Swallowtail Dragons are graceful and quick flyers, much like their namesake bird. They are capable of precise aerial acrobatics, and can reach very high altitudes. Because of this, humans observing these dragons are often astonished at how large they are when confronted up close. A Swallowtail’s diet consists of insects and small mammals plentiful in temperate forests. These dragons are also made remarkable by their paper-thin wing membranes, which allow light to pass through, creating an astonishing effect on starry nights.

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.

Ever young at heart, Nyphire is a friend to hatchlings and adolescent dragons everywhere in the clan. He especially enjoys teaching them to fly, as the lessons give him a chance to show off his gliding skills.

As a hatchling himself, Nyphire was a close friend of Junor and Sentari. Even though the three young dragons were radically different, they were practically inseparable. Nyphire was heartbroken when he grew up into full-fledged Swallowtail, only to find that his friends had been "frozen". He demanded to have the age-freezing spell cast on himself, too. It was too late to reverse time and make him any younger, but his body no longer ages, and his friends say he's still the same old Nyphire- just bigger.