DragonetRare Dragon Dragonet Source Draconic Codex
pg. 208Dragonets are miniature dragons, complete with wings, dagger-like teeth, and magical breath. They can be fiercely independent and proud, at times protective or avaricious, and they delight in the finer things in life.As long as there have been dragons, there have been dragonets. Most live lives no more unusual than any of their kin. But some wake one day—perhaps when they have just entered adulthood, perhaps after they’ve several centuries of a quiet life—to find themselves changed. The natural gifts they share with dragons, their magical breath, soaring flight, and innate magic are diminished. In return, they find themselves granted other abilities, greater size or intelligence, and enhanced skill with sword or spell. Some dragonets see this change as a gift from the dragon deity Gaasham, a way to act in defiance of their original purpose and become as worthy of song and story as any hero or villain. For others, it’s a lesson from Apsu, a forced pilgrimage in which they must learn to walk on the ground so they can truly appreciate flying across the sky once more. Still others believe it was a choice they made, consciously or not, that carries the power of draconic pact, a choice to be more mortal so they can truly appreciate the near immortality all dragons enjoy. These dragonets find themselves often becoming adventurers, their skills with alchemy and armor, esoterica and investigations more than compensating for their weaker natural abilities.
Like their larger kin, dragonets vary widely in appearance and personality. Many are social, living easily alongside others, weaving their lives in and around the communities they call home. Of these, some form close bonds with other people, accepting food and gold in return for their services, or even joining spellcasters as a familiar. Others are scorned for their mischievous pranks or territorial behavior. Some dragonets prefer to remain separate, living in secluded caves on remote coastlines or tree hollows in the deep wilderness, fiercely defending their territory and hoards from outsiders with claw and fang.
If you want to play a character that is a fierce dragon in miniature, you should play a dragonet.
You Might...
- Be prideful—you might be a tiny dragon, but you’re still a dragon!
- Love to spend a day lazing around and being pampered.
- Hoard something—possibly gold, a favorite type of trinket, or friends.
Others Probably...
- Fear you have a powerful breath that you can unleash at a moment’s notice.
- Expect they’ll need to reward you for your help.
- Think you’re a wizard’s familiar, druid’s companion, or even a pet.
Physical Description
Dragonets look like dragons, with scaled bodies, a serpentine neck, wings, claws, tail, and fang-filled jaws. They might have small horns or spikes running down their spines or in a fringe on their tails. The color of dragonet scales varies, from the muted grays and browns common among homing drakes to the rainbow tones of fey dragonets and the iridescent white and black of pearl dragonets. Their eyes are typically yellow, ranging from light cream to golden amber, with vertical slit pupils.
Society
Despite significant differences in dragonets’ lifestyles depending on where and how they were raised, they frequently share some societal traits. Dragonets tend to be very social with other ancestries, and less so among themselves—perhaps a legacy of their myths of fratricide among the dragon gods. Many dragonets live on their own, and only share a lair with other dragonets as part of a family. They’re fiercely protective of any young from the time they’re in the shell until they reach maturity, usually about a year.
Dragonet society reflects this independent spirit. Each dragonet rules over their small territory—whether that’s centered around a tidal cave in the Shackles, an Academae library in Korvosa, or a mountain shrine in Tian Xia—as its unquestioned master. But like independent city-states banding together, dragonets in a close area operate in an unspoken alliance. Such dragonet confederacies are smaller than other ancestries’ nations, occupying a large neighborhood or small city, a mountain peak, or a stretch of coast. An “archdragonet” coordinates any unified activities, operating as a first among equals. Power passes on in several ways: by choice (when an archdragonet grows bored of the position), schism (when dragonets split a confederacy to follow a new archdragonet), or contest (when two dragonets vie for the position). In the latter case, such contests can be determined by combat, the size of a dragonet’s hoard (or flock, in the case of pest drakes), or some other method determined by the rivals.
Dragonet names vary widely. Those raised primarily among other dragonets typically have names similar to dragons’, often with four or five syllables and possibly an epithet. Dragonets born among other ancestries are more likely to accept a name given by those who befriend or look after them, often focusing on a physical characteristic or behavior. Rarely, a dragonet has a “pet’s name” given by a beloved child; the dragonet would never accept such a moniker from anyone else, but nonetheless is fiercely protective of it because of its origin.
Sample Names
Butterwing, Churlet, Dazzlebreeze, Epondorax, Jumpy, Nandren, Ogedrie, Pearleye, Silverslash, Smooch, Tazicyroth the Bold
Dragonet Mechanics
Hit Points
8
Size
Tiny
Speed
20 feet
Attribute Boosts
Dexterity
Charisma
Free
Attribute Flaw
Constitution
Languages
CommonDraconicAdditional languages equal to your Intelligence modifier (if positive). Choose from the list of common languages and any other languages to which you have access (such as the languages prevalent in your region).
Big Sharp Teeth
Your mouth bristles with razor-sharp teeth. You gain a
jaws unarmed attack that deals 1d4 piercing damage. Your jaws are in the
brawling group and have the
finesse and
unarmed traits.
Darkvision
You can see in darkness and dim light just as well as you can see in bright light, though your vision in darkness is in black and white.
Wings
Your wings might not be as strong as other dragonets’, but can still prevent you from uncontrolled falls. You take no damage from falling, regardless of the distance you fall.