2024-05-21 - Dragon Cave's 18th Birthday!

[PiedPipecleaner]

Wooo adults are out so I can give my lore dump!

 

Obviously mine is based on the white tiger/byakko. For the actual design, I've always really loved these creatures/statues called xiezhi. Namely the way their fur curls is pretty satisfying to me, so I thought I'd use that as another point of inspo. Lore inspo came from the steel pipe meme (and steel drums, for when they're feeling merciful) lol.

 

I'm sure people are wondering about the name too lol. I have two modes when naming: two words and latin mashups. This was just one of the latter, nothing particularly deep. I did briefly try doing some mashups with East Asian languages but couldn't get anything that would roll off the tongue very well.

 

And finally, the original sketch:

 

Hehe loud kitty :3

Edited May 24 by PiedPipecleaner

[Shin'a'in]

I absolutely LOVE them ALL and I LOVE how “if a Zarafauri Dragon acknowledges one”s leadership, then they must have a good and strong heart” makes me think of the creature in the Harry Potter universe that is able to Sense the wizard that’s the most worthy of being Chosen to be the new leader of the magical community. So AWESOME!

[Rykan]

1 hour ago, SkyWolf25 said:

Finally, adults!

 

As many of you guessed, this year's theme is the East Asian Five Passages/Five Elements matched with the four auspicious cardinal beasts and the kirin, each tied to one stage/element. The elements represent the five stages of change that they say all things in the universe go through, beginning with Wood that represents birth/creation and ending with Water that represents death/preparation for a new life, then cycling back to Wood.

 

I suggested it because I thought it would be fitting for Year of the Dragon from the Chinese Zodiac, another widespread Asian culture, and I'm very happy the other artists went along with it! Many countries have different animals for some of the years, but it's the Dragon this year in China, Korea, Japan, and Vietnam afaik.

 

-Thousand Wish Dragon

 

I dug a bit deeper for their concept, partly because I'd been interested in the Five Elements for a while and had done some research beforehand, and partly because the base animal for Wood/East is literally just dragon. xD

 

Life affinity was an obvious choice, for Wood and the birth it represents. As the first out of five stages Wood is connected to spring, they return to the surface at spring, the season of new life.

 

I added Lightning affinity because Wood encompasses lightning/thunder and air according to the 8 Trigram. (For reference, fire belongs to Fire, water belongs to Water, sky and swamp belong to Metal, and mountain and ground belong to Earth, though as incorporating this into the dragon was an optional choice made by me, the other birthday dragons won't necessarily fit into this.) I thought it was fitting, because lightning causes some nitrogen fixation when it strikes, which is good for plant growth, and can cause fires that'll create nutrient-rich ash. It was also a good elemental affinity for rain.

 

Them living in the ocean during winter stems from Eastern dragons' affinity to water and tales of dragon kings that rule the sea, and also alludes a bit to Water's keywords - winter and end of a cycle, which then flows back to Wood.

 

The shoulder ornaments were inspired by the shoulder decorations on the blue dragon of the East mural and flag from ancient Korea - 

 

The shoulder ornaments on the Lihnseyres originated from the same thing too, actually. I love the shoulder stuff on traditional dragon art.

 

The trees in the description that villagers tie fabric on their branches with their wishes comes from the wish trees in many different cultures, and is the reason for this dragon's name. I imagine the tradition to be a long-standing one, with the same dragon returning to the same village for many, many years. The tree would be equally ancient and colourfully adorned with numerous wishes.

 

 

Here's the sketch:

The antlers have a gemstone-like core that is covered by a wood bark-like substance. It's been simplified in the sprite since the antlers are only 1 pixel wide, but the gems are revealed at some of the tips where the casing splits apart, and light can be seen seeping out from the cracks near the points of the antlers.

 

Additionally, Pinus densiflora(a.k.a. Korean red pine / Japanese red pine) was the general vibe aesthetic I had in mind when designing and concepting them.

I love the mystical feel of the winding and twisting trunk and boughs.

 

I don't have a definite size for them atm but imagine them to be a little shorter than Lihnseyres in height and less bulky but around the same length, maybe longer - they are loong.

 

They are benevolent and have been known to advise villagers who come asking for their wisdom. They don't live inside the villages, typically, but they will descend from the sky or their resting place - usually an ancient, giant tree - in the forest. 

 

I don't know if the encyclopedia will be released right away, but I did write it up, so hopefully you guys will be able to read them soon!

Wonderful sprites, concepts and descriptions!! 🤩🤩🤩 I like them all and I like the Asian mythology/elements reference!! The Thousands Whish dragon is one of my favorite, beautiful lore! 💛🤩

THANK YOU ALL ARTISTS FOR MAKING THEM! 💛💛💛

 

[SkyWolf25]

28 minutes ago, Shin'a'in said:

I absolutely LOVE them ALL and I LOVE how “if a Zarafauri Dragon acknowledges one”s leadership, then they must have a good and strong heart” makes me think of the creature in the Harry Potter universe that is able to Sense the wizard that’s the most worthy of being Chosen to be the new leader of the magical community. So AWESOME!

That's also a qilin(kirin) - same source of inspiration! 

[Gluria]

Oh I LOVE them!!!

And the old manga & anime fan in me is happy bc finding names for them is rather easy, at least four of the new bois :3

[HeartJacker13]

It's hard to pick a favorite. They all have such beautiful, detailed art work.

[Shiruvix]

Yay adults! And they're all absolutely wonderful, amazing job Spriters! ❤️

Caihongs are def my favorite from the bunch!

[oOVacatedWisperOo]

They are all very nice!!! I'm really pleased with how the tigers/Chaliuba turned out, since those were the ones I was most curious about. I do think that the Caihong Dragons stole the show however; they're the most dynamic sprite I think I've ever seen in DC so far.

