Currently, all dragons ever (outside of Alduin) use only one shout out of a whopping two possible shouts they could use. What gives?

Before release, dragons in Skyrim were touted as being different from the typical fantasy that we're used to, that they don't just breathe fire or ice (sorry, no quotes/links right now; may edit this post with some). In my Collector's Edition art book (which I don't have at this moment, so again, may edit to quote later), there's a concept piece of Alduin shouting at some soldiers who are sent flying, presumably by using Unrelenting Force. The artist, who is quoted on the page, mentions that he was happy to design a dragon who wasn't simply breathing fire or frost. I'm pretty sure that the "making of" DVD that came with the Collector's Edition contains other developer comments regarding the uniqueness of dragons, but I'll have to watch it again because it's been ages.

The point is that we were promised a unique dragon-slaying experience and that promise was not kept. Instead, we have typical dragons who do nothing but breath fire or frost (the very shouts are called "Fire/Frost Breath") and use melee attacks. The only thing unique about dragons is that the player cannot use the version of the shouts they use. Even games like Monster Hunter and Dungeons & Dragons have more variety (and with dragons who have more combat tactics than just breath weapons and simple melee). The Greybeards themselves tell us that a fight between two dragons is actually a deadly verbal debate (a loading screen and something in the art book say the same thing). What's the debate about, two dragons yelling "Fire Inferno Sun" and "Frost Cold Freeze" at each other? For goodness' sake, Draugr use more shouts than dragons!

Furthermore, dragons actually shouting would change a lot about combat and maybe even force the Dragonborn to combat dragons with shouts. Here's what I'd like to see dragons using:

-Disarm
-Elemental Fury (for simply faster attack speed by dragons)
-Unrelenting Force
-Storm Call (which can be countered by Clear Skies)
-Clear Skies to counter our Storm Call
-Animal Allegiance if there are creatures nearby (countered by Dismay)
-Dismay to counter our followers and to counter Animal Allegiance
-Become Ethereal to recover
-Marked for Death (to be used on both us and our allies)
-Slow Time (countered by Whirlwind Sprint)
-Whirlwind Sprint (used to fly across the sky in a path quickly to dodge magic and arrows)

(One of the shouts I would not have them use is Ice Form for sake of balance, but seeing as how the Greybeards use it, maybe. Up to you, Bethesda)

You decide which kinds of dragons should be using which shouts at different levels. All I want to see is change; I want to see what we were promised.

If dragons used more shouts, then they would be dangerous for longer than the first few hours of the game. I wish they would, I should think "holy crap, a dragon!" when I see one, not "lets get this over with so i can go to the shop in town and sell the bones I'm about to get."

This.

Boom.

i completely agree with you, that is why i use Deadly Dragons and Deadly combat mods *-*
deadly dragons does exactly this, makes dragons a lot more powerful and dangerous, and give them a lot of shouts to use too,
and with deadly combat combined even in level 20 i usually get my A*ss kicked with 1~2 hits from a dragon, and almost instantaneously if they shout at me,
it's really terrifying to see a dragons shadow flying over you while traveling to someplace now, even being the mythical Dragonborn i run and scream like a little Japanese girl o_O

Lol

Your ideas of the shouts they use is great.

Except Marked for death, that would be annoying as [censored]. And we would die right? Maybe unless we killed them before we die? But no.

Edited the OP a tad. Also, this isn't about mods fixing anything. This should be in the vanilla game for both PC users and console players.

Become Etheral could become really bad, seeing how glitchy skyrim has been, dragons would just heal indefinitely when their health got low, leaving you just running away.

Let's just hope the new Legendary Dragons Dawnguard is introducing are actually challenging and aren't just normal dragons with same behaviour/abilities with just a straight boost on hp and damage.

Disarm is a dangerous shout to give to a dragon. There are so many nooks and crannies to lose your weapon in such an event.

I agree with you OP, Dragons really REALLY need to use more shouts, atm i never, ever, use Dragon Shouts and it was the most talked about for the game, very dissapointing.

Judging by the way things are with all dragons up to ancient ones and even Odahviing, I expect they're just a new skin on the same old mook with more health and higher melee damage, just like always. In fact, I'd feel like it was a slap in the face if I find out that legendary dragons use other shouts. We shouldn't have to be higher than the level at which ancient dragons spawn in order to fight one that works the way all dragons should have worked in the first place.

The Draugr use it. I've lost a shield and an ebony war axe that way on two separate occasions, which is not to mention the amount of time they've disarmed me as it is. Forces you to have a backup weapon or use magic.

I don't think it's unbalanced since some of the more powerful enemies already do this.

This.

just last night i was standing on the northern shore not to for from solitude looking up at a rather nice night time sky. Then with no sound at all, BOOM, I get hit with some frost breath from a dragon doing a divebomb attack.

1st thought, what the crap was that.
2nd thought, ah a dragon.
3rd thought. you're going to die for that you son of a......(and he did without much of a fight)
4th though, (while looking at dead dragon) stupid dragon. thats what you get
(what the 4th thought should have been.) This is what i get for charging in, now how do i get out of this alive.

That's generally what everyone should be thinking when they fight a dragon. We were under the impression that they were going to be that impressive.

If you like the idea comment.

Let's get support for this

you know what they should have done is after you defeat Alduin for the finnal time you should have been able to learn that shout that he dose were all the meteors come down

Please use the SPOILER tag. Also,

Would be awesome, but it would kill everyone/thing, and the cooldown would have to be like 5+ mins

I was kinda hoping this thread would blow up and get some attention from the big cheeses themselves. :valutboy:

Great idea! I completely agree.

yeah considering there supposedly one of the most dangerous beings on Nirn, there ridiculously weak.
case in point, 5 guards from whiterun took down a dragon while I just watched and claimed the glory.