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series of novels, the armies of Takhisis—consisting ofdragons, the humanoid Highlords, and the armies ofhumans, goblinoids, and draconians—also serves anexcellent example of a mixed society, one driven andheld together by religious zealotry.OverlordsIn this variety of chromatic dragon society, a rulingclass or order of dragons reigns as tyrants over apopulation of other races. Unlike a mixed society,this is not a partnership. The people of the societyare second-class citizens at best, slaves and chattelat worst, utterly subject to the whims of their draconicmasters.The makeup of this government varies. In somecases, a single family, clan, or variety of chromaticdragon makes up the entirety of the ruling overclass.In others, the dragon lords might be of multiple chromaticvarieties—but even then, one bloodline of onevariety holds the pinnacle of power, above the otherdragons. Some of these societies have a sort of middleclass—individuals favored by the dragons, who standabove the rest of the populace but still do not rule.These individuals are usually either dragonborn ordragonspawn (see page 218).Perhaps the most infamous historical example ofa dragon overlord society is the nation of Maru-Qet,an empire ruled by a pharaonic dynasty of browndragons until war with a clan of catastrophic dragonsreduced it to a blistered wasteland. (See “Nefermandias”on page 240.) Less famous, but of far greaterthreat to the people of the modern day, is the citystateof Pallavarthas. Due to a great ritual performedby exarchs of Tiamat, this doomed city exists on twoplanes at once: the natural world and Tiamat’s ownastral domain. As the two dimensions merge withinthe city’s borders, more and more of its citizens findthemselves suddenly in an alien world, pressed intoslavery by dragonspawn overseers.LANGUAGEAs one of the oldest living races native to the world,dragons speak one of the most ancient mortal languages.When the mortal races beheld the gods,each heard the divine Supernal language in itsown unique fashion depending on its shape anddemeanor. Thus the foundational languages of theworld arose, including Draconic.Io created the Draconic script, Iokharic, so hismortal children could record their impressions ofthe world he hoped they would inherit. Both the languageand the script survive to the present day.Dragon-related races, including dragonborn andkobolds, also speak Draconic and use Iokharic.Some individuals among these races take greatpride in their use of the same tongue that rumblesfrom the scaled lips of ancient wyrms, althoughothers curse their lineage. Most, however, rarelygive it a thought.Draconic script24CHAPTER 1 | Dragon Lore