Aerenal vs Argonessen: why?

[Plane Sailing]

This is another interesting idea, but how could I justify the "no negotiations" attitude of the dragons?

Couldn't they openly show to the elves the damage they are suffering?

Why negotiate with lesser beings?

It depends upon how you view dragons, I tend to think of them as powerful, prideful, full of primal emotions. Not exactly diplomat material.

OR, it is the kind of secret that you might not want to reveal to the elves in case they can find out a way to weaponise the procedure. Best to just keep their numbers in check periodically.

 

[Nymrohd]

Historically, the dragons of eberron do not negotiate. They did not attempt to stop the giants from using world-shattering magic against the rebellion; they just wiped them. The majority of dragons view other mortals little better than we look at our pets.

 

[MarkB]

I like this perspective, but wouldn't it push the dragons towards a more "definitive" course of actions?

I mean, the DoE book even suggests that they could opt to eradicate humans in order to prevent the Quori return on Eberron!

There is an easy answer to that available with the dragons - almost too easy, as far as mysterious motivations go: The Draconic Prophecy.

According to some dragons' interpretations of the Prophecy, Aerenal will have a part to play in the unfolding of the Prophecy. Its exact role is disputed, but even so, this is enough to make destroying Aerenal outright a last resort. So long as other methods are effective, they'll restrict themselves to those measures, in order to keep Aerenal 'in play' in case it is needed later.

If you go with that, then perhaps it's specifically the possibility of Aerenal finding out too much about their involvement in the Prophecy that the dragons are guarding against. Every time an Undying scholar comes too close to that knowledge, they launch another offensive.

 

[Loincloth of Armour]

How about this possibility:

When the elves fled Xen'drik it was a time of chaos and it was pretty much a case of "grab whatever you can lay your hands on and run." As such, the elves have a whole bunch of arcane knowledge they've never really properly examined, or got misfiled during the setting up of their new home. Included in their grabbing are the seeds of the planet-damaging spell that brought the dragons down on the giants.

The elves don't know this however, and since the Aerenal are generally conformists rather than innovators, they don't make the leap of reasoning needed to put the seeds together. But, every once and a while, some elf does make that intuitive leap, and the dragons' mystic sensors pick up a specific 'ping'. Then, it's off to 'war'.

The dragons use the cover of the war to find that particular elf and wipe him/her out, along with their research. The chaotic nature of the fighting has so far kept the Undying Court unaware (or are they?) of how close they have come to unlocking something that would bring the whole wrath of Argonnessen down upon them.

The dragons only fight long enough to make sure the research is stopped, then lose interest.



Of course, an opposing idea, that the dragons only attack the elves as part of scholarly debates to test out different theories of the Draconic Prophecy adds a certain amount of deliciously sick irony to the whole war.

"Hmm. I'm not sure the evidence backs up your theory."

"Well it's either two more centuries of careful experimentation and rereading vast conflicting tracts of the Prophecy, or we can go hit the elves and see what shakes out."

"I hate lab work. Let's roll."



Or worse, the dragons' attacks are merely them going for take-out between centuries-long debates.

"You feeling like Tairnadal, or Aerenal tonight?"

"Aerenal. Those Tairnadal horses give me gas."

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Why negotiate with lesser beings?

Who negotiates with food? Perhaps elves are simply crunchy and taste good with ketchup. What the elves frame as a "war" is merely dragons hunting for sport -- elves making reasonably entertaining game animals.

 

[Aaron]

There is an easy answer to that available with the dragons - almost too easy, as far as mysterious motivations go: The Draconic Prophecy.

Thta's what I tried to avoid: using the Prophecy as a universal plot-hole-solution.

A sinister menace they hear of only from the same force that wiped out the giants of Xen'drik? There are bound to be disagreements over how to respond to that (as seen in the Valenar/Mark of Death incidents, disagreements aren't unheard of in Aerenal). By presenting a more concrete, tangible threat, the dragons can not only force the elves into preparing, but they can also guide that preparedness.

Good point.

Why negotiate with lesser beings?

It depends upon how you view dragons, I tend to think of them as powerful, prideful, full of primal emotions. Not exactly diplomat material.

OR, it is the kind of secret that you might not want to reveal to the elves in case they can find out a way to weaponise the procedure. Best to just keep their numbers in check periodically.

Another good point.

Historically, the dragons of eberron do not negotiate. They did not attempt to stop the giants from using world-shattering magic against the rebellion; they just wiped them. The majority of dragons view other mortals little better than we look at our pets.

Third good point...I'm crushing under the weight of your points!

How about this possibility:

When the elves fled Xen'drik it was a time of chaos and it was pretty much a case of "grab whatever you can lay your hands on and run." As such, the elves have a whole bunch of arcane knowledge they've never really properly examined, or got misfiled during the setting up of their new home. Included in their grabbing are the seeds of the planet-damaging spell that brought the dragons down on the giants.

The elves don't know this however, and since the Aerenal are generally conformists rather than innovators, they don't make the leap of reasoning needed to put the seeds together. But, every once and a while, some elf does make that intuitive leap, and the dragons' mystic sensors pick up a specific 'ping'. Then, it's off to 'war'.

The dragons use the cover of the war to find that particular elf and wipe him/her out, along with their research. The chaotic nature of the fighting has so far kept the Undying Court unaware (or are they?) of how close they have come to unlocking something that would bring the whole wrath of Argonnessen down upon them.

The dragons only fight long enough to make sure the research is stopped, then lose interest.

I like this idea. It doesn't involve the Prophecy, and it's selfish enough to be compatible with the not-so-good nature of the Eberron dragons.

 

[Teemu]

Doesn't the (3.5) campaign setting book hint that the dragons would destroy Aerenal if they could but the power of the Undying Court prevents it? That the deathless wield amazing power on the island because of the manifest zones but can't really extend it elsewhere except through the priests. I think they also point out that the Undying are actually older than dragons because they're immortal and dragons are not.

 

[megamania]

There is an easy answer to that available with the dragons - almost too easy, as far as mysterious motivations go: The Draconic Prophecy.

According to some dragons' interpretations of the Prophecy, Aerenal will have a part to play in the unfolding of the Prophecy. Its exact role is disputed, but even so, this is enough to make destroying Aerenal outright a last resort. So long as other methods are effective, they'll restrict themselves to those measures, in order to keep Aerenal 'in play' in case it is needed later.

If you go with that, then perhaps it's specifically the possibility of Aerenal finding out too much about their involvement in the Prophecy that the dragons are guarding against. Every time an Undying scholar comes too close to that knowledge, they launch another offensive.

An even better possibility

 

[Elephant]

Doesn't the (3.5) campaign setting book hint that the dragons would destroy Aerenal if they could but the power of the Undying Court prevents it? That the deathless wield amazing power on the island because of the manifest zones but can't really extend it elsewhere except through the priests. I think they also point out that the Undying are actually older than dragons because they're immortal and dragons are not.

I like this, but I'd add another wrinkle: The dragons could muster sufficient power to wipe out the elves, but that would fatally weaken them somewhere in southern Argonnessen, where some other threat lurks.

Or maybe they just aren't well-organized enough to muster the forces necessary to deal with the elves. Once in a while, some hotheads get cocky and fly over for a skirmish, but no one is in a position to organize the 2000 dragons it would take to actually flatten the island.

 

[Aaron]

And the winner is....

How about this:

Elves, especially those of Aerenal with their preserved-through-not-exactly-undeath elders, are one of the few races long-lived and wise enough to be able to gain a true perspective on the long-term plans of the dragons and the prophecy that guides them. The dragons have no particular animosity towards the elves, but they can't have outsiders observing their true plans and intentions too closely.

The Undying Court: The deathless elves of the Undying Court are among the only beings old enough and wise enough to decipher the Draconic Prophecy. What remains unclear is whether the elves wish to use the Prophecy for their own ends -- or to destroy it to cripple the destiny of the dragons. This is thought to be the cause of the perennial conflicts between the dragons and Aerenal.

Taken from The Draconic Prophecy Dragonshard.