I uploaded this video earlier, then someone commented to alert me to the major error in the opening section, so I took it down and reuploaded it with the clarification - BUT I forgot to take note of who left the original helpful comment! Whoever you are though, thank you ❤️
I'm running a scaleless dragon this campaign as the BBEG. He was an outcast during the dragon empire and aligned himself with a ghoul warlord who ended up conquering a good portion of the north before being banished into a demiplane by the golden elves. Now he returns, leading the ghoul armies himself >:) However, I'm not totally sure on which species of dragon he is. A metallic one turned bad? A simple scaleless chromatic? Decisions, decisions...
Perhaps he is a chromatic dragon that has lost their scales due to being banished from the material plane for so long (as Fizban's guide to Dragons seems to suggest that Dragons may be entirely linked to Material planes)? Or perhaps though it's unknown to any that he interacts with, but he in fact predates the creation of the Chromatic and Metallic dragons? Some great ideas in Fizban's guide to Dragons.
A bit late but also consider the 'lost' colored chromatics and metallics, such as dragons who only existed in Dragon Magazine or in previous editions. Having a dragon type that isn't really seen around (a purple, orange, or most especially a yellow for reasons of lore) become scaleless and turn even more vindictive as a result seems fitting as well.
hello DMinspo. i wanted to say how much i love your videos and i wanted to say that i recently started dming and you are the person who helped me the most besides my group of dms and my first campaign is a dragon based campaign and these are really helpful. keep up the amazing work!
That's so good to hear, mate, thanks for taking the time to comment and let me know! Really glad you've been finding the content useful, and best of luck with your campaigns 👊
I'm gonna run an adventure soon where my players are going to try to take down a red dragon who's been amassing an army of lizardmen in order to attack the capital. Thanks for the tips, mate!
In our game world, color only describes an element, and dragons are free in their choice (mostly because neither DM nor players are willing to memorize a dozen copper alloys randomly linked to elements; they don't come from the same gods as in the Forgotten realms, so it doesn't contradict anything). But these are interesting ideas anyway.
Great vid, hope this is the start of a guide series for many famous (or infamous) monsters in D&D! 👍 In a campaign I'm running I have a green dragon who runs a cult. Green dragons strike me as pretty unique among the chromatics because of their tendancy for corrupting and manipulating those around them including their minions.
Black Dragons tend to avoid attacking me unless they are near water, and their tactics seem to be mostly consistent of trying to get me closer and closer to the water. Then when I would them badly enough they retreat under the water. I meanwhile find myself needing to lay down and rest until the membranes on my wings grow back in order to be able to fly. They would try to get their underlings to harass me so they can heal first.
Something that doesn’t make sense to me, chromatic dragons can’t shape shift like their metallic cousins. Whenever I run chromatic dragons, especially green, blue, and red, I always give them the shape shifting ability.
Right now i’m running a campaign set in Faerûn, near The High Moor. A family of black dragons are the main antagonists of the campaign right now, and they are very effective at striking fear into the party.
What'd be really fun is a reverse story where the party members are limited to "monsters" which are "ruled" by a dragon with one being said dragon and all the "adventure" people are the big bad evil guys"
I love your longform stuff. I know it's harder to make often, and your shorts are great too! "You got me, that's not a quote from the Monster Manual... it's from Volo's. Anyway-"
Always gutted when I miss a comment like this, but I really appreciate the kind words! As of this week, I'm going to be switching to long-form as my primary video format, so expect plenty more 😁
@@TalesArcane Don't worry about it homie! You do a lot for your growing community as is, you don't have to reply to every comment. It's super cool that you put in effort to have more personal interactions with your viewers though, it's a great dynamic. Class.
I know how to run evil creatures like chromatic dragons pretty well, but how would I run a more neutral creature like a gem dragon as an enemy or a BBEG. Do I just hype up their evil tendencies or showcase both their good and evil sides equally? (Mistaked Metallic for Chromatic dragons in a chromatic dragon video *lol*)
... if you want the players to question whether it's a bad or not then yes describe both... If he's supposed to be obviously evil then... No of course not. Show him being evil. Also metalic dragons are not evil. They are good. The chromatic(coloured) ones are the evil ones.
