Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Help me plan my adventure! Dragons are too powerful!
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 7448577" data-attributes="member: 20323"><p>[MENTION=6958799]Karsten Crump[/MENTION] Based on your red dragon hatchling stat block, I'm assuming your party is comprised of low-level PCs.</p><p></p><p>What I've done in a similar scenario is treated the dragon as not so much a monster, and more as an event steering the adventure. For example, a red dragon attacks a fortified old town/freehold with labyrinthine streets built atop one another and several marginalized classes of people living in slums. Let's say the red dragon's motive is revenge, pure and simple. Maybe it thinks the Lord's son destroyed its eggs which are only lain once per century (indeed, there could be more to this story).</p><p></p><p>You don't give the party the suggestion to "kill the dragon." No NPCs expect the low-level PCs to do that. This is an honest to goodness adult red dragon, let's say. At most, with intelligent defenses, rallying the population, and some creativity, the PCs might be tasked with repelling the dragon. Create a rough timeline of the dragon's attack, its strategy, how the defenders respond (or fail to) without the PCs intervention. I could see fire being an ongoing hazard, maybe lighting barrels of oil, pitch, or whale fat on fire, creating lakes of fire on the river or at the port. Maybe buildings collapse, giving an opportunity for escape / rescue / exploring the old undercity. Maybe there is a slum at high-risk of becoming a preferred target of the dragon due to the Lord's callous/careless defensive strategy of his keep. Maybe there are hard-edged NPCs (thieves' guild?) who are reluctant to provide access to their secret smuggling tunnels despite the threat of the dragon. Heck, maybe while ascending a tower to reinforce the beleaguered arbalasters, the PCs can hear the dragon monologuing as it flies outside the tower or peers through arrow slits (which the PCs can communicate through...and the dragon might shoot a gout of flame through (this would only deal a few d6, not its full breath weapon).</p><p></p><p>That's how I would frame it. Success is driving the dragon away, NOT killing it. Thus success need not be measured in damage dealt; in fact, the PCs themselves may never make a single attack roll against the dragon.</p><p></p><p>Maybe the PCs later hunt the dragon down to kill it and take its hoard. Or maybe they discover who <em>really</em> destroyed the dragon's eggs, and cut a tentative truce with the dragon to help it bring down the true offender (for a bit of its treasure). Or maybe the make the dragon see the err of its ways (e.g. making scorching the town to cinder too costly / discovering that the Lord's son <em>couldn't</em> possibly have destroyed the dragon's eggs) & it issues an ultimatum to deliver the guilty person in 1 month or it will return to finish what it started. Or maybe the town burns, and success is measured in how many are saved & how much the PCs learn about more pivotal plot points. Or maybe they launch a coup against the Lord and his foolish son, and turn the offending nobles over to appease the red dragon.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Quickleaf, post: 7448577, member: 20323"] [MENTION=6958799]Karsten Crump[/MENTION] Based on your red dragon hatchling stat block, I'm assuming your party is comprised of low-level PCs. What I've done in a similar scenario is treated the dragon as not so much a monster, and more as an event steering the adventure. For example, a red dragon attacks a fortified old town/freehold with labyrinthine streets built atop one another and several marginalized classes of people living in slums. Let's say the red dragon's motive is revenge, pure and simple. Maybe it thinks the Lord's son destroyed its eggs which are only lain once per century (indeed, there could be more to this story). You don't give the party the suggestion to "kill the dragon." No NPCs expect the low-level PCs to do that. This is an honest to goodness adult red dragon, let's say. At most, with intelligent defenses, rallying the population, and some creativity, the PCs might be tasked with repelling the dragon. Create a rough timeline of the dragon's attack, its strategy, how the defenders respond (or fail to) without the PCs intervention. I could see fire being an ongoing hazard, maybe lighting barrels of oil, pitch, or whale fat on fire, creating lakes of fire on the river or at the port. Maybe buildings collapse, giving an opportunity for escape / rescue / exploring the old undercity. Maybe there is a slum at high-risk of becoming a preferred target of the dragon due to the Lord's callous/careless defensive strategy of his keep. Maybe there are hard-edged NPCs (thieves' guild?) who are reluctant to provide access to their secret smuggling tunnels despite the threat of the dragon. Heck, maybe while ascending a tower to reinforce the beleaguered arbalasters, the PCs can hear the dragon monologuing as it flies outside the tower or peers through arrow slits (which the PCs can communicate through...and the dragon might shoot a gout of flame through (this would only deal a few d6, not its full breath weapon). That's how I would frame it. Success is driving the dragon away, NOT killing it. Thus success need not be measured in damage dealt; in fact, the PCs themselves may never make a single attack roll against the dragon. Maybe the PCs later hunt the dragon down to kill it and take its hoard. Or maybe they discover who [I]really[/I] destroyed the dragon's eggs, and cut a tentative truce with the dragon to help it bring down the true offender (for a bit of its treasure). Or maybe the make the dragon see the err of its ways (e.g. making scorching the town to cinder too costly / discovering that the Lord's son [I]couldn't[/I] possibly have destroyed the dragon's eggs) & it issues an ultimatum to deliver the guilty person in 1 month or it will return to finish what it started. Or maybe the town burns, and success is measured in how many are saved & how much the PCs learn about more pivotal plot points. Or maybe they launch a coup against the Lord and his foolish son, and turn the offending nobles over to appease the red dragon. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
Help me plan my adventure! Dragons are too powerful!
Top