Do you have any preference as to the dragon's subrace? Does any particular draconic color or archetype suggest itself to you for this adventure? Bronzes are the most likely to settle in a temperate coastal region though silvers are the most gregarious and most likely to remain with humanoids for extended periods of time. Silvers gain the ability to adopt humanoid form as early as 2nd level. If you'd rather skip the
hat of disguise idea then I suppose you could choose to fudge a bit and have a silver start with the ability to assume a single humanoid form at 1st level. On the other hand, playing a young chromatic dragon, such as a red or blue who, having been hatched amongst humanoids, is growing up to be unusually kindhearted and sociable could make for an interesting characterization. Imagine a naive young red dragon who doesn't understand why everyone he meets expects him to be a rampaging monster.
I rather like the latter idea. Hm.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CanadienneBacon  The Sandpoint Theatre: The difficulty, however, becomes how and why your dragon comes to be affiliated with the party traveling to Sandpoint to attend the re-dedication ceremony. If the dragon were tasked by Cyrdak to perform at the ceremony as part of a theatre troupe, that'd be one workaround for how to include the dragon in the group. |
Seems a bit roundabout. In this case the goal is merely to have the dragon be at the cathedral so as to meet the party. The simplest reasoning is that the dragon has come to watch the ceremony same as every other curious local. He could be observing while remaining disguised as a decorative gargoyle. It's hard to figure out what might prompt him to reveal himself to the party without knowing what'll happen at the ceremony though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CanadienneBacon I was, however, hoping to hand your dragon the role of party peacekeeper. My feeling is that we'll need some method of making sure the dragon has a plausible and lasting reason to adventure with the party. |
You seem to be anticipating all sorts of conflict within the party, though I'm not certain why. The simplest motivation for a young dragon to remain in the company of an adventuring party is treasure. Even righteous dragons have an inborn desire to build a hoard and adventurers seem to have a knack for finding loot. Easy peasy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CanadienneBacon The Rusty Dragon Inn: The proprietor used to be an adventurer herself, so there might be fertile ground there for an explanation how she came to be involved in the inn and the dragon's association. In this scenario, the dragon would either known and beloved by the Sandpoint population (or at least well-tolerated), or conversely, its presence could be a well-hidden secret. |
It'd be interesting to flesh out the relationship between the ex-adventurer proprietor and the absentee draconic parent. Perhaps they were adventuring companions. Hm...
Quote:
Originally Posted by CanadienneBacon The Old Light: This is also possible. Would you, in this scenario, be hidden or known to the locals? |
All of my suggestions were based upon the notion that the dragon's existence was to be kept a secret from Sandpoint's population at large. Have you reconsidered that stipulation?
Quote:
Originally Posted by CanadienneBacon In this scenario, you and the sorceror might share blood ties. |
Possibly, but another idea that occurred to me was based on the sorcerer's proposed backstory in which the mother was struck by lightning. A bronze or blue dragon's lightning breath might have been the inadvertent source of power that engendered the unborn offspring with sorcerous might.
And yet another word from our sponsors