What WhiskeyJack said, really! They're a great opportunity to add some morally grey elements to your campaign. A neutral dragon could be an ally to the players at first, but then end up doing things the players find unethical later on. A neutral dragon would see our ideas or evil and good as being relative and unnecessary - which opens up some difficult moral dilemmas for players who might need to side with them against a greater threat.
@@TalesArcane OK so maybe have my neutral dragon be like a ruler of a kingdom that is really well taken care of. Low crime rates, high standard of living but also have the dragon be a bit of a tyrant with killing political rivals, brutally squashing rebellions and maybe even enslaving a species or 2. My players would have to decide if it's worth it to plunge this kingdom into disarray and cause the lives of millions to become incredibly more difficult just to depose this tyrant dragon.
One of my main antagonists is an enormous Red dragon, like Smuag size or bigger. Centuries ago he laid waste all the way from the deserts to the mountains. He took the city on the mountain peaks as his home and intended to further scorch the land until a family clan of cloud giants banded together to strike him from the mountain tops. After a titanic battle they succeeded and he was presumed dead. But the dragon fled into the underdark to heal his wounds. He destroyed a drow city and took it as a new home. But for centuries he has been growing in power under the earth and one day soon he will return to the surface to reap his revenge.
Here’s what each chromatic would do if they heard your power ranking video. White- Doesn’t have internet so never saw Black- Kidnaps your mother and live streams her demise for you to see Green- Catfishes you on an internet dating site and makes you fall in love and send it all your money Blue- Will become mayor of your town secretly and raise your taxes that go directly to him Red- Very pleased to be at the top, will invite you to a celebration at his lair where everyone’s expected to give a very generous gift to him. Not accepting is frowned upon
I have specific dragons in my campaign that were granted celestial status (meaning they live much longer ) and are considered pillars that balance the realm, unfortunately balance means metallic AND chromatics were granted this status and the power each has in the world depends on what they did with there status (campaign will be running to 20 if not higher)
Always bear in mind that the personalities are generalities, but can be applied in a high variety of ways. Gold dragons are: "Graceful and wise, they were relentless and dedicated foes of evil, injustice, and foul play." Green dragons are: "known for their manipulative and self-serving nature" By focusing on the "relentless and dedicated foes of evil, injustice, and foul play." I have a land in my world were a Gold Dragon is a totalitarian emperor, doing it "For the benefit of the people" not for itself. It laws are, pardon the pun, rather draconian, but it did this because the land had been plagued by rival warlords for generations and the dragons was tired of it. It now worries that if it does not give the people extreme guidance they will revert to that barbaric state of constant warfare. Meanwhile, a green dragon runs the county's underworld. Originally only for its own profit, and because it enjoyed manipulating the guild members and politics. Now, it organizes its guild as a resistance force against the gold emperor dragon. It doesn't care about the people, but it is difficult to run her operations and manipulations with such tight legal restraints to work around. She isn't good, by any stretch of the imagination, but at this particular point her goals align with the PCs, even if her motivations do not.
I’ve been scouring the internet for dragon-related content in preparation for running rise of tiamat and it’s funny how often I see other people doing the same thing
Since Chromatic Dragons are evil Dragon clan, which of these Chromas can we consider as the honorable ones? I mean Chromatic Dragon with a code of honor?
Its up to you as the DM but if you're talking traditionally, none of them really. Whites are predators who are more animalistic, Black enjoys inflicting pain and suffering. Red are tyrannical, egotistical and power hungry. The only two who could be at all honorable are Blue and Green I think. Although green dragons enjoy manipulation and trickery so really only blue dragons. They're super vain and love flattery so as long as you entertain them and don't disrespect them they may let you live. Maybe.
"Black Dragons will be a fun challenge for most lvl 7 players" Excuse me, my players never got that memo as they were lvl 6 and absolutely murdered an almost adult black dragon, Sure it was close to become a TPK but hey, in the end they won xD I decided that they well and truly earned a level up after that.. now, they have to find its hoard :D
Thank you! They look very similar to Forgotten Adventures, but they're actually made with Inkarnate. I make all my background maps on there, phenomenal website.
