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.

The other dragons say Lord Argon is a lazy dragon. His cave mates call him "Lord" facetiously, because of the life of leisure he seems to lead. He likes to sleep in the sun on the warm rocks or float lazily through the trees, picking out only the very best pieces of fruit. He can afford to be so picky because the weather has been favorable and food is plentiful near his cave. He is a kind dragon, though, and will always bring food down for the little Balloon hatchlings who can't float high enough yet to reach the very best. He also helped collect food for his owner's other dragons during a time of great drought in the desert, but he wouldn't go so far as to bring the food all the way to the desert himself. He sent a Ridgewing instead.