Thoughts on Dragon hide armor

[Anthony]

The draconic equivalent of Toxoplasma gondii.

[sir_pudding]

It could just be well marketed garbage that is significantly worse than conventional armor (particularly by falling to pieces rapidly when struck or exposed to cold, heat, sweat, soap, or saltwater) but the bards, minstrels, criers and other associated rumor-merchants have heard of it, so they keep rousing the rabble into wondering why the king doesn't make his troops use it.

:)

[Agemegos]

Originally Posted by Bruno

For the largest "litter" size, of course.

Just so. These dragons only get to reproduce once, so they have to make the most of it.

Also, they don't get to engage in parental care, except in the rather odd sense of contriving that their hides will be taken by a good carer. And in this case that means someone who is going to (a) make a good many suits of dragon-hide armour, (b) give them to people who are going to wear them enough for the effect to occur (c) perhaps because they are defending a dragon hoard from all comers, (d) though people who travelled a considerable distance before settling down would be good.

I see the boss dragon-slayers as wearing armour plates made out of the large back scales, probably shaped into breastplates, backplates, greaves, vambraces etc. by shaping magics. They take smaller scales and have them laced together or sewn to backings to make brigandines for retainers etc. and for sale. Dragonhide leather with the smallest scales still attached is probably the cheapest, though important people might keep it for informal wear.

Anyway, the creation of multiple suits of armour out of at least some dragons is essential to maintain the numbers of the species, given that the deaths of young dragons, dragons being killed in the wilderness and being left to rot, dragons falling into lakes and sinking, dragons buried in landslides contrived by lucky seventh sons etc. would otherwise lead to an irreversible decline of the population. It is equally important that those extra suits be worn, not merely hoarded.

I think that strains of dragon would flourish best among which the newly-transformed young scattered and fled, and then spent some time in the wilderness fattening on goats and deer and what have you, growing enough scales and hide to make a good quantity of armour. The return to human lands, accumulation of treasure, demands for a tribute of maidens and princesses etc. are all features that proliferate because they tend to attract a large number of dragon-hunters, and thus promise that the scales and hide will be turned into several articles of armour.

It is absolutely crucial to strains of dragons that their hides make excellent armour. If dragonscale plates and brigandines are inferior to iron ones people often won't bother, and the dragons will fail to reproduce.

I wonder about a different strain that is much less formidable, is hunted for it hides to be worn as ornamental clothing such as beautiful crocodile-skin boots and shoes to be worn other than by warriors, and which is under a selective pressure to a beautiful rather than a tough hide.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Brett

Just so. These dragons only get to reproduce once, so they have to make the most of it.

Depends. If dragons shed their skins, and shed dragonskin works for armor, that solves that.

[DouglasCole]

Originally Posted by aesir23

To be really plausible, the transformation must be delayed. Perhaps years.

And dragon hide must be really tempting armor, so that nobody kills a dragon and just leaves the hide.

Perhaps, through magic or microscopic parasites, the death of the dragon causes a compulsion to make and wear dragon hide armor.

Then, years down the road, when the hero is finished adventuring (and in the process has build upon the original treasure horde) another compulsion will hit to go off on "one last adventure"...alone.

The 'tempting, but a price' is the basic plot of the third and fourth Dune novels, isn't it?

[Agemegos]

Originally Posted by Anthony

Depends. If dragons shed their skins, and shed dragonskin works for armor, that solves that.

True. I'll give some thought to what results. Dragons coming into settled lands to moult and then retreating to safety in the mountains where they subsist on chamois?


On an unrelated note, it occurs to me that it would have been a red-letter day in natural history when some rich schmuck got dragon-scale barding for his horse or a dragon-hide collar for his favourite fighting dog.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Brett

True. I'll give some thought to what results. Dragons coming into settled lands to moult and then retreating to safety in the mountains where they subsist on chamois?

Dragons might shed one scale (or one scale pair) at a time, the way birds shed feathers, in which case you'd collect the shed scales and link them together (might have to drill holes in the scales). Or they could do whole-body sheds the way snakes do, in which case that makes dragon hunting a distinctly seasonal thing, since during the shed they'll be somewhat vulnerable.

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by Brett

True. I'll give some thought to what results. Dragons coming into settled lands to moult and then retreating to safety in the mountains where they subsist on chamois?


On an unrelated note, it occurs to me that it would have been a red-letter day in natural history when some rich schmuck got dragon-scale barding for his horse or a dragon-hide collar for his favourite fighting dog.

That's where all the various pseudo-dragons come from. Fairy Dragons must be from all those cat collars, wyverns from dog collars, each uisge and other water horses for horse collars.

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by Anthony

The draconic equivalent of Toxoplasma gondii.

That was akin to my thread from a few days ago, along with how dragon cults come about.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

That's where all the various pseudo-dragons come from. Fairy Dragons must be from all those cat collars, wyverns from dog collars, each uisge and other water horses for horse collars.

Actually, hellhounds seem like a good choice for the result from dogs, and maybe hippogriffs from horses.