In Japanese the word Ryuzoku is made of two words "ryu" meaning dragon, and "zoku" meaning race. Ryuzoku is the word that is used in Slayers for all the different species of dragons. Although there are many dragon races in the Slayers world there are only three major races, the Black dragons, the Ancient dragons, and the Golden dragons. They are the only ones of any importance in the Slayers series. I'm only going to talk about the Ancients and Goldens since they are the respected races of Filia and Valgarv. If anyone has any information on these races that I have not put here please let me know!

Of all the ryuzoku the Ancient dragons were considered to be the most powerful, even more so than the Golden dragons, just one of the Ancients had enough power that equaled to a dozen Golden dragons. Although they had unlimited strength they were generally a peaceful race. It was their pacifist nature that was to be their downfall. A war broke out between the ryuzoku and the mazoku in an all out fight of good vs. evil. All the dragon races banded together save for the Ancient dragons, who wanted to stay out of the war completely and live in peace.

The Golden dragons, however, saw this as a threat of power as the supreme dragon race and decided to eliminate all of the Ancient dragon clan. The Golds managed to massacre all the Ancients save for Valgarv the last of the Ancients and the only one we meet alive in Slayers Try. The Ancients have been deceased for well over a thousand years when Slayers Try begins. The Ancients are smaller in their dragon form compared to the Goldens with feathered wings instead of scales. There are rumors that they are warm-blooded but that is yet to be clarified.

GOLDEN RYU

After the genocide of the Ancient dragons the Golden dragons became the most powerful of all the dragon clans in the Slayers world. Their scales are golden in color (hence the name) and are considerably small in their dragon form. Even in their human form they still retain the weight they have in their dragon forms. While most dragons can use spells it is the Golden dragons that have demonstrated the use of divine magic. The first Golden dragon we meet is Milgazia in Slayers Next who helps Lina and co. find a Claire Bible manuscript.

He has a very dry sense of humor and likes to keep his distance from Xellos since it was Xellos who had murdered a tremendous amount of Golds in the Kouma War. In Slayers Try we meet the loveable Filia Ul Copt who lives at the Shrine of the Fire Dragon King in the desert outside of the barrier Hellmaster Phibrizzo created. The Golden Dragons of this temple differ from Milgazia's clan, while they want to protect their world from harm they do not care if their choices will affect other worlds and will even go to the lengths of sacrificing their own as if they are worthless to get what they want. It is Filia who makes the most use of the divine magic spells.