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Wylantern 04-23-08, 01:45 AM	Note: Much of this is taken directly from Privateer Press' Monsternomicon. The talents are my idea. The point of the exercise is to create a monster class that a character can acquire later in their career in response to accepting their "Taint" or "Defilement", and is based on the Defilers and Dragon Kings from Dark Sun, combined with Privateer Press' take on Dragons and the Dragon Magazine articles on Dragons as PCs. DRAGONS All Dragons have access to the following attacks and abilities from MM: bite, claw, wing, tail slap, tail sweep, grappling, breath weapon, frightful presence, immunities, spell resistance, blindsight, and keen senses, which are available through the use of Talents exactly as in d20 Modern. All Dragons also have the following abilities: Dragonblight (Su): The Dragons warp and taint the land and creatures around them. The Dragonblight may extend for miles around their lair, depending on the age and power of the Dragon. Effects of the Dragonblight include: tainted water, stunted vegetation, fouled crops and game, stillborn infants, and strange weather patterns. The effects of the blight on creatures is represented by the “blighted” template below. A Dragon’s blight zone depends on the Dragon’s Hit Dice: the zone extends one mile for every Hit Die the Dragon has. The blight takes time, however. A Dragon must settle or lair in one area before the blight has any noticeable effect. For the first 2d6 rounds anything within several feet of a settled Dragon blights, and then it grows, spreading a mile at a time every 1d4+1 days, until it reaches the Dragon’s maximum blight-zone. Regeneration (Ex): Acid inflicts normal damage on Dragons. All other damage regenerates at the rate of 20 hp per round. Immunity (Ex): All Dragons are immune to fear. ABOUT LIFESTONES A large fist-sized, shimmering gemstone pulsates within each Dragon’s heart. According to lore, this is called an athanc. If the athanc, also referred to as a lifestone, is mistakenly left within the dead heart of a Dragon’s corpse, the beast will regenerate in just a few days. If the athanc is taken, it will eventually hatch, producing an infant Dragon, or wyrmling. Over the next few years, the wyrmling will undergo accelerated growth into an adult Dragon. It is believed this progression may be hastened, slowed, or stopped in various ways. —Place the athanc in ice to prevent regeneration. —Place the athanc or small Dragon in very extreme heat, such as a volcano, to accelerate regernation and growth. —Place it in a special magic container to stop or accelerate growth. If one ever has the opportunity to vanquish a Dragon, always get the athanc, but never physically touch it! It is the source of the Dragonblight. It is pure evil. Destroying an athanc may well be impossible—they are extraordinarily durable; entire covenants of wizards have tried and failed. It is suggested the athanc be placed in a magically created (or at least lead-shielded) carrier, and then an expert should be sought and consulted without delay. One last note: It appears that athancs are good fare among Dragons, for they seek one another with the idea in mind to consume the other’s lifestone. This is evidently the primary conflict among Dragonkind. If a Dragon slays its kin and gulps down its athanc, it is said the feeder gains much power from doing so. LORE Common: These ancient beasts of legend indeed exist, and the mightiest of the mighty is the Father of Dragons, who lives in a massive black tower on an isle far away. Uncommon: All Dragons defile their surroundings, as they are anomalous creatures given to putrefaction and misery. This blight affects and warps all living things; be it fauna or flora makes no matter. Rare: Dragonblood is a poison that alters the form. The beasts use their lifeblood to create their servitors, the twisted, malefic Dragonspawn. Obscure: To destroy a Dragon, one must destroy its lifestone, or it will regenerate into a newborn Dragon. Extreme cold may have some destructive or torpor-inducing effect on a lifestone, and conversely, heat quickens the regenerative process; this is more believed than proven. TREASURE Dragons are ancient beasts that have amassed prodigious treasures. Among their troves are immense gems, ancient coins, rare magical items, and often the bones of those whom these treasures once belonged. Treat these finds as at least double the standard amount. Lvl__HD___BAB__F/R/W__Skill Points_____Special _1__1d12__+1___+2____(6+Int mod)x4__Small size, +1 natural armour, _2__2d12__+2___+3__________________2 Talents _3__3d12__+3___+3_____6+Int mod_____1 Talent, _4__3d12__+3___+3__________________2 Talents _5__4d12__+4___+4_____6+Int mod_____1 Talent _6__4d12__+4___+4__________________2 Talents _7__5d12__+5___+4_____6 + Int mod____1 Talent _8__6d12__+6___+5__________________2 Talents _9__6d12__+6___+5_____6 + Int mod____1 Talent 10__7d12__+7___+5__________________2 Talents DRAGON TALENTS Flight (Ex) Flight: The Dragon can use their wings to fly at