Gold dragons are the ones most often killed by humans, who consider their scales to be extremely valuable. These golden scales grant them a high level of protection, similar to armor, and they use this to their advantage in battle.

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.

Shift spends most of his time outside the clan cave, staring up and waiting for something unknown. As a hatchling, he eagerly studied scraps of astronomy from elder clan dragons, but he has long surpassed their abilities to the point that no one knows what he now reads in the sky. Hotter heads mutter that he's a faker astrologist. The hottest, ever-imaginative Sixth Sense, speculates (with surprising accuracy) that time just shifts differently for this dragon, and he doesn't realize how long he stares through stars.