Draconic Divinity

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You'd be hard-pressed to find a fictional creature more awe-inspiring than the dragon. These immense reptilian beasts have fascinated mankind since the dawn of time, and have been subjected to all kinds of interpretations through various cultural lenses. Some have viewed them as unholy beasts to be hated and feared, but others have revered these creatures to the point of worship. Whether they're merely powerful animals that serve as Physical Gods, divine beings that serve a higher power, or are actual gods in the form of a dragon, Draconic Divinity is a status that they all enjoy.

The concept of Draconic Divinity seems to originate from ancient Chinese dragon worship, where these creatures were worshipped as benevolent embodiments of nature and harmony. These beliefs would spread to other East Asian cultures and become one of the big prevailing examples of this trope. godlike dragons are often characterized as wholly wise benevolent, or stern and temperamental yet possessing a strong sense of justice. But don't be mistaken: this is not the Good Counterpart to the Draconic Demon. Godlike dragons can easily be wrathful and wicked, and be the centerpiece of a Religion of Evil.

But no matter if they're good or evil, there's no denying that these creatures are a spectacle to behold, and are worthy of both fear and respect in equal measure. Expect there to be some overlap with Eldritch Abomination for truly alien and otherworldly examples, as well as Elemental Embodiment for good measure.

Examples of Draconic Divinity include:

Anime and Manga

• Dragon Ball gives us one of anime's most famous examples in Shenron, the Eternal Dragon summoned by gathering all seven Dragon Balls. While Dragon Ball Z would reveal that he and his creator Kami are merely powerful aliens, he's still a powerful wish-granting entity who commands the full respect of those who summon him, and he makes it clear that he's not to be trifled with.
  • Other sets of Dragon Balls have their own analogue to Shenron: the Namekian Dragon Balls, for example, summon an even more powerful dragon called Porunga, who could originally grant more wishes in one go than Shenron while boasting a far friendlier temperament than his testy cousin. The Super Dragon Balls however can summon Super Shenron, a mind-bogglingly powerful golden god of a dragon who can grant reality-warping wishes, and is so big he can swallow entire planets in one bite and dwarfs entire galaxies in size.
• The Five Dragon Gods from Fairy Tail aren't true gods, but they're so stupidly powerful that they're worshipped anyway. It comes with the territory when you're able to casually level entire continents with your raw might alone.
• Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid is a slice-of-life anime featuring the Aztec god Quetzelcoatl, portrayed as a buxom, flirty, fun-loving Cute Monster Girl whose inappropriate behavior saw her stripped of her divine status.

Film

• Whether he's a (mostly) benevolent force for good or a monstrous, terrifying menace, Godzilla is revered and feared for his raw destructive might. The Monsterverse incarnation in particular really plays this up, with him having been worshipped as a god in ancient times.

Video Games

• Akatosh, the god of time and the Top God of Tamriel's divine pantheon is portrayed as some kind of draconic entity. The same goes for his servants, the Jihls, and Alduin, his Nordic aspect/son/incarnation.