their base speed. They may wear medium or heavy armour while flying, but it slows their flight movement in the same way it slows ground movement. They have Clumsy maneuverability. Prerequisite: none. Maneuverability: Your flight maneuverability changes, advancing one step, from Clumsy to Average; from Average to Good; or from Good to Perfect. You may take this talent multiple times, each time gaining better flight maneuverability. Prerequisite: Flight. Pounce: The 6th-level evolved Dragon can attempt a charge attack if flying and still make a special full attack with his bite and claws, or his bite, one claw, and one weapon (making only one attack with the weapon even though he normally would have iterative attacks due to his high base attack bonus). Prerequisite: Flight. Wing Fan: To use this maneuver, you must have used at least one move action in the previous round to fly at least 30 feet. As a full-round action in the next round, you can use your wings to produce a severe blast of air (approximately 50 mph) with a range of 30 feet. Creatures on the ground two sizes smaller than you are knocked down and roll 1d4x10 feet, taking 1d4 points of non-lethal damage per 10 feet. Creatures in the air two sizes smaller than you are blown back 2d6x10 feet and take 2d6 points of non-lethal damage. Creatures your size are unable to move forward against the force of the wind, or if flying are blown back 1d6x5 feet. This maneuver has no effect on creatures, on the ground or otherwise, who are larger than you. Using this maneuver makes you fatigued. You cannot use this maneuver if you are exhausted. Prerequisite: Flight, Maneuverability, and one other Dragon talent. Breath Weapon (Ex) Breath Weapon: This is a line of fire or electricity (roll randomly) 30 feet long that inflicts 1d6 points of damage per character level. Reflex save (DC 10 + Constitution modifier. Prerequisite: none. Increased Range: The range of your breath weapon increases by 5 feet. This talent may be taken multiple times, increasing the range of your breath weapon up to double its original range. Prerequisite: Breath Weapon. Breath Cone: Your breath weapon line changes into a cone effect. Prerequisite: Breath Weapon and two other Dragon talents. Energy Sustenance: You heal from applications of energy to your body. To use Energy Sustenance, you use an immediate action and 1 action point when subjected to an attack that deals the same energy damage as your breath weapon. Once you do, you heal 1 point of damage for every 5 points of damage the attack would otherwise deal. You cannot exceed your normal maximum hit points with this ability, and any excess are lost. When you use this talent, you willingly fail any saving throw against the incoming energy effect. This ability is calculated after any damage reduction or energy resistance you may have. Prerequisite: Breath Weapon, Energy Resistance. Natural Attacks (Ex) Claws: Dragon claws on both hands become usable natural weapons, inflicting 1d8 points of damage. The Dragon can make Off-Hand attacks if he wishes (using the normal penalties). As with any melee weapon, the Dragon adds his Strength bonus to attack and damage rolls made with the claws (use half Strength bonus for damage bonuses to Off-Hand attacks). Prerequisite: none. Tail: Your tail becomes usable as a natural weapon. This attack deals 1d6 bludgeoning damage. Prerequisite: none. Wing Buffet: You gain the Wing Buffet maneuver. To use this maneuver, you must charge an opponent. On the round after the charge, you can flutter your wings in a distracting manner while you make a melee attack or attacks against the same opponent you charged. If that opponent fails a Reflex save (DC 10 + half HD) you gain +2 bonus for your turn on your melee attack rolls against the distracted opponent. You cannot make a wing buffet again until another charge. Prerequisite: Claws (or) Tail and Flight and one other Dragon talent. Additional Damage: One of your natural attacks of your choice becomes twice as damaging. Permanently double the dice in damage you inflict. Prerequisites: at least one natural attack. Scale Armour (Ex) Natural Amour 1: You gain a natural armour bonus to Defense equal to half your Constitution modifier. Prerequisites: none. Natural Armour 2: You gain your full Constitution modifier as a natural armour bonus to Defense. Prerequisite: Natural Armour 1. Energy Resistance: You gain energy resistance 5 to the same energy as your breath weapon. You may take this talent multiple times. You can choose another type of energy, or may add an additional 5 points of resistance to an energy type previously selected. Prerequisite: Natural Armour 2, Breath Weapon. Size (Ex) Medium: You are now Medium size. Prerequisites: none. Large: You are now Large size. Prerequisites: Medium size. Huge: You are now Huge size. Prerequisites: Large size. Gargantuan: You are now Gargantuan size. Prerequisites: Huge size. Colossal: You are now Colossal size. Prerequisites: Gargantuan size. Unique (Su) Deathdust (Su): As a standard action, a Dragon may exude a cloud of ash