I have a game I'm working on, where Dragons are civilized and live on several planets. They are not a human clone, where they where business suits and go to work, and they are not the more common dragon, posed as a serene or warlike picture. They are real, and have magic.

Realizing they have magic, there are many technologies that dragons would have skipped over. Fossil fuels. Electricity (lights). They didn't have much use for that, but it occurred to me that Steam makes a lot of sense. I figured dragons that could fly might not be able to do so while carrying much weight, so quarry work, and getting stone into cities would require another mode of transportation. Trains powered by steam for instance. Water is abundant where the dragons live. And all the dragons can breath fire, so steam power seems like a natural extension of a more modern dragon. Clothes are not common on the dragons, and they don't need any protection from heat.

Given that as the case, what kind of things might a dragon use steam power for? (not all in my design can fly, but all can breath fire)

So far I've got a train, which doesn't necessarily need to be on tracks, but is meant for hauling heavy loads.

I was also considering a steam jet pack for higher speed flight.

Any other ideas how steam could be used in a dragons life? I'm also very interested in its use for war.

Another idea, is a steam powered turret, which fires rocks of various sizes (depending on the size of the turret). If a human were to sit down in it, it would do nothing. It requires fire to be breathed for power.

Another, is a fog generator, to reduce visibility. This could be really effective in war to hide the fact that a larger dragon is waiting only 50 feet ahead of a small squad.

[quote name='hpdvs2' timestamp='1358430919' post='5022510']
They are real, and have magic.
[/quote]

Currently this is the show-stopper for me. Why use steam when they have magic ? You need to describe the limits of their magic first. The useablitliy of a certain feature depends a lot on the way they live, where the live, what enemies they have, what shortcomes ?

Are the dragons at war with humans? How does their strength compare with their enemies (i.e. do they need to use stealth/misdirection, or can they win with brute force alone)?

You call them civilised, but what is their general character/culture like? If they covet gold and gems then they may use mining or quarrying tools. Do they have the need or inclination to build grand structures like cities?

[quote name='Ashaman73' timestamp='1358432003' post='5022518']
[quote name='hpdvs2' timestamp='1358430919' post='5022510']
They are real, and have magic
[/quote]
Currently this is the show-stopper for me. Why use steam when they have magic ? You need to describe the limits of their magic first. The useablitliy of a certain feature depends a lot on the way they live, where the live, what enemies they have, what shortcomes ?
[/quote]

good point. Dragons are fewer in number but far more powerful than humans. There are multiple types of dragons, but one dragon type has the power of creation, and solid structures. Another type has Chaos, destruction and life.

The game also imposes another limitation on the dragons. Their magic is stronger near Mana Sources. For similarity, imagine in SC2 that the zerg are stronger near their base. But the farther they move away the weaker they get. However, they can take the crystals with them. The only problem, is that any decent battle bonus is to heavy for a dragon to carry. So they have trains/caravans that haul them along side the battle. This creates the risk of targeting the caravan to reduce their power, Plus the human's want the crystals anyway.

The Creation Dragons can reform earth, and 'summon' turrets. The Destructive dragons can summon terra cotta warriors and fire elementals.

But the key point, is to imagine a dragon society, Pre-war that has been using steam power for a long time. As humans, we could mix batter by hand, but we don't, because we have mixing machines do it for us. Why wouldn't dragons also look for similar comforts in life. Next, imagine that this society of dragons is thrown into a war with humans and tanks and bombs and guns etc... Aside from magic, they have Steam Power. What might they do with it?

Of course I am trying to leave this open to interpretation. and let people imagine what ever magical limitations they want, but also be free to mix magic and steam power.

Dragons as in the giant fire breathing lizards? Or some other kind?

Generally technology is used to compensate for weakness and to make lives easier. In that regard I'm not sure why dragons would use steam after all a steam powered dragon train would be more or less the same a human riding a bike or powering train by blowing on it.

I could see them creating small robots to deal with task that are difficult for there large size, and making their buildings out of glass rather then stone since it would be fairly easy for them to transport and work sand. But that doesn't really matter I suppose.

So how about a they have a variety of robotic steampunk drones? Here's a few images to give you some ideas:

[quote name='WavyVirus' timestamp='1358432501' post='5022519']
Are the dragons at war with humans?
[/quote]

Yes. Dragons and Humans are fighting over ownership of planets through out the galaxy. Warp travel is common between both races.

