The Dragonborn
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“I believe in miracles. After all, the majesty and grandeur of the dragon imbues my blood with magic. Touch my skin, feel the pattern of my scales. Look into my eyes. Feel the magic of my being. Know that I am dragonblood.” —Benesvelk ux Thurirl tibur Elizar, dragonborn

GM Note: This sub-race requires an expenditure of 25 Rep to select and you must have an existing character to apply it to. Your character will also be out of play for two days to simulate it undergoing The Ritual.

The dragonborn children of Bahamut are a unique race in that they are not born; they are reborn. Each one enters the world as a half ling, an elf, a human, or a member of some other humanoid race with all that race’s propensities and traits. Bahamut beckons to his would-be followers, and those few who might choose to serve him.

Most of those who hear the Platinum Dragon’s call discover it early, before they reach adolescence. A few heed it after reaching adulthood and beginning their careers. Not all who are called answer. The call is a strange event that one must experience to understand. It takes the form of a courteous mental question, asking if one’s heart and soul are able and willing to undertake dedication to a noble and arduous purpose—protecting the world from the spawn of Tiamat.

Bahamut’s call asks the chosen one if she is willing to give herself over entirely to this cause, giving up all that she was before to transform into one of Bahamut’s children. This choice is never easy. The chosen one is made aware of the many sacrifices she must make, from her racial identity to her family and friends, even her whole way of life. The only reward for those forfeitures is service to the Platinum Dragon and his abiding love.

Prerequisites:
In order to be accepted as a suitable candidate, the supplicant must be non-evil and have an
Intelligence score of at least 3.

Benefit: A dragonborn loses many of her original racial traits and gains the racial traits of the dragonborn race (see below).

Time: The Rite of Rebirth requires 24 hours of meditation and fasting followed by 24 hours of sleep. If the ceremony is interrupted, the prospective child of Bahamut must start the rite
from the beginning.

Cost: The symbolic egg crafted by the prospective dragonborn costs 100 gp to create, and requires a handful of scales from metallic dragons.

Dragonborn Racial Traits:
A dragonborn combines some of the racial traits of her original race and her new form. Only those traits gained from transformation are given here; see also the Mechanics of Rebirth Section.

• +2 Constitution, –2 Dexterity. Dragonborn are hearty and healthy, but they are awkward in their newly adopted bodies.

• Humanoid (dragonblood): Dragonborn are humanoids with the dragonblood subtype and any other subtypes they had before undergoing the Rite of Rebirth. For all effects related to race, a dragonborn is considered a dragon and a member of her original race.

• Age: After a dragonborn underoes the Rite of Rebirth, she emerges as an adult creature regardless of her previous age. If she lives for 200 years she enters middle age, 300 for old, and 400 for venerable. For older age, roll 2d100 for years beyond venerable.

• +2 dodge bonus to Armor Class against creatures of the dragon type. The dragonborn have an innate sense of how best to defend themselves against their potential enemies.

• Immunity to Frightful Presence: Dragonborn are immune to the frightful presence ability of dragons, just as if they were dragons.

• Draconic Aspect: Bahamut has blessed the dragonborn with aspects combining some of the best attributes of good dragons. Upon completing the Rite of Rebirth, a dragonborn chooses which of the following three aspects to manifest. Once the choice is made, it cannot be changed.

Heart (Su): A dragonborn who chooses heart as her draconic aspect gains a breath weapon. The breath weapon is a bright, shining line that coruscates with every metallic color. The line’s length is 5 feet per Hit Die the dragonborn has, up to a maximum of 100 feet at 20 HD. The breath weapon deals 1d8 points of damage, plus an extra 1d8 points for each 3 HD the dragonborn possesses (2d8 at 3 HD, 3d8 at 6 HD, and so on). The damage can be acid, cold, electricity, or fire, changing on each use as the dragonborn chooses. A successful Reflex save (DC 10 + 1/2 the dragonborn’s HD + her Con modifier) halves the damage. A dragonborn can use her breath weapon once every 1d4 rounds.

Mind (Ex): A dragonborn who selects the mind aspect sharpens her senses, gaining immunity to paralysis and magic sleep effects. She gains darkvision out to 30 feet and low-light vision, plus a +2 racial bonus on Listen, Search, and Spot checks.

At 6 HD, the dragonborn’s darkvision extends to 60 feet.

At 9 HD, the dragonborn’s darkvision extends to 90 feet, and her low-light vision allows her to see three times as far as a human in shadowy illumination.

At 12 HD, the dragonborn’s darkvision extends to 120 feet, and her low-light vision allows her to see four times as far as a human in shadowy illumination.

At 15 HD, the dragonborn gains blindsense out to 30 feet.

Wings (Ex): A dragonborn who selects the wings aspect hatches sporting fully formed wings. Dragonborn can use these wings to aid their jumps (granting a +10 racial bonus on Jump checks) and to glide. Those with 6 HD or more can use their wings to fly.

