Quote:Actually, the fact that they have them at all is probably a divergence in itself. Aside from the fact that they have to be capable of taking all that weight (as mentioned, up to about three and a half tons) at full gallop and/or a rough landing, dragon feet are also weapons and manipulative tools. Overall, they're probably actually better designed than human hands, with three forward-facing 'fingers' and two rotatable 'thumbs'. They don't quite have hooves, but the 'palm' of the 'hand' has some particularly heavy, rough, well-attached scales that serve essentially the same purpose - the only time the fingers will come down (with the thumbs splayed out to the side rather than aimed back like a bird's would be) and add extra traction is in a full-out sprint. The fingers themselves are considerably heavier and clumsier than a human hand of the same size would be, and besides that and having armored scales, they're also supporting some rather impressive talons - imagine an ordinary cat's claw, only as long as your hand and forearm put together.
Walking is also rough on their humanlike, (relatively) delicate foreleg and midleg hands.
The different clans of dragons also tend to differ, here - Stone dragons, for instance, have relatively dexterous feet on all four limbs, with small but -extremely- sharp claws and digits nearly as slender as a human's. They tend to attack in a slash-and-feint pattern, and their claws are pure weapons, sharp along their entire interior curve. Rather like wolves, say, at least behaviorally. At a full run they can take strides nearly as long, proportionally, as a cheetah's.
Fanged dragons are well-named - their teeth are heavy and fixed, like a mammal's, and they've probably got the most powerful set of jaws ever seen on the face of the earth. Certainly the best out of any living creature. Their toes are thick and powerful, and their claws heavy but relatively blunt. Their attack strategy often runs along the lines of *pounce* *grab* *CHOMP* *shakeshake*. They can't run as fast as a Stone dragon, but they've got a lot more endurance, and, despite being powerful flyers, are probably the weakest out of the three 'natural' types in that area. Just too much mass.
Plumed dragons' limbs are more specialized - their forelegs are fairly slender and their feet oriented for fine manipulation, while the hindparts are generally longer and stronger. They're not quite bipedal, but they can pretend to be with considerably more ease than, say, a bear. Their primary offensive tools are the rear feet - these are even more powerful than a Stone's, and feature massive stabbing talons much like an eagle's. They're the only clan that actually hunts primarily from the air - Stones will find a good lookout spot and wait for whatever happens by, then try and get a single attack in from the air before settling to the ground to finish the business, and Fanged dragons are so massive that that flying business often isn't worth the bother.
Soaring is different, of course, but -none- of the dragons have the kind of vision that hunting that way needs.
Quote:Studio Stagger works, or we could have it, "Bewilderbeast Studios in association with Martian Mariner Productions presents..."
Studio Stagger? Since it grew out of the Drunkard's Walk board, here (Alternately, we could go with my ususal, Bewilderbeast Studios)
Or, would that be a movie style attribution?
Quote:What, in the pic? No, he's in his school uniform. And I think we're going to have to agree to disagree about the relative merits of the two uniform designs - I've always though that gray was just kind of blah, no matter how you dress it up.
On Kennan's jacket - unless you've already got the Union coat to an advanced stage
Besides, what really sells the Union version for me is the way the bright buttons contrast against the darker background - just seems to add a certain something. The optional gold piping might or might not work - we'd need to talk about it - since it seems kind of overdone on the General's coat they've got shown. It might look better in the Captain's or Lieutenant's version, I'm not sure.
Ja, -n
(Oh, and, I finished the pic. Now for the scanner...)
ETA: And -away-! Drogn, check your email. ^_^
===========
===============================================
"V, did you do something foolish?"
"Yes, and it was glorious."