Dragonsworn



For centuries, the great dragonflights have noted the potential of younger races. In a few select cases, they choose a creature of another race to be one of a select few with the privilege of directly serving a dragon or an entire group of dragons. Such devotees dedicate their lives to the protection and service of their dragonflights and reap the benefits of the great knowledge and power that their draconic masters share. Rumors say that the first dragonsworn were the forefathers of the dragonspawn race. This is, of course, just a rumor.

Each dragonflight treats its dragonsworn differently, and grants them slightly different boons for their service. The patron dragon for a dragonsworn of the bronze dragonflight might give a faithful disciple a relic from the War of the Ancients, whereas a dragonsworn of Nefarian might be taught the basics of how to manipulate the deadly power of shadow flame. While these rewards might sound tempting, dragons live a long time, and most of the flights barely notice the passing of years. It’s possible for a servant to dedicate his life to a flight without any real notice or recognition — especially for the shorter-lived races, such as humans.

The legends tell that while these dragonsworn were always extremely rare, they may have been more common in the past — but there is a large gap in the records where such disciples are practically unheard of. It is the green dragonflight that revived the tradition of bringing allies of other races into their ranks, and a few of the other flights seem to have followed suit. Regardless of which flight was the first to resume adopting humanoid followers, dragons take more and more dragonsworn into their service; in some cases the reasons are obvious, but it remains a mystery why certain flights (such as the blue) would begin to trust other races now.

Dragonsworn in the world
Traditionally, the most well-known dragonsworn are druids in service of Ysera; that is not to say that all druids who walked the Emerald Dream were chosen to serve the green dragonflight, but many were taken into Ysera’s service in the thousands of years they slept. Most of the typical servants of each flight have an occupation that matches the interests of the flight: Blue dragons favor talented magi, but a trustworthy priest or paladin might also gain their interest. Of course, some people are chosen simply for their dedication — while the bronze dragonflight may not have any particular tie to a warrior, he might impress with his strength and loyalty. All potential dragonsworn show some magical proclivity, though.

Night elves were the most common dragonsworn in the past, due to their immortality. In fact, this immortality actually allowed some elves to outlive their draconic teachers; such night elves were highly respected by the dragonflights they served. Though lifelong loyalty was once the quality dragons valued most, now the black dragonflight looks for adventurers who show potential for great power; perhaps it hopes to bring the next Medivh into its ranks. The other flights fear that a traitor entrusted with their secrets could be an unparalleled danger, but nevertheless a few dragons have begun teaching the younger races. However, few adventurers are willing to make the sacrifices necessary to earn the trust of an entire flight.

More dragonsworn are in the Alliance than the Horde, primarily because night elves are still the most common dragonsworn of the flights (other than the black), but also because most red dragons won’t have anything to do with orcs after the Second War. Most disciples of the dragonflights aren’t affiliated with either faction, but a few belong to other organizations, such as the Argent Dawn or Cenarion Circle. Dragonsworn serve as the eyes and ears of the dragonflights in locations dragons may not wish to travel, and some infiltrate other groups to gather information. Since the average adventurer probably doesn’t even know that these people exist, most dragonsworn find it easy to keep their service a secret, knowing that many would not understand their dedication. While night elves, magi, and others with knowledge of the dragonflights may see an association with dragons as positive, warriors who fought against the red flight in the Second War probably would not. Some dragonsworn might seek to teach others about the ways of the dragons to dispel the hatred of those who lost family and friends to blacks or reds, but most prefer to lie low and keep to themselves.

A devotee of the Aspects might join a group of adventurers to better serve her flight, perhaps to find a magic object or just learn more about the world. In such a situation, knowledge is the greatest weapon; she may learn secrets and magic unknown to the rest of the world.

They speak Draconic.

Speculation
The Bronze watchers may be considered dragonsworn due to their role:
 * - A servant of Anachronos who sends adventurers to aid the Brood of Nozdormu.
 * - Empowered by Nozdormu to be keeper of the Scarab Gong and a watcher.
 * - A watcher in service to Nozdormu and one of the original generation of tauren druids.
 * - Immortal and watched over by bronze drakes, she could be a bronze watcher as well.

There are also a number of mortals in service to various dragonflights who may match the criteria of being dragonsworn:
 * - The former keeper of the Ruby Dragonshrine.
 * - Servant of Korialstrasz found in the Badlands.
 * - Confidant of Haleh formerly found in Andorhal alongside Chronormu.
 * - Associate of the black drake Kalaran.
 * - Associate of the black dragon Sabellian.
 * - Associate of the blue dragon Kalecgos.
 * The mortal members of the Timewalkers may also be considered dragonsworn.
 * The footsoldiers of the Wyrmrest Accord such as Wyrmrest Defenders and Wyrmrest Captains may be transformed dragons or dragonsworn mortals.