possessing the same qualities as his breath weapon. If inflicts 4d10 points of damage per round to any that come within its 170-foot radius (Fort save DC 44). This cloud will cling to the ground if the Dragon opts to shed it and will remain active for 45 rounds after it is shed. It will then cool and solidify into a dark coal-like substance that, when burned, will give off a cloud of deathdust. One chuck of roughly 6 inches in diameter will yield a 20 foot cloud that deals 2d10 points of damage per round (Fort save DC 24), and persists for 1d4+1 rounds. Prerequisites: CR 60. Hell Shroud (Su): As a standard action, a Dragon may excrete an acidic miasma that obscures vision and burns flesh. The cloud inflicts 5d10 points of damage per round to any that come within its 180-foot radius (Fort save DC 49) and also possess obscuring qualities of the fog cloud spell (caster level 4Cool. A Dragon may also blow the cloud in the direction he wants it to go, fanning it with his wings, or release it mid-flight, whereupon it will travel in the direction he was flying. The hell shroud has a movement rate of 30 feet and lasts for 50 rounds. Prerequisites: CR 66. Searing Aura (Su): As a standard action, a Dragon may emanate an aura of extreme heat (150-foot radius) that is hot enough to liquefy metal, let alone flesh. This aura inflicts 2d10 points of damage per round (Fort save DC 39). Unattended, non-magical items get no saving throw to resist being destroyed by the intense heat. Enchanted items are allowed a saving throw. An item in a character’s possession gets the character’s saving throw, unless its own is higher. Prerequisites: CR 49.
Wylantern 04-23-08, 01:46 AM	NOTE: This template is open content from Privateer Press' Monsternomicon. THE BLIGHTED - Living within a Blight Zone for an extended period will cause a subject to become Blighted. - Blighted begin to take on reptilian appearance. - If a Blighted creature leaves the Blight Zone it ceases the transformation, but will once again begin changing should it re-enter the Blight Zone. - If the Blighted has consumed any amount of the Dragon's blood the effects are unstoppable. - The time it takes for a creature to become Blighted varies according to the Dragon. It is usually one year's time of near-constant exposure. - A creature living in a blight-zone for a time (designated by the individual Dragon) must make a Fortitute save equal to 10+ the Dragon’s HD + the Dragon’s Con modifier. - Some Dragons find that they can accelerate the Blight by having their minions drink their blood. A dangerous process; the drinker must make a Fortitude save (Dragon’s HD + Con mod) to simply survive the consumption of the blood. Success means that the imbiber is on their way to becoming blighted and irrevocably dominated by the will of the Dragon; failure results in a particularly painful death. Partaking of the blood of a Dragon has the effects of the dominate monster spell on the imbiber, with the caveat that if the dominated creature actually manages to make its saving throw to resist the effects of the Dragon’s blood, the Dragon can choose to exert its will once again the following round, if it so chooses. Inevitably, the dominated individual will concede to the Dragon’s greater will. Note that this is just one example of how Dragonblight affects most creatures and that there are many other forms of blight. Often, the Dragonblight will create unique creatures or affect an entire group in an entirely different yet homogenous manner. DMs are encouraged to create their own unique blighted creatures or groups of blighted creatures with abilities differing from those listed below. CREATING A BLIGHTED “Blighted” is a template that can be added to any corporeal creature. The template uses all the base creature’s statistics and special abilities except as noted here. AC: +4 natural armour due to leathery, scaly skin. Attacks and Damage: The blighted, if they didn’t have any already, gain sharp claws and teeth. The damage of these attacks is listed below and corresponds to the creature’s size. Creatures with natural attacks better than those listed below retain their original damage rating. __Size________Claw___Bite __Fine_________—_____— __Diminutive____1_____1 __Tiny_________1d2___1d2 __Small________1d3___1d3 __Medium______1d4____1d4 __Large________1d6___1d6 __Huge________1d8____2d4 __Gargantuan___2d6___2d6 __Colossal______2d8___2d8 Special Qualities: The blighted gain the Scent ability plus the following: Darkvision (Ex): The blighted gain darkvision 60 ft. If the base creature already has darkvision, add 60 feet. Immunities (Ex): Blighted creatures are immune to fear, sleep, and paralysis effects. Regeneration (Ex): Fire and acid inflict normal damage on a blighted creature. All other damage regenerates at the rate of 2 hp per round. Spell Resistance (Ex): The blighted gain spell resistance equal to their Hit Dice. Abilities: The blighted gain +2 Con, and -4 Wis. Feats: The blighted gain the Alertness feat. Climate/Terrain: Change to Warm or Temperate land. CR: As base creature +2.