Actually, only certain chocobos can fly, the vast majority of yellow ones are flightless.

Ah the science of the Chocobo...the colours and their powers seem to change with each Final Fantasy.

As to the Dragon..you could do it, and the army would probably pay you for it, big time. What do you think it would require? Altered Dinosaur DNA to produce a warm blooded reptilian creature?

Actually have you ever noticed that "higher" lifeforms only seem to have 4 limbs....there may be a very good reason for this and you may have to settle for a Wyrm instead of a Dragon.

it's a simple modification with a combination of DNA from several species, and the reason is that most creatures with backbones evolved from a four-legged ancestor.

I'm not giving the army MY dragons, they can make their own......I don't trust them with that much firepower anyway.

But you need massives amounts of funding, and you might not find the chains that pliable...only certain sequences will hook up....hence the similarities that run in most species....

I'm all for fun, but this conversation WAS on a serious note. Besides, we're having trouble cloning cheep that don't fall apart after a couple years.

If you're feel like you're waiting for something, then do you even know what it is? If not, then how will you know when your "time" has come? Sitting around and waiting is a terrible waste of time, and I hope you use your time wisely.

EDIT: And Rai, if you think you don't influence anyone, take a look at the post count in the 5 Minute Poetry thread. Sometimes the most important ones are the ones who are first in line.

I like to think of it as sort of like one of those real specialized sorts of poems. The ones that are like a haiku, only longer. Basically, you're given a bunch of guidlines on length, rhyme, and rhythm, but inside those guidelines you can do anything you want.
The equivalent is...oh...you can change everything except a) certain things (tend to be important), b) how crappy a boss you have and c) how politics work unless you're a politician.
I also enjoy the thought that most politicians are going straight to hell!
In addition, I enjoy the first few pages of the Battle Royale thread. They're funny as hell. Read them. Particularly the parts about "Brian vs. Sosa" which is funny as two hells!

Do you realize that the word "Dinosaur" was invented in the latter 1800s? Before that they used the word "Dragon" to define the same creatures. If you think that "Dinosaurs" died long before man came into the picture, I want you to think on some things.
1. In South America, there are some really large formations that an ancient civilization made that(I'm not sure which), when viewed from space, form the shape of a "Brontosaurus"-like animal.
2. In Babylon, there was found a painting of two lizard-like beings with their necks intwined, and these beings had really, really long necks.
3. In the Bible(don't stop reading, this isn't a "you should convert to Christianity" sermon), there is mention of "Leviathon" and "Behemoth" which is commonly translated as an Alligator and Elephant respectively. Well, the descriptions on these creatures leave me a little confused. Behemoth is described in Job 40: 15 and Leviathon is described in Job 41
Look at the description of Behemoth. Now tell me, does an Elephant or Hippo have a tail like a cedar? No, it doesn't. And neither of them live in the reedy banks of a lake.
Now look at the description of Leviathon. It may seem feasable that a Croc or a gator could fit the description, but look closesly. People have almost always caught gators and crocs and sold their skins or ate the meat. That eliminates them. Some say that a whale may fit this description, but it has no scales, and again, people have caught them and ate them, or sold the meat, used oil, etc. This and a reference to its ability to shoot fire out of its nostrils makes me highly suspicious that it is a croc, gator or whale. I think both of the were "Dinosaurs," which, in those days, were named "Dragons."
4. Pieces of ancient pottery have been found in South America, Africa and other such houses of ancient civilizations that have long-necked lizard-like creatures depicted on them. Unless ancient people communicated across lots of sea, I'd say that they were seeing creatures such as "Brontosaurus."
5. Final exhibit that I have time for. Someone I know recently visited a pigmy tribe in the deepest jungle of Africa, the only land left unplundered by most man. He, on a whim, drew a picture of a Brontosaurus, and asked the tribal leader what that was. The tribal leader responded with a name, and said that a few summers back, someone had killed one, and brought it back to the tribe. They ate its flesh and many died, so they no longer mess with these creatures. He also described it as being about 16-20 feet long.

So, I leave you with all of that, and I ask you, do you still think dragons do not exist?

*points up at Elminster's post*


There. See? If dragons can be real, then we can be heroes. No prob. Fuck consensual reality! We're the next generation, guys! It's our world, and there's nothing the stasis geezers can do to stop us if we put our minds to it.

Hehe, I like your point of view, Reality Deviant.

On the (admittedly off-topic, but nevertheless interesting) topic of dragons...

The only problem that I forsee in the genetic engineering of dragons (flame-thrower impersonation included) is that of flight. In order to fly, a creature must have a large enough wingspan for its mass (I forget the exact relationship). Let us for a moment assume spherical dragons. Alright, dragons would almost certainly not be spherical (although it's and interesting idea...), but spheres are easiest to work with, and the basic relation stays the same. If I increase the radius of our sphere by x, the volume increases by roughly x cubed (aarrg, no superscript!). This means that the mass will increase by roughly x cubed. The wings have to generate enough lift to lift this mass, and lift is proportional to the surface area of the wing (thank you Wikipedia for that!). This means that the wing must increase by x squared, since the volume is increasing by x cubed, and the surface area increases by x squared. This is one main reason for the fact that there are no really huge flying creatures. The modern fantasy dragon is an immense creature, generally at least the size of an elephant, and at that scale, would not be able to fly, even with adaptations like hollow bones (as birds have). To the best of my knowledge, the largest flying creature known to humankind was one of the pterasaur family, Quetzalcoatlus. If my memory serves me correctly, it had a wingspan around that of a small jet, but with a far smaller body. Taken from the Wikipedia page for "Pterasaur":

Quetzalcoatlus, with a wingspan of 12 metres (40 feet) and a weight of only about 50 kg (110 pounds), that lived during the late Cretaceous period.

On the other hand, you could still have land-based, fire-breathing dragons! :D

Ever seen the pictures of the dragons in the D&D Monster Manual? Or do you possess a copy of the Draconomicon? Both show that dragons have immense muscles to lift their wings, as well as light bones and thin stomachs (a bit like that of a greyhound), with huge chest muscles and hearts to aid in long-distance flying.

Pteroaurs didn't have that, and weren't really that efficient as flyers.

My first dragons would probably have acid-spitting glands, since that is easier than fire for the prototypes.