(excerpt from The (in)Complete Book of Dragons, by me, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, with help from my friend Ben the Dragonrider)

SILVER MOONDANCE

Silver Moondances were once common from East Asia to North-West Europe, but have now largely disappeared from Europe. Their closest relative was the now-extinct Three-Headed Forester, and, like this species, they live on moonlight and do not always need to eat. Moondances are thought to have evolved in Asia, but are part of the European family of dragons (lizard-like body, powerful wings, fire-breathing) rather than Chinese dragons (snake-like body, can fly without wings, possesses magical power to control water).

Silver Moondances are intelligent and benign but mostly avoid humans, though they are happy to share their caves with other humanoids such as kobolds or dwarves. If you have the good luck to form a friendship with a Moondance, do NOT treat him/her as a pet to be trained. Especially, do not attempt to train them by yelling at them. Bribing them with food doesn't work well, either, as they rarely eat.

STATISTICS

COLOURS: Silver. At the end of a Moondance's life, his/her scales darken on the surface and become opaque, making absorption of moonlight more difficult.

ARMED WITH: Basic teeth and claws. Fire is not usually a weapon (unless you are a magical/alchemical construct, in which case the Moondance's fire can undo the fire that created you). However, Moondances who have been turned to stone and recovered possess a modified breath weapon which can turn other people or things to stone. This may or may not be permanent and fatal – but if you are flying or swimming at the time, it probably will be. 4 for normal Moondances, 9 for post-Petrified Moondances.

DEFENCES: Possess back-spines and horns, but mostly rely on speed, staying out of sight, or, if necessary, roaring to intimidate attackers who may mistake them for dangerous monsters. 2

RADAR: Not radar in the normal sense, but can detect the presence of other magical beings. Moondances also have a keen sense of smell, and trained Moondances sometimes help dwarvish miners by sniffing out veins of valuable minerals.

POISON: None 0

HUNTING ABILITY: None, since they are not carnivores. In addition to absorbing moonlight, Moondances will sometimes eat plants or fungi, but are always careful not to eat sentient mushroom-folk. 0

SPEED: Variable. Silver Moondances, as the name suggests, normally depend on moonlight to fly, which depends on (a) night-time (not sure why, as the moon can be visible by day – maybe sunlight counteracts its effects?), (b) a phase when the moon is visible in the sky at night, and (c) the moon not being obscured. On a clear night at full moon, a young but mature dragon can cover vast distances in a single night, but a sick or out-of-condition dragon, or any dragon in the daytime or on a moonless night, cannot fly at all, and does not walk particularly fast. However, Moondances can also gain energy from the dew that collects by moonlight on the dragon-flower. Moondances who have drunk this can cross continents in days, flying day and night without stopping, and can also manoeuvre quickly in caves. So Speed = anywhere between 1 and 10

FEAR AND FIGHT FACTOR: Extremely protective of those they love, and do not tolerate bullies. 6

SIZE: 8

DISOBEDIENCE: Not Applicable. Silver Moondances are friends, not pets or servants. If they let a human ride on their back, or agree to sniff out ores for a dwarf, it is because they want to be helpful, not because they are tame.