Dragon Encounters

D&D’s silver dragons rule the sky. These mountain-top and midair encounters let your players ride beside—or battle—the sky king himself.

How to Use & How to Not Use DnD’s Adult Silver Dragon

Reasons For the Dragon to Refuse to Help

As I’ve already discussed, bringing powerful friendly NPCs into D&D raises the problem of why they aren’t handling the villains instead of the players, or at least together with them. If they are working with them, the problem is finding a way to keep the players in charge and stopping the ally from stealing the spotlight

With the silver dragon, possible reasons include:

• My favorite is that the quest requires a multi-pronged approach. Something else needs to be done somewhere else at the same time that the players are fighting the enemy. Since the silver dragon is naturally hands off, this can be something as small as the dragon wants to rescue someone, and this is the only way to do it.
• The dragon prefers to work through others, not directly. Ideally, the best way to make this work is to have the dragon only appear long enough to give them advice, and duck away before inconvenient questions are asked. If needed, have the dragon say that other races tend to weaken themselves too much when they rely on the dragon to solve everything.
• The dragon can also say that it gave a pledge to an ancestor of the villain not to interfere. It might interfere if it has too, but only if it absolutely has to.

Traveling to the Silver Dragon

Aside from all that, however, the dragon’s best method for not helping out the heroes is to not have it be available to be asked to help.

The dragon is known to go about in different forms, so don’t make it readily available for the players to approach any time they want. The dragon will choose when to approach them, and then it will be for just long enough to give advice/aid, and it will be in the middle of everything happening.

If they players insist on going to the dragon, the only known spot to find the dragon is in its lair, which is not at all easy to reach. You could even make reaching its lair be a questline. If you do, you probably want it to be near the campaign end, followed by one or two team-ups with the dragon, and then a climax without the dragon.

If they insist on coming back again, the silver dragon is also known to leave its lair for decades at a time. Have them come back to the lair only to find it wrapped in impenetrable fog, and let them know that’s a defense spell that the dragon leaves behind when it isn’t there.

 

Uses for a Friendly Dragon – Transportation

 

I’ve already covered ways to use a friendly dragon as a well-meaning neutral party (see adult brass dragon), as an ally fighting alongside the players (adult bronze dragon), or on a different front (young bronze dragon), and ways to give advice and gifts (briefly, in young gold dragon). This leaves travel, which is ideal for the silver dragon.

(The silver dragon isn’t known as a fighter dragon. He is also far more solidly on the side of good than the brass dragon [which straddles the line between good and neutral]. Aside from knowledge, the silver dragon teaming up with the players and then helping them reach the places they need to feels like it really fits, thematically.)

Silver Dragon Travel Scenarios:

Toward the end of a campaign, ideally one in which travel was a significant factor, at least to the extent of certain places being out of their reach because they weren’t near those locations anymore. Climax the campaign by giving them a chance to revisit several of those places, and make sure to include plot-relevant reasons for them to need to, and encounters that will keep it interesting.

If you set up a high-level area where they didn’t end up getting to, or a place that was just too difficult to reach, this would be the time to visit. For maximum effect, they should have been introduced to this area a while ago, not in the last session or two. If you can present a dangerous place which they only traveled in the fringes of, that will also work, with the dragon now helping them reach the heart.

If most of the campaign was in a small area, traveling out of that area can also be exciting.

If none of this is doable, give them a new area. Let them know that the area is very dangerous, and show them that by having the dragon drop them off along the edges of said area.

Silver Dragon Escape Scenario:

Whichever scenario you go with, make it so they have to get in and out quickly, and finish it with them having to make their way back to the dragon with a small hoard trying to chase them down. (See my chasme article for ideas of running pursuit.)

The temptation will be to end the scene with the dragon swooping in majestically to the rescue, aka Gandalf in LoTR and any number of other fantasy movies. Unfortunately, players don’t generally care for being forced to play a supporting role in such a scene.

Instead, concentrate on them having to reach a large enough open area for the dragon to land and let them climb on. The dragon can help by strafing with its breath and hitting the monsters with attacks, but that’s only so useful when the monsters are spread out and more keep arriving.

If your players have HP and spell slots to spare, you could force them to defend each other while they climb onto the dragon’s back. (Presumably, first the melee will defend the spell casters and ranged, then the casters will provide covering fire as the melee climb up.)

Combat Encounter – Combat in the Sky (difficulty varies)

Battle Aboard a Silver Dragon

The other aspect of escaping from such a location is when enemies pursue the dragon into the air. (This can of course be done without escaping such a location also). Having passengers on its back is going to hamper the dragon’s ability to defend itself, shifting some of the burden onto the players.

Some aspects of this fight include:

 

• If the dragon takes any type of evasive action, it will leave itself less vulnerable, but the players will need to make saves to keep their balance. Falling off is a pain to run, but falling prone is not insignificant, especially if 1-2 enemies attack before the PC can pick themselves up. Also, the dragon’s back might be difficult terrain, especially when it’s taking evasive action.
• You could have flying enemies carry monsters with climb (or suicidal tendencies) who then jump onto the dragon’s back. This gives the melee more agency. Also, the players have to attack, not defend, as all enemies can get automatic crits on the dragon while they’re on its back.
• If the dragon goes into clouds the players will most likely be blinded, at least temporarily.

 

As mentioned, the dragon can hardly defend itself from behind without causing the PCs to fall. As such, attacks from behind should have advantage, and attacks from enemies standing on the dragon’s back should be automatic crits, if the players can’t somehow defend. You might want to up the damage even more, just to increase the suspense.

Deciding the Dragon’s Movements

You’ll want to decide before the fight how much agency the players have over the dragon’s behavior. There are two main options. 

• The DM controls the dragon, with the players at most shouting advice. If you go this way, try to keep the dragon’s turns down to brief descriptions, except for moves like sudden twists and entering/exiting clouds that impact the players (mentioned above). Don’t roll against yourself, or at least keep it down to a minimum.
• The players control the dragon. Going this way requires you to have a better idea of the enemies’ strength. You need them not too strong to overcome, nor to you want the fight to drag on too long, but you probably want them strong enough to force the dragon