CHAPTER 5 DRACONIC CAMPAIGNS 150
where tyrannical <strong>dragon</strong>s demand worship as gods, local populations are forced to build pyramids on which they give sacrifices. Depending on the <strong>dragon</strong>, these might be valuable goods, crafts, beasts and herd animals, or members of the community. Evil <strong>dragon</strong>s demand such ceremony because they are vain and because it helps keep populations cowed. Indeed, the <strong>dragon</strong> might not take the sacrifices, simply destroying or killing anything offered, leaving corpses to be buried nearby. To ensure that no other creature steals a sacrifice once it is attached to the post, a small building is constructed near the pyramid. Members of the community keep vigil here, watching over the sacrifice (and possibly listening to its plaintive cries) until their <strong>dragon</strong> overlord comes to take it. TEMPLE OF TIAMAT Mounted atop a rocky hill, this massive ring of stones is stark and rough-hewn. Five stone columns, 40 feet tall and equally wide, support a ring of stone with a vast opening in the middle. Sitting on the ring, centered above each column, are cauldrons of flame. Each of the five cauldrons burns with differently hued fire, with white, red, blue, green and black flames. The floor between the columns is covered in a vast mosaic showing the necks and heads of <strong>dragon</strong>s, each matching the color of one bonfire. At the center of the mosaic is a huge pyre, nearly 30 feet across, holding the remains of animal bones, valuable woods, and metallic offerings. Though the wind whips through the columns with a whistle, the hilltop smells of fire and death. Worshiped by many evil <strong>dragon</strong>s, the deity Tiamat demands respect, obedience, and tribute from her followers. Because the <strong>dragon</strong>s that revere her don’t wish to draw her gaze onto their own hoards, few keep shrines to her in their lairs. Instead, they stock vast caverns with tribute or build outdoor shrines. This methodology is especially common in areas where several evil <strong>dragon</strong>s hold sway. Unwilling to trust each other in the close confines of a cavern, they have slaves construct hilltop shrines open to the air. There, they gather to worship Tiamat and give her offerings, but they also keep an eye on one another and stand ready to flee in case a rival tries to spring a trap. Most of the time, though, an outdoor shrine is neutral ground where evil <strong>dragon</strong>s can discuss their differences and make plans. THE BATTLE OF DRAGON FALL The Battle of Dragon Fall is a sample adventure that employs many of the new classes, options, and ideas presented in Dragon Magic. It can serve as an introduction for new draconic rules and concepts or simply as a typical adventure for a <strong>dragon</strong>-heavy campaign. Because <strong>dragon</strong>s are most common in campaigns above 10th level, the adventure is specifically designed for higher-level characters (11th–13th), but you can modify it for mid-level or epic-level characters by increasing or decreasing the age categories of the <strong>dragon</strong>s fought. The Battle of Dragon Fall is designed as a short adventure that can be run in one or two sessions, but you can expand it by adding random encounters or extending some scenes into multiple encounters. With some work, you could revise the entire adventure to eliminate all the new rules from Dragon Magic, but of course, doing that would remove many of its unique elements. ADVENTURE BACKGROUND According to <strong>dragon</strong> myths, when the first <strong>dragon</strong>s roamed the lands and flew the skies, many among their number felt their innate connection to <strong>magic</strong> could be used to control all forms of <strong>magic</strong>. These ancient <strong>dragon</strong>s believed they could combine their powers to harness, augment, or restrict the spells of wizards, sorcerers, clerics, druids, and bards. Magic would then be available only to those who served <strong>dragon</strong>s, making them the ultimate power in the world. While many <strong>dragon</strong>s protested that such an effort was doomed to failure, especially since it required interfering with spells granted by the deities, enough of the first <strong>dragon</strong>s thought it worthwhile to try. Good <strong>dragon</strong>s hoped the undertaking would be the first step toward making the world a fair land under their stewardship, while evil <strong>dragon</strong>s lusted to gain control of the power such a task would make available. The first step in this task was to construct a great focus, through which the power of dozens of <strong>dragon</strong>s could be combined. This focus was to be a location, much like a temple, tied to the threads of <strong>magic</strong> that flowed through <strong>dragon</strong>kind and the world itself. The construction was a massive undertaking, requiring the efforts of many <strong>dragon</strong>s, but in time it was finished. Called the <strong>dragon</strong>font, the focus was successfully able to combine the power of dozens of <strong>dragon</strong>s toward a single effect. Ironically, the very fact that it could channel such strength was the <strong>dragon</strong>font’s undoing. Being proud, self-sufficient, and strong-willed creatures, no group of <strong>dragon</strong>s that large could ever agree on a single purpose for their combined powers. Many <strong>dragon</strong>s that had helped construct the <strong>dragon</strong>font had grown wiser as they aged and were no longer willing to risk the wrath of the deities—not to mention dangerous mortal creatures—if they tried to make themselves supreme. Further, they refused to allow a smaller group of <strong>dragon</strong>s to use the <strong>dragon</strong>font to advance minor goals, claiming it was too formidable a tool to leave in the hands of the young and brash. As it became clear that the <strong>dragon</strong>font was a source of contention rather than a boon to <strong>dragon</strong>kind, the eldest among them foresaw a <strong>dragon</strong> war being waged over its ownership. Rather than allow this, the elder <strong>dragon</strong>s declared the place forbidden. They moved the <strong>dragon</strong>font to a new location, hidden deep in the mountains, and built a shrine to guard its entrance. Because the shrine was necessary to prevent the various kinds of <strong>dragon</strong>s from falling to infighting over the <strong>dragon</strong>font, it was named the Shrine of Dragon Fall. CHAPTER 5 DRACONIC CAMPAIGNS 151