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.

Study after study has proven false the belief that a Grave dragon's markings come from the souls of the dead. Members of the breed that are raised by humans, and carefully monitored to assure they do no harm, still develop the traditional wing patterns of their kind, showing the rumors are nothing more than myth.

And yet, this dragon exists.

Emerging only on the darkest of nights, he sets entire cities ablaze, creating far more ash than he could ever consume before the rain does. He moves from house to house with a dark, patient grace, pulling out and incinerating those who have managed to hide away from the blaze, calmly murdering humans and smaller dragons alike. Those precious few who survive his attacks always report a strange phenomena; just before the dragon departs, he'll pull one of the survivors aside, and force them to count the number of faces on his wings. With every city he burns, the number seems to be rising... people try not to dwell on what that means.