Dragons of Taera

Table of Contents

Dragon Characters
Dragon Class Table Dragon Class Features
 
Dragon Races
Amethyst Emerald Pink Sapphire
Black Gold Purple Silver
Blue Gray Quicksilver/Mercury Titanium
Brass, Greater Green Radium Topaz
Brass, Lesser Onyx Rainbow White, Greater
Bronze Opal Red White, Lesser
Copper Orange Ruby Yellow
Crystal
 
Dragon Advanced Races
Axiomatic Cloud/Mist Fang Protean
Brown Darkheart Jacinth Rust
Celestial Deep Obsidian Shadow
Cinder Electrum/Song Pearl Steel/Civic

Dragon Characters

Taeran dragons (in contrast to dragons of most other worlds) have a shared cultural history with the smaller humanoid races, and interact with them on a more equal footing. As a result, dragons of Taera do not always have the same powers and abilities of dragons from other worlds, even those of the same species, nor do they always necessarily have the same alignments. Taeran dragons are true individuals, and as such, it is possible (though extremely rare) for one to enjoy adventuring, and possibly even to join groups of adventurers of other races while doing so. Therefore, rather than being mere monsters cut from the same cloth, Taeran dragons are treated as NPCs, with many (and probably most) of their class levels in a special "Dragon class" which grants them their racial abilities. Only actual dragons are able to gain levels in this special Dragon class, but some dragons (in fact, most adventuring ones) do gain levels in other adventuring classes, even prestige classes should they qualify for them. Dragons encountered as traditional "monsters," meanwhile, are all treated (for the most part) as having all of their levels in the Dragon class.

Adventure: Dragons go adventuring for many reasons; it is impossible to give singular reasons for why any such powerful and long-lived creatures would actually risk their own lives (and treasure) when they can just as easily make a living settling into a nice lair and dealing with the locals as comes naturally. A prime motivator for all dragons, of course, is accumulation of wealth, and some dragons are known to go adventuring in hopes of acquiring fast money the same way the famous heroes of lesser races always seem to. Dragons with Rogue levels, of course, are not above stealing from the hoards of fellow dragons, and a few are actually known for doing it. More contemplative dragons might adventure for much the same reasons as Wizards or Clerics, that is, to gain lost or new knowledge, or find their place in the grand scheme of things. Dragons who just plain don't fit in to dragon society often go adventuring in hopes of finding a place for themselves, and young dragons who differ from their species' normal alignments often have such troubles and are so motivated. Finally, it is known that dragons who adventure, much like heroes of the less powerful peoples, become powerful much more quickly then their stay-in-lair brethren do, and in fact it is not unheard of for an adventuring dragon to become a full Great Wyrm (or higher) within the first century of life (as opposed to the more usual 12 centuries). Many wyrmlings hearing stories of the great deeds and greater power gained by these draconic paragons leave the nest as early as they can, in hopes of gaining such power for themselves. Protective parents can make such forays difficult, but a young dragon who finds a group of stalwart companions to aid it in its early, vulnerable years can mollify parental concerns that way, and grow to become very powerful indeed in the years they spend away from home and hoard.

Characteristics: Dragons are dragons, of course. Little needs to be said here. They are terrors in combat, and usually have a great deal of magical and psionic protection (if not power) as well, by the time they reach their higher levels.

Alignment: Taeran dragons can be any alignment, as noted above. Even dragons that stick to their "race class" can be of any alignment, though dragons that adopt their racial alignments as given in the monster descriptions usually have an easier time in dragon society than those who don't.

Religion: Dragons normally don't worship any gods; given their inborn power, they're used to being treated almost as gods themselves. A few dragons do discover the desires and thoughts that lead other mortal races to worship (notably, dragon Clerics must have done so at some point), but by and large dragons ignore the gods and their influences on the world. Adventuring dragons with companions of nondraconic races sometimes pick up the habit of prayer from those companions, but that minor superstition is usually as far as they go.

Background: Adventuring dragons are, as noted above, very rare- perhaps one wyrmling in 100 finds within itself a desire for more than its natural life would offer. Each adventuring dragon has its own reasons for leaving the nest, and these should be worked out on a case-by-case basis. Perhaps the dragon's parents were killed by an attack when it was still newly hatched, and it had to learn to fend for itself; or perhaps its parents left it to fend for itself barely after the egg was laid (many chromatic species do exactly this as a matter of course). Alternatively, maybe the dragon was a very imaginative child, and had vivid dreams of joining the elite circle of the Elder Dragons someday (no dragon has ever achieved the power level of an Elder Dragon without adventuring for at least a few years). Perhaps the young dragon was so greedy for treasure of its own, after hatching, that it set out as early as it could fly to start a hoard for itself, rather than simply living with its parents. The best of worlds for a young adventurer would be a dragon who has at least one adventuring parent, who actually encourages the youngster to emulate it, and go out to make its own way in the world. It is a very rare dragon mother who allows her offspring a chance to escape the nest before it's grown up, however, if she stayed to watch the eggs at all.

