Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If the dragon fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
Shapechanger. If the dragon isn’t in sunlight or running water, it can use its action to polymorph into a Huge cloud of mist, or back into its true form.
While in mist form, the dragon can’t take any actions, speak, or manipulate objects. It is weightless, has a flying speed of 20 feet, can hover, and can enter a hostile creature’s space and stop there. In addition, if air can pass through a space, the mist can do so without squeezing, and it can’t pass through water. It has advantage on Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution saving throws, and it is immune to all nonmagical damage, except the damage it takes from sunlight.
Misty Escape. When it drops to 0 hit points outside its resting place, the dragon transforms into a cloud of mist (as in the Shapechanger trait) instead of falling unconscious, provided that it isn’t in sunlight or running water. If it can’t transform, it is destroyed.
While it has 0 hit points in mist form, it can’t revert to its dragon form, and it must reach its hoard within 2 hours or be destroyed. Once in its hoard, it reverts to its dragon form. It is then paralyzed until it regains at least 1 hit point. After spending 1 hour in its hoard with 0 hit points, it regains 1 hit point.
Regeneration. The dragon regains 20 hit points at the start of its turn if it has at least 1 hit point and isn’t in sunlight or running water. If the dragon takes radiant damage or damage from holy water, this trait doesn’t function at the start of the dragon’s next turn.
Spider Climb. The dragon can climb difficult surfaces, including upside down on ceilings, without needing to make an ability check.
Vampiric Might. The dragon gains an additional +2 damage to its weapon attacks (included in attack).
Vampire Weaknesses. The dragon has the following flaws:
Forbiddance. The dragon can’t enter a residence without an invitation from one of the occupants.
Stake to the Heart. If a piercing weapon made of wood is driven into the dragon’s heart while the dragon is incapacitated in its hoard, the dragon is paralyzed until the stake is removed.
Sunlight Hypersensitivity. Whilst in sunlight, the dragon has disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks as well as its speed being halved. The first time the dragon is exposed to sunlight, roll 1d8 + 2. The dragon only starts taking damage after a number of rounds equal to the number rolled. Once the number of rolled rounds has passed, the dragon takes 20 radiant damage when it starts its turn in sunlight.
Multiattack. The dragon can use its Frightful Presence. It then makes three attacks: one with its bite and two with its claws.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +14 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 21 (2d10 + 10) piercing damage plus 7 (2d6) fire damage.
Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +14 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 17 (2d6 + 10) slashing damage.
Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +14 to hit, reach 15 ft., one target. Hit: 19 (2d8 + 10) bludgeoning damage.
Frightful Presence. Each creature of the dragon's choice that is within 120 feet of the dragon and aware of it must succeed on a DC 19 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature's saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to the dragon's Frightful Presence for the next 24 hours.
Charm. The dragon targets one humanoid it can see within 30 feet of it. If the target can see the dragon, the target must succeed on a DC 19 Wisdom saving throw against this magic or be charmed by the dragon. The charmed target regards the dragon as a trusted friend to be heeded and protected. Although the target isn’t under the dragon’s control, it takes the dragon’s requests or actions in the most favourable way it can, and it is a willing target for the dragon’s bite attack.
Each time the dragon or the dragon’s companions do anything harmful to the target, it can repeat the saving throw, ending the effect on itself on a success. Otherwise, the effect lasts 24 hours or until the dragon is destroyed, is on a different plane of existence than the target, or takes a bonus action to end the effect.
Breath Weapon (Recharge 5–6). The dragon uses one of the following breath weapons.
Fire Breath. The dragon exhales fire in a 60-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 21 Dexterity saving throw, taking 63 (18d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Vampiric Breath (3/Day). The dragon exhales rotten blood in a 60-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 21 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, the creature takes 31 (9d6) necrotic damage and gains one level of exhaustion. On a success, the creature takes half as much damage and does not gain a level of exhaustion.
The dragon can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature's turn. The dragon regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.
Detect. The dragon makes a Wisdom (Perception) check.
Tail Attack. The dragon makes a tail attack.
Move. The dragon moves up to half its walking speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
Draining Bite (Costs 2 Actions). The vampire makes one bite attack. On a hit, the creature takes 14 (4d6) necrotic damage instead of the normal fire damage. The target’s hit point maximum is reduced by an amount equal to the necrotic damage taken, and the dragon regains hit points equal to that amount. The reduction lasts until the target finishes a long rest. The target dies if this effect reduces its hit point maximum to 0. A humanoid slain in this way and then buried in the ground rises the following night as a vampire spawn under the dragon’s control.
Wing Attack (Costs 2 Actions). The dragon beats its wings. Each creature within 10 feet of the dragon must succeed on a DC 22 Dexterity saving throw or take 17 (2d6 + 10) bludgeoning damage and be knocked prone. The dragon can then fly up to half its flying speed.
Description
A creature of pure darkness and evil, an eternal creature of the night with the unbeating heart of a dragon. Like other masters of the night, a vampiric dragon thirsts for the blood of the living but has the might to resist or ignore the weaknesses of other vampires for a time.
Heart of Darkness. Dragons that gain vampirism become greatly feared amongst others of their kind, the only dragon feared more being the Dracolich itself. Beings aware of the vampire dragons presence will opt to either flee or destroy it, knowing they will eventually end up as the vampire next meal.
