I don't think they're descended from dragons, anymore than miqo'te are descended from cats. They're just a humanoid race with some non-humanoid features. Due to some confusion from the devs and the community leads, we have mixed sources on whether or not they were "dragon-inspired" or "demon-inspired", and it sounds like they intentionally did not want them to be draconic because it wouldn't make any sense for a literal dragon war to be going on and have these draconic characters running around involved in it. So they can't really be draconic, it doesn't make sense.
But really, neither does them being void-inspired either, considering how a lot of people in the world think and feel about Voidsent. So they aren't really either, but the obvious behind-the-scenes motivation for their design is both (for example, that early obviously succubus-inspired design that has obvious elements incorporated into the Au Ra, but they aren't succubi). I just don't think in terms of the game itself, that they are dragon-like, or demon-like. They are simply "Au Ra", beings with scales and horns and tails, and fanciful stories of their creation. It's really no different than any other race's creation myth. We tend to have creationism stories that insist our creator made us in his image, but we can't validate that one way or another. I feel like the same applies here.
They can say one thing, but that doesn't make it an actual fact. It's just a belief system. That said, I think Au Ra players are free to make as much or as little out of that as they want! I just don't personally think they're related to or otherwise descended from dragons in the slightest anymore than a Miqo'te is related to a coeurl.
But really, neither does them being void-inspired either, considering how a lot of people in the world think and feel about Voidsent. So they aren't really either, but the obvious behind-the-scenes motivation for their design is both (for example, that early obviously succubus-inspired design that has obvious elements incorporated into the Au Ra, but they aren't succubi). I just don't think in terms of the game itself, that they are dragon-like, or demon-like. They are simply "Au Ra", beings with scales and horns and tails, and fanciful stories of their creation. It's really no different than any other race's creation myth. We tend to have creationism stories that insist our creator made us in his image, but we can't validate that one way or another. I feel like the same applies here.
They can say one thing, but that doesn't make it an actual fact. It's just a belief system. That said, I think Au Ra players are free to make as much or as little out of that as they want! I just don't personally think they're related to or otherwise descended from dragons in the slightest anymore than a Miqo'te is related to a coeurl.