Buy me a coffeeDragon Ladon (Ancient Dragon, Orichalcum)
Ladon is the dragon that twines round the trees in the Garden of the Hesperides and guards the golden apples. He is accompanied by the Hesperides nymphs. Not evil, but is still extremely dangerous he will eat any living creature except the Hesperides.
Originally posted on THE CREATURE CHRONICLE
Orichalcum dragons, named for a mysterious coppery-red metal used by the ancients, are obsessed with rooting out the secrets of the past and rebuilding the glory of fallen empires. They seek out ruined cities and temples to uncover ancient knowledge and magic. An orichalcum dragons hoard is more than just gold and gems – its home is its hoard.
Orichalcum dragons were far more numerous in ancient times, and many bloodlines were sworn to the service of great empires, such as Atlantis, the primeval elves, or the empires of the serpentfolk and cyclopes.
Orichalcum dragons today are a dying breed, obsessed with their races past glories. More than anything, they wish to rebuild their standing in the world, and to do so they reconstruct ancient sites and build new (if petty) kingdoms on the ruins of the old. Because they were most closely associated with Atlantis and the serpentfolk, orichalcum dragons are found in the greatest numbers in dark jungles, where those two empires abutted one another, but individual dragons have staked out claims to ruins all over the world.
Once an orichalcum dragon claims a ruin as its own, driving off or killing any previous squatters, it sets about attracting new followers, typically humans, lizardfolk, goblins, or even gnolls, depending on what are closest at hand. Kobolds in particular are drawn to orichalcum dragons, and a kobold tribe under ones protection tends to be less vicious and more sophisticated. The dragons followers may treat it as anything from a benign feudal lord to a violent god-king depending on the dragons temperament. Orichalcum dragons may be either a friend or an enemy to adventurers – some eagerly recruit mercenaries to help clean out the deepest corners of its new home, while others viciously kill any intruders in their lairs.
Orichalcum dragons are vaguely feline in build, with clawed feet shaped more like a lions paws than a lizards talon. Their scales are dull brown at hatching, but take on a lustrous coppery-red shine as they age. Older orichalcum dragons enjoy embedding jewels in their scales in designs inspired by the art of their home ruins.
Animate Breath (Su): The acidic bile breathed by an orichalcum dragon does not simply disperse. Rather, it collapses in on itself, creating a serpent of magic vapor that attacks the dragons enemies. The vaporous serpent appears in any unoccupied square (or squares for Large or larger serpents) in the area affected by the breath weapon and acts just after the dragon in the initiative order. See below for vaporous serpent statistics.
An orichalcum dragon can will its vaporous serpent to dissolve into nothing at will; otherwise it lasts until reduced to 0 hit points. An orichalcum dragon can have only one vaporous serpent in existence at a time.
Constrict (Ex): An ancient or older orichalcum dragon gains the grab special attack with its tail slap. It can constrict for an amount of damage equal to its tail slap.
Long Tail (Ex): A young or older orichalcum dragons reach with its tail slap is 5 feet longer. An orichalcum dragon can affect a radius of 40 feet with its tail sweep if Gargantuan or 50 feet if Colossal.
Spell-Like Abilities (Sp): An orichalcum dragon gains the following spell-like abilities, usable at will upon reaching the listed age category. Its caster level for these effects is equal to its Hit Dice, and any save DCs are Charisma-based. An orichalcum dragon can use these abilities at will. Very young – detect magic; juvenile – fire trap; adult – explosive runes; old – legend lore; ancient – teleport trap; great wyrm – maze.
Summon Ruin Elemental (Sp): This ability, usable by a great wyrm orichalcum dragon once per day, works like a summon monster spell, except that it summons one ruin elemental. This ability is the equivalent of a 9th-level spell.
| ANCIENT ORICHALCUM DRAGON | ||||||||
| CR: 19 XP: 204,800 LN Gargantuan dragon (earth) Init: +3; Senses: Dragon senses; Perception +31 Aura: Corrosive (10 ft., 1d6 acid damage), frightful presence (300 ft., DC 28) |
||||||||
| DEFENSE | ||||||||
| AC: 42, touch 9, flat-footed 42 (-1 Dexterity, +33 natural) hp: 340 (25 HD) Fort +21, Ref +15, Will +22 DR 15/magic; Immune: Acid, paralysis, sleep; SR 21 |
||||||||
| OFFENSE | ||||||||
| Speed: 40 ft., fly 250 ft. (clumsy) Melee: Bite +33 (4d6+18/19-20), 2 claws +33 (2d8+12), 2 wings +31 (2d6+6), tail slap +31 (2d8+18 plus grab) Space: 20 ft.; Reach: 15 ft. (20 ft. with bite or tail slap) Special Attacks: Animate breath, breath weapon (120 ft. line, 20d8 acid damage, Reflex DC 29 for half, usable every 1d4 rounds), constrict (2d8+18), crush (4d6+18, DC 29), tail sweep (2d6+18, DC 29) Spell-Like Abilities (CL 25th, concentration +31): At will – Detect magic, explosive runes, fire trap, legend lore, teleport trap Spells Known (CL 15th, concentration +21): 7th (4/day) – Delayed blast fireball (DC 23), vision 6th (6/day) – Acid fog, antimagic field, guards and wards (DC 22) 5th (6/day) – Cone of cold (DC 21), polymorph, telekinesis (DC 21), waves of fatigue (DC 4th (6/day) – Detect scrying, enervation (DC 20), hallucinatory terrain (DC 20), mass enlarge person 3rd (6/day) – Dispel magic, gaseous form, haste, slow (DC 19) 2nd (6/day) – Make whole, scorching ray, see invisibility, shatter (DC 18), web 1st (6/day) – Identify, mage armor, magic missile, shield, true strike 0 (at will) – Arcane mark, bleed (DC 16), dancing lights, flare (DC 16), mage hand, message, open/close, prestidigitation, read magic |
||||||||
| STATISTICS | ||||||||
| Strength 35, Dexterity 8, Constitution 25, Intelligence 22, Wisdom 23, Charisma 22
Base Atk: +25; CMB: +41; CMD: 50 (54 vs. trip) Feats: Critical Focus, Flyby Attack, Hover, Improved Critical (bite, tail slap), Improved Initiative, Improved Vital Strike, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Multiattack, Power Attack, Vital Strike, Weapon Focus (tail slap) Skills: Appraise +31, Diplomacy +31, Fly +14, Intimidate +31, Knowledge (arcana, engineering, history, nobility, planes) +31, Perception +31, Spellcraft +31, Use Magic Device +31 Languages: Common, Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, three ancient languages |
||||||||
| SPECIAL ABILITIES | ||||||||
|
||||||||
| ECOLOGY | ||||||||
| Environment: Warm forests (ruins) Organization: Solitary Treasure: Triple |