Large Dragon (Metallic), Lawful Good
- AC
- 18
- Initiative
- +6 (16)
- HP
- 178 (17d10+85)
- Speed
- 40 ft., Fly 80 ft., Swim 40 ft.
| Score | Mod | Save | |
|---|---|---|---|
| STR | 23 | +6 | +6 |
| DEX | 14 | +2 | +6 |
| CON | 21 | +5 | +5 |
| INT | 16 | +3 | +3 |
| WIS | 13 | +1 | +5 |
| CHA | 20 | +5 | +5 |
Traits
Amphibious. The dragon can breathe air and water.
Actions
Multiattack. The dragon makes three Rend attacks. It can replace one attack with a use of Weakening Breath.
Rend. Melee Attack Roll: +10, reach 10 ft. Hit: 17 (2d10+6) Slashing damage.
Fire Breath (Recharge 5-6). Dexterity Saving Throw: DC 17, each creature in a 30-foot Cone. Failure: 55 (10d10) Fire damage. Success: Half damage.
Weakening Breath. Strength Saving Throw: DC 17, each creature that isn't currently affected by this breath in a 30-foot Cone. Failure: The target has Disadvantage on Strength-based D20 Tests and subtracts 3 (1d6) from its damage rolls. It repeats the save at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. After 1 minute, it succeeds automatically.
How to run Young Gold Dragon
A young gold dragon on the party's side is rare, deliberate, and usually probationary. Gold dragons are Lawful Good and they take that personally. A young one helps the party because it has decided the cause aligns with its own oath, not because the bard rolled high on Persuasion. Sell the alignment scrutiny in the first scene: the dragon asks one pointed moral question, listens to the answer, and decides whether the party is worth its time.
In combat, lead with Weakening Breath, not Fire Breath. Weakening Breath is a free swap for one Rend in the Multiattack, costs no recharge, and saddles every failed Strength save in a 30-foot cone with Disadvantage on Strength tests and minus 1d6 to damage. Open the cone on the orc warband, then follow up with two Rends at +10 for 2d10+6 (average 17 each). Save Fire Breath for the moment that needs a round-ender: a swarm, a charging cavalry line, a cluster of low-HP minions guarding the boss. 30-foot cone, DC 17 Dex, 10d10 fire on a fail (average 55).
Out of combat, the dragon is the party's hardest moral mirror. Insight +5, Persuasion +9, Passive Perception 19. It notices when a player lies and when a plan would harm civilians. Don't have it lecture. Have it ask one pointed question and walk away, then check back on the answer in the next session. Common and Draconic both available, so the dragon can negotiate directly with NPCs in ways the party cannot.
The dragon does not stay forever. Set a finite arc: three adventures, one campaign chapter, until a specific oath is fulfilled. Then it leaves with a blessing and a promise to return when called.
Have the dragon refuse a treasure the party offers it. The refusal is the character.
A hostile young gold dragon needs a tragedy to set up. Maybe a Charm has flipped its judgment, maybe an evil cleric has lied to it about who the party is, maybe the party did something genuinely wrong and the dragon is the cosmic correction. Sell the misunderstanding for at least one scene of dialogue, because killing a metallic dragon is a campaign event.
Once initiative rolls, the dragon fights from the air on its 80 ft. fly speed. Open with Weakening Breath into the front line, since the Strength debuff cuts melee damage for a minute. Follow with two Rends at +10 (2d10+6 each, 10 ft. reach). When Fire Breath comes online, the 30-foot cone at DC 17 averages 55 fire on a fail. Aim through the wizard and the cleric if the party clusters. Fire immunity means the party's evoker is mostly useless, which is its own narrative beat.
The dragon is honorable even while wrong. It accepts a yield, it accepts a clearly intended surrender, and it does not strike a downed combatant who is no longer fighting. Use this. A clever player who shows the dragon evidence rather than arguing can break the charm in narrative time. Once Bloodied, the dragon retreats to altitude and demands an explanation rather than fleeing outright. Give the party one more chance to talk.
End the scene with the dragon weeping. Gold dragons grieve openly. The image is the campaign hook for the next chapter.
Stat block from the System Reference Document 5.2.1 © Wizards of the Coast LLC, used under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.