Spells for dragon

[Balor01]

Can you guys suggest me CORE ONLY spells for my dracolich? I'd like some utility, logical for such a creature, but also some ... other stuff. My basic idea was for him to cast AMF and go full ham on enemies. But I'd appreciate spell selection that somehow stacks ... or something. Suggestions welcome & much appreciated :)

thanks :)

LE Ancient Blue Dracolich Gargantuan Undead HD: 33d12 (214 hp) Init +0

Spd 40 ft. (8 squares), burrow 20 ft., fly 200 ft. (clumsy)

AC 40 (–4 size, +34 natural), touch 8, flat- footed 42

Base Attack/Grapple: +33/+57

Attack: Bite +41 melee (4d6+12)

Full Attack: Bite +41 melee (4d6+12) and 2 claws +36 melee (2d8+6) and 2 wings +36 melee (2d6+6) and tail slap +36 melee (2d8+18)

Space/Reach: 20 ft./15 ft.

Special Attacks: Breath weapon, control undead, create/destroy water, crush, frightful presence, paralyzing gaze, paralyzing touch, rend, snatch, spell-like abilities, spells, tail sweep

Special Qualities: Blindsense 60 ft., damage reduction 15/magic and 5/bludgeoning, darkvision 120 ft., immunity to cold, electricity, magic sleep effects, polymorph, and paralysis, invulnerability, keen senses, low-light vision,spell resistance 30, undead traits

Str 35, Dex 10, Con —, Int 20, Wis 21, Cha 22 Fort +18, Ref +18, Will +23

Skills: Bluff +42, Concentration +27, Disguise +6 (+8acting), Diplomacy +46, Gather Information +8, Hide +19, Intimidate +44, Knowledge (arcana) +24, Knowledge (geography) +15, Knowledge (history) +15, Knowledge (local) +15, Knowledge (nature) +15, Knowledge (religion) +15, Listen +41, Search +41, Sense Motive +41, Spellcraft +43, Spot +41, Survival +5 (+7 aboveground natural environments, avoiding getting lost, following tracks)

Feats: Blind-Fight, Combat Expertise, Extend Spell, Flyby Attack, Hover, Improved Maneuverability, Large and in Charge, Power Attack, Recover Breath, Rend, Shape Breath, Snatch

Challenge Rating: 23

Treasure: 301.800 gp



Combat

This dracolich uses its spells to warn of and spy on approaching enemies, ensuring that it knows enough to defend itself. It prefers hit-and-run tactics, using dimension door to come and go as it pleases. It separates targets with spells such as solid fog and web, and then picks off lone foes.

This dracolich also uses any magic items in its possession to best effect (generate its treasure according to the normal rules or use the sample CR 23 dragon hoard in Appendix 1).

This dracolich’s natural weapons are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.

Breath Weapon (Su): 120-ft. line (60-ft. cone if shaped), 20d8 electricity, Reflex DC 32 half.

Frightful Presence (Ex): This dracolich can unsettle foes with its mere presence. The ability takes effect automatically whenever it attacks, charges, or flies overhead. Creatures within a radius of 180 feet are subject to the effect if they have fewer than 35 HD. A potentially affected creature that succeeds on a DC 32 Will save remains immune to its frightful presence for 24 hours. On a failure, creatures with 4 or fewer HD become panicked for 4d6 rounds and those with 5 or more HD become shaken for 4d6 rounds. Dracoliches ignore the frightful presence of other dracoliches.

Rend (Ex): Extra damage 4d8+18.

Snatch (Ex): Against Medium or smaller creatures, bite for 4d6+12/round or claw for 2d8+6/round.

Invulnerability: If a dracolich is slain, its spirit immediately returns to its phylactery, from where it may attempt to possess a suitable corpse.

Keen Senses (Ex): This dracolich sees four times as well as a human in low-light conditions and twice as well in normal light. It also has darkvision out to 120 feet.

Paralyzing Gaze (Su): The gaze of a dracolich’s glowing eyes can paralyze victims within 40 feet if they fail a DC 24 Fortitude save. If the saving throw is successful, the character is forever immune to the gaze of that particular dracolich. If it fails, the victim is paralyzed for 2d6 rounds.

Paralyzing Touch (Su):A creature struck by any of this dracolich’s physical attacks must make a DC 24 Fortitude save or be paralyzed for 2d6 rounds. A successful saving throw against this effect does not confer any immunity against subsequent attacks.

Spell-Like Abilities: 3/day— create/destroy water (Will DC 32 negates), ventriloquism (DC 17); 1/day— hallucinatory terrain (DC 20) , veil (DC 22). Caster level 33rd.

Spells: As 13th-level sorcerer.

Tail Sweep (Ex): A dracolich can sweep with its tail as a standard action. The sweep affects a half-circle with a diameter of 30 feet. It deals 2d6+21 points of damage to Small or smaller creatures (Reflex DC 32 half ).

