Need Help Making Bazil Broketail-style Dragon PC Race

[Masked Brute]

In some spare time I have been working on a 5e campaign idea that involved creating PCs like the Battledragons in Christopher Rowley's Bazil Broketail books.

For those that haven't read, in the books "dragons" are distantly descended from the mythical big Dragons. The different breeds range a bit in size, speed, toughness, and disposition.

Bazil himself is on the lighter and more maneuverable end of things (his breed nicknamed a "leatherback"), and this is his general size:

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/518XASQWD3L.jpg
https://68.media.tumblr.com/5a0ee974082983b13dd1def82367b6d7/tumblr_omocphdMZD1u69008o6_400.jpg

I know that Large PCs aren't really a thing, though they have gotten big characters done within the system in some cool ways, but that's mostly because the size issues can make group playability an issue (like, say, for dungeon-crawling).

For the campaign and setting I am working on some of those concerns shouldn't be an issue, and others are part of the point; every Drake is paired with a human kid (16+ but most are still young) who helped raise them and bonds with them when both are young. In-setting this is done largely because, left to their own devices, drakes are considered by those in power to be impulsive, dangerous, and far to independent-minded to do anything but fight wildly or cause trouble.

I plan on working on some options (through Backgrounds and other stuff) that will allow someone to play a Drake or one of these Bonded without another PC on the other side, and for making playing a duo a fun experience.

The various sub-races I've been fiddling with are loosely based on real groups of lizards, and their names are all up for debate.

Here is the outline that I have so far:

Race: Drakes

Size: Large
- The world is not made for them or things their size, making dealing with tight spaces, tiny tools, and other things in the predominately human world rather difficult. They have Disadvantage in some enclosed spaces, and when most using tools, items, and weapons not made specifically for their use.
- Melee attacks that hit do an extra 1d4 of damage.
- Drake tools, items, weapons, light armor, and medium armor: 2x Cost and Weight
- Drake heavy armor: 4x Cost and Weight
Predator's Maw:
- Descended from coastal and marsh hunters.
- Bite attacks do an additional d4 of damage (so 2d4 total). This does not stack with the bonus from Size.
Thick Hide:
- Drakes have a wide variety of skin textures, but all are thick and resistant to the teeth of other predators.
- Damage Resistance against non-magical Piercing.
Sharp Senses:
- Never lost their hungry and wary perspective on the world, still very sensitive to the smell of prey and the approach of potential threats.
- Skill Proficiency in Perception.



Drake Sub-Race: Sandskins

Originally native to dry desert regions, they're most recognizable for their pale coloration, odd gaits, and for weirding out humans with odd behavior. Also, they prefer to eat their food while it is still alive and that's not always easy for humans to handle. They are generally 12-14ft from nose to tail, but tend to go on all fours when at rest and are about 5-7ft high at the shoulder, meaning they don't tower over humans like their cousins.

Deadly Bite:
- They have a terribly infectious bite, only a real threat once they are adults, which makes it easier to kill.
- Requires victim to make a Constitution Save with a DC of 8+Constitution+Proficiency. Save or take (1/4 Level)d8 Poison damage. If reduced to 0 hit points the victim is Stable but paralyzed + poisoned for 1hr.
Cunning:
- Sandskins like to watch and mimic others, seeking to understand their environment before they grow too comfortable.
- Wisdom +1.
Swaying Gait:
- It doesn't become obvious until they really get moving, but Sandskins have almost awkwardly long limbs that make them seem to shimmy when walking and look bizarre when running.
- +10ft to Speed.


Drake Sub-Race: Pebbletails

Originally native to warm coastal regions, Pebbletails are often considered rather clever by humans and maybe a bit too human by other drakes. Their skin is often green, grey, or even blue and often has traces of all three. The defining feature of this type, however, is their flexible and quick tail with the thicker hide that gives them their name. They are primarily bipedal, and stand about 10-12 feet tall.

