The Dragon Lord Class for Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) Fifth Edition (5e)

Base Class: Ranger

Not many deserve to rule over dragons, and fewer still can ever accomplish such a feat, but those who do mostly become Dragon Lord's, an ancient order who once devoted their lives to protecting the eggs of dragons. These warriors would lay down their lives in exchange for the dragon to watch over their race. Occasionally a wyrmling would see the devotion of these warriors and would then devote their lives to protecting the one they owed their chance at life to. With the dwindling numbers of the dragons, this order has all but faded into history. There are yet few who remember the time of the Dragon Lords and pass on what they know, though their order is limited. Occasionally one might become a dragon lord by raising a dragon, or rescuing an injured dragon, or by enslaving one. Neither good nor evil intent prevents a Dragon Lord from taking form.

Your Dragon listens to your commands as best as it can. It takes its turn on your initiative. On your turn, the dragon moves separately with no action required by you (unless you are riding it). You can use your bonus action to verbally/telepathically command it to take the Attack, Dash, Disengage, Dodge, Help or any action it gains later. Like any creature, the dragon can spend hit dice during a short rest. If you are incapacitated, absent, or unable to give orders, the dragon acts on its own. It never requires your command to use its reactions, such as when making an opportunity attack. You have separate reactions, unlike the combined actions and bonus actions. The style of play shows the bond between the Dragon and its Lord.

Lords Direction

Draconic Bond. At 3rd level, you become magically linked to a dragon hatchling that will follow you as your companion. The bond between dragon and lord is unbreakable except by death. Once a bond is made with a dragon no one else may bond with that dragon or with the lord. The two become completely intimate, even knowing each other's thoughts. There is no closer bond than that of dragon and lord.

You are telepathically linked to your dragon. You may, as an action or bonus action, direct your dragon to make an attack against a target within range, or command it to make an ability/skill check.

If you are incapacitated or absent, the dragon acts on its own, focusing on protecting you and itself. The dragon never requires your command to use its reaction, such as when making an opportunity attack.

Your bond with your dragon allows you to learn draconic.

Dragon Hatchling. At 3rd level, your dragon hatches out of its egg. Choose either a chromatic or metallic dragon or roll on the table to determine what kind of dragon it is. A hatchling has limited intelligence but is inquisitive and eager to learn. The hatchling will stay close to its lord to protect and be protected, though it will follow any command given to it by its lord. The dragon's size is small. It only speaks and understands draconic. The hatchling is resistant to its own type.

Notes: I created stat blocks for each of the Hatchling types.

Black Dragon Hatchling

When it hatches, a black dragon has glossy black scale. As it ages, its scales become thicker and duller, helping it blend into the marshes and blasted ruins that are its home. With deep-socketed eyes and broad nasal openings, a black dragon’s face resembles a skull. Its curving, segmented horns are bone-colored near the base and darken to dead black at the tips. As a black dragon ages, the flesh around its horns and cheekbones deteriorates as though eaten by acid, leaving thin layers of hide that enhance its skeletal appearance. A black dragon’s head is marked by spikes and horns. Its tongue is flat with a forked tip, drooling slime whose acidic scent adds to the dragon’s reek of rotting vegetation and foul water.

Blue Dragon Hatchling

A blue dragon is recognized by its dramatic frilled ears and the massive, ridged horn atop its blunt head. Rows of spikes extend back from its nostrils to line its brow, and cluster on its jutting lower jaw. A blue dragon’s scales vary in color from an iridescent azure to a deep indigo, polished to a glossy finish by the desert sands. As the dragon ages, its scales become thicker and harder, and its hide hums and crackles with static electricity. These effects intensify when the dragon is angry or about to attack, giving off an odor of ozone and dusty air.

Brass Dragon Hatchling

A brass dragon’s head is defined by the broad protective plate that expands from its forehead and the spikes protruding from its chin. A frill runs the length of its neck, and its tapering wings extend down the length of its tail. A brass dragon wyrmling’s scales are a dull, mottled brown. As it ages, the dragon’s scales begin to shine, eventually taking on a warm, burnished luster. Its wings and frills are mottled green toward the edges, darkening with age. As a brass dragon grows older, its pupils fade until its eyes resemble molten metal orbs.

Bronze Dragon Hatchling

A ribbed and fluted crest defines the shape of a bronze dragon’s head. Curving horns extend out from the crest, echoed by spines on its lower jaw and chin. To help them swim, bronze dragons have webbed feet and smooth scales. A bronze wyrmling’s scales are yellow tinged with green; only as the dragon approaches adulthood does its color deepen to a darker, rich bronze tone. The pupils of a bronze dragon’s eyes fade as the dragon ages, until they resemble glowing green orbs.

