Dungeons and Dragons Lore: Catastrophic Dragons

[@Zasek2112]

Drought Dragon. Flies into lush tropical area's and just evaporates and desiccates EVERYTHING.

[@maxxor-overworldhero6730]

I like it. I already have an idea for a desert area, and this can be the perfect explanation for how a massive desert in my setting was originally a huge tropical jungle and ocean. Let's just say someone was careless with an egg.

[@Zasek2112]

@@maxxor-overworldhero6730 In my head it looks like it's made out of salt crystals, but over time while it sleeps in the middle of the desert it creates, dust builds up all over it in baked clay plates.

[@maxxor-overworldhero6730]

@@Zasek2112 So then one active for long enough is a mixture of plates and sand. I like it.

[@Zasek2112]

@@maxxor-overworldhero6730 I'm Australian, I know what drought looks like ;p

[@CyberBeep_kenshi]

@Chris Chapel yes, that would be me now :-))))

[@Greenscyth22]

If normal dragons are elemental beings made flesh, then catastrophic dragons are like exposed nerves. A elemental air catastrophic dragon (a cyclone wyrm) might just be the destructive force of a hurricane in the form of a dragon. It may be continually surrounded by a one mile storm with hundred mile an hour winds, freezing gales and downdraft.

[@stankmcdankton6204]

Would be interesting to see a catastrophic dragon of Wilderness. The fury of living nature taking over a city in the form of strangling vines, vicious wild cats or bears or wolves, clouds of biting and stinging insects, swarms of venomous spiders and snakes. Imagine a ravenous jungle creeping forth, slowly devouring and crushing the life out of entire cities like the slowly constricting coils of an anaconda.

[@cavemangrungo2168]

Thank you for an idea I'll be using somewhat shortly

[@Brutalyte616]

If I ran these, for the sake of brevity I'd probably treat them as the draconic equivalent of an elemental. As in, Catastrophic Dragons are to Elementals and the Elemental Planes what regular dragons are to those of the Prime Material Plane. Dragons are already a kind of living elemental, so it stands to reason in areas where the elemental energies are thick, chaotic, and primal enough, a draconic elemental like the Catastrophic Dragons may be born. This would justify why they're so rare on the Prime Material Plane; Elementals are already a rare sight, so it stands to reason that an Elemental Dragon would essentially be nonexistent, and the fact that their active periods are so sudden, destructive and brief, the few surviving accounts of them may simply be dismissed as trauma or dramatic license, as the concept of a living natural disaster is already kind of hard for even superstitious folks to follow. After all, the tales of gods and monsters creating natural disasters are beyond counting, but the tales of them _being_ those natural disasters or becoming them is a bit outlandish even in the Forgotten Realms. Mostly because it's kind of hard to give a tornado a realistic stat block...

[@mrnotadoor6066]

So many types of dragons and yet,... never enough

[@z_is_for_zombie7423]

28:16 A catastrophic dragon of plague? So, like, a vaguely dragon-shaped mass of fused disease ridden corpses? Sounds disgusting... I love it. Or, what about a catastrophic dragon of war? That’s a scary thought.

[@WolfmanXD]

This gives me a great idea for a high level campaign. The player characters come across a desert oasis genasi village, strangely enough home to all 4 payable versions of genasi. The village is responsible for using ancient magic to keep an earthquake dragon egg stable. Lately however, the magic has been failing. Small tremors have been felt throughout the region over several weeks. Eventually, the magic fails altogether, and a massive, immeasurably destructive earthquake devastates the region, destroying the village completely, and creating massive fissures and chasms now cover the land. The source, the earthquakes triggered the hatching of the dragon egg, which magnified the most recent to terrifying proportions. The resulting dragon was born a fully grown adult due to the overwhelming elemental power released by the quake. Also, for an idea for a catastrophic dragon. The people of the forgotten realms frequently refer to black dragons as death dragons. That's because they've never encountered the true death dragon. Born of death itself, these dragons come into existence in areas recently wracked by mass death. They radiate a constant aura of pure necrotic energy, eating away at the Lifeforce of those nearby until the cold hand of death takes them. Where they go, the land dies, plants wither and rot, and the air stagnates. Any form of life caught in its path meets a swift and painful death, if they're lucky. Or slow and drawn out as they wither away if they are not. They are the purest form incarnation of death.

[@royhenning7867]

Aj you continue to impress me. Not only do you put forward so of the best D&D content on the platform, but you are also very involved with the community that follows your content.

[@AJPickett]

You're a cool bunch of people who like the same stuff I do... its an honour.

[@Giganfan2k1]

Revolution Dragon- Often the dragon is seen in broad daylight as a comet. It despises long held institutions, and Byzantine States. The dragon subverts wills, and minds either actively or passively. The dragon's ends is not a new paradigm, but the chaos of the shifting of paradigms. Meteor Dragons.

[@lupineking1164]

I can think of a fair few catastrophic dragons; Flood, Drought, Salt, Overgrowth, Earthflow, Geomagnetic Storms, and Meteors. If they aren't strictly limited to elemental disasters and are simply dragons powered by primordial energies, we could have so many more possibilities. For example, eclipses were once considered disasters. Given the number of light domain gods and radiant creatures, a dragon created to extinguish light would make sense. Their opposites could be called Dawn/Corona or Sunstroke dragons. Dnd already has death, undeath and ooze. Catastrophic variants would be amazing. We could also add classical primordials such as chaos, void, night, love, strife, and fate. Chaos Dragons could create wild magic zones or worse. Void Dragons could banish things and people into the astral plane or phlogiston. Night is possible but it would probably need some extra work to make it distinct from the Eclipse dragon. I'm not sure how Love would work but a Strife Dragon could spread wars in its wake. Fate Dragons would be tricky mechanically besides trickery domain shenanigans but the idea of a wizened dragon creating prophecies and messing with plans gods have for mortals is almost too good to pass up. Maybe a legendary attack that allows a fate dragon to bite and tear a person's string of fate like the moirai do with their scissors could help.

[@michaelpettersson4919]

There are a couple of dormant supervolcanos in the world (like under Yellostone). I expect that a similar region in a world could have sleeping catastrophic dragon around.

