Hydreigon (Deino, Zweilous)
Lernaean horriblus maris
Overview
Dragons haunted the nightmares of early humans. Even as walled cities were erected and ever more powerful pokémon domesticated, the dragons could tear apart all they had built. Their only exploitable weakness were the faeries, every bit as dangerous in their own way. And hydreigon was the most terrifying dragon of them all.
Hydreigon boast a vicious temperament, cunning mind, and incredible power. Their dragonfire is the strongest of any common dragon. Their venom can leave debilitating wounds meant to make their prey an example rather than kill them outright. When civilizations progressed past a single city, hydreigon began to kidnap priests and royalty as insurance against attacks. In Mesopotamia it was viewed as imprudent to build a city or till the land within twenty-nine miles of a hydreigon's roost. The Persians believed their pantheon had fought a mighty hydreigon in the past and that, in the future, the hydreigon would return to kill the gods and plunge humanity into an age of chaos and despair. Across the world hydreigon were almost always the foes of gods, not heroes.
Even in the modern era the remaining hydreigon have razed major monuments and skyscrapers when offended. Only the taming of stronger fairy-types and the use of poisoned carcasses has made a dent in their population. These extermination campaigns came at a price: when hydreigon realized what was going on they began to coordinate the destruction of dams, major transit hubs, and power plants until their habitats and hunting grounds were protected.
Hydreigon are sadists with the power to burn through ten feet of concrete and one of the most painful bites on the planet. They are best avoided at all costs. If one becomes a problem a champion-tier trainer is called in to handle the situation. Only the most experienced of dragon masters should attempt to raise one. Even the younger stages can be extremely difficult to care for.
Physiology
All three stages are classified as dual dark- and dragon-types. There is a minority opinion that the line should instead be dual poison- and dragon-types due to their venom. Dark-type attacks have been known to leave healing-resistant wounds like hydreigon venom. Hydreigon are also among the most psionic resistant of pokémon rather than being vulnerable to psychic attacks as a poison typing would imply.
Deino are quadrupedal dragons. A single horn protrudes from the back of their head to deter predators from attacking from behind. Their eyes are atrophied and almost always closed. Even when opened deino's vision is limited to determining whether light is present or not. Deino instinctively avoid light. Young specimens can even be scared away by a particularly bright flashlight. Their blindness is not a problem in the cave systems they inhabit. Deino instead find food with a powerful sense of smell and navigate their home by memory.
Deino rely on fur and thick leathery scales to keep them warm in the cool subterranean air. Black or dark blue fur covers their head, neck, and shoulders. Their eyes are almost always covered. Deino's scales are black, blue, or purple. All stages of the line heal quickly. Hydreigon can even regrow a minor head within a few months. Surface wounds heal slowly or not at all. As a result, most deino are covered in scars. Hydreigon rarely have a square foot of their body without a major scar. These scars are attractive to potential mates and make the dragons look more intimidating and experienced than they actually are.
All three stages are venomous. Deino venom interferes with clotting and prevents the wound from naturally healing. It is mildly corrosive and damages nerves in a way that leaves the victim in agony for weeks, months, or even years after the bite. Hydreigon venom ranks among the most painful in the world. A hydreigon that has recently eaten will rarely kill an intruder. Instead, they will leave a non-lethal bite. This lets the victim escape and serve as a warning to others. It also allows the hydreigon to later follow the blood trail from the unclotted wound to find the victim and their family when it is time for their next meal. Hydreigon are also capable of injecting concentrated drops of venom into their saliva, letting them inflict serious pain on opponents just by breathing into their eyes or an open wound.
Zweilous are similar to deino, with the key difference of having two heads. Each head is also capped by two horns instead of one. Each head has its own brain that controls the head and neck. Each brain can also take control of the full body, but only if the other head allows it. If the heads disagree then only the heads, necks, and autonomous functions can function. In practice the submissive head usually allows the dominant head to control the body. Dominance varies by the day depending on which head ate more at the last meal. Zweilous often overeat as both heads battle for dominance. Sometimes the heads will even attack each other in a moment of anger. The line are highly resistant to their own venom and have thick scales along the neck to protect against attack. These bites often leave scars but rarely seriously injure the other head. It is difficult to study live zweilous due to their surprising power and vicious temperament, but the few studies that have been conducted have advanced the fields of neurology and computing.
