Frost drake
Frost drakes are the largest known breed of drakes. They are the apex predators of the frozen mountain peaks and icy landscapes of the northernmost arctic regions of Immoren.
Physical Characteristics
More than twice the size of the fog drake, frost drakes are consummate predators. Their pure white scales allow them to blend in with the endless snow backdrop despite their size. Frost drakes are both leaner and more aggressively predatory than most other breeds of drake. As with all drakes, their wings do not allow them to fly but do facilitate swimming.[1]
Behaviour
Frost drakes commonly dwell near frozen lakes or on icy coastlines and spend as much time in the water as out of it, preying upon large fish and marine mammals. Frost drakes are capable of staying underwater for an incredibly long time, and injured frost drakes will often retreat to the nearest body of water, where most creatures cannot follow.[1]
Frost drakes use their environment to their advantage whenever possible. They can move across snow and ice with no difficulty, and often try to drive swift prey into thick drifts to slow it down. A common frost drake tactic involves lurking below the frozen surface of a lake, tracking the movement of prospective prey above, and then erupting from beneath to unleash a frigid spray of frost breath, which can freeze an animal solid in seconds.[1]
Another common frost drake tactic is to chase its quarry into an icy crevasse or cave, corner it, and wear it down with quick strikes and blasts of frozen breath. When either hypothermia or blood loss renders the prey weak and sluggish, the frost drake moves in for the kill. Anything smaller than a steamjack is snapped up in its saw-toothed jaws and shaken to death; larger prey is pinned down and shredded by the drake’s hooked talons before it begins to feast. If a frost drake feels threatened, it will drag the carcass beneath the nearest body of water so that it can eat in relative safety.[1]
Even blizzards cannot shield prey from a hungry frost drake: the giant beast can see body heat, whether from deep beneath the water of the Broken Mirror Lake or in the blinding white of a midwinter blizzard. Other sources of heat, campfires in particular, can often draw the interest of a hunting frost drake. Men who build fires to ward off the killing cold unwittingly light a beacon that lures the monsters into their midst.[1]
The oldest frost drakes have demonstrated a greater degree of cunning and intelligent behaviour. An ancient frost drake called Glamving has devoured scores of people among the Vindol barbarians and has evaded all attempts to hunt it down.[1]