[@Parodox306]

Swarm dragons; they open their wings to reveal hundreds of millions of nests and unleash a wave of ravenous insects (most commonly locusts but could be of any flying bug) that completely block out the sky, devouring any living thing in their wake. Their breath attack is a concentrated cone of pheromones that direct the swarm at whatever the dragon wants. Also now that I think about it this is probably what you meant by a Plague Dragon but since living in 2020 I've come to associate that strictly with illness but hey, who's to say we can't bundle those ideas with each other? Maybe instead of insects it's a swarm of rats or frogs?

[@itaykerensm1629]

i love the idea of a war dragon (not a battle dragon) that's basicly an evil shape-shifting arms dealer that ecourages conflicts and actively supports both sides, it covets magic items but only those that can cause the most desruction and sorrow... And on the field of battle it manifests within the deadliest zones with an almost ætherial form that drives those near it to madness and savagery.

[@moonringXD]

I wonder if a good catastrophic dragon could be possible? Like a rain dragon that brings rain to a drought stricken land! Or maybe a sunshine dragon that melts the snow and Usher in Spring? But I guess that wouldn't be very catastrophic unless you're a snowman?☃️☄

[@MySerpentine]

You could have a well-meaning one that still destroys everything as a tragic villain

[@tomc.5704]

It...might be possible. But (going off the forgotten realms wiki) the primordials are not simply aspects of nature. They are beings formed of elemental chaos, whose very nature is entropy and destruction. So a dragon that joined the primordials and was transformed...doesn't seem likely. But -- we also see that dragons can be transformed into almost any form. Chromatic, Metalic, Catastrophic... Why not a Druidic dragon? Or a half-dragon creature that is the offspring between a dragon and a nature spirit?

[@legendaryg367]

Catastrophic dragons of wild magic, they would warp all magic around them causing casters to make a save or have their spell go wild. Maybe it can even produce its own chaotic arcane effects at random, like a blast of ageing or a shrink ray.

[@MarkATorres1989]

The Starfall Dragon. An absurdly rare Catastrophic Dragon that is birthed only by the rare destruction of planetary bodies and outside elements colliding, resulting in mass death, destruction, and release of sudden energy. A dragon born of cosmic energy that seeks to feed off on the very energy that breathes both creation and destruction, whether it be primordial or divine; these cosmic dragon books no equal or allies as it is a unique existence and wishes to keep it that way.

[@thedarkmaster4747]

That's a good idea, especially for a neturally aligned B.B.E.G. if it has a cult that worships it. As you realize they're essentially shopping for the expectant "dragon baby" when they're collecting items despite preaching a doom welcoming deathcult in the streets. All: "Ultimate life only from ultimate death, O' apocalypse be thy lulaby!?!?"

[@xXFunkyMonkeyzXx]

I absolutely love this, it encapsulates this idea I've had for a dnd campaign

[@Counterfearable]

A Black or Copper dragon (Acid), exposed to the elemental forces of Air to become a dragon of Rot, whose stench melts away all life and turns the land into a barren wasteland. Or A Silver or White Dragon (Cold), exposed to the elemental forces of Fire to become a dragon of Drought, who's body not exerts water but drains it from the land, leaving it to wither, crumble and die.

[@louisschlechtweg8634]

a Catastrophic dragon of the far realm - warping reality and the mind of (yet) sane creatures

[@AJPickett]

Mass hysteria.

[@HBHaga]

I remember 4th Edition. I also remember the fearsome Sandstorm Dragon that blasted its way through two cities leaving nothing but desert and the eroded bones of great towers in its wake.

[@immaturityincTV]

An extinction dragon could be the culmination of a dragon hunting campaign. The party slowly getting stronger as they hunt their way through chromatics, corrupted metallics, gems and some flavored catastrophe dragons along the way. Ability wise I'm thinking something the lines of exhaustion rules as it progressively awakens, but with added danger. It would progress in global stages using the exhaustion rules (maybe not the specific conditions but using the 6 stages) until death. The goal would be to either get the dragon off the planet, put it back to sleep or kill it (the secret to killing it is that you need to use high level healing magic in combination with a big ol' magic potion you can only make with specific dragon parts)

[@redevolution686]

Look out over this place and tell me what you see, A city of shattered crystals, beautifully broken and torn asunder. Swaths of dust that drift through the air like gently glistening snow, thousands of mortal dreams now lost to time. We alone are the masters of this world, and all that you build is ours to take away.

[@AJPickett]

Indeed.

[@lewdcharizard9902]

Plague dragons are the youngest of the catastrophic dragons. They roost in towns and cities, preferring to spend most of their time as a disperse ethereal fog, sometimes waking to loom over the city and snapping up creatures in the night. This is not to say they are only a small nuisance. When they fully coalesce, they take a ghostly black form with wings that span the entire length of their city. They are impervious to physical attacks and will pass through solid objects to eat the people sheltering in their homes. Unlike most catastrophic dragons, they will readily ally themselves with the townsfolk of their cities; they will repel foreign invaders and even travel with the soldiers to ensure their victory. In rare cases, the oldest of the plague dragons will mellow with age and cease to snap up the people of their own cities, instead they will eat their life force but leave them alive. Adventurers that meet with a plague dragon should conduct themselves with the utmost decorum. Even Covidious The Terrible may be persuaded to delay his meal if one were to cover their face and properly anoint their hands with temple water before meeting him, however, if even one member acts improperly, the dragon may eat them all.

[@deathstreak1156]

Intersting fact is that bactria,vituses and germs all helped life as well as cause death so lot of stuff you could do l, other thing amazing detail to what you posted

[@nicolaezenoaga9756]

Thank you. 1. Fire Newts next? 2. Super nova dragons and acid rein dragons.

[@dragon200ism]

I love the idea of dragons who have become almost pure elemental. Especially that the elements mix together into different combinations.

[@The_Petrichor]

The spell-plague reimagined: an arcane dragon whose birth gone-wrong started the year of blue fire

[@jamieburnette2438]

Flood Dragon = Travels rivers and brings forth heavy rain storms with it to destroy towns and farmlands with heavy flowing deep flood waters.

[@SeraphimKnight]

Your talk of a plague or a famine dragon has sparked the thought of the four dragons of the apocalypse and of what a War Dragon would be like. Feeds off of violence and slaughter, has an aura that makes people go berserk and attack their allies?

[@jameswilliams2075]

One of the volcano ones waking up and displacing lots of large powerful monsters that live near the volcano would be a cool campaign

[@BaalFridge]

OP meta dragons are always some of the best things in D&D even though there's almost no way of ever fitting one into a campaign

[@clairdren]

Trigger the fall of the gods maybe?

