Drago Bludvist

"I alone control the dragons!"

- Drago to Astrid

Drago Bludvist is the main antagonist of How to Train Your Dragon 2. A cruel, ruthless, twisted man whose main goal is to conquer the world with his enormous army of both humans and dragons, he is feared by all and destroys anyone who gets in his way.

Official Description
"Drago is a force of nature. The self-proclaimed "Dragon God", Drago is equal parts madman and military genius. Drago's unnerving mystique chills the hearts of the bravest Vikings — even Stoick the Vast. Daunting in size and demeanor, Drago has no tolerance for those who disagree with him."

- Viking Guide

Development
According to The Art of How to Train Your Dragon 2, Drago was designed to look as racially ambiguous as possible and from a land far from the Vikings of Berk. His appearance had several influences from different countries and cultures. His clothing was based on Slavic origin, while his actual physical appearance was based on people from the Mediterranean and northern Africa.

Early Life
"I know what it is to live in fear. To see my village burned, my family taken. But even as a boy, left with nothing, I vowed to rise above the fear of dragons and liberate the people of this world."

- Drago telling his backstory to Hiccup

When confronting Hiccup during their initial battle, Drago claims that as a child, his village was attacked by dragons and his family was killed. He lost his left arm in the attack and constantly lived in fear of another assault by the creatures. Despite his tragedies, he vowed to rise above his fear and conquer the beasts that had hurt him, becoming a tyrannical warlord with a lust for power over all dragons. He then found a Bewilderbeast hatchling in his early conquests, abused it and trained it to be as cruel as him and to control the dragons. With this new power, he wished to conquer all of the world's dragons and with them, conquer the world.

At some point during the continuous battles with dragons on the island of Berk and other Viking settlements, Drago came before a great gathering of chieftains that had met to discuss the problem. Stoick the Vast was among those who were attending. Drago promised them that he could bring peace and finally end the Viking people's war against the dragons, but only if they chose to bow down and follow him. The chieftains took this for a joke and rejected his offer by laughing at him. Enraged and humiliated, Drago stalked off, calling back to the chiefs, "Then see how well you do without me!" Moments later, two of Drago's armored dragons descended into the hall through the roof and burned everything in sight. Stoick, unbeknownst to Drago, managed to escape, but all the other chieftains in attendance were killed. Stoick also recounts seeing Drago watch the hall consumed in flames before departing with Krogan on a pair of Rumblehorns. ("The Wings of War, Part 1")

Drago also encountered Valka several times after she was abducted by Cloudjumper. As she began rescuing dragons from his abuse, he met Eret and made him one of his Dragon Trappers.

Executing Krogan
Krogan was brought before Drago by two Dragon Flyers, and the warlord berated his right-hand man for letting the King of Dragons escape and had him executed. Then he orders a soldier (who resembles Mildew) to bring him his maps, stating he will find another King of Dragons himself.

War against the Dragon Riders
Five years after the war with the dragons had come to a close, Drago was continuing his assembly and preparation of his huge army to further his conquest when his men captured Astrid and a handful of the other Riders. Through them, he learns of Berk being home to a large number of Dragon Riders and orders his men to attack the "Dragon Riders' nest" at once.

Drago's army quickly began sailing toward Valka's mountain, and soon launched an assault against it with the intent of drawing out the current Alpha. His attack, however, is foiled when the Riders escape and began destroying his weapons and freeing the dragons from his traps. Valka soon emerges from the mountain with her Bewilderbeast in tow. Drago, anticipating this, briefly engages in a fight with her as she tells him he cannot take the dragons under the Alpha's protection. Drago then summons his Bewilderbeast and orders it to take down the Alpha. Stoick rescues Valka from Drago's wrath and the two fight each other whilst Valka tried to stop the two Bewilderbeast from fighting. Stoick and Drago's fight ends in stalemate as Drago's Bewilderbeast defeats Valka's and becomes the new Alpha.

Hiccup arrives with Toothless to confront Drago and attempts to reason with him and stop the violence. Clearly stuck in his hatred of dragons, he ignores the young Viking's statements and orders his Bewilderbeast to kill Hiccup. With the Bewilderbeast now able to control of all dragons in the area, it seizes control of Toothless, as much as the Night Fury initially attempts to resist. With his Bewilderbeast in dominance over Toothless' actions, Drago points his weapon at Hiccup as an order to kill him. Though Hiccup is pushed aside by Stoick, the chieftain takes Toothless' blast instead and is killed instantly. With Stoick dead, Drago has his Bewilderbeast seize control of all of the remaining dragons, including the riders dragons as well. Taking Toothless as his mount, Drago leads his victorious army towards Berk.