Endless Thirst. Vampire dragons, like normal vampires, hunger for the blood of the living. A vampire dragon can live off the blood of any living being but it prefers the blood of other dragons above all others. A young or wyrmling dragon drained by a vampire dragon will return as a zombie dragon under the vampire dragons control whereas an older dragon will rise as a vampire spawn variant of a dragon.
Chained to the Hoard. Every vampire dragon remains bound to its hoard, where it must rest by day. If a vampire dragon does not have a hoard, it cannot rest. A vampire dragon is highly protective of its hoard, more so than a normal dragon. Its hoard will almost always have thralls and other dominated beings to protect it.
Undead Nature. The vampire dragon does not require air.
Other Vampire Dragons. Only the evilest and vilest dragons can become a vampire dragons. Those that acquire vampirism retain their previous powers and breath weapon as well as any spellcasting they may have previously had. The dragon's CR increases by 2 once it becomes a vampire dragon.
They gain abilities highly similar to that of a humanoid vampire (see the current sheet for how traits apply to the dragon).
The dragon can spew rotten blood as a breath weapon in a similar vein to their original breath weapon. A vampire dragon can only do this three times a day regardless of its age and the damage dice is half of the dragon's original breath weapon.
The dragon's lair gains the environmental effects of a vampire combined with its own.
Lair and Lair Actions
A Red Vampire Dragon’s Lair
Red vamire dragons lair in high mountains or hills, dwelling in caverns under snow-capped peaks, or within the deep halls of abandoned mines and dwarven strongholds. Caves with volcanic or geothermal activity are the most highly prized red dragon lairs, creating hazards that hinder intruders and letting searing heat and volcanic gases wash over a dragon as it sleeps.
With its hoard well protected deep within the lair, a red dragon spends as much of its time outside the mountain as in it once the sun sets. For a red dragon, the great heights of the world are the throne from which it can look out to survey all it controls—and the wider world it seeks to control.
Throughout the lair complex, servants erect monuments to the dragon’s power, telling the grim story of its life, the enemies it has slain that now serve it in undeath, and the nations it has conquered.
A vampire dragon chooses a grand yet defensible location. It hides its hoard in an underground crypt or vault guarded by vampire spawn or other loyal creatures of the night.
Lair Actions
On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the dragon takes a lair action to cause one of the following effects; the dragon can’t use the same effect two rounds in a row:
- Magma erupts from a point on the ground the dragon can see within 120 feet of it, creating a 20-foot-high, 5-foot-radius geyser. Each creature in the geyser’s area must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw, taking 21 (6d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
- A tremor shakes the lair in a 60-foot radius around the dragon. Each creature other than the dragon on the ground in that area must succeed on a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw or be knocked prone.
- Volcanic gases form a cloud in a 20-foot-radius sphere centered on a point the dragon can see within 120 feet of it. The sphere spreads around corners, and its area is lightly obscured. It lasts until initiative count 20 on the next round. Each creature that starts its turn in the cloud must succeed on a DC 13 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned until the end of its turn. While poisoned in this way, a creature is incapacitated.
Regional Effects
The region containing a legendary red dragon’s lair is warped by the dragon’s magic, which creates one or more of the following effects:
- Small earthquakes are common within 6 miles of the dragon’s lair.
- Water sources within 1 mile of the lair are supernaturally warm and tainted by sulfur.
- Rocky fissures within 1 mile of the dragon’s lair form portals to the Elemental Plane of Fire, allowing creatures of elemental fire into the world to dwell nearby.
- There’s a noticeable increase in the populations of bats, rats, and wolves in the region.
- Plants within 500 feet of the lair wither, and their stems and branches become twisted and thorny.
- Shadows cast within 500 feet of the lair seem abnormally gaunt and sometimes move as though alive.
- A creeping fog clings to the ground within 500 feet of the vampire dragon’s lair. The fog occasionally takes eerie forms, such as grasping claws and writhing serpents.
If the dragon dies, these effects fade over the course of 1d10 days.
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Posted Mar 5, 2022Nice, just what I was hoping to find. Is this inspired by AJ Pickett's video about undead dragons by any chance?
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Posted Mar 5, 2022It was. I heard what he said and really wanted to make for others to use. I hope you find is useful and thank you for commenting.
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Posted Mar 5, 2022Awesome, and you're welcome. I was thinking of making this myself, but wanted to see if anyone else had made it already, and clearly someone had. And it looks very good too, like something out of offical material.
All though, I just noticed that a vampire's Children of the Night ability is missing. And also, AJ described the vampire breath as being a pitch black version of their normal one that reeked of rotten blood, not that it was rotten blood. So in this case, it would looke like black flames that smell like rotten blood. I also don't remember him saying it only did half the damage of their main breath weapon (or actually what type of dmg it did, but I would assume it's necrotic).
That said, I would actually be more scared/disgusted of seeing a dragon vomit gallons of blood, and it might actually be a better fit too, considering the nosferatu also having an ability were it vomits blood.
Lastly, it says the regeneration is stopped if they're in running water. Seeing as they don't take any dmg from being in running water, which I recall having read is a thing, I think that might be incorrect.