Fantasy Monster: Dratgon

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Dratgon

A scruffy beast covered in patches of scales and fur, with scaly, pink tail, a pair of bat wings, and a rat-like head on a short neck.

CR 7; XP 3,200
NE Large Dragon

Init +9; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +15

Defense
AC 20, touch 14, flat-footed 15 (+5 Dex, +6 natural, –1 size)
hp 85 (10d12+20)
Fort +11; Ref +12; Will +11

Defensive Qualities swarm shape; Immune disease, paralysis, sleep

Offense
Speed 30 ft., fly 50 ft. (poor), climb 20 ft., swim 20 ft.

Speed (swarm shape) 15 ft., climb 15 ft., swim 15 ft.

Melee bite +14 (2d6+5 plus disease), 2 claws +14 (1d8+5)

Melee (swarm shape) swarm (6d6 plus distraction and disease)

Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft. (0 ft. in swarm shape)

Special Attacks disease (DC 17), distraction (DC 17), noxious breath (30-ft. cone, DC 17, nauseated 1d4+1 rounds or dazzled for 1 round)

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th, concentration +9)

Constant—speak with animals (rats and rat-like animals only)

3/day—commune with rats (as commune with birds, excepts affects local rats)

Statistics
Str 20, Dex 20, Con 14, Int 7, Wis 15, Cha 9
Base Atk +10; CMB +16; CMD 31 (35 vs. trip)

Feats Combat Reflexes, Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Nimble Moves

Skills Climb +10, Fly +12, Knowledge (local) +11, Perception +15, Stealth +14, Swim +10

Languages understands Draconic

SQ compression, rat-kin

Ecology
Environment underground (sewers)
Organization solitary or pair
Treasure standard (trinkets and trash collected by rats)

Special Abilities

Disease (Su) Galloping filth fever: Bite or swarm—injury, physical contact with infected—contact; save Fort 17; onset immediate; frequency 1/hour; effect 1d3 Dex damage and 1d3 Con damage; cure 3 consecutive saves. Anyone coming in physical contact with the victim of galloping filth fever has to make a Fortitude saving throw or become infected as well. Prolonged or repeated contact (such as taking care of the sick) forces a new Fortitude saving throw each hour. The saving throw is Constitution-based.

Noxious Breath (Su) A dratgon can breathe a cloud of noxious fumes covering 30-ft long cone-shaped spread once every 1d4+1 rounds. Creatures caught within the cone become nauseated for 1d4+1 rounds on a failed Fortitude saving throw (DC 17). A successful saving throw renders them dazzled for 1 round instead. The saving throw DC of this poison effect is Constitution-based.

Rat-Kin (Ex) A dratgon recognizes rats, and is recognized by them as kin. It can influence rats, dire rats, rat swarms, and similar rat-like creatures of animal-intelligence as if using wild empathy with an additional +4 bonus (for a total bonus of +13). It can affect animal-intelligence, rat-like magical beasts with a –4 penalty. Animal-intelligence rats never attack dratgon, and it is completely immune to rat swarm damage, natural, magically controlled, or summoned.

Swarm Shape (Su) A dratgon can polymorph into a swarm of dire rats as a standard action. It counts as swarm of Tiny creatures in such form, with AC 19, listed speed and swarm melee attack. Dratgons use this ability to traverse pipes, half-collapsed parts of sewers, and occasionally venture underground, or kill victims in a way that leaves much less attention than their full-scale bites. If a dratgon in a swarm shape moves to space occupied by a mundane or summoned rat swarm, it can take a swift action to absorb the rat swarm regaining hit points equal to the rat swarm's current hit points.

A strange draconic beast that can be occasionally found in the sewers below particularly large and cities, a dratgon looks like a loveless child of a dragon and a rat, or three. While dragons are indeed known for their fecundity and ability to crossbreed with creatures of all kinds, it's really unlikely that they would found suitable rat paramours. Which makes the origins of dratgons a mystery—are they an experiment gone wrong? A descendants of a particularly desperate dragon? A lineage of rats that feasted on a preserved dragon carcass until they grew to resemble their fodder? A lineage of petty dragons that feasted on rats until they degenerated until they started to resemble their prey? Victims of a curse?

Other dragons have little respect for those creatures, considering them degenerate cousins at best, and twisted mockeries at worst, rarely if ever acknowledging any possible kinship.