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1
Table of Contents Credits
Introduction .................................................. 1 Lead Designer. Jean Lorber (JL)
Design notes .................................................. 1 Designers. MJ Brady (MJB), Zeke Gonzalez (ZG),
Jessica Marcrum (JM)
Make your own Eccentric ............................... 1
Design Consultant. Joseph Lorber
Duskyltyr the Severed (JL) ............................... 2 Editing. Jean Lorber
Stackhoolmar the Overprotective (JL) .............. 4 Layout. Jean Lorber
Eccentric Metallic Dragons ............................. 6 Cover Art. Daniel Walthall @axebane
Syrient, the Glittering Mariner (ZG) ................ 6 Interior Art. Luigi Castellini, Jean Lorber, Nimgyu
(background), Dean Spencer, Daniel Walthall,
Wizards of the Coast, J.M. Woiak and Heather
Shinn of the STINKYGOBLIN.
Cartography. Jean Lorber
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the
Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon ampersand,
Player’s Handbook, Monster Manual, Dungeon
Master’s Guide, D&D Adventurers League, all other
Wizards of the Coast product names, and their
respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the
Coast in the USA and other countries. All characters
and their distinctive likenesses are property of
Wizards of the Coast. This material is protected
under the copyright laws of the United States of
America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of
the material or artwork contained herein is
prohibited without the express written permission of
Wizards of the Coast. All other original material in
this work is copyright 2021 by Jean Lorber and
published under the Community Content Agreement
for Dungeon Masters Guild.
©2021 Wizards of the Coast LLC, PO Box 707,
Renton, WA 98057-0707, USA. Manufactured by
Hasbro SA, Rue Emile-Boéchat 31, 2800 Delémont,
CH. Represented by Hasbro Europe, 4 The Square,
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About the cover. Duskyltyr the
Severed rules in secret from an
“inherited” castle. She poses as a
hunting trophy during banquets to
eavesdrop on the plans of Lords and
Ladies. Her top priority: hire
adventurers to recover her body!
Find Duskyltyr and 17 other oddball
dragons in the new DMs Guild
publication:
https://www.dmsguild.com/product/
ii 358998/A-Book-of-MostEccentric-
Dragons
Introduction Make your own Eccentric
Dragon life in Faerun is rough; most of your dragon Before we show you our curiosities, here’s a few tables
peers are aggressive, hyper-territorial alpha types that’ll help you roll up your own weird wyrm. Each
seeking to gain power by spilling your blood. That table gives you prompts for tweaking one of the major
sounds exhausting. tropes presented in the Monster Manual that define
During their long lives, some of those dragons ascend chromatic 5e dragons. Roll 3d6 and consult the tables
to the highest levels of power, reigning over regions, to create a uniquely-motivated dragon for your
commanding armies of minions while reclining on campaign.
rivers of tribute! Some of those dragons are the Trope: Dragons are Evil
pinnacle of Faerun, shaping the rise and fall of
Roll Alternative
civilizations!!
1 Wants to destroy one specific creature, then they’ll
This book is not about those dragons… be Good. They promise
This supplement takes the tropes of evil, all-powerful 2 Is trying to put their evil past behind them, but
and gold-hungry chromatic dragons and turns them on someone is preventing it
their head. Similarly, can it really be true that every 3 Bound to an evil person that they unenthusiastically
metallic dragon is benevolent and wise? Surely not. obey
The dragons detailed in this supplement are a 4 Resists being evil, but they must constantly be
collection of cast-offs, slackers and weirdos, at least reminded and cajoled to keep from backsliding
from the dragon point of view. Some have been 5 More naughty than evil, to be honest
injured and forced out of the domination game. Some 6 Is a reformed, self-righteous paragon of Good
couldn’t care less about ruling, choosing instead to
retreat into their own little worlds or hobbies. And still
others simply lack that certain je-ne-sais-evil dragon Trope: Dragons are Greedy
nature, and are just trying to find their own, weird Roll Alternative
way in an unforgiving world. 1 Greedy but always completely broke
To be clear, some of these dragons might still eat your 2 Only wants to hoard an obscure type of object
adventurers--there are epic battles to be had and evil 3 Vacillates between hoarding treasure and spending
plots to be foiled within these pages. But there are also it wildly
unexpected alliances, charming adventures and
4 Focused on accumulating money, but only because
meaningful stories to be found, too. Hopefully these they are funding a good cause (or so they think)
dragons will help you and your tabletop create some
5 Gives out money, but passive-aggressively guilts
memorable sessions together. recipients into doing all sorts of favors
6 Actively, generously gives away money to whoever
Design notes asks for it (and the queue is dangerously long)
More psyche than stat block. These pages are devoted
to fully fleshing-out dragon characters--not with stat Trope: Dragons are Power-hungry
blocks, but with unique backgrounds, motivations, Roll Alternative
plans and minions. A new stat block is included in a
1 Cares about gaining leverage and power, but only
few cases due to a unique physical feature or
over a specific person
attributes.