Undead Traits: A dracolich is immune to mind-affecting effects, poison, magic sleep effects, paralysis, stunning, dis- ease, death effects, and any effect that requires a Fortitude save unless it also works on objects or is harmless. It is not subject to critical hits, nonlethal damage, ability damage to its physical ability scores, ability drain, energy drain, fatigue, exhaustion, or death from massive damage. It cannot be raised, and resurrection works only if it is willing.

Spells Known

(6/8/8/7/7/7/5; save DC 16 + spell level):

0— dancing lights, daze, detect magic, ghost sound, mage hand, mending, ray of frost, read magic;

1: Wall of Smoke, Grease, Expeditious Retreat, Silent Image, Charm person

2: Glitterdust, Rope Trick, Invisibility, Fog Cloud

3: Dispel magic, Sleet Storm, Stinking Cloud, Tongues

4: Dimension Door, Solid Fog, Animate dead, bestow Curse

5: Teleport, Cloudkill, Mage’s Private Sanctum
6: True Seeing, Antimagic Field

[Wacky89]

when you say core do you mean PHB only or is Spell Compendium allowed?

[Balor01]

{{scrubbed}}

[ace rooster]

I think I should highlight that blue dragons have access to the cleric list and air, evil, and law domains. This means that animate dead and bestow curse can be third level spells to start. It also adds a few fun spells to the list. Harm is a nice attack/heal spell for him, and spell immunity is fun if it knows what it will be up against, and wall of stone is great for splitting threats. Desecrate is a nice long duration boost to have on a lair, and boosts undead created. The really funny ones are antilife shell and control winds. Antilife shell prevents creatures coming within 10ft of you. This is really funny when you have a reach of greater than 10ft :smalltongue:, and you are fighting something that does not (A charging PC for example) (May or may not work, depending on how eminations are ruled to function). No save. Sanctuary is nice for a similar effect, but has drawbacks.

True seeing is powerful, but you might find better on a creature that already has a sky high will save, blind sense and an unlimited area attack. Divination seems thematic, and scrying should maybe be available to him too. Private sanctum and rope trick seem odd on a dragon, as they suggest that it will be resting away from it's hoard.

Hope this has given you something to think about.

Edit: it didn't look like a troll attempt, just genuine confusion based on the fact that some of the spells you have already given it are in SC.

[Balor01]

Hah, my sincere bad then, Wacky89. I have thought I have pruned spell list of all non-core spells.

And thanks, ace rooster :D

[Wacky89]

{{scrubbed}}

[Astralia123]

I think I should highlight that blue dragons have access to the cleric list and air, evil, and law domains. This means that animate dead and bestow curse can be third level spells to start. It also adds a few fun spells to the list. Harm is a nice attack/heal spell for him, and spell immunity is fun if it knows what it will be up against, and wall of stone is great for splitting threats. Desecrate is a nice long duration boost to have on a lair, and boosts undead created. The really funny ones are antilife shell and control winds. Antilife shell prevents creatures coming within 10ft of you. This is really funny when you have a reach of greater than 10ft :smalltongue:, and you are fighting something that does not (A charging PC for example) (May or may not work, depending on how eminations are ruled to function). No save. Sanctuary is nice for a similar effect, but has drawbacks.

True seeing is powerful, but you might find better on a creature that already has a sky high will save, blind sense and an unlimited area attack. Divination seems thematic, and scrying should maybe be available to him too. Private sanctum and rope trick seem odd on a dragon, as they suggest that it will be resting away from it's hoard.

Hope this has given you something to think about.

Edit: it didn't look like a troll attempt, just genuine confusion based on the fact that some of the spells you have already given it are in SC.

Very educating.

As it is suggested that the dracolich basically engages in melee with AMF on, I guess it basic tactics should be like this:
First throw something nasty on the PCs when it's approaching with high speed (or hiding behind a door if they encounter in the dragon's dungeon). This could be something that deals bunch of damage like empowered maximized fireball, or some debuffs.
In second round, it may use some spells to split the PC formation, especially those need more than one round to get out (like Force Cage, Wall of Stone, or sth like enlarged Solid Fog or Sleet Storm combined with a Slow).
Or it may cast a quickened spell with a metamagic rod or a quickened spell-like ability that can split the PCs, and then AMF on itself. It engages in melee with the spellcaster in this round if possible. Black Dragons, White Dragons and Blue Dragons have effective area spell-like abilities that can do the job.
If it cannot get in melee range with the spellcasters, it may use spells like Enervation or Black Tentacles to weaken them or get them busy, and then flies/burrows away, just to return with more offensive spells next round.

The idea is that, it first weakens/splits the PCs, and then quickly get rid of spellcasters with full-round attack or grappling when the other party members are struggling to get out.
Many different spells or abilities could do the trick, depending on what environment you are fighting in - forest, water body, mountains, under ground tunnels or desert.

[Roland St. Jude]

Sheriff: Locked for review.