Some Calderuses based on @daftpatience's sprite rework :]
He really struck such a good balance with the anthro features while being more clearly a dragon. I initially looked around at full dragon design mods, but this design was too good to not use.
More proof that the Priestess is the mines dragon (or at least is a dragon)
spoilers for human Calderus + his home
There are multiple physical indicators that she's a dragon
Like Calderus, she seems to have silver markings on the small patch of skin on her arm (the rest potentially being covered up)
Second, and this is the strongest indicator to me, is that she has these small patches (scales) under her eyes that Calderus also has. No other characters have these
They also have a braid draped over their left shoulder lol
Not directly tied to the Priestess, but Calderus's home (left) is designed the exact same as the west ruins (right)
like if it weren't for a few differences (including terrain) they'd be identical
The photo on the left is the front yard of Calderus's home, by the way, so this indicates the west ruins area is the home for the other dragon, which just so happens to be right by the mines, where the Priestess is
Oh and here's farther up for Calderus's yard:
the only difference here is that the west ruins has a singular statue (instead of two) right up against the wall
One more thing that interests me is that in some new dialogue Calderus mentioned "dragon priestesses" and said something about them that meant they served/helped dragons or something. If the Priestess we see is a dragon, then I wonder how that correlates?
I got through the mines in one day XD. I had been completing everything beforehand to be able to see the difference once I got the update and I accidentally met all the requirements lol.
Seridia (The Dragon Priestess) is so so so so so coooooool. I love Calderus so much but she gave him a run for his money fr. I had to make a whole new farmer just to go after her lol. My main farmer is a March stan, March my beloved fr fr. I love her design and the twist they had for her, and I'm so excited that Calderus is able to roam now!! I have got to get all my farmers through the mines now lol.
Also the apiary update is pretty cool and not that difficult once you start it (I was seriously intimidated by the instructions lol). The new bees are really cuuuute! I think I like the Sweet Bee the best solely because of it's name lol.
Oh oh and all of the void stuff is super duper cool and I love the Mistril armor! Everything is p i n k !! There are also a lot of awesome new mechanics for the monsters in the new level. My favorite has gotta be the blocks that go up and slam down Mario block style (can't remember their names rn) lol. So so hype for updates in the future!
I'm going to go into depth on the dragon statues and statuettes, and what I think they mean, along with data I've obtained from the official wiki
First: The Calderus statue on our farm and the dragon statue in the mines are NOT the same dragon/statue (I used to think they were the same and I'm sure I'm not alone)
Here is a side by side comparison, with the most notable difference being the horns. The mines statue has its horn arching nearly to the center of its head, whereas Calderus's barely reaches above his eye. Similarly, the snouts and front legs have a different thickness, and there's also a difference in eye shape
I also want to note that the little engravings on the pedestal look exactly the same, so I'm curious if they have any meaning
Another thing to note, and I'm not sure if this is intentional or an error on the devs' part, but different parts of the official wiki says different things about the mines statue
Under skill perks, the dragon statue in the mines is referred to as just that. If you go into the specific mining and combat pages however, you get something else (I only used the mining page for reference)
Here, the mines statue is referred to as the Calderus statue in the mines. I would understand if the devs want us to think this statue is Calderus as a sort of red herring, but the inconsistency of wiki claims makes me second guess that theory. Maybe they originally wanted us to think it was Calderus but forgot to update certain pages?
Regardless, one thing is certain: there is intentional mystery being shrouded over this dragon statue. If not by the incorrect data, then by the mere fact that this strange dragon isn't being brought to the player's attention in any significant way while playing the game
Eye Break
Now, lets compare the statues to the statuettes
On the left is the Calderus statuette, and on the right is the unknown one. If you look at the circled horns you'll see they match their respective statue above (taking the limited pixels into consideration). The cool-toned unknown statuette also reflects the coloring of the mines statue better (considering its in darker lighting too)
As you may have noticed, Calderus's statuette is a loved gift, while the other one is a hated gift. So clearly, there’s some bad blood of sort between Calderus and the dragon that this statuette represents. Whether it be because of something saddening or out of hatred, I don’t know. What I am sure of is that we will probably get more backstory from Calderus as he gets integrated into the game more, and I can’t wait for crumbs
What interests me most is that we have no lore, no hints about this other supposed dragon. Calderus never brings them up. Never brings up someone from his past (for now). The only mentions we have on this other dragon comes from Eiland's comments on the unknown statuette
One thing that intrigues me about this line is the pluralization of "dragon statues". This implies their are other dragon statues of Calderus in Mistria (that we haven't seen) OR that there are other dragons who aren't Calderus (or he's referring to the countless Calderus statuettes you can find). Regardless, this dragon statuette is different
That leaves the questions: Who is this dragon? What is their history with Calderus? With Mistria? Will we get more lore on them? (I think so)
As always folks, continue to romance that dragon <3
