Dragon, Chromatic, Blue

Blue dragons are extremely territorial and voracious. They love to spend long hours preparing ambushes for herd animals and unwary travelers, and they spend equally long hours dwelling on their success and admiring their trophies.

The size of a blue dragon's scales increases little as the dragon ages, although they do become thicker and harder. The scales vary in color from an iridescent azure to a deep indigo, retaining a glossy finish through all of the dragon's stages because the blowing desert sands polish them. This makes blue dragons easy to spot in barren desert surroundings. However, the dragons often conceal themselves, burrowing into the sand so only part of their heads are exposed.

Blue dragons love to soar in the hot desert air; usually flying in the daytime when temperatures are the highest. Some blue dragons nearly match the color of the desert sky and use this coloration to their advantage in combat.

Blue dragons speak their own tongue, a tongue common to all evil dragons, and 12% of hatchling blue dragons have an ability to communicate with any intelligent creature. The chance to possess this ability increases 5% per age category of the dragon.

Combat: Blue dragons prefer to fight from a distance so their opponents can clearly witness the full force of their breath weapon and so little or no threat is posed to themselves. Often blue dragons will attack from directly above or will burrow beneath the sands until opponents come within 100 feet. Older blue dragons will use their special abilities, such as hallucinatory terrain, in concert with these tactics to mask the land and aid in their chances to surprise. Blue dragons will only run from a fight if they are severely damaged, since they view retreat as cowardly.

Breath Weapon/Special Abilities: A blue dragon's breath weapon is a 5' wide bolt of lightning that streaks 100' in a straight line from the dragon's mouth. All creatures caught in this stream must save vs. breath weapon for half damage. Blue dragons cast spells and use their magical abilities at 7th level, adjusted by their combat modifier.

Blue dragons are born with an immunity to electricity. As they age, they gain the following additional powers:

Young: create or destroy water three times per day. Juvenile: sound imitation at will. Adult: dust devil once a day. Old: ventriloquism once a day. Venerable: hallucinatory terrain once a day.

Habitat/Society: Blue dragons are found in deserts; arid, windswept plains; and hot humid badlands. They enjoy the bleak terrain because there are few obstacles - only an occasional rock outcropping or dune - to interrupt the view of their territories. They spend hours looking out over their domains, watching for trespassers and admiring their property. Most of the blue dragons encountered will be alone because they do not want to share their territories with others. However, when a family is encountered the male dragon will attack ferociously, protecting his property-his mate and young. The female dragon also will join in the attack if the threat proves significant.

Blue dragons' enemies are men, who kill the dragons for their skin and treasure, and brass dragons, which share the same environment. If a blue dragon discovers a brass dragon in the same region, it will not rest until the trespassing dragon is killed or driven away.

Blue dragons lair in vast underground caverns in which they store their treasure. Although blue dragons will collect anything which looks valuable, they are fond of gems - especially sapphires.

Ecology: Blue dragons are able to consume nearly anything, and sometimes are forced to eat snakes, lizards, and desert plants to help sate their great hunger. However, they are particularly fond of herd animals, such as camels, and they will gorge themselves on caravans of the creatures which they cook with a lightning bolt.