2 Has tremendous power to influence humanoids, but
Alignment-free. With one notable exception, these is unaware of it
dragons are presented without an alignment. Let their 3 Avoided pursuing power because it gets in the way
background, plans and personality descriptions guide of their true passion
how you think they see and interact with the world. 4 Aggressively seeks to dominate…a competitive
Mid-range monsters. There are a few high-CR dragons hobby or occupation (e.g. baking, horse racing)
here to keep your players honest, but most of these 5 Has given up their power due to a change of heart
dragons are Tier 2 and 3, putting them well within and now lives like a simple hermit
reach of most party’s abilities (when it comes to 6 Has always served a humble organization like a
fighting, or negotiating with…or cooking for…or monastery or orphanage
accepting writing commissions from).
1
• A study, Duskyltyr’s inner sanctum where only
kobold minions are allowed.
This black dragon (CR 6, stat block below) won’t let • A spa room, home to a constructed, movable bath
anything stop her. Not even the fact that her head of replenishment which soothes the dragon’s neck
isn’t currently connected to her body. stump and heals her wounds.
Duskyltyr battled the infamously unpopular Sir Yarsad • Yizzy, a loyal kobold inventor (VGtM), who
for territory…and lost. The dragon was beheaded then nervously leads the remaining minions.
taken as a trophy to Yarsad’s “summer castle”, far • Murkla, a young, captive wizard (wizard’s
away in the Dalelands. But unbeknownst to Sir Yarsad, apprentice, VGtM), forced to perform necromantic
his axe held a necromantic curse which grants a year of spells despite her ignorance of the subject.
undeath to victims it claims. • Sir Benj Bramble, a drunken, disgraced noble
Duskyltyr posed as a trophy in Yarsad’s study for a full (MM) who Duskyltyr uses as a stand-in for Sir
month before she could take her revenge: biting him Yarsad when needed.
in half while he read ribald stories in his study. The
dragon sealed the study and, using her best Yarsad
impersonation, sent messengers to her old lair to Duskyltyr “inherited” Sir Yarsad’s modest wealth,
summon her minions. which unfortunately is mostly at his other, far-off
castle. The dragon has access to the following:
Aided now by kobold minions, the dragon continues
to pose as Yarsad. Castle staff are growing suspicious. • 3,000 gp of coinage
• Plate armor of acid resistance
• Yarsad family crystal set (500 gp value)
Current. The dragon must keep up the ruse that Sir
Yarsad is alive while also figuring out how to get her
head back to her body. She believes (correctly) that Patron with a Secret. The dragon needs adventurers
Yarsad’s axe holds the key to healing her. She will for all sorts of work but goes to great lengths to hide
make and honor any deal to achieve those ends. her identity.
Future. If she can’t be made whole soon, Duskyltyr has Motivated deal-maker. The dragon would turn against
a backup plan in the works: an artificer is fabricating a other evil creatures threatening the PCs if they promise
prosthetic body. But this is a costly endeavor and she to re-unite her with her body.
currently has little of value. Sympathetic monster. The injured, seemingly-reformed
dragon is a good project for PCs committed to
improving the world by rehabilitating “monsters”.
