Dragon (Taninim)

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Physical Description

Taninim are an iconic symbol of power, of royalty, of destruction and majesty. The classical dragon form is that of a four-legged athletic reptile with wings that are a fully functional third set of limbs, an elongated neck and tail. As creatures of primal spirit, taninim appearance mirrors what is inside. If one looks like a red dragon, chances are very good they are every bit the malicious, violence- and devastation-loving creature as their standard red cousins.

By the time a taninim has hatched and matured, a process that spans approximately 50 years, the average taninim weighs around 80 lbs and is about three feet in length, with a neck and tail each nearly as long.

Standard Racial Traits

  • Ability Score Modifiers: Taninim are creatures of primal power and spirit, with superior physical health and force of personality. Their draconic shape limits fine manipulations and the precise motor skills possessed by most humanoids. They gain +2 Constitution, +2 Charisma, but suffer -2 Dexterity.
  • Size: Taninim are Small creatures and gain a +1 size bonus to AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, a -1 penalty to their CMB and CMD, and a +4 size bonus on Stealth checks.
  • Type: Taninim are dragons. They breathe, eat and sleep, plus gain armor and weapon proficiency based on class. Any type-based racial traits they gain are listed below.
  • Base Speed: Taninim have a base speed of 30 feet.
  • Languages: Taninim begin play speaking Common and Draconic. Taninim with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following bonus languages: Abyssal, Aquan, Auran, Celestial, Ignan, Infernal, and Terran. See the Linguistics skill page for more information about these languages.

Offense and Defense Racial Traits

  • Dexterous Claws: Taninim claws are not quite robust enough to be used as natural weapons, but their front claws are nimble enough to manipulate manufactured tools and hold items without impairing their movement. A taninim can even wield weapons but is restricted to only wielding weapons in one hand at a time, suffers a -2 penalty to all attack rolls with manufactured weapons, and can only move at half speed.
  • Dragon Immunities: Taninim are immune to magical sleep effects and paralysis effects.
  • Kinslayer: Violent struggles for territory and prestige are common among taninim. They gain a +1 bonus on attack rolls and a +2 dodge bonus to AC and on saving throws against the extraordinary, supernatural and spell-like abilities of dragons.
  • Natural WeaponBite: Taninim have a bite primary attack that deals 1d4 points of damage and has reach as a creature one size larger. As dragons, taninim add 1 ½ times their Strength bonus on damage rolls with their bite attack.
  • Scaled Hide: Taninim have a +2 natural armor bonus to AC.

Movement Racial Traits

  • Glide: Taninim have vestigial wings and can make a DC 15 Fly check to fall safely from any height without taking falling damage, as if using feather fall. When falling safely, the taninim may make an additional DC 15 Fly check to glide, moving 5 feet laterally for every 20 feet he falls.

Feat and Skill Racial Traits

  • Superior Awareness: Taninim gain a +2 racial bonus on Perception and Sense Motive skill checks.
  • Wyrm Lore: Taninim gain a +2 racial bonus on Knowledge (arcana) checks to identify dragons and can make such checks untrained.
  • Unfettered Predator: Taninim can only wear armor designed expressly for draconic bodies, and even then chafe at the restrictions armor can cause to their natural movements. Taninim increase the armor check penalty of any worn armor by 2, and suffer a -2 penalty on attack rolls while wearing medium or heavy armor even if they are proficient in it. Taninim also reduce their maneuverability rating by one step when flying while wearing medium or heavy armor. These penalties apply regardless of any armor proficiency the taninim has.
  • Draconic Physiology: Taninim are quadrupeds, and have a number of rules modifiers based on their body shape. Quadrupeds are limited to using the following item slots: armor, belt (saddle only), chest, eyes, headband, neck, shoulders, and wrist. Armor for quadrupeds has double the cost of armor for a humanoid of the same size. Taninim also have the standard two ring slots due to their dexterous claws. Quadrupeds have a greater carrying capacity than humanoids, multiplying the carrying capacity value for their Strength as follows: Fine x1/4, Diminutive x1/2, Tiny x3/4, Small x1, Medium x1 ½, Large x3, Huge x6, Gargantuan x12, Colossal x24. Quadrupeds also gain a +4 bonus to CMD against overrun and trip combat maneuvers from their extra legs.
  • Dragon Senses: Taninim have darkvision 60’ and low-light vision.

Age, Height and Weight

Taninim do not age naturally, and do not die of old age. Magical aging effects can affect them, but even permanent magical aging effects can be removed from a taninim by remove curse or dispel magic.

Taninim Height and Weight Table

Size Base Height (Length*) Height (Length*) Modifier Base Weight Weight Modifier
Tiny 1 ft. +2d4 in. 20 lbs. +1d8 lbs.
Small 3 ft. +2d6 in. 50 lbs. +2d6 lbs.
Medium 6 ft. +2d10 in. 225 lbs. +4d10 lbs.
Large 12 ft. +4d6 in. 2000 lbs. +5d100 lbs.
Huge 26 ft. +1d4 ft. 11 tons +1d4 tons
Gargantuan 42 ft. +2d6 ft. 80 tons +3d6 tons
Colossal 65+ ft. 125+ tons

*Tail length is equal to body length.

Section 15: Copyright Notice

In the Company of Dragons Copyright 2014 Steven D. Russell; Authors Wendall Roy

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