Metallic Dragons
The brass, bronze, copper, gold, and silver dragons represent the calm side of dragonkind. Unlike their chromatic cousins, they are hyper social, living in groups known as "banks."
Draconic Compulsion. The mark of dragonkind, chromatic or metallic, is their greed. All dragons develop upon reaching maturity an irresistible compulsion to collect. Metallic dragons tend to collect more outlandish or abstract hoards, and each bank will have one communal hoard (which is actually the hoard of the head of the bank) in addition to their own individual hoards.
Social Shapeshifters. At some point in their long history, metallic dragons gain the magical ability to assume the forms of humanoids and beasts. It is considered a rite of passage among many banks for young dragons to go out and immerse themselves in the world and culture around them, bringing back news and wealth to their bank, or perhaps even establishing their own out in the world.
Shared Lairs. A dragon's lair serves as the seat of its power and as a vault for its hoard. Because metallic dragons live in banks, they often share one massive lair that can extend over miles, which they defend just as fiercely as chromatic dragons do. Because typically only younger dragons journey out into the world, a group of adventurers might be unpleasantly surprised by just how powerful the dragons who remain at the banks' lair might be.
King of Possibility. The metallic dragons have a deep respect for the one of their number who is older and more powerful than any others: Bahamut, the Platinum dragon, whose scales are said to be so brilliant that to look on his form will blind you. He is believed to be the first calm collection of that fashioned itself into a dragon's shape, and rather than eggs, he plucked off his own scales to create the rest of the metallic dragons.
Bahamut is massive in size, like his lover Tiamat, but he is more often seen or represented as either a teenage boy of any species, or an extremely old man, who is accompanied by seven yellow canaries--actually seven gold dragons in disguise.
The statblocks of all metallic dragons are identical to their vanilla counterparts except in the following ways:
- Metallic dragons are no longer required to be good in alignment. They are, however, required to be lawful in alignment.
- The dragons' breath weapons are different, as detailed below:
| Dragon | Breath |
|---|---|
| Brass | Only uses sleep breath |
| Bronze | Only uses force breath |
| Copper | Only uses slowing breath |
| Gold | Only uses weakening breath |
| Silver | Only uses paralyzing breath |
Basic Information
Genetics and Reproduction
Metallic dragons do not reproduce as we understand it. In an imitation of how they believed they were created, metallic dragon eggs are crafted in a magical ritual during which a dragon must pluck out its own scales to grow the eggs. As many scales are plucked as as many eggs will be created, in the same color as the parent.
Dragons can also reproduce with almost any species. Having a child with another species while transformed results in a half-dragon. Half-dragons are extremely rare, however, as the magic required to keep them alive through the pregnancy is exorbitant.
Growth Rate & Stages
Metallic dragons can live for milennia, though they tend to be short-lived than their chromatic cousins. The oldest known metallic dragon is only four thousand years old.
Dragons have four life stages: wyrmling, young, adult, and ancient. They are considered wyrmlings from the moment of hatching until they reach certain developmental milestones, at around fifty years when they become "young dragons." They are not considered adult until about a hundred and fifty years after hatching, and from this point they will continue to grow in size and power (as chromatic dragons never stop growing.) At eight hundred years, they are considered ancient, though, again, they will continue to grow past this point if they do not die.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Metallic dragons are omnivorous, requiring a diet of meat and plants to stay healthy. Typically, an adult dragon needs only eat once every few years, but the meal it must eat is extremely large. Younger dragons must eat more often to promote steady growth.
Civilization and Culture
Gender Ideals
Metallic dragons have six genders that are similar to human's concept of gender, with three falling in one "group," two in another, and one on its own.
Genetic Descendants
Lifespan
650 years