Shattered Construct

Shattered Construct is a Plague subspecies created by Minstri.

Dragons that are constructed from bone and blood. They contain the soul of a deceased dragon in the skull that acts as their head- nestled atop of a neck of blood. These dragons exist in an unusual state - as though they can be destroyed, the dragon can be brought back to existence so long as the skull remains intact by simply remaking a body and placing the skull upon it. The result is a dragon that needs no sleep, no food, and has few weaknesses.

Extra Breeding Specifications

 * Ripple and Tiger give a good layering appearance, while speckle is more of a conglomerate look.
 * Facet & Shimmer should only be in the Crimson-Maroon Range, since it makes it much lighter in places. Shimmer does look very blood-like, but it tends to be noticeably different from the okapi, which can diminish the effect.
 * Ripple can also severely lighten the color of the Secondary. Freckle is usually good, but it can be hard to match with the okapi depending on the shade.
 * Secondary & Tertiary color are ideally the same. They should at least look similar or complement each other. (So no rust/blood for instance.)
 * The eye color of the dragon depends on what elemental flight it was born to in life. Most commonly Shattered Constructs have Red eye, since they were developed in Plaguelands. But many non-plague dragons have taken part in the process as well.

Lore
The Shattered are constructed from crushed bone remains. The bone is soaked in the blood of a dragon who died from disease, then carefully sculpted into dragon form. They are given life and animation by tethering the soul of a dragon to the construct -- this final step is taken when the skull of a dragon is placed atop the sculpture, completing it. The Skull and Blood used do not have to come from the same dragon, but in the earliest experiments, they often did.

The bones used can come from a wide variety of sources, dragons, animals, and beast, but constructs made of dragonbone are the most favored. Those using other bones are looked down upon as lesser creations. Sometimes, an Artisan looking to learn the complex art of making these creatures in secret will start by making Fae or Mirrors out of the bones of prey animals and vermin, much to the chagrin of the dragons they resurrect into these sub-par bodies.

The Shattered do not have to sleep, but they still occasionally consume foodstuffs - animals specifically. They eat the bones and lap up the blood to heal themselves if damaged. This works for minor injuries, but if they are very badly damaged they need to be repaired by a skilled Artisan. A Shattered's greatest weakness is water, especially running water, as it can soak their bones and wash away the blood that sustains them. This forces them to seek extensive shelter in the rain. A dragon or beast looking to defend themselves or their home from a Shattered can make use of this weakness as Shattereds are usually hesitant to cross over rivers, and will absolutely not do so on foot.

The Infected Blood is their greatest strength and blessing. It is what sustains them. Their claws carry in them every disease that the dragon who gave it carried. Thus it is common for dragons to be captured and infected with a wide variety of diseases to be used in the creation of these constructs. The wounds caused by their claws and tail are deadly and infectious. Destroying a construct is a tricky proposition, for when destroyed, the blood bound inside the bone body can runoff and spread more disease. If water is used against them, it can easily be contaminated - depending on what pathogens were in the blood.

Conception
Any dragon can be made into a construct, but the first constructs created in this manner were Guardians - created to be as nearly immortal, sleepless protectors for those that created them. Wildclaw foot soldiers were the next ideal candidates for the Constructs, as their bodies are tireless and lack the weaknesses that dragons of flesh do.

The first Artisans were powerful Plague Priests and Shamans, skilled in magic with creative minds. The very first experiments in the project took place in in the tight-nit Circles of Gore clan communities. Eventually their secret methods got out, and development did not suffer for it. The distribution of research allowed the creations to be quickly perfected - and those that were first to do so guarded their blueprints jealously… with about as much success as the original Gore Artisans did.

Regions
These dragons are most common in their homeland, but can exist fairly comfortably anywhere except the Tidelord's domain, as water can wash away their blood and render their bones useless.

Specific Variants
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Extra Breeding Specifications

 * Primary color depends on types of sediment at the contaminated site.
 * Secondary color depends on amount of Blood present, in this order: Carmine, Coral, Ivory, Maize, Stonewash, Sky, Splash
 * Ideally XYY, should be at least near XYY
 * These creatures most often have Blue eyes, though sometimes they retain enough of their Plague birthright to form as Plague dragons. Very rarely specimens that have formed in the Viridian Labyrinth will have nature eyes. Horrors have not been recorded to take on any other element thus far.

Lore
Near Mindless self-animated constructs made from water polluted by dead Shattered. The blood-polluted waters mix with shale and sediment, very rarely raising a feral construct. These destructive beings are beholden to no Artisan, and behave in a vicious, violent manner. If they have sentience, it is not known… though some older specimens can be dangerously clever.

Regions
These dragons can be found anywhere there is water. They are most common in the shallows of the Tidelord's domain, where river runoff occasionally carries enough polluted water out of the Scarred Wastelands for these rare creatures to form. === Crumbling Construct ===

Lore
A construct that is in severe disrepair or of exceptionally poor quality. These constructs are far less dexterous and far more fragile than their perfect counterparts. Oftentimes their skull is also damaged, and the soul binding is weaker. These constructs are often the result of a fallen or neglectful Artisan, having to fend for themselves and receiving no repair when badly damaged. The blood and bone of their bodies is mixed together in a cracking, animated sludge.

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. === Shattered Spiral ===

Lore
Sometimes in the creation of a Spiral Shattered construct, the blood will pool in their core, and their limbs will be solid bone. This results in an exceptionally graceful, flexible Spiral - a master of the air, but makes their hands and feet stiff to the point of uselessness.