Blood Dragon(Creature, dragon)

**Dragon (Fire)**

**Environment**: Temperate and Warm Mountains and Underground

**Organization**: Wyrmling, very young, young, juvenile, and young adult: solitary, or brood (2–5); adult, mature adult, old, very old, ancient, wyrm, or great wyrm: solitary, pair, or family (2-5).

**Challenge Ratings**: Wyrmling 4; very young 5; young 7; juvenile 11; young adult 14; adult 16; mature adult 19; old 21; very old 22; ancient 24; wyrm 25; great wyrm 27

**Treasure**: Double standard.

**Alignment**: Always Chaotic Evil

*While visiting the dragon Mistalphos at his isle on the world of Interra I found certain texts talking about a variety of red dragons twisted by the blood god Nyull. These ‘blood dragons’ were created by Nyull to serve as his elite shock troopers as he brought war against the rest of the deities of the world. These dragons were vicious creatures that had no purpose other than to wage destruction on the creations of the other gods, and were exterminated at the end of the war; or at least they were believed to have been.*

*Mistalphos told me otherwise, and I will repeat what he told me of these creatures, before adding what I have discovered due to my frequent travels.*

***They weren’t completely wiped out, my friend. Yes most were killed, hunted by man and dragon alike; metallic and chromatic working together like Io had intended though I doubt the Nine-Fold One wanted it to be under such circumstances. I remember the hunts still; the blood that stung like acid, washing against my scales, the flesh that would not burn from my breath. Still they fell, as it would have to have been for the First Borns, who had feasted on their master’s blood and thus grown at a rate that no natural dragon could ever match, had already been slain in the War.***

***What were these First Borns like? They were mighty, stronger even than the red wyrms. I slew two myself, one was almost physically my match even without its mastery of blood, something that could have been said of only one red dragon of the time, although even it lacked my force of personality. That force of personality wasn’t what saved me; it was a mixture of luck, those powers Tiamat had granted me to act as her avatar, and my own wit and cunning. Similar to how I had defeated dragons far older than myself in my path to power.***

***Sorry, you did want to hear about blood dragons, not my past accomplishments didn’t you? So blood dragons, yes some survived the hunts, hiding in the forsaken places of the world. Were I not limited by my role as Trial of Heroes I would hunt them down myself, for they are an evil growth that threatens to gnaw at the roots of this world. In truth I post bounties upon their heads commonly throughout the great cities of the world, though woe upon the so-called hero who would bring a red dragon’s head and attempt to pass it off as a blood dragon’s head. I think my policy for punishing such transgressions have made the bounties a little feared, but really can such vermin, excuse me I know you have some love for humans but really some of them are mere vermin although I will admit that some can earn my friendship a feat that few of the great kind can do, expect to live after such a thing? To expect me to pay bounty on my own kind’s heads? Oh yes sorry, about blood dragons.***

***Well they were twisted from my kind, tainted by the blood of Nyull the Destroyer. His blood drives them to madness even as it gives them resistance to acid and breath weapons that even my scales cannot resist without the aid of magic. They are ferocious creature who, before the Hunts, knew only destruction. Unfortunately the Hunts taught them the benefits of subterfuge and those that survived are more cunning in their tactics relying on stealth and remaining unnoticed. Even so they kill for pleasure, but be thankful; they are likely to prolong your life to extend your pain killing you slowly giving a chance for reinforcements to arrive. Unfortunately they are also likely to work with those vermin foolish enough to worship Nyull, and succumb to the promises the demon-god makes offerings of wealth, and power.***

*He gave me more information about the beasts, but I believe that is enough of an excerpt of our conversation, and to include more of his rambling would be detrimental to this work. Suffice it to say I could have written a much longer passage on them than I will from just his conversation, even were I to edit out all the unnecessary portions. Moving along.*

*I hunted for one of these blood dragons personally, and subduing it attempted to reason with it. I found the creature filled with a vile darkness to turn even a baatezu’s black heart, and eventually the beast had to be killed before it could escape and kill more; the only other option would have been to use even more morally repugnant means of forcibly purifying another’s soul.*

