Dorsal Dragons are so named because they have large fins along their backs that can be raised and lowered at will. They use these fins to regulate body temperature; they raise them to cool off when they become overheated. The bright colors on the fins double as a means of attracting mates.

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.

Dor'Warg the nEEDy eats too much, in some other dragons' opinions. He also sleeps too much. He gets sick too much. He gets lost too much. He...he's just too much to deal with. But Dor'Warg doesn't think of himself this way. He envisions himself as someone, indeed, who takes more than others, but gives more back as well. For as the other dragons grumble and stare at him hotly, they don't notice him doing all the extra things he does—bringing sick dragons water, bringing the white dragons herbs, hunting extra prey when the food storage is low, and other things like that. So although he does, indeed, take a lot, he does give a lot back—he just wishes those grumpy dragons would realize that.