2 Legacy of the Dragons
even weeks, torturing these poor souls until he grows weary and defeat it. Of course, their enemy might turn against of the entertainment and devours them. With the aid of his them for a quick profit when the time is right. magical powers, all the important folk in town either fall If the PCs adventure in the region around Aescolis, you under his control or meet death at his claws or the blades can use the sullen townsfolk as a continuing backdrop. Over of his thralls. time, the player characters may slowly come to uncover the The commoners remain ignorant of the dragon. A few horrifying truth of the place. A kidnapper, wracked with bandits, thieves, and murderers gladly aid the city council guilt, could come clean to them. Perhaps one of the PCs or a to help placate him. They take part in kidnappings, false trusted NPC is arrested and charged with a false crime. The arrests, and other ruses to capture travelers who come rest of the party must intervene to save him from the drag- through the region and remove families or individuals on’s torture chambers. who are unpopular or disliked. A band of merchants may The characters could journey to Aescolis on behalf of the find one of their number arrested on charges of murder widow of one of the town’s victims. Their questions prove after a night of heavy drinking. A bartender may slip a too close to the truth for comfort, prompting one of the civic powerful sedative into the victim’s drink, while the bar- leaders to dispatch assassins to silence them. The PCs may maid who lavished attention on him lures him to her uncover the horrifying truth, only to learn that the elders of chambers before he passes out. In the morning, he awakes Aescolis simply do not care about the dragon. As long as covered in blood and with a squad of town guards outside they stay safe and have enough outsiders on hand to quell his door. His friends are told to leave town until the trial. the dragon’s hunger, they are satisfied to dwell in peace. The By the time the merchant’s friends return, they learn he player characters might seal their own doom should they fell ill and died in prison. In truth, he met his end at attempt to warn the townsfolk. Narrog’s claws. Despite his insatiable appetites for pain and misery, Narrog the Earth Serpent Narrog has proven useful to the town. So long as they can Huge Dragon deliver one or two victims to him each week, they can spare Hit Dice: 22d12+110 (253), dying/dead –6/–21 themselves from his anger. A few times he has journeyed into Initiative: +4 the mountains to annihilate monsters and humanoids that Speed: 50 feet, burrow 30 feet could pose a threat to Aescolis. The town appears peaceful AC: 29 (–2 size, +21 natural), touch 8, flat-footed 29 and prosperous, though its isolation prevents it from ever Base Attack/Grapple: +22/+41 becoming an important site. Attack: Bite +31 melee (2d8+11) Adventurers who travel to Aescolis find it a quiet place Full Attack: Bite +31/+26/+21/+16/+11 melee (2d8+11), that provides a safe haven between expeditions to the nearby 2 claws +29 melee (2d8+5) mountains. A strange sense of restrained calm dominatesSampleSpace/Reach: file15 feet/10 feet (15 feet with bite) the town. The common folk are slow to make friends with [Face/Reach 15 feet by 10 feet/10 feet (15 feet with bite)] outsiders and tend to come across as clannish and distant. Special Attacks: Breath weapon (50-foot cone. Reflex DC 26, Perhaps it is a by-product of the dragon’s malign influence, 12d10 fire damage), frightful presence (DC 24), hateful but bar brawls and other petty crimes seem more common eye, obsidian spines here than normal. Outsiders rarely garner more than a frosty Special Qualities: Blindsense 60 feet, darkvision 120 feet, reception. DR 5/magic (or DR 10/+1), earth attunement, immune to The trade in victims for the dragon has proven prosper- fire, paralysis, and sleep, SR 21, tremorsense 400 feet ous—almost too much so. Word travels fast among crimi- Saves: Fort +18, Ref +13, Will +17 nals, and a few times gangs of bandits and hired killers have Abilities: Str 33, Dex 10, Con 21, Int 16, Wis 19, Cha 16 come to town to seek the steep bounties offered for kidnap- Skills: Appraise +28, Bluff +28, Knowledge (ancient history) pings. The occasional gang war merely provides more meat +28, Knowledge (arcana) +28, Listen +29, Move Silently for Narrog’s larder. (or Sneak*) +25, Sense Motive +29, Spellcraft +28, Spot +28 Feats: Cleave, Combat Expertise, Great Cleave, Improved Adventure Ideas Disarm, Improved Initiative, Improved Trip, Multiattack, It is only a matter of time before one of the black-hearted Power Attack fiends who traffics in Narrog’s victims spills his secret. Organization: Unique Perhaps a recurring villain in the campaign runs afoul of Challenge Rating: 15 Aescolis and its criminals. The PCs may have to save and Alignment: Lawful evil protect their one-time foe in order to uncover the dragon * For campaigns using Monte Cook’s Arcana Unearthed. Web Enhancement 3
