Homebrew Dragon Species Details

Physical Description

Dragons are winged reptilians of ancient lineage and terrifying powers. They are known and feared for their predatory behavior, cunning, wit, and greed. The oldest dragons are regarded as some of the most powerful creatures in the world. Dragons are magical creatures whose innate power gives them many preternatural abilities. Many creatures, including wyverns and dragon turtles, have draconic blood, however, true dragons are made up of two categories: chromatic and metallic dragons. Blue, white, black, green and red dragons are most often selfish, evil and feared by everyone and everything. Bronze, copper, brass, gold, and silver are noble, benign and highly respected by the wise people of their race. Although their goals and ideals vary tremendously, most dragons covet riches and strive to accumulate piles of coins, gems, jewelry and magical items. Dragons with great mountains of treasure hate to leave them for a long time, only venturing out of their dens to patrol and feed themselves. They can live for tens of thousands of years, and while aging, they grow ever stronger and their treasure hoards grow ever larger(if they decide to hoard in the first place).

Chromatic Dragons

Black Dragons

Black dragons are the most vile-tempered and cruel of all chromatic dragons and are very likely to avoid talking to others if there isn't a bargain to be made. These dragons are easily distinguished by their horns, which protrude from the sides of their heads, wrap around it, then protrude forward. A large frill adorns the upper part of their neck. They smell of rotting vegetation, foul water, or powerful acid which they can breathe. Considered ambush predators, these jungle or forest dragons revel in the decay and death of civilizations, often residing in the ruins of old cities, smugly relishing the fact that these individuals who lived here before died, and itself survived. Black dragons can control water which they use to grapple and tug the prey to their doom. Ambush predators by nature, it is unlikely for black dragons to engage in direct combat, so even when ambushing others, there is also no guarantee that the dragon is close by, as they can use their abilities to ensnarl its targets.

Blue Dragons

Blue dragons have a single large horn protruding from their heads and large, frilled ears. Their tails are thick and bumpy, their wings are more pronounced than other dragon species wings, and they smell like ozone and sand. Blue dragons usually enjoy mocking and manipulative more than outwardly cruel actions, though they do like torturing and murdering lesser creatures, aided by their natural talents for hallucination. They are able to trick desert travelers into drinking sand or going miles away from their original path. Tactically obsessed and possessing the ability to fly for days on end, an adventure or group of adventurers who will find themselves facing a blue dragon will likely be pushed to their limits, seeing if they would manage to survive its pursuits for days on end. Shooting lightning bolts at a great distance and always keeping away, it isn't an easy target. If an ambushed and severely damage, a blue dragon will simply fly way and plan a different trap or ambush. Sudden encounters with a blue dragon are one of the most incessant and endless tactics, likely of the kind of being more fun to it than just outright attacking the party.

Green Dragons

Green dragons posses a large, waving crest or fin that starts at their nose and runs the length of their body, as well as long, slender forked tongues. They have an unusual taste for treasure and love collecting individuals to enslave. Otherwise, these dragons love to corrupt powerful or influential individuals. They are also highly adept at scheming. For example: A green dragon may fly down, kill half of a group and leave the other half confused or frightened, wondering what happened. "Anyone can take something by force, but few have the cunning to take by wit" is the fundamental nature of these dragons.

Though they are nasty bunch, one of a green dragon’s redeeming qualities is that they love their family immensely. A male and a female mate until death, and if their children are ever threatened, both parents will do their upmost to protect them or in the worst case avenge them. However, don’t be fooled by a green dragon’s familial love, the parents will train their children to be manipulative, treacherous, and teach them how to use humanoids to get whatever they want.

Red Dragons

Red dragons have two swept-back horns on their heads and smell of smoke and sulfur. The biggest, mightiest, and the quickest to anger out of all dragons, these guys are not to be messed with. Being bulky, red dragons prefer to fight on the ground. There will be no dialogue with a red dragon and those it comes across, it will see you, and it will pounce on you. Arrogant, believing its kind to be the pinnacle of all creation, a fight with a red dragon is a fight to the death. Red dragons also believe that those who can't protect what they have do not deserve to have it, and those with the power to take something deserve to have it. Red dragons are typically considered tyrants and the only thing a red dragon cares about is reputation. They will tell other dragons of its feats and downplay the feats of others. It will try to never be outdone and if another dragon’s feats surpass their own, they will do everything in their power to outdo them. If a red dragon cannot outdo its competitor’s fame, it will go into an uncontrolled rage, lasting for days.

Red dragons typically choose to live on tall mountains where everything nearby to the mountain is considered its territory. Even snow-covered mountains work as the bigger the mountain, the larger the territory of a red dragon.

White Dragons

White dragons are the most feral of the classic chromatic dragons. Their heads and necks blend seamlessly into one another, and their wings are frayed along the edges. They have a flap of skin (dewlap) lined with spines beneath their chin and have a high crest atop a streamlined head and have a crisp, blue odor. Though less intelligent than other dragons, they are still smarter than most of sentient creatures and powerful enough to overwhelm most humanoids. White dragons prefer to not interact with others of its kind except during mating, and will actively go out of their way to avoid dragons of other types.

Metallic Dragons

Brass Dragons

Brass dragons are known to be quite sociable for dragons and tend to have a strong mercenary streak, often agreeing to serve as guardians or battle champions for anyone willing to pay suitably well. Although they usually don't kill adventures or travelers who come upon them, they often will try to force them to stay with them for some time and regale the dragon in their adventures and life's story. Those the dragon isn't interested in or those who don't mean well are likely get buried up until their head in sand.

Brass dragons tend to not like being anywhere near other copper or brass dragons. This is because brass dragons are particullary prideful. They might not think they are the best at everything, but each brass dragon usually has a few things it believes it is the best at. In addition, when forced to talk to copper dragons, brass dragons tend to be aggravated at the way copper dragons tend to joke and not take things seriously.

Bronze Dragons

Duty-bound and honorable to a fault, bronze dragons commit themselves to order and are among the most devout champions of that ideal. As order's sworn servants, bronze dragons can seem arrogant and haughty with an inflated sense of self. A tendency that can put them at odds with those they meet. In rare cases, this self-righteousness grows into something far more sinister, and the bronze dragon takes over what it sees as lesser races, ruling as a cruel tyrant to its subjects. Bronze dragons claim coastlines, inlets, and islands as their own, constructing lairs in coastal caves that have access to the sea. More aggressive bronze dragons purposely choose lairs near shipping lanes so they can claim tribute from merchant vessels as those craft pass by. All bronze dragons share a deep and abiding hatred for blue dragons, and they are vigilant in protecting their homes from these interlopers.

Copper Dragons

Copper dragons are born tricksters and jokesters. They tend to be quite devious and clever, but their intent is purely benign. They do not seek to harm others, but merely wish to impress or fool others with clever pranks. A copper dragon will take interest in those who can provide intrigue, interesting information, or the few who manage to trick a copper dragon itself.

Copper dragons tend to live in places with rocky hills, often nearby to other settlements(to a dragon), but never close by. Like all dragons, copper dragons accumulate a number of riches in their hoards, however, copper dragons also tend to collect items that may not contain a lot of value. Often things like artwork, books, and other strange and curious objects can also be found in their hoard.

Gold Dragons

Of all the metallic dragons, gold dragons are the most dedicated to defeating evil. They spend most of their lives shapeshifted as humanoids, and will often travel outside of their lair for periods of time, where their shapeshifting comes in particularly handy when interacting with others. While traveling, gold dragons enjoy learning new knowledge and teaching others on their travels. While often gone from their lairs, gold dragons do not neglect its upkeep. They will often have magical traps, righteous and trustworthy guards, or other measures in place to prevent looting.

Silver Dragons

Silver dragons are true friends to all. Silver dragons enjoy the company of humanoids so much that it will often take the form of one and live among them for the majority of its life. In fact, it is said that silver dragons love humanoids because they believe they are lesser creatures. Silver dragons also love the diversity of human cooking and culture, and are especially interested in items created through human ingenuity such as watches.

Unlike some other metallic dragons, silver dragons believe that just being evil doesn't mean that evil creatures don't have a right to live. They believe that as long a creature does not commit or plan to do evil, they will overlook the fact that a creature is evil.

For periods of time, silver dragons may transform into their true dragon form and purposely be seen by other humanoids in order to attract the attention of other silver dragons to mate.

Dragon Traits

As a dragon, you can be very powerful, but you have to work for it.

Ability Score Increase

Your STR, CON, and CHA score increase by +1

Age

Dragons reach adulthood at around 100 years, and can live up to 5000 years.

Alignment

Metallic dragons tend to be good and chromatic dragons tend to be evil. However, like most creatures, they can deviate from those alignments.

Size

Young dragons are about the size of humans. Your size is Medium.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision

You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Hit Points

You gain +1D4 HP per level

Scales

You gain +5 AC due to your hard scales

Breath

You breath elements equal to your Dragon subrace, starting at level 2

When you use your breath weapon, each creature in the area of the exhalation must make a saving throw, the type of which is determined by your Dragon Type. The DC for this saving throw equals 8 + your Constitution modifier + your proficiency bonus. A creature takes 1d10 damage on a failed save, and half as much damage on a successful one. This die changes as you gain dragon levels, as shown in the Breath Damage column of the Dragon table. You may use your breath weapon twice, and you regain all uses of this feature when you finish a short or long rest.

Lethal Strikes

At level 3, you deal a critical hit on a 19 and 20

Flight

At level 5, you can fly at speed 50 ft.

Bite

Deals 1D8 Piercing at level one, 1D10 at level 3, 2D6 at level 11, 2D8 at level 17

Claw

You deal 1D4 Bludgeoning damage, +1D4 per every 3rd level.

Tail Slap

Kills everything Apex and below in one hit Deal 1d10 damage to up to 5 targets at once, each doing exactly that amount of damage

Infused Strikes

At the 8th level, your strikes avoid all types of resistance

Language Understand

Starting at level 18, you can now understand every language.

Stronger breath

At level 20, you can breathe destructive energy based on your type 4 times per short rest, and it reaches 100 ft long if its a cone, and 2000 if its a line.