How to slay your dragon

If you ever find yourself in a life or death situation with a dragon, then you’re going to need pointers on how to survive. Here are the best ways to slay that dragon in your life.

(Photo: Warner Bros.)

(Gallery sponsored by Knights & Dragons)

Wear Something Shiny

Sometimes the best tactic against a dragon is to distract it. Gerolde, a figure from British folklore, “dazzled the dragon” by wearing his shiniest armor, according to Dragons and Unicorns: A Natural History. The flashy distraction paid off as Gerolde ultimately defeated his enemy. (Photo: Bethesda)

Blow Him Up Real Good

Humans might be smaller and slower than a dragon, but we’ve got our advantages, too. Like our brains. That’s put to use in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, where players must defeat the krayt dragon. The dragon is lured from his den and into an array of mines–quite the explosive surprise. (Photo: Bioware)

Know Its Weaknesses

In Knights and Dragons, each dragon has key weaknesses. Yeah, strong armor will help, but knowing the weaknesses is key. For example, the Crimson Dragon doesn’t like water armors.

(Photo: Gree)

Use a Bow and Arrow. Seriously

Some might believe that there is absolutely no way an antiquated weapon like the bow and arrow could kill a mighty dragon. And they’d be wrong. In the insanely hard game Dark Souls, players can defeat the hellkite dragon using the weapon. (Photo: FromSoftware)

Use a Really Big Bow and Arrow

OK, a regular bow and arrow won’t always do the trick. You’re going to need a bigger bow. Use a ballista, like the one above, from Dragon Age: Origins to defeat the monster. (Photo: Bioware)

Shoot It From the Sky

You might not see a bigger dragon than Phalanx, the 13th colossus from Shadow of the Colossus. Phalanx flies majestically until it’s shot down. Aim your arrow at the gas bladders, and Phalanx will come crashing down for you to jump on. Attack it a couple times, and it’ll fly straight into the unforgiving sand. (Photo: SCE)

Break Its Guard

Some dragons possess scales that are infuriatingly impenetrable, like Deathwing’s elementium plating in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. The key to slaying this beast is to remove its elementium armor and attack away. (Photo: Blizzard)

Blast It With a Rare Weapon

Behind the tough, scaly exterior of a demonic dragon is a heart. In the midst of Smaug’s attack on Laketown in The Battle of Five Armies, Bard uses the last of the “Black Arrows,” a large metal quarrel, to shoot Smaug directly in the heart. (Photo: Warner Bros.)

Rip Its Heart Out

The simplest way isn’t always the easiest when it comes to slaying a dragon. Take Beowulf, for example. In the 2007 film, he had to sever his own arm in order to rip the heart out of the beast. (Photo: Paramount)

Poison the Dragon

Instead of going into a David-versus-Goliath-style battle with a dragon, try to level the competition with a little poison. In Skyrim, players can use poisoned arrows on the flying creatures. (Photo: Bethesda)

Swing Your Trusty Sword

In Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Link does battle with the dragon Volvagia. All Link has to do is avoid the whack-a-mole attacks from the dragon, and then slash the beast with the Master Sword. (Photo: Nintendo)

Use a Pokeball

If you find yourself facing a dragon, options might be limited. Try “slaying” a dragon Pokemon, like Rayquaza, with a pokeball…if you can catch ’em. (Photo: OLM, Inc.)

Try Some Explosives to the Face

In the unexpectedly well-casted film Reign of Fire, the male dragon is finally defeated when Quinn Abercromby, played by Christian Bale, fires an explosive into the beast’s open mouth. (Photo: Touchstone Pictures)

Exploit Its Weakness To Water

One of the scarier skills a dragon possesses is its ability to breath fire. That strength can be used against it as well. In Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, Mario and friends face the dragon Zombone. The skeletal dragon’s weakness is against thunder strikes and “Pure Water.” (Photo: Nintendo)

Mega-Buster it

There are multiple techniques to slaying the robotic Mecha Dragon from Mega Man 2. To defeat the beast, use the Mega Buster to keep your distance from your enemy. (Photo: Capcom)