Narrog was once a red dragon, and his base statistics Narrog can compel obedience from a number of creatures reflect his origin. His long centuries in the earth, combined with half or fewer of his Hit Dice. The total number of crea- with his overwhelming, mindless hatred, have warped and tures he controls equals 13 (10 + his Charisma modifier). To twisted him into his current form. He has a long, serpentine control a creature, he must spend five minutes focusing his body with jagged, sharp obsidian spines projecting from his psychic energy on it while the creature remains still. He can back. His claws are long and black, while his skin has trans- apply this ability to more than one creature, and may take formed into a brown, rocky hide. Sample fileactions as normal while brainwashing a target. Creatures affected by this ability may make Will saves (DC 25) to Combat resist. On a failed save, the creature becomes utterly loyal to In battle, Narrog unleashes his breath weapon first before Narrog. It obeys his every order to the best of its abilities charging in with his melee attacks. He long ago lost his and even gladly embraces suicidal commands. This control spellcasting talents and other magical abilities, though his lasts until Narrog willingly breaks it, the spell is broken malevolent eye proves useful when dealing with magic-users. (treat it as a 9th-level spell of the enchantment school), or Consult the MM for full details on Narrog’s draconic abil- Narrog dies. Narrog can communicate with his thralls via ities, such as frightful presence. telepathy with a range of up to 10 miles. Hateful Eye (Su): Narrog’s glowing, red third eye is situated All of the hateful eye save DCs are Wisdom based. They in his forehead, above and between his two cataract-plagued are mind-influencing abilities. normal ones. He can manifest several powers from this eye. Obsidian Spines (Ex): Narrog’s rocky spines allow him to Once every 10 rounds, he can cause a flood of painful psy- rend and tear his opponents. As a full-round action, he can chic energy to flood a 50-foot cone in front of him. All crea- thrash and roll over an area in a 30-foot radius around him. tures in this area must make Will saves (DC 25) or suffer 1d8 Any creatures in this area suffer 8d10 points of damage, with points of temporary Intelligence and Wisdom damage. a Reflex save (DC 21) for half damage. Narrog can concentrate a focused beam of psionic energy Earth Attunement (Su): Narrog has a strange attachment at one foe. This attack has a range of 100 feet and requires a to the earth. He gains fast healing 4 as long as some part of Will save (DC 25) to resist. A target that fails this save is him touches the earth. stunned for 1d4 rounds. 4 Legacy of the Dragons
OPEN GAME LICENSE perpetual,worldwide,royalty-free,nonexclusive license with Credits and Legal Version 1.0a the exact terms of this License to Use the Open Game Design by Mike Mearls The following text is the property of Wizards of the Coast, Content. Cover illustration by Sam Wood Inc.,and is Copyright 2000 Wizards of the Coast,Inc 5. Representation of Authority to Contribute: Narrog illustration by Eric Lofgren ("Wizards").All Rights Reserved. If You are contributing original material as Open Game 1. Definitions: (a)“Contributors" means the copyright Content,You represent that Your Contributions are Your Editing and Production by Sue Weinlein Cook and/or trademark owners who have contributed Open Game original creation and/or You have sufficient rights to grant Graphic Design by Peter Whitley Content;(b)“Derivative Material" means copyrighted mate- the rights conveyed by this License. rial including derivative works and translations (including 6. Notice of License Copyright: You must update ® into other computer languages),potation,modification,cor- the COPYRIGHT NOTICE portion of this License to rection,addition,extension,upgrade,improvement,compila- include the exact text of the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of tion,abridgment or other form in which an existing work may any Open Game Content You are copying,modifying or dis- For more free game material, check out “The Stuff” at Monte be recast,transformed or adapted;(c) “Distribute" means to tributing,and You must add the title,the copyright date,and Cook’s Website: