GMs: Do you change the colors of your dragons?

[interwyrm]

This poll inspired by todays OOTS. Do you change the appearance of your dragons so that players don't know exactly what they are dealing with?

 

[Crothian]

I totally mix it up. I don't like that a dragon's alignment and basic personality can be identified by the color of its scales.

 

[EricNoah]

I'm going to be using AE's notion of dragons probably from now on -- no universal look, no universal personality or alignment, each one a little unique and unpredictable.

 

[Aust Diamondew]

I need an 'other' option. My dragons frequently disguise themselves with alterself/changeself/polymorph so that adventurers don't know their element immunities or their breath weapon until it's too late.

 

[Sejs]

What Crothian said.

 

[Andre]

Depends. If the characters have a certain minimum amount of info on the world around them, then no problem. Using the standard scheme from the MM is an easy way to duplicate this character knowledge without burdening the players with a ton of minutia.

If, however, I'm running a campaign where the players know very little about the world (say a Gamma World campaign, or a planar campaign), then changing the stereotypes is an easy way to limit character knowledge. It can also be a lot of fun for both the players and the GM, as the unknown heightens tension and adds drama.

Regardless of the type of campaign, I see this as a matter of degree, not either-or. I may change many creatures, or very few, but I'll never change none or all.

 

[IronWolf]

I voted yes, but I think I needed an 'other' option. My dragons are by the book as far as color = alignment bit. But that's not to say they don't use some tricks to disguise themselves They are intelligent after all...

 

[The_Gneech]

Right now I'm running a "by the book in classic Greyhawk" game, so I'm using pretty much all standard monsters, dragons included -- so I voted "no" this time.

In homebrew campaigns, OTOH, it's all up for grabs -- I've got intelligent dragons, stoopid dragons, dragons with wings, long serpentine dragons, green, red, brown, yellow, etc.

In my most commonly-used homebrew, there was only one dragon, "THE Dragon," and he was practically a god.

-The Gneech

 

[Staffan]

I mix up the alignments, but then again I run an Eberron campaign so all alignments (well, not so much on outsiders) are mixed up. I do keep to the physical descriptions though - if you should find yourself up against a green dragon, you should make sure to have some acid resistance up, but the guy might be good.

 

[was]

I make up my own dragons.