Older zweilous develop a pair of wings on their back. These wings are not yet usable. Zweilous also develop stripes as they age. In males the stripe color almost always matches the father's scales. In females stripe color is usually a mix of their parents' scale colors. Sometimes a female's stripes are not readily visible.
Hydreigon have three heads. Only one, the most dominant zweilous head overall, is in control. This is the center head. The two minor heads, one at the end of each arm, contain venom sacs, teeth, and a throat that connects to the lungs and stomach. Hydreigon have been known to pretend like these heads have their own personalities as a display of intimidation or for their own amusement. This is a ruse: the heads are physically incapable of independent thought. Hydreigon's fur covers less of their body than that of a zweilous or deino. The fur around the head also tends to be more vibrant than the fur on the rest of their body. It is usually a similar shade to their stripe color. Hydreigon also have working eyes and rather good long-range vision. Hydreigon are extremely far-sighted and can still struggle to make out fine details within twenty feet of them.
Hydreigon have six thin wings on their back and spend much of their lives airborne. The wings themselves are too thin to keep such a heavy creature in the air. Instead hydreigon use channeled draconic energy to fly. The same elemental well that gives hydreigon nearly unmatched dragonfire also lets them effortlessly keep themselves aloft. The wings are used primarily for heat exchange, intimidation, and guiding the pokémon's movement while underwater.
In addition to their wings, hydreigon develop a prominent tail that helps them balance on land and swim through the water. Hydreigon's unique arm structure make them unable to crawl on all fours. They must instead either slither on their stomach or walk bipedally when on the ground. Southern hydreigon are accomplished swimmers that can hold their breath for twenty minutes and dive to depths of eight hundred feet.
Hydreigon can grow to be fourteen feet long from their snout to the tip of their tail. They can weigh up to 400 pounds. Wild lifespans are probably around 110 years. Captive lifespans are poorly understood. Longitudinal studies of hydreigon rarely last for more than ten years before the hydreigon migrates or drives off the researchers. Safely subduing a hydreigon long enough to implant a subdermal tracking device is nearly impossible.
Behavior
Deino and zweilous are cave dwellers that are almost never seen on the surface. They will eat anything that comes near them, but both stages are believed to rely more on scavenging than hunting. Frequent vocalizations and stumbling into cave walls drives off most prey well before the pokémon arrives. Few predators will pick a fight with a deino and risk a bite. As a result, deino can usually eat any carcass they come across. After meals the pokémon will retreat to the lower levels of a cave for water and safety. These pokémon can and will attack anything that approaches them on land. Deino are uncharacteristically wary of bats. This lasts throughout their life. Hydreigon almost never antagonize noivern in the wild. Even captive specimens are reluctant to fight one. While hydreigon would almost certainly win a one-on-one confrontation, noivern tend to live in larger social groups and could easily kill deino and zweilous. As a result, adults of the two species tend to keep their interactions brief and polite.
Deino and zweilous are relatively solitary pokémon. They will accept food and guidance from their parents and rarely attack their siblings with intent to kill. Anyone else, conspecific or not, is seen as either food, a threat, or both. Cave routes tend to seal off access to areas that deino and zweilous frequent. When they do wander onto a commonly traversed path they will be captured by a ranger and released deeper in the cave.
Hydreigon are surprisingly social dragons. They mate for years at a time, if not for life, and seem to enjoy spending time around their partner. Hydreigon are fiercely territorial but will approach the boundary of their territories to socialize with their neighbors. They are doting parents and will sometimes adopt orphaned dragons. Adoptions of non-dragon pokémon, animals, and even humans have all been documented.
Despite being social, hydreigon appear to have an innate dislike of humans and will usually lash out at any perceived intruders in their territory. The best response to seeing a hydreigon is to run away immediately. Leave everything behind. This will distract the hydreigon and make it easier to run. Humans cannot outrun a hydreigon, but they can convince it that they did not mean to intrude and are leaving as quickly as possible. Anecdotal evidence suggests that they can smell urine and see it as a sign of submission. This may also be survivorship bias: the people most likely to run from hydreigon and be allowed to flee are also more likely to wet themselves while running away. The actual best way to stay safe from hydreigon attacks is to stay away from a hydreigon's territory or, when this is impossible, to stick to ranger-designated paths. If a deino or zweilous is seen outside of a cave, run. Do not harm a deino or zweilous unless you are preparing for a capture. Even this is risky. See the Acquisition section for more information on negotiating with deino and zweilous.
