a big bird! So much for this being a quick “design” sketch.
I'm pretty happy with the design I went for, I like doing some more complex designs every once in a while, but holy mother is it annoying to do.
I tried to make him look more bird-like- But I already make my theropods extremely birdy, so he just looks like the rest of them?
This page was drawn after I read A Study of Dragons of Eastern Europe by Ronesa Aveela. Here are some notes for context on the designs:
Lamya - Body is reptilian and huge with scarlet or yellow scales. Possesses webbed wings and dog-like heads (3/7/9) with horns and jaws wide enough to swallow a buffalo whole
Smok - Derived from ordinary snakes that, after incredibly long lives, grow to enormous sizes
Zmey - As they fly, sparks form from their scales
Balaur [which is Romanian, not Slavic] - Comes from a snake that fulfills a certain task (not being seen, not biting a human, not letting sun fall on it, etc.), Three types, living in the skies (come down to drink water, which is stored in the tail), land, or water
I really liked the design for the sky balaur, which stands out compared to the more generic land and water varieties. The water-filled tail acting as a pressure sprayer is also a super cool idea. The lamya design was refined into this drawing with Drake.
Balaur (pl. balauri) in Romanian folklore is a type of many-headed dragon or monstrous serpent, sometimes said to be equipped with wings. The number of heads is usually around three, but they can also have seven heads or even twelve heads according to some legends.
The balaur in folktale is typically evil, demanding or abducting young maidens or the princess, and defeated by the hero such as Saint George or the fair youth Făt-Frumos.
There is some lore in which the balaur is considered weather-making, and living in an airborne state, but these types of balaur are sometimes interchangeably called hala or ala, being confounded with the pan-Slavic air and water demon. The balaur (instead of the zmeu) is the vehicle of the weather-controlling Solomonari according to some sources.
There are also legends about the balaur in which they can produce precious stones from their saliva.
In the Romanian language, balauri are "monstrous serpents" or dragons. Alternatively, the word balaur can be used to describe any monster like creature. They are many-headed like the Greek hell-hound Cerberus or the hydraand are winged and golden, according to Lazăr Șăineanu.
As reported by journalist Eustace Clare Grenville Murray, in Romanian folklore the balaur or balaurul is a serpentine being who guards treasures and princesses, coming to blows against heroic Fêt-Frumos.
The balaur recurs in Romanian folktales as a ravenous dragon that preys upon maidens only to be defeated by the hero Făt-Frumos ("Handsome Lad"). The balaur may also be the abductor of the princess Ileana Cosânzeana, although according to Șăineanu the kidnapper of this princess is a zmeu in the form of giant with pebbly tails (or scaly tails) It is noted that the balaur and the zmeu are often confounded with each other.
According to folklorist Tudor Pamfile, there are three types of balauri in folk tradition: water-, land-, and air-dwelling. A type of balaur of the first type is a seven-headed monster that dwells in the well of a village, demanding maidens as sacrifice until defeated by either the hero named Busuioc or by Saint George.