Arriving under the cover of night, Drago has his Bewilderbeast seize control of Berk's dragons and calls out to the residents, telling them that their chief is dead. The villagers are confused but are left with little time to ponder this as Drago has his Bewilderbeast freeze the island.

Hiccup and the other Riders manage to return to Berk by riding the baby Scuttleclaws which can resist the Bewilderbeast's influence. Hiccup bravely flies up to Drago and nears Toothless in an attempt to break the dragon free from the new Alpha. Though Drago mocks for the boy for even attempting to try, Hiccup's compassion and bond with Toothless overrides the Alpha's control. Toothless throws Drago off his back and leaves him to land on the Bewilderbeast's right horn as he flies away.

Although Drago tries to regain control of the situation by ordering the Alpha to kill them both, Hiccup uses his sword to spray Zippleback gas and cause an explosion that causes Drago to fall off the Bewilderbeast. Though seemingly beaten now that Hiccup has his dragon back, Drago orders the Alpha to take out Hiccup and Toothless at once by encasing them in ice. Though both seemingly killed by the attack, the ice breaks apart in a large explosion thanks to Toothless. The Night Fury, enraged at the attempt on his friend's life, challenges Drago's Alpha in an attempt to protect Hiccup.

Toothless repeatedly strikes the Alpha with his fire and causes the great dragon to lose control over the others. As the people and dragons of Berk stand united against Drago and his Bewilderbeast, Hiccup offers him one last chance to leave peacefully. Drago refuses to back down, prompting Toothless to order the other dragons to bombard the Alpha with fire. One of the blasts sends Drago's prosthetic arm flying off, Toothless launches a final plasma blast that breaks off the Bewilderbeast's left horn. The Bewilderbeast, now no longer the Alpha dragon after being defeated by Toothless, leaves Berk with Drago in tow. Although his Bewilderbeast successfully made it to the Hidden World, Drago's ultimate fate remains unknown.

Destroying Bayana's Village
It is revealed that during his conquests, Drago would recruit villagers into his army. When Bayana and his tribe refused to join him in conquest, Drago burned their village and forced them to search for a new home. Despite Drago's defeat by Chief Hiccup of Berk, Bayana and his people are still victims of Drago's diaspora.

Legacy
One year after Drago's defeat by Hiccup and Toothless, his followers and the Warlords attempted to finish their fallen leader’s plans of conquering the world with a dragon army, only to have their operations continuously foiled by the Dragon Riders. This resulted in them employing Grimmel the Grisly, a dragon hunter who has built up a reputation of hunting Night Furies to the brink of extinction, to capture Toothless and all of Berk's dragons.

Physical Appearance
Drago is a tall, well-built man matching his intimidating personality. He wears a prosthetic arm from when his original was either cut, torn or bitten off by a dragon, and wears his hair and beard in thick dreadlocks. Multiple scars run over Drago's face and body, evidence of his past encounters with dragons. His attire consists of a sleeveless shirt, a thick waist belt and a huge black cape made from dragon skin (potentially from a Night Fury if taking a closer look at it). Attached to his belt he wears a loincloth, blue trousers, and boots covered in fur.

Personality
"Drago Bludvist is a madman, without conscience or mercy; and if he’s built a dragon army, Gods help us all."

- Stoick, telling Hiccup about Drago

Stoick and Valka know all too well of the cruelty Drago is capable of. His vast power and authority come from keeping the fear of dragons in people and forcing them to join his army. He is not above betraying his allies if they do not follow his instructions and kills without mercy. Drago keeps an iron-fisted control over the dragons in his army using the power of his Bewilderbeast and the various traps he has had Eret and the other trappers create to ensnare dragons for himself. He is very egotistical, believing only he is capable of controlling dragons and cares only about himself.

Drago is shown to be very intolerant towards failure, which is proven when he ordered Krogan to be executed when he failed his mission and by the brand he had given to Eret when the trapper failed to bring him any dragon, promising to be far less understanding in the future. This ruthlessness makes him feared by many, including those who follow him.

Whereas Hiccup and the others' relationship with their dragons is one of deep trust and friendship, Drago's relationship with his dragons is one of control, abuse, and domination. Having raised his Bewilderbeast from a hatchling he discovered in one of his earliest conquests, Drago subjected it to loveless, miserable life, frequently abusing it to punish any perceived weakness. He has never been shown directly murdering others with his bare hands but relies on his control of the dragons to do it for him. He intimidates the dragons into obedience and controls them by swinging his bullhook above his head and roaring like an animal in a frightening display of power.