[@AKNeal81]

Give your players drugs and have them hallucinate the whole experience ;)

[@Blakobness]

Catastrophic Dragons of Flesh? They have rolling, constantly mutating bodies that grow claws and other appendages dynamically to attack with, have insane regenerative powers, and can absorb fleshy creatures like an amoeba. "Elemental" aura projections can include spewing a column of digestive acid from an orifice grown in any place on it's body, allowing it to make the attack from any direction. It can exude a caustic sweat from it's whole body, forcing enemies adjacent or attacking it to take acid damage, and weapons to be damaged. It has tremor sense from overgrowth of nerve bundles and sensory organs throughout it's mass, as well as blindsight. It lairs temporarily at locations of large battlefields, or mass burial sites where it exhumes bodies to nest it's amoeba-like egg in. Given enough fleshy matter in the nest, the egg will assimilate this flesh matter and "hatch." It will often stalk moving armies and manipulate nations into war, by birthing flesh slaves that take on the appearances of humans but are linked via hive mind with the dragon. These flesh slaves can slay and take the place of officials in government, pose as an invading uniformed army to sack a neighboring nations towns or cities, or can otherwise sew discontent through emulation of banditry or barbarian hordes. Catastrophic Dragons of Slime? It's an amorphic vaguely dragon-shaped creature composed to all types and varieties of oozes and slimes. It's largely subterranean and hunts oozes and slimes specifically to assimilate them and will gain properties relative to the kinds of oozes and slimes it absorbs. You could go pretty wild with all the crazy kind of official ooze monsters out there, not to mention home brew menaces. It lairs in vast acidic underground lakes, or otherwise poisonous underground locations; whether that be pocket caverns with deadly airborne toxins, dead air, or the like. Eggs kind of look like those jelly drop candies, but despite the semi-transparent surface appearing soft and gooey, it's actually extremely hard and almost crystaline in structure inside, but coated in a slimey and highly adhesive membrane. This helps to protect and disable hapless predators and serve as utility to nest the egg not down in the floor of the lair, but up in hidden cloisters in the ceiling of the layer. Eggs are reactive to intense magic. Massive spikes in chaotic magic, backlash from powerful spells clashing, or disruptions in the weave over hundreds of miles can trigger the egg to hatch. Catastrophic Dragons of Plantlife? A dragon created of fused plantlife. Legs as thick as great oaks, body covered in thick and thorny vines, wings great and wirey and draped with moss and weeping-willow like vegetation. This dragon can animate and control all kinds of plant life, even some already sentient plant-base creatures like Treants can be influenced by these dragons. They thrive like plants thrive, on bright sunny weather and breaking down and drawing nutrients from organic matter. There's a trick to this dragon, the actual physical "body" is more like a drone, an avatar. Like the vast mycellia of the Armillaria ostoyae ("Humungous Fungous"), it's true heart exists in vast root systems under the earth, and can stretch for miles in it's chosen lair. It can pull together collected plant matter to create this bodily avatar as a force of nature and will, and will act to kill prey and bring prey carcasses into land hosting it's root system to be decomposed. Due to the proxy nature of this body, it can break down and assemble again this avatar great distances in moments across it's territory, which can, in theory, scale to any distance if unimpeded over any terrain that would support plant life. It's egg resembles a tightly braided knot of vines, which it will deposit in the hollow of a huge red-wood or Yggdrasil like tree mutated from a tree common to that area. This dragon plays a more active role in trying to hatch an egg. It will seek to push it's territory to or bordering to civilized lands and will attempt to groom a nest tree. This can be of any naturally occurring tree of that locale, but due to the dragon's manipulations, it will grow to abhorrent size. The dragon will not attempt to ravage the country side near this nest tree, but will rather influence the land to create abundant fertility. Crops of the surrounding civilized lands will have an explosion of growth and prosperity, with record harvests. Locals may even take to revering the strange and wild growth and massive tree discovered nearby linking it to their success by superstition. The dragon will never reveal itself to these people until the land has been pushed and seeded to be as fertile as it can be to attempt to attract as much bodily traffic to the surrounding region as possible without arousing suspicion. At some time as the dragon chooses, it will influence the nest tree to bear fruit; even if that species of tree typically is unable to do so. Fruit shape and color can vary depending on the species of tree, but are all hearty and large. The tree will also bear flowers and those flowers will release pollen into the air. Traveling by air and inhaled by mammals, it can create mild euphoria. But, more importantly, creates a subliminal compulsion to go to the nest tree, take down the large fruit and eat it. The fruit is highly poisonous and kills within minutes. Victims completely affected by this pollen will venture to this tree and consume the fruit even with obvious signs of remains surrounding the tree half-decomposed and covered in vines without suspicion. When sufficient nutrients have been reaped from the surrounding countryside, the egg hatches.

[@papersage69]

This reminds me of the Elder Dragons from the Monster Hunter series. To quote the game: "We've taken to using the term Elder Dragon for any creature that defies ordinary classification, but I suppose you could call them a type of phenomenon: disasters, cataclysms, living, breathing forces of nature." To name and describe a few: Kushala Daora, a steel skinned dragon that can control wind. It can whip up cyclones and bad weather follows the nomadic dragon. Teostra and Lunastra, a mating pair of leonine dragons resembling chimera. They both have auras of searing flame, can breath fire, and can release explosive powder into the air. Shagaru Magala, a golden dragon that shines like the sun that was worshipped as a destructive god in ancient times. It and its juvenile form can release a virus into the area, this virus causing animals to go into a frenzy turning on each other and devastating an ecosystem, the Shagaru then able to feast on the remains and rule its territory unchecked. Alatreon, a dragon that is elementally unstable, able to control all elements. The area around the Alatreon becomes an elementally ravaged wasteland over time with all other life fleeing for sanctuary. Amatsu, a dragon of storms, beautiful but deadly. It is able to control the weather and winds, a hurricane force storm follows it as it travels. It is able to defend itself with wind and jets of water. Safi’jiiva, a colossal dragon that draws on the energy of the land to fuel its growth. In its adult for it is able to use its stored energy to release blue flames that scorch the surrounding lands. Dire Miralis, a semi-aquatic dragon that forms lava in its body. It can release molten rock from its body and can call fire to rain down from the sky. Is said to be one of the dragons (along with Alatreon) that can bring the end of the world. There are more elder dragons from the series, but I have to stop somewhere.

