[theorycrafting] Dragon preparing for a party

[Pinjata]

So ... I don't really intend to use this, but I was thinking ... Adult dragon is hundreds of years old. He has encountered dozens if not hundreds of fights. His INT is high, his WIS too. So I was thinking, dragons experience could be reflected by optimising it to fight the party. But how do you optimise? What kind of items could dragon acquire in order to buff himself?

ITT: Buffing dragon from flying pinata with nasty breath weapon to a highly optimised 3.5 player in a draconic body. How to do it?

Thanks

[MrStabby]

When it said "dragon preparing for a party" I thought you were talking about shining scales, waxing claws and other beauty tips.

So for items there may be questions about what they can wear/use/manipulate as restrictions. Might be good to know what you would rule there.

As for preparation, I would consider strategy rather than items. If the party being prepared for doesn't all have dark vision, attack them at night. Anyway, attack them at the end of an adventuring day when resources are low or in the middle of another fight. If you attack the party you can retreat.

Don't plan to kill the party all at once. Use the breath weapon and then grab someone and fly off - preferably high so you can drop them if needed. Whilst they are grappled bite them, claw them and generally savage them whilst leaving the rest of the party behind. Rest, then return.

Use dash and dodge actions as appropriate. Forgoing some attacks to hide behind a spire for ranged attacks is probably worth it, so you can murder your victim in peace. Dodge is also fine once facing enemies needing to make attack rolls. Your legendary actions can still help you do damage.

If you do want items and a're broad in use then weapon of warning can be good. A source of invisibility is pretty awesome. Better saves are always nice given you have other good defences.

[SuperFerret]

Dragons are SMART. The plan should be mostly geared around the PCs, with some extras to enforce verisimilitude. It might also be a good idea, narratively, for there to be a hole in the plans that the PCs can try to exploit.

What's the party make up?

[Pinjata]

Dragons are SMART. The plan should be mostly geared around the PCs, with some extras to enforce verisimilitude. It might also be a good idea, narratively, for there to be a hole in the plans that the PCs can try to exploit.

What's the party make up?
Don't really have A party. It is a general question. MrStabby's answer is awesome. And brutal.
1. get in, deploy breath
1.a if breath recharges immediately, use again. if not, go to nr. 2
2. prioritize one target, grapple, fly away, drop at appropriate height, finish on the ground if it survives drop
3. try to find them next day, rinse and repeat

I have hard time imagining the trauma, this would cause to my players. I love it.

Heck, dragon could have stored a cauldron of healing potions, drink up and return full HP.

Oh, these are some nasty ideas.