There hasn't been a dragon in these parts for ages...

back to the dragons, and the little blighters are pretty fun to animate. Mainly I love the frills, which are an awesome design addition which help to sell the little lizard idea. I can only thank Ruth (the designer/modeler) for doing an awesome job.

The dragon attacks are a  difficult one to plan. We want them to feel organic and natural, but at the same time, its easy for them to feel a little game-y. The dragon hovers in idle and then swoops in for attacks at intervals, so getting these to feel less triggered and more natural is a challenge.

I'm quite pleased overall with this one so far, the poses seem to be going quite well and the movement seems to reflect his size. My main issues with this animation are the fact that the dragon needs more vertical movement in the pelvis to reinforce the flaps, and the readability of the animation. I may restructure to include more of an anticipation, with the dragon flying back and up at the start to telegraph the attack.