Common Blue Dragon
Dragon, Common Blue (CR 14; Threat Role)
Dragons are so different from every other creature that they have their own unique classification. They have four legs, although the front 'feet' are dexterous enough to serve quite well as hands. They also have two or more completely functional wings, and they are powerful and speedy fliers. They have a large and dexterous prehensile tail, and seeing a monster as big as a dragon hanging from a branch is a sight you will remember for the rest of your life, however long that might be.
Dragons are intelligent and terribly alien. What a dragon considers important is not what other races consider important. They are also frequently, but not always, intensely malign. Some rare dragons may be allies with lesser races (all races are lesser to a dragon, as they see it) or even genuine friends to others. Most dragons, even those traditionally considered "good," are vain and jealous things, consumed with petty grievances and cruel enough to punish every slight, no matter how small or imaginary.
Dragons will hunt at great distances. Due to their powerful and magically enhanced metabolisms, dragons need to eat far less than would seem 'natural' for a beast their size. Rather than a blessing, this is a terrible curse upon the world, because things as awful as dragons should be rare, and, as the word "common" might imply, they are not. Even worse, since dragons need far less food than is natural, they tend to be horrifically picky eaters, and have been known to kill an entire herd of cows to find the tastiest one, or rampage through an entire town looking for the prettiest maiden.
Dragons also have a tendency to 'play' with their food in most terrible ways. If you want to rescue that prettiest maiden, best to be quick about it. It is often speculated that dragons are deliberately wretched in their behavior, in order to force would-be dragon-slayers into action 'before they're ready', and so increase the dragon's long-term safety. Indeed, many dragons are far too intelligent and clever for their own good. There are hundreds of stories of adventurers taunting dragons into foolish actions, and it is true that, in a battle, it is hard for a dragon to take any 'lesser' race seriously. In a dragon's mind, the only creatures worthy of consideration, much less respect, are other dragons.
The world belongs to the dragons. The rest of us just live here.
Dragons tend to be categorized into loose species-groups based upon their physical appearance and traits. Most common among these are the white, black, blue, green, and red chromatic dragons, followed closely by the bronze, copper, silver, gold and platinum metallic dragons. Other species groups exist, such as the earth dragons (brown, gray, yellow, and ocher), the spirit dragons (force, prismatic, empyrean, and tellurian) the gem dragons (crystal, onyx, jade, sapphire, ruby and amber), the drifting dragons (cloud, mist, shadow, sand, and dust), and the tempered dragons (iron, steel, mithril and adamant), to name the most common. In addition there are many odd dragons which defy categorization, such as coiled dragons, nested dragons, radiant dragons, sea dragons, celestial dragons, star dragons, moon dragons, sun dragons, fairy dragons, and many, many more besides.
While the physical appearance of the dragon is the easiest means of distinguishing them from one another, a dragon's coloration isn't a drab monochrome. Blue dragons, for example, have vivid yellow abdomens, and frequently have stripes of yellow, outlined in black on their backs. In all cases, they are strongly associated with the powers of electricity. Blue dragons can be found nearly anywhere, though they seem to favor lakes, deserts, glaciers, high mountains, and the occasional active volcano.
Blue dragons are like forces of nature, summoning storms and lightning whenever they engage in conflict. They are highly volatile creatures, fiercely defending territory, even if they've only recently moved into it, and taking umbrage at the least of slights. Blue dragons rarely occupy territory near civilization, either because they happen to settle in an uninhabited area or because any civilization unfortunate enough to be nearby when a blue dragon settles doesn't remain intact for long.
General
CR 14 Hit Dice 20
XP 153,600 (includes Threat Role)
NE Huge Dragon
Init +6; Senses Low-light vision 120 ft., Perception +21
Defense
AC 36, touch 25, flat-footed 32 (+9 armor, +4 dex, +6 natural, +7 deflection)
hp 945 (includes Threat Role)
Fort +17, Ref +17, Will +17 (dragon bonuses included)
Aura Terrible Majesty (see below)
SR -
Special Defenses -
Immunities magical sleep, paralysis, electricity, sonic. Immunities to first five instances of all status conditions.
