Blacktip Dragons are a small, shore-dwelling breed that tend to nest on sheer ocean side cliffs. They live in groups under a dominant female, who prevents her subordinates from breeding. During the mating season, a group of Blacktips can be very noisy and smelly indeed; males produce a distinctive musky odor and loud, low-pitched honking noises in an attempt to woo the alpha female.

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.

Calcimine isn't interested with having a bunch of blacktips under her, but for a while, she wanted to have some fun. She was unimpressed by the "mild" smell her boys put out and by their "total pansy-ness", and as a result, she hasn't had offspring with any of them. She also had many silly rules concerning what they're allowed to do around her, of which there were more than a hundred before everyone lost count. This behavior distressed the males quite a lot before they realized they should revolt. Once they all "quit" and developed interesting lives of their own and once Calcimine had her fun, she decided to become a peppercorn because that's more profitable than being followed by subordinates who do nothing much. Decades later, she still fondly reminisces about the months spent subjugating a bunch of dimwitted men.