As you all know, there are three types of Dragonballs and Dragons: one on planet Earth, one on planet New Namek, & the Darkstars, scattered across the cosmos. Here we break down the differences of between the three types of Dragonballs & what similarities, if any, they may have. As you can see in the upper right image, Earth's dragonball is way smaller than Namek's dragonball. Please be aware this is by no means a complete guide, for, as always, there will always be some mysticism surrouding the Dragonballs & their Dragons, & the secerts of Dragonball creation is the most closely-gaurded Namekian secert of all.

The three types of Dragons

1. Planet Earth's Dragon: Shenron

Created by Kami, the former Gaurdian of the Earth, Shenron is the dragon god for the Dragonballs on planet Earth. Notably Kami is a Namekian. This Dragon will grant any wish (within his power), but only one wish. Shenron can only grant a wish that is within his creator's powers, so if Kami cannot do something, nether can Shenron. Earth's Dragon has been noted to grant immortality, power, kingship, & reviving the dead. You can only revive a person once with Earth's Dragonballs, however. After Kami fused with Piccolo, the Dragonballs lost their powers & turned into stone. Eventually Earth needed a new Guardian & Goku went to search for another Namekian to take his place. As the grand elder on New Namek suggested, Goku brought Dende to Earth. This young Namekian "upgraded" the dragon to have similar powers that Purunga has, where Shenron will grant 2 wishes.

2. Planet Namek's Dragon: Purunga

Originally created by the grand elder of Namek (Saichourou), Purunga is the dragon god for the Dragonballs on planet New Namek. Just like Shenron, he will grant any wish, & it must be within his creator's power. But unlike Shenron, he is capable of granting 3 wishes. Purunga can pretty much grant any wish Shenron can. However Purunga's rules are a bit more flexible. While Shenron will only revive a person once, Purunga will revive a person any number of times as long as the death is not natural.

3. The Darkstar Dragon

Rumored to have been created by King Piccolo Daemon (Piccolo's father) shortly after his seperation from Kami, the Darkstar Dragon, sometimes refered to as Dark Shenron, or Shenlong, is the dragon god for the Darkstar Dragonballs; which are scattered all over the Northern Galaxy. Like Purunga, the Namekian Dragon, he will grant any wish, & it must be within his creator's power. Although Piccolo Daemon is now well & truly dead, it is not known how these dragonballs continue to exist, save for they are normally heavily guarded, very difficult to find, & extremely powerful. Whilst this 'negative' set of dragonballs can grant extraordinary things to one whom wishes on them, they do have a very nasty side-effect : they tend to blow up the planet they're on within 100 days of the Darkstar Dragon being summoned!

Requirements for the Dragonballs

In order to summon the Dragon, you must use the correct chant. For the Earth Dragonballs it is relatively easy. But for the Nameck Dragonballs you must use a specific Nameccian chant. Without the correct chant the Dragonballs will not respond.

Once the wish(es) has been granted, the Dragonballs will turn into stone and scatter around the earth. They will remain hidden for one year. In that time you cannot make another wish. In the case of the upgraded Shenron and Polunga, if you decide to only use one wish you may send the Dragon back and only have to wait 4 months to summon him again.

Once the creator of the Dragonball dies, along with him dies the Dragon & the Dragonballs turn into stone; as both the Dragpn & the Dragonballs are tied in with their creator's life-force. If another Namekian is capable of magic, he can revive the Dragon & the Dragonballs, & even enhance their powers as Dende has done with Shenron.

What happens when the all seven Dragonballs are collected and the Dragon is summoned?

When all seven Dragonballs are collected, they flicker with a glow & begin to perculate. Once the Dragon has been summoned the sky turns dark & the Dragon explodes out of the balls & fills the air with his presence. The Dragon gets settled & says to the wisher to state his/her wish, & it will be granted, so long as it is within their power to do so. Shenron's most popular quote is: "Reflect your most wanted desires mortal, for I shall grant any wish."

The model Dragon for the Dragonballs

When a Namekian creates the Dragonballs, he replicates a model of the Dragon that will be linked with them. Not much is known about the actual mechanics as to how this works, but this model is required for the Dragonballs to function properly. When Dende revived Earth's Dragonballs, he needed Kami's old model of the Dragon to use magic to revive them.