Weaknesses -
Offense
Speed 40 ft., Fly 120 ft. (see also Ride the Lightning, below)
Space / Reach: 15 ft. / 5 ft.
Single Melee
- Bite +23 (2d8+17/x2)
- 2x Claws +23 (2d6+6/x2)
Full Melee
- Bite +23 (2d8+17/x2)
- 2x Claws +23 (2d6+6/x2)
- 2x Wings +23 (2d6+6/x2), 2x2 area of effect
- Tail +23 (2d8+17/x2), 3x3 area of effect
Ranged none, but see Breath Weapon, Addling Roar
Special Attacks Breath Weapon, Addling Roar, Terrible Majesty, Thunderstorm, Ride the Lightning, Torrent
Action Points 2 (includes Threat Role)
Statistics
Str 33, Dex 23, Con 25, Int 19, Wis 16, Cha 25
Base Atk +14; CMB +23; CMD 31
Feats -
Skills Spellcraft +21, Bluff +21, Sense Motive +21
Languages Common, Draconic, Erebral, High Draconic
Special Abilities
- Addling Roar (Ex)
As a standard action, the dragon may emit an ear-shattering howl of unimaginable power. This is a sonic-based attack that affects all creatures within 100 feet of the dragon's space. The dragon must have line of effect for this power to operate, but does not require line of sight. This power inflicts 10d6+14 of sonic damage, with a Fort save, DC 22, for half damage.
- Breath Weapon (Su)
As a standard action, the common blue dragon can breathe a beam of lightning in a straight line 60 feet long, dealing 10d6+14 points of electricity damage and inflicting the Blind condition on anyone in the path. Targeted creatures which succeed on a Reflex save, DC 22, are Dazzled instead of being blinded, and take only half damage. The line is 5 feet wide, and can only travel in straight lines, though it may begin from any one square of the dragon's space, and extends for 120 feet.
- Line Attacks
- To determine which creatures are struck by a line attack, choose the origin square (any square adjacent to the caster) and any target square within range, and draw a straight line between the center of the two squares. The target square may be closer than the line's maximum range but it may not be further. Note that the line's range is not shortened by choosing a square closer than the maximum range; the effect simply passes through that square to its maximum range. Any square that the line crosses, even partially, is considered to be within the line's area of effect. If there is some doubt that the line has actually passed through a square, rather than just nicking its edge or corner, the GM should generally rule conservatively, (i.e. the line doesn't cross that square), since lines are intended to be somewhat limited in area of effect.
In addition, the beam of lightning lingers for the remainder of the encounter, effectively creating a wall of lightning. This wall is so bright that it grants total concealment (50% miss chance) to any creature attempting to target a creature on the other side of the wall. Creatures can target anyone standing in the wall without penalty. Blue dragons are unaffected by the concealment provided by the wall's brightness, and suffer no penalties for targeting creatures on the other side of a wall.
Any creature passing through the wall of lightning takes 7d6+1 points of electricity damage for each square they move through (the blue dragon is immune to this effect, since they are immune to electricity damage).
- Terrible Majesty (Su)
All enemy creatures who are within 100 feet of the dragon's space when it takes an attack action must make a Will save versus a DC of 22. This is a free action which requires line of sight, but does not require line of effect. Those who make this save receive the Nervous condition for one round. Those who fail this save receive the Trembling condition for the rest of the encounter. Note that once you have made this save once, succeed or fail, you are immune to that particular dragon's Terrible Majesty for the next 24 hours.
