Last Breath of the Dragon Queen An adventure for 30th-level characters By David Noonan “Tiamat who formed all things, illustration by William O’Connor Made in addition weapons invincible; cartography by Sean Macdonald and Mike Schley TM & © 2010 Wizards of the Coast LLC All rights reserved. she spawned monster-serpents, Sharp of tooth, and merciless of fang; With poison, instead of blood, she filled their bodies. Fierce monster-vipers she clothed with terror, With splendor she decked them, she made them of lofty stature. Whoever beheld them, terror overcame him, Their bodies reared up and none could withstand their attack.” —Enuma Elish, The Epic of Creation, L.W. King trans. February 2010 | Dungeon 175 4 Last Breath of the Dragon Queen “Last Breath of the Dragon Queen” is an adventure for times. Furthermore, she’s discovering that encourag- of Fiery Splendor, nor does he know where within five 30th-level characters. By the end of the adventure, ing competition and rivalry among her underlings is those caverns Tiamat’s lair could be found. the characters should have saved the universe, slain at best a double-edged sword. Many of Tiamat’s lieu- The Platinum Dragon does, however, have a lead. a god, and achieved their epic destinies, thus ending tenants are taking advantage of the Dragon Queen’s Centuries ago, a paladin named Berath led a cru- the campaign. This adventure is the final chapter in distraction to settle old scores and climb the pecking sade into the Caverns of Fiery Splendor. He’d grown the Scales of War adventure path, the culmination of order on the backs of their rivals. weary of the endless struggle between Bahamut events that started with “Rescue at Rivenroar” thirty As soon as word reached Tytherion of the defeat at and Tiamat and declared that only a frontal assault levels ago. The “Last Breath of the Dragon Queen” the City of Brass, the great dragons, soldiers, cultists, against Tiamat would end her “games of deceit and also plays well as a standalone adventure and can and many of Tiamat’s most powerful agents started death.” Bahamut counseled against Berath’s crusade, be adapted for the conclusion of any world-spanning deserting her, carrying off much of her wealth and but Berath and a host of knights rode boldly into the campaign with Tiamat as the final foe. leaving her vulnerable. From the ancient wyrms that Caverns of Fiery Splendor, determined to slay Tiamat In “Last Breath of the Dragon Queen,” the char- advised Tiamat to the lowly dragonborn guards on and end the war. acters travel to Tiamat’s lair in the Caverns of Fiery her ramparts, everyone took what they could and fled Although noble, such an effort was doomed to Splendor in Azharul, which is part of Tytherion, the to some dark, quiet corner, fearful of a world with a failure. Despite several victories within the caverns, Endless Night. There they face Tiamat’s most loyal diminished Tiamat—and fearful they’d face Tiamat’s no one from Berath’s crusade reached Tiamat’s lair guardians, then the Dragon Queen herself in all her wrath when she decides who’s to blame for recent or escaped to tell the tale. Berath himself, however, five-headed splendor. They aren’t fighting a reflection events. is a different story. Sustained by his desire to end of Tiamat, an avatar of Tiamat, an aspect of Tiamat, If Bahamut’s army arrived to confront Tiamat in the dragons’ war and buoyed by Tiamat’s weakness, or anything less than the actual goddess at the zenith her lair right now, they would find that much of it he has recently rematerialized as a ghost haunt- of her power. If the characters succeed, they will have had already been looted by Tiamat’s fleeing servants. ing the Caverns of Fiery Splendor. Bahamut sensed achieved something truly epic—a fitting end to a cam- But Bahamut can’t get his army to Tiamat’s lair in the return of one of his most strident paladins and paign spanning more than a dozen adventures. Tytherion—it’s exhausted, battered, disorganized, and instructed Berath to scout a safe path through the cav- still engaged in restoring some semblance of order to erns and to guide a smaller but more potent second BackgrounD the City of Brass. Furthermore, the Platinum Dragon crusade that will slay Tiamat once and for all. is worried that darkening Tytherion’s skies with Bahamut has another agent within the Caverns The battle for the City of Brass is over—and the good metallic dragons and an army of paladins would be as well, though he doesn’t realize it. Zehir has no guys won. But the city is in ruins, Bahamut’s