Committed to Good not Being Evil. The dragon’s
injury has left her humbled and re-assessing her Big Bad with a Plan. Alternatively, the dragon could
outlook. She might be a good dragon once she’s made remain evil and the PCs must foil her various efforts to
whole. re-unite her head and body.
Adaptable. The dragon is determined that her
condition won’t stop her from regaining power. She’ll Body double. Harper agents recruit the PCs to
form new alliances and consider new plans. intercept a caravan headed to Yarsad’s castle and get a
Impatient. The dragon senses the magic that keeps her look at the cargo. A rock gnome artificer (mage, MM)
alive is waning and must enact her plans soon. and kobold-driven chariots protect two wagons.
Careful inspection of their contents reveals parts of a
large, headless construct, dragon-like in shape and
Duskyltyr’s lair is Sir Yarsad’s secondary castle, a covered in necromantic glyphs.
modest holdfast in the mountains that he visits only in Fundraising fraud? A local lord hires the PCs to
the heat of summer. Features include: investigate his new neighbor, Sir Yarsad, who is
• A great hall where Duskyltyr poses as a trophy requesting a large sum of money to fund vague plans
during special events. to “fight evil”. The PCs attend a fundraiser event at
• An abandoned watchtower. In Yarsad’s absence, a Yarsad’s castle, hosted by the knight himself (actually
pair of griffons (MM) have claimed the top floor. Benj Bramble). The PCs mingle with the assembled
2
nobles and get weird vibes from that “stuffed black
dragon head” on the wall. If discovered, Duskyltyr
attempts to quietly make a deal with the PCs. Duskyltyr the Severed
Medium undead dragon
Highest-bidder body. At a shady city market, the PCs
Armor Class 16 (natural armor)
hear about the auction of a living, headless black
Hit Points 65 (10d8 + 20)
dragon body. Duskyltyr’s minions plead for the PCs to
Speed 5 ft., 20ft. (carried)
help, explaining the dragon’s reformed mindset. The
PC might engage in bidding or steal the body from the STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
auction’s winner (a lich’s minion necromancer, VGtM). 16 (+3) 6 (-2) 14 (+2) 14 (+2) 14 (+2) 16 (+3)
Skills Deception +6, Insight +5
“Damsel” in distress. Duskyltyr needs help escaping Damage Immunities Acid
from Yarsad’s castle when a large group of the dead
Senses Blindsight 30 ft., Darkvision 120 ft., passive Percep. 15
knight’s awful hunting buddies show up and make
Languages Common, Draconic, Elven
themselves at home.
Challenge 6 (2,300 XP)
• Duskyltyr’s minions recruits the PCs to help, giving
them a letter written by the dragon, who claims to
Healing Pool. When the dragon starts its turn in the bath of
be a human princess in need of rescue. replenishment (AC 16, HP 30) she regains 10 hit points and her
• At the castle, the PCs witness a drunken bacchanal, breath weapon is available to be recharged.
and must infiltrate up to the dragon’s location
without attracting too much attention.
Actions
• In the study, the PCs discover Duskyltyr (“OK, Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target.
Hit: 15 (2d10 + 4) piercing damage plus (1d6) acid damage.
hear me out, I’m not a princess…”), learn of her
reformed nature and agree to help her escape. Frightful Presence: Each creature of the dragon's choice that is
within 120 feet of the Dragon and aware of it must succeed on
• The PCs must first procure the bath of
a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or become Frightened for 1
replenishment from the nearby spa and Yarsad’s minute. A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of
cursed axe from one of his hunting buddies. each of its turns, Ending the Effect on itself on a success. If a
• The PCs must sneak the dragon and her bath from creature's saving throw is successful or the Effect ends for it, the
the top-floor study, through the castle-wide party, creature is immune to the dragon's Frightful Presence for the
to a waiting carriage in the courtyard. Channeling next 24 hours.
