[gerzel]

Drakes are not dragons.  They are hybrids of metahumans and dragons to my understanding.

[FastJack]

+1 gerzel. Drakes are an entirely different race than dragons. They are not dragons that are born as metahumans, they are a magical race created by the Great Dragons to serve them in the ancient times.

[Ultra Violence]

I can understand the confusion here, as the runners companion allows players to choose the latent Dracoform quality allowing a metahuman to evolve/awaken into a drake.

This may have something to do with an important mataplot thread for Earthdawn  where Aardelea, an inocent young girl became 'fused' with the Spirit of a dragon that inhabited an ancient book (the book containing rites and ritual information on drake creation) as the book was in such poor condition and not far from falling apart the spirit chose to preserve the information in the girl before the book fell apart and the information got lost forever. Due to this girl/spirit bonding she somehow ended up being a Drake/Human hybrid.

The dragons, especially Icewing AKA Dollmaker (possably Ghostwalker), were hoping to use her to create a new improved Drake, one that was born not create yet still loyal to their dragon master. Maybe they did succeed and that drake gene staide dormant until magic was high enough to awaken it.

[James McMurray]

If it's an illusion then they can't walk through doors or ride in cars while in metahuman form because they're still too big. Dunkelzahn definitely rode in cars, so it has to be a shapechange power.

Also: "With a Complex Action, the dragon can assume a metahuman form of its choice, with physical abilities equal to those of a normal metahuman of the chosen race. Great dragons tend to be reluctant to assume metahuman form, because it leaves them somewhat vulnerable (compared to their powerful natural form)."

Illusions don't change your stats or make you more vulnerable.

I was searching for that bit all day. Where was it?

It's in the metahuman form power description (SR4A p.304).

[FastJack]

If it's an illusion then they can't walk through doors or ride in cars while in metahuman form because they're still too big. Dunkelzahn definitely rode in cars, so it has to be a shapechange power.

Also: "With a Complex Action, the dragon can assume a metahuman form of its choice, with physical abilities equal to those of a normal metahuman of the chosen race. Great dragons tend to be reluctant to assume metahuman form, because it leaves them somewhat vulnerable (compared to their powerful natural form)."

Illusions don't change your stats or make you more vulnerable.

I was searching for that bit all day. Where was it?

It's in the metahuman form power description (SR4A p.304).

Of course, the last place I'd ever check...