Gold Dragon [Metallic]

Gold hatchlings are deep yellow, speckled with metallic gold. The flecks spread as the dragon grows until, by adulthood, every scale is solid gold. Its true form is winged, but it often takes a wingless shape for faster swimming, and in any wingless form it can still fly at speed 6 (maneuverability class E).

A gold dragon nearly always talks before it fights, using detect lie and detect gems to gain leverage. Once battle starts it casts bless and luck bonus at once; older golds that have a version lasting a day or longer simply invoke luck bonus each morning. Spells dominate its tactics, with maze, fireball, delayed blast fireball, cloudkill, sleep, slow, fire shield, stinking cloud and globe of invulnerability among its favorites.

Its breath is either a fire cone 90 feet long, 5 feet wide at the mouth and 30 at the end, or a 50 x 40 x 30-foot cloud of potent chlorine. A save vs. breath weapon halves either. From hatching it breathes water, speaks freely with animals, is immune to fire and gas, and may polymorph self 3/day; a chosen form lasts until it picks another, and returning to dragon shape costs nothing.

Further powers: bless 3/day (young), detect lie 3/day (juvenile), animal summoning 1/day (adult), luck bonus 1/day (mature adult), and quest 1/day plus detect gems 3/day (old). Detect gems reveals the number and type of precious stones within 30 feet for one minute.

Luck bonus exists to help good adventurers. With a touch the dragon charms one gem, usually one set in its own hide. While the dragon carries it, the dragon and all good creatures within 10 feet per age category gain +1 on saving throws and similar rolls, much like a stone of good luck. A gem given away aids only its holder. The magic lasts 3 hours per age category plus 1d3 hours and ends early if the gem is destroyed.

Wise, fair and kindly, golds take up self-chosen quests for the cause of good and stick to them stubbornly; injustice and cheating enrage them. They are most often met in human or animal disguise. Their own tongue and the common speech of good dragons come naturally, and 18% of hatchlings can talk with any intelligent being, plus 5% per age category.

Golds live in any climate, always in remote lairs of solid stone, whether caverns or castles. Guards are common: local animals, or giants (storm giants or good cloud giants) serving under a pact of mutual defense.

They can eat nearly anything but usually live on pearls and small gems. A good or neutral visitor who brings such a gift tends to win the dragon's favor, unless it is offered as a blatant bribe, in which case the dragon pockets it and treats the giver's requests with open cynicism.