A drakanite in its half-shift form. The wings and horns are clearly visible.
Drakanites are a subspecies of humans, thought to have descended from the first drakanite Nehir Alakkan. This clan was founded in 85 AC, by the same drakanite -- with the help of Ryujin, known to be one of the "Divine Five". Since then their population has grown, many find their home in Frostvale today.
Origin
Drakanites came about by an act of kindness shown to Ryujin, by the human being at the time -- Nehir Alakkan. The boy offered the great dragon a piece of meat in harsh times where his kind was hunted, and so they spent many hours talking in good nature. Ryujin, realizing that without a voice, his kind would forever be in conflict with humanity, and so with the co-operation of the boy bestowed his powers upon him with a form of soul transferrence. All of Nehir's descendants from that point on would be blessed with the powers they have to this very day.
Physiology
The most definitive physical trait of the drakanite line is their higher average height; their builds are on average more stocky, along with typically slitted eyes, the most common colour being green. Beneath the surface they have an advanced skeletal structure that has been reinforced with a thin layer of dragon scales, this is not noticeable visually.
In their half-shift form they acquire wings that are sometimes even flight-capable, donning a pair of horns along their head as well. When a drakanite comes of age, they're able to acquire a full-shift to become a Dragon temporarily or until they see fit as to come out of this form. As time goes on the ability for a drakanite to achieve full-shift diminishes with each new generation with a human parter; the further from the original lineage that a particular drakanite diverges, the harder it becomes to harness the full potential of Ryujin's gifted powers.