We could just start to report these two mooks for spam
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Bit of Sun Hawk Headcanon (Semi Headcanon really I suppose, some of it is borne out in mount/pet text)
The different breeds of Dragonhawk have different qualities that they tend towards.
Silvers tend to be the largest, and most aggressive, fiercely independent, they can be hard for a prospective rider to bond with.
Blues, Whilst as large as their Silver counterparts, tend to have a calmer demeanour, however of all the breeds, they tend to be more resistant to extremes of temperature, hence their usage in icecrown as shown in game, they simply handle adverse weather best.
Reds tend to be smaller and sleeker than both Silvers and Blues, whilst their temperament is equally capricious to that of a Silver, they tend to be playful, rather than aggressive, of all the breeds they are undoubtedly the fastest, as Brigante often says they are âQuicker than a Harlots smile, and they climb like a homesick starâ
Golds are an interesting one, similar in size to Reds, they are also without a doubt the most affable in nature, of all Dragonhawks, friendly even to those not their rider. A Bonded rider can trust âhisâ Dragonhawk to look after his infant children and they will, but they could trust -any- Gold breed, with even the most cursory of social interaction. The breed is not naturally given to malice, and is the only Breed of military pedigree Dragonhawks that is omnivorous rather than carnivorous, supplementing their diet of meat and fish with berries and vegetation, perhaps this explains their easy temperament, as the âPassenger Hawksâ that the Flightmasters lend to people on their journeys around Azeroth are all fed on a purely vegetation diet from hatching, and are generally more docile than the Military bred ones, and therefore suitable and safe for unskilled riders. Whilst all Dragonhawks can swim, Golds seem to enjoy it most, and are quite adept at catching fish in the ocean around Quelâthalas.
Purples, also known as âEclipsionsâ or âPhoenix Hawksâ are rare, but becoming more prevalent in recent years, they are the breed that Kaelâthas and the Sunfury took to Outlands. There is some debate amongst breeders as to whether their qualities are -because- they were exposed to the magical energies there, or the -reason- the Sunfury took them there, but they seem to have a higher sensitivity for magic than the other breeds, they seem to be able to sense it, and also are slightly more resistant to it. Perhaps for this reason they are often highly prized by magic using Riders.
The rarest seen in military service, is the âAmaniâ Dragonhawk, so named obviously after that tribe who enslaved the beasts, generally very wise and cunning, they are also the most loyal to the Blood Elves, somehow realising that their relationship is that of partners, not slaves. There is much debate as to whether there is any connection with JanâAlai, the Amani Loa of Dragonhawks, however such debate is obviously one-sided, as no Amani scholars understandably wish to share -their- views with their hated enemy.
Like all flying mounts of Azeroth, Dragonhawks are fiercely intelligent, obviously they cannot physically talk, but they can understand basic instructions, and indeed when a Bond is formed with their rider, it is a very basic telepathic one, akin to the relationship between some of the more mystical Hunters and their Companions, and it is possible for them to convey fairly complex concepts to their riders, and vice versa. Such is not absolute telepathy however, for all their bond, a Dragonhawk and an Elf will have vastly different ways of experiencing life, and some concepts are just beyond explanation. Dragonhawks are fairly long lived, perhaps why the long lived Blood Elves favour them, perhaps because they are Draconic in nature, not simply reptiles. The term for a newly hatched one is as it sounds, a Hatchling, an adolescent too small to be ridden is referred to as a âDrakeâ, The male progenitor of an egg is referred to as a âSireâ, and the female who lays the egg is a âDamâ.
They are the Apex predator in Quelâthalas, and unusual in the way that whilst they can happily eat and digest raw meat, they do prefer it cooked, or perhaps seared is the right word. This is likely due to their primary method of killing prey, which is of course their flame breath. It is likely a simple evolutionary outcome rather than any conscious preference for cooked meat.
In terms of their senses, the most acute is their Vision, as would be expected of an Aerial predator, their hearing works on a higher scale than even Elven hearing, however it starts higher, so they are functionally deaf when it comes to low pitched sounds, yet perceptive of higher pitched sounds than most humanoids can hear.
This is the reason that most Military Pedigree Dragonhawks have a different name as a Hatchling, than when they become a Drake and get their âProperâ name, these names generally being two syllables and can only be said with at least one or two higher pitched syllables, but starting low, examples would be âCritoâ or âTiroâ, this is to condition them and get them used to sounds starting at the low end of their hearing spectrum and rising higher. A Dragonhawk so trained is capable of hearing slightly lower frequencies than a wild one, an invaluable trait.
