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observer of the world. When dragons die, their soulsmight well pass under his scrutiny. He does not dispensepunishment or seek to right perceived wrongs.He merely shuttles souls toward their fates.FalazureDeity: VecnaKnown as the Night Dragon, Falazure is known forhis vampirelike breath of life-draining miasma. Heappears as a gaunt black dragon sometimes so emaciatedhe seems more akin to a dracolich.As a devotee of Vecna, Falazure teaches that a multitudeof secrets can extend a dragon’s long life evenlonger. Many of those secrets involve necromancyand vampiric regeneration, but not all of them do.Falazure also knows other hidden dragon secrets,so dragons pray to him to learn whatever he willdivulge.CHROMATIC DRAGONS IN DETAILThe following material expands upon informationalready given about the varieties of chromatic dragons.The favored treasure indicated for each variety isjust that: favored, not exclusive. Similarly, the maximumlife spans are approximations. These numbersmerely describe the greatest ages that sages haveconfirmed. Individual dragons, particularly those ofgreat power and strong will, might live substantiallylonger than the given maximums.Values in the size tables are typical; an individualdragon can vary from these figures by as much as25 percent—or, for particularly exceptional dragons,even more. This deviation occurs frequently amongGargantuan dragons, since the size of a truly ancientwyrm theoretically has no limit.Black DragonsAlso called skull dragons (due to the general shapeof their heads) and swamp dragons, black dragonsare perhaps the most malicious chromatics. Redsmight have greater tempers, greens more ambitionto deceive and control, but few other dragons sharethe cruelty of black dragons. Black dragons hunt notmerely to survive or to protect their territory, butalso for the sheer joy of causing pain. They care notwhether their victims are helpless or hazardous,weak or powerful. Violence brings satisfaction.LESSER-KNOWN CHROMATICSSome chromatic dragons are better known than others.Among the lesser-known chromatics are varieties thatmight have no connection, past or present, with Tiamat.These include browns, grays, and purples. They haveappeared in previous grimoires and bestiaries as one-offs,without affiliation to any known dragon group. Previouslydescribed respectively as sand, fang, and deep dragons,these brown, gray, and purple dragons are not so muchnew chromatics as newly acknowledged members ofthe chromatic dragon family. As such, they are featuredhere along with the better-known chromatic dragonvarieties.Black dragons are also among the most cowardlyof chromatic dragons. Though quick to engage incombat, they also quickly retreat if opponents provemore dangerous than expected. Given black dragons’propensity for laying ambushes and strikingfrom hiding, however, would-be victims might find itimpossible to distinguish a fleeing black dragon fromone regrouping to attack from another angle.When possible, black dragons prefer to feed onsentient beings, considering fey creatures particulardelicacies. The bulk of their diet consists of swampcreatures such as snakes, alligators, small mammals,and birds. Like alligators, black dragons might lettheir prey rot in the mud at the bottoms of swampsbecause they prefer the texture and flavor of putrefiedflesh.Black dragons fight on land only when circumstancesforce them to do so. They prefer to fight eitherin the water or on the wing.Lairs and TerrainBlack dragons favor swamps and bogs: anywherewith deep, murky water, thick trees, and fetid vegetation.The water gives them an advantage in combat,because the scents of growth and rot common toswamps help to cover the acidic tang of the dragons’presence. Only a deep swamp in which a dragon cansubmerge serves the dragon’s purposes, so shallowmarshes rarely harbor black dragon lairs.When a black dragon cannot find a deep swamp, itsettles for any area where freshwater and earth cometogether in great quantities. Jungles and rain forestsmight host black dragons, as might lakes in all but thecoldest climes. Purported lake monsters might in factbe black dragons that have gone unrecognized outsidetheir usual swamps.Black dragons loathe salt water. Although saltwater does not harm them, it irritates their flesh likea bad rash. Thus, although black dragons might diveinto salt water to escape foes, they never make theirhomes in salt marshes.For their lairs, black dragons favor systems ofcaves or hollows with multiple chambers, some30CHAPTER 1 | Dragon Lore