[@omegaphoenix3015]

You got that right and then there's the original black dragon the one that can scorch the world in 4 days

[@beardedchampion479]

Oh Aj what have you done? A Catastrophic Dragon of Plague? I now know how I'm incorporating Anthraxus into my game!

[@TheShadowForger]

I have this really sick idea of a catastrophe dragon that is the embodiment of a magical appocalypse. Its basically an ultra threat like Nicol Bolas from the MTG universe but much worse. In my campaign his name is Nal'Thraxsis and he is traveling the multiverse killing alternate versions of himself to absorb their power and make his way back to his universe, the prime material plane.

[@AJPickett]

Ah, classic "The One" plot. I like it

[@Mariwend]

so like a mini walking spell plague

[@Hurdleizer]

I will refer my players to this video when they die, to give you their thanks on dying to such magnificent dragons of calamity! ^_^

[@eldarhighelfhealermiriella7653]

"Hey guys! I did it! I've brought reinforcments!" -Me on the top of the head of an angry avalance dragon after telling him a licth called him a lazy wuss.

[@dylanslaugh3250]

I have a couple ideas. Catastrophic dragon of meteor showers. Imagine trying to battle a dragon while meteor storm is a constant effect around them. Catastrophic dragon of geysers. A much smaller rendition of the volcanic dragon and has hot steaming water instead of magma. This dragon loves to nest in one spot fir thousands of years. Reveling in destroying any bit of civilization but like be dragon that actually likes to maintain wildlife as long as it doesn’t perceive the wildlife as thieves of elemental power. It loves to leave deposits of sulphuric and other minerals made from years of geysers erupting in a particular spot. A more calm catastrophe but you won’t be saying that of a geyser dragon decides your city is in its territory. (Think yellow stone.) The catastrophic dragon of sink holes. Loves to revel in once uniform retains becoming more or less like a block of Swiss cheese. It especially loves to watch intelligent creatures struggle in surprise as they just fall into a massive hole and they especially love it when it doesn’t kill them instantly but is drawn out and they die after days of having broken limbs. A more mobile dragon than most, luckily if it dies attack there’s a chance it won’t kill off everyone on the city as it quickly becomes bored after it perceives it’s made the land holey enough.

[@danchase7454]

the meteor dragon might look like the red fatalis or the dire miralis from the monster hunter franchise.

[@moonringXD]

Excellent video aj! I'm surprised there isn't a flood or drought dragon. Also do you think you'll do a video on the Arcane Dragon family?

[@AJPickett]

Yes.

[@epiccthulu]

So I recall a video by Rhexx, i think, about what happens when a dragon dies. Sometimes a dragon, according to his references, will choose to become something like a mythal combined with lair traits that influences an entire region. When I connect that with dracoliches, and the array of monstrosities human wizards can become, I can picture Catastrophic dragons also being an intentional transformation

[@rellikinvictus1057]

Warlocks of dragonkind

[@epiccthulu]

@@rellikinvictus1057 exactly. Just look at the shadow dragon template and swap the shadowfel out with one of the elemental planes. One day the elemental energy consumes and replaces the physical flesh...Let me stop before I type a wall, lol!

[@andrewmiller6239]

Just what I needed to finish off the day, I love your videos and they have helped me in my darkest times.

[@budahbaba7856]

A J Pickett, you are both a gentleman and a soothing voice, and right now what i need is a soothing voice to go to sleep to :) I really need to sleep.

[@yellowmartian]

I end up watching these videos about 3 times. 1 to casually listen to, 1 to study intently, and 1 to sleep. Not that it's boring, it's definitely NOT boring, he just has a smooth, comforting voice. I feel like if he held me at gunpoint and told me to give him my wallet, not only would i do it, I would ask if he wants me to withdraw my life savings and give him my social security number, license, passport, etc. 😂

[@budahbaba7856]

@@yellowmartian TY Will, i feel less guilty now -though perhaps i should feel more guilty! It sounds like you have a disciplined routine, where i don't! :)

[@snforde4603]

You know, these catastrophic dragons remind me of how dragons are portrayed in the mmorpg Wizard101. In that, dragons in Wizard101 are descended from the dragon titan, a primordial being that is the elemental embodiment of fire. Thus, it’s spawn- true dragons- are similarly at least partially composed of elemental energy. The dragon titan in particular is sleeping in a world called Dragonspyre, and the last time it was awakened, it razed all of civilization on Dragonspyre.

[@Zanaro97]

Theres absolutely no way wizard101 has deep lore

[@goldenbrigain7031]

@@Zanaro97 you don't get to more than a decade running without having written something.

[@masterofmagic99]

Maybe a Catastrophic Solar Dragon, having a mixture of force, fire and radiant damage.

[@couchcommandoiv5528]

This seems like Matt Mercer's inspiration for Thordack's transformation. Interesting stuff as always

[@Syenthros]

Mercer took a lot of things from 4th Edition. His entire pantheon (save Sarenrae) comes from the 4th edition of D&D. This isn't a bad thing, 4th edition had wonderful lore. Detailed enough to give you cool background information but vague enough that you could do almost anything you wanted with the information. I wish Wizards would bring the Nentir Vale setting into 5th edition.

[@quinn_isnt]

@@Syenthros I agree, i love 4th edition lore for the most part but large parts of it just contradict too much of what was already set. I love to use bits and pieces of it in my own world’s lore.

[@Syenthros]

@@quinn_isnt Hm. I'm not sure if I can agree about it contradicting what had already been "set," since it was a brand new setting. That's kind of like being angry at the Dragonlance setting because it contradicts Forgotten Realms.

[@Im-Not-a-Dog]

A Solar Flare Dragon would be some very powerful business. I imagine it serving as a general for Rorn of the Rages. Gods would shake in fear.

[@cameronpearce5943]

I have an arch villain in my homebrew setting that is an elder red dragon that, in a bid to rise to godhood in the wake of the deaths/disappearances of the gods (like Tiamat), consumed summer or the sun (Its vague and might either be some elder fire elemental or Titania) and plunged the world in to an unending ice age and sending civilization back to the stone age, in the process transforming from a red dragon in to something that looks more like Deathwind from WOW, burning from the inside out with such fiery power as that not even a being such as he could resist. His scales burned black, his innards liquefied in to molten slag, and he now dwells deep within one of the last active volcanos, attended by his unnumbered spawn of true dragons and elemental hybrids, unable to endure the winter world that he has created and searching for a way to gain true divinity

[@maniacmagge2568]

I believe we actually saw a race of Catastrophy Dragons in Campaign 1 of Critical Role in the Chroma Conclave with Thordak's Spawn, unborn half volcanic half dragon creatures.