the tropes of a theatrical farce, this step could be Acid Breath (Recharge 5-6*): The Dragon exhales acid in a 30-
structured as a moderate Skill Challenge (4 DC 15 foot line that is 5 feet wide. Each creature in that line must
make a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw, taking 27 (6d8) acid
successes before 3 failures). Each failure triggers
damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a
detection by 2 guests (combinations of cult fanatic, successful one. *This ability is re-chargeable only when the
guard, knight, spy, MM). Too many failures and dragon is sitting in the bath of replenishment.
the entire hunting party chases the PCs and dragon Drop and attack. At the beginning of a round, the dragon can
down the windy, mountain road. choose to deploy 3 kobold dragonshields (MM) that carry her
• Dragon in tow, the PCs must track down rumors on their shoulders. Sending the kobolds into battle reduces her
about a headless dragon body. Their search leads speed to 5 ft.
them to an abandoned mine—the body wandered
here and has become stuck on a perilous rock
outcropping.
• Extracting the body safely could be structured as a
moderate Skill challenge (as above), enabled by
useful materials and tools from the mine (e.g.
block and tackle). The extraction is made harder
when hook horrors and derro (MM) show up to
claim the body.
• Murkla conducts a necromantic ritual to fuse the
dragon’s head and body back together. The ritual
is more likely to succeed with help from Arcana-
trained PCs and with Yarsad’s cursed axe. Failure
of the ritual could still result in a “whole”
Duskyltyr, albeit with some odd complications.
3
This young white dragon (CR 6, MM) has co-existed The halfling clan functionally serves the dragon now.
with an evil halfling family for a generation and has • Olka Greytrader (scout, MM), one of the dragon’s
spoiled its children rotten. favorite children, now a teenager. Olka wants to
use the clan’s resource to help struggling villages.
• Ilyana Greytrader (spy, MM), another of the
Stackhoolmar served a clan of evil halflings after being dragon’s favored. The tween takes after her
bested by their cunning leader Remy Greytrader. Using grandpa Remy and plans on using the dragon for
the dragon, the clan seized control of trade routes in some proper evil work. Her first step: turn the
the Spine of the World mountains. Then Remy dragon against her goody-goody cousin Olka.
vanished, a victim of the North. Without him, it
turned out that the clan and dragon weren’t that evil
(or competent). The clan relied on the dragon’s • 5,000 gp of coinage and gemstones
reputation to keep their rivals in check. Most of their • 5 cameo lockets of his children (500 gp value)
time is now spent enjoying their accumulated wealth.
The dragon has also grown quite attached to the pack
of clan children he’s watched grow up. In the dragon’s A poorly-run faction. The dragon sometimes forces the
relatively simple mind, love means giving someone clan to make decisions that benefit his favored children
safety and a full belly. So he watched over the children but that are not in the clan’s best interest. The PCs can
during orc raids. And during trips to the market. And capitalize on these opportunities.
during the Midwinter dances. The children long ago An obstacle. The dragon’s overprotective behavior can
became resigned to the dragon’s constant interference. complicate the PC’s plans in any number of ways.
Some even enjoy it.
“Helicopter parent” from hell. The PCs come across
Current. Stackhoolmar mostly leaves the operation of little Ilyana, openly bullying an entire village
the business to the clan leaders, instead focusing on the marketplace. If challenged, Stackhoolmar rises up from
exploits of “his children.” He makes sure his favorites the nearby woods. The villagers want to hire the PCs
are safe, successful and happy…and within 100 feet of to do something about “that brat and her pet!”
him at all times. My evil Grandpa is back! The PCs must prevent clan
Long-term. Stackhoolmar is quite worried about his Greytrader from reverting to evil:
future, as many of his “children” are now adults and • The PCs witness the region in chaos when the
leaving to start their own lives. long-lost Remy reappears, demanding to run the
clan again. Warped ice goblins are his new muscle.
• Olka begs the PCs for help, relating the clan’s
A worrier. Stackhoolmar micromanages the humanoids
background. Everyone must escape when Ilyana
he favors, fretting over their exploits and overall well-
shows up with brainwashed Stackhoolmar.
being. He doesn’t trust that things will work out
• The PCs infiltrate the trading post and gather
without his involvement.
evidence of Remy’s plans to purge the clan of his
Blinded by love. The dragon’s view is very simple: his “weak” grandchildren. Revealing this evidence
children are always right and should have whatever makes the dragon an ally in a final fight.
they want. He has created some little monsters.
