Ember Dragons have a great affinity for hot environments. While they themselves are not hot to the touch, their tendency to lurk amongst smoldering ashes has caused many to believe they are fire-starters. Their dully glowing markings serve many purposes: acting as a means of identification between individuals, as an important part of mating displays, and as a way of showing aggression. The long, low build of the breed makes them ungainly in flight, and the thick fleshy membranes of their wings hinder them further. As such, it is rare to see an Ember Dragon take to the air. Ember Dragons are also not particularly sociable; females tend to be defensive, whereas males are more aggressive. Once they have settled with a particular group of dragons, Ember Dragons are incredibly loyal and will defend their pack by any means possible.

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.

Despite his fierce appearance, Jay is actually very sweet and would never hurt anyone except in self-defense. He's not very strong, anyway—he's quite thin and not all that muscular. He likes to be alone a lot of the time, but it's mostly an excuse for not having any friends. He's selfless and tries to be nice to everyone, but they all see him as self-centered and unintelligent. Jay knows this isn't fair, but he hasn't the courage to stand up to the other dragons. What he does have is Obsidian Blazingstar—another Ember about his age, whom he'd been trying for years to charm and finally succeeded. With Obsidian, Jay's happy and unable to care what the others think.