Alright everyone settle down settle down. As you can all see on the syllabus, today we will be talking about dungeons dragons.
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| Martin Sobr Artstation |
Let me cage this by saying we will not be discussing giant serpents as they are covered in a different course. Yes Mr. Wilhelm, contrary to fringe theories these creatures are in fact descended from Greater Dragons and some, in fact, were once Greater Dragons in their own lifetime.
Dungeon dragons are most commonly found in the depths of dungeons but do not assume that they will remain there. There are extensive incident reports that document cave dragons ranging as far as the top floor of their dungeon and further. Generally they will not pose a threat to nearby communities so long as they do not infringe on the territories of the dungeon itself.
Importantly, the cave dragon is a degenerate form of dragon that has become bound to the dungeon spirit through extended exposure or in some cases the promise of immortality. Once a dragon begins the transformative process to dungeon dragon, they begin to take on characteristics of their dungeon. Most often this results in a loss of wings, reduction in bulk, and elongation of the spinal column.
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| Midhat Kapetanovic Artstation |
Extended exposure to the dungeon environment will usually also be coupled with a rapid decline in intelligence. It is not uncommon to encounter a dungeon dragon that is no longer able to be considered sapient due to severe degeneration of their intellect over time, these are classified as a feral variant of the dungeon dragon. This does not mean that the beasts have lost any of their magical properties, however. In fact, through adaptation to the dungeon these dragons will concentrate magical energies into their bodies, making them significantly more dangerous than a typical dragon. This, combined with their familiarity with the environment and adaptation of dungeon properties makes unprepared encounters with a feral dungeon dragon highly lethal.
Yes, Ms. Asz-Vhol-Kir? Ah, of course there are exceptions to the intelligence dropping. Many of you are familiar with Zemezerax, the Guardian Librarian of our own fine institution. Zemezerax is a unique case of a dungeon dragon and a dungeon spirit acting in a symbiotic pairing without feeding off one another. In the case of Zemezerax, this relationship is one where Zemezerax has their powers amplified while still being bound to the Library.
Finally, dungeon dragons are functionally immortal so long as the dungeon spirit persists. Nothing short of total destruction of the dungeon environment will kill a dungeon dragon. When the dungeon dragon itself is slain, the dungeon spirit collects their spirit and matter and reforms the dragon into an egg elsewhere in the dungeon, to be reborn and haunt the halls once more. Certain spells and effects can delay this process, allowing the harvesting of materials from the corpse and extending the duration of the dragon's rebirth. For more on those processes I recommend researching the experiments of Gher the Golden or taking Preservations Mundane and Magical with Chemistry department.
Creature: Dragon, Dungeon
HP: 5HD or dungeon levels HD Armor: Plate or higher
Claw x 2: 1d12 Breath: Cone 2d8 dungeontype damage
Use: Give it additional abilities that match the dungeon. Have a library? Dragon spews magical books that animate with random spells. Huge evil pyramid? Sounds like the dragon will have necrotizing sand blasts.
Dungeon dragons are slinky, stalk the dungeon, and are defensive. If they think the party can be helpful they'll parley with them. Maybe they want an infestation dealt with, a rare resource, something tasty, etc. Make them reflect their dungeon, make them be the avatar of it.
Killing the dragon will cause it to start to regenerate in an unoccupied room in the dungeon, and they'll remember what killed them and seek revenge.
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| Brian Cook Artstation |