The Hobbit: A Guide to Middle-Earth

Dragons

Dragons were probably the most famous, and the most dangerous, beasts of Middle-Earth. In peaceful places, such as Hobbiton, they existed only in dreams and were no more frightening than pixie dust.

In reality, however, dragons were a force to be reckoned with. Incredibly cunning and dreadfully malicious, they were as feared by others as they were admired in Middle-Earth.

History:

Dragons lived throughout the First, Second, and Third Ages of Middle-Earth. They were originally bred by Morgoth (the first Dark Lord and master of Sauron) during the First Age. The first dragon ever seen in Middle-Earth was Glaurung, the father of dragons, and he was raised by Morgoth to be a deadly weapon in the Siege of Angbad. Glaurung then went on to lead a vast army of Orcs, proving himself to be a ruthless commander.

Another notable dragon would be Ancalagon the Black, who was said to be the mightiest of them all. He led an army of winged dragons against the Valar, the first great power of good in Middle-Earth.

Perhaps the last great dragon to live was Smaug the Magnificent. After laying waste to the city of Dale, he rid himself of the dwarves and stole their treasure. For a time, he occupied The Lonely Mountain, until his death sometime in the Third Age.

Types of Dragon:

The system for classing dragons in Middle-Earth was based on two key factors: means of movement and fire breathing ability, or lack thereof.

Depending on whether or not a dragon could breathe fire, it was termed as a:

Fire Drake- fire breathing dragons with or without wings.

Cold Drake- Dragons who could not breathe fire, some could fly and others could not.

Smoke-breathing Dragon- Cold drakes that could not breathe fire, but had the ability to breathe a vapour-like mist.

Means of movement:

Winged Dragons - Dragons that had four legs but also wings which enabled them to fly.

Wingless Dragons - Dragons with no wings that walked on four legs.

Serpent-like Dragons- Dragons with no legs and no wings, such as the Wyrms and the Sea-serpents.

Characteristics:

In addition to being long-lived, powerful, and cunning, dragons also possessed a great intelligence, immense physical strength, and nearly impenetrable scales on everything but their under bellies. They also had an overwhelming greed for treasure, especially gold.

Dragons were well known for sleeping on their piles of stolen treasure. By their very nature, it was desirable for them to not only steal beautiful things, but to relish the act of eradicating those they took such property from.

Dragons were also prone to such fits of rage that towns, countrysides, and individuals that were unfortunately close were subject to violent bouts of fire, causing catastrophic destruction. The reasons for their strong fondness for gold are unknown, but more often than not, dragons put more of a priority on gold than food, and they could survive not eating for tens or hundreds of years. This suggests that jewels were indeed the primal sources of life for the dragons.

They also possessed a hypnotic power called "dragon-spell", where weaker-willed beings could be put into a trance when the beast spoke. Even those of strong will, like the dwarves, could be subjected to this ability, especially if they were not prepared. Dragons could make even greater use of this ability through psychological manipulation, increasing the power of the spell by taunting a subject with some sort of inner conflict. This power also extended to a dragon's treasure hoard, causing it to excite feelings of greed and animosity among others who would possess it.

All accounts of interaction between dragons and other beings makes mention of them speaking, usually using the common tongue. Those unfortunate events usually concluded in the dragon manipulating the individual to believe things either false, or in the worst possible way.

These creatures evidently delighted in implanting discord and rivalry among others, which is definitely reflective of their nature.

Dragons had a love of riddles as well, spending long hours trying to decipher them. Therefore, speaking in riddles and rhymes was the best way to converse with a dragon; it was quite unwise to either tell the full truth or to directly refuse them.

Dragons had strong scales, which could resist most weapons, though young dragons had to grow into their natural armour. Mithril is said to have been as strong as dragon scales, though considerably lighter in weight. The undersides of a dragon were described as soft, slimy, and unarmored; however Smaug had lain so long on the heap of treasure in the Lonely Mountain that gems and coins had become encrusted in the slime, so that he was "armored above and below with iron scales and hard gems".

Dragons had an acute sense of smell as well. During his encounter with Smaug the Magnificent, Bilbo Baggins was informed that (even though the dragon could not determine what manner of creature he was) he knew that he was in the company of Dwarves due to the scent of a "dwarf-ridden pony". Furthermore, despite his invisibility- thanks to the One Ring- Smaug was aware of the hobbit's presence by both his breath, and the movement of the air he caused in the great hall.

The Dwarves appear to have had some skill at battling dragons, as seen when they held off Glaurung for the first time. The age-old fight between dwarves and dragons was primarily a result of the dwarves placing great value on their hard-earned treasure, and the dragon's habit of stealing what they did not work for. Both races had a lust for beautiful metals and gems, and so, naturally, came into conflict, with the dragons generally prevailling.

Dragon fire was hot enough to melt the Rings of Power. Indeed, four of the seven rings gifted to the Dwarves were consumed by dragon fire. However, it was said by Gandalf that no dragon's fire would be hot enough to melt the One Ring: only the fires of Mount Doom could do that.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As eras passed on, the dragons began to weaken. This was probably due to the lack of life force that had been given by the Valar during the First Age.