[@MrZriael]

Was thinking something like this, Thordak was basically in the process of becoming a Volcanic dragon due to his consumption of energies from the plane of fire. Also, in the campaign setting book, the local area is massively devastated upon his death and continues to spawn volcanic monsters.

[@gargoyles9999]

Bad Dragon: Patron of adult novelty stores

[@AJPickett]

Silicon dragons

[@thedarkmaster4747]

An aura of orgasms would actually be quite effective in combat lol!

[@lorekeeper685]

@@thedarkmaster4747 indeed it would be.

[@fjLKA]

The Economic Crash Dragon is made from dozens of foreclosed houses, all twisted together to make a dragon. Its breath weapon causes you to feel the effects of not eating for a week in an instant. Its presence causes people to lose hope and crops to spoil. It prowls around cities that aren't doing so well, invisible until.... You know, this comment started as a joke, but realized in the middle of typing it, that this might be a workable D&D thing.

[@dillongage7628]

Maybe not an economic collapse, but using hunger as an offensive weapon could be devastating. Idk if that would confer exhaustion levels or harm constitution or something like that but either way it would suck and probably be annoying to cure, aside from simply eating and resting for a few days

[@thedarkmaster4747]

That's actually very good. Maybe it could have an aura of ecconomic inflation & other dragons hate and fear it because it devalues their hordes. Ofcourse as a catastrophic dragon it's mere presence would do ecconomic damage. And maybe it could collect the bones of the destitute as it's horde. Which would include dragons it's defeated. With a fight opening line like: "By the time i'm done, you wont even be able to afford your own funeral. Not that they wont sell me the land they dumped your body in awell for dead mens teeth!!!... How i will "ruin" you..." ⚰🤏💢🦷🐉💵💨💀🏧🧱♻🍞👻🏡🏘🏠

[@dillongage7628]

@@thedarkmaster4747 the only problem I'm having is figuring out how to represent that you crashed the economy in game. Its not like having a dragon near by is just going to magically convince everyone their money is worth less. Maybe they can transmute metals to turn gold to silver and silver to copper, or maybe they make vast amounts of money show up in the vaults totally devaluing currency. Theres a few ways you could do it, but at the same time, every and ant dragon or wizard of enough skill could probably achieve the same thing.

[@fjLKA]

@@dillongage7628 its minions are greedy bankers/businesses who run the little guy into the ground over years with the dragon's instruction. Then, they hoard their own wealth. The dragon considers the wealth these people hoard to be its own dragon's hoard. Meanwhile, its presence has caused food to spoil, causing food prices to rise. It could also cause hyper inflation by defeating other dragons and dumping their hoards into the city.

[@dillongage7628]

@@fjLKA see that sounds more like a famine dragon than an economic collapse dragon. And again, all dragons could have minions that do that, and all dragons considering anything they want as theirs so that's nothing new. I like the idea but it's a hard thing to represent.

[@Daimon-X]

Catastrophic Dragon of The Year 2020... Catastrophic Dragon of Plague?! Nope, fvck no! Kill it with fire! Kill it with Exterminatus!

[@moonringXD]

Btw aj thank you for making the spelljammer lore room on your discord! Learned a lot about the unhuman wars! Oh also could you do a video on the bionoid that were created from the war?

[@markr.7835]

Perfect timing for sleep :)

[@marcosreed9894]

The possibilities are endless and AWESOME! Thanks for another inspiring lore video.

[@CONTINGENCY_sys]

Love the Art in this one. Catastrophic dragons are by far my most used dragons. Love them.

[@CONTINGENCY_sys]

They are also in the expanded 4e Dragons books in bit n bobs.

[@CONTINGENCY_sys]

I treat metalic and chromatic as almost different species. 2 seperate paths of evolution. In the middle, the Catastrophic. On the outside, Planar, Tarterian, World, and the chosen few Xorvintaal. At least in my worlds.

[@hazbinhotelsuperfan3383]

Thank you very much for making this video. I love when you do videos on the various types of dragons spread about D&D as a whole. I know I've asked this before but would it be possible for to make a video on adamantine dragons? I would appreciate it very much😁

[@robertsimpson7424]

Nova Dragon, mistaken for a star while it sleeps and even as a burning comet as it flies in the upper atmosphere bathing in the solar energy of the sun. In combat, they can release said energy in the form of a beam breath weapon for long range or a pulse for short range (both radiant damage). Much like lungs in appearance, they hover or glide effortlessly through the air, never touching the ground. If a visual is needed, look Aruralion Sol and other dragons from Legends of Runeterra and you're in the ballpark.

[@zmishiymishi5349]

Meteor dragons would be a blast

[@KyleJordanGaming]

Ha. I see what you did there.

[@SkullCowboy333]

Your videos are a joy and so very helpful in this game that I love. You bring out great details and features. I miss Dragon Magazine

[@cressentrose2249]

Would it be possible that catastrophic dragons arrived in Faerune from Albier, during the spell plague perhaps?

[@AJPickett]

Could be.

[@Arekanae]

Are Pyroclastic Dragons one of those ore are they diffrent?

[@AJPickett]

Hmmm, Essentially they are Volcanic dragons that are native to Gehenna and the elemental planes.

[@Arekanae]

@@AJPickett Thanks😁 I actually thought they are only in Gehenna. Learn something new.

[@lordsubziro2824]

They're also from the Magic: The Gathering CCG.

[@AmigoRoberto]

Solar Flare Dragon. And this may just be my squishy mortal brain talking, but these guys feel like actual deities.

[@michaelpettersson4919]

Let it live in the corona of a sun and occationaly it direct massive ejections of material. For real it cause massive radiation bursts that can harm satellites, powersystems and fry the crew on spaceship if unlycky. Rare but it happens. A nasty creature could perhaps aim ejecta in an direction and actually burn the atmosphere of a targeted world. From a nice world to a burned deathworld withing hours...

[@nicholascorcoran4734]

Hey I didn't know that this list of Australian dragons existed. Cheers 🍻 😁

[@AJPickett]

Hmmm

[@VulpisFoxfire]

....I can imagine some fool taking a catastrophic dragon egg to some location...then (or even at least threatening to) *purposely* mishandling it, as a WMD...