I know I'm very late to reply to this but I really appreciate you dropping a comment and being so kind about the channel! It's great to hear that the videos are helpful, especially to new DMs!
in the start of your video you didn't make any sense but said "metallic evil dragons" and yadda yadda yadda ect... you don't make any sense as for your 'Tired' deprivation from sleep, just know this, you can't take back what ever you already confused everybody until you remake this vide or this will just stay at a low lvl type of DnD guide no one wants to watch
I uploaded this video earlier, then someone commented to alert me to the major error in the opening section, so I took it down and reuploaded it with the clarification - BUT I forgot to take note of who left the original helpful comment! Whoever you are though, thank you ❤️
I got your back brother 🤛
Great video good stuff. 👍
Lose the music…Or pick better stuff. It’s like elevator music when you’re trying to be epic. 😴
I'm running a scaleless dragon this campaign as the BBEG.
He was an outcast during the dragon empire and aligned himself with a ghoul warlord who ended up conquering a good portion of the north before being banished into a demiplane by the golden elves. Now he returns, leading the ghoul armies himself >:)
However, I'm not totally sure on which species of dragon he is. A metallic one turned bad? A simple scaleless chromatic? Decisions, decisions...
Perhaps he is a chromatic dragon that has lost their scales due to being banished from the material plane for so long (as Fizban's guide to Dragons seems to suggest that Dragons may be entirely linked to Material planes)?
Or perhaps though it's unknown to any that he interacts with, but he in fact predates the creation of the Chromatic and Metallic dragons?
Some great ideas in Fizban's guide to Dragons.
A bit late but also consider the 'lost' colored chromatics and metallics, such as dragons who only existed in Dragon Magazine or in previous editions. Having a dragon type that isn't really seen around (a purple, orange, or most especially a yellow for reasons of lore) become scaleless and turn even more vindictive as a result seems fitting as well.
Is his name Seath by any chance? (Sorry, I couldn’t resist)
Great video, that ending hits a little too hard. Very useful for my next few dragon focused sessions. Sleep matters too!
Nah but it's NOT gonna happen, right? ........right? 😅 Glad you enjoyed the video mate!
@@TalesArcane prolly not..... right?
You have a pretty deep voice. I feel like dragon is narating this video :D
hello DMinspo. i wanted to say how much i love your videos and i wanted to say that i recently started dming and you are the person who helped me the most besides my group of dms and my first campaign is a dragon based campaign and these are really helpful. keep up the amazing work!
That's so good to hear, mate, thanks for taking the time to comment and let me know! Really glad you've been finding the content useful, and best of luck with your campaigns 👊
I'm gonna run an adventure soon where my players are going to try to take down a red dragon who's been amassing an army of lizardmen in order to attack the capital. Thanks for the tips, mate!
Awesome, hope the tips helped! What level are the players? Sounds like an epic battle's brewing 😁
@@TalesArcane they are around 6-7 and are 5 players. It's just a young red dragon, but it will still be rough 😈
Always live ur long form content and this is no exception keep it up man! 😄
Nice Video! I love the chromatic dragons concept, BTW you're such a handsome man!
In our game world, color only describes an element, and dragons are free in their choice (mostly because neither DM nor players are willing to memorize a dozen copper alloys randomly linked to elements; they don't come from the same gods as in the Forgotten realms, so it doesn't contradict anything). But these are interesting ideas anyway.
Great vid, hope this is the start of a guide series for many famous (or infamous) monsters in D&D! 👍
In a campaign I'm running I have a green dragon who runs a cult. Green dragons strike me as pretty unique among the chromatics because of their tendancy for corrupting and manipulating those around them including their minions.
Black Dragons tend to avoid attacking me unless they are near water, and their tactics seem to be mostly consistent of trying to get me closer and closer to the water.
Then when I would them badly enough they retreat under the water.
I meanwhile find myself needing to lay down and rest until the membranes on my wings grow back in order to be able to fly.
They would try to get their underlings to harass me so they can heal first.
