From:	"Sean \"Epicanis\" Clark" <dubiousu@******.COM>
Subject:	Re: ADMIN: DRAGONS AS NEXT NERPS?
Date:	Mon, 13 Mar 1995 12:45:22 -0800

On Sun, 12 Mar 1995, Robert A. Hayden wrote:
>
> > 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...
>
> 1) Every representation I've ever seen had dragons getting HUGE prior to
> breathign fire or taking off (like they were taking a deep breath).
>
> 2) Human bazooka's are relatively recent evolutionary trait, and there
> would have been no time for it to have been selected against.

Also see previous message...(the one about ending up with incredibly
vulnerable dragons)>

> > 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.
>
> Who says they wern't flying around? I have an innate problem with the
> totally magic explaination. It just seems so artificial.

Keeping in mind that in SR, "magic" is also scientific, it's just a new
branch. You WOULDN'T actually just say "it's magic" and leave it at that
in an SR "technical" text (like the what's-his-name guide to paranormal
critters) - you'd probably explain the "technical" aspects of the magic.

Hmmm...one possibility - "Eastern" medicine claims that "life"
("Pranya?"
or Chi) is generated via Breath. Perhaps the intake of breath merely
serves to "charge" the dragon who is about to magically generate some
potent fire (and perhaps the fire is only being produced, not directed -
the breath "blows" the fire from the mouth as it is being created).

> > 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.)
>
> Thos dragon's that don't breathe fire don't have that bio-electricity
> gland. Seems to work...
>
> > Besides, I thought a dragon ate (as the punchline goes) "Whatever it
> > wants"...
>
> Of course, but it's calcium and other hydrogen-producing things that make
> the fire...

It's a personal preference for me, obviously, but I tend to dislike
attempts to "normalize" or explain paranormal abilities with
"real-world"
sciences (at least, not without getting it to "real-world" sciences via
magical sciences).

The "elemental affinity" thing might explain the "Amazing Burrowing
Dragon" in Wales (mentioned in the Welsh section of the London book.) -
that dragon has an "Earth" affinity (or "talent" or whatever you want
to
call it.)

I tend to think of dragons as personifications of natural forces having
incredible power within their specialty. Again, a personal preference.