- Thunderstorm (Sp)
- Concentration: none required (see below)
As a free action, at the beginning of the encounter, the blue dragon conjures a tumultuous thunderstorm to the area in which the battle is taking place. While the rain, whipping winds, flashes of lightning and pounding thunder have no actual combat effects, they serve to add intensity to the battle. The dragon doesn't even need to be outdoors to conjure this effect. The effect is subject to Dispel Magic, with a dispel DC of 25 (11 + the dragon's CR).
- Ride the Lightning (Su)
As a swift action, the common blue dragon can instantly teleport to any space which contains a lightning or electricity effect (such as the blue dragon's breath weapon, or the Living Breath Weapon's Ball Lightning attacks). The space they teleport to must be unoccupied enough for the dragon's entire space to fit without overlapping an obstacle or creature. As long as any single square within their destination space contains a lightning effect, the dragon can use this power to move there.
Furthermore, the dragon's arrival at the destination square triggers a powerful thunderclap, dealing 7d6+1 points of sonic damage to any creature within 20 feet of the dragon's space, and knocking those creatures Prone. Affected creatures who succeed on a Fort save, DC 22, take only half damage and are not knocked prone.
- Torrent
The first time a blue dragon is reduced to 0 or fewer hit points in a fight, it explodes into a massive torrent of water. This torrent of water inundates the battlefield with several inches of water in all directions, affecting a 20x20 square area (100 square feet). The dragon is removed from the battlefield when this occurs, but creatures standing in the area affected by Torrent take 50% additional damage from any electricity damage they suffer.
On the dragon's next initiative, he reappears in any unobstructed space on the battlefield affected by torrent, and is immediately restored to half its total health (472 hit points). Any status conditions that the dragon was affected with immediately end, and their immunity to the first 5 instances of status conditions is completely reset. They do not recover any action points, though if they have any remaining they can still spend them as normal. This takes no time, and the dragon may spend its full round of actions immediately upon returning to the battlefield.
Treasure
sell value of approximately 68,750 gp (Threat Role and Dragon Bonus included, which is 5x greater than normal for this CR)
Combat Tactics
Blue dragons are combative by nature, because they are extremely dangerous foes. They are smart, they are foul-tempered, and they play to win.
A favored tactic of blue dragons is to spend an action point at the start of their turn to use their Breath Weapon, spend a swift action to use Ride the Lightning to put themselves adjacent to a character that looks delicate (dealing sonic damage and potentially knocking them prone), and then using their standard and move actions to make a full attack action. This chain of attacks will almost certainly reduce a wizard or rogue from fresh to dead in one round. Yikes! Luckily, characters at this level probably have access to some quality resurrection abilities, so they'll get over it. Assuming the rest of them survive the encounter.
Blue dragons may also have one or more Living Breath Weapons nearby, as henchmen (depending on the size of the party, or how much the GM wants to ramp up the encounter's difficulty). Blue dragons can use their living breath weapons to give them even more options for their Ride the Lightning ability, making it very difficult to predict where a blue dragon will be on the battlefield at any give moment.
Blue dragons rarely run from an encounter with bad odds. Where all dragons are generally arrogant about their status as the top of the food chain, blue dragons take this to a whole new level, believing that they can turn any situation to their favor by sticking it out.
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Living Breath Weapon (CR 14; Henchman Role)
One of the many tricks that blue dragons have up their proverbial sleeves is the ability to imbue their own breath weapons with some semblance of life. This is accomplished by summoning a air elemental and binding it into the breath weapon as a vessel. Living breath weapons are orbs of electricity that flit around the battlefield, serving the whims of the blue dragon that created them. Given their appearance, they are sometimes confused for a Will-O-Wisp, though they are far nastier.
Outside of combat, blue dragons can use living breath weapons as scouts, seeing through them with a variant of clairvoyance. This requires concentration, and since living breath weapons are brilliant balls of crackling electricity, it's not exactly subtle. However, a blue dragon can use this to look over great distances without ever leaving the relative comfort of its lair, and can even project their voice through the breath weapon when it desires. It is not entirely clear if there is a range limit to this effect, though there are documented cases of a dragon challenging the heroes of a town over 20 miles distant from its location using a living breath weapon as its mouthpiece.
