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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mercurius" data-source="post: 7157861" data-attributes="member: 59082">The key, in my view, is balancing between setting-specific fluff and playability as expressed through the rules. Start by thinking in terms of how you want dragons to be in your world, the campaign that you're going to run, then adapt the rules to fit that.By way of example, I like the idea that dragons are essentially immortal and keep growing, yet at the same time can become decrepit. I think dragons get to a final stage, say ancient, but it is sort of like black belt - there are different levels of it. Maybe this shows up in extra hit points, damage, etc, depending upon age beyond a base level ancient. Maybe decrepitude is a kind of a spiritual/existential disease that some ancient dragons get if they become corrupt, lazy, nihilistic, etc, and leads to physical and mental decline.I also like the idea that dragons start as essentially wild animals until they reach sexual maturity, then they realize their "I". In fact, each stage could be marked by a kind of threshold - this would allow the stages to be rationalized within the world and not just be a meta-game concept. As far as stages go, I like the approach of as few as possible while still offering a range. Maybe something like this:hatchling/wyrmling - until a dragon is autonomousyoung/juvenile - essentially childhood, dragon is still wild and animalisticadult/mature - dragon becomes I-centered, sexually matureelder/old - perhaps some other threshold is reached, maybe psychic connection with other dragonsancient - another threshold, perhaps some greater power (with possible decrepitude)I honestly don't see why more than five are necessary, with the caveat that ancient is open-ended and in a way many stages. But beyond ancient, growth is very small.Finally, I would add a further pseudo-stage: that of the Great Wyrm, which is merely the oldest, most powerful of any dragon type, and revered, respected and feared by all dragons. So there is one Great Red Wyrm, one Great Silver Wyrm, etc, who is essentially a kind of god-king or god-queen. Maybe the Great Wyrms meet every hundred years...</blockquote>

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