Balagos is on the WotC website now:
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=fr/fx20020130wn
Is it just me or did they mess up on his CR???
Balagos: Male great wyrm red dragon; CR 20; Colossal dragon (fire); HD 40d12+400; hp 660; Init +4; Spd 40 ft., fly 200 ft. (clumsy); AC 41 (touch 2, flat-footed 41); Atk +49 melee (4d8+17, bite) and +47 melee (4d6+8, 2 claws) and +47 melee (2d8+8, 2 wings) and +47 melee (4d6+25, tail slap), or +49 melee (4d8+25, crush), or +49 melee (4d6+25, tail sweep); Face/Reach 40 ft. x 80 ft./15 ft.; SA Breath weapon (70-ft. cone of fire, 24d10), frightful presence, spell-like abilities; SQ Blindsight 360 ft., damage reduction 20/+3, dragon traits, fire subtype, keen vision, spell resistance 32; AL CE; SV Fort +32, Ref +22, Will +30; Str 45, Dex 10, Con 31, Int 26, Wis 27, Cha 26.
Skills and Feats: Appraise +28, Bluff +48, Climb +37, Concentration +50, Diplomacy +44, Escape Artist +30, Hide –16, Intimidate +32, Intuit Direction +23, Jump +57, Knowledge (arcana) +18, Knowledge (geography) +28, Knowledge (history) +18, Listen +48, Scry +38, Search +48, Sense Motive +23, Spellcraft +48, Spot +48, Swim +32, Wilderness Lore +18; Cleave, Flyby Attack, Hover, Improved Initiative, Lingering Breath, Multiattack, Power Attack, Snatch, Track, Wakefulness, Wingover.
Breath Weapon (Su): Balagos can breathe a 70-foot cone of fire every 1d4 rounds that deals 24d10 points of fire damage. His breath weapon attack allows a Reflex save (DC 40) for half damage. Balagos is immune to his own breath weapon.
Frightful Presence (Su): This ability takes effect automatically whenever Balagos attacks, charges, or flies overhead. It affects only opponents with fewer than 40 Hit Dice or levels. The affected creature must make a successful Will save (DC 38) or become shaken. Success indicates that the target is immune to Balagos' frightful presence for one day. On a failure, creatures with 4 or fewer HD become panicked for 4d6 rounds. Those with 5 or more HD become shaken for 4d6 rounds.
Spell-like Abilities (Sp): 12/day--locate object; 3/day--suggestion; 1/day--discern location, find the path; save DC 18 + spell level; cast as a 12th-level sorcerer.
Blindsight (Ex): Balagos maneuvers and fights as well by using nonvisual senses (mostly scent and hearing) as he does with vision. Invisibility and darkness are irrelevant, though he still can't discern ethereal beings. Balagos usually does not need to make Spot or Listen checks to notice creatures within range of his blindsight ability.
Dragon Traits: Immune to sleep and paralysis effects.
Fire Subtype: Immune to fire damage; takes double damage from cold unless a saving throw for half damage is allowed, in which case it takes half damage on a success and double damage on a failure.
Keen Vision (Ex): Balagos sees four times as well as a human in low-light conditions and twice as well in normal light.
Sorcerer Spells Known (6/8/8/8/8/7/7/7/7/4; base DC = 18 + spell level): 0—arcane mark, detect magic, light, mage hand, mending, open/close, prestidigitation, read magic, resistance; 1st—alarm, burning hands, enlarge, expeditious retreat, shield; 2nd—bull's strength, cat's grace, eagle's splendor (see Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting), pyrotechnics, see invisibility; 3rd—dispel magic, fireball, haste, slow; 4th—fire shield, shout, stoneskin, wall of fire; 5th—dismissal, feeblemind, passwall, prying eyes; 6th—eyebite, Tenser's transformation, true seeing; 7th—delayed blast fireball, spell turning, teleport without error; 8th—incendiary cloud, iron body, mind blank; 9th—foresight, meteor swarm.
Possessions: Double Standard = Countless coins (many melted into slag), gems, trade bars, and other items fashioned of precious metal including coffers, candlesticks, and platters, worth approximately 24,625 gp, firestaff of Aunagar the Black, mighty chain of acid resistance (priceless), and 3 potions of bull's strength.
The Magic of Balagos
Little accurate information is known of the magics of Balagos, but it is certain that he uses some powerful items crafted by others. One such item is a minor artifact known as a mighty chain of acid resistance and another is the aforementioned firestaff of Aunagar the Black.
