Guardians, defenders and the red dragon of Wales
The Dragon Coat of Arms: Meaning and Design
The dragon is heraldry's fiercest monster and one of its most loved. Here is what it means, how to tell it from a wyvern, and how to design a dragon crest of your own. Designing is free and needs no account. When you love it, $9 gets the whole set: print-ready art (4000 px PNG and SVG), a certificate of arms explaining its meaning, a profile picture and a phone wallpaper. For a family gift or a wax seal, the $19 Heirloom set adds an engraving, seal, bookplates and a house banner. For a club, team or business, the $29 Logo Kit adds logo, icon, banner and brand files.
Cymru am Byth
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Fire Keeps Faith
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Guard What You Love
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From the Ashes
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Here Be Stories
Customize this crestWhat a dragon means in heraldry
A valiant defender. In legend dragons guard treasure, so in heraldry the dragon came to stand for a fierce protector of something precious: a homeland, a family, even a hoard of good books. Armies carried dragon standards long before coats of arms existed, from Roman cavalry to the English at Hastings, and the dragon passed into heraldry as a sign of courage and menace.
Dragon or wyvern?
In English heraldry the difference is the legs. A dragon has four legs and bat-like wings. A wyvern has two legs, wings and a coiled tail. Both usually have a barbed tongue and a tail ending in an arrow-shaped point. Elsewhere in Europe the line is blurrier, and many continental "dragons" have only two legs.
The dragon in Crest Studio is a four-legged dragon rampant, rearing with its wings raised, the classic heraldic pose.
Famous heraldic dragons
- Wales: the red dragon, Y Ddraig Goch. It was made a royal badge for Wales in 1807, and the Welsh flag was officially recognized in 1959. For a crest with Welsh roots, see the Welsh family crest guide.
- The City of London: two silver dragons hold up the city's shield, and dragon statues mark the old boundaries of the City.
- Ljubljana: the arms of the Slovenian capital show a green dragon standing on a castle.
National and civic emblems belong to their owners, so treat them as inspiration and give your dragon its own colors and motto.
Designing your dragon crest
Colors
A red dragon on silver nods to Wales. A gold dragon on black or red feels like a great fantasy house. Keep to the rule of tincture: a metal (gold or silver) against a color.
For campaigns, guilds and clubs
Dragons are the classic sigil for a D&D noble house or an online guild, with the phoenix a close second for groups with a comeback story. See the D&D coat of arms generator and the fantasy house name generator for names and mottos to go with it.
Mottos
Try the Welsh Cymru am Byth (Wales forever), the Latin Custos Fidelis (faithful guardian), or plain English such as "Guard What You Love".
Questions
What does a dragon mean on a coat of arms?
A valiant defender: a fierce protector of something precious, from a homeland to a family. In legend dragons guard treasure, and heraldry kept that idea.
What is the difference between a dragon and a wyvern?
In English heraldry a dragon has four legs and a wyvern has two. Both have wings, and both usually have a barbed tail.
Can I put the Welsh dragon on my family crest?
You can design your own red dragon in the same spirit. The Welsh flag itself is a national emblem, so give your crest its own design, colors and motto rather than copying the flag.
Is a dragon a good emblem for a D&D house or a guild?
Yes. It is the classic fantasy sigil, and a dragon rampant stays recognizable as a small icon for a server or a character sheet.
Free to play, no download
Medieval games
Take a break from heraldry: eight free games, from a trebuchet siege to Viking chess. Your coat of arms rides with you in every one.
The Usurper
Trebuchet siege
Viking chess
Nine Men's Morris