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to seek out her own allies. She knows she has set herself apart
from her fellow priests and is willing to work with allies that
others of her order might find questionable. A swift wing
won’t compromise her principles, but she gives friends and
comrades the benefit of the doubt as long as they help bring
down the adversaries of her deity. With no formal place in her
own organization, she must learn to make one in whatever
group will have her.
A swift wing still fills the role she played before following
her radical
path of faith. If previously
a paladin, she
remains a devout warrior
at the forefront
of battle. If she was a
cleric, she remains a
supporting character
who can hold her
own in a fight. Swift
wings have forceful
personalities
and can provide
leadership to
groups lacking
purpose or
direction. However,
for swift
wings who are
not party leaders,
the most important
goal is to accomplish
each mission so as
not to undermine
the authority of their
commander.
NPC Reactions
Among members of
her own faith, a swift
wing rarely receives
more than an indifferent
welcome at first,
though her actions
can earn her greater
respect once others
get to know her. Typical
divine agents remain condescending or suspicious, but
powerful good-aligned wizards, sorcerers, and dragons
are friendly to swift wings, seeing them as open-minded.
Common folk are often friendly toward swift wings, moved
by their natural drive and their unwillingness to let bureaucracy
obstruct their quest to make the world a better place.
Evil spellcasters of any sort are unfriendly toward swift
wings, viewing them as hybrid threats that are too dangerous
to risk leaving alive. Evil dragons are openly hostile
toward swift wings, offended that mortals dare to siphon the
draconic energies that flow through the world. Their anger
often causes them to attack swift wings first—if they can
identify the upstarts, of course.
Additionally, any foe that would fear a good cleric or paladin
is hostile toward a swift wing. Demons, devils, cultist,
and evil monsters all see swift wings
as strong threats that must be eliminated.
Undead in particular
have good reason to
loathe any character
with a breath weapon
that exudes positive
energy.
SWIFT
WING
LORE
Characters with
ranks in Knowledge
(arcana)
or Knowledge
(religion) can
research swift
wings to learn more
about them. When
a character makes
a skill check, read
or paraphrase the
following, including
the information
from lower DCs.
DC 10: A swift
wing is a divine
spellcaster who has
taken on aspects of
dragonkind.
DC 15: Though
rarely trusted by
her senior priests,
a swift wing is a
dedicated foe of her
deity’s enemies and
uses supernatural
dragonlike abilities
to find and destroy them.
DC 20: A swift wing has reduced access to divine spells
but gains keen senses, the power of flight, a breath weapon
that gives off positive energy, and resistance similar to that
of a dragon.
Finding a swift wing operating in a given area requires
talking to locals; church officials are unlikely to help those
who seek one of their black sheep. A DC 15 Gather Information
check reveals the details of any swift wing known by
local nobles, commoners, or brigands.
Illus. by W. Mahy
CHAPTER 2
DRAGON
ASPIRANTS
53