Races: The dragon class, as noted above, is only available to actual dragons. However, each individual dragon race has its own unique strengths and weaknesses which are laid atop the basic class template, and these are noted in the section on races below.

Other Classes: Dragons being so powerful themselves, they generally treat members of the normal adventuring classes equally, though they tend to get along better with spellcasters (especially Sorcerers) and psionic manifesters (if the dragon is itself psionic). Exactly what that equal treatment is, depends largely on the dragon's species, alignment, and upbringing.

Abilities: Dragons should assign ability scores based on where and whether they think they will multiclass. The core Dragon class includes significant ability score increases at every third level when the dragon grows into a new age category, so it's largely unnecessary for them to consider where to place low scores at all- by the time they reach their upper levels, most or all of their scores are at levels too high for any humanoid species to reach naturally. That said, at early levels dragons are primarily combat-oriented, so early best scores should probably go into CON (for hit points), DEX (for AC), and STR (for damage).

Hit Die: d12.

Class Skills: The class skills (and associated abilities) of the Dragon class are: Appraise (INT), Bluff (CHA), Concentration (CON), Diplomacy (CHA), Escape Artist (DEX), Intimidate (CHA), Knowledge(any) (INT), Listen (WIS), Lucid Dreaming (WIS), Psicraft (INT), Search (INT), Spellcraft (INT), and Spot (WIS).

Skill Points at 1st Level: (4 + INT modifier) × 4.
Skill Points at each additional level: 4 + INT modifier.

 
The Dragon
Class
Level		 Age Category Natural Armor Base Attack
Bonus		 Fortitude
Save		 Reflex
Save		 Will
Save		 Breath Weapon (DC) Fear DC SR or PR Damage Reduction
1st Wyrmling +2 +1 +2 +2 +2 2 dice (10) - - -
2nd Wyrmling +3 +2 +3 +3 +3 2 dice (11) - - -
3rd Wyrmling +4 +3 +3 +3 +3 3 dice (11) - - -
4th Very Young +5 +4 +4 +4 +4 4 dice (12) - - -
5th Very Young +6 +5 +4 +4 +4 4 dice (12) - - -
6th Very Young +7 +6 +5 +5 +5 5 dice (13) - - -
7th Young +8 +7 +5 +5 +5 6 dice (13) - - -
8th Young +9 +8 +6 +6 +6 6 dice (14) - - -
9th Young +10 +9 +6 +6 +6 7 dice (14) - - -
10th Juvenile +11 +10 +7 +7 +7 8 dice (15) - - -
11th Juvenile +12 +11 +7 +7 +7 8 dice (15) - - -
12th Juvenile +13 +12 +8 +8 +8 9 dice (16) - - -
13th Young Adult +14 +13 +8 +8 +8 10 dice (16) 16 16 5/Magic
14th Young Adult +15 +14 +9 +9 +9 10 dice (17) 17 17 5/Magic
15th Young Adult +16 +15 +9 +9 +9 11 dice (17) 17 17 5/Magic
16th Adult +17 +16 +10 +10 +10 12 dice (18) 18 18 5/Magic
17th Adult +18 +17 +10 +10 +10 12 dice (18) 18 19 5/Magic
18th Adult +19 +18 +11 +11 +11 13 dice (19) 19 19 5/Magic
19th Mature Adult +20 +19 +11 +11 +11 14 dice (19) 19 20 10/Magic
20th Mature Adult +21 +20 +12 +12 +12 14 dice (20) 20 21 10/Magic
21st Mature Adult +22 +20* +12$ +12$ +12$ 15 dice (20) 20 21 10/Magic
22nd Old +23 +21 +13 +13 +13 16 dice (21) 21 22 10/Magic
23rd Old +24 +21 +13 +13 +13 16 dice (21) 21 23 10/Magic
24th Old +25 +22 +14 +14 +14 17 dice (22) 22 23 10/Magic
25th Very Old +26 +22 +14 +14 +14 18 dice (22) 22 24 15/Magic
26th Very Old +27 +23 +15 +15 +15 18 dice (23) 23 25 15/Magic
27th Very Old +28 +23 +15 +15 +15 19 dice (23) 23 25 15/Magic
28th Ancient +29 +24 +16 +16 +16 20 dice (24) 24 26 15/Magic
29th Ancient +30 +24 +16 +16 +16 20 dice (24) 24 27 15/Magic
30th Ancient +31 +25 +17 +17 +17 21 dice (25) 25 27 15/Magic
31st Wyrm +32 +25 +17 +17 +17 22 dice (25) 25 28 20/Magic
32nd Wyrm +33 +26 +18 +18 +18 22 dice (26) 26 29 20/Magic
33rd Wyrm +34 +26 +18 +18 +18 23 dice (26) 26 29 20/Magic
34th Great Wyrm +35 +27 +19 +19 +19 24 dice (27) 27 30 20/Magic
35th Great Wyrm +36 +27 +19 +19 +19 24 dice (27) 27 31 20/Magic
36th Great Wyrm +37 +28 +20 +20 +20 25 dice (28) 28 31 20/Magic
37th Honored Wyrm +38 +28 +20 +20 +20 26 dice (28) 28 32 25/Magic
38th Honored Wyrm +39 +29 +21 +21 +21 26 dice (29) 29 33 25/Magic
39th Honored Wyrm +40 +29 +21 +21 +21 27 dice (29) 29 33 25/Magic
40th Elder Wyrm +41 +30 +22 +22 +22 28 dice (30) 30 34 30/Magic