Whip Strike:
- It is exceedingly dangerous to be distracted around a Pebbletail drake, and their tail makes sure that combatants feel constantly harassed.
- If a Pebbletail hits an enemy in melee combat and are within 5ft. of an ally, they do an additional 1d6 damage. This increases to 2d6 at level 5, 3d6 at level 11, and 4d6 at level 17.
Agile:
- Compared to other drakes they are better with their hands, more flexible, and quicker on their feet.
- Dexterity +1.
Man-Speaker:
- Something about Pebbletails makes other drakes look to them when dealing with humans; maybe it's their own eccentric minds, maybe it's that humans see more of themselves in the way Pebbletails act, but they just get people.
- Skill Proficiency in Insight.


I have two more (Glasseyes, who are basically crocodiles, and Gravelhides, who are tanks) but need to get off the computer for a bit.

Feedback is appreciated.

[PeteNutButter]

Do you want to make these balanced with existing races? As it stands they well beyond the power scope of a normal PC race.

Keep in mind no race gets a straight up damage boost all day. When making monster races for Volos they either took away any extra damage, like from orcs or hobgoblins or made it rest dependent like goblins and assimar.

No existing race gets an outright damage boost at will. Giving that out would be nothing short of a straight up power bump. The nearest thing to an outright damage boost is the kobolds pact tactics, as advantage can be a significant damage boost. The downside comes on a race that is small AND has sunlight sensitivity AND has an ability score penalty. And despite all that, pact tactics is still something that is somewhat situational, and advantage is something that is easily gained elsewhere (that doesn't stack). All that means is that a kobold can be better at some things, but other races can end up being just as good at most, but need to get their advantage another way.

These races you propose will forever do more damage than any other race. I get that you aren't giving them the str boost to try and balance it, but a str boost is more balanced as it is still capped at 20. This free +1d4 damage (or more with whip strike) is always on and stacks with everything. The only other balancing factor here is the inconvenience, which is basically a walking violation of Grod's Law. Which someone else can post, but to paraphrase it's basically don't balance abilities by making them inconvenient to use. Extra cost to items is just that.

Also the resistance to piercing damage, while cool and flavorful, is probably stronger than any other resistances given to PCs.


Solutions:
-Limit special things to once/rest. Notice the lizardfolk have a bite attack that can be used as a bonus action 1/rest. Why can't they bonus action bite all the time? Game Balance.

-Drop things off the race and add them separately as racial feats.

-Use things like Monster Levels from previous editions. Forcing the race to behind on class levels. Something like d8 hit die, str and con saves, 2 skills, all the racials. One or two levels could do it.

-Don't worry about balance and leave them as is for fun.

I like the flavor and I always want to make large races, but adding that +1d4 damage like the enlarge spell is really hard to balance. I'd make them take first level in "Dragon" class level, which just gives them their racials. Additionally make the resistance to piercing damage nonmagical only to bring it in line with barbarians. Make the deadly bite and whip strike 1/short rest. Reword the bite to be like lizardfolk (unarmed strike) so it works with feats and monks and what not.

Do the dragons have any other obvious weaknesses in the books that could be implemented.

[Masked Brute]

Thank you, this is exactly the sort of feedback I was looking for.

While being physically dominant is, in many ways, part of the point of the drakes it isn't my intention to make them ridiculously overpowered so I do want to balance them a bit.

I did notice last night, when working on the last sub-race who didn't have as many notes as I remembered, that many of the abilities in the document I had used to build the originals had been updated to include the "X uses per long/short rest" language.

I'll start off by including those changes, and maybe removing or moving around a few of them if I think it'd cause the characters to end up with too much book keeping.

As for the extra damage from the size, that is a reasonable argument for removing it and my only concern then becomes that many of the advantages of being Large are themselves very situational so perhaps I should look at some other advantage.

It's been a while, but I think I may have included the extra d4 when I realized there wasn't really any consistent information on what damage Large-sized weapons did and I felt the example in some monster entries was too powerful. Hrmm.

As for the non-magical piercing damage resistance, I'll have to consider that one closely. I had originally considered something like Natural Armor, but I'll be honest and say it has always felt like a complete waste to me.

