Ignii

Ignii know where true power lies. In their ancient past, the humans they once were scaled the Coronus mountains to seek out the home of the Mother of Dragons. They worshiped at her feet, and her blessing unto them was baptismal fires, scorching away flesh and bone to birth them anew. In her name, they became conquerors, ever striving to become better, better, better, until they too can hold the very heavens in their hands.

Aging

When an ignii first hatches, they are very vulnerable. Their scales and spikes are cartilaginous and soft; the only real scale is their egg tooth on their nose. When that tooth falls away, it leaves the characteristic nose scales many ignii share. Over the course of the first five years, these scales and spikes harden up, getting tougher each year with their annual shed.

Ignii have lifespans very similar to humans, but they're plagued by young deaths that skew the life expectancy shorter. Many ignii die young in duels or play combat, and many die young due to climbing accidents or falls while gliding. Coric culture encourages risk-taking and a tendency to overestimate your abilities.

Elderly ignii replace lost scales slower: you see a lot more bald patches, particularly on the hands. Day-to-day life--touching, climbing, and working--wears away these spots first. Their sheds also prove more troublesome as they age. Baths are needed to make sure their sheds come off properly. Their wings also get more frail: they can't glide as long, and it takes much longer to recover from crashes.

Incubation

The third trimester of an ignii’s gestation occurs outside the body, in an egg. During this final phase of development, the egg must be kept at extremely high temperatures, and to these ends, the parents build what’s colloquially known as a kinterflame. The kinterflame is a wood fire that must be consistently maintained for three months for healthy development of the child. While some variation in the fire is a natural part of the process, if the egg gets too cool for too long, the child may hatch with soft scales, weak magic, small wings, brittle claws, or other birth defects. A lack of heat can cause even death.

Tending to a kinterflame for long enough will induce broodiness in any ignii, related or not. Broody ignii become territorial, aggressive, and fixated on their egg, sometimes to the neglect of all else. In Coronus, it’s common for friends and family to bring food and necessities to expectant parents to help ease the load. Single parents in particular struggle to get enough sleep.

For some ignii, broodiness comes with the instinctual desire to dig. Hatching burrows are still common in the more rural parts of Coronus, whereas more urban areas use their home’s hearth. The smoke from a kinterflame is a beacon, and many Coric legends start with a hero or villain following that call.

When the egg finally hatches, the embryonic fluid protects the infants’ skin from the fire until they can be removed and washed clean. An ignii's egg tooth is found right on the tip of the baby's nose.

Scales

Ignii scales are extremely tough. They form a natural armor that allows ignii to tear through stone and dig into hardpacked dirt without sustaining so much as a scratch. Scales come in a huge variety of shapes, colors, and patterns.

That said, they shed annually.

Tails

Ignii tails come in a number of thicknesses and shapes. Some are fat like a gecko or crocodile, and others are thin and whiplike, like a serpent. Some even have a large base that narrows to a whip. Anything seen in nature is possible, and beyond it: like dragons, ignii are often seen with tail spades that come in many shapes, sizes, and sharpness.

One thing that they do have in common is that they are always scaled; it's excessively rare to see any with even tufts of fur. The other trait they share is their ability to fall off. It's a rite of passage: most ignii lose their tails while playing and roughhousing as children. All it takes is too hard of a tug, or a small yank when startled or scared, and that's the end of it. the tail may separate flush against the body, at the base of the spine, or somewhere in the middle, leaving a nub. It may bleed a little, but never a lot. Thin, specialized membranes grew in long ago to protect the inevitable break point. The break point may look pink and raw for a little while, but scales will eventually grow back over it.

Once a tail has dropped, it does not grow back, and it does not drop again. If an ignii's been left with a nub, it's there forever.

Wings

Ignii wings are multipurpose limbs that are designed to support both climbing and gliding. They are fully muscled, like an arm. When climbing, the 'fingers' of the wing are able to dig their claws into the stone and add further points of support when climbing an otherwise sheer surface. Should they fall, their wings can also catch them. Ignii are too heavy to be able to take off from the ground or ride the winds indefinitely, but they are efficient gliders capable of maneuvering in midair.