For most of humanity, life is not much changed by the dragon rule. Interaction between the common populace and the dragonkind are rare. The dragon lords work through networks of vassals, retainers and servants. The human overseers possess great power inside their territories. Most are fair and just, but each is entirely loyal to their dragon masters. In general, the needs of their villages and lands are taken in to consideration and delivered to the best of their ability. The dragons are not typically cruel out of nature—at worst they can be thought of as “unaware” that humans sometimes suffer. Benevolence isn’t unknown, just exceptionally rare. All dragons guard against rebellion and disloyalty. Few have any qualms about causing humans harm when necessary.
Dragons appear to live forever. Humans do not live long enough to detect their signs of aging. Some dragons have seemed to disappear, but the causes are always murky. Most times it is believed that a dragon is killed by another dragon for land, power or wealth. It is not unusual for a dragon lord to disappear for a decade at a time. Many a careless overseer has lost his life after poorly managing his dragon lord’s lands and assuming his lord’s death. Humans have learned to strictly adhere to their lord’s instructions with autonomy. What the dragons do in these long stretches is the topic of many a tall tale. Some claim they sleep, some believe they walk in dreams, some think they return to the home lands, some say they change to human form and spy among their followers. Indeed, many dragons are known to magically assume human form. Lady Astralan takes great pleasure in perpetually staying in the form of a beautiful woman. She rules as a Queen over her lands and is known to take many human lovers. While vain, she is an intelligent ruler and generally considered one of the most empathic dragon rulers.
Active dragons require a great deal of food. They prefer meats, but can subsist on virtually anything. Even so, a small village can sustain a single dragon under normal conditions. Dragons are neurotic hoarders by nature. They obsessively secure more and more resources “just in case.” They only stop when they bump in to the boundaries of another dragon. But since resources in the nine kingdoms are relatively plentiful and the First Accord still stands, dragons rarely fight over boundaries.
The Northern Wastes see a bit of combat as there are rogue dragons to contend with and resources are scarcer. Dragon lands tend to be larger in this zone which makes infringement easier to accomplish and harder to detect. Humans find it difficult to settle in these lands thus reducing the manpower a dragon lord can muster for patrolling and farming. These waste lands are the home to the Sharptalon Alliance. The second largest dragon territory, the Northern Wastes was originally three small kingdoms—including the Cadeir’s capital fortress in the Razorpeak Mountains. Without the sustaining magics of the fallen wizards these lands have steadily declined. Now it is dominated by large deserts, rocky wastelands and salt flats. It is in these lands that the legends say the Cadeir will appear first to reclaim their fortress and herald the coming of the new kings and queens. The Sharptalon’s make the most extensive use of reavers to help control the region.
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