Common Blue Dragon

Common Blue Dragon (Threat; CR 14)

Neutral Evil - Huge - Dragon

Lore:	Know (Arcana)
27		44
Basic DC		Full DC

Initiative

29

Perception:
36	+26
Passive	Active

Ambush:

10+

on a d20

Senses:

• Standard Senses

Movement Types:

Defense

AC

37

Man Def

35

Monster Health
1,146	573	27
Hit Points	Bloodied	Hit Dice

Saving Throws
Fort:	+16
Refl:	+16
Will:	+16

Strong Against:

• (Threat Role) Immunity (partial 5): Threats are immune to the first five conditions applied to them during an encounter. If a sixth condition is applied to a threat, it is resolved normally. A 'condition' is defined as any non-instantaneous harmful effect applied to the monster, other than damage, but is most commonly one of the defined Status Conditions (but it doesn't have to be). Statuses related to damage (such as injured, bloodied, staggered, dying, or dead) are not 'conditions', and cannot be negated or avoided with this ability.
• (Dragon 1) Immune (no effect): magical sleep (drowsy, sluggish, asleep), paralyzed, stunned
• (Dragon 2) Immune (no effect): sonic (energy, common)
• (Dragon 3) Immune (no effect): fear
• Immune (no effect): Electricity, Sonic

Weak Against:

Offense

Size:	Huge
15 ft.		5 ft.
Space		Reach

To-Hit

+21

Man Off

+25

Action

3

Points

Standard Attack (Melee):

• 1x Galvanic Bite +21 (4d10+32/x2)
  as undefined damage type
• 1x Etched Claws +21 (4d6+13/x2)
  as undefined damage type

Full Attack (Melee):

• 1x Galvanic Bite +21 (4d10+32/x2)
  as undefined damage type
• 2x Etched Claws +21 (4d6+13/x2)
  as undefined damage type
• 1x Buffeting Wings +21 (4d10+32/x2)
  as undefined damage type
  10' x 10' area of effect (each)
• 2x Lashing Tail +21 (4d6+13/x2)
  as undefined damage type
  15' x 15' area of effect

Standard Attack (Ranged):

Full Attack (Ranged):

Siege Damage: Not siege capable

Statistics

33

STR

23

DEX

25

CON

19

INT

16

WIS

25

CHA

Skills:

• Bailiwick (Spellcraft): 23
• Bluff: 23
• Perception: 26
• Sense Motive: 24
• All other skills: 18 (no ranks)

Languages: Common, Draconic, Erebral, High Draconic

Feats:

Special Abilities

Addling Roar (Ex)

As a standard action, the dragon may emit an ear-shattering howl of unimaginable power. This is a sonic-based attack that affects all creatures within 100 feet of the dragon's space. The dragon must have line of effect for this power to operate, but does not require line of sight. This power inflicts of sonic damage, with a Fort save, DC , for half damage.

Lightning Breath Weapon (Su)

As a standard action, the common blue dragon can breathe a beam of lightning in a straight line 60 feet long, dealing points of electricity damage and inflicting the Blind condition on anyone in the path. Targeted creatures which succeed on a Reflex save, DC , are Dazzled instead of being blinded, and take only half damage. The line is 5 feet wide, and can only travel in straight lines, though it may begin from any one square of the dragon's space, and extends for 120 feet. Line Attacks To determine which creatures are struck by a line attack, choose the origin square (any square adjacent to the caster) and any target square within range, and draw a straight line between the center of the two squares. The target square may be closer than the line's maximum range but it may not be further. Note that the line's range is not shortened by choosing a square closer than the maximum range; the effect simply passes through that square to its maximum range. Any square that the line crosses, even partially, is considered to be within the line's area of effect. If there is some doubt that the line has actually passed through a square, rather than just nicking its edge or corner, the GM should generally rule conservatively, (i.e. the line doesn't cross that square), since lines are intended to be somewhat limited in area of effect. In addition, the beam of lightning lingers for the remainder of the encounter, effectively creating a wall of lightning. This wall is so bright that it grants total concealment (50% miss chance) to any creature attempting to target a creature on the other side of the wall with a visual sense. Creatures can target anyone standing in the wall without penalty. Blue dragons are unaffected by the concealment provided by the wall's brightness, and suffer no penalties for targeting creatures on the other side of a wall. Any creature passing through the wall of lightning takes points of electricity damage for each square they move through (the blue dragon is immune to this effect, since they are immune to electricity damage).

Terrible Majesty (Su, Fear)

Once per day as a free action, the dragon can exude its Terrible Majesty upon all enemy creatures within 100 feet of the dragon's space, causing the space beneath those enemies to become charged with galvanic electricity. Terrible Majesty requires line of sight, but does not require line of effect. The patches of galvanized ground persist until the end of the encounter, and may be used as destination spaces for the dragon's Ride the Lightning power. Affected enemy creatures must make a Will save, DC , or they gain the Trembling condition for the rest of the encounter, and they suffer points of electricity damage from the galvanized ground. Creatures which succeed on the saving throw instead gain the Nervous condition for one round, and take only half damage from the galvanized terrain. Furthermore, any enemy creature which enters a square of galvanized terrain (even if by forced movement) suffers points of electricity damage. There is no saving throw to mitigate this damage. Neither the Trembling nor Nervous conditions can be prematurely ended by moving further away from the dragon; they must either be allowed to expire as described above, or cured through some other means.

