From:	"Sean \"Epicanis\" Clark" <dubiousu@******.COM>
Subject:	Re: ADMIN: DRAGONS AS NEXT NERPS?
Date:	Sat, 11 Mar 1995 21:46:50 -0800

On Sat, 11 Mar 1995, Robert A. Hayden wrote:

> I've been meaning to make this posting, but finals are this week, and I
> was pretty much out of action last week with studying.
>
> THINGS THAT SHOULD BE IN NERPS DRAGONLORE
>
> Dragon Physiology. How do they fly? How do they breathe fire? Is it
> natural or magic or both or neither.
> Roundtable Discussion with Five CEO Wyrms
> Dragons and the 'Net. Why are they so intrigued?
> etc etc etc
>
> The physiology aspect was once that might be interesting. There was a
> book I read a long time ago that kind tried to explain it, and it sorta
> made sense.
> Dragons eat calcium (usually limestone or cattle)
> Calcium, interacting with stomach acids creates hydrogen
> Hydrogen is boyent, providing lift
> Belching out hyrdrogen decreases lift
> A bio-electrical gland in the mouth can ignite the
> belched gas, thus breathing fire
>
I vaguely remember that book, but don't remember which one it was...

Wouldn't a dragon look awfully bloated if it was pumped up with
hydrogen? And what happens when some clown gets his greasy cyber-palms
on some armor-piercing incendiary rounds? Although "A Dragon Named
Hindenburg" would make a good name for something...

I vote magic as the cause of most of the incredible abilities. AFter
all, if they were scientifically explainable with "normal" science,
dragons would have been flying around before the Awakening.

Perhaps dragons who do breathe fire (I seem to recall that not all of
them do) have some sort of innate magical/genetic "affinity" for certain
types of elemental fire magic (and perhaps should have bonuses in the
case of full mage-dragons.)

Besides, I thought a dragon ate (as the punchline goes) "Whatever it
wants"...