Age of Dragons: Argent Dragons

Age Of Dragons: Main Page -> The Twelve Breeds -> Argent Dragons

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The Hierarchy of Scales

The Argent Dragons believe that the Mother Goddess blessed them with the Harmonious Essence of True Order which is in their blood. For them, True Order is not merely about inner peace or mere faith to a higher power - it is about each Dragon knowing his place in the world, obeying his superiors and being obeyed by his inferiors.

An Argent Dragon knows that Hierarchy is as natural as breathing, and he knows his place within the system.

That the less disciplined breeds have a hard time grasping this concept is a source of much frustration for the Argent Dragon. To the Argent mindset, disobedience of proper authority is sinful and wrong, and anarchy is hell on earth. They consider responsibility to be infinitely more important than freedom. For them, it is without question that duty and honour are greater than personal satisfaction.

Character Creation: Game Rules

For the purposes of the below Birthrights and Breed Weakness, a hierarchical superior or inferior is considered to be someone in the same organisation, in the same chain of command. This is open to some GM interpretation, and is in a large part due to perception. For example, a War Dragon who is part of a military force places himself within that hierarchy. Broadly, most Argent Dragons consider themselves to be part of the hierarchical organisation that is the Argent Breed itself (with elders considered to be superiors by default unless of lower rank in some other way) and also a member of their political faction (usually the Alliance of Light).

Birthright

Loyalty Unto Death - If an Argent Dragon is obeying orders from his hierarchical superiors, he is hard to sway from his purpose. He gains +1 dice to any defensive Sophis or Pneuma check to resist being swayed from completing his orders.

Confidence in Command - Argent Dragon commanders instinctively know the best way to inspire their soldiers. An Argent Dragon gains +1 dice to any Sophis or Pneuma check relating to giving commands to his hierarchical inferiors.

Breed Weakness

Oaths of Obedience - Conversely, Argent Dragons find it very hard to resist orders given to them by their hierarchical superiors. An Argent Dragon must make a Sophis check to disobey his superiors. The Argent Dragon's TN for this check is 6+ for most orders, 5+ for an order that is against his conscience or code of morality, or 4+ for an order that is aborrhent or obviously suicidal. The roll is competed by an appropriate command check from the superior. If the Argent Dragon equals or exceeds the superior's successes, he may disobey the order, otherwise he must follow it without question.

Physical Appearance

Argent Dragons are called "silver scaled" by other dragons, but in actuality a single dragon with have scales varying from the gleaming silver-white colour of mythril, to the dark and shiny black-greys of graphite. Dorsal surfaces (especially the heavy back armour plates) tend to be brighter coloured, while wing membranes and undersurfaces tend to darker silvers. Blue-grey shades tend to be the norm for Argent Dragon eyes, with a distinct blac central pupil. Like Pure Dragons, Argent males have longitudinally aligned horns, though their horns are teardrop shaped in cross section, with the "edge" downwards. Their facial features and body structures are best described as "military", with a certain heaviness and solidity of torso even in females, and often accessory rows of spines along the back.

Society and Culture

The Argent Dragons rule over the mostly human Empire of Arrantis that lies in the southwest of the Realm. The Empire consists of two dozen City States that are governed by human princes, but who owe allegiance in turn to the Silver City where the Argent Dragons rule. The Silver City (and Arrantis) is ultimately governed by the Emperor of the Hierarchy of Scales - a title passed down in heriditary fashion from eldest son to eldest son of an Imperial line of dragons. The first Emperor was none other than the first Argent Dragon.

As all Argent Dragons are descended from the first Emperor, they all claim royal blood. Over the generations different descendant bloodlines have named themselves as various Noble Houses. The Imperial line is known as Silverscale, while other Houses Major include Brightwater, Ironheart and Flametalon. The Imperial line and the Houses Major comprise almost three quarters of all Argent Dragons, with the remaining quarter either aligned to one of the two dozen Houses Minor, or disowned by their Houses for some crime or treachery. Argent Dragons consider it crude as to incorporate their House names into their own names, but even neonate Argents are fully aware the various bloodlines and of which Argent is of which House.

Lifepaths and the Pure Dragons

To an Argent Dragons, lack of skill as a Warmaster is a sure sign of character weakness. To be trained in war is to be a Silver Soldier, and worthy of respect.

Farsky Rangers are also accorded some respect, acting as scouts for the Hierarchy of Scale's military campaigns. Scouting is considered to be one of the few socially acceptable lifepaths for an Argent with any desire for personal freedom and an escape from the rigidity of Argent society.

A more experienced Argent may find a role as an Ambassador-Courtier, likely donning the title Voice of the House. However, this is considered to be a role that can be taken only with a background of military experience, and only when your House asks you to.

Argent Dragons very rarely leave the Alliance - it is mentally very hard for an Argent to break away from the established society of the Silver Empire. Those who do break away often find service as Warmasters sworn to Ascendancy Sable Dragon masters. Very rarely an Argent Dragon's sense of hierarchy may even break altogether, as he takes up the path of the Beast Unbound. The Argents call such unfortunate souls Fractured Mirrors and will do their best to "bring them in", gently or violently, and to reintegrate them into society.

Outlook

Honour-Through-Duty, Argent Weaponmaster of the House Flametalon, speaks of comrades and enemies:

• Pure Dragons - "If we are the Emperors, then they are our priests. The two hierarchies, religious and military, must exist side by side and all dragons must obey."
• Solar Dragons - "They call themselved Dragons of Order, but they waive and falter when they should stand firm and unmoving. They are, however, our allies and we will honour the pact that binds us to them."
• Hunter Dragons - "They understand hierarchy on their bestial level, but do not perceive any sort of strength save the physical. They need educating, and taming, then they will be a valued part of the Hierarchy of Scales."
• Forest Dragons - "Their ways are strange, and their societal structure is confusing. They need order to their lives."
• Storm Dragons - "I do not pretend to understand the sea-swimmers, but I recognise that they are soldiers like us. They have my respect."
• Ashen Dragons - "They understand how to rule, but not how to serve. The chaos in their blood becomes evident as they tear themselves apart with infighting. I pity them.
• Velvet Dragons - "Take your seductions and lies away from me, filth. I am Argent, and I am immune to your whispers."
• Chimerical Dragons - "There is no truth in dreams, and there is no order in ephemera. If they do not face reality, they will not survive this age."
• Ghost Dragons - "They have fallen low, and we have given them refuge. So long as they obey the laws of the Alliance, we will honour our pledge to protect them."
• Blood Dragons - "They may be warriors, but they are not soldiers. Hold the line, do not retreat from their flame, and you will find that their discipline is weak. We will defeat them."
• Sable Dragons - "The enemy is to be respected. He is clever, he understands hierarchy and he is powerful. We must respect the enemy, then we must defeat him."

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