Thunderstorm (Sp)

As a free action, at the beginning of the encounter, the blue dragon conjures a tumultuous thunderstorm to the area in which the battle is taking place. While the rain, whipping winds, flashes of lightning and pounding thunder primarily just add a descriptive intensity to the battle, but the storm does disrupt any cloud spells which are disrupted by strong winds. The dragon doesn't even need to be outdoors to conjure this effect. The effect is subject to Dispel Magic, with a dispel DC of .

Ride the Lightning (Su)

As a swift action, the common blue dragon can instantly teleport to any space which contains a lightning or electricity effect (such as the blue dragon's breath weapon, or the Living Breath Weapon's Ball Lightning attacks). The space they teleport to must be unoccupied enough for the dragon's entire space to fit without overlapping an obstacle or creature. As long as any single square within their destination space contains a lightning effect, the dragon can use this power to move there. Furthermore, the dragon's arrival at the destination square triggers a powerful thunderclap, dealing points of sonic damage to any creature within 20 feet of the dragon's space, and knocking those creatures Prone. Affected creatures who succeed on a Fort save, DC , take only half damage and are not knocked prone.

Torrent (Su)

The first time a blue dragon is reduced to 0 or fewer hit points in a fight, it explodes into a massive torrent of water. This torrent of water inundates the battlefield with several inches of water in all directions, affecting a 20x20 square area (100 square feet). The dragon is removed from the battlefield when this occurs, but creatures standing in the area affected by Torrent take 50% additional damage from any electricity damage they suffer. On the dragon's next initiative, he reappears in any unobstructed space on the battlefield affected by torrent, and is immediately restored to half its total health ( hit points). Any status conditions that the dragon was affected with immediately end, and their immunity to the first 5 instances of status conditions is completely reset. They do not recover any action points, though if they have any remaining they can still spend them as normal. This takes no time, and the dragon may spend its full round of actions immediately upon returning to the battlefield.

Unstoppable Killer (Ex; Threat Role) Auto Upon Death

The first time in an encounter that a Threat is reduced to zero or fewer hit points, it falls prone, apparently dead. But this is a ruse. When this occurs, the Threat becomes immune to all damage and effects. However, it may not perform any actions (such as attacks of opportunity) until this immunity expires. At the beginning of its next turn, any conditions the Threat is currently suffering under (such as Prone) are immediately cleared, and its hit points are set to half its normal maximum (573 hit points). Furthermore, all enemy creatures within 2 squares (10 feet) of the Threat are immediately Pushed up to 4 squares (20 feet) away from the Threat, and suffer 4d10+35 points of bludgeoning (physical, common) damage. Affected creatures may make a Fortitude save versus a DC of 24 to reduce this damage by half, and reduce the push to 2 squares (10 feet). After this attack is resolved, the Threat can slide up to 5 squares (25 feet) to a space adjacent to an enemy creature. All of this occurs as a free action at the start of its turn, and once it is resolved, the Threat's immunity to damage expires. It must perform this attack before any other actions during its turn, and the immunity expires at the beginning of its turn even if it chooses not to perform the attack. The Threat is killed for good the second time its hit points are reduced to zero or less.

Common Blue Dragon

This creature possesses the Threat role, and therefore counts as 4 monsters for purposes of encounter size, XP award, and treasure.

Dragons are so different from every other creature that they have their own unique classification. They have four legs, although the front 'feet' are dexterous enough to serve quite well as hands. They also have two or more completely functional wings, and they are powerful and speedy fliers. They have a large and dexterous prehensile tail, and seeing a monster as big as a dragon hanging from a branch is a sight you will remember for the rest of your life, however long that might be.

Dragons are intelligent and terribly alien. What a dragon considers important is not what other races consider important. They are also frequently, but not always, intensely malign. Some rare dragons may be allies with lesser races (all races are lesser to a dragon, as they see it) or even genuine friends to others. Most dragons, even those traditionally considered "good," are vain and jealous things, consumed with petty grievances and cruel enough to punish every slight, no matter how small or imaginary.

Dragons will hunt at great distances. Due to their powerful and magically enhanced metabolisms, dragons need to eat far less than would seem 'natural' for a beast their size. Rather than a blessing, this is a terrible curse upon the world, because things as awful as dragons should be rare, and, as the name "common red" might imply, they are not. Even worse, since dragons need far less food than is natural, they tend to be horrifically picky eaters, and have been known to kill an entire herd of cows to find the tastiest one, or rampage through an entire town looking for the prettiest maiden.

