Taxonomically, dragons have always been considered an isolated
group. According to the Monster Manual, they are all
members of the same genus (Draco) and, apparently, only distantly
related to the reptiles. However, from faraway Drogasia
comes word of a form that is obviously related to the Draconian
dragons, but also merits distinction as a separate group.
The Drogasian land dragons, or ?landragons,? as they are
called by the natives, have breath-weapon abilities like their
cousins do, but they lack the ability to fly. However, they have
stunted wing appendages (often put to use for purposes other
than flight) that serve as evidence of the strong evolutionary link
between the two groups. Other noteworthy differences between
the types include the bulkier build of the Drogasians, the shorter,
thicker tail, often used as a defensive weapon, and a different
growth pattern from that of all flying dragons. Also, few of these
flightless dragons show the intelligence associated with their
better-known counterparts.

These differences have led sages to place the three documented
species of ?landragons? of Drogasia in a separate genus, that
being Drogas. Dragons of this genus have the same fear aura
ability as their flying cousins, but they never possess any magical
ability. All three species have developed strong physical abilities,
of both offensive and defensive nature, to offset their lack of
flight and magic, and overall they can be at least as formidable as
the Draconians.
A land dragon found outside its lair will not be asleep. One (or
more) will be asleep whenever encountered inside a lair (usually
a cave or an old dungeon), unless the party awakens the
dweller(s) of the lair in its approach.

Q: Concerning landragons (issue #74): Do
they have any claw attacks, and do they
like water?

A: Landragons do not use their feet to
claw at opponents in melee; they have
developed their own special attack routines,
and while their claws might be
effective weapons, they are rarely if ever
employed. Their experience with water is
limited to shallow wading, though they
can swim for short distances.
(79.14)
 

ARACK (Drogas amagia)
FREQUENCY: Rare
NO. APPEARING: 1-4 (50%: 1 only)
ARMOR CLASS: 1
MOVE: 15? (climbing: 9?)
HIT DICE: 1-10
% IN LAIR: 50%
TREASURE TYPE: B
NO. OF ATTACKS: 3
DAMAGE PER ATTACK: up to 1-8/1-8/5-30
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Breath weapon, tail
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Breath weapon
MAGIC RESISTANCE: See below
INTELLIGENCE: Semi- to low
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
SIZE: L (up to 40? long)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
Attack/Defense Modes: Nil
The appearance of the arack dragon, and its use of a breath
weapon, make it an obvious relative of the Draconian (?true?)
dragons. Its lizard-like body with slightly stunted wing appendages
is somewhat bulkier than the bodies of the flying dragons,
but its size and mobility on land make it a formidable opponent.
This species has blue-grey scales and a deep red underside
matched in color by the crest on the head and neck and the
membranous ligatures on the malformed wings. The wings have
three slender ?fingers? of unequal length, one with a long nail.
These are the ?wing spears? the beast uses as a secondary weapon
in melee.
Arack dragons are found in rocky areas on the outskirts of civilization.
They feed on domesticated cattle, sheep, and goats that

stray into their area, as well as wild prey. In their encounters
with humanoids, they will be very territorial and defensive. The
arack will bluff and charge ?half-heartedly,? with crest and
wings expanded, trumpeting the call that gives the beast its
name, attempting to drive off anyone who comes within its
domain. If the intruders run away, the dragon(s) will generally
not pursue, unless especially hungry (1 in 6 chance). If cornered
or the target of a charge, these beasts will attack at once, using
the breath weapon in the defensive mode while doing so.
These great ?lizards? grow fairly slowly but continually
throughout their lives. Newly hatched young average 4? in
length (nose to tail) and thereafter they grow at a rate of about 3?
every 10 years until they are 120 years old. Beyond that, during
old age, no further growth occurs.

Dragons of this species can live to be about 150 years old. As
they grow, they gain hit points and earn increases in their melee
attack ability. They are hatched with 1d10 hit points and gain

ARACK DRAGON GROWTH TABLE
 

Age (yrs.)	Hit Dice	Damage: Wing Spears	Damage: Bite	Length
0-9	1d10	none	1-6	4'-6'
10-12	1d10	1-3	1-6	7' *
13-26	2d10	1-3	1-6	8'-11'
27-39	3d10	1-3	2-12	12'-15'
40-52	4d10	1-4	2-12	16'-19'
53-66	5d10	1-4	3-18	20'-23'
67-79	6d10	1-4	3-18	24'-27'
80-92	7d10	1-6	4-24	28'-31'
93-106	8d10	1-6	4-24	32'-35'
107-119	9d10	1-6	5-30	36'-39'
120-150	10d10	1-8	5-30	40'

* ? Breath weapon capability gained at age 10.

