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The most badass dragons of all time
Smaug
Of all the dragons across all media, Smaug may be the one who sticks with fans the most. It's not his sparkling personality--greed blackened his heart long before Bilbo ever heard of him. His hardiness isn't particularly impressive (there's no way a single arrow could fell a dragon from, say, Inquisition).
It's his utter epicness--his mountain lair overflowing with gold; the vicious, unforgiving intelligence, which leads to one of the most memorable conversations in The Hobbit; and the one tiny flaw that, in the end, allows a brave hero to slay the beast. (Photo by: New Line)
(Gallery sponsored by Knights & Dragons)
Drogon
Actually, pick your favorite from the three Game of Thrones dragons. Daenarys Targaryen loves them all equally, as mothers tend to do. Just watch out for the jaws. And, you know. The fire. (Photo by: HBO)
Spyro
Does cuteness count as a weapon? No? Then how about those horns? Or the ability to breathe fire? Or utter fearlessness? The star of the Spyro series has them all. Plus, let's just admit it: Deadly, deadly cuteness. (Photo by: Sony)
Norberta
This rare Norwegian Ridgeback debuted via egg early in the Harry Potter series. Hagrid thought Norbert was a he (she wasn't). And Ron Weasley thought he could dodge Norbert's poisonous fangs (he couldn't). Just because a dragon is cute and little doesn't mean you know her, man. (Photo by: Warner Bros.)
Paarthurnax
Sure, he's a nice dragon now, but, as any Skyrim player knows, he wasn't always so amenable. In fact, this beast committed unspeakable atrocities upon mankind for years before he decided to become the bro of dragons. No wonder a whole faction wants him dead. (Photo by: Bethesda)
Crimson Dragon
Knights & Dragons has so many dragons that picking one for this list was hard ... especially because the game once featured a fabulous Jackalope dragon that dropped antlers. (Not a misprint). We finally settled on the Crimson Dragon, partially because he's an early storyline boss with a high nostalgia factor, but also because he just looks so adorably pissed off all the time. (Photo by: Gree)
Toothless
Well, OK: He looks more like a willful house cat than a dangerous dragon. But the species that claims Toothless--the Night Fury--is said to be one of the most formidable in the How to Train Your Dragon universe. And without a doubt, the fearlessness of Toothless can't be matched. (Photo by: DreamWorks)
Alduin
Sure, this Skyrim dragon has a weakness: a powerful shout that can knock him out of the sky. But every labor leading up to that final fight proves that this dragon is a serious pain in the ass--especially because he has the power to resurrect other dragons whenever he feels like it. Which is often. (Photo by: Gamespot)
Your random Inquisition dragon
The latest installment of the Dragon Age series gives you 10 dragons to kill. That's the good news. The bad news is that these dragons can, much more easily, kill you instead. Unlike most of the monsters populating Thedas, these dragons are meant to be longer, boss-style kills. And they are. (Photo by: Bioware)
Royal wyvern
Witcher 3 doesn't really have big dragons per se. But it does have these guys. And they're nasty. (Photo by: Projekt Red)
Bahamut
Final Fantasy fans know that this dragon does not mess around; his signature attack, Megaflare, is a beam of energy that produces one of the most powerful attacks in the game. (Photo by: Square Enix)
Onyxia
Know what's even worse than a fire-breathing dragon? A fire-breathing dragon who dies and then gets resurrected as an undead electrical dragon. This Warcraft boss is not without her charm, however; she speaks seven languages and can turn into a pretty nice-looking human when she wants to. (Photo by: Blizzard)
Deathwing
Meet Onyxia's dad. He can turn into a person, too, but somehow, he just never had his daughter's pizazz. But what he lacks in personality he makes up for in sheer nastiness; he once unleashed so much destruction across Azeroth that the creators of Warcraft had to literally redraw the map. (Photo by: Blizzard)
Ridley
A space dragon? How cool is that? Robotic enhancements and other death-defying stunts kept Ridley as a main antagonist in the Metroid series. (Photo by: Nintendo)
Ryu
Some dragons can turn into people. But in the Breath of Fire series, a person, Ryu, can turn into a dragon. And that's just fine, too. (Photo by: Capcom)
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Of all the dragons across all media, Smaug may be the one who sticks with fans the most. It's not his sparkling personality--greed blackened his heart long before Bilbo ever heard of him. His hardiness isn't particularly impressive (there's no way a single arrow could fell a dragon from, say, Inquisition).
It's his utter epicness--his mountain lair overflowing with gold; the vicious, unforgiving intelligence, which leads to one of the most memorable conversations in The Hobbit; and the one tiny flaw that, in the end, allows a brave hero to slay the beast. (Photo by: New Line)
(Gallery sponsored by Knights & Dragons)
Drogon
Actually, pick your favorite from the three Game of Thrones dragons. Daenarys Targaryen loves them all equally, as mothers tend to do. Just watch out for the jaws. And, you know. The fire. (Photo by: HBO)
Spyro
Does cuteness count as a weapon? No? Then how about those horns? Or the ability to breathe fire? Or utter fearlessness? The star of the Spyro series has them all. Plus, let's just admit it: Deadly, deadly cuteness. (Photo by: Sony)
Norberta
This rare Norwegian Ridgeback debuted via egg early in the Harry Potter series. Hagrid thought Norbert was a he (she wasn't). And Ron Weasley thought he could dodge Norbert's poisonous fangs (he couldn't). Just because a dragon is cute and little doesn't mean you know her, man. (Photo by: Warner Bros.)
Paarthurnax
Sure, he's a nice dragon now, but, as any Skyrim player knows, he wasn't always so amenable. In fact, this beast committed unspeakable atrocities upon mankind for years before he decided to become the bro of dragons. No wonder a whole faction wants him dead. (Photo by: Bethesda)
Crimson Dragon
Knights & Dragons has so many dragons that picking one for this list was hard ... especially because the game once featured a fabulous Jackalope dragon that dropped antlers. (Not a misprint). We finally settled on the Crimson Dragon, partially because he's an early storyline boss with a high nostalgia factor, but also because he just looks so adorably pissed off all the time. (Photo by: Gree)
Toothless
Well, OK: He looks more like a willful house cat than a dangerous dragon. But the species that claims Toothless--the Night Fury--is said to be one of the most formidable in the How to Train Your Dragon universe. And without a doubt, the fearlessness of Toothless can't be matched. (Photo by: DreamWorks)
Alduin
Sure, this Skyrim dragon has a weakness: a powerful shout that can knock him out of the sky. But every labor leading up to that final fight proves that this dragon is a serious pain in the ass--especially because he has the power to resurrect other dragons whenever he feels like it. Which is often. (Photo by: Gamespot)
Your random Inquisition dragon
The latest installment of the Dragon Age series gives you 10 dragons to kill. That's the good news. The bad news is that these dragons can, much more easily, kill you instead. Unlike most of the monsters populating Thedas, these dragons are meant to be longer, boss-style kills. And they are. (Photo by: Bioware)
Royal wyvern
Witcher 3 doesn't really have big dragons per se. But it does have these guys. And they're nasty. (Photo by: Projekt Red)
Bahamut
Final Fantasy fans know that this dragon does not mess around; his signature attack, Megaflare, is a beam of energy that produces one of the most powerful attacks in the game. (Photo by: Square Enix)
Onyxia
Know what's even worse than a fire-breathing dragon? A fire-breathing dragon who dies and then gets resurrected as an undead electrical dragon. This Warcraft boss is not without her charm, however; she speaks seven languages and can turn into a pretty nice-looking human when she wants to. (Photo by: Blizzard)
Deathwing
Meet Onyxia's dad. He can turn into a person, too, but somehow, he just never had his daughter's pizazz. But what he lacks in personality he makes up for in sheer nastiness; he once unleashed so much destruction across Azeroth that the creators of Warcraft had to literally redraw the map. (Photo by: Blizzard)
Ridley
A space dragon? How cool is that? Robotic enhancements and other death-defying stunts kept Ridley as a main antagonist in the Metroid series. (Photo by: Nintendo)
Ryu
Some dragons can turn into people. But in the Breath of Fire series, a person, Ryu, can turn into a dragon. And that's just fine, too. (Photo by: Capcom)
More...