Balloon Dragons are so named because they are filled with a gas that makes them almost lighter than air, similar to balloons. However, they are not prone to bursting, as they are covered in tough skin and can deflate themselves if necessary. In addition, they generally are slow moving. They use their gas bladders to float to the tops of trees, where food is more abundant. They can shift their weight from their backs to their fronts, allowing them to reach leaves and fruit.

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.

As a hatchling, Cantelli eagerly asked to have the anti-aging spell cast upon her that would give her eternal youth; the thought of growing older and becoming a slow, ungainly adult like everyone else filled her with dread. Unfortunately for her, Carnie mysteriously disappeared shortly after she and her nestmates hatched. The young balloon waited anxiously for the wizard's return, feeling herself growing closer to adulthood. The day came when she grew up, and Carnie still had not been seen; it wasn't until several weeks later that the human showed up at the cave, tired and hungry and refusing to tell where she had gone. Unable to accept this, Cantelli moved into the frozen hatchlings' section, and did her best to make herself useful. To this day, she stubbornly pretends that she is just a very large hatchling, and that she was in fact frozen as Wizard Carnie promised her so long ago.