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Author Topic: Are Dragons just Mighty Beasts, or are they also Powerful Casters in your games?  (Read 2149 times)

Slambo

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Like all things, DCC has a random table for generating dragons and i really likemhaving uniquendragons. Though honestly i think the table. could have even more added to it.

Pat
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Yeah, it's really easy to whip together a first draft of a random dragon table. But covering a wide range of legends, and thinking through the consequences, can take a lot more effort. (Yes, I'm probably overthinking it.)

Jaeger

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Dragons are the "Apex Predator" of many D&D settings. They prey on everything, NOTHING preys on them. When they appear, the most voracious attacker should flee immediately. And they have the intelligence of the wolf pack: dragons might ANTICIPATE what their prey does next. Their instincts are far superior to all other creatures.

They could portray a beast very much akin to an "elemental disaster": like a tornado or hurricane. Something so terrible it terrified the best armies. Their ferocity drives the nightmarish rumors that drift across a kingdom.

...

I have never liked the idea of Dragons as spellcasters.

Because they shouldn't need it.

Smaug from the hobbit, and similar dragons from myths have always been my model.

I always have seen them as The Apex predator. Old, cunning, and not to be awakened from their long slumbers.

No PC can fight a Dragon one on one and live. Or even a group for that matter.

Want to kill that dragon? A big pointy stick lance/pike, in its sleep, and you better kill it with one shot!

Oh, you woke it up?

Now it is time to outfit a bunch of hirelings with pikes and lie your ass off and promise them more treasure than you are actually willing to give. Its ok though because they will mostly go up in a fiery inferno.

Gotta get mules to haul that ballista up the mountain to the mouth of its lair.

Everyone gets a tall shield so you have a wisp of a chance if it breaths fire on you.

Oh and you better set that Giant Falling spear trap well: (Like this but think BIG.)


You only got one shot motherfucker.

And then of course there is the issue of finding someone crazy enough to go into the lair and lure the thing out...

Oh your trap missed? And your ballista shot missed?

Your pike rush failed?

Well on the one hand you no longer have to back up any of your promises to your hirelings.

On the other hand you're half burnt, and all your horses are dead or running.

Time to find a nice hole to hide in, and wait until the damn thing goes back in its cave.

Then when a window of opportunity presents itself you can then bravely and in the finest heroic tradition; make a break for it.
"The envious are not satisfied with equality; they secretly yearn for superiority and revenge."

This Guy
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they're an oppressed people unjustly hunted by humans and are looking to initiate dialog viss-a-viss the reappropriation of their hordes
I don't want to play with you.

SHARK

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Greetings!

Indeed, Dragons are of course an iconic and terrifying creature within a campaign world. In my own campaign world, I generally use three different kinds of dragons; Linnorms--a kind of Nordic style dragon, usually at least semi-intelligent, and physically powerful, but not generally known as spellcasters. Then, there are a kind of standard Drake--basically similar in statistics and abilities as Linnorms, but having a different appearance. Then, there are the primordial Dragons, which have magical powers, spellcasting abilities, in addition to their impressive and awe-inspiring physical abilities, much like a quasi-natural disaster striking an area, like a flood, hurricane, or a volcano blasting off in eruption. I like having a variety of dragons in the campaign. It is always nice having some super-epic monstrosity as an encounter in an great, heroic adventure, for higher-level characters. That kind of encounter gets armies marching, kings involved, with economy-swaying influences, as well as having significant impact on the campaign region as a whole. However, especially for lower-level character parties, it is also great fun to have lower-level dragons living in various dungeons and lairs across the land, serving as low-to-mid-tier opponents, as well as potential allies and friends, in an environment where fighting them and defeating them serves as a huge embellishment of the Character's reputations, infusion of wealth and treasures, as well as acting as potentially very important story or plot points during the campaign--all while not necessarily having some huge impact on the region's economy or political environment as a whole.

Semper Fidelis,

SHARK
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Dropbear

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I have had dragons of both types in past games, and I guarantee you that the players in those were more frightened of the spellcasting dragons.

I haven’t quite made up my mind what type I’d like to use in my next AD&D 2E game but it will be either Dark Sun or Planescape or Glantri depending upon my players’ selection. Ravaging beast for certain in Dark Sun, probably caster for Planescape, and possibly a mix of both for Glantri.

BoxCrayonTales

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One thing I've really come to like about dragons is the sheer variety in various legends. Dragons like poisonous, regenerating serpents. Dragons with shells, dragons with fur, dragons with multiple heads, and a zillion other options. I always meant to create a dragon-generator, using those myths to make each new dragon unique.

https://cyborgsandsorcerers.blogspot.com/2020/05/making-dragons-awesome-again.html
http://oldguardgamingaccoutrements.blogspot.com/2009/10/unexpurgated-dragon-generator.html
https://www.reddit.com/r/DnDBehindTheScreen/comments/5k7g67/random_dragon_generator/
« Last Edit: May 14, 2021, 08:58:27 PM by BoxCrayonTales »