Dragon, Ferrous, Cobalt

Cobalt dragons are a diabolical breed of ferrous dragon and are generally shunned by others of their kind. They have no goals other than to dominate anyone and anything they come in contact with.

At birth, a cobalt dragon's scales are a deep, dark blue with odd patches of both lighter and darker blues. These colors remain throughout the dragon's life, changing only in respect to the sizes of the various patches as the dragon grows. Cobalt dragons speak their own tongue and a tongue common to all ferrous dragons, and 15% of all hatchling cobalt dragons have an ability to communicate by telepathy with any intelligent creature. The chance to possess this ability increases 5% per age category of the dragon.

Combat: Cobalt dragons are crafty fighters who often prepare cunning traps and ambush those unfortunate enough to trigger the traps. Such traps consist of rock slides, dead falls, falling trees, and illusions. They are merciless and use their abilities efficiently and effectively.

A cobalt dragon's breath weapon is a pulse of pure magnetic energy 100' long and 5' wide. Creatures caught in the path of the pulse suffer damage from impact, flying debris, and tumbling. All creatures caught in the pulse are allowed a save vs. breath weapon for half damage. Creatures wearing ferrous armor save at a -4 penalty regardless of size. Furthermore, creatures caught in the pulse that are at most two sizes smaller than the dragon are hurled back 2-5' per age category of the dragon (double this distance for those wearing ferrous armor). Those creatures that strike solid objects on their way back take additional damage as if they had fallen half the distance they were thrown back. Creatures too large to be thrown back must make a save vs. breath weapon to remain standing; failure results in the creature falling down and rolling 1-10' backwards. A cobalt dragon casts its spells and uses its magical abilities at 7th level plus its combat modifier.

At birth, cobalt dragons have a water breathing ability and are immune to electricity and to the magnetic pulses of other cobalt dragons. As they age, they gain the following additional powers:

Habitat/Society: Cobalt dragons prefer to dwell deep within dark forests or thick jungles. They have been known to dwell underground, but the entrance to the caverns is always within a wooded area. They spend most of their time preparing traps in which to catch their meals or roaming their territories in search of intruders.

Cobalt dragons gather only to mate and when ordered by their sovereign dragon. Despite their cruelty, cobalt dragons make excellent parents, taking care of their young until they reach the juvenile stage. At this point the young are forced to leave the lair, and if they are seen again, they are attacked. Thus, cobalt dragon family groups usually last for only about 25 years. It is not uncommon for two cobalt dragons to mate for life, but they are just as likely to go their separate ways as well.

Ecology: Cobalt dragons feed on the abundant wildlife within their territory, but in a pinch can eat almost anything, just as other dragons. The cobalt dragon and the green dragon are deadly enemies, each seeing the other as an intruder in its domain. Thus, such dragons are never found in close proximity of each other.