However, his greatest strength is also his greatest weakness. While his ruthless insanity made it impossible for Hiccup to reason with him as he had originally set out to do, it also rendered him incapable of understanding Hiccup's bond with Toothless, which allowed Hiccup to regain "control" of his dragon.

Abilities, Skills, and Talents
Strength and Fighting Skills: Despite the disadvantage of his missing arm, Drago is a formidable fighter and opponent to both humans and dragons. Using his bullhook as his main weapon, he is able to defeat Valka with relative ease and hold his own very well against Stoick the Vast. However, despite his combat skills, he rarely uses them himself unless necessary, preferring to rely on his subordinates to do his dirty work.

Dragon Controlling: Unlike Hiccup, Valka, and the rest of the Dragon Riders, Drago enslaves his dragons with brute strength and intimidation and is able to use his Bewilderbeast to brainwash any who refused to follow him.

Intelligence: Drago's cunning is nearly unmatched; his plans strategised to be nearly unstoppable thanks to his brute force. He is able to figure out ways to use his opponents' strengths against them, as shown when he turns Toothless and the other dragons against their former allies.

Leadership: Drago is more than capable of leading his massive army of humans and dragons.

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III
"This is the great dragon master? The son of Stoick the Vast? What shame he must feel."

- Drago

After hearing about him from Astrid, Drago seems to acknowledge Hiccup as a rival of sorts, realizing that another dragon-tamer could endanger his monopoly over the dragons. A parallel of sorts to Hiccup, given his own mastery over legions of dragons, Drago is a good contrast to him as well, using abuse and force to dominate the will of his dragons as opposed to befriending them.

When the two finally face off at the Dragon Den, Drago seems amused that his reputed nemesis was little more than a boy, seemingly dismissing the threat that Hiccup posed. While Hiccup still believed that Drago could be reasoned with, he proves otherwise by commanding his Bewilderbeast to take control of Toothless and using him to kill Hiccup. Though this fails due to Stoick's intervention, it succeeds in shaking Hiccup's resolve. Drago then takes Toothless as his mount to further demoralize his foe.

During Drago's invasion of Berk, Hiccup continues to surprise him when he and his companions show up on the backs of baby dragons, which the Bewilderbeast could not control, then again when Hiccup's bond with Toothless frees him from the Bewilderbeast's command. The tables are turned on the infuriated Drago when Hiccup's ingenuity and Toothless' own willpower rise up against the great and terrible Bewilderbeast, shaming both tyrants and releasing the dragons from their control for good.

In many ways, Drago is considered the antithesis of Hiccup. While Hiccup trains dragons forming a bond with them, Drago uses fear and intimidation to enslave dragons to his will. And while Hiccup considers dragons as "kind amazing creatures", Drago sees dragons as weapons of mass destruction.

Valka
Just as Valka despises Drago for his cruel and abusive treatment of dragons, Drago views Valka as his greatest threat prior to finding out about Hiccup, as she was one of the few to stand in his way of complete domination over both man and dragon. While he sees her as an obstacle, he also seems extremely confident that his dragon army and Bewilderbeast tyrant would be able to overpower Valka's own dragon legion — many of which were refugees and rescuers, not fighters. His confidence proves to be well-founded when his Bewilderbeast defeats Valka's white king, and he quickly overpowers Valka in battle, her death only being prevented by the intervention of her husband.

Stoick the Vast
Stoick and the other Viking clan leaders turned down Drago when he came to them with his offer of leadership, laughing him away when he demanded that they bow down to him in exchange for safety from the then-threat of dragons. Seemingly having anticipated this, Drago had a pair of armored dragons under his control waiting outside, who then proceeded to burn the longhouse to the ground as Drago escaped. Only Stoick survived the encounter, and he sees Drago as a grave threat.

During their eventual showdown, Stoick appears and surprises the latter by revealing his survival. The two engage in battle with Stoick seemingly having the upper hand, due to his superior fighting prowess and Drago's disadvantage of his missing arm. It is only thanks to Stoick's intervention when Drago attempts to kill Hiccup that he is able to best the chieftain. Drago barely even acknowledges Stoick's death suggesting both his sense of superiority over the other man as well as a possible realization that the death of Hiccup's father is equally damaging.