*This encounter, and Mistalphos’s stories, led me to search for one of these creatures on another world and I did manage to find such a beast. Though its creation was different, it shared a common link to the Far Realm and a dark god which dwelt within that place.*

*Blood dragons are twisted from red dragons and look similar with a body structure that to anyone not skilled in the art of identifying dragons could easily be passed off as a red dragon’s. Their horns are thicker in proportion to their length, but slightly shorter in proportion to their heads, and they have a few extra joints in their tail giving it more flexibility, but to mistake one for a red dragon would be a natural accident. As their scales range from the color of fresh blood to that of old and dry blood, it is their coloration which serves as the easiest means of differentiation, although those with lighter scales can have scales as light as red dragons with darker scales. If applying for a bounty make sure the dragon breathed a mixture of fire and acid, had blood which burned when struck, and/or had the ability to sprout blades of its own blood before turning in the head lest your reward be execution.*

*Blood dragons have all the normal capabilities one should expect from a dragon, but they develop resistance to normal weapons quicker than the majority of spellcasting dragons, have spell resistance that is on par with an older red dragon, and physical capabilities to match their sires even as the blood which courses through them can extend outwards with a life of its own. Their breath is a cone of burning hot acidic blood, and they can stretch their blood out into a pair of deadly scythes. Finally the oldest have an aura of unholy power that can prove dangerous to even powerful heroes of good.*

*-Zasper the Dragon Sage*

**Breath Weapon** (Su): A blood dragon has a single breath weapon a cone of searing hot, acidic blood which deals the listed damage as half fire and half acid damage.

**Casting**: A Blood Dragon may combine spheres and talents to create magical effects. A Blood Dragon is considered a High-Caster. (Note: All casters gain 2 bonus talents and a casting tradition the first time they gain the casting class feature.)

**Spell Pool**: A Blood Dragon gains a small reservoir of energy he can call on to create truly wondrous effects, called a spell pool. This pool contains a number of spell points equal to his hit dice + his charisma modifier (minimum 1). This pool replenishes once per day after roughly 8 hours of rest.

**Magic Talents**: A Blood Dragon gains magic talents according to the above table.

**Blades of Blood** (Su): A young or older blood dragon may, as a swift action, take 2 points of Con damage to sprout a pair of long blade-like limbs made of its own blood. These limbs deal damage as a claw attack and count as secondary natural weapons but overcome DR as if they were magical, chaotic, evil, silver, and cold iron weapons, and deal +1 fire and +1 acid damage per two age categories; they deal slashing and piercing damage. These blades last for 1 minute after which time it must recreate them to use them any further.

**Blood Specialization**: The Blood Dragon gains the incanter specialization for blood sphere. His effective incanter level for this ability is equal to his total hit dice. In addition, all blood sphere effects are cast at +4 caster level.

**Fast Healing** (Ex): A juvenile or older blood dragon heals 2 hp per age category per round.

**Burning Blood** (Su): Any creature that strikes an adult or older blood dragon while within the blood dragon’s claw reach, or strikes it in melee with a non-reach weapon, is covered in a shower of burning blood. This blood ignites into flame on contact with the air and deals 1d12 acid damage +1 fire damage per age category, and ignites any flammables it strikes. A successful Reflex save (Con based) negates this damage.

**Fatal Blades of Blood** (Ex): An old or older blood dragon’s blades of blood provoke a critical threat on an 18-20 and deal triple damage on a critical hit.

**Blood Drain** (Su): Any creature struck by an ancient or older blood dragon’s blade of blood takes 1d3 Con damage in addition to the regular damage as the blade sucks out the blood of the injured creature. In addition the blood dragon heals 5 damage per point of Con damage inflicted in this way, if it already has full health it instead gains 10 temporary hit points per point of Con damage dealt; these temporary hit points fade after 10 minutes.

**Unholy Aura** (Su): Any good aligned creature within 100-ft of a great wyrm blood dragon must make a Will save each round or be sapped with soul numbing depression for that round suffering a -2 on attack rolls, caster level checks, skill checks, saving throws, and ability checks. Afterwards they must make a Fort save or be sickened for 1 round.

**Skills**: Hide, Jump, and Move Silently are class skills for a blood dragon in addition to those common to all true dragons.