Is A Vampiric Dragonwere Giant A Compelling Monster?

[The Shaman]

But would you find it interesting enough to use in a game, or to want to see it a movie?

A blood-drinking dragon? Okay, sure.

The whole shaping-changing into giants thing? Seems totally superfluous to me.

And the idea of a specially-adapted tongue seems odd. I would think dragons would simple bite the heads off and drain the blood out through the stump, like nipping off the end of those little wax soda bottles with the syrup inside.

 

[arscott]

There are two kinds of monsters that work well in D&D: The fantasy monster, and the science-fiction monster.

The fantasy monster works because it is familiar. It reminds us of the stories we read when we were children, of folktales passed down from ancient times. A red dragon is a fantasy monster. A vampire is a fantasy monster. An elf is a fantasy monster. Every fact about these monsters should seem like it's passed on from ancient tales. When the Monster Manual says a Rakshasa can be slain only by an arrow that has been blessed by a Brahmin, it seems true--even if it was made up for the Kolchak episode.

The sci-fi monster, though, works because it is strange. It is a creature of horror or wonder that we have never before seen. We fear a dragon because we know exactly what it can do. But we fear a Mind flayer because it is an unkown. These creatures have strange visages, strange habits, and strength and weaknesses that we cannot expect.

Your monster sits in an awkward place between the two. It doesn't work as a fantasy monster, because it is too strange. We perhaps recognize the elements of dragon and vampire and giant, but we do not expect dragons and vampires and giants to be united into one creature. We do not expect giants to transform with the sun. We do not expect dragons to have probosces.

But it also doesn't work as a sci-fi monster, because it is too recognizable. We still see those recognizable elements. The sci-fi creature is the child of a warped and powerful imagination, and when we see those familiar elements, it seems like a failure of imagination.

So my advice is to pick one side or the others. What you have is a good story (benevolent entities are secretly horrible monsters) that will work with either a fantasy monster or a sci-fi monster. If you choose fantasy, then pick an existing monster (such as a werewolf or a pureblood yuan ti) and go with that. If you choose sci-fi, then take your existing monster and tweak the design so we no longer see the dragon or the vampire or the giant quite so clearly.

 

[Umbran]

Oh, and one other thing that comes to mind.

The average human's got 5 to 6 quarts of blood in their body. So, in if you could get all of it out (which you cannot, as a practical matter), you're talking at best a gallon and a half.

I know the whole "blood is potent" thing, but as an image, this huge dragon thing is going after what, to it, is... a sip? I get the image of Andre the Giant with a children's drink box. Not exactly the image of horror one might want. The thing is big enough to just eat you, and get the blood that way.

 

[Kaodi]

I could do a version without the shape-changing giant angle if that is too complicated. And to cut the creature down to maybe horse size, if volume is an issue. But a blood-sucking "dragon" would be a lame retread in a movie without having that somewhat alien or unfamiliar element. And given what Umbran mentioned about the amount of blood in a human, I think it actually makes more sense to use something more efficient than evisceration and amputation.

 

[mudbunny]

Change it from vampiric to simply "needing the blood to be used in a ritual" then you get the same effect, plus you have this nifty-cool fountain of youth ritual that can be used to introduce all sorts of interesting (in the chinese curse use of the word) for the players.

 

[Wiseblood]

I have to ask. Does anyone else picture a giant fire breathing Chupacabra?

 

[DrunkonDuty]

It'll never compete with Table Master's Flying Vampiric Were- Kraken.