Wyverns. The scrawny younger cousins of Dragons, these scaled bastards wreak havoc wherever they go. I honestly think they’re far more of a problem than full-fledged Dragons. In most settings, Dragons, or at least the older more intelligible versions, are few and far between. Either because they all hate each other so they don’t procreate, or because they’ve been hunted down to near extinction, or some combination of the two. Wyverns on the other-hand are plentiful, making them a huge threat for the common NPC. Wyverns can be found in very similar environments as Dragons: mountain caves, forests, more caves, ruling over a town in a desert, caves.
There are many ways that set Dragons and Wyverns apart. First being a Wyverns lack of a breath weapon. In place of this they have a poison stinger, which is nothing to scoff at. The initial hit does some decent damage but the bulk of it comes from the poison that begins coursing through your body. Second is they have no variants to speak of. Dragons come in a multitude of colors and each comes with their own unique elemental affinity. Lastly is a Wyverns intelligence. They are very instinctual monsters that live to sate their hunger. Because of their animalistic behavior they have the capacity to be tamed. Some armies have whole battalions of Wyvern riders.
I think Wyverns got a bit of a short stick. They can be made to be far more interesting creatures if given some effort. I would love to see a whole slew of different types of Wyverns causing all kinds of mayhem for the local farmer.
Thanks for reading Dungeoneers, I hope you enjoyed this new installment. If you enjoyed what you read please consider donating to my ko-fi! Till next time.
The Dungeoneer's Journal 