[@NobleUnclean]

I like the idea of a dragon that has a vacuum breath. Consuming rather than a flowing propellent.

[@LizardWizard35]

Catastrophic dragon of a red algeal bloom?

[@ericgonzalez934]

Thanks dude , always love to know more about the dragons. As a possibility a Catastrophic dragon of evil, their presence a burst of madness upon the unsuspecting populace creating horrible acts of violence, desecration and more, usually only found near places with powerfully connections to evil , such as those with long permanentor connections to the lower planes.

[@maggintons]

catastrophic dragons would be awesome warlock patrons.. you would probably need a custom subclass though

[@daniell1483]

Thanks for this video, AJ. I really love the lore of dragonkind so seeing it being explored in your unique way will always draw my attention.

[@lanereynolds4567]

How about ones in larger spheres? Ones long since forgotton even by the primordials and gods and perhaps even the over deities. Ones that show true calamaty that would be measured not in a regional disaster, or even continental one, but a truly breath taking and terrifying one. Flare dragons, dragons that embody the power of star flares, and the extreme power unleashed by such a thing. Rarely seen, even for calamitous beings like this family of dragons, and only every few thousand years does one show up enough to be spotted atop a star, much less skirting outward enough to cause a real issue upon the planets and planes of most spheres. Magnokenetic dragons, ones that govern the magnetic spheres, only showing up to halt the magnetic spheres of a planet, and let the poles reverse, though in doing so, drop he protective shell that the magnetism provides from the random forces of the universe. singularity dragons. Dragons who's bodies are unable to be viewed, and are only discernable as the event horizons of black holes, slowly, even by universal standards, drawing in everything in a sphere of existance around them towards inevitable destruction and time collapse, only ever being noticed when they gain enough matter to unleash their breath. A gamma ray burst, capable of cleansing all life on a planet many light years away before the planet and all it's inhabitants even know there's a threat. I think that's all for now, but there's so much more... entropy, the collapse of time itself, even take some lovecraftian themes and make a calamity dragon of unreality.

[@CPK-iz5dd]

What about the Dragon Of Doom?..

[@lanereynolds4567]

@@CPK-iz5dd oh? a dragon of doom?

[@CPK-iz5dd]

@@lanereynolds4567 The Dragon Of Doom as a clerical/arcanist mage dragon from a D&D which way book.

[@lanereynolds4567]

@@CPK-iz5dd huh, alrght. I hadn't heard of it before, thanks.

[@deathstreak1156]

Here a idea for one. Entropy Dragons in comparison to other dragons they are well tempered and extremly patient as they slowly leech the heat from all leading to the end of all life

[@varun-xu8gv]

Even better, enthalpy dragon. It can absorb all the heat around it to the point that everything freezes, then release the heat to turn everything into a burning ruin.

[@sparticus1475]

The day when AJ quotes 1d4chan is the day things are going to get crazy.

[@maxblake5564]

Here’s one: a Catastrophic Dragon based on eldritch horror, with the only creature type they refuse to whimsically murder members of being the aberrations. I just think that eldritch horror leaves enough of a destruction trail for it to be worth making a Catastrophic Dragon for.

[@sirsir9665]

Have you seen a Mindflare dragon?

[@demiurgusgodofform8589]

These dragons are the only thing that got me through 4th Edition. Long live the catastrophe dragons.

[@373783001]

I always get so excited when I see a new dragon video! I always find it the best way to relax at the end of a long night! ☺️

[@coreyeaston6823]

I love this! It goes back to a very old saying; "Be careful what you wish for, you might just get it."

[@danielderamus9573]

Catastrophic dragon of terrasque

[@brotheralaric7177]

a catastrophic dragon of void .

[@andragonm8932]

A Sootcloud Dragon with an aura that makes breathing and therefore spellcasting difficult and using toxic fumes while having a gaseous form that is healed by the smoke of fires the dragin has caused

[@tatsusama3192]

Dragon's being the primordial elements in lizard form is a really cool concept. Your Genasi comparison is great - Is there really a difference between avalanche and earthquake dragons? Thad would be like adding mudslide right? Kinda redundant - This concept is ridiculously intriguing 🤩 Please do make separate videos for each dragon when able!

[@closair]

A couple catastrophe dragons I could think of are technology(might be good in a cyberpunk setting) and war.

[@brotheralaric7177]

mecha dragon with rock launcher, nuclear and bio weapon ect ..

[@mordredoforkney6185]

Hate Dragon. Doesn't even have to do anything, his mere presence causes humanoids from miles away to fight each other for the chance to prove they are the strongest to even be able to face him when all other enemies hath been laid low. His body is pure metal armor and his breath weapon is a hail of fear-inducing javelins.

[@walterbunn280]

So... red dragons?

[@RedSunUnderParadise]

This but make them outright invulnerable and have their breath be pure force that disintigrates all that it so loathes.

[@hazbinhotelsuperfan3383]

I very much enjoyed this video. I know I've asked a hundred times but can you do a video dedicated to adamantine dragons?

[@AJPickett]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/p5eTpGasZruHg8U

[@hazbinhotelsuperfan3383]

@@AJPickett Thanks 😁

[@ianbuchanan7804]

Very late to the party, but catastrophic dragons of mutation. Their aura warps the bodies and minds of those who come too close, making the perfect soldiers for unspeakable destruction.

[@matthaeusprime6343]

This video has been amazing! I don't think the 4e era gets the respect it deserves. I was away from the game during the 4e era and don't understand the hate. There were so many amazing concepts and risks taken that it would have been exciting to play through. But alas, I came back about 3 years after 5e came out. Don't get me wrong it's been great, but I have also amassed a huge collection of 4e material and going through it has been awesome. It's also interesting to note, that 5e had carried on a very large portion of 4e. Anyway, keep up the videos AJ, with lots of geek love from your Commonwealth cousin in Canada!

