Dragons are highly-intelligent reptilian creatures that—from a human perspective, at least—appear to live forever. Many different varieties of dragon exist, each with their own unique qualities, habitats, and behavior. Adolescence in dragons is usually marked by the growth of a hatchling’s wings, although not all breeds of dragons grow wings and some breeds have other traits that indicate the beginning of maturation. In Galsreim, dragons and humans coexist peacefully.

Jeltz is officious and callous and about as attractive as roadkill. He'll work out the time measurements for a particular population just so he can tell them precisely (in terms they understand) how long they all have before he razes their homes, and he'll point out how troublesome it was to do the math. Jeltz likes to be angry, and sometimes he hopes something will go wrong so he can be angry. His poetry is so awful that having to listen to it read aloud is considered a form of torture.