Copper Dragon Hatchling

A copper dragon has brow plates jutting over its eyes, extending back to long horns that grow as a series of overlapping segments. Its backswept cheek ridges and jaw frills give it a pensive look. At birth, a copper dragon’s scales are a ruddy brown with a metallic tint. As the dragon ages, its scales become more coppery in color, later taking on a green tint as it ages. A copper dragon’s pupils fade with age, and the eyes of the oldest copper dragons resemble glowing turquoise orbs.

Gold Dragon Hatchling

A gold dragon has a sagacious face anointed with flexible spines that resemble whiskers. Its horns sweep back from its nose and brow, echoing twin frills that adorn its long neck. A gold dragon’s sail-like wings start at its shoulders and trace down to the tip of its tail, letting it fly with a distinctive rippling motion as if swimming through the air. A gold dragon wyrmling has scales of dark yellow with metallic flecks. Those flecks grow larger as the dragon matures. As a gold dragon ages, its pupils fade until its eyes resemble pools of molten gold.

Green Dragon Hatchling

A green dragon is recognized by its curved jawline and the crest that begins near its eyes and continues down its spine, reaching full height just behind the skull. A green dragon has no external ears but bears leathery spiked plates that run down the sides of its neck. A wyrmling green dragon’s thin scales are a shade of green so dark as to appear nearly black. As a green dragon ages, its scales grow larger and lighter, turning shades of forest, emerald, and olive green to help it blend in with its wooded surroundings. Its wings have a dappled pattern, darker near the leading edges and lighter toward the trailing edges. A green dragon’s legs are longer in relation to its body than with any other dragon, enabling it to easily pass over underbrush and forest debris when it walks. With its equally long neck, an older green dragon can peer over the tops of trees without rearing up.

Red Dragon Hatchling

The odor of sulfur and pumice surrounds a red dragon, whose swept-back horns and spinal frill define its silhouette. Its beaked snout vents smoke at all times, and its eyes dance with flame when it is angry. Its wings are the longest of any chromatic dragon and have a blue-black tint along the trailing edge that resembles metal burned blue by fire. The scales of a red dragon wyrmling are a bright glossy scarlet, turning a dull, deeper red and becoming as thick and strong as metal as the dragon ages. Its pupils also fade as it ages, and the oldest red dragons have eyes that resemble molten lava orbs.

Silver Dragon Hatchling

A silver dragon shimmers as if sculpted from pure metal, its face given a noble cast by its high eyes and sweeping beard-like chin spikes. A spiny frill rises high over its head, tracing down its neck to the tip of its tail. A silver wyrmling’s scales are blue-gray with silver highlights. As the dragon approaches adulthood, its color gradually brightens until its individual scales are barely visible. As a silver dragon grows older, its pupils fade until its eyes resemble orbs of mercury.

White Dragon Hatchling

A white dragon has feral eyes, a sleek profile, and a spined crest. The scales of a wyrmling white dragon glisten pure white. As the dragon ages, its sheen disappears and some of its scales begin to darken, so that by the time it is old, it is mottled by patches of pale blue and light gray. This patterning helps the dragon blend into the realms of ice and stone in which it hunts, and to fade from view when it soars across a cloud-filled sky.

Bonded Growth

Draconic Resistance. At 7th level, your bond with your dragon is growing. Your skin has started to develop patches of scales that match your dragons. You are now resistant to your dragon’s type.

Dragon Wyrmling. Your dragon has grown in size and strength. It has gained its breath attacks. Use the stat block for a Dragon Wyrmling of the same type. Your dragon is immune to its type. Your dragon's size is now medium. The dragon is strong enough that you can ride it as a mount. The dragon can only fly up to half its flying speed while mounted.

Draconic Resistance - Black

You can feel yourself changing. Your skin feels thicker. You noticed places where it has become dark, almost black. At first you were worried you had contracted some disease but realized that this was the effects of your bond. Though it still pains you, the acidic secretion from your dragon doesn't bother you nearly as much as it used to.

Draconic Resistance - Blue

As you run your hand along the side of your dragon you flinch slightly as a spark of electricity surges through your fingertips. You're reminded of the first time you were hit by the dragon's natural hum of static electricity. It almost knocked you out cold. Now as you look down at your hand, you can see the blue callus-like scales, a perk of the bond between you, that allows you to resist, and almost revel in the familiar hum of your dragon.

