Tuesday, October 6, 2015

How to Train Your Dragon Designs



The Inspiration behind Some of Cinema's Best Dragons
Dragons come in many shapes, sizes, and colors and that couldn't be truer in the How to Train Your Dragon franchise. There are so many different species and classes of dragons in this franchise, but for time's sake I will only touch on a few of them.

In the HTTYD (How to Train Your Dragon) universe there are between 6-8 classes of dragons, with each of the classes having a specific feature common to all members of the class. These classes include Stoker, Boulder, Sharp, Strike, Tidal, Tracker, Mystery, and Fear, with the last three in debate. While dragons that share the same class have some similarities, there are certain dragons that are distinctively based on something, usually one or more animal(s), from real life.


Thunderdrum

The Thunderdrum is a tidal class dragon that has a large mouth, long, thin tail, and relatively flat body that is usually a blue, green or purple and speckled with white dots. They are able to produce sonic booms and like all tidal dragons, live in the water. 

whale shark
baskng shark
These dragons I believe are based on a combination of a whale shark and a basking shark. They get their coloration from the whale shark and their body shape from the basking shark. Even though both of these creatures are sharks, this dragon is also based somewhat on an actual whale. For example, its personality is one of compassionate within its social groups, but secluded otherwise. They are also seen breaching in How to Train Your Dragon 2, a behavior almost exclusive to whales.



Rumblehorn
Rumblehorn

rhino
This newly added tracker-class dragon sports an interesting design. The Rumblehorn is a heavily-armored, thick-bodied creature that is usually green in coloration. It has a plated neck and three horns on top of its face, two above its eyes and another on its nose. It also has a horn under its chin. The rest of its body is very muscular and stocky, with a large, powerful tail and smaller legs. Rumblehorns are able to shoot long-range fire and use their builds similarly to rams and rhinoceroses- charging their enemies and using their horns as the weapon. By far the most incredible power, and the ability that marks them as a tracker-class dragon, is their ability to track faint scents over very long distances.

crocodile
scarab beetle





The Rumblehorn is a combination of a rhinoceros, as mentioned earlier, a beetle, and a crocodile, with a little bit of ceratopsian influence as well (horned dinosaurs like triceratops). The rhinoceros is seen in their behavior, as well as in the horns and their builds. Their design heavily draws influence from various kinds of beetles, in particular the scarab beetle. Their body is armored and has almost a shiny luster to it, just like a beetle's, and they are seen in the same coloration as beetles. This dragon also has remarkable strength, a characteristic they probably also received from a beetle. Finally, the Rumblehorn's design is based on a crocodile because of the rest of their body that isn't armored, in particular their legs and tail. They are stocky, strong, and lined with short spikes, much like a crocodile's.   


Deadly Nadder


Deadly Nadder
This sharp-class or tracker-class (depending on when you look at it) dragon is a wyvern with extremely sharp and dangerous spikes that line its tail and are able to be shot from it, and the hottest fire known to Vikings. It also sports multiple spikes on its head and a horn on its nose, as well as a beak. Nadders are known for their vanity, and come in a variety of bright colors.
parrot

T-rex
These dragons are based on a t-rex, and more prominently, a parrot, or at the very least a raptor of some sort. Nadders are bipedal and have huge, powerful legs with sharp talons, just like a t-rex, and the rest of their body is similar to the t-rex as well. They both have a long, dangerous tail, nonexistent (or useless) upper arms, and a thin neck with a large head. The rest of the Deadly Nadder's design, however, is based on a parrot. As mentioned previously, they have a beak and talons, and no arms or front legs. They also behave much like birds; with similar locomotive styles and the preening habit. Nadders also squawk to communicate, like birds, and finally, they both come in a variety of bright colors.    



The Dragons that are Copycats
Before I discuss the last dragon, I'd like to point out that there are dragons that are almost exactly like their animal counterpart. 

The Whispering Death (top) and the pacific black dragonfish (bottom)












 

















The Terrible Terror (top) and the gecko (bottom)



 
























and 

The Speed Stinger (left) and velociraptor (right)






 










and last but not least....

Night Fury
The Night Fury is without a doubt the most recognizable species in the franchise, after all, the main dragon, Toothless, is a Night Fury, in fact, he is more likely than not the last remaining member of his species.

Toothless the Night Fury
A member of the strike class, Night Furies are one of the smallest rideable dragons, and have two large main wings, two stability flaps on their flanks, and two fins at the end of their tail to aid in flight. Their body is sleek and free of any spines, and they have retractable teeth, retractable back spines to further aid in flight, and have ear flaps that allow for more expression. As far as we know, Night Furies are always black in coloration, are extremely intelligent, and are the fastest dragon. They are capable of producing a bluish-purple plasma-based fireball, and have the aim of a sniper. They can also use echolocation, and are able of summoning an alpha-mode, in which they are twice as powerful and glow blue.


Black panther
Toothless's behavior and appearance is akin to many different animals, the main ones being a bat and a cat. His ability to use echolocation, flight maneuverability, and stealth, as well as sleeping behavior and wing style clearing are that of a bat's, but a cat serves as the main inspiration. The Night Fury's body shape and design are that of a black panther, with the black coloration, smooth scales, paw-like feet, ear flaps, and yellow eyes. Toothless doesn't just look like a cat; he behaves like a cat too. He is one of the most playful dragons, and has been seen doing things a cat usually does, like roll around in grass, play with a laser pointer, and regurgitate their meals. The sound he makes is even a combination of different animal noises, most of them being a cat's! 


Conclusion
The fact that all of the designs are based off of animals in some way is very interesting; and it probably applies to other character designs as well. In almost all cases, humans imitate what nature has already done. 


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