Mighty Chain of Acid Resistance: This ancient, rarely seen item may have been crafted in long-ago Netheril, where they captured, subdued, and controlled (as steeds, digging forces, or beasts of burden) large monsters such as dragons. It consists of two mithral manacles that expand or shrink magically (from 3 inches to a 20-foot interior radius) to pass around a living body or stone spar that they're touched to as a command word is whispered (they do not change size if touched to wood or metal). A second command word causes the manacles to shrink again until they touch something solid -- allowing them, for instance, to be put over a man's head and then shrunk to clasp his neck snugly.
To open a manacle or change its size, the correct command words must be uttered by a creature who is directly touching the manacle to be affected. A heavy mithral chain links the manacles of a mighty chain of acid resistance. The chain itself is 5 inches thick, and it has a hardness of 15, 150 hp, AC 9, and a break DC of 40.
A creature that strikes the manacles or chain directly or with any sort of weapon (regardless of its conductivity) suffers the effects of a lightning bolt spell, and such attacks cause no damage to the item (beings imprisoned in the manacles at the time don't suffer this damage). Missile attacks don't harm the launcher, but they also leave the chain unaffected.
Typically a mighty chain of acid resistance is used to tether a powerful being to a stone spar or two beings to each other, usually with the chain between them wrapped around a stone pillar or other anchor. (In such a case the horizontal level of such a chain can be altered if both prisoners work together to shift the arc up or down the pillar, which is why this sort of tether often involves passage of the chain through a hole, or slot too narrow for the prisoners to pass through, between the anchor and either prisoner.)
Caster Level: 20th; Prerequisites: Craft Wondrous Item, lightning bolt, protection from elements -- acid, protection from elements -- electricity; Market Price: 150,000 gp; Weight: 50 lb.
Firestaff of Aunagar the Black: The firestaff of Aunagar the Black, a long-dead Tashlutan wizard, is crafted from the heart of a suth tree. It allows the wielder to cast the following spells:
continual flame (1 charge)
fireball (1 charge)
wall of fire (2 charges)
delayed blast fireball (2 charges)
meteor swarm (3 charges)
The firestaff also grants its current owner a +1 resistance bonus to saving throws against fire effects and a -1 resistance penalty to saving throws against cold effects.
Caster Level: 17th; Prerequisites: Craft Staff, continual flame, delayed blast fireball, fireball, meteor swarm, resistance, wall of fire; Market Price: 135,375 gp.
One spell employed by Balagos is known to Elminster:
Choking Claw
Evocation
Level: Sor/Wiz 5
Components: V, S, F
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Effect: 10-ft. hand
Duration: 1 round/level (D)
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: Yes
Choking claw creates a Large magic hand in the form of a black, taloned claw that moves and attacks as directed by you. (You direct it as a free action). The floating hand can move up to 60 feet and can attack in the same round. Since this hand is directed by you, its ability to notice or attack invisible or concealed creatures is no better than yours. The hand attacks once per round, and its attack bonus equals your level + your Intelligence or Charisma modifier (for a wizard or sorcerer, respectively), +7 for the hand's Strength score (25), -1 for being Large. The hand's damage is 1d8+7. The hand cannot stun, grapple, or bull rush.
This floating, disembodied claw is 10 feet long and about that wide with its fingers outstretched. It has as many hit points as you when undamaged and its AC is 20 (-1 size, +11 natural). It takes damage as a normal creature, but most magical effects that don't cause damage do not affect it. The hand cannot push through a wall of force or enter an antimagic field. It suffers the full effects of a prismatic wall or prismatic sphere. The hand makes saving throws as its caster. Disintegrate or a successful dispel magic destroys the hand.
By concentrating (as a standard action), you can designate a new opponent for the hand.
Focus: The taloned claw of some beast.
New Feats
Lingering Breath [General]
Thanks to expanded lung capacity, your breath weapon lasts longer than most creatures.
Prerequisite: Breath weapon.
Benefit: Each use of your breath weapon lingers until the creature's next turn, and those entering or staying within the area of effect on the second round may take damage (see below). Those using Lingering Breath must decide before breathing that they are using the feat, otherwise the breath weapon acts as normal. Damage done in the second round is reduced by half. For example, a great red wyrm can normally breathe a cone of fire every 1d4+1 rounds doing 24d10 damage. A great red wyrm with the Lingering Breath feat can breath a cone of fire every 1d4+1 rounds that lasts 2 rounds, doing 24d10 damage the first round and 12d10 damage the second round.
Normal: Each use of a breath weapon normally lasts one round.
Wakefulness [General]
You need less sleep than others of your race to function.
Benefit: You need only half the amount of sleep per night normal for your species to get a good night's rest. You can recover from fatigue after 4 hours of complete rest. You can move from exhausted to fatigued after half an hour of complete rest.
Normal: Most creatures need 8 hours of sleep per night. A character can recover from fatigue after 8 hours of complete rest. An exhausted character becomes fatigued after 1 hour of complete rest.