Living breath weapons are insubstantial, making them very difficult to harm, and they are highly mobile. Furthermore, since they are composed entirely of electricity, they can be used by a blue dragon as destinations of the dragon's Ride the Lightning ability. It should be noted that living breath weapons can share the space of any corporeal creature without either party being subject to the squeezing rules.
General
CR 14 Hit Dice 20
XP 38,400
NE Large Outsider
Init +6; Senses Low-light vision 120 ft., Perception +21
Defense
AC 36, touch 25, flat-footed 32 (+9 armor, +4 dex, +6 natural, +7 deflection)
hp 315
Fort +13, Ref +17, Will +13
Aura -
SR -
Special Defenses Incorporeal
Immunities Electricity, sonic, prone, critical hits and precision damage. Does not breathe, eat or sleep.
Weaknesses -
Offense
Speed fly 60 ft.
Space / Reach: 10 ft. / 5 ft.
Single Melee Crackling Arc +19 (2d8+10/19-20x2) electricity damage, touch attack
Full Melee 3x Crackling Arc +19 (2d8+10/19-20x2) electricity damage, touch attack
Ranged none, but see Discharge
Special Attacks Discharge
Action Points 0
Statistics
Str 10, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 5, Wis 5, Cha 5
Base Atk +14; CMB +23; CMD 31
Feats -
Skills -
Languages understand, but cannot speak Draconic
Special Abilities
- Discharge
Once per encounter as a full round action, the living breath weapon can instantly arc to three separate locations within 100 feet of its starting point. At each of these three locations, the living breath weapon may make a touch attack against any creature inside of its space, +19 to hit, dealing 2d8+10 points of electricity damage. After the attacks are resolved, the living breath weapon returns to the space it began the round in. All spaces affected by Discharge continue to crackle with electricity for the remainder of the encounter, and for each square a creature moves through the effect, it deals 3d6+3 points of additional electricity damage (cumulatively). The living breath weapon may place the three affected 10'x10' areas anywhere within range, but if any areas overlap, the affected creatures are only targeted once by the attack.
Note that blue dragons can use this lingering electricity as a destination point for their Ride the Lightning ability.
- Incorporeal
Living Breath Weapons are Incorporeal, meaning that they do not have a physical body. Incorporeal creatures are immune to all nonmagical attack forms. Incorporeal creatures take half damage (50%) from magic weapons, spells, spell-like effects, and supernatural effects. Incorporeal creatures take full damage from other incorporeal creatures and effects, as well as all force effects.
In addition, the living breath weapon can occupy the same space as corporeal creatures without inflicting a squeeze penalty on itself or the creature it is sharing a space with. The living breath weapon cannot be grappled except by other incorporeal creatures, nor can it initiate a grapple. Living breath weapons can pass through or hide inside objects, but if they make an attack, they must emerge from the object to do so, and gain no cover bonuses after attacking.
Treasure
sell value of approximately 13,750 gp
Combat Tactics
Living breath weapons can fly, pass through objects and creatures unimpeded, and take only half damage from nearly all attacks. Blue dragons often use them as scouts, despite the living breath weapon's complete inability to hide when not totally inside an object. Note that living breath weapons have no means of seeing through solid objects so they make terrible spies in this regard. That said, they can be used to deliver messages from the dragon when desired, and are also quite capable combatants in their own right.
Living breath weapons will rarely engage in a fight unless the blue dragon is nearby. If attacked while away from their master, they will flee at the first opportunity.
In combat, they will use discharge as soon as possible, in order to set up some battlefield control, deal some damage, and give the blue dragon more options for its Ride the Lightning ability. After that, it will move to engage with the most heavily armored opponents it can find.
Living breath weapons are only about as smart as dogs, and will attack single-mindedly once they engage, though their master can order them to change tactics, using simple commands, if necessary.