Astrid Hofferson
Astrid was the first rider that Drago met. She first tries to scare Drago by exaggerating the story about Hiccup and Berk, which backfired when Drago decided to invade Berk after attacking Valka's Mountain.

Eret, Son of Eret
"Ha-ha, always great to see you, my friend, keeping warm up here? Well, as you can see, I'm here right on time with a new batch of dragons. Just like I’ve promised."

- Eret, attempting to impress Drago

Eret served Drago out of fear as a trapper, having seemingly done business with him before for many years. He gave Eret a symbolic scar for not bringing him enough dragons and threatened him if the same thing happened again. When Drago realized that Berk is full of Dragon Riders, he blamed Eret for revealing the army's existence and ordered his soldiers to get rid of the trapper.

His Bewilderbeast
During one of his earliest conquests, Drago found his Bewilderbeast when it was just a hatchling. Since then, he trained and abused his dragon to become a savage war machine by using screaming sounds as commands. Even until he has reached adulthood, the Bewilderbeast continues to follow his master's orders.

Krogan
Drago has known Krogan for a long time. As mentioned by Viggo, Krogan was considered as Drago’s Star Pupil who had a had a history of failing his master on rare occasions. Krogan was Drago’s trusted soldier and accompanied him when he destroyed the Viking Chieftains that refused to follow him. Years after, Drago dispatched Krogan and his Dragon Flyers to find the King of Dragons. While his search for the Bewilderbeast, he met Johann and Viggo, who were also looking for the dragon. Soon after, Johann temporarily hired Krogan to help him accomplish his own plans and obtain the King of Dragons for himself. After the death of Johann and destruction of the Dragon Hunters, Krogan was brought before Drago by two of his Flyers, where Drago screamed at Krogan for failing him again and has him executed. Despite Krogan begging Drago for another chance, Drago still has him executed under the account that "No one fails him twice".

Warlords
Little to nothing is known about Drago's and the Warlords' relationship, but it can be assumed they were his most trusted soldiers, having served as generals of his army for many years.

Trivia

 * Drago's nose is meant to resemble an eagle's beak.
 * Drago's screams to control his dragons could be an homage to the original books as to train your dragon, it is stated you must yell at it.
 * Coincidentally, in the extra commentary for How to Train Your Dragon 2, it is revealed that screaming is Djimon Hounsou's way of warming up his voice.
 * Drago is the tallest human character in the entire franchise.
 * Viggo Grimborn has indirectly mentioned Drago Bludvist's existence in "Defenders of the Wing, Part 1", saying that he "wasn't interested in taking over the world, unlike some people." This shows that Viggo has heard of him, but as revealed in "Triple Cross", he does not know that Drago is Krogan's employer.
 * Drago is the very first villain to ever ride Toothless for a long period of time.
 * It is unknown if Drago Bludvist is his real name or if he had a different name before he went insane with power.
 * Despite his Bewilderbeast being massive enough to easily kill him, it remains cowed and terrified of his presence. It is stated behind the scenes that he had cruelly and abusively raised the Bewilderbeast since it had hatched, and thus retains the fear of its master, even though it has grown to such size and power.
 * Certain elements of Drago's "training style" are meant to both reflect and contrast with elements of Valka and Hiccup.
 * In Valka's case, both use a combination of sound and a staff to command their dragons, but while Valka uses her staff to make a soothing rattling noise, Drago swings a bullhook while screaming violently.
 * In Hiccup's case, both make physical contact with a dragon's snout as an integral step in the first contact with the dragon, but while Hiccup reaches out with his hand as a sign of friendship, Drago steps on the dragon's snout as a sign of dominance.
 * Another interesting note is that Hiccup lost a foot fighting a dragon, while Drago lost an arm, in a similar fashion.
 * As revealed in an interview with Cloneweb, Drago's return for How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World was scrapped halfway through the movie's production. Because of this, it is currently unknown if Drago is still alive or not.
 * According to an interview with Dean DeBlois, in earlier drafts of How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World it would have been revealed that Drago had survived the battle in How to Train Your Dragon 2, and had washed ashore upon a deserted island, which was already occupied by a dragon. While trying to survive on the island, he realized that he was replaced within his own fleet, so he decides to go back there, and reclaim his position. But to do so, he would have to befriend the dragon in order to make his way off of the island. He would ultimately developed a kind of respect and affection for the dragon that saves his life. In the end, Drago would end up landing on, and fighting for, the Dragon Riders.

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