The breath weapon of the arack dragon is a gaseous cloud,
nearly transparent but faintly visible in daylight (but not under
torchlight, moonlight or magical light short of a continual light
spell). The size (area of effect) of the breath weapon, as mentioned
above, is a direct function of the dragon?s size. The height
of the cloud is equal to the length of the dragon?s body, and the
radius it covers is equal to twice that number.
The breath weapon is usable only twice per day but does not
dissipate quickly; the cloud normally persists for 10 turns. Living
creatures (except for the arack) within the gas will notice a
sticky dampness and a stifling lack of oxygen (described by the
DM as ?stuffiness?). This causes the loss of 1 additional hit
point, cumulative, for each round that a victim is in the gas
cloud: 1 point for the first round, +2 points in the second round
(for a total of 3), +3 points in the third (total of 6), and so on.
If a victim retreats out of the cloud and remains out of its area
of effect for a number of rounds equal to the time he or she was
inside, then the cumulative effect is ?reset? (to 1 point) if the
cloud is re-entered. If the ?time out? is not as long as the last
period of ?time in,? then the cumulative damage will continue
to increase, counting upward from where the count left off, if the
cloud and the victim again come into contact. A character who
retreats out of the cloud and stays out long enough to ?reset? the
cumulative damage receives a saving throw (vs. poison), success
indicating only half (of the total accumulated) damage was taken
from the character?s last time in the cloud.
The other effect of the arack?s breath weapon is a damping
effect that it has on magic. The gas reduces the combat effectiveness
(?to hit? and damage figures) of all magical weapons by 2,
and has an adverse effect on certain spells. A +1 or +2 weapon
becomes, in effect, a +0 weapon, still magical in nature (with its
other special properties intact) but having no enhanced combat
usefulness at the moment. A +3 weapon becomes ?worth? only
+1, and so forth. Cantrips and first-level spells will fail automatically
in the casting, or cease to operate ? regardless of the level
of the caster ? if their area of effect coincides, in whole or in
part, with the gas cloud. A character attempting to cast a spell of
higher than first level must make a saving throw, using the

proper row of the following chart, for the casting to succeed ?
but this save is only necessary if the spell is targeted into or
through the breath cloud. (This is in addition to all other rolls
that might be necessary to determine spell success or failure.)
If a magic item having charges is within the area of the breath,
the DM may (optionally) secretly roll a saving throw for each
charge remaining in the item, assuming in this case that the gas
dissipates charges from the item upon exposure of the item to the
gas, but does not prevent it the item from operating (except, possibly,
by dissipating all of its charges). Artifacts and relics will
not be affected in any case, their spells work normally within the
gas, and they may not be discharged while in the gas.

Spell saving throws
 

Spell level	Saving throw
Cantrips	Fail automatically
1st	Fail automatically
2nd	20
3rd	17
4th	15
5th	12
6th	9
7th	5
8th	1
9th	Succeed automatically
Rings	7
Rods	15
Staves	14
Wands	16

In melee, the arack can be a formidable opponent. If a fight is
imminent, the beast will use its breath weapon to create a cloud
of gas in a convenient area, then step into the cloud to fight the
humanoids threatening it. The gas does not dissipate or spread
under normal conditions (short of a gust of wind spell or the
like), so anyone trying to fight it must suffer the effects of the
breath unless it can be blown away. The effects are not always
obvious, however, since the gas is nearly invisible, even in daylight.
Meanwhile, the arack will attack with its mouth and wing
spears against anyone in front or alongside it (on three separate
targets). The neck is supple, able to attack on either flank, and
the beast is quick about turning to face those who think they are
behind it. In battle, it sweeps its tail back and forth continually
and with some velocity. Anyone to the rear of the dragon will
have to contend with the tail as they attack; a successful hit by
the tail (rolled as for any other ?to hit? chance) knocks the
opponent down, does no damage, but causes the victim to take a
round to get back to his or her feet.
 
 

SCINTILLATING DRAGON (Drogas radiatas)
FREQUENCY: Very rare
NO. APPEARING: 1 (10%: 1-6, family group)
ARMOR CLASS: 1
MOVE: 12?
HIT DICE: 2-12
% IN LAIR: 20%
TREASURE TYPE: D
NO. OF ATTACKS: 2
DAMAGE/ATTACK: up to 1-8/6-36
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Breath weapon
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Fear at ?3 (see below)
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Low to average
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
SIZE: L (up to 45? long)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
Attack/Defense Modes: Nil
This land dragon has a more muscular body than the flying
types, with an agile, snake-like neck and a short, thick tail. The
dragon?s scales are luminescent and iridescent; its body is colored

in rainbow tones that sometimes seem to ripple across the scaly
surface. The scales have a soft glow of their own, which intensifies
the ?moving rainbow? effect and actually turns the dragon?s
appearance into a sort of natural weapon.
The dragon?s strange appearance will entrance some adventurers.
Upon sighting the dragon, all humanoids must attempt to
save by rolling their intelligence or less on d20, with a ?3 modifier
to the die roll. Those failing this roll will either run away in
panic (if the roll would have failed without the adjustment) or
stand entranced by the flashing colors. Those thus enraptured
will continue to watch the dragon until they are attacked or until
the dragon moves out of view.
The entrancing effect will be negated if victims are forcibly
turned to face away from the dragon or blinded in some way (a
hood, for instance) and kept from viewing the dragon for one
round. Likewise, it takes one round for characters to ?snap out
of it? after the dragon leaves their viewing area. But if an
entranced character is attacked, the trance is broken immediately.
The entrancing effects of the dragon?s scintillating hide can only
?charm? a character upon first glance (when the saving throws
are rolled). Those who make this saving throw will not be
affected as long as the dragon remains in viewing range. However,
a new round of saving throws would be required if the
dragon moved out of, and then back into, viewing range.
This land dragon is not unintelligent and will usually attempt
to eat or disable immobile, entranced victims (attacking at +4
against such defenseless creatures). The scintillating dragon sees
humans as a good source of protein as well as a threat to its own
existence, and will attack a human-dominated group with virtually
no provocation, unless the dragon senses itself to be vastly
outclassed. The beast seldom seeks out civilized areas for its
depredations, but will if its normal sources of food are depleted.
Anyone who ventures into the home ground of a scintillating
dragon is considered, literally, fair game.
As with other members of this genus, the growth of this species
is slow but sustained. At the time of hatching, a young
dragon is only 6? long (including the tail). Growth for the first
60 years of the dragon?s life is at the rate of 1 foot every 2 years, to
a length of 36? at age 60. Then the dragon?s growth slows to 1
foot every 10 years, to a maximum length of 46? attained at 160
years of age. Individuals of the species have reportedly lived to
age 200.
The scintillating dragon?s abilities in all respects are reflected
by its size, with damage, hit dice, and hit probability increasing
as body length increases. A newly hatched dragon has 2d10 hit
points, a bite that does 1-6 points of damage, and a tail that does
no damage. As the dragon grows, it gains 1 hit die for every 4 feet
of growth.
At 16 years of age (14? in length), the dragon?s bite damage
increases to 2-12 points and the bludgeon-like tail is strong
enough to do 1-2 points of damage. This is also the age when the
dragon acquires its breath weapon capability. With every 8 feet
of additional growth, the bite damage increases in damage by
1d6 and the tail by 1 point of damage at the maximum (skipping
the ranges of 1-5 and 1-7). The beast?s breath weapon ability

increases as a function of hit points, in the manner described following
the table.
 

SCINTILLATING DRAGON GROWTH TABLE
 

Age (yrs.)	Hit Dice	Damage: Wing Spears	Damage: Bite	Length
0-7	2d10	1-6	0	6-9'
8-15	3d10	1-6	0	10-13'
16-23	4d10	2-12	1-2	14-17' *
24-31	5d10	2-12	1-2	18-21'
32-39	6d10	3-18	1-3	22-25'
40-47	7d10	3-18	1-3	26-29'
48-55	8d10	4-24	1-4	30-33'
56-79	9d10	4-24	1-4	34-37'
80-119	10d10	5-30	1-6	38-41'
120-159	11d10	5-30	1-6	42-45'
160-200	12d10	6-36	1-8	46'

* ? Breath weapon capability gained at age 16.

The breath weapon of the scintillating dragon is a shimmering
beam of energy, 10 feet wide and with length equal to five
times the length of the dragon (up to a maximum of 230 feet).
The presence of the beam is practically undetectable; the beam
itself is invisible, but when it is in use the affected area resembles
thousands of glinting dust particles in a strong beam of light.
Damage is computed by rolling one d6 for each hit die the
dragon has (up to 12d6), with a saving throw vs. breath weapon
for half damage. The dragon can use this breath weapon up to 3
times per day.

The damage from this breath manifests itself in an unusual
form. Only half the damage is felt immediately (round down), as
?burn damage.? The remainder appears over the course of the
next two days (half of the remainder each day) as the victim
gradually weakens (losing 1-3 strength points each day) and
breaks out in large burns. Non-magical healing from these
wounds doesn?t begin until the fourth day after infection and
proceeds at only half the usual rate. Magical healing applied on
the day of the attack heals only half the damage rolled for at the
time of the healing, but the remaining half of regained hit points
will be applied against the delayed damage.

Only after the victim?s healing is completed (by magic, time or
a combination of the two), the victim may become aware of the
worst effect of this insidious ray: Short of the use of regeneration
or a limited wish spell, not all of the damage done by the breath
weapon will heal. Permanent damage to a victim is reflected in a
reduction in the victim?s number of recoverable hit points.
To compute the amount of permanent damage, roll percentile
dice and multiply the result, as a percentage, times the amount
of delayed damage incurred by the victim (round down). This
gives the number of hit points that may not be recovered thereafter
without the use of high-level magic. If the hit points or
strength points of a victim drop below zero at any time during
the ?delayed damage? process, he is dead.

The loss of strength points is independent of the amount of
damage taken, even if more than one breath attack is used on the
same figure. The lost strength points will be recovered at the
same rate as lost hit points (one every 2 days), and magical cures
will not help this (except for regeneration). When a healing/curing
spell is used on a character who has also suffered damage of
another sort, the other damage is recovered first, before applying
any of the healing power to the breath damage.

Example: Kasanati the Unwise, sixth level fighter, and his
party are involved in a melee with a scintillating dragon 39 feet
long. During the fight, the dragon breathes on Kasanati, doing
10d6 of damage. Kasanati successfully rolls his saving throw, cutting
the damage in half, but still suffers 14 points of damage.
Seven points are applied immediately. The party?s cleric casts a
cure light wounds spell, expecting to heal about 4 points of
damage, and is puzzled when only 2 points are cured. (The spell
actually did heal 4 points of damage, but only half of the healing
points are applied immediately.)
The next day, as they travel, Kasanati feels weak (he has lost 1

strength point) and, by day?s end, he has lost another 3 hit points
(4 minus 1 of the ?healing points?) and large blemished areas are
appearing on his skin.
The next day, Kasanati loses another d3 of strength (2 points
this time) and 2 more points of damage (3 minus the last ?healing
point?).
Kasanati does not die, since his original hit-point total and
strength score were high enough to stand these losses. The DM
now rolls percentile dice for permanent damage, getting a 68.
This means that the unlucky fighter will be unable to recover
68% of the hit points he lost to the ?delayed damage? effect of the
dragon breath. The delayed loss was 7 hit points (simply half of
the total damage; the effect of the cure spell does not enter into
this calculation).
So, of the hit points Kasanati lost to delayed damage, four are
lost forever (68% of 7 = 4.76, rounded down to 4) and the other
three can be recovered. The maximum number of hit points
Kasanati can have when at full strength is now four less than it
was before he decided to engage the scintillating dragon (as if he
had never rolled those four hit points in the first place). This
reduction can only be offset by regeneration, limited wish, or
alter reality spells.
Since the effect of its breath is so damaging and long-lasting,
the scintillating dragon is usually treated with great respect by

all creatures that live within its area, and the dragon moves
about with self-assurance. It expects most of those it meets to flee
(either by being panicked by the ?scintillation? attack, or
through real fear of what it can do), or be chewed up if they are
unlucky enough to be entranced.
If several characters attempt to fight it together, the dragon
will be offended ? not afraid ? and if attackers are clustered it
will use its breath weapon (if possible) to ?burn? all who stand
in its way, hoping to garner one or two to satisfy its nearly constant
hunger. If forced into melee, it will use its large mouth to
bite (again, bringing its breath weapon into play if several
opponents are within a potential area of effect), while beating its
tail back and forth to cover its rear. Anyone hit by the tail must
make a saving throw vs. breath weapon or be knocked to the
ground and unable to attack in the next round.
If more than one scintillating dragon is encountered, it will be
a family group consisting of a female and her brood. The hatchlings
of this species remain with their mother for protection
until they are capable of using their breath weapon and fending
for themselves. The female will be at least 30? long and the juveniles
all 15? or less. (Sometimes one of the young will remain
with the mother for a year or so after acquiring use of the breath
weapon at 14?.) The mother will be very defensive and will attack
at the slightest provocation in an encounter.

The scintillating dragon sees humans as
a good source of protein as well as a
threat to its own existence, and will
attack a human-dominated group with
virtually no provocation, unless the
dragon senses itself to be vastly outclassed.
Anyone who ventures into the
home ground of a scintillating dragon is
considered, literally, fair game.
 

NIGHT DRAGON (Drogas retinosis)
FREQUENCY: Rare
NO. APPEARING: 1-6 (20%: family groups of 2-8)
ARMOR CLASS: 2
MOVE: 15?
HIT DICE: 2-8 (d8)
% IN LAIR: 60% (100% in daylight hours, 20% at night)
TREASURE TYPE: Dx2
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: Up to 4.32
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Breath weapon
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Hide in darkness
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Average to high
ALIGNMENT: Neutral evil
SIZE: L (up to 32? long)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
Attack/Defense Modes: Nil

The night dragon gets its name from its nocturnal hunting
habits and is well adapted for this style of attack. Its scales are
black with grey streaks, camouflaging the creature in any underground
or after-dark environment. Night dragons are almost
never encountered in daylight, spending their days in their caves.
or other dark lairs. For this reason their range of vision includes
both infravision and ultravision, but their vision is rather weak
in the normal spectrum.
The beast?s quiet movement and the ability to stand perfectly
still when approached provide it excellent cover. In any encounter
in the dark, a night dragon will be 90% undetectable at a
range of over 3? unless it is backlighted or within the radius of a
light spell (or faerie fire, etc.). When within 3? of a party, a night
dragon will attack, usually with surprise, unless the dragon has
already been detected. If strong light is used by its opponent(s),
the dragon will be at a slight disadvantage (?1 ?to hit? on all of
its attacks, including its breath weapon).
Night dragons are quite intelligent and sometimes hunt in
groups of 2 or more. These hunting packs are especially fearsome
since they will act in concert, to the maximum disadvantage
of their prey. Such tactics as baiting an enemy into an
ambush (with ambushers hidden in the dark), attacks from the
rear, and group breath attacks are not unknown.
This species of dragon exhibits increasingly powerful capabilities
with age, as do others of this genus (see the Growth Table
below). Hatchlings are 3? long including the short, thick tail,

with 2d8 for hit points and a bite that does only 1-4 points of
damage. The night dragon grows at the rate of 1 foot every 4
years. At the age of 20 years (8? in length), the dragon gains the
use of its breath weapon, and the damage from its bite increases
to 1-8 points. The dragon gains one hit die for every 20 years of
age thereafter, and an additional 1-8 points of damage for its bite
every 40 years, to a maximum of 8 hit dice at age 120 and 4-32
points of bite damage at age 140. The dragon does not grow or
experience an increase in power beyond age 140; individuals
have been reported as old as 160 years.

Night Dragon Growth Table

Age (yrs.)	Hit Dice	Bite Damage	Length
0-19	2d8	1-4	3-7?
20-39	3d8	1-8	8-12?*
40-59	4d8	1-8	13-17?
60-79	5d8	2-16	18-22?
80-99	6d8	2-16	23-27?
100-119	7d8	3-24	28-32?
120-139	8d8	3-24	33-37?
140-160	8d8	4-32	38?

* ? Breath weapon capability gained at age 20.

The breath weapon of the night dragon is an extremely bright
beam of light only ½? in width, effective out to a length equal to
the length of the dragon converted to scale ?inches.? Hence, a
25-foot-long dragon can use his breath weapon to a distance of
25?, converting to 250 feet indoors or 250 yards outside). When
the breath weapon hits an enemy, the light causes damage equal
to the dragon?s number of hit dice, except that damage is rolled
with d6?s instead of the d8?s used for hit dice; thus, the breath
weapon of a 120-year-old night dragon will do 8d6 damage. A
successful saving throw vs. breath weapon allows half damage.
In addition ? only if the saving throw is failed ? the breath
weapon will cause blindness in victims by damaging their eyes.
A character blinded by a night dragon will remain sightless for 2
days, unless magical aid (such as cure blindness) is used to restore
vision. At the end of the 2 days, the victim can regain his or
her lost sight by making a save vs. poison. Failing this saving
throw means that the victim is permanently blind unless magical
aid is employed.
Family groups of these dragons will typically have 1-4 adults
(60+ years old) and 1-4 juveniles (each less than 40 years old).
The juveniles will only attack if directly threatened, preferring to
remain motionless so that they may go undetected while the
adults lead the threat away from them.