Their sense of smell is nothing to write home about, but from a creature that breathes fire, this is not surprising, their sense of smell is superior to an Elfâs, but nowhere near as good as say, a Dog. They can nonetheless acclimatise to the smell of their rider and comrades, to an extent where they can smell their rider on a long term romantic partner, and even their offspring, making them surprisingly safe, and protective, babysitters, regarding their riders children as an extension of their own clutch of Hatchlings, this trust seems to extend both ways, as when a Dam has laid her eggs, and they need testing to make sure they are safe, then woe betide -anyone- who tries to take those eggs to be tested, that is not their Bonded rider or Handler, they seem to have an understanding that they have two families, the âWinged onesâ and the âWingless onesâ, and both are important to protect, and can trust the other.
No one knows what their sense of taste is like, even the tightest of bonds does not give the rider any insight, it just seems to be one of those concepts that is impossible to convey. Some Breeders contest that they -have- no sense of taste whatsoever, that the evolutionary trait of breathing fire has simply caused any tastebuds to atrophy, some say that they -do- have a sense of taste, but it is such an alien concept to our own understanding of it, that they simply cannot convey what it is like, and if they try, we simply would not understand.
In terms of Tactile senses, they are creatures that are essentially coiled muscle plated in thick scales. They -can- be gentle, with the smaller and frail âWingless selvesâ however this is likely behaviour from their natural way of looking after their own Hatchlings, you donât be too hard, or youâll just kill them. They themselves are not extremely susceptible to touch, they are essentially flying anacondas with natural plate armour, as such, it can often surprise onlookers when the Sun Hawks take to their steeds, and their greeting is a smashing of heads together, or an affectionate punch to the beak. It looks cruel, but in reality a simple pat just wouldnât be felt by the armoured creature, you have to put some force into it.
They obviously understand the intention behind gentler gestures, but they arenât actually -feeling- anything, theyâre just understanding the intention.
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A surprise to be sure, but a welcome one.
Orcs are the perfect hunter.
In Lord of the Clans, Durotan is able to make out the sound of an assassin drawing his blade through the sound of a busy river next to him, meaning they have really acute hearing.
In A Good War, Saurfang is able to smell a drop of blood that Nathanos had cleaned poorly off his blade. Nathanos was standing in the lower floor of a tower with his blade in sheathe â and Saurfang could smell the drop of blood through his sleep, waking up instantly.
Rise of the Horde goes to detail the eyesight of orcs during Durotan and Drakaâs courting hunt. With their keen eyesight, they could easily study the depth and gait of the animal prints they were following without stopping for long to study them. They were analyzing the tracks on the fly.
In Lord of the Clans, Thrall demonstrates his strength being immensely greater than a fully grown humanâs when he himself is still an adolescent. Their skin is described as âhideâ and itâs thick enough to blunt the pain from a human soldier putting all his weight behind the punch. The tip of a spear being pricked at Thrallâs back barely even drew blood, let alone feel any pain.
In Beyond the Dark Portal, itâs established that because orcs have such a high pain threshold, conventional torture methods are useless on them. Turalyon has to enslave an orc with the Light before it offers any answers.
So orcs have established senses far greater than that of humans and theyâre naturally much stronger, on par with I would say gorillas who are deceitfully strong.
On top of that, orcs share our own basic human physiology in terms of our hips which makes us very energy efficient attrition hunters, making us able to outlast literally any other animal on the planet. Because while most animals will out run us short distance, we will always outlast them long distance. Their bodies arenât as energy efficient, meaning they exhaust themselves quickly. The beauty of attrition hunting is that you never allow the prey a chance to rest. Youâre always there, looming over their shoulders until theyâre too exhausted to offer a fight back.
Orcs are the perfect race of hunters. Itâs no wonder that their courting ritual involves a hunt and clans like Frostwolves, Whiteclaws and Thunderlords were traditionally hunters by trade.
EDIT: Thanks to Manata, hereâs a bit from Lord of the Clans regarding orcish night vision.
âRetreat!â he cried, and made for the pile of still-hot rocks that had once been imprisoning walls and the sweet darkness of the night. His clansmen followed. There were one or two guards who gave chase, but the orcs were faster and soon outdistanced them.
The agreed-upon meeting place was an ancient pile of standing stones. The night was dark, but orcish eyes did not need the moonsâ illumination to see. By the time Thrall reached the site, dozens of orcs were huddled by the eight towering stones.
âSuccess!â cried a voice at Thrallâs right. He turned to see Doomhammer, his black plate armor shiny
- Lord of the Clans, page 87
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But they -are- stronger. DKs rely on both physical and magical ability to compete.
Got a proof that theyâre stronger?
Guys for the love of god, can we stick to Head canons? If you want to discuss, do it somewhere else!
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And Warriors do aswell, Rage is a type of spiritual power, probably another use of Chi, I mean, they get so angry they catch fire, they stomp the ground and summon lightning⌠thatâs not physical power alone.
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Seriously, neither party is going to back down, so just walk away from it, at this point youâre just killing a thread, that otherwise had some interesting ideas in it.
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Very well. I apologize for derailing.
My own head canon is⌠Basicly the inspiration I use from other games / universes during RP.
