Deadly Nadder (Franchise)

The Deadly Nadder is a species of dragons, said to be one of the most beautiful. They are well known for their poisonous and painful spines, and extremely hot fire that can melt metal or rock easily.

Appearance
In appearance, the Deadly Nadder is very bird-like: it is bipedal and possesses winged forelimbs and it is about the same size as medium sized theropod dinosaurs such as Allosaurus. Its small yet keen eyes, equipped with poor binocular vision, are one of the tools it uses to stalk its targets.

Its body is a vivid colour, with a light beige underbelly, while its wings are mottled colours. In front of its eyes is its curved nasal horn, which is often used to batter opponents; its lower jaw is shorter and wider than its upper, giving it an overbite (this sets it apart from all the other dragons in the film, since-- with the exception of the Night Fury-- they all have underbites).

Ringing its skull are a set of spikes. Coating the tail is a series of spines that can inject venom into a target. When relaxed, its head spikes and venomous tail spines lay flat, and when alarmed, they are shot upward to intimidate its foe. The tail spikes can also be used to make a rattling noise which it makes right before it attacks, similar to rattlesnakes.

Behavior
In terms of behavior, the Deadly Nadder is fast and dangerous, though its potency as a hunter is hindered by the blind spot directly above its nose (possibly due to its large horn). As a result, the dragon relies on its keen sense of smell and hearing, often instead of its binocular vision, in order to find its prey. The Deadly Nadder also has, at its disposal, a tail that is covered in bristling poisonous spikes, which are used as projectiles to stun or immobilize its prey. Its tail spikes are its preferred weapon (probably due to the afore-mentioned blind spot). It can launch its tail spikes with devastating speed and accuracy. Its most devastating trait, however, may well be its ability to blow magnesium-fueled flames, which can easily melt metal. The Deadly Nadder is one of the most beautiful dragons, and unfortunately, it knows it. It is well-known for its vanity; it constantly grooms itself to stay clean and maintain the luster of its scales. Like the Night Fury, the Deadly Nadder is a picky eater whose diet comprises mostly of poultry and is allergic to domesticated hoofed animals. However, when it is trained, it becomes very affectionate, not unlike a pet dog, pet cat, pet bird or other sociable creature.



Description
The official Website describes Deadly Nadder as follows: "One of the most beautiful dragons in the world is the DEADLY NADDER. It is easily recognized by the bright blue body and brilliant yellow spikes that cover it head to tail. This colorful dragon is active any time of the day or night. Nadders are quick and agile in the air and can fly for long distances, but will almost always land before attacking. Nadders travel and raid in groups, making them especially dangerous. The Deadly Nadder isn't the largest or fastest dragon, but it possesses the hottest fire in the dragon world. The blast of a Nadder can melt steel, or turn a man to ash in seconds. But the dangers of the Nadder don't stop there. The tail of the Nadder can be whipped around, releasing a volley of giant spikes that can penetrate trees, walls, and Vikings."

"A tropically hued fellow who is nastier than he looks. "He or she has raptor-liked tendencies and is very alert," DeBlois says. "He or she is also highly curious and aggressive." The Nadder can attack in two ways: Breathing a super-hot fire made of pure magnesium across hundreds of yards, or shooting off spikes from its tail."

Deadly Nadders have amazing abilities that set them apart from other dragon species. They are big enough to do well in combat, but small enough to be fast both on land and in the air. A specimen named Stormfly rivaled Toothless in speed. Astrid discovered that, when put on a diet of chicken, the Nadder's speed increases greatly. They are also quite agile and well-balanced, as Stormfly demonstrated in Trick Contests, and in the first movie in the Arena.

Nadders have been confirmed to have the hottest fire of all dragon species, despite Hiccup claiming the Fireworm's skin when alight is as hot as the sun. Its been said that the Nadder's fire is hot enough to melt metal, and turn Vikings into ash. Stormfly also has been seen melting rocks.

