How to roleplay a Brainstealer Dragon

[atemu1234]

I'm running a campaign where the PCs (alignments ~chaotic good-ish) have to work with a Brainstealer dragon. How can I do this without A) causing the party paladin (i said -ish) to fall for associating with an admittedly evil foe and B) making it seem like the players aren't just doing it because the DM told them to.

What circumstances could cause this, more or less?

Also, how should I roleplay a lawful evil brainstealer dragon (Dragon magazine)?

[Flickerdart]

How can I do this without A) causing the party paladin (i said -ish) to fall for associating with an admittedly evil foe
You can't. "A paladin will never knowingly associate with evil characters."

[atemu1234]

You can't. "A paladin will never knowingly associate with evil characters."

Under any circumstances?

[Melayl]

You can't. "A paladin will never knowingly associate with evil characters."

Knowingly is the keyword, here...

[Dalasio]

Under any circumstances?
..No. That is totally against their code.

[Jack_Simth]

Knowingly is the keyword, here...

Agreed. Paladin's don't get much in the way of skill points for Knowledge(Arcana), Sense Motive, and similiar; Undetectable Alignment is a spell (and there's a ring for it), and Bluff is a skill. If the Brainstealer doesn't do obvious evil stuff while Mr. Goody-two-shoes is around, and hides the evidence, it's not hard.

[Graypairofsocks]

If anyone needs to find it: the Dragon magazine issue in which the Brainstealer Dragon is found is 337.


There is this online list which indexes various things found in dragon magazine: http://www.aeolia.net/dragondex.