*Maximum number of attacks per round with a weapon for characters above 20th character level is 4. Base Attack Bonus for such characters improves by +1 every other level, regardless of class.
$Save bonus for characters above 20th character level improves by +1 in each category, every other character level, regardless of class.

Class Features:
All of the following are class features of the Dragon.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Dragons gain no proficiency in any armor or weapons, even if they are capable of polymorphing to a humanoid form which would normally use such items. Dragons can use feats to gain proficiency like any other character can, however.
Age Category: Dragons advance in age category as they advance in level, as noted in the table above. Upon attaining a new age category, a dragon must rest for a day (i.e. no adventuring or other strenuous activity) as it changes size, and gains ability points, speed, and special abilities as noted for its race. Dragons do not gain the benefits of the new level until able to rest and grow in this manner.
Natural Armor: Dragons' scales get thicker and harder as they grow and advance in level, as indicated in the table above.
Attacks: Dragons have many natural attacks, which they gain based on size. See the Monster Manual, page 68, for descriptions of these attacks. The damage from these attacks is also based on size, as shown in the table below (for sizes above Colossal, the standard rules for increasing weapon damage with increasing size apply to each attack):

Dragon Size 1 Bite
(1× STR bonus)		 2 Claws
(½× STR bonus each)		 2 Wings
(½× STR bonus each)		 1 Tail Slap
(1½× STR bonus)		 1 Crush
(1½× STR bonus)		 1 Tail Sweep
(1½× STR bonus)
Tiny 1d4 1d3 - - - -
Small 1d6 1d4 - - - -
Medium-size 1d8 1d6 1d4 - - -
Large 2d6 1d8 1d6 1d8 - -
Huge 2d8 2d6 1d8 2d6 2d8 -
Gargantuan 4d6 2d8 2d6 2d8 4d6 2d6
Colossal 4d8 4d6 2d8 4d6 4d8 2d8
Immense 8d6 4d8 4d6 4d8 8d6 4d6
    A dragon always has one attack with each of the above natural attacks in a round that has a listed damage in the table; however, a Full Attack is necessary to use all available weapons in a single round. A dragon without a Full Attack as an option must choose only one natural attack to make, and in the case of a Claw or Wing attack is only allowed one such attack rather than two. The Crush and Tail Sweep attacks require standard actions in their own right to execute, and are therefore not available as part of a Full Attack, but otherwise any of the natural attacks may be used for the standard attack (in contrast to the Monster Manual description). Of course, most dragons choose the Bite as the weapon used for a standard attack, since it has the best damage rating unless the individual's STR modifier is high enough to warrant using the Tail Slap instead (for getting the 1½× bonus to damage rather than the Bite's 1× bonus). If a dragon does have Full Attack available, then one attack (typically the Bite) is the primary weapon, and the remaining attacks are all made at -5 (many dragons choose the Multiattack feat at some point to lower this penalty to -2). Again, the Bite is typically chosen as the primary attack in that case, though PC dragons are not strictly required to do so.
Breath Weapon: All dragons have breath weapons, but the exact natures of these breath weapons depend on race. However, breath weapons become more powerful, and harder to save against, as the dragon gains levels. Each racial type uses a different damage die and has a different breath form (for instance, Red dragons breathe cones of fire using d10s for damage, while Green dragons breathe clouds of corrosive chlorine gas using d6s). Regardless of the form and die used, however, the advancement of the breath weapon's power is given on the table above. Note that if the dragon race's listed "damage die" is multiple dice, or includes an addition (for instance 2d4, or 1d4+1), then that listed die amount is multiplied as given above regardless of the final numbers that results in (thus, a Wyrmling of such a race does 4d4 damage, or 2d4+2, with its breath). The listed DC is the DC needed to save against the breath weapon for half damage, but the standard DCs listed above are further modified by the dragon's race and CON modifier. A dragon is always immune to its own breath weapon.
