The Pyro Raptoria

General Information

Pyro Raptoria, although quite small and unassuming, are incredibly intelligent and valuable companions to any mage. Their small size makes them perfect to carry in a bag, and should it be stolen, they are able to defend it and return it to you. The most common use for these smart creatures is to have them use spells when caught off guard. A well trained Pyro Raptoria will have a set of at least twenty spells at its disposal, while some of the ones used by aged travelers will know hundreds. A mage could just as simply use an Arcane dragon instead of them, though, so in recent times only people interested in stealth have relied on their skills.

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As arcane dragons become increasingly common at the castle, fewer people are bothering to train pyro raptoria, but they still have their advantages. For one, they're small enough to go anywhere their mage can, while arcane dragons are large enough to sometimes be awkward. Their smallness also gives them a tactical advantage if something attacks their mage, as feet, ankles, and other vulnerable body parts are in easy reach. For another, pyro raptoria work well together, so a team with carefully-chosen skills can have the magical knowledge of an arcane dragon but far greater versatility. A pack of pyro raptoria can make even a gembeast think twice. Finally, their nimble hands allow for a precision that telekinesis can't always match. They can, for example, unlock doors with mundane keys as well as by magic.

Egg Information

This small egg is somewhat warm.

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Pyro raptoria eggs can be distinguished from sprite midge eggs by their warmth. Some mages use pyro raptoria eggs as handwarmers or as a source of warmth for other eggs, but the tendency of pyro raptoria eggs to hatch unexpectedly makes this risky. Newly-hatched pyro raptoria expect to be fed immediately and will scream if no food is forthcoming. They will bond with whatever feeds them first, but are smart enough to change their alliance to whatever feeds them consistently.

Baby Information

This hatchling is quite small- and quite strange. Although it looks like a dragon, it also has distinctive features that set it apart from such. It also is very interested in learning with you, and will often stow itself away in one of your bags that you carry to class. You do not mind this behavior, although it seems to be quite bad at what it learns.

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Bored pyro raptoria hatchlings love to chew, so it's wise to tuck a few chew toys in one's bag if there is any chance of a stowaway. The distraction will also keep them from practicing spells in the middle of a crowded classroom. Hatchlings might be eager to pick up new magic spells, but their enthusiasm greatly outweighs their skill. Particularly troublesome hatchlings can be given a puzzle toy to keep them busy, but a mage shouldn't be surprised to find the puzzle reformed around some of the mage's own belongings.

Teen Information

This hatchling is quite small- and quite strange. Although it looks like a dragon, it also has distinctive features that set it apart from such. It also is very interested in learning with you, and will often stow itself away in one of your bags that you carry to class. You do not mind this behavior, although it seems to be quite bad at what it learns. It has grown some now, and it is obviously some strange morph of dragon, or something else entirely. Although it has wing-like appendages, it seems to be rendered unable to fly. It has gotten somewhat better at its spells, also, and is more than willing now to listen to your instruction and learn, instead of hiding in your bags.

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Some mages will try to claim that their pyro raptoria hatchling stowed away in their bag completely without their knowledge, when in fact they were hoping to use the hatchling to cheat on a practical exam. As most hatchlings aren't yet up to voice commands and hand signals tend to be rather obvious, the cheating attempt rarely works. At this age, pyro raptoria hatchlings are eager to pick up new knowledge and are rewarding to teach. In addition to spells, they can be taught to find keys, retrieve small objects, open doors, and numerous other small tasks. The tricky part is getting them to perform the task when requested and not just when they feel like it. Hand signals should be used until the hatchling is fully grown, as young pyro raptoria will have difficulty distinguishing between words that sound similar.

Adult Information

Your hatchling has grown now, and it skills in magic are quite adept, although its spells seem to be almost scaled to the size of itself. It is able to master small spells quite easily on its own now, and does not seem to need to rely on you to teach it anymore, although with more difficult tasks it still relies on you for assistance. It is also willing to learn hand commands and retrieve items from your bag, should you need the assistance. Sadly, though, you are not able to directly communicate with it, nor is it able to with you, so you wonder what it thinks of all of this.

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Though not as bad as ravnes, pyro raptoria still need tasks to do to avoid becoming bored. Otherwise, they will find their own amusement. As they can open drawers and magically pick locks, little is safe from them. Pyro raptoria also have no trouble expressing their displeasure, usually to the detriment of one's belongings. Some pyro raptoria can be taught to respond to voice commands, but it's best to use either nonsense words or words that don't come up in everyday conversation. The hungry mage who used breakfast foods for commands is a favorite cautionary tale. The other problem with voice commands is that a bored or disgruntled pyro raptoria will pick its own words to link spells to (leading their mage to wonder just who is doing the training) or decide to respond to anything that sounds remotely similar to one of their voice commands.