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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

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Dragon, Conspirator

Source Monster Core pg. 110
Hidden among the shadows and upper echelons of society are the conspirator dragons. These dragons are schemers, always looking to manipulate and control others, either for personal gain or simply for the thrill of watching their machinations play out. Conspirator dragons see themselves above others and typically speak with infantilizing tones and words. However, as most conspirator dragons meet others while in disguise, they do their best to maintain their disguise.

Members

Adult Conspirator Dragon (Creature 12), Ancient Conspirator Dragon (Creature 17), Young Conspirator Dragon (Creature 8)

Sidebar - Locations Conspirator Dragon Lairs

While conspirator dragons keep hoards like other dragons, they also enjoy collecting secrets and extortion materials. These range from copies of letters, contracts thought to be secret, and other incriminating evidence that aid in achieving the dragon's goals. A given conspirator dragon's goals can be varied, and each keeps items related to this goal, such as deeds for a dragon looking to own a city or ancient tomes for a dragon looking to collect information on ancient civilizations. As most conspirator dragons live among settlements, they keep their hoards in large cellars, outside of the settlement in secretive forest or mountain lairs, or even in the vault of a local bank.

Sidebar - Advice and Rules Conspirator Dragon Spellcasters

Conspirator dragon spellcasters tend to cast the following spells.

Young Conspirator Dragon

Occult Prepared Spells DC 26, attack +19; 3rd clairaudience, paralyze, veil of privacy; 2nd calm, invisibility, paranoia; 1st bane, fear, phantom pain; Cantrips (3rd) daze, detect magic, figment, message, telekinetic projectile

Adult Conspirator Dragon

Occult Prepared Spells DC 33, attack +26; As young conspirator dragon, plus 5th scouting eye, synaptic pulse, truespeech; 4th clairvoyance, honeyed words, suggestion; Cantrips (5th) daze, detect magic, figment, message, telekinetic projectile

Ancient Conspirator Dragon

Occult Prepared Spells DC 39, attack +33; As adult conspirator dragon, plus 8th hidden mind, unrelenting observation; 7th duplicate foe, project image, warp mind; 6th mislead, scrying, truesight; Cantrips (8th) daze, detect magic, figment, message, telekinetic projectile

Sidebar - Related Creatures Vixalla

Though she's a relatively recent arrival to the politics of Taldor, the Countess Phisetta dis Alavir has made quite the impression among the country's nobility. When not out in public, the Countess sheds her noble persona and takes on her true form, that of the conspirator dragon Vixalla. The dragon maintains her hoard and a rotation of servants whose memories she regularly wipes in a cavern deep beneath her manor in Taldor's capital of Oppara.

Dragon

Related Groups Dragon, Adamantine, Dragon, Diabolic, Dragon, Empyreal, Dragon, Fortune, Dragon, Horned, Dragon, Mirage, Dragon, Omen
Dragons come in myriad forms, with many having magical abilities or connections to magic. Some dragons draw greater power from magic than others, allowing them to manifest abilities or alter their physiques with prolonged exposure to magic. These dragons become more powerful as they age and strengthen their connections with their magical origins. Scholars debate the classification of these dragons, with some preferring the name magical dragons and others using traditional dragons due to their connection to specific magical traditions. Regardless of their names, these dragons share a number of characteristics: their ability to tap into magical energies, intensified might and cunning as they grow older, and an inclination to hoard vast amounts of treasure and wealth.

Draconic Spellcasters

Each dragon features a sidebar on spellcasting dragons of that type. To make a dragon spellcaster, remove the dragon's Draconic Frenzy and Draconic Momentum abilities, and give them the spells outlined in their sidebar. You can swap out any number of these with other spells, provided you keep the same number of spells for each rank. You might also want to increase the dragon's Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma modifier by 1 or 2 to reflect their mastery of magic.

Sidebar - Additional Lore Draconic Groupings

The broader grouping of dragons is generally sorted into more granular categories, the first of which is based on the four magical traditions. Each dragon falls into one of these large categories, and dragons in a given category share a number of common traits.

Arcane Dragons: These dragons seem to have greater control over magic and their innate abilities. Many arcane dragons have mastery over a certain subset of magic, such as illusions or teleportation. Other arcane dragons have the ability to tap into or manipulate raw magical energies, regardless of their origins. Their bodies tend to be more slender than other dragons due to their reliance on magic for hunting. Their scales generally come in perfect patterns or very organized shapes.

Divine Dragons: While the name might suggest dragons directly related to deific entities, divine dragons instead derive their power from planes other than the mortal Universe. Similar to how a god grants power to a cleric, these dragons receive magical abilities and other influences from another plane. As such, divine dragons are among the most varied of dragons. These dragons generally take on an appearance similar to other native creatures of their influential planes, making it difficult for them to hide their planar connections.

Occult Dragons: At times alien and off-putting and other times alluring and mysterious, occult dragons derive their powers from the inexplicable and unknown. These dragons use magic that seems to exist within the crevices and shadows between other forms of magic. Whether it's due to this strange magical influence or something else, occult dragons are most likely to directly interact with other creatures. While generally sporting similar builds to other dragons, occult dragons make greater use of their wings as supplementary appendages, leaving their forward limbs free to use for other things. Their scales and plating generally feature strange shapes and patterns that are rarely seen in the natural world.

Primal Dragons: While all dragons are fierce and terrifying in their own way, primal dragons seem to embody the most bestial traits among dragons. These dragons derive their power from the magic of the natural world. While primal dragons aren't directly bound to serve nature, many of them choose to act as keepers of their habitats. Primal dragons are generally larger than other dragons and fall back on their instincts more often, making them particularly dangerous when threatened. Their scales typically have less elaborate shapes than other dragons, or will sometimes resemble natural terrain. Some dragons even grow natural features like small plants on their bodies.

Draconic Families: In addition to these classifications, dragons are sometimes grouped into families. These include the enigmatic esoteric dragons, the regal imperial dragons, the space-faring outer dragons, and the mighty skymetal dragons. Draconic families are sometimes made up of dragons with obvious physiological similarities, while other families seem to be made up of dragons of similar color, habitat, behavior, or other traits that make for vague connections. Often, families include dragons of varied magical traditions. As such, the members of a given family are sometimes the subject of debate and scholarly arguments.

Sidebar - Advice and Rules Shape-Changing Dragons

Though it's uncommon, some dragons can take humanoid forms. They gain the following ability:

Change Shape [one-action] (concentrate, polymorph); The dragon takes on the appearance of any Small or Medium humanoid. This doesn't change their Speed or attack and damage bonuses with their Strikes but might change the damage type their Strikes deal (typically to bludgeoning).