    Dragon breath weapons come in four general types, three of which emanate directly from the dragon's mouth. All four types are area effects, with range and size determined by the size of the breathing dragon, as noted in the table below. A line is always 5 feet wide and high, and starts at the dragon's mouth, going out to the appropriate range in a direction of the dragon's choosing. A cone also starts at the dragon's mouth, and is as high and wide as the range at the far end. An emanation is always centered on the dragon's mouth, and has a radius as noted in the table below. Finally, a burst starts as a projectile that the dragon spits, which moves in a straight line until it encounters a solid object or the limit of the listed range, at which time it explodes in a burst with radius equal to half the range. The ranges are:
Dragon Size Line Cone Emanation Burst
Tiny 30 feet 15 feet 10 feet 20 feet
Small 40 feet 20 feet 15 feet 30 feet
Medium-size 60 feet 30 feet 20 feet 40 feet
Large 80 feet 40 feet 30 feet 60 feet
Huge 100 feet 50 feet 40 feet 70 feet
Gargantuan 120 feet 60 feet 50 feet 90 feet
Colossal 140 feet 70 feet 60 feet 120 feet
Immense 160 feet 80 feet 70 feet 140 feet
    After using its breath weapon, a dragon must recharge the gland that allows it the capability in the first place, and cannot use its breath weapon again for 1d4 rounds. A dragon is always aware of how much time remains before its breath weapon becomes available again, and can adjust its tactics accordingly; PC dragons can, in other words, roll the die themselves if desired. If the delay comes up as 1 round, then the dragon may breathe again on its next turn, in the next round. Some dragons use "metabreath" feats to alter their breath weapons in specific ways; such feats always increase the delay before the breath weapon may be used again as part of their functioning.
Fear: Dragons of Young Adult age or higher generally have an aura of "dragonfear" or "frightful presence" which unsettles foes and prey that get too close to it. Creatures within 30 feet × the dragon's age category, and which have less hit dice than the dragon, must make a Will save at the listed DC or be affected. Creatures which save successfully are immune to the dragon's fear for one day; those who fail are either panicked (if 4 HD or less) or shaken (if 5 HD or more) until the dragon is far enough away. Dragons are, of course, immune to the fear aura of other dragons, regardless of the relative power of the dragons involved. The dragonfear save DCs given in the class table above are, as with those given for breath weapons, the standard baseline and are further modified by individual dragons (by a racial bonus and the individual's CHA modifier).
SR or PR: Dragons of Young Adult age or higher gain natural resistance to spells and psionic powers, as noted in the table above. The listed level is only for either Spell Resistance (SR) or Power Resistance (PR), never for both at the same time- individual dragon races list whether they gain SR or PR. However, every dragon with SR automatically has PR equal to the listed amount minus 5; for instance, a dragon with SR 17 has PR 12. Dragons with PR, of course, instead gain SR this way. In general, dragons with psionic manifester levels gain a higher PR, whereas dragons with spellcaster levels gain SR.
Damage Reduction: Dragons of Young Adult age or higher have scales and hide of such thickness that many attacks simply bounce off and deal no damage whatsoever. Dragons of appropriate level have the listed damage reduction ability for that level.
Senses: Dragon senses are vastly superior to most other races' senses. A dragon sees four times as well as a human in low-light conditions, and twice as well in normal conditions. Dragons also have Darkvision with a range of 100 feet per age category. Finally, dragons have such finely tuned nonvisual senses that they have Blindsense, in a radius of 20 feet + 10 feet per level in the Dragon class.
Spell-Like Abilities: All dragons gain spell-like abilities as they grow older. These spell-like abilities are magical (even if they duplicate psionic powers, and the dragon race is normally psionic), unless otherwise noted in the ability description. Saving throws against dragon spell-like abilities have a DC of 10 + the dragon's CHA modifier + the spell or power level of the ability.
