Green Dragon
Overview
The most cunning and treacherous of true dragons, green dragons use misdirection and trickery to get the upper hand against their enemies. Nasty tempered and thoroughly evil, they take special pleasure in subverting and corrupting the good-hearted. In the ancient forests they roam, green dragons demonstrate an aggression that is often less about territory than it is about gaining power and wealth with as little effort as possible. A green dragon is recognized by its curved jawline and the crest that begins near its eyes and continues down its spine, reaching full height just behind the skull. A green dragon has no external ears, but bears leathery spiked plates that run down the sides of its neck. A wyrmling green dragon’s thin scales are a shade of green so dark as to appear nearly black. As a green dragon ages, its scales grow larger and lighter, turning shades of forest, emerald, and olive green to help it blend in with its wooded surroundings. Its wings have a dappled pattern, darker near the leading edges and lighter toward the trailing edges. A green dragon’s legs are longer in relation to its body than with any other dragon, enabling it to easily pass over underbrush and forest debris when it walks. With its equally long neck, an older green dragon can peer over the tops of trees without rearing up.Capricious Hunters
A green dragon hunts by patrolling its forest territory from the air and the ground. It eats any creature it can see, and will consume shrubs and small trees when hungry enough, but its favorite prey are elves. Green dragons are consummate liars and masters of double talk. They favor intimidation of lesser creatures, but employ more subtle manipulations when dealing with other dragons. A green dragon attacks animals and monsters with no provocation, especially when dealing with potential threats to its territory. When dealing with sentient creatures, a green dragon demonstrates a lust for power that rivals its draconic desire for treasure, and it is always on the lookout for creatures that can help it further its ambitions. A green dragon stalks its victims as it plans its assault, sometimes shadowing creatures for days. If a target is weak, the dragon enjoys the terror its appearance evokes before it attacks. It never slays all its foes, preferring to use intimidation to establish control over survivors. It then learns what it can about other creatures’ activities near its territory, and about any treasure to be found nearby. Green dragons occasionally release prisoners if they can be ransomed. Otherwise, a creature must prove its value to the dragon daily or die.Manipulative Schemers
A wily and subtle creature, a green dragon bends other creatures to its will by assessing and playing off their deepest desires. Any creature foolish enough to attempt to subdue a green dragon eventually realizes that the creature is only pretending to serve while it assesses its would-be master. When manipulating other creatures, green dragons are honey-tongued, smooth, and sophisticated. Among their own kind, they are loud, crass, and rude, especially when dealing with dragons of the same age and status.Conflict and Corruption
Green dragons sometimes clash with other dragons over territory where forest crosses over into other terrain. A green dragon typically pretends to back down, only to wait and watch - sometimes for decades - for the chance to slay the other dragon, then claim its lair and hoard. Green dragons accept the servitude of sentient creatures such as goblinoids, ettercaps, ettins, kobolds, orcs, and yuan-ti. They also delight in corrupting and bending elves to their will. A green dragon sometimes wracks its minions’ minds with fear to the point of insanity, with the fog that spreads throughout its forest reflecting those minions’ tortured dreams.Living Treasures
A green dragon’s favored treasures are the sentient creatures it bends to its will, including significant figures such as popular heroes, well-known sages, and renowned bards. Among material treasures, a green dragon favors emeralds, wood carvings, musical instruments, and sculptures of humanoid subjects.A Green Dragon's Lair
The forest-loving green dragons sometimes compete for territory with black dragons in marshy woods and with white dragons in subarctic taiga. However, a forest controlled by a green dragon is easy to spot. A perpetual fog hangs in the air in a legendary green dragon’s wood, carrying an acrid whiff of the creature’s poison breath. The moss-covered trees grow close together except where winding pathways trace their way like a maze into the heart of the forest. The light that reaches the forest floor carries an emerald green cast, and every sound seems muffled. At the center of its forest, a green dragon chooses a cave in a sheer cliff or hillside for its lair, preferring an entrance hidden from prying eyes. Some seek out cave mouths concealed behind waterfalls, or partly submerged caverns that can be accessed through lakes or streams. Others conceal the entrances to their lairs with vegetation.Lair Actions
On initiative count 20 (losing initiative ties), the dragon takes a lair action to cause one of the following effects; the dragon can’t use the same effect two rounds in a row:- Grasping roots and vines erupt in a 20-foot radius centered on a point on the ground that the dragon can see within 120 feet of it. That area becomes difficult terrain, and each creature there must succeed on a DC 15 Strength saving throw or be restrained by the roots and vines. A creature can be freed if it or another creature takes an action to make a DC 15 Strength check and succeeds. The roots and vines wilt away when the dragon uses this lair action again or when the dragon dies.
- A wall of tangled brush bristling with thorns springs into existence on a solid surface within 120 feet of the dragon. The wall is up to 60 feet long, 10 feet high, and 5 feet thick, and it blocks line of sight. When the wall appears, each creature in its area must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw. A creature that fails the save takes 4d8 piercing damage and is pushed 5 feet out of the wall’s space, appearing on whichever side of the wall it wants. A creature can move through the wall, although it is slow and painful. For every foot a creature travels through the wall, it must spend 5 feet of movement. Furthermore, a creature in the wall’s space must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw once each round it’s in contact with the wall, taking 4d8 piercing damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. Each 10-foot section of wall has AC 5, 15 hit points, vulnerability to fire damage, resistance to bludgeoning and piercing damage, and immunity to psychic damage. The wall sinks back into the ground when the dragon uses this lair action again or when the dragon dies.