Dragons also have a tendency to 'play' with their food in most terrible ways. If you want to rescue that prettiest maiden, best to be quick about it. It is often speculated that dragons are deliberately wretched in their behavior, in order to force would-be dragon-slayers into action 'before they're ready', and so increase the dragon's long-term safety. Indeed, many dragons are far too intelligent and clever for their own good. There are hundreds of stories of adventurers taunting dragons into foolish actions, and it is true that, in a battle, it is hard for a dragon to take any 'lesser' race seriously. In a dragon's mind, the only creatures worthy of consideration, much less respect, are other dragons.

The world belongs to the dragons. The rest of us just live here.

Dragons tend to be categorized into loose species-groups based upon their physical appearance and traits. Most common among these are the white, black, blue, green, red chromatic dragons, followed closely by the bronze, copper, silver, gold and platinum metallic dragons. Other species groups exist, such as the earth dragons (brown, gray, yellow, and ocher), the spirit dragons (force, prismatic, empyrean, and tellurian) the gem dragons (crystal, onyx, jade, sapphire, ruby and amber), the drifting dragons (cloud, mist, shadow, sand, and dust), and the tempered dragons (iron, steel, mithril and adamant), to name the most common. In addition there are many odd dragons which defy categorization, such as coiled dragons, nested dragons, radiant dragons, sea dragons, celestial dragons, star dragons, moon dragons, sun dragons, fairy dragons, and many, many more besides.

While the physical appearance of the dragon is the easiest means of distinguishing them from one another, a dragon's coloration isn't a drab monochrome. Blue dragons, for example, have vivid yellow abdomens, and frequently have stripes of yellow, outlined in black on their backs. In all cases, they are strongly associated with the powers of electricity. Blue dragons can be found nearly anywhere, though they seem to favor lakes, deserts, glaciers, high mountains, and the occasional active volcano.

Blue dragons are like forces of nature, summoning storms and lightning whenever they engage in conflict. They are highly volatile creatures, fiercely defending territory, even if they've only recently moved into it, and taking umbrage at the least of slights. Blue dragons rarely occupy territory near civilization, either because they happen to settle in an uninhabited area or because any civilization unfortunate enough to be nearby when a blue dragon settles doesn't remain intact for long.

Combat Tactics

Blue dragons are combative by nature, because they are extremely dangerous foes. They are smart, they are foul-tempered, and they play to win.

A favored tactic of blue dragons is to spend an action point at the start of their turn to use their Breath Weapon, spend a swift action to use Ride the Lightning to put themselves adjacent to a character that looks delicate (dealing sonic damage and potentially knocking them prone), and then using their standard and move actions to make a full attack action. This chain of attacks will almost certainly reduce a wizard or rogue from fresh to dead in one round. Yikes! Luckily, characters at this level probably have access to some quality resurrection abilities, so they'll get over it. Assuming the rest of them survive the encounter.

Blue dragons may also have one or more Living Breath Weapons nearby, as henchmen (depending on the size of the party, or how much the GM wants to ramp up the encounter's difficulty). Blue dragons can use their living breath weapons to give them even more options for their Ride the Lightning ability, making it very difficult to predict where a blue dragon will be on the battlefield at any give moment.

Blue dragons rarely run from an encounter with bad odds. Where all dragons are generally arrogant about their status as the top of the food chain, blue dragons take this to a whole new level, believing that they can turn any situation to their favor by sticking it out.

Out of Combat

Rewards

XP: 153,600 (Threat role included.)

Treasure: Sellable Goods worth 118,125 gp. (Threat role and Dragon bonus included, which is 5 greater than normal for this CR.)

Weight: 560 lbs.     Volume: 22.4 cu. ft.

Optional Treasure Rules: Roll a d20 on Table 1 below once per encounter (NOT per creature). Any items discovered are in addition to the normal treasure for the encounter.

Table 1: Remnant(s) Found
1 - 5	Nothing Found
6 - 10	1 Languid Remnant (tier 1)
11 - 14	1 Pale Remnant (tier 2)
15 - 17	1 Bright Remnant (tier 3)
18 - 20	Roll on Table 2
###	Nothing to see here!
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 2: Remnant(s) Found
1	5 Languid Remnants (tier 1)
2 - 5	5 Pale Remnants (tier 2)
6 - 10	1 Intense Remnant (tier 4)
11 - 14	1 Blazing Remnant (tier 5)
15 - 17	1 Vital Remnant (tier 6)
18 - 20	Roll on Table 3
###	Or here. Move along.

Table 3: Remnant(s) Found
1	5 Bright Remnants (tier 3)
2	5 Intense Remnants (tier 4)
3 - 6	5 Blazing Remnants (tier 5)
7 - 10	5 Vital Remnants (tier 6)
11 - 14	1 Prime Remnant (tier 7)
15 - 17	1 Mythic Remnant (tier 8)
18 - 20	1 Empyrean Remnant (tier 9)