army counterproductive. An invading army might galva- love for Bahamut, but he’s been locked in a territorial is in disarray, and Tiamat is desperately trying to nize Tiamat’s forces to end the infighting and unite struggle with Tiamat for millennia over who controls recover from her army’s appalling defeat. against the enemy they were born and bred to fight. Tytherion. Zehir is thinking along the same lines as The Dragon Queen is finding it difficult to do so. Bahamut has more than a shining army at his Bahamut: Sending a horde of snakes into the Caverns As the goddess of greed, envy, and wealth, Tiamat disposal, however: He has a small group of mortals of Fiery Splendor would only provide common cause used those motivators to great effect among her wor- that collectively rival the gods in power (the heroes, for Tiamat’s erstwhile allies. One of Zehir’s spies, how- shipers, soldiers, and allies. Now that she’s fallen on in other words). In all this disarray, a small group ever, has seen part of Tiamat’s lair firsthand, and it’s hard times, Tiamat is finding few allies—dragons or of heroes trying to infiltrate Tiamat’s lair might not certainly to Zehir’s advantage if that information gets otherwise—willing to stand with her now that the attract much attention—assuming they can reach into the hands of Tiamat’s enemies, even if they are chips are down. In short, Tiamat is discovering that Tiamat’s lair in the first place. For obvious reasons, Bahamut’s friends. her very nature doesn’t induce loyalty in uncertain Bahamut has little insight into the mazelike Caverns February 2010 | Dungeon 175 5 Last Breath of the Dragon Queen Adventure SynopSiS cavern. Five caverns, five dragons—defeat them and the heroes don’t need to worry about the five At the start of the adventure, the adventurers meet disintegrators. the QueStS Bahamut in his “Old Man with the Canaries” guise As the characters enter the five dragons’ chambers, In “Last Breath of the Dragon Queen”,” the PCs are (by now they should know exactly who they’re talk- they learn that each of the ancient dragons is a brood at or near their final state. They’re either 30th level ing to). Bahamut explains that Tiamat’s dragon allies mother carrying Tiamat’s eggs in a forced breeding or will be within a few encounters. There isn’t much are deserting her, driven by cowardice, fear of Tia- effort that has so far failed. For all her power, Tiamat point in acquiring great quantities of further experi- mat’s temper, and greed for the treasures in Tiamat’s is unique among dragonkind and cannot lay eggs her- ence or treasure. By now the characters should be as domain. While Bahamut’s army has achieved a great self. The characters defeat each brood mother in turn, well-equipped as they’re ever going to be. And the victory, it is in no shape to march on Tytherion itself. rendering the disintegrators useless. adventure is fundamentally simple: Go to Tiamat’s The characters are, Bahamut explains, capable of kill- Then, it’s a battle royale with Tiamat: a no- lair and defeat her, ushering in a new age and a trans- ing Tiamat once and for all if they can get to her lair holds-barred battle with a full-fledged deity. If the formed world. Thus it’s difficult to justify the same before she has a chance to regroup and gather her characters win, Bahamut arrives and shows them the sort of quests they’ve had in the past. allies around her. Furthermore, Bahamut gives them world utterly transformed by their actions: a world One possible exception is this: If one or more char- instructions for meeting Berath, the ghost of a paladin free from the greed and envy that Tiamat upheld. At acters has unfinished business in regard to an epic who once sought to slay Tiamat. And a mysterious that point, the heroes move on to their individual epic destiny (see Epic Destinies on page 48), it might be agent of Zehir meets the characters and gives them a destinies, and you can set the stage for your next cam- helpful for the player if you describe the resolution password that a spy near Tiamat’s lair will ask for. paign if you wish. of the epic destiny with a quest. Bahamut gives the heroes a powerful gift—canaries that can transform into gold dragons—and transports Preparing for Adventure them to Tytherion. There the characters see Tia- “Last Breath of the Dragon Queen” is largely a self- mat’s forces fleeing, fighting among each other, and contained adventure, requiring little in terms of to brush up on, and you’re seeking ways to streamline looting their own fortress.