • Iron
Planar dragons: Adamantine • Astral • Battle • Blight • Chaos • Ethereal • Hellfire wyrm • Howling • Mirage • Oceanus • Pyroclastic • Radiant • Rust • Shadow • Styx • Tarterian
Spelljamming dragons: Moon/lunar • Radiant • Sun/solar
Epic dragons: Force • Prismatic • Time
Catastrophic dragons: Blizzard • Earthquake • Volcanic
Miscellaneous dragons: Cobra • Dzalmus • Mist • Rattelyr • Song • Vishap
Linnorms: Corpse tearer • Dread • Stygian
Drakes: Ambush • Black firedrake • Dragonne • Elemental (Earth • Fire • Ice • Magma • Ooze • Smoke • Water) • Felldrake (Crested • Spitting) • Greater • Guard • Mind • Portal • Rage • Space • Storm • Vulture
Dragonbloods: Draconic creature • Dragonborn of Bahamut • Dragonspawn
Drow-dragon (shadow) • Drow-dragon (deep) • Half-dragon • Kobold (Dragonwrought • Urd) • Weredragon • Zar'ithra • Zekyl
Hybrid monsters: Dracimera • Dracolisk • Mantidrake • Wyvern drake