[@joezpi1]

I'm a little late to this conversation but wanted to add and agree! The books were the Best! Vers 4 had just come out(I was working on a patch for the original Witcher Game on PC!) and had been reminded how much I Loved the EPIC D&D games my friends and non-friends alike had! The best times of my life! I had started w the original Gary Gygax books/game! I bet I still have the original DM's guide, Players Handbook, Monster Manuals 1&2, Fiend Folio?, Diety's & Demigods. It was a 1st edition Module "Tombs of Horror" I was originally tasked with purchasing for a game w friends but was late arriving and seeing that my friend had also purchased and was setting up that allowed me to recently see all my old books and modules in storage and be hit with so much Nostalgia and happy thoughts of those times! I had walked away from the game a couple times. Lived through and was disappointed by the cancelation of the game altogether I think I remember? But it was 4th edition, as hated as it seems to be, that brought me and my friends back. And I hope I'm not mistaken these for 5th edition but I bought EVERY book and module that came out for 4th edition. I would go to my local comic/book store on the books' day of release and buy it. From the original 4th edition. DMs guide & Players Handbook and the books I still have(Chromatic & Metallic Dragons.) Great Great Books! And I hope I'm not mixing up 4th & 5th editions here but I get the dislike for 4th edition but it got me back in at the time and ANY game can be tweaked a little, No? To your liking. But the books were so full of great great art and information! New Races, Classes, Rules?(wasn't Gary Gygax fired from Wizards of the Coast around this time?) I remember playing a Dragonborn/Paladin! We played every day for a year and a half straight to the point of me being last man alive fighting Orcas one on One in a great, partially store bought campaign and epic battle that saw the demise of my fellow players, the name eludes me but WOW! the books are amazing and are the reason I got back into D&D again at the time(Reminds me of the almost exact situation I found myself in after playing a campaign with friends for several years as the same Characters! I WANT to say I was a 30+Level Druid of all things and again was the last man Standing and battling: Elrich of Mellabonaen? I'm probably destroying the spelling of that Mythos? but I was almost dead and a nearby storm allowed me to roll a nat 20 I believe on the Druid Spell, Call Lightning? And Call lightning I did! like the "World has Never seen before!" And after placing the dead Elrichs' of Melobonaens' Ring of Kings on my finger and picking up the sword "Stormbringer" and wrapping it carefully in fine cloth I headed home, My Diety, Silvanus, walking next to me just a couple "God's talking shop" and the Game was over. Wow we had the best DM! Remember also, back then(I'm almost 50 BTW)you could play, technically, up to 36th lvl I want to say? And could cast any spell to your class they had! But what WHAT MEMORIES! Alot of my friends have moved on or past on and although not considered a "Nerd" I was a "Jock" but I did NOT choose my friends based on there High School "Titles" and I'm glad I never saw Color of skin, how much money you had or how much you could bench as a standard on which I chose my friends and I'm a better man for it. And a better man for allowing a game to bring a group of friends who were different in Race, Religion , Political Party AND opinion to come together in large groups at times we had 2 games going at once! But never once came to actual blows(Although I have been known to completely wipe out an entire party of friends in game for making me mad, lol! I AM SORRY for the length of this text! That Nostalgia again! I'm getting old, lol! But these videos are great but I'm BINGE watching them! HaHa! Thank you!

[@bazzfromthebackground3696]

The rudest catastrophic dragon of them all. Sandstorm Dragon.

[@davidmeloche3563]

Can cast at will: Forced Dance, Dancing Lights Breath Weapon 2ndary is a hallucinogen that instills euphoria, and causes dehydration

[@chazzwozzio]

Truly darudest

[@ffejpsycho]

Entirely Elemental eh...? Points Wand of cancellation...

[@AJPickett]

You mean 'Wand of Catastrophic Dragon Disintegration'

[@ffejpsycho]

@@AJPickett thats my dual wielded wand

[@CatholicDragoon]

Electro-magnetic Dragon Sunspot Dragon Glacier Dragon Social Malaise Dragon Revolutionary Dragon Technocratic Dragon-causing catastrophe through pure static order and blind devotion to data. Earthquake Dragon Black hole Dragon Neutron Dragon

[@pipeline789]

Wow, some of these ideas going all in, especially the last two. I'd like to add a Meteor Dragon Sunstorm Dragon Tidal Dragon Quasar Dragon (like pure Gamma rays) Eclipse Dragon (swallows all sunlight in a huge area)

[@kingmasterlord]

proton decay dragon

[@MrPureBoredom]

if your at it. go for Big Bang dragon

[@CatholicDragoon]

@@MrPureBoredom Let's make that one a little more poetic, how about Primordial Origin Dragon.

[@MrPureBoredom]

@@CatholicDragoon perfect

[@Oooze3424]

you know, at some points we should get a video on how elemental energy works.

[@tOGGLEwAFFLES]

I imagine the hatching of a volcano dragon egg is similar to the scene where Rodan wakes up in King of the Monsters.

[@ramviolet6795]

For me I had a typhoon dragon in my campaign before I ever knew that catastrophic dragons were A thing. I'll definitely be adding that artistic side in in the future, but the fun thing I implemented with mine was a few thousand years ago a bunch of mortals found a way to imprison it within one of their own creating the one and only wear dragon. But after the party killed the previous owner (a storm giant quintessent) and tryed to fully inherit the wear dragon abilities, they could only absorb a fraction of its power releasing the rest of the dragon to wreak havoc upon the world once more, and now the were dragon is destined one day to fight the great tempest to either destroy the curse or make it whole once more.

[@MADHATTER016]

Hunting for info about the Quori. Would love to hear your take on them. They're so interesting to me.

[@MADHATTER016]

Also, a biohazard/toxic waste dragon would be so cool 🤩

[@jaredbledsoe-sams1361]

Speaking of 4e dragons, any plans to do a hallowed one or video on the multiple types of undead dragons?

[@AJPickett]

Yep

[@campbellartis8221]

Ghoul dragons

[@MrKhaosKid]

I've got my tasty beverage, i'm ready

[@easycheese6409]

Catastrophic dragon of radiance... blinds everything, a miniature star

[@easycheese6409]

Or it could be the sun in a campaign

[@rustyschackleford4762]

Sandstorm dragon? Meteorite dragon? Black hole Dragon?

[@Zasek2112]

I like black hole dragon. Event horizon lair effect, spaghettification breath weapon... Nasty. (or as a young dragon telekinesis with save based on size difference used to pull things into it's jaws) (possibly if eaten whole you're pulled into a negitive space pocket dimension?) (event horison could be a str/con save based on how close you are to it or you implode?) (Holy crap! What if they are the Yin to a time dragon's Yang?... I need to think about this, thank you for the inspiration.)

[@RedSunUnderParadise]

@@Zasek2112 Ah yes, The Xeelee.

