Species status: Closed, Personal Lore Species
While there are many creatures that can be called "dragons" in the Alucandra Flux multiverse, Starfarers are a breed of their own: vast creatures that wing their way between the stars under their own power. The Starfarers were the first to settle the world, before it was splintered into the form it exists in today. While diminished, both in their power and stature, they are far from a dead species, and still hold vast repositories of power and wisdom in their nomadic journeys and reclusive hermitages.
Every Starfarer is, to put it briefly, a fragment of the primordial chaos from which the world was made. They are effectively immortal-- in the sense that it is literally impossible to kill them in any way that matters. However, they do have a finite (if absurdly long) lifespan.
When the world was sundered into the Four Realms that comprise the Alucandra Flux multiverse as it exists in its present form, they were cut off from the source of creative energy that sustained them. In order to survive, they changed themselves into the "hybrid" form they now exist in. Every dragon is, in a sense, two different creatures: one, the mortal shell that they infused their power into; and two, the manifestation of the shard of creative force that comprises their true self.
Think of being a Starfarer as a sort of D&D-style "template" that can be applied to another, existing species. (Not just humans!) Dragon traits are "layered" on top of the other species, so the resulting creature is a hybrid of both. Effectively, a dragon can mate with any non-dragon creature (but they are completely infertile with their own kind), and the result is either a half or full dragon depending on the nature of the mating, with the non-dragon parent contributing the "base" species. (As a general rule of thumb-- a full dragon is produced if the dragon parent is gestating, a half-dragon is produced if the dragon parent only contributed genetic material. This does mean that some species may be restricted to producing half or full dragons depending on their mode of reproduction!)
Every dragon has a limited ability to rewrite the nature of the world around them-- this manifests as "magic". However, it is distinct from what is typically acknowledged as "magic" in most places as they are not reliant on the presence of compatible physical laws in reality around them. (Effectively, they're telling the world around them what they can do, not the other way around!). A dragon's power is not unlimited, however-- each dragon has a particular focus to their abilities in which their magical power is strongest; commonly referred to as their "sphere". While they can use magic outside of their sphere, they are limited to more basic techniques. In short, their sphere is a shorthand for the nature of the exact shard of creative force inside them, and what it has the easiest time bringing into being! Half-dragons are less powerful than full-- their spheres do not produce as dramatic of effects, and they have fewer abilities outside of them.
Outside of the Alucandra Flux multiverse, a dragon's power is fairly muted-- their home's unstable and changeable fabric of reality is a good part of why they can exert as much influence as they can. In order to use their powers to the fullest, they would need to be in a similar environment!
Beyond their magic, every dragon is capable of shapeshifting. A dragon has three standard forms, and a half-dragon has two. The first, exclusive to full dragons, is their dragon form-- the older the dragon, the bigger it gets (though they are capable of size-shifting to any size smaller than their full size, with the lower limit of "effectively a large housecat"). The second is their "hybrid" form, which is their non-dragon species with dragon traits on display. The last is their non-dragon species form, although it will always retain a "tell" of some sort of unnatural feature that can identify them as a dragon! (For instance, Ruairi Carrol has a split, reptilian tongue in his fully human form). [link toyhou.se when profile is finished] In addition, dragons can freely make small and large cosmetic changes to their appearance (although they happen gradually over time rather than instantly, unless their sphere is shapeshifting of some nature). Half-dragons are more restricted in their shapeshifting, being unable to alter their bone structure dramatically. However, both half- and full- dragons can freely alter their physical sex at will!
The longer a dragon exists (over the course of millennia), the more the magic that sustains their form and holds the shard of primordial creative force within them stable starts to wear thin. Abusing their powers can hasten the process of fraying! Once they hit the end of their lifespan, a dragon will travel to a barren planet somewhere in the galaxy, and finally release the magic that sustains them. They transform into a massive tree, and pour their creative force into the land beneath. The tree starts to regulate the planet's atmosphere, effectively terraforming it, and life starts to spring forth from the roots. Half-dragons are not subject to this-- however, their trade is losing the functional immortality of their full-dragon counterparts. (Namely, they can be killed. Even if it is really, really difficult to.)
In addition, full dragons can, by gifting a non-dragon with one of their scales (or feathers, or a piece of fur), transform them into an "Acolyte". Acolytes gain an extended lifespan, magical power, and enhanced physical strength and durability... but in exchange, they are bound to follow the dragon's wishes. (A potential Acolyte must willingly accept the transformation, and cannot be transformed nonconsensually.) One of the other potential consequences of this is... well, if the dragon's physical body is destroyed, it is very common for their soul to just sort of transfer itself to one of their Acolytes and transform them into a new vessel. This can have... very interesting effects.
Dragons are extraordinarily diverse in their appearances, so no specific traits exist for them. However, there are certain features that any dragon must have.
Full dragons have three forms (dragon, hybrid, disguise).
Half dragons have two. (hybrid, disguise)
Half-dragons follow all requirements for full dragons, but lack access to a full dragon form.
Dragon Forms
Must have six limbs or more-- two front legs, two wings, two back legs. If a limb is removed, there should be a visible stump or scar to show that it is absent or removed. (Dragon shapeshifting can remove limbs, however, there should still be some sign that a limb would be there!) . Limbs, especially wings, can be doubled or more, however!
Wings can be very freely designed-- however, they should follow a mammalian, avian, or reptilian base and bone structure. Bug wings are not acceptable. Otherwise, feel free to be weird- feather/leather mixes are totally cool.
All Starfarer dragons must have horns OR antlers! These can be very freely designed, and made into crests/nubs, but they must be present in some form. They are not required to be on the top of the head, and can be on the cheek/behind the ear/etc. as long as they are bony and easily recognizable.
Bright colors are a plus.
They must have a tail of some form that is recognizably present.
Disguise Forms
Must conform to the species standard with the following exceptions:
Hair/fur/feathers/scales are some kind of bright and unnatural color or pattern. Gradients/multicolors/anything that makes you think of an over-the-top shonen character design are A+.
Eyes are optionally a bright and unnatural color as well-- heterochromia iridium is common among dragons; sectoral, central, and complete are all viable!
Every dragon has some kind of "tell" in their disguise form that betrays their draconic nature-- this is some feature of their dragon form that cannot be hidden. Common tells are: slit or unnatural pupils, scaling/fur/feathering on the body, a non-human tongue, horn nubs. Other tells are possible, these are only a few possible options!
Hybrid Forms
Preeeetty much what it says on the tin. The hybrid form is, quite simply, the disguise form with the addition of traits from the dragon form! This will always resemble the disguise form-- while some small edits are possible, they should not look completely different.
Dragon traits that must display in the hybrid form: wings, tail, horns, ears. These should generally resemble the design used for the dragon form, but they can be edited to fit better on the disguise form-- when different, the hybrid form generally uses a simpler/less developed version of the dragon form's design. IN ART, the dragon can mix/match what they're hiding and displaying freely, but the ref should show all four traits!
Dragon traits that optionally can display in hybrid form: fur/feathers/scales on body, dragon-style eyes, teeth-- if a trait is present in the hybrid form, please show it on the ref-- but as with the mandatory traits, they can be freely shown/hidden in art.
A dragon's sphere is, in short, a description of the nature of the creative force inside them-- what is it most naturally suited to bringing into being? A sphere guides the nature of their powers.
Out of lore, a "sphere" is similar conceptually to the "theme" of a closed species adopt. It should be one or two words, and your dragon's powers must be thematically tied to it in some way. This doesn't have to be immediately straightforward-- Adelaide's "Light" sphere results in her being able to create hard-light constructs, for example.
Currently, I am not restricting two dragons having the same sphere (this may be subject to change), but due to their nature, the manifestations should be different!
Off-limits powersets include:
Dragons cannot directly create life from nothing with their powers. Intelligent constructs are a-okay, but should not be permanent/lasting/of human intelligence.
Please do not use racially sensitive/appropriative spheres! For instance, "Golems" is barred, but "Automata" would be all right.
Please avoid dipping into fetishistic or gore-driven powersets-- while I enjoy weird porn as much as the next person, I'd really prefer not to have to deal with, say, an "inflation" sphere when I didn't want to see it. Plz. Be nice. Same with, say, ripping someone's bones out. This doesn't mean everything has to be PG-13, but do try to stay out of X-rated material in the character concept itself.
Half-dragons obey the same rules, generally, as full dragons when breeding-- gestating produces another half-dragon... but when they breed out, instead of another half-dragon, they produce a dragonblood. Dragonblood can linger in a family line for a long time, skipping generations and popping back up in weird places.
Dragonbloods are mostly identical to their parent species. Their defining traits are: the same vivid coloration in hair/feathers/scales/fur/eyes as a dragon, a propensity towards magical (or psychic, or otherwise, depending on the laws of their home setting) talents, unusual physical abilities and durability, and a tendency to attract supernatural phenomena.
yes they're basically anime protagonists