Choose a damage type and a related dragon: acid (black, copper), cold (silver, white), fire (brass, gold, red), force (amethyst), lightning (blue, bronze), necrotic (topaz), poison (green), psychic (deep, emerald), radiant (crystal, moonstone), or thunder (sapphire).
The area of effect of this spell is a cylinder 50' in radius and 50' in height.
As soon as you cast the spell, a massive, pulsing dragon heart 15' in radius appears, centred on a point you select in range. Around it, translucent dragon serpents are always in flight, snarling and hissing.
You take on a partial draconic form, gaining resistance to the dragon's damage type, growing translucent dragon wings with a 60' fly rate, and your armor class increases by 2. You also have blindsight with a range of 30 feet. The heart, the serpents, and yourself resemble the dragon type selected.
You are ignored by the serpents and are immune to any damage caused by the heart unless you enter the heart itself—though see below for an exception.
The serpents are immune to all damage. The serpents and the heart are immune to all magic, except for Dispel Magic and Wish.
The heart can be attacked. It has 10 hit points per your sorcerer level, an armor class equal to your sorcerer level plus your Charisma ability modifier, and is immune to all damage except magical piecing and slashing. Attackers on the outside of the heart who successfully damage it are sprayed with blood per hit if they are within 10', taking 3d8 of the dragon's damage type. They take half the damage if they succeed on a Dexterity saving throw against your spell save DC. The heart regenerates a number of hit points equal to your sorcerer level at the start of your turn. When reduced to 0 hit points, the spell ends.
When the heart first appears, and at the beginning of each of your subsequent turns, every creature within the area of effect, but outside of the heart itself, must succeed on a Strength Athletics check or be grappled by a serpent, taking 3d8 magical bludgeoning damage. The serpent then drags the grappled creature 20' toward the heart. The serpents are able to work together to grapple creatures up to huge size, have a strength equal to your spell save DC, and apply your proficiency bonus to their athletics check. They have blindsight within the spell's area of effect. At the beginning of your turn, any creature already grappled takes an additional 3d8 magical bludgeoning damage and is dragged a further 20' toward the heart.
Any grappled creature, at the start of their turn, may attempt to free themselves using an action to perform another Strength (Athletics) check. They otherwise only have the use of one hand and a movement of 0.
When a grappled creature reaches the heart's perimeter (15' radius from the centre of the spell's effect area), they are pulled inside and released by the serpent.
Any creature within the heart is subject to a terrifying environment. They are unable to breathe as they drown in the pulsating dragon blood, taking 12d4 of the dragon's damage type when they first enter and again at the start of your subsequent turns. They take half the damage if they succeed on a Constitution saving throw against your spell save DC. Within the heart, spells with a verbal component cannot be cast, concentration checks are made at a disadvantage, and the creature is effectively deafened and blinded. Even with True Seeing, they cannot see outside of the heart. To exit the heart, they must swim 30' upward, following the flow of the blood. If successful, they emerge in a spurt of blood from an artery at the top of the heart and fall to the ground (a 30' fall for 3d6 bludgeoning damage), landing prone at a random place 5' beyond the heart's perimeter.
The heart can take in any number of creatures of any size.
As a bonus action, you can cause the heart to do one of the following, as long as you are not inside the heart:
- Serpent Grapple and Drag. The serpents use their grapple and drag attack against all non-grappled creatures outside of the heart but within the area of effect.
- Pulse Damage. All creatures outside of the heart but otherwise within the area of effect suffer 8d4 of the dragon's damage type. If they succeed on a Dexterity saving throw, they take half damage. Grappled creatures get no saving throw.
- Serpent Attack. You designate one creature not yet grappled to be subject to a series of four magical attacks by the serpents, one each of bludgeoning, piercing, slashing, and breath. Each causes 3d8 damage. The attacks always hit, but if the creature succeeds on a Dexterity saving throw against each, they take half damage. Finally, a serpent grapple and drag attack is attempted, with multiple serpents working together to grapple a creature up to huge size.
- Heart Burst. The heart explodes, saturating the entire spell effect area with dragon blood, causing 8d8 of the dragon's damage type and 4d8 magical bludgeoning damage to all within. Creatures take half the damage if they succeed on a Dexterity saving throw. Grappled creatures and creatures within the heart get no saving throw. This immediately ends the spell.
If the dragon type you choose matches your draconic ancestry, you may enter and stay within the heart without being harmed by it. While inside, you are immune to attack from outside the heart and are able to see, hear, speak, and move normally as if on normal terrain in open air, but you cannot see or hear beyond the heart (even with True Seeing), or direct the heart's actions. You may attack any creature within the heart as if they were at a 15' range. You must close the distance to melee attack. Creatures within may attack you, but to close the distance for a melee attack, they must first make a successful Strength (Athletics) check against your spell save DC before swimming to melee distance.
The serpents pull all dead creatures of any size into the heart, even if they died outside of the spell's area of effect, as long as they died within a line of sight of the heart. The flesh and bones of creatures that die within the heart, or who are brought there when dead, are immediately dissolved.
If you ever venture beyond the spell range, the spell ends.
When the spell ends, all the possessions of creatures killed by the spell can be found in a neat horde where the heart had been.
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