Hydreigon are prone to migrating once every few years. This may be to allow local prey populations to recover. It may also be because they desire a change in scenery. The behavior of highly intelligent species is often divorced from simple survival instincts. Recent evidence suggests that hydreigon may have a human-comparable intellect. Laboratory studies are nearly non-existent. Field studies suggest that hydreigon are capable of employing strategies designed to take out prey they would ordinarily struggle against. Hydreigon even seem to prefer hunting them for the challenge. In competitive battles hydreigon have come up with strategies independently of their trainer and employed tactics like feigning injuries, digging trenches with their dragonfire, targeting the wings of birds, creating apparent openings to bait out an attack, and forming clouds of dust or smoke to obscure their movements. Hydreigon in Paldea were even observed creating an apparent sport involving stolen volleyballs. The game spread across Southern European and North African hydreigon populations before abruptly falling out of favor two years later. A more enduring fashion trend can be found in Siberia where northern hydreigon have dropped off carcasses by cities and let the citizens have the meat and bones in exchange for turning the pelt into a cape. Caped hydreigon are still often seen in Russia and occasionally sighted in Alaska, Scandanavia, and the Yukon. One captive specimen enjoys wearing hats.
Hydreigon are prone to living in groves of trees, especially cheri trees. There is a theory that hydreigon spread the cheri berry throughout the world on purpose. How or why they would do this is unknown. What is known is that cheri trees are abundant along hydreigon's favorite migration paths, even the ones well outside of the cheri tree's natural range. Hydreigon are obligate carnivores, but they will make exceptions for mint, cheri and roseli berries, and cinnamon. Many orchard owners have been driven off their land after a hydreigon decided to take over the property. Other times the hydreigon allows the owners to stay and tend to the trees as long as the hydreigon gets a share of the fruit.
For centuries Chinese villages would send sacrifices of "cheri priests" to the hydreigon. These were young girls sent to the groves on the outskirts of the city to spend their lives tending the trees. The girls were not killed and usually grew to an advanced age, at which point they would take over the care and training of the new priestesses. Cheri priests were treated with immense respect when they entered town and were consulted on matters of agriculture and war. Villages and cities with cheri priests were almost never attacked by wild hydreigon or even other dragons. Sometimes the hydreigon would even defend the settlement against foreign armies. The only recorded cases of a hydreigon turning on their hosts occurred when their priests were assaulted or a warrior dared to attack the hydreigon, their mates, or their offspring. The practice was briefly outlawed in 1966. Many priests were imprisoned, or even executed, as counter-revolutionary radicals. A group of forty-one hydreigon stormed Beijing and wiped out all but ten members of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. The practice was reinstated shortly after, but relations between the central government and wild hydreigon have been rocky ever since.
Husbandry
The first consideration when raising hydreigon is not food, social structure, enrichment, or environment. The primary issue is simply how to keep one from destroying your home, killing your family, leaving you in agony, and then flying away. Hydreigon do not appear to kill for sport. Their cruelty seems calculated to make a point. Hydreigon can even be kind to certain humans. The draconic tribes seem to have relatively little difficulty gaining their trust. The dragons are wary of or hostile towards most other humans.
There is not a widely agreed upon solution to this problem. The most widely accepted approach is to raise the dragon from a deino. However, deino are deeply unpleasant to work with as they are prone to biting everything that comes within range of their mouth. Even an accidental bite can be incredibly painful. Few pokémon are willing to cooperate with a deino and few trainers are willing to risk a bite. The scarcity of captive specimens willing to donate venom has led to very high antivenom prices. Labs attempting to use deino or zweilous are often destroyed by an upset hydreigon. Zweilous are less likely to accidentally bite their trainer but more likely to do it on purpose. It is very difficult to predict a zweilous due to their two heads. Their personality can shift dramatically in a matter of hours. Zweilous seem to dislike all other organisms, including their other half.
Hydreigon will rarely bother to listen to a human explaining why they should join their team. Proving battles have mixed results. Hydreigon seem inclined to respect pokémon who can match them in combat, but this respect rarely extends to the trainer giving orders.