The easiest example would be LotR and Witcher, and old ruins, for example. If some foul being is in there with dark magic, I like to make comments on how the place is being riddled with âevil energiesâ and having high chances of getting cursed one way or the other, if you go there.
I like to add mystery to magic in my RP. Cause I really dislike how textbook itâs all become.
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You know what, **** it. I said I wonât argue, and I wonât: Iâll just do your work for you and prove you wrong now. I cannot cite pages since itâs on a Kindle/digital PDF and those are different from hardbacks, however this entire scenario is from CHAPTER 17, immediately at the beginning of itâthat makes it easy enough to find regardless of platform.
1.
Utherâs hammer blocked it. The two men strained, their faces within inches of each other, the muscles in their arms shaking with effort, until with a grunt Uther shoved Arthas backward. The younger man stumbled. Uther pressed the attack. His face was calm, but his eyes were fierce and resolute, and he seemed to fight as if his victory was inevitable. The utter confidence shook Arthas. His own blows were powerful, but erratic. Heâd never been able to best Uther beforeâ
Arthas doubts himself; it is not STRENGTH that is the issue, but panic. Arthas swings his weapon wildly, while Uther remains calm and collectedâafter all, Uther is much older, and a much more experienced fighter & war veteran. Arthas is barely a man rising above boyhood. Arthas is scared. And even then he admits, in his own narration, that his blows are powerful.
2.
âIt ends here, boy!â Uther cried, his voice ringing. Suddenly to Arthasâs horror the paladin was limned in a glowing, brilliant light. Not just his hammer, but his entire body, as if he himself was the true weapon of the Light that would strike Arthas down. âFor the Lightâs justice!â
The hammer descended. All the air in Arthasâs body was knocked out of him with a rush as the blow landed straight and true across his midsection. Only his armor saved him, and even that crumpled beneath the glowing hammer wielded by the holy, radiant paladin. Arthas went sprawling, Frostmourne flying from his grip, agony shooting through him as he struggled to breathe, struggled to rise. The Lightâhe had turned his back on it, had betrayed it. And now it was exacting retribution through Uther the Lightbringer, its greatest champion, infusing his old teacher with the purity of its brilliance and purpose.
The glow enveloping Uther increased, and Arthas grimaced in agony as the Light seared his eyes as well as his soul. Heâd been wrong to forsake it, horribly wrong, and now its mercy and love had been transformed into this radiant, implacable being. He stared upward into the white light that was Utherâs eyes, tears filling his own as he awaited the killing blow.
Real physical strength, friends. Uther is 100% raw muscle, not at all scorching Arthas with the anti-undead Light, nor infusing himself with powerful blessings to make his blows hit harder.
3.
If Uther was a bear, enormous and powerful, Arthas was a tiger, strong and coiled and swift. The hammer, strong and Light-blessed though it and its wielder might be, was not a fast weapon, nor was Utherâs style of fighting.
And last but not least: while Arthasâ thought-process describes his fear, panic, and DOUBT facing his former tutor, the narrator simply calls it a difference in fighting styles. Also bonus point for another Light-infused highlight.
Now Iâm done talking about this for good. Not being able to quote my lore gives me conniptions; I had to do it for my sanity.
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(separate post, because separate replyâIâd like to keep the citation standalone)
âŚsame, lately. Especially from Witcher, the way elven ruins are done in the 3rd game portray the high fantasy and magic setting perfectly, without going OTT. And itâs true, magic in lore/RP really has become very textbook-like. I mean, look at the above quotes and compare how it used to be in those novels vs. how it is now; paladins draw strength out of a mystical power which is bestowed through worship.
Now? Yeah no, itâs technically not even worship itâs just a specific kind of Light-spawn alien chime that goes around lying to people. Lore me vs. creative me are at an odds.
For anyone who wants the Sources to what Faceslinger is saying shameless promotion of our new lore thread.
When Arthas faces off against Uther it should be noted he has basically became the Light Incarnate in a man and just looking at Uther sears Arthasâ soul.
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So they are faster, stronger, smell better, hear better and see better than basicly every other species in the world?
Yes, pretty much.
Consider that the Warsong Clan ( 1 clan, lead by an orc close to 50 years of age ) were beating the Night Elves so bad ( in their own forests, in which Elves should have the advantage of size, fighting style and knowing the land ) that Cenarius had to come help.
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Still smells abit bulshifty, though
Why hasnât the Horde steamrolled the entire Alliance then? Since the tauren are stronger than the orcs, and a goblin is as strong as an orc too?
They have won simply because of Mannroths blood, not because they were better
They won against CENARIUS through Mannorothâs blood.
They were beating up the elves without it.
Because the Alliance is far stronger than the Night Elves alone?
Night Elves lacked in proper infantry, numbers and siege warfare, and Dwarves/Humans/Gnome technology filled in the weaknesses in their defence.