 

Overall though they're each super pretty. Together they all make for one of my favorite releases in a long time, as I just love the theme and how beautifully it's expressed in each sprite. I'm absolutely delighted to go hunting for more! 

[Quinney]

What a brilliantly successful coming of age release! I've been here for 14 of the 18 years and so glad it's still going strong.

 

Congratulations to all spriters for the lovely dragons.

 

Love the Archelonian but the stand out one for me is the Caihong.  Both Stage 1 and 2 sprites for the Caihong are stunning.

 

Again, Congratulations and thanks to all who worked hard on this release.

[Su_Halcon]

omg the adults are SO GORGEOUS!! Can't hardly tell which is my fav, maybe Caihong, but love all of them!

Thanks so much Spriters and TJ!

[Alskasaur]

Wow, they all look awesome!!

[blinkdog]

So pretty!!!!! these guys are getting added to the favorites ^^ great work!

[jefferyi]

Ahhhh the Caihong adult is just fabulous! Def my favourite. The pose of all sprites are so elegant, it fits the theme so well!

[Talisraye]

I love them all except something about the White Tiger makes it look like it has a proboscis monkey snout to me. Also wish it was more catlike. Looks like a striped dragon. Oh, well. The sketch and lore above is super cool.

 

Vermillion Bird was for a second hard to pick out until I realized it was facing down. Wow, that’s a fiery burst of a dragon. Love the colors.

Black Tortoise is what I expected for dragon turtle, but the almost oily-shine on it is great and I love its gender dimorphism and intricacy. That tail ball and snaky-tongue featured are also super cool.

 

Azure Dragon is one of my two favorites. I love it’s based on those trees and it’s bright color is gorgeous. Looks so ancient and wise and powerful.

 

Golden Qilin is my second of my two favorites. It ended up being so different from the Wisteria dragon and it’s also very ancient, wise, and powerful-looking. I love its glowing green eyes and its curly/wavy mane and tail. Front dragon paws and back deer hooves was an excellent choice (and I think exactly how the original mythological creature is depicted). 

 

A very good release, thank you, artists.

Edited May 24 by Talisraye

[PrairieStead]

I hope everyone had fun with this birthday bash. I did with it's gentler approach for the hunt. After 18yrs I don't run as fast.  🫠   It's nice to enjoy the sweet smell of ginger instead of roses as the hunt continued. And a wonderful selection of dragons as well. Thank-you to one and all who made it possible!!

[LizardMonster]

DAMN!! These sprites are so gorgeous, I don’t even know if I can pick a favorite! I love how dynamic Caihong’s pose is, the flames frame it nicely. Archelonian has such a solid design, I love the snake elements that reference the snake on the black turtle (I’m also a sucker for its head shape). Chaliuba’s tiger influence comes through very well, especially in the proportioning and pose. Thousand Wish has such beautiful scale detail and a great silhouette, I love how much noodle is packed into the limited space without feeling too crowded. Zarafuri is such a solid kirin, looking a bit chimeric while still being cohesive (the rear hooves are a nice touch). I also love how the name seems to be a nod to giraffes being mistaken for kirin in the past! Overall wonderful birthday release, probably my favorite since I started playing a couple years ago. You guys did a great job!

 

[Gwathgor]

What a pretty batch of adults! ^^ I think my favourite might be Caihong, I agree with previous comments about how cool that dynamic pose is. Chaliuba would be second fave, I feel like they're specificallly gonna go really well together with some of the Halloween breeds.

[LostinEcho]

Finally great nr dragons on dc birthday! They are all awesome:)) 

[BrownWolf]

Love the theme this year, the easy and non-stressful release, and of course the gorgeous new sprites! My first encounter with the Chinese Holy Beasts was through Digimon, which is one of my favorite childhood series, so this whole release makes me feel very nostalgic. Chaliuba is definitely my favorite, love the pounce-like pose and especially the color palette. I like turtles, and reptiles in general, so Archelonian also has a special place in my heart, and I always find dragons with non-standard head/snout shapes interesting and cool, so Zaraufari is a welcome addition. Overall I can't find anything I wouldn't like in any of the new dragons, they are all awesome. Amazing work as always, spriters, thank you for these gems!

[shadowmisfire]

7 hours ago, PiedPipecleaner said:

Wooo adults are out so I can give my lore dump!

 

Obviously mine is based on the white tiger/byakko. For the actual design, I've always really loved these creatures/statues called xiezhi. Namely the way their fur curls is pretty satisfying to me, so I thought I'd use that as another point of inspo. Lore inspo came from the steel pipe meme (and steel drums, for when they're feeling merciful) lol.

 

I'm sure people are wondering about the name too lol. I have two modes when naming: two words and latin mashups. This was just one of the latter, nothing particularly deep. I did briefly try doing some mashups with East Asian languages but couldn't get anything that would roll off the tongue very well.

 

And finally, the original sketch:

 

Hehe loud kitty :3

lol

[Moonbeam22]

Do we knowhow long it takes new releases to hit the market?

[Rhahatl]

The adults all look incredible!! Spriters did a great job as usual, it's hard to pick favorites out of this release but I think Archelonians and Zarafauris are definitely up there for me. Thanks to you all for another wonderful DC birthday!

[dracornithologist]

The background lore is so cool! I love the sprites; there's some amazing color work. And I definitely need to get enough to freeze a stage one hatchling of each because they're! So adorable!!

[schenanigans]

I liek turtle

[Frej_the_Gold]

1 hour ago, Moonbeam22 said:

Do we knowhow long it takes new releases to hit the market?

 

If I remember correctly, not too long after we start seeing adults on players' scrolls.