Draconic Resistance - Brass

You skin feels tight as you clutch your fist. You look down at the brass scales that have formed around your knuckles. You learned from testing your scales that you have become resistant to fire. But what else could these scales be good for? With time you hope to find out.

Draconic Resistance - Bronze

Copper webbing have formed between your fingers and toes, and scales have formed on your hands and feet. "Am I turning into a dragon or a fish?" you wonder. Regardless of the answer, you can feel yourself becoming resistant to lightning. What more surprises does your bond have in store for you?

Draconic Resistance - Copper

You clench your back muscles in pain as the enemy behind you casts Acid Splash. The shirt on your back begins to burn away revealing copper scales and a row of ridges that descend along your spine. As the acid reaches the scales it dissipates, causing only minor damage to your skin.

Draconic Resistance - Gold

A jeweler holds a magnifying lens up to his eye as he examines your skin. "They look like they are real gold." He reaches over to a nearby soldering iron and pokes one of the scales with it. You wince slightly. "Fascinating. That iron was incredibly hot. Most people would have screamed from the pain. You barely reacted. It would seem that you have been blessed by a gold dragon." If only he knew the half of it.

Draconic Resistance - Green

A thick wave of noxious gas pours out of the mouth of your dragon, enveloping the foes before you. They clutch their stomachs as they involuntarily vomit all over the ground. You feel a tad bit of pity for them, knowing all too well the effects of a green dragon's poison breath. You run your fingers along the green scales that have formed along your neck, thankful for the bond you share with your dragon that has made you more resilient against the effects of poison and toxins.

Draconic Resistance - Red

You face off against the mage ahead of you as she prepares the verbal and somatic components for Fireball. Before you have a chance to act, she launches an intense ball of fire at you. It explodes near you as you dive out of its direct path. The ball explodes behind you, enveloping you in fire. The scales on your neck and jaw glow red as they absorb the heat. You brush off the pain and step out of the fire towards the mage. Her eyes widen as fear takes hold. You take another step towards her, thanking the bond with your dragon for your resistance to fire.

Draconic Resistance - Silver

You stand naked in front of a mirror as you examine the silver scales that have developed over your body. The places where the scales have formed close together look like solid plates of steel armor. Like steel, the scales feel cold to the touch, though you yourself feel warm. You've heard about silver dragons and their resilience to the cold. Perhaps this resilience is rubbing off on you.

Draconic Resistance - White

Your companions sit huddled around a campfire, fighting to keep warm as the moon rises in the sky. You sit away from the fire, enjoying the winter breeze. You learned some time ago that these white scales on your arms and legs are a gift from your dragon bond that has caused you to enjoy the cold. You feel at home in it. The winters aren't so bad with your new added resistance.

Together As One.

Strong Bond. At 11th level, your bond with your dragon grows stronger every day. You've grown so mentally intertwined that you share each other's feelings and even pain. You gain the ability to share damage between one another. When you or your dragon take damage, you can cause the other to take the full damage or divide it up between the two however you choose.

Additionally, as long as you and your dragon are within 5 ft. of each other, you gain advantage on Attacks and Ability Checks made against the same target.

Draconic Armor. The scales on your body continue to spread over your body. When not wearing armor, your scales give you Natural Armor. Your Natural Armor is 13 + your Dexterity modifier.

Dragon and Lord

Intimate Bond. At 15th level, your bond with your dragon has become completely intimate. You know everything there is to know about the other and you would have it no other way. There is no one you trust more than your dragon. You are so close that you can't imagine life without each other. Because your bond is so strong, when one of you dies the other must make a death saving throw, dying on a failed save.

Draconic Fortitude. Your bond is so strong that you share a portion of the dragon's legendary lifespan. You are able to live four times the normal lifespan of your race. Additionally, you and your dragon share each other's passive traits. (i.e., senses, resistances, etc.) If you and your dragon have two of the same traits, you may choose which one to use.

Young Dragon. Your dragon continues to grow in size and strength. It is now considered a Young Dragon. Use the stat block of a Young Dragon of the same type. Your dragon's size is now large. You can ride your dragon as a mount without any restrictions. You can fight from the back of your dragon as long as you have a ranged weapon or a weapon with reach.

Draconic Fortitude - Black

Thick dull black scales spread over your body. Your body no longer produces sweat, but instead secretes acid that has caused some of your skin to deteriorate making you look more skeletal in appearance.

You are immune to Acid damage.