Something that doesn’t make sense to me, chromatic dragons can’t shape shift like their metallic cousins. Whenever I run chromatic dragons, especially green, blue, and red, I always give them the shape shifting ability.
Right now i’m running a campaign set in Faerûn, near The High Moor. A family of black dragons are the main antagonists of the campaign right now, and they are very effective at striking fear into the party.
What'd be really fun is a reverse story where the party members are limited to "monsters" which are "ruled" by a dragon with one being said dragon and all the "adventure" people are the big bad evil guys"
Hope you get better sleep soon 💤
Thank you mate, I intend to! 💪
It is said that blue dragons are to proud to flee combat. Encountering them in the open will therefore be the climatic fight without lair actions
I love your longform stuff. I know it's harder to make often, and your shorts are great too!
"You got me, that's not a quote from the Monster Manual... it's from Volo's. Anyway-"
Always gutted when I miss a comment like this, but I really appreciate the kind words! As of this week, I'm going to be switching to long-form as my primary video format, so expect plenty more 😁
@@TalesArcane Don't worry about it homie! You do a lot for your growing community as is, you don't have to reply to every comment.
It's super cool that you put in effort to have more personal interactions with your viewers though, it's a great dynamic. Class.
White dragons are my favorite! They give the feel of a unrelenting pursuer...like a polar bear that cant be bargained with.
I know how to run evil creatures like chromatic dragons pretty well, but how would I run a more neutral creature like a gem dragon as an enemy or a BBEG. Do I just hype up their evil tendencies or showcase both their good and evil sides equally?
(Mistaked Metallic for Chromatic dragons in a chromatic dragon video *lol*)
... if you want the players to question whether it's a bad or not then yes describe both... If he's supposed to be obviously evil then... No of course not. Show him being evil.
Also metalic dragons are not evil. They are good. The chromatic(coloured) ones are the evil ones.
@@whiskeySe7en Mixing up metallic and chromatic is actually very appropriate for this video 😅
What WhiskeyJack said, really! They're a great opportunity to add some morally grey elements to your campaign. A neutral dragon could be an ally to the players at first, but then end up doing things the players find unethical later on. A neutral dragon would see our ideas or evil and good as being relative and unnecessary - which opens up some difficult moral dilemmas for players who might need to side with them against a greater threat.
@@whiskeySe7en I somehow confuse the dragon types on a video about them 😆
@@TalesArcane OK so maybe have my neutral dragon be like a ruler of a kingdom that is really well taken care of. Low crime rates, high standard of living but also have the dragon be a bit of a tyrant with killing political rivals, brutally squashing rebellions and maybe even enslaving a species or 2. My players would have to decide if it's worth it to plunge this kingdom into disarray and cause the lives of millions to become incredibly more difficult just to depose this tyrant dragon.
One of my main antagonists is an enormous Red dragon, like Smuag size or bigger. Centuries ago he laid waste all the way from the deserts to the mountains. He took the city on the mountain peaks as his home and intended to further scorch the land until a family clan of cloud giants banded together to strike him from the mountain tops. After a titanic battle they succeeded and he was presumed dead. But the dragon fled into the underdark to heal his wounds. He destroyed a drow city and took it as a new home. But for centuries he has been growing in power under the earth and one day soon he will return to the surface to reap his revenge.
Here’s what each chromatic would do if they heard your power ranking video.
White- Doesn’t have internet so never saw
Black- Kidnaps your mother and live streams her demise for you to see
Green- Catfishes you on an internet dating site and makes you fall in love and send it all your money
Blue- Will become mayor of your town secretly and raise your taxes that go directly to him
Red- Very pleased to be at the top, will invite you to a celebration at his lair where everyone’s expected to give a very generous gift to him. Not accepting is frowned upon
I have specific dragons in my campaign that were granted celestial status (meaning they live much longer ) and are considered pillars that balance the realm, unfortunately balance means metallic AND chromatics were granted this status and the power each has in the world depends on what they did with there status (campaign will be running to 20 if not higher)
Always bear in mind that the personalities are generalities, but can be applied in a high variety of ways.
Gold dragons are: "Graceful and wise, they were relentless and dedicated foes of evil, injustice, and foul play."
