Dragonomicon: Dracolich Mongrel
- Thread starter Rechan
- Start date
questing gm
First Post
I really hope that we can see more on the mechanics of dealing with the phylactercy which was odd to be missing in the excerpt.
One question though,
If the PCs fail the first saving throw after the breath weapon and takes the ongoing 10 damage, does it revert back on the second round or it stays at 10 damage until saved?
Well, the bone mongrel is just a elite brute so I'll probably be using them together with a few other monsters. The fluff is kinda disspointing but I think it does give space for DMs to expand on it further.
One question though,
If the PCs fail the first saving throw after the breath weapon and takes the ongoing 10 damage, does it revert back on the second round or it stays at 10 damage until saved?
Well, the bone mongrel is just a elite brute so I'll probably be using them together with a few other monsters. The fluff is kinda disspointing but I think it does give space for DMs to expand on it further.
Phaezen
Adventurer
I had to get home to my books to check this, but as I suspected, Monster Manual, Page 72 under Dracolich provides all the phylactery info.
Phaezen
Shroomy
Adventurer
I believe that it stays at 10; its a pretty nasty power.
demiurge1138
Inventor of Super-Toast
Here's the thing I've noticed about 4e monsters.
1) I really like a lot of the mechanical tricks they use. Like the bone mongrel's breath weapon, with the ongoing damage getting more ongoing? Cool.
2) I'm not so fond of the fluff deficit. There's a bare-bones (heh) paragraph of flavor text, which does provide some ideas to riff on... but I'd like more. I grew up on the 2e Monstrous Manual, which provided a lot of info on ecology, society and that sort of thing (also, uses for monster corpses), and that's one of the most fun things about D&D to me. If I don't like the flavor text, I can change it, true, but I want it to be there in the first place.
1) I really like a lot of the mechanical tricks they use. Like the bone mongrel's breath weapon, with the ongoing damage getting more ongoing? Cool.
2) I'm not so fond of the fluff deficit. There's a bare-bones (heh) paragraph of flavor text, which does provide some ideas to riff on... but I'd like more. I grew up on the 2e Monstrous Manual, which provided a lot of info on ecology, society and that sort of thing (also, uses for monster corpses), and that's one of the most fun things about D&D to me. If I don't like the flavor text, I can change it, true, but I want it to be there in the first place.
Why use liches when you have mindless skeletons for that?
How can this creature even have a consciousness considering that it is a patchwork out of multiple, already long dead creatures?
garyh
First Post
Those different personality fragments can be at war with each other for supremecy, which is one reason the existence is so terrible.
Kinda like this...
Coldstone (Gargoyles - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Phaezen
Adventurer
Different strokes for different folks I guess. Plenty of fluff for me to work with, although I can see where people would be looking for more to go with. Especially with the embarresment of riches provided in the 2e Monster manuals.
I just thought I would point out that this is the way to express an opinion of something you don't agree with. You get your point across, and allow discussion. This is not:
[B said:
(If any of the mods feel this is inappropriate, let me know and I will edit it out)
I think the mindless part answers that question, a bound intellegent undead can be more usefull. As for the consciousness, a couple of ideas I'll throw out here:
1. The consciousness is an almalgamation of the seperate identites of the dragons whose remains make up the dracolich.
2. The consciousness is that of the dragon whose remains for the phylactery.
3. What Garyh said
Phaezen
Last edited:
frankthedm
First Post
Lich? I don't think I like the term lich used for a cobbled together Dragonbone Amalgamation.
Anyone else think the Illo seems to have puppylike proportions?
Other than that, the monster is fine.
Anyone else think the Illo seems to have puppylike proportions?
Other than that, the monster is fine.
I was wondering myself what sort of 'personality' such a creature would have, with fragments of multiple minds and souls shoved together in a chaotic mass. If the thing didn't have some sort of controller, it would likely tear itself apart. Even then, a dracolich made from a single, even mostly intact, dragon skeleton seems like it would be easier to handle.
Then again, perhaps a mostly intact draconic spirit is *too hard* to control, and only one that is broken into a hundred pieces and at war with itself is able to be controlled at all?
These would make interesting 'spontaneous undead,' to occur in a Dragon's Graveyard, where winds charged with elemental forces sweep in sporadically and toss the bones around. While the spirits of the dragons are long gone, sometimes fragments of rage or despair remain soaked in these ancient relics, and when the bones are thrown into each other by the elemental winds of fire, ice, acid and lightning, these 'echoes' of ancient inhuman feelings surge and flare, the bones assembling into motley pathwork 'dragon liches' and going on rampages, fueled by long-dead passions.
