D&D (2024) Interested in new dragon designs for 5e (5.5e or 6e)?

[dave2008]

Are you sure that is a mythologically accurate Chinese tradition − as opposed to a D&D disinformation?

I've never heard it being a D&D thing, but that is what my Chinese boss told when I worked at Chinese restaurant for 8 years. However, that doesn't mean it is mythology accurate, though I thought I read it somewhere too.

 

[Yaarel]

This can be a cool D&D encounter, where messing

I've never heard it being a D&D thing, but that is what my Chinese boss told when I worked at Chinese restaurant for 8 years. However, that doesn't mean it is mythology accurate, though I thought I read it somewhere too.

Ok, a carp-like newborn is probably a Chinese thing.


A snake-like newborn can make an interesting dragon encounter, where the party messes around with a ‘normal snake’ only to enrage the nearby ancient mother or grandmother.

Also works with fishlike or eellike newborns.

 

[dave2008]

I added some more concept images of a red dragon redesign. More serpent like. A combination of the provide images is what I would like to see (but with a longer tail). I think @Yaarel would approve.

 

[Yaarel]

I was going back over the archeology. It seems to me, all of the Norse dragons were horned snakes, often with arms, and occasionally with wings. None of them have legs, during the Viking Period, 800-1100.

The earliest image that I could find of a ‘modern’ dragon, with arms, legs, and wings, is in an illuminated manuscript, a bestiary written in England, around year 1250, and in The British Library. (Harley manuscript 3244.)

There are many different kinds of depictions of the dragon. Some have arms and wings, some have legs and wings − and then it happened. This artist in England combined the concepts and gave the snake both arms and legs, and a set of wings for each!


Generally speaking.

The Norse dragon is a snake with horns, with eagle arms, and sometimes eagle wings. The tail is prehensile and sometimes carries an object.

The English dragon is (often) a snake with ears, a more wolflike head, and bat wings. It also tends to associate more strongly with a river, and include fish or eel fins. It usually has legs (not arms), and tends to look more bird like when walking on its legs with its wings spread and its tail in the air.



This English dragon in the manuscript reminds me of your Red Dragon.

 

[dave2008]

The earliest image that I could find of a ‘modern’ dragon, with arms, legs, and wings, is in an illuminated manuscript, a bestiary written in England, around year 1250, and in The British Library. (Harley manuscript 3244.)

Of course this is quite a bit older:

 

[Yaarel]

Of course this is quite a bit older:
View attachment 115019

Heh, Im unsure how many Medieval Europeans have seen this image.

But yeah, spot on. A blend of snake-lion-eagle. Plus horns. This blend is remarkably psychologically compelling.

 

[Yaarel]

Its cool to know, dragons are reallife in the sense of dinosaurs, that were kinda reptilian and kinda birdlike. Some even had horns or wings.

In some cases, the concept of a dragon emerged because people found isolated dinosaur bones, and imagined what the rest of the creature originally looked like.

 

[dave2008]

Heh, Im unsure how many Medieval Europeans have seen this image.

But yeah, spot on. A blend of snake-lion-eagle. Plus horns. This blend is remarkably psychologically compelling.

I don't know when it was first illustrated but the story of the white and red dragon battle was written in 828. Every illustration of those dragons I have seen is of the 4 legs & 2 wing variety and actually look very similar to the current red dragon.

This is of course the classic image of the Welsh Red, but I couldn't find a date of when this design first appeared.

 

[dave2008]

Its cool to know, dragons are reallife in the sense of dinosaurs, that were kinda reptilian and kinda birdlike. Some even had horns or wings.

In some cases, the concept of a dragon emerged because people found isolated dinosaur bones, and imagined what the rest of the creature originally looked like.

They were definitely the origin of the Asian dragon.

 

[dave2008]

This English dragon in the manuscript reminds me of your Red Dragon.

Yes it does, thank you for sharing!