Gliding: A dragonborn can use her wings to glide, negating damage from a fall from any height and allowing 20 feet of forward travel for every 5 feet of descent.

Dragonborn glide at a speed of 30 feet with average maneuverability. Even if a dragonborn’s maneuverability improves, she can’t hover while gliding. A dragonborn can’t glide while carrying a medium or heavy load. If a dragonborn becomes unconscious or helpless while in midair, her wings naturally unfurl, and powerful ligaments stiffen them. The dragonborn descends slowly in a tight corkscrew and takes only 1d6 points of falling damage, no matter the actual distance of the fall.

Flight: When a dragonborn who selected the wings aspect reaches 6 HD, she gains a f ly speed of 30 feet with average maneuverability. A dragonborn can’t fly while carrying a medium or heavy load or while fatigued or exhausted. A dragonborn can safely fly for a number of consecutive rounds equal to her Constitution modifier (minimum 1 round). She can double this length of flight but is fatigued by such exertion. The dragonborn is likewise fatigued after spending a total of more than 10 minutes per day flying. Because a dragonborn can glide before, after, and between rounds of actual flight, she can remain aloft for extended periods, even
if she can only use flight for 1 round at a time without becoming fatigued.

When she reaches 12 HD, a dragonborn has enough stamina and prowess to fly without tiring. She can fly at a speed of 30 feet (average maneuverability) with no more exertion than walking or running. A dragonborn with flight can make a dive attack. A dive attack works like a charge, but the dragonborn must move a minimum of 30 feet and descend at least 10 feet. A dragonborn can make a dive attack only when wielding a piercing weapon. If the dive attack hits, it
deals double damage. A dragonborn with flight can use the run action while flying, provided she flies in a straight line.

• Automatic Languages: Draconic. Dragonborn gain the ability to speak Draconic upon their transformation but do not lose the ability to speak languages they already know.

• Favored Class: Fighter. A multiclass dragonborn’s fighter class does not count when determining whether she takes an experience point penalty for being a multiclassed character. Furthermore, dragonborn paladins can leave that class and return to it without penalty. Also, see the Mechanics of Rebirth section.

The Mechanics of Rebirth
Upon transformation from her initial race to a dragonborn, a supplicant loses many racial traits and gains those of the dragonborn. The following information describes how to mechanically achieve this transformation.

Type, Subtype, and Race: You retain your original type and subtypes, gaining the dragonblood subtype. You still count as a member of your original race for the purpose of any effect or prerequisite that depends on race.

Racial Hit Dice: You retain your original racial Hit Dice, as well as all benefits gained therefrom (base attack and save bonuses, skill points, hit points, and so on).

Ability Modifiers: You retain your original racial ability modifiers and gain the ability modifiers of the dragonborn race.

Size: You retain your original size. If the original race had powerful build as a racial trait, it is also retained.

Speed: You retain your original base land speed, as well as any other modes of movement possessed by your original race. Other racial traits related to speed or movement, such as the dwarf’s ability to move at full speed in medium or heavy armor, are lost.

Languages: You retain any languages you already know. You gain Draconic as an automatic language.

Favored Class: You retain your original favored classes and gain fighter as a favored class. You can multiclass into the paladin class freely.

Level Adjustment: You retain your original level adjustment.

Other Racial Traits: You lose all other racial traits of your original race, including bonus feats, skill bonuses, attack bonuses, save bonuses, spell-like abilities, and so forth. Two specific instances warrant clarification.

• If your original race granted you a nonspecific bonus feat (such
as the one gained by a human at 1st level), any feat can be lost, so long as it is not a prerequisite for another feat you have.

• If your original race granted bonus skill points, you should deduct an appropriate amount of skill points from your current skill ranks. The specific skills affected are up to you, but the DM’s input might be required to adjudicate tricky situations (such as multiclass characters who might have
purchased ranks of various skills as both class skills and cross-class skills).

The loss of racial traits might mean you no longer meet the prerequisites for a prestige class, feat, or some other feature. In general, you lose any special ability for which you no longer qualify, and nothing is gained in its place. A couple of exceptions exist.

• If you no longer qualify for a feat due to the transformation, you lose the feat and immediately select a new feat for which you qualify in its place. You must also replace any feat for which the lost feat was a prerequisite.

• If you no longer qualify for a prestige class, you lose the benefit of any class features or other special abilities granted by the class. You retain Hit Dice gained from advancing in the class, as well as any improvements to base attack bonus and base save bonuses that the class provided. If you later meet all the prerequisites for the class, you regain the benefits.

Special: Ordinarily, only a 1st-level character can select certain feats requiring the dragonblood subtype. However, upon becoming a dragonborn, you can elect to replace one (and only one) of your existing feats with one of these feats. A character cannot have more than one of these feats. The feat to be replaced cannot be a prerequisite for any prestige class, ability, or other feat.