Spells: Some dragons can cast spells. Usually they just use the Wizard/Sorceror spell lists to decide what spells they can cast, but a number of dragon races can also cast spells from the Cleric or Druid lists, and/or some Domain lists. Regardless of where the spells come from, however, a Dragon always learns its spells as if it were a Sorcerer of the given Caster Level, and casts them as Arcane spells, affected by its CHA modifier. The spells a dragon gains at any given level are not in the table above; rather, individual dragon races (for instance, Gold or Red) gain spells at different times, as noted in their race descriptions (however, once spellcasting is gained, the dragon always starts at 1st level, and gains exactly 2 levels per age category- i.e. every 3 Dragon levels- thereafter). In general, dragons capable of spellcasting become 1st level casters at Young age (level 7) and gain 2 caster levels per age category. Caster level is always based on age category, and not dragon level. Dragons with actual levels in Sorcerer (and only Sorcerer) combine this natural casting ability with their class levels, for the purpose of determining actual caster level. Dragons can usually choose whether to be Wild or Structured casters, but a few races (notably, Gray and Radium) mandate that a dragon be one or the other. In this case, a dragon with Sorceror levels must pick according to the mandate; for instance, Gray dragons with Sorcerer levels are always Wild Sorcerers. All dragons able to cast spells naturally (i.e. from their Dragon class levels) have a racial bonus of +1/Dragon class level to Spellcraft checks. Note that many dragons eventually gain spellcasting ability over level 20; this ability includes Ultramagic spell slots and the ability to learn Ultramagic spells as feats, just like normal spellcasters of that level. However, dragons without Cleric or Druid class levels do not normally gain access to Godspells, even if they normally can learn and cast Cleric or Druid spells, because the vast majority of Godspell feats require actual granted Domains (which Dragons, despite having access to some Domain spells, do not technically have).
Psionics: Some dragons can manifest psionic powers, using the Psion/Wilder list. Each dragon race lists whether it gains psionic powers in this manner or not. Dragons with natural psionic manifester abilities are treated as Wilders of the appropriate level for determining power effects and power point totals. Furthermore, dragons with levels in Wilder (and only Wilder) combine the benefits gained from the class with their dragon manifester levels, for determining actual manifester level. Effective manifester levels gained through the Dragon class are always determined by age category, not actual Dragon level- they gain the 1st manifester level at the listed age (usually Young), and gain 2 manifester levels every age category (3 Dragon levels) thereafter. All dragons able to manifest psionic powers naturally (i.e. from their Dragon class levels) have a racial bonus of +1/Dragon class level to Psicraft checks. Note that some dragons eventually gain manifesting ability over level 20; this ability grants them the ability to learn and manifest Ultrapsionic powers as normal Wilders of that level. Dragons must learn Ultrapsionic powers as feats, like a normal psionic character.
Feats: Dragons have access to many special feats, given their monstrous heritage. The list of official monstrous feats is too long to include here, but good references for such feats are the Monster Manual (Chapter 6, beginning on page 303), Savage Species (chapter 4, beginning on page 29), and the Draconomicon (section in chapter 2, pages 67-75). Multiattack, Snatch, Flyby Attack, and feats which improve spell-like abilities and the dragon's breath weapons(s) (especially the Metabreath category of feats) are all common choices of dragons.
Languages: Dragons start with Draconic as their given language, and bonus languages equal to their INT modifier.
Gold and Hoard: Dragons start with 2d4 × 100 gold in coins and items, to form their starting hoard, and a lair to keep it in (the details of the lair should be worked out with the DM in the case of PC dragons). Dragons need to have gold value in their hoards in order to advance levels; a dragon must have no less than 100 gold times his or her current level, times his or her age category (for instance, Wyrmling is 1, Very Young is 2, etc.) in the hoard in order to gain a new level, even if the dragon has more than enough XP to advance otherwise. Note that this "gold" need not be in the form of actual coins; gems, for instance, count their listed GP value towards the amount of the hoard, as do magic items and other special items. Between level-ups, the dragon can have any amount in its hoard, including an amount too small for its current level; however, going below 100 gold per level per age category causes the dragon to take 1 negative level until the gold value reaches the minimum required amount again, except in the case of 1st level dragons, who lose nothing except their pride. Dragons whose negative level should force them to lose an age category do not suddenly grow smaller and lose ability points; instead, they simply lose the powers listed for the appropriate level in the table above.