Lastly, in the books the main weaknesses of dragons are sort of situational:

1) They often have trouble understanding, or caring, about the strategy and tactics of battle once they are in it. Even the most experienced of them sometimes just shrug and do what they want, unless their companion or another dragon stops them.
2) They're vulnerable to getting snuck up on or surrounded, if not for their companion watching their back, because they present such a big target on the battlfield.
3) Due to the whole size/tools thing they can't really take care of many parts of their lives; using bandages, trimming their claws, caring for armor, and more have to be done by their companion. Not that they show a great interest in doing some of that stuff.

They also seem to be at least somewhat more vulnerable to poisons, albeit poisons delivered in dragon-size amounts.

Sorry if that's not super helpful, but I REALLY appreciate your input. Thanks so much!

[Masked Brute]

Oh, and I don't have much experience with racial feats. Is there somewhere I could learn more about creating them?

[Masked Brute]

Do you want to make these balanced with existing races? As it stands they well beyond the power scope of a normal PC race.

Keep in mind no race gets a straight up damage boost all day. When making monster races for Volos they either took away any extra damage, like from orcs or hobgoblins or made it rest dependent like goblins and assimar.

No existing race gets an outright damage boost at will. Giving that out would be nothing short of a straight up power bump. The nearest thing to an outright damage boost is the kobolds pact tactics, as advantage can be a significant damage boost. The downside comes on a race that is small AND has sunlight sensitivity AND has an ability score penalty. And despite all that, pact tactics is still something that is somewhat situational, and advantage is something that is easily gained elsewhere (that doesn't stack). All that means is that a kobold can be better at some things, but other races can end up being just as good at most, but need to get their advantage another way.

Ok, based on your advice and talking to someone else... I have adjusted & updated a few things, and compromised on others.

Hopefully this at least makes a bit more sense, even if they are still rather physically intimidating.

Race: Drakes

Size: Large
- The world is not made for them or things their size, making dealing with tight spaces, tiny tools, and other things in the predominately human world rather difficult. They have Disadvantage in some smaller enclosed spaces and when most using tools, some items, and many weapons not made specifically for their use.
- Drake-Sized Equipment, Weapons, and Armor:

Drake Weapons:

While drakes could wield the oversized weapons favored by some large creatures, they are trained and provided with adjusted human instruments. Any weapon with the Two-Handed quality may be used, and any weapon with the Versatile quality gets it's larger damage dice when used, one-handed by a drake.
If a drake ever uses a Large weapon, it acts as a Medium weapon with a +1d4 to damage (instead of doubling the damage dice or other potential modifications) but is Disadvantaged due to the unfamiliar balance, unless they gain a Proficiency in Large Weapons. Such weapons are 2x the normal cost (if purchased) and weight.
Light Armor, Tools, and other Equipment: 2x the normal cost and weight.
Heavy Armor: 4x the normal cost and weight
-All other benefits & drawbacks of being Large apply.
Predator's Maw:
- Descended from coastal and marsh hunters.
- Drakes are proficient in using their bite as a natural weapon. When drakes make a bite attack and it hits, they do 1d4 Piercing damage using Strength
Thick Hide:
- Drakes have a wide variety of skin textures, but all are thick and resistant to the teeth of other predators.
- Damage Resistance against non-magical Piercing.
Sharp Senses:
- Never lost their hungry and wary perspective on the world, still very sensitive to the smell of prey and the approach of potential threats.
- Skill Proficiency in Perception.


Drake Sub-Race: Sandskins

Originally native to dry desert regions, they're most recognizable for their pale coloration, odd gaits, and for weirding out humans with odd behavior. Also, they prefer to eat their food while it is still alive and that's not always easy for humans to handle. They are generally 12-14ft from nose to tail, but tend to go on all fours when at rest and are about 5-7ft high at the shoulder, meaning they don't tower over humans like their cousins.

Deadly Bite:
- They have a terribly infectious bite, only a real threat once they are adults, which makes it easier to kill.
- Requires victim to make a Constitution Save with a DC of 8+Constitution+Proficiency. Save or take (1/4 Level)d8 Poison damage. If reduced to 0 hit points the victim is Stable but paralyzed + poisoned for 1hr.
Cunning:
- Sandskins like to watch and mimic others, seeking to understand their environment before they grow too comfortable.
- Wisdom +1.
Swaying Gait:
- It doesn't become obvious until they really get moving, but Sandskins have almost awkwardly long limbs that make them seem to shimmy when walking and look bizarre when running.
- +10ft to Speed.


