Wyverns are a large winged lizard related to dragons, with the main difference that wyverns are smaller and have two legs and wings compared to the dragon's four legs. Wyverns do not possess greater intelligence like their draconic counterpart but they are known for their poisonous barbed tails. Wyverns can appear as any colour, though browns to muddy reds are the most common.
Wyverns were once commonly seen across the Khenak Range, though by the time of the Lilac Wars there were nearing extinction until they were revived by the Duchy of Verne, whose predecessors had once ridden them during the Age of Ashes.
As a mount[]
During the Kingdom of Verne, before its conquest by the Kingdom of Dameria and the reduction of Verne to a vassal duchy, the wyvern riders were the pride of the Vernmen. The Kingdom itself was founded by the first wyvern rider, Armoc Vernid, though it remains disputed to this day whether the dynastic name of 'Vernid' derives from wyvern or is simply an amazing coincidence.
Wyverns were notoriously difficult to tame, the same traits that made them such desirable mounts - their great size, their extremely powerful poison, their sheer viciousness against perceived enemies - also made them nearly impossible to truly domesticate. Only wyverns raised directly from hatching and enchanted by mages to view their future rider as kin could reliably be trained, and the necessary enchantments were kept as a close secret by the royal mages of Verne. Even with such enchantments, only a brave and driven rider could keep such a beast under control, with wyvern riders who lost their nerve commonly being thrown off and devoured by their own mount who now regarded them as prey, and the enchantments only worked between a single rider and a single wyvern. Such difficulties ensured Verne never had that many wyvern riders, even in its prime.
With their rarity and aggression towards each other preventing large-scale usage, as well as their high stamina and ability to digest nearly anything, wyverns were just as valuable for reconnaissance as for battle, granting the Vernman a level of military intelligence only mages skilled in divination could match. Though condemned by some riders as dishonorable, others also found the wyvern perfectly suited to raiding settlements and supply lines deep within enemy territory, and such tactics brought terror to the people of the river Luna during the wars between Dameria and Verne.
Wyvern Poison[]
The poison of the wyvern, more properly but rarely called wyvern venom, is unique in its sheer destructiveness to organic material, destroying its structure yet leaving the basic organic materials intact. Extremely potent, wyvern poison burns through its victim’s bloodstream, disintegrating veins and arteries on its way to the heart.
This makes it of supreme usefulness in alchemy, not only as the base for more complex poisons but also as the ultimate solvent of anything organic, and so the poison is frequently sought out by alchemists. It is speculated that the usefulness of wyvern poison played a role in the disappearance of wyvern rider during the period of Damerian control of Verne, as any wyverns discovered would have been seen as more useful in alchemy than as a mount and thus slain. Additionally, the Hill gnoll tribes of the nearby Khenak Range are known to coat their weapons in the substance when they can and may have contributed to the disappearance of the wyvern.