Dragon Questions

[Deaxsa]

EDIT: I am asking about true dragons.

I have a number of questions about dragons, and i'll post them as i come across them. For starters, here are a number:


1. Dragon Spellcasting: I don't get it. Do they cast exactly as a sorcerer (spells known and all that stuff) or do they just cast off of the entire sorcerer list? what about access to cleric spells? Because it specifically says:

Some dragons can also cast spells from the cleric list or cleric domain lists as arcane spells.
And then, in each metallic dragon's entry:

Can also cast cleric spells and those from the X, Y, and Z domains as arcane spells.
So, does the dragon know all dragon spells? Or is it more like the Rainbow Servant, where they only get those spells added to their list, but still have to choose them as a known spell to be able to cast them? Or do they get the domain (and the subsequent bonus domain spells per day), like a cleric?

2. Where/How do the Dragons dispose of their Dead?

3. How long does a Dragon's dead Hide last before decomposing? That is, if some adventurers came upon the site of a dragon battle, would they be beyond rich?

4. Are the Dragon's Natural Weapons considered Magical? They don't get access to magic fang or the greater variety, would they have to befriend a druid or ranger with item creation feats for Magical Weapons?

5. What are some of the better feats a dragon could take? At least, in your opinion.

[Gemini476]

5. What are some of the better feats a dragon could take? At least, in your opinion.

It really, really depends on what kind of dragon you are. Dragonwrought Kobolds are probably one of the best for PCs (La+0!), for instance, but for most other dragons a PC is probably going to be a Young Adult at most.

Why does this matter? Because Dragons that are Old or older can take [Epic] feats without being over level 20. Most still need a bunch of skill ranks you can't get, but some of them are pretty nice. Epic Toughness gives +30 HP!

Oh, and Dragons auto-qualify for any feat with the Dragonblood prerequisite due to bad wording. This is more useful for Kobolds than anyone else, though, since most other Dragons already have wings/tails/etc. I'm sure there are some neat ones, though.

[Segev]

1. Dragon Spellcasting: I don't get it. Do they cast exactly as a sorcerer (spells known and all that stuff) or do they just cast off of the entire sorcerer list? what about access to cleric spells?Dragons learn spells as if they were sorcerers of the specified level. Those who can cast cleric or domain spells as arcane spells have those added to their "sorcerer class spell list," but must pick and choose amongst them in addition to the traditional sorcerer spells to fill "spells known" slots. A dragon who thus learns Cure Light Wounds did not learn another first level Sorcerer spell in its place.


2. Where/How do the Dragons dispose of their Dead?Really depends on the setting, the culture of dragons in that setting, and in some cases the specific dragon.

The Draconomicon has some suggestions, however, which includes "dragons dying of old age fly to a dragon graveyard and pass away there" as the most common. Dragons that die in combat presumably are harvested for materials, so whoever defeated them probably takes care of the disposal.


3. How long does a Dragon's dead Hide last before decomposing? That is, if some adventurers came upon the site of a dragon battle, would they be beyond rich?This is purely up to the DM. Dragons do decompose, however, so I'd probably give it just a couple of days before internal "dragon juices" start ruining the hide's normally impressive durability.


4. Are the Dragon's Natural Weapons considered Magical? They don't get access to magic fang or the greater variety, would they have to befriend a druid or ranger with item creation feats for Magical Weapons?Creatures with DR x/magic have natural weapons that count as "magic" for purposes of overcoming DR.


5. What are some of the better feats a dragon could take? At least, in your opinion.Improved Maneuverability and Wingover are cool for a more mobile flyer.

[ellindsey]

2. Where/How do the Dragons dispose of their Dead?


The Draconomicon has elaborate fluff about dragon graveyards, and how they are guarded by the spirits of dead dragons against those who would pulunder them for dragon bones or any pieces of treasure that the dragons might have had on or in them. There is also a bit about how a very old dragon can consume its treasure hoard and then transform itself into part of the landscape, becoming an eternal guardian of a location.

[Deaxsa]

Because Dragons that are Old or older can take [Epic] feats without being over level 20.

...Want to give me a book and page number for that? Besides, all true dragons get access to epic feats at or before that: Black at Mature Adult, Blue at Adult, Green at Mature Adult, Red at Adult, White at (surprisingly) Mature Adult, Brass at Mature Adult, Bronze at Adult, Copper at Mature Adult, Gold at Adult (nearly Young Adult), and Silver at Adult.

What other types of dragons have age categories?

[Karnith]

...Want to give me a book and page number for that?
Draconomicon, p. 66, under the "Epic Feats" heading.

[Ignominia]

As far as dragon spell casting goes, I have always gone with this.

The Level indicated in a dragons entry, in this example we will use a Young Adult Red, which is 5th is the level of sorcerer they are considered. So, as a 5th level sorcerer, he knows 6-0 level, 4-1st level, 2-3rd level. He can chose any spells off of the sorcerer list AS WELL AS the cleric list and the chaos, evil and fire domain list and use them as if they are sorcerer spells. He basically has an expanded spell list to chose from, however, that does not mean that he can know more spells than a regular 5th level sorcerer would.

so, as an example, he could know,

1st - Magic Missile (sor), Cure Light (cleric), Protection from good (evil domain) and Shield (sor)
2nd - Produce Flame (fire domain), Cure Moderate (Cleric)

and he could cast them a number of times per day as a sorcerer of 5th level.

Hopefully that helps, and hopefully Im right in the way I've been interpreting it :smallsmile:

[Gemini476]

...Want to give me a book and page number for that? Besides, all true dragons get access to epic feats at or before that: Black at Mature Adult, Blue at Adult, Green at Mature Adult, Red at Adult, White at (surprisingly) Mature Adult, Brass at Mature Adult, Bronze at Adult, Copper at Mature Adult, Gold at Adult (nearly Young Adult), and Silver at Adult.

What other types of dragons have age categories?

All Lesser Dragons also have Old as one of their age categories, even though they don't have twelve of them.

So yeah, Half-Dragons and Dragon Turtles and who knows what else.

I think the reason that text is there is because the writers for some reason thought the "can only take [epic] feats after 21st level" thing meant that you have to have 21 levels in classes, rather than just 21HD? I mean, look at it. "Dragons of at least old age also can choose these feats even if they have no class levels."

[Bronk]

There is also - and I can't remember what it's called - a true dragon that has only one racial hit die per age category...

I don't suppose anyone remembers what that was? I just tried to look for it and came up empty.