Drake Sub-Race: Pebbletails

Originally native to warm coastal regions, Pebbletails are often considered rather clever by humans and maybe a bit too human by other drakes. Their skin is often green, grey, or even blue and often has traces of all three. The defining feature of this type, however, is their flexible and quick tail with the thicker hide that gives them their name. They are primarily bipedal, and stand about 10-12 feet tall.

Whip Strike:
- It is exceedingly dangerous to be distracted around a Pebbletail drake, and their tail makes sure that combatants feel constantly harassed.
- If a Pebbletail hits an enemy in melee combat and is within 5ft. of an ally, they may choose to do an additional 1d6 damage. This increases to 2d6 at level 5, 3d6 at level 11, and 4d6 at level 17. A Pebbletail can only do this 3 times per short rest.
Agile:
- Compared to other drakes they are better with their hands, more flexible, and quicker on their feet.
- Dexterity +1.
Man-Speaker:
- Something about Pebbletails makes other drakes look to them when dealing with humans; maybe it's their own eccentric minds, maybe it's that humans see more of themselves in the way Pebbletails act, but they just get people.
- Skill Proficiency in Insight.


Drake Sub-Race: Glasseyes

Originally native to warm swamps and marsh regions, Glasseyes are perhaps the type of drake most terrifying to the average person. Their eyes are wide and staring, as if their surroundings are merely background for the next meal, and their long wide mouths bristle with unconcealed teeth. The truth is that Glasseyes are incredibly particular, about everything from temperature to music, and prone to a quiet contemplation that can lead to either a patient wisdom or constant anxiety. They are primarily bipedal, though they tend to slouch, and stand at about 12-14 feet tall.

Amphibious:
- Glasseyes are comfortable in water of all sorts, though they vastly prefer warmer climes, and naturally strong swimmers.
- 30ft. Swim Speed.
Patient:
- Hardly ever prone to hurry, but never missing the opportunity when it arises, Glasseyes are always ready. It's as if they know trouble will come, if they just wait long enough.
- Initiative +1.
Explosive Power:
- The long bodies of the Glasseyes are made of corded muscle built to overpower prey before it has a chance to flee, giving them a physical power that is not to be underestimated.
- Strength +1.
Killer Smile:
- A creature not at least a little on edge around a Glasseye is a creature without a survival instinct, or with even more teeth.
- Skill Proficiency in Intimidate.


Drake Sub-Race: Gravelhides

Originally native to the river and plain regions, Gravelhides are the least predatory of the drakes but tend to dislike change or surprises to a degree that can make them dangerous in populated areas. Their thick hides have a swirling brown, black, and white coloration with an odd bumpy texture underneath that gives them their name. They are bipedal, though they like to lie down more than other drakes and will do so at the first opportunity, and stand at about 14-16 feet tall.

Trample:
- Gravelhides are enormous, and can apply that great mass to the detriment of their enemies.
- After moving 30 or more feet the Gravelhide may make a melee attack that does an additional 1d6 Bludgeoning damage on top of what damage the attack would normally cause. This damage becomes 2d6 at level 5, 3d6 at level 11, and 4d6 at level 17. A Gravelhide can only do this 3 times per short rest.
Relentless Endurance:
- Even a true strike with a sharp blade can fail to find its mark, when attacking a Gravelhide.
- When an attack would reduce them to 0 hit points but not kill them outright, they can drop to 1 hit point instead. This can only be done once per long rest.
Built Like A Siege Engine:
- Between their muscle, natural defenses, and ability to weather almost any clime these drakes have deserved reputation for incredible endurance.
- Constitution +1.
Home in Any Clime:
- These drakes were born to wander, slowly and steadily, over vast uneven plains and through winding rocky rivers for as long as it took to find enough food to maintain their massive size. Wherever it might take them
- Skill Proficiency in Survival.


I'm not quite happy with my "tank"-type Drake there at the end. I think I am going to rework them from the ground up as more turtle-inspired.

Thank you again for your feedback!

[Masked Brute]

Ack, sorry if the nested lists make it hard to read.