[@gumebe4349]

I wonder why there's not a catastrophic dragon so large it's quite literally a continent hosting an entire ecosystem on top of it, staying in dormancy for centuries. But when it wakes up and gets moving, mass extinction will follow from all the earthquakes and shifting it'll cause from even taking a few steps

[@danielderamus9573]

Catastrophic dragon turtle

[@almitrahopkins1873]

@@danielderamus9573 Zaratan, 2nd Ed from Zakara, the Al-Qadim setting.

[@yungo1rst]

Reminds me of tiamut from mcu eternals.

[@masterofmagic99]

I feel like catastrophic dragon's and post apocalyptic world such as Reign of Fire, would make such a killer campaign setting.

[@kyuken893]

Mudslide Dragons fall somewhere between the consummate scheming vizier and the ruthless opportunistic mercenary. They are arguably the most indolent of the catastrophic dragons. Like the avalanche dragon they often spend long spans of time resting in their favored environment; in this case, damp mountaintops. They are poor flyers, but possess unusually long tails, giving them an appearance vaguely reminiscent of giamt constrictor snakes. This is further highlighted by their method of swimming through the earth. When heavy rains or tectonic shifts rouse them from their slumber they strike out with terrible speed; favoring vicious surprise attacks. Entire towns drown in the smothering mire of its mud aura, an extended "feeding" that these malevolent creatures savor. Avalanche, earthquake, typhoon, and volcano dragons are often approached by the mudslide dragons with declarations of service and assistance. Their involvement magnifying the destruction and serving as an excellent opportunity for the mudslides as they can deplete an area of elemental energy that may interfere with their patron's (water in the case of volcano dragons) . Strangely, this servile behavior persists even in cases where the mudslide dragon is significantly older and stronger than it's ostensible "lord". Some unconfirmed reports have even claimed to have seen them in the service of Black or Green dragons. Inevitably however the "lord" fails to live up to the "standards" of the Mudslide dragon, and the creature will turn on its former master. Crushing them its coils in a moment of vulnerability; mocking their weaknesses well past the point of death. It is said that this process mirrors their habits of watching, even protecting mountainside villages; subtly nurturing them with fertile soil and steady rain. Only tear down and destroy all that the mortals have built in a smothering, sadistic catastrophe.

[@quinn_isnt]

This is fantastic.

[@Harrowed2TheMind]

The Mudslide Dragon, close relative to the Avalanche Dragon, is found mostly in tropical areas and other inland areas with abundant precipitation. Due to their similarities, some suspect they might in fact be close relatives which bonded more deeply to water in its liquid form, rather than solid form (ice and snow). Goliaths call them Smothering Dragons all the same. Any individual foolish enough to cross their path finds themselves instantly knee-deep in thick, sticky mud, which rapidly engulfs them to be crushed and suffocated under the constricting weight of the moving, dampened earth around them, with sharp shards of rock grinding them down into more 'digestible' pieces. Preferring incredibly close quarters, they can however hurl huge mudballs at their adversaries to bludgeon and immobilize them from afar. They are also known to breathe mud at their foes to coat their adversaries in dirt, weighing down and slowing them considerably as well as blinding them. Clever individuals also use their ability to alter earth and moisture to destabilize their foes by creating a slick surface, only to swallow their prone prey whole more easily. Ever hungry, they are suspected to be the cause of the formation of quicksand pits in their vicinity when inactive, instinctively gulping on any unsuspecting creature nearby even when otherwise dormant. Ironically, their carnage can leave valuable information for future archeologist, as they often leave undigested foes petrified underground to be discovered centuries later. The mysterious Sandstorm Dragon is sometimes attributed tales from delirious travelers who survived desert storms as the mirage-causing thirst settled in, only to come back and describe the thundering sand cloud that engulfed their caravan and (almost instantly) mummified their mounts as having a face, claw-like slashing winds, as well as a loud thunder similar to the roar of a gargantuan beast. More credence should be given to these tales, however, as scholars believe some variation of the so-called Erosion Dragon to be responsible for such a phenomenon. It is said that their mere presence is the bane of any form of water or liquid, desiccating plant matter and causing exhausting if not agonizing thirst in mere seconds, evaporating any surface water on their way and preventing any and all precipitation. This ability also grants them the title of Drought Dragon, for they are known to deprive a region of most of its moisture, causing desertification and a habitat better suited to their element. Moreover, the static from all particles in the air causes lightning to materialize in their vicinity, allowing them to strike at a distance, almost always targeting metal-clad opponents first (which suffer Disadvantage on their Reflex/Dexterity saving throws). All these elements grants them a surprising synergy with Blue Dragons, who share similar habitats and affinities, although the Chromatics know better than to challenge the Catastrophics near ground level and prefer to keep to the air in high altitude or underground, sharing the territory albeit in different niches to avoid a ruinous and almost certainly fatal conflict. The Landslide Dragon is more commonly known under the monicker of Erosion Dragon, as its elemental power seems to stem from the rapid deterioration of stone itself, instantly shattering it to pieces and crushing it into fine particles. It is distinguished from the Earthquake dragon mostly through its aura of erosion, which rapidly decays any and all minerals in its vicinity, collapsing mountains and monuments alike as well as rapidly rusting and grinding away metals. Any who would attempt to challenge them anywhere near land is a doomed fool, for they have the ability to rapidly and instinctively alter the terrain to their needs, creating many an obstacle: collapsing the ground into deep pits, shattering the ground surface to create sharp, difficult terrain as well as clouds of dust or even grinding the surface stone into a smooth surface with little friction, causing imbalance and falls, not to mention collapsing the land onto their foes to bludgeon and bury them. Facing them underground is inviting even more trouble as they easily collapse any tunnel to suffocate and consume their prey at their leisure, if not toying with them from afar by dropping stalactites on their heads and crushing them with boulders. Although they spend the majority of their time in the wild mountain ranges where they can moulder vast amount of minerals to their heart's content, some are similar to their Earthquake cousins in that they develop something of a fetish for destroying monuments of civilization, collapsing bridges and destroying stone buildings while basking in the ensuing chaos, much like a child poking at an anthill, only hungrier and much more vicious.

[@Boundless-Boredom]

AJ is confirmed stronger than a prismatic dragon 10:08

[@jaredbledsoe-sams1361]

Is there any plans to expand on dragon magic? Such as 4e's "living breath"

[@AJPickett]

Most likely