Despite having one of the most powerful breath weapons, Nadders mostly rely on their venomous tail spines in combat. They can launch these from their tail at will, with great accuracy. Though it has never been confirmed how poisonous the spines are, and what the effects are.

Nadder's have a great sense of smell, hence the reason they were reclassified as Tracker Class dragons. According to the Dragonpedia, a Nadder can smell a human from one-hundred feet away, though it hasn't been confirmed what the limit to this ability is.

In the Book
During his initiation test in How to Train Your Dragon, Fishlegs tries to capture a Deadly Nadder, but wakes up the entire cave of dragons, forcing the Vikings to flee for their lives. In How to Be a Pirate, a juvenile Deadly Nadder is wandering in the Caliban Caves crying for its mother. However, this dragon is eaten shortly after by the Monstrous Strangulator.

How To Train Your Dragon (film)
At the start of the movie, several Deadly Nadders attack Berk along with several other dragon species. At one point in the attack Stoick the Vast throws a cart at a Nadder and hits it successfully. During Hiccup's narration, he says killing a Nadder will get him at least noticed. Later on Stoick along with a couple more other Vikings subdue three Nadders using a net. These Nadders escape towards the end of the battle due to Hiccup's bad luck and clumsiness and they make off with a good amount of kill. The Deadly Nadder is one of the dragons the students fight during Dragon Training. The teenagers learn how to stay in the dragon's blind spot when she first appeared in training in a wooden maze. The dragon is seen laughing at Snotlout's pathetic attempt to hit her with a mace and is driven off when Astrid hits her with an axe stuck inside a shield. Hiccup later learns from experience with Toothless that dragons can be subdued by scratching them gently on the side of the neck and the chin. He uses this to subdue the same Deadly Nadder in a subsequent encounter in a training exercise. Hiccup later walks Astrid through training a Deadly Nadder (the same one that Astrid had hit with a shield and Hiccup used the chin scratch trick on); she fights with her during the battle with the Red Death, but falls off her during the battle due to the Red Death almost eating them both by inhaling deeply and sucking them in plus the force from the Night Fury's blast used to save both the Nadder and Astrid. Astrid is seen riding her as her pet, and afterwards named her Stormfly.

In the Game
In the game adaption of the movie, How to Train Your Dragon, Deadly Nadders are experts in strength, which allows them to dish out some of the most devastating attacks. They have the longest melee range, making them hard to reach, and also possess high agility and speed to sustain speedy flight. However, their low stamina, power, and fire leaves much to be desired and the Nadder is therefore not recommended for beginners or for obstacle courses. Players will start out with a Deadly Nadder if they choose Astrid as their main character.

Wild Skies
In Dreamworks Dragons: Wild Skies, the Deadly Nadder can be tamed. It lives in Unlandable Cove, and one must feed it mutton in order to tame it. To get mutton, you will need 3 Gold to buy a knife, then go to Berk Village, where you then chop pieces of mutton. The Deadly Nadder is a Sharp Class dragon. When the player rides it, the dragon's mouth is closed. When you press the space bar, it will open its mouth and blow fire at the target.

School of Dragons
In the game School of Dragons, a Deadly Nadder is trainable. The Deadly Nadder is trained by many players in the game. Like most dragons, they have three stages of life.

Notable Nadders

 * Stormfly
 * The male moved from Outcast Island to Berk

Trivia

 * To train a Deadly Nadder, one must very carefully approach the dragon from its tail. Then, you must gently smooth its poisonous spikes down.
 * The Deadly Nadder is said to be one of the most beautiful dragon species around.
 * A Deadly Nadder can burn a solid rock cliff in few seconds.
 * It is said to have the hottest fire in the dragon world, along with the Fireworm.
 * The Deadly Nadder used to be a Sharp Class dragon, but was moved to the Tracker Class in the second film.
 * The Deadly Nadder may be based on the domestic chicken, porcupines, birds, and theropod dinosaurs.