Grave Dragons are not named for their connections to death or burial, but for the grave expression on their faces. This strange expression is used as a defense mechanism that causes fits of panic and terror in potential predators. Since they only eat ash and charcoal, they do not hunt. Grave Dragons are powerful fire-breathers and have been known to burn down forests and villages alike to make meals. It is believed that the markings on each Grave Dragon’s wings are the faces of those who have lost their lives in fires started by that dragon.

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.

All his life Gawain has seen himself as tainted, and devotes his existence into finding how to remove the blight from him. As a hatchling, he made sure he always had the coldest baths, and the least to eat, as if doing penance for some deed that he just cannot remember. As he grew older Gawain pushed himself harder, in the belief that his suffering somehow made up for whatever was his sin, and spent his free time helping others. Despite all his kind gestures, Gawain still does not feel spiritually clean, and has tried many a remedy to solve this; from bathing in the lake under a full moon to drinking herbal concoctions in an attempt to purify his soul. Anything good that falls upon him he declines, refuses to accept rewards or any type of praise that he doesn't believe he deserved, and he is constantly berating himself for any small mistake that he makes. Yet despite all his intentions, Gawain is unable to confess this to another, fearing that they will cast him out into the wild.