I won't go into details, but my party recently came across some chromatic dragon eggs. We decided to take them with us, and are planning to (hopefully) hatch them and have them as cohorts/allies.
My biggest question would be: is this possible. I know that it's possible to properly incubate the eggs, despite removing them from their nest, but I'm not sure if we can get them to be friendly upon hatching.
My character is Chaotic Good, so I feel like I'd be close enough in alignment to get along with the wyrmlings, but we also have some Lawfuls in the party.
If the rules for hatching/rearing dragons is still similar to 3.5 in any respect, I know the conditions we need to incubate the eggs under, and that it will take a high DC Handle Animal check to pacify the hatchlings.
tl;dr found eggs, want make friend, how do?
Fargus: We are talking an AL game here right (either Encounters or Expeditions?). Because I dont remember such eggs. and Ive played through the first 4 parts of Encounters (Hoard) and up to 1-5 of Expeditions.
Yes, we are playing through Hoard of the Dragon Queen at the moment, and we discovered a hatchery with black dragon eggs. It's just after we "saved" Greenest and went to infiltrate/investigate the cultists' camp.
The entry on Dragons in the Monster Manual runs from page 86 to page 118. There are stats for wyrmlings (dragons aged 5 years or less), with Challenge Ratings ranging from 2 to 4. There are not, however, any mentions of dragon eggs or befriending hatchlings.
On pages 25-6 of Horde of the Dragon Queen, there is an encounter area with some dragon eggs that will hatch "very soon." The eggs are 3' tall and weigh 150 pounds each. The book says, "If they are taken away, whether they hatch depends on how they are stored and treated." Basically, they need to be here or someplace just like it to hatch. I'm not sure how a party of low-level adventurers plan to move such a fragile, heavy object—the Cult of the Dragon weren't willing/able to do it. The book says nothing about befriending them, or what happens if/when they hatch.
That leaves the forthcoming Dungeon Masters Guide as a possible rule source. Since it's not out yet, we clearly can't access any of its rules. I can't see the AL staff thinking it's a good thing to allow PCs to have dragon wyrmlings as friends in organized play, but you never know.
Notwithstanding everything else, chromatic dragons have varying alignments.
Color Dragon Alignment Notes
Black CE "[T]he most evil tempered and vile of the chromatic dragons." also "[B]lack dragons stand apart for their sadistic nature."
Blue LE "Blue dragons covet valuable and talented creatures whose service reinforces their sense of superiority."
Green LE "Nasty tempered and thoroughly evil, they take special pleasure in subverting and corrupting the good hearted."
Red CE "[T]hey are regarded as the archetypical evil dragon by many cultures."
White CE "[White dragons are] singularly focused on surviving and slaughtering their enemies."
tl;dr: Found eggs, killed eggs without realizing it. Sorry.
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Pauper
Pauper wrote:
This is what happens when Organized Play allows home game adventures without any guidelines for adjudicating awards at the end of each episode. 
Uthrac wrote:
fargus wrote:
Uthrac wrote:
fargus wrote:
Fortunately, we only found 3 eggs, and I don't think anyone in my group is knowledgeable enough about D&D to think to magically age the hatchlings. I'm always on the side of roleplaying/story over a clear advantage, often to the chagrin of my fellow party members.
fargus wrote:
Pauper wrote:
I would rule that you cannot hatch the eggs, nor train the wyrmlings, while having adventures. Some rather specific circumstances are needed to hatch the eggs (this is WHY dragons make lairs). And the training will take up a lot of downtime.
In the context of a home-written plot this might work. But as part of HotDQ - where you must keep moving or the plot / trail goes cold - it just won't work.
Fargus, your idea of sending the eggs back to your Noble family is a stroke of genius. Your reputation gets the GP for selling the eggs, which you see in the form of people doing you favors whenever your character expresses the need for a piece of stuff. (Free room and board, replace broken equipment, +2 bonus on CHR checks, &c)
I have another question regarding the eggs. Where did the eggs come from? Flipping ahead (spoiler alert...) I see that there are two male black dragons... twins. Who is the mother of these eggs? Was there any specific plan for these dragons?
I let my group hatch one of the eggs. I'm just running it like the dragon baby is useless for its' first few months of development - uncoordinated, unable to breathe acid, a helpless infant. I am running with the idea that if they treat it well and teach it, then the dragon isn't necessarily going to be evil. Each session I run a little moment where the dragon wants to eat a squirrel or something, and let the PCs shape and mold its' behavior (I will use their teachings to determine its' alignment as we progress).
I'll have it gain wyrmling status maybe somewhere during Rise of Tiamat if it feels like the wyrmling won't ruin encounters. If they try to magically age it, then I can always say that it becomes independent and possibly evil. Heck, it might insist on taking over the party and forcing them to assemble its' own treasure hoard.
I just told my players that due to the nature of the organized play, the wyrmling wouldn't be allowed in other organized play events outside of my table. It's not much of an issue because my game is the only one they play in so the baby dragon is self-contained.
Winterhaven_Regular wrote: