Green Dragons

Gold Dragons by Size

Overall Body Neck Tail Body Standing Maximum Minimum Size Length Length Length Length Width Height Wingspan Wingspan Weight

Medium 16 ft. 5 ft. 5 ft. 6 ft. 3 ft. 4 ft. 27 ft. 12 ft. 320 lb. Large 31 ft. 10 ft. 9 ft. 12 ft. 5 ft. 7 ft. 40 ft. 18 ft. 2,500 lb. Huge 55 ft. 16 ft. 15 ft. 24 ft. 8 ft. 12 ft. 68 ft. 30 ft. 20,000 lb. Gargantuan 85 ft. 23 ft. 23 ft. 39 ft. 10 ft. 16 ft. 90 ft. 40 ft. 160,000 lb. Colossal 120 ft. 33 ft. 33 ft. 54 ft. 15 ft. 22 ft. 135 ft. 60 ft. 1,280,000 lb.

listener, and even the most long-winded talker does not try its patience (though even a gold dragon will draw the line if a brass dragon bends its ear for too long). The dragon usually avoids philosophical or ethical arguments with lesser beings, though it often cannot resist trumping an argument that advocates chaos with an aphorism or fable promoting law. When it encounters a being that advocates evil, a gold dragon tends to be silent, but marks the speaker for future attention.

Gold dragons have a worldwide hierarchy with a single leader at the top. This leader is elected by the whole species from the ranks of great gold wyrms and serves for life or until he or she decides to resign. Many serve until the onset of their twilight (see page 14); others serve until they believe a successor can do a better job. The leader is always addressed by the honorific “Your Resplendence.”

When a vacancy occurs, every gold dragon in the world participates in the selection of the replacement, who is almost always selected by acclamation. Occasionally, two candidates of equal merit are available when the previous ruler dies or retires. In such cases, the two work out some method of sharing of office. During the past, there have been co-rulers, alternating rulers, and rulers who simply have retired early to make way for another.

The ruler’s duties usually prove light because the position’s authority rarely needs to exercised. Most gold dragons know how they are expected to behave, and they act accordingly. The ruler mostly serves to advise individual gold dragons on the nature and goals of their quests against evil. The ruler often can point out hidden consequences for a quest, such as the effects on the politics of lesser creatures or the impact on the local environment or the balance of power. The ruler also serves as the gold dragons’ chief representative in dealing with other species (in the rare event when some matter of interest to all gold dragons arises), and as chief enforcer and judge (in the exceptionally rare case of gold dragon misconduct).

Gold dragon courtship is both deliberate and dignified. Often two prospective mates spend years debating philosophy and ethics, and go on several quests together, so as to get the full measure of one another. Once a pair agree to mate, they seek the ruler’s approval as a matter of protocol. Permission to mate is rarely withheld.

Despite their lawful nature, gold dragons allow themselves remarkable freedom. Some mate for life, other only for a short time. Some are monogamous, and others have multiple mates at the same time. Gold dragons always tend and instruct their young carefully, though it is common for parents to send their offspring into the care of foster parents (always lawful good, but not always dragons) when they perceive the need. Young gold dragons may be fostered to protect them when danger threatens, to free up the parents for a quest, or simply to broaden their horizons.

Gold dragons prefer treasures that show an artisan’s touch. They are particularly fond of paintings, calligraphy, sculpture, and fine porcelain. They enjoy pearls and small gems, which also are their favorite foods. Approaching a gold dragon with gifts of pearls and gems is a good way to gain favor, provided the gifts are not offered as bribes.

Gold dragons usually parley before fighting. When conversing with intelligent creatures, they use discern lies to help them determine if combat really will be necessary. They prefer to delay combat until they can cast preparatory spells.

GREEN DRAGONS

Green dragons are belligerent creatures and masters of intrigue, politics, and backbiting. They prefer forests; the older the forest and bigger the trees, the better. Green dragons are as territorial and aggressive as any other kind of evil dragon, but their aggression often takes the form of elaborate schemes to gain power or wealth with as little effort as possible.

Green dragons seek out caves in sheer cliffs or hillsides for their lairs. They prefer locations where the lair’s entrance is hidden from prying eyes, such as behind a waterfall or near a lake, pond, or stream that provides a submerged entrance. Older green dragons often conceal their lairs with plants they have magically grown. Green dragons sometimes clash with black dragons over choice lairs. The greens frequently pretend to back down, only to wait a few decades before returning to raid the black dragon’s lair and loot its hoard.

Dungeon-dwelling green dragons prefer locales with some kind of vegetable life, such as grottos filled with giant mushrooms.

Green Dragons by Size

Overall Body Neck Tail Body Standing Maximum Minimum Size Length Length Length Length Width Height Wingspan Wingspan Weight

Small 8 ft. 2-1/2 ft. 2-1/2 ft. 3 ft. 2 ft. 2-1/2 ft. 16 ft. 8 ft. 40 lb. Medium 16 ft. 5-1/2 ft. 6 ft. 4-1/2 ft. 3 ft. 5 ft. 24 ft. 12 ft. 320 lb. Large 31 ft. 10 ft. 11 ft. 10 ft. 5 ft. 9 ft. 36 ft. 18 ft. 2,500 lb. Huge 55 ft. 17 ft. 18 ft. 20 ft. 8 ft. 15 ft. 60 ft. 30 ft. 20,000 lb. Gargantuan 85 ft. 24 ft. 28 ft. 33 ft. 10 ft. 20 ft. 80 ft. 40 ft. 160,000 lb.

Green Dragon Identifiers

A green dragon’s notable features include a heavily curved jawline and a crest that begins near the eyes and continues down most of the dragon’s spine. The crest reaches its full height just behind the skull.

A green dragon has no external ears, just ear openings and leathery plates that run down the sides of the neck, each plate edged with hornlets. The dragon also has hornlets over its brows and at the chin. The nostrils are set high on the snout, and the teeth protrude when the mouth is closed. The dragon has a long, slender, forked tongue.

The stinging odor of chlorine wafts from a green dragon.

A wyrmling green dragon’s scales are thin, very small, and a deep shade of green that appears nearly black. As the dragon ages, the scales grow larger and lighter, turning shades of forest, emerald, and olive green, which helps it blend in with its wooded surroundings.

A green dragon’s legs and neck are proportionately longer in relation to the rest of its body than any other chromatic or metallic dragon. When it stands on all fours, its body stays fairly high off the ground, enabling it to pass over brush or forest debris lying on the ground. The neck is often longer than the rest of the dragon’s body (excluding the tail), and older dragons can peer over the tops of mature trees without rearing up.

A green dragon’s long neck gives it a distinctive, swanlike profile when aloft. The head looks featureless when viewed from below.

The wings have a dappled pattern, darker near the leading edges and lighter toward the trailing edges. The alar thumb is short, and the alar phalanges are all the same length, giving the wingtips a rounded look. The trailing edge of the wing membrane joins the body well ahead of the rear legs.

Habits

A green dragon patrols its territory regularly, both on the wing and on the ground, so as to get a good look over and under the forest canopy. These patrols serve twin purposes.

First, the dragon stays on the lookout for prey. Although they have been known to eat practically anything when hungry enough, including shrubs and small trees, green dragons especially prize elves and sprites.

Second, green dragons like to note anything new happening in their domains. They have a lust for power that rivals their desire to collect treasure. There is little a green dragon will not attempt to further its ambitions. Its favorite means of gaining influence over others is intimidation, but it tries more subtle manipulations when dealing with other dragons or similarly powerful creatures. Green dragons are consummate liars and masters of double talk and verbal evasion. Just talking to a green dragon can lead a being to ruin.

When dealing with most other creatures, green dragons are honey-tongued, smooth, and sophisticated. Among their own kind, they are loud, crass, and generally rude, especially when dealing with dragons of the same age and status. Younger dragons are forced to use some restraint when interacting with their elders, but the veneer of civility they adopt is paper-thin, and the dragons know it. A clear pecking order, based on age and status but with no formal hierarchy, develops among green dragons within a given area. Green dragons know each other too well to depend on any formal social structure.

Courtship among green dragons is a coarse and indelicate affair. Once a pair decide to mate, however, their lawful nature comes to the fore, and a strong bond develops between them. Parents take extreme care to invest their offspring with all the skills necessary for effective manipulation and double-dealing. A mated pair seldom leaves its first set of offspring untended, but may produce additional clutches to fend for themselves while the first clutch grows up. Once the first clutch reaches adulthood, the parents chase off the youngsters and go their separate ways. If the pair is about the same age, they divide their shared territory between them. (Such agreements usually last at least a few decades before the former mates seek ways to encroach on each other’s turf.) Otherwise, the younger parent leaves at the same time the youngsters do.

Green dragons are not picky about the treasure they collect. Anything valuable will do. Among items of similar value, however, a green dragon favors the item that reminds it of a particularly noteworthy triumph.