A few dragon masters, mostly from the dragon tribes, have kept an apparently tame hydreigon. Even the non-tribal dragon masters are often unwilling to share their secrets with researchers. A few things can still be inferred. Hydreigon appear to enjoy physical displays of affection with humans they are close to. Even the successful trainers will regularly have their orders ignored in battle and must rely on pleading as much as commanding. These interactions and preserved accounts from cheri priests suggest that hydreigon refuse to see humans as superiors, or even as equals. Some humans are the hydreigon's cherished pets or adoptive children. Even then they will mostly refuse to recognize a human as an expert on battling worth listening to. The hydreigon seem to enjoy roaming across a fairly large territory. Almost all professional dragon masters own at least 300 acres of land. Even this is rarely enough for hydreigon. The Persians speculated that hydreigon territories had a sixty-mile diameter. Modern research suggests that this is more or less accurate, even when the hydreigon does not need to hunt. Tame hydreigon rarely cause problems while roaming, outside of terrifying anyone they come across.
Most trainers and facilities that work with deino and zweilous on a short-term basis recommend keeping interactions at a physical distance and slightly overfeeding the dragons. A full deino is less likely to cause trouble than a hungry one. Deino are known to be exceptionally passive after eating a large meal. This is the only safe time to draw venom in a laboratory setting.
The line are almost entirely carnivorous. Like most dragons they will eat up to 40% of their body weight a day and then go several days before eating again. Feeding 15% of their body weight every other day will keep most dragons reasonably active at all times while still meeting nutritional needs. Hydreigon are generalists who will happily eat almost any kind of meat. The limited available research suggests that they particularly enjoy fish and poultry. Hydreigon are capable of breaking bones to eat marrow and can digest almost every part of a carcass. In the wild hydreigon will share particularly large kills with local deino, zweilous, and even other hydreigon. It is unclear if they are defensive of their food in captivity.
Berries, mint, and cinnamon probably make for good treats. The scents might also be good enrichment. Laboratory studies suggest that the smell of mint and small amounts inserted into the diet make deino more relaxed and reduce staff injuries by as much as 25%.
In the wild hydreigon can go without fresh water for weeks while migrating across oceans. Lab deino still need to drink frequently and will get cranky if they do not have clean, cool water available for drinking and bathing at all times. All stages of the line seem concerned with cleanliness and will take multiple baths a day if the opportunity presents itself. Hydreigon may spend more time in the water than in the air. Lab deino with access to a pool spend about 30% of their time in shallow water, 10% in deep water, and 60% on land. They will often sleep near the water's edge.
Deino and zweilous, like most subterranean pokémon, appreciate cool, damp, and dark environments. Care must be taken to keep mold from growing in their homes. Light is entirely unnecessary and only serves to agitate them. Researchers are divided on how soft their environment should be. Both stages are prone to injuring themselves against hard surfaces like concrete and stone walls. However, these injuries are common in the wild and do not seem to bother the pokémon. One hydreigon, after meeting several scarless deino raised in a lab, proceeded to slash their skin with his claws and fangs. The deino seemed to appreciate the gesture. Minor injuries may be a necessary component of a deino's psychological development.
There is precious little research on the interactions between deino, hydreigon, and other team members. Both wild and captive hydreigon seem to be protective of any young dragon they come across and have never been observed engaged in cannibalism. Even the harshest ancient texts stop short of accusing hydreigon of that particular offense. Hydreigon also appear reluctant to attack children of all species, including humans, although they will not go through too much effort to protect them from becoming collateral damage.
Captive deino are known to tolerate noibat and zubat in their environment but never go out of their way to interact with them. They will attempt to bite mineral pokémon but are unable to do much of anything to them. Large mineral pokémon are likely to ignore the deino altogether. Hydreigon are most frequently seen on the same teams as other large dragons, but this may be because only dragon masters bother to raise one. As with all apex predators it may be unwise to keep hydreigon on the same team as prey species. Unfortunately, almost all organic pokémon are prey species. As are humans.
Illness
All three stages are usually coated in scars and constantly sustaining minor injuries. These will rarely result in lasting, non-superficial damage. They can regenerate horns, limbs, and minor heads. Hydreigon are probably cancer-resistant like most true dragons, but there is not enough evidence either way to be sure. Unlike most dragons, hydreigon are even resistant to hypothermia with their dark scales, subdermal fat deposits, and variable metabolism. This is necessary given their habits of living in water and caves. Anecdotal evidence suggests that hydreigon may even be uncomfortable at sea level in the tropics. Hypothermia and hyperthermia are probably the biggest health problems for captive specimens. Hydreigon should have access to cool pools and shaded areas in warm weather and indoor areas in cool and cold weather.