- Magical fog billows around one creature the dragon can see within 120 feet of it. The creature must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be charmed by the dragon until initiative count 20 on the next round.
Regional Effects
The region containing a legendary green dragon’s lair is warped by the dragon’s magic, which creates one or more of the following effects:- Thickets form labyrinthine passages within 1 mile of the dragon’s lair. The thickets act as 10-foot-high, 10-foot-thick walls that block line of sight. Creatures can move through the thickets, with every 1 foot a creature moves costing it 5 feet of movement. A creature in the thickets must make a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw once each round it’s in contact with the thickets or take 1d6 piercing damage from thorns. Each 10-foot-cube of thickets has AC 5, 30 hit points, resistance to bludgeoning and piercing damage, vulnerability to fire damage, and immunity to psychic and thunder damage.
- Within 1 mile of its lair, the dragon leaves no physical evidence of its passage unless it wishes to. Tracking it there is impossible except by magical means. In addition, it ignores movement impediments and damage from plants in this area that are neither magical nor creatures, including the thickets described above. The plants remove themselves from the dragon’s path.
- Rodents and birds within 1 mile of the dragon’s lair serve as the dragon’s eyes and ears. Deer and other large game are strangely absent, hinting at the presence of an unnaturally hungry predator.
Green Dragon Wyrmling CR: 2 (450 XP)
STR
15 +2
DEX
12 +1
CON
13 +1
INT
14 +2
WIS
11 +0
CHA
13 +1
Amphibious. The dragon can breathe air and water.
Actions
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 feet, one target. Hit: 1d10 + 2 piercing damage plus 1d6 poison damage. Poison Breath (Recharge 5-6). The dragon exhales poisonous gas in a 15-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 11 Constitution saving throw, taking 6d6 poison damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Young Green Dragon CR: 8 (3,900 XP)
STR
19 +4
DEX
12 +1
CON
17 +3
INT
16 +3
WIS
13 +1
CHA
15 +2
Amphibious. The dragon can breathe air and water.
Actions
Multiattack. The dragon makes three attacks: one with its bite and two with its claws. Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 feet, one target. Hit: 2d10 + 4 piercing damage plus 2d6 poison damage. Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 feet., one target. Hit: 2d6 + 4 slashing damage. Poison Breath (Recharge 5-6). The dragon exhales poisonous gas in a 30-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 14 Constitution saving throw, taking 12d6 poison damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Adult Green Dragon CR: 15 (13,000 XP)
STR
23 +6
DEX
12 +1
CON
21 +5
INT
18 +4
WIS
15 +2
CHA
17 +3
Amphibious. The dragon can breathe air and water. Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If the dragon fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
Actions
Multiattack. The dragon can use its Frightful Presence. It then makes three attacks: one with its bite and two with its claws. Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 10 feet, one target. Hit: 2d10 + 6 piercing damage plus 2d6 poison damage. Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 5 feet, one target. Hit: 2d6 + 6 slashing damage. Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 15 feet, one target. Hit: 2d8 + 6 bludgeoning damage. Frightful Presence. Each creature of the dragon’s choice that is within 120 feet of the dragon and aware of it must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to the dragon’s Frightful Presence for the next 24 hours. Poison Breath (Recharge 5-6). The dragon exhales poisonous gas in a 60-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 18 Constitution saving throw, taking 16d6 poison damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Legendary Actions
The dragon can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. The dragon regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. Detect. The dragon makes a Wisdom (Perception) check. Tail Attack. The dragon makes a tail attack. Wing Attack (Costs 2 Actions). The dragon beats its wings. Each creature within 10 feet of the dragon must succeed on a DC 19 Dexterity saving throw or take 2d6 + 6 bludgeoning damage and be knocked prone. The dragon can then fly up to half its flying speed.
Ancient Green Dragon CR: 22 (41,000 XP)
STR
27 +8
DEX
12 +1
CON
25 +7
INT
20 +5
WIS
17 +3
CHA
19 +4
Amphibious. The dragon can breathe air and water. Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If the dragon fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
Actions
Multiattack. The dragon can use its Frightful Presence. It then makes three attacks: one with its bite and two with its claws. Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +15 to hit, reach 15 feet, one target. Hit: 2d10 + 8 piercing damage plus 3d6 poison damage. Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +15 to hit, reach 10 feet, one target. Hit: 4d6 + 8 slashing damage. Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +15 to hit, reach 20 feet, one target. Hit: 2d8 + 8 bludgeoning damage. Frightful Presence. Each creature of the dragon’s choice that is within 120 feet of the dragon and aware of it must succeed on a DC 19 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened for 1 minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature’s saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to the dragon’s Frightful Presence for the next 24 hours. Poison Breath (Recharge 5-6). The dragon exhales poisonous gas in a 90-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 22 Constitution saving throw, taking 22d6 poison damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Legendary Actions
The dragon can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature’s turn. The dragon regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. Detect. The dragon makes a Wisdom (Perception) check. Tail Attack. The dragon makes a tail attack. Wing Attack (Costs 2 Actions). The dragon beats its wings. Each creature within 15 feet of the dragon must succeed on a DC 23 Dexterity saving throw or take 15 (2d6 + 8) bludgeoning damage and be knocked prone. The dragon can then fly up to half its flying speed.
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