The best tactic when meeting a dragon is to pray to all the gods with no exceptions. Dragons are smart indeed, but they cannot speak, much less polymorph. Golden dragons, extremely intelligent, gifted with the ability to assume the shape of any creature, are of course a fairy-tale for little children. There are five species of these great wyrms: white, black, red, green and rock. Like cats, they like to lounge in places of power - they nap there, drawing energy, yet nobody knows what they use that energy for. The legends are true: dragons like to gather hoards and have a voracious appetite that they satiate by eating all living creatures with no exceptions. The beast's roasted tail is a real delicacy. Alchemical components found in a dragon's body are among the most expensive on the market, and are in high demand among sorcerers.
The beasts were exterminated by professional hunters, such as the famed Crinfrid Reavers. Sometimes forktails and slyzards can be seen, but compared to dragons, they are like stray cats to tigers. Sorcerers stood against these creatures, witchers were created to fight them. Dragon fire was the bane of cities, and dragon appetite was a constant threat to the first colonizers. Journal Entry Once dragons were commonplace and ruled the continent absolutely. Later on in Chapter 3, there will be a battle with the dragon. Later in Chapter II (Iorveth's path), Geralt finds a magic stone that can help him know more about who summoned the dragon and the possible mandant of the kings' murders.
In the Prologue of the game, you will have to guide King Foltest across a bridge while being pursued by a dragon, in Trial by Fire quest. Not coincidentally, despite the fantastic size of some dragon hoards, no hunt has ever led to the market being suddenly flooded with gemstones, with the corresponding drop in prices. It is worth noting that almost every dragon hunt is closely scrutinized by someone connected to the Jewelers' Guild. If dragons had no treasure hoards, nobody would even give a damn, except maybe the serfs whose sheep they devour. In the same way, tales painting dragons as terrible foes of the human race, which are used to justify half of all hunts, are just fables. Despite what tales of noble dragon slayers rescuing innocent maidens might have you believe, the people organizing expeditions to hunt down dragons are invariably motivated not by the desire to put an end to the local threat, or even to win fame, but by simple greed. Though reasons for this behavior remain unknown, dragons universally love to collect gold, gemstones and other treasures - a trait which has already made its way into countless legends. They are also much more advanced than their smaller cousins, possessing not only greater strength, but also cunning and intelligence.
ĭespite all this, it's against the witcher's code to kill a dragon, being a rare, sentient creature.ĭragons are a separate family of draconids, characterized by their large size, two pairs of well-developed legs, and huge winges and tail. The tail is considered a great delicacy in some parts of the world.
Dragons are also the source of many alchemical materials, especially their tears and teeth, which are used in the manufacture of medicine and elixirs, and their blood, which is used in cosmetics.
However, the primary motivation for hunting dragons tends not to be the preservation of the human race but plundering their legendary hoards of treasure. The fear of these creatures is largely misplaced as the simpler folk cannot distinguish dragons from other flying reptiles. While Zerrikanians worship dragons, many Nordlings consider them to be the single greatest enemy of the human race and many legends revolve around the beasts. These creatures are viewed differently by human and non-human societies. It doesn't appear dragons have a certain type of build, as they've been depicted as both rather slim and more heavyset and while they come in a wide range of colors and variations, not all are known to society yet. While their "breath weapon" is usually aligned to their type, there are notable exceptions, rare mutations resulting in such unique specimens as acid-breathing red dragons or fire-breathing green dragons. Depending on their type they are able to breathe dangerous substances in combat the Crinfrid Reavers, who have hunted a couple of these beasts, mentioned fire, acid and steam.
They are divided into different types, loosely by environment and color. Dragons are 4-legged reptiles with bat-like wings, forked tongues, and narrow triangular heads on long slender necks.