Zweilous naturally fight with themselves. The injuries inflicted may seem severe but usually heal quickly and may be necessary for establishing dominance and facilitating evolution. Attempts to keep the heads from biting each other have just agitated both heads and resulted in coordinated resistance to the facility keeping them.
Evolution
Deino evolve into zweilous around five years of age. This may be accelerated by frequent combat, but the research on the subject is limited. Very few captive-born deino are intentionally battled with. For wild-caught deino an exact age can be difficult to determine. Deino stop growing larger around their third birthday. A decrease in violent behaviors is observed in the weeks leading up to evolution. The second head appears during flash evolution. Few other changes occur. Growth continues for the next one to two years. Infighting between the heads increases dramatically for a month leading up to evolution before ceasing abruptly. The second evolution is likely to occur within a week of this point.
Newly evolved hydreigon are about twice the size as they were previously. The remainder of their growth occurs over the next three to four years. Hydreigon struggle to fly and understand the things they see upon evolution. It takes a few weeks of trial and error along with training from their mother before a new hydreigon can take to the skies and seek out a territory of their own.
Battle
Hydreigon are limited not by their own weaknesses but by the difficulty in raising one. There are very few professional trainers who own a hydreigon, and almost all of them consider it their ace. They are primarily known for their immense ranged firepower. A well-trained hydreigon can fire off dragon pulses stronger than many dragons' draco meteors. Anything that gets close can be debilitated by a venomous bite. Hydreigon are also no slouch in melee and are strong enough to knock out frailer foes in one blow without venom. If that isn't enough, hydreigon boast high natural intelligence and a wide variety of coverage attacks such as flash cannon, surf, flamethrower, and focus blast. Southern hydreigon's only real weakness are fairy-types. Fairies can tank dragonfire without issue and retaliate with devastating moonblasts. The frailer fairies still need to fear a hydreigon rushdown or coverage such as flash cannon. If the fairy isn't on the field when the hydreigon comes out then it will still probably land a knockout. It is very difficult to stall down the switch clock against a clever opponent that can fly and punch through all but the sturdiest of walls. Many dragon specialists still train the somewhat slower and weaker northern hydreigon to mitigate the fairy weakness.
Fairies aside, there isn't really a good way to deal with hydreigon. There are simply responses that are varying levels of inadequate. Southern hydreigon do not mind the cold as much as other dragons. Northern hydreigon can shrug off all but the strongest of blizzards and sheer colds. Ranged fighting attacks can wear the hydreigon down without risking a bite. Fairy coverage attacks are also reasonably effective when available. Only the sturdiest of pokémon can afford to take a hit from hydreigon. Even steel-types should be wary. Faster pokémon are better at avoiding hits. Many are also frail enough that even a glancing blow or a coverage attack can knock them out. Blissey can deal with the dragonfire reasonably well and are all but immune to hydreigon venom. However, an outrage will likely knock them out. Aside from relatively weak dazzling gleams there is little they can do to threaten hydreigon back. Goodra, especially Manchurian goodra, are capable of holding out for a while and knocking out hydreigon with a draco meteor or two. A well set up sweeper might be able to hold their own. Destiny bond can at least allow for a draw. Just be aware that hydreigon can learn taunt to shut down trickery.
Other powerhouses like tyranitar and volcarona can take on hydreigon in a fair fight. Most of these pokémon suffer from the same problems as hydreigon, though: they are dangerous and expensive to own.
Hydreigon can also be worn down gradually over the course of a fight as they are not particularly durable. By the time they go down they may still have taken out multiple other pokémon. Dragon specialists often use hydreigon early to bait out and either knock out or do serious damage to the opponent's best dragon checks. Then the rest of the team can run over the remaining opposition.
Anyone with a hydreigon on the island challenge is highly unlikely to be stopped by any obstacle before the Elite Four. Trainers should be aware that using hydreigon venom in battle without an available antivenom is highly frowned upon. If the pokémon is willing some labs will exchange raw venom for an antidote.
Zweilous and deino need to be trained not to use their venom in battle to be safely and cheaply used. It is simply too painful and too long-lasting to be legal in casual matches. If antivenom is available and the trainer is willing to spare it, zweilous and deino work best rushing to their opponents to deliver a bite or a few drops with their breath and then waiting, using rest and sleep talk as necessary, for the opponent to surrender.
Acquisition
A female hydreigon spends most of the year around Ten Carat Hill. She is remarkably well-behaved for her species and allows for trainers to enter for totem battles and captures, people to live in the vicinity, and even for fireworks to be launched if she's given advanced warning. This makes her one of the only hydreigon to live within ten miles of a major urban center. She is mated to a salamence and has deino and zweilous children inside of the hill's caves. The hydreigon has expressed a desire not to be caught. She will allow deino and zweilous to be caught if they agree to it or the hydreigon gives her express permission.
Deino and zweilous are still difficult to tame because they will bite anyone who comes near. Proving battles can upset them and risk retaliation from their mother. There is no reliable way to gain the trust of a deino or zweilous. Bribes of food over a period of several weeks often work, but sometimes don't. Other dragons on the team can either earn the pokémon's trust or result in territorial aggression. A mistake could end in a very painful bite.
Captive specimens are hard to come by. Most are held by specialist breeding operations or antivenom laboratories. Specimens of all three stages can sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Docile specimens will cost well over one million. Adoption is handled on a case-by-case basis.
Deino and zweilous can be purchased, adopted, or captured with a Class IV license. Hydreigon require a Class V license to possess.
Breeding
Very little is known about hydreigon reproduction in the wild. It is known that they tend to mate for multiple seasons, if not for life, and are fiercely devoted to their mates. Female hydreigon appear to be dominant in relationships. Even in captivity male hydreigon are very deferential to their mates. There are no papers on the captive breeding habits of female hydreigon. Such knowledge is fiercely guarded by the various dragon tribes and the cheri priests. Male hydreigon have mated and had cross-bred children in captivity. They tend to leave parenting to their mate if allowed to do so.
Wild hydreigon mothers frequently enter into caves to spend time with their children. The exact nature of their bonding is unclear. Hydreigon can smell out and destroy cameras and will usually scare away or kill anything that crosses their path during these times. They are protective of their offspring and even the offspring of other dragons. Poaching of young dragons in their territory can send them into a rampage.
Relatives
Hydreigon, tatsugiri, and dragonite are the three living species in the family Aquadracones, the most ancient lineage of true dragons. Hydreigon are the last living member of the genus Lernaean, an offshoot of mostly blind species that moved into subterranean rivers and eventually onto land. Most of these species were closer in size and temperament to tatsugiri than hydreigon.
Southern hydreigon are primarily found in regions with relatively mild winters and summers. This includes most of Western Europe and the Mediterranean as well as portions of subtropical and temperate Asia and the Americas in the Northern Hemisphere and the Australia, Southern Africa, and the Pantanal and Atlantic Forest regions of South America in the Southern Hemisphere. Alola is at the edge of their preferred range and has historically only been used as a resting point for the rare hydreigon migrating between hemispheres. The only documented semi-permanent residents lived there from 1781 to 1846, 1921 to 1924, and 2010 to the present.
Northern hydreigon (L. h. zmei) prefer colder climates such as the Crown Tundra, the Canadian boreal, and the northern Rocky Mountains. There is also a subpopulation in the Andes. Northern hydreigon are officially classified as dragon- and steel-types, although there is a strong argument in favor of a dark-steel or dragon-dark dual typing. Northern hydreigon have much thicker coats and two large wings instead of many smaller ones. Northern hydreigon are capable of flying under their own power. They also have longer and sturdier legs that can let them either walk through the snow or slither on top of it. Their fangs in all three mouths and the claws on their feet are metallic and extremely sharp. Northern hydreigon have a partial resistance to fairy attacks and have much more powerful flash cannons than southern hydreigon. Powerful dragonfire and aerial maneuverability have been traded for increased durability and physical power. Northern hydreigon can still punch through city walls with time, but not as effortlessly as a fully grown southern hydreigon. They are more reliant on trickery to get what they want and tend to avoid humans whenever possible.
Hydreigon's metal, known as dragon iron, was considered the most precious metal of all in the ancient world. It keeps a strong elemental charge even when melted down and reforged. A full sword would require slaying or looting the carcasses of at least three dragons. In exchange the sword would often have mystical powers resembling those of a pre-awakened aegislash, often leaving wounds that festered without healing, deflecting dragonfire, or easily sheering through dragon scales. Many royal families kept a dragon iron weapon or shield as their most precious heirloom. Beyond the mystical properties of the weapon it also signaled that either the wielder or their ancestor had managed to slay multiple powerful dragons.