Green dragons are: "known for their manipulative and self-serving nature"
By focusing on the "relentless and dedicated foes of evil, injustice, and foul play." I have a land in my world were a Gold Dragon is a totalitarian emperor, doing it "For the benefit of the people" not for itself.
It laws are, pardon the pun, rather draconian, but it did this because the land had been plagued by rival warlords for generations and the dragons was tired of it.
It now worries that if it does not give the people extreme guidance they will revert to that barbaric state of constant warfare.
Meanwhile, a green dragon runs the county's underworld. Originally only for its own profit, and because it enjoyed manipulating the guild members and politics. Now, it organizes its guild as a resistance force against the gold emperor dragon. It doesn't care about the people, but it is difficult to run her operations and manipulations with such tight legal restraints to work around.
She isn't good, by any stretch of the imagination, but at this particular point her goals align with the PCs, even if her motivations do not.
Running "Rise of Tiamat" right now. Good to have your perspective.
I’ve been scouring the internet for dragon-related content in preparation for running rise of tiamat and it’s funny how often I see other people doing the same thing
@@stolendiamond09 I have benifitted greatly by using YT to research all the dragons. Drawing on inspiration from others is highly recommended.
Well the dnd beyond stuff didn't age well. Nice prediction though, maybe spending time with the fey has rubbed off a bit 🤔 🤣
Awesome video. ✌
I always add dragon sorcerer to my dragons it makes the combat fun. Plus it lore acriect. Cr equals sorcerer level to my dragons
I read "how to run FROM chromatic dragons". 😅
Thank you do much im planning on running a dragon hunter campaign this helped me out so much
Fecking love this channel
I appreciate that, mate! Sorry it took me so long to find this comment 😁
"But fundamentally Guewd"
I love this video
I love dragons 😍
Could you do a video on metallic dragons?
u Sir : hav the slyest coy sence ov humour
algorythm something
Since Chromatic Dragons are evil Dragon clan, which of these Chromas can we consider as the honorable ones? I mean Chromatic Dragon with a code of honor?
Its up to you as the DM but if you're talking traditionally, none of them really. Whites are predators who are more animalistic, Black enjoys inflicting pain and suffering. Red are tyrannical, egotistical and power hungry. The only two who could be at all honorable are Blue and Green I think. Although green dragons enjoy manipulation and trickery so really only blue dragons. They're super vain and love flattery so as long as you entertain them and don't disrespect them they may let you live. Maybe.
Great video!
Sleep and health is more important than money.
Get some sleep man
Really appreciate you saying so mate! Very true. It's been a hectic week (and month), but I'm having fun, and September should be a bit more chilled 😅
You already have to pay for some dnd beyond stuff
True! but in fairness to them there's a good selection of free stuff - for now... 😅
En gage ment comm ent
"Black Dragons will be a fun challenge for most lvl 7 players" Excuse me, my players never got that memo as they were lvl 6 and absolutely murdered an almost adult black dragon, Sure it was close to become a TPK but hey, in the end they won xD I decided that they well and truly earned a level up after that.. now, they have to find its hoard :D
Good stuff, I ve been using a green dragon as the bbeg in my campaign, ... Pretty much throwing everything into this campaign hahaha
Great name drop of fall of civilisations. Top tier watching, good taste sir.
This will help me run my homebrew campaign and the icespire peak module better.
This stuff is gold, i'ma write it down.
Very nice maps with Forgotten Adventures assets in the background. Do you make those? They look great!
Thank you! They look very similar to Forgotten Adventures, but they're actually made with Inkarnate. I make all my background maps on there, phenomenal website.
You are an inspiration to me as a new dm. I hope you know how much your video help me feel like its okay to start trying to learn to dnd at 25
I know I'm very late to reply to this but I really appreciate you dropping a comment and being so kind about the channel! It's great to hear that the videos are helpful, especially to new DMs!
in the start of your video you didn't make any sense but said "metallic evil dragons" and yadda yadda yadda ect... you don't make any sense as for your 'Tired' deprivation from sleep, just know this, you can't take back what ever you already confused everybody until you remake this vide or this will just stay at a low lvl type of DnD guide no one wants to watch