The dragon’s lair lies inside an icy mountain near a
northern trade route. Features include:
• A trading post built by Clan Greytrader.
• Small huts built inside the lair. The dragon fully
expects his favored to move into them.
• A secret room with a crystal ball (DMG). The
dragon scries his children, but only in an
emergency, of course.
4
5
● Aquariums, a series of floating, ring-shaped
bubbles of water lively with fish and plants.
Eccentric Metallic Dragons ● Bermiir Stonesthrow, a studious lab technician
(non-binary dwarf spy, MM). In truth, they are
running a long con, hoping to kill Syrient then
inherit and sell the aquarium.
This adult silver dragon (CR 16, MM) is an enthusiastic ● Slow Ripple (female water genasi mage, MM) is
marine biologist with an impressive aquarium. Syrient’s gardener. She develops magical variants
of common plants to create fish food that enhance
a fish’s natural coloration.
Syrient was raised by Isthmun, an old fisherman. As ● Decadence (female tiefling bard, MM) leads tours
she grew up, Isthmun taught her everything he knew of Syrient’s collections. She accepted the position
about the fish that inhabited the lands. Syrient has an to gain protection from her grandfather, the chain
unabating hunger for Isthmun’s old fishing tales and devil Immorilax (MM).
the legends of the ocean, which she enthusiastically
hoarded along with the fossils she discovered in the
cliff’s face. • A total of 35,000 gp worth of coins, gems and 3
Eventually, that very cliffside became her home. rare or very rare magic items.
Syrient is renowned for her expansive collection of • Well-preserved fossils of ancient sea creatures from
strange and magical fish from across the lands. eons past (worth 2,500 gp).
Enthusiastic. Syrient engages easily with people, Coastal/ocean guide. Syrient has encyclopedic
especially if the topic of conversation is one of her knowledge about the coastline and waters near her
passions. She loves to discuss underwater ecosystems, lair, including locations your PCs need to investigate.
fish husbandry, and exchange tales of unusual aquatic Alchemical expert. Syrient’s study of the ocean has
creatures. uncovered creature with startling abilities. The dragon
Gullible. Syrient grew up on a diet of old fisherman’s has distilled a number of useful reagents using obscure,
tales, but never understood them as metaphors or deep-sea plant and animal parts.
fables. She takes everything at face values and believes
even the most fanciful of stories.
Death from the Deep. Mutant sea monsters (giant
shark, giant octopus, MM) attack across the coast. The
Current. Syrient hopes to collect a pair of every species heroes trace this problem to magical runoff from
of fish on the continent. She only needs a handful of Syrient’s operation, but Syrient can only fix the
exotic and magical specimens to complete her mistake with complicated alchemy. The alchemy
aquarium. requires bioluminescent samples from the deadly
Long-term. Syrient wishes to move her aquarium to angler eel (use hydra statistics, MM) that lurks in a
the city, where the fish can be studied by scholars and dark oceanic chasm.
enjoyed by the general population (for a small fee). Aquarium assault. The marid Murkroil (MM) took
over Syrient’s lair with her water weirds (MM) and sea
horse-riding ice mephits (MM). Syrient needs heroes to
Syrient’s lair is a labyrinthine network of caves within rescue her employees from air bubble prisons and
a cliff face high above the ocean. Features include: defeat Murkroil without using any lightning (it would
● Workbenches covered in the equipment for kill the fish)!
crafting unique, beautiful fishing lures.
● Caverns filled with carefully tended and colorful
plants which are ground down into Syrient’s
famous fish food that is used in-house and shipped
across the continent.
6
7
Some dragons
were born to
rule empires,
shape
civilizations
and amass
mountains of
Some dragons are destined to rule the
world
treasure!
This is not about them
This book is not
about That kind
of dragon…