[quote name='WavyVirus' timestamp='1358432501' post='5022519']
How does their strength compare with their enemies (i.e. do they need to use stealth/misdirection, or can they win with brute force alone)?
[/quote]

Dragons are limited in numbers. (Imagine SC2 zealots vs zerglings for speed of production and cost). Dragons are powerful but only a few. They want to avoid the battle, and use things to fight for them, but magic is typically close range for them, so they must follow magic into battle. Steam power could give them additional advantages in war, so they could stay farther back.

[quote name='WavyVirus' timestamp='1358432501' post='5022519']
You call them civilised, but what is their general character/culture like? If they covet gold and gems then they may use mining or quarrying tools. Do they have the need or inclination to build grand structures like cities?
[/quote]

There are essentially 3 factions of dragons. Mages, Wizards and Masters. Mages and Wizards have had a history of war (prior to the humans) but it was on terms of Dragon vs Dragon, and human dynamics in the war changed things from past war-machine strategy/tactics. Masters tend to live in private, and don't interact much. Very Peaceful, but very powerful. Mages and Wizards would never mess with a Master.

When humans tried taking over all the planets that the dragons had enjoyed as their own, event the masters got involved.

They are not interested in precious metals, at least not in the hoarding sense.

Wizards (creation dragons) enjoy building grand cities, decorated with gold and other precious materials. This is not a reason for war for them, they just think its pretty, like large art work in business buildings. Typically people wouldn't fight over the owner ship of this art. Instead it is there for presentation.

Mages (chaos dragons) enjoy sports, such as rugby, or things we might call X-Games (they can't fly though). They are very social creatures, and their cities are usually very open and friendly, but also easily heated in political debates. The mages are often doing most of the mining for both Mages and Wizards. And, as Wizards are very large compared to mages, the mages often do the finer details of the Wizard's buildings.

[quote name='TechnoGoth' timestamp='1358433817' post='5022528']
Dragons as in the giant fire breathing lizards? Or some other kind?
[/quote]

Essentially two body formations:

Mages = Lizard men. about 11 feet tall, The dragons of course think this form of measurement is ridiculous, because when they tried stacking human feet next to them, it changes depending on who's feet they were. They have Wings, but they cannot fly, as the wings have shrunken down a bit and are more like 2 extra armored arms. that are great for defense and aggressive sports. They are very Athletic, and can typically leap over a tank. Their magic is characterized as Chaotic or destructive. They can heal with it, and easily break things apart. They can breath fire but only about 4-5 feet away.

Wizards = Large flying dragons. 50-60 feet in length. They can breath fire nearly 50 feet in distance. They are very heavily armored naturally, but they do not heal well. Their magics don't work for healing, and the Mages healing magic mostly only works on Mages. They can remain air born for long periods of time. During a battle, they don't need to land, even if it lasts for hours. Their magic is geared towards creation, particularly of Solid mass. The can create buildings and turrets with ease, or reform land.

[quote name='TechnoGoth' timestamp='1358433817' post='5022528']

Generally technology is used to compensate for weakness and to make lives easier. In that regard I'm not sure why dragons would use steam after all a steam powered dragon train would be more or less the same a human riding a bike or powering train by blowing on it.
[/quote]

Good point. I would justify this, because the dragons have trouble flying with heavy objects so they need some way to move heavy things. I'm also perceiving that their fire is very hot and easy for them to sustain (as in with every breath and staying relaxed). So a dragon driving a train might be more like us driving a car with out cruise control, roughly the effort it takes to keep the foot on the gas pedal. To them, its just breathing.

[quote name='TechnoGoth' timestamp='1358433817' post='5022528']
I could see them creating small robots to deal with task that are difficult for there large size, and making their buildings out of glass rather then stone since it would be fairly easy for them to transport and work sand. But that doesn't really matter I suppose.

So how about a they have a variety of robotic steampunk drones
[/quote]

I imagine that with dragons them selves that sand in volume is also difficult because they can't carry much sand in their hands, and if they load much up in a pack, they have trouble flying it. Also, I was figuring that because of their mass, they would need really strong and really huge structures, typically stone and metals. but that was my opinion. I imagine they could use a little magic with their glass creation to make it strong enough for them.

But your ideas about steam punk drones are good. Simple things, but perhaps powerful. Perhaps controlled by magic, perhaps not. I like the idea of drones that are essentially set to do things automatically. like find damaged dragon structures and fix them. You don't pay attention to them, you can't direct them (unless you have a dragon pick them up and move them), they just do their job.

That opens up a lot of possibilities.

So, simple robots for fixing things. cheap robots that run ahead of troops to pre-trip mines. other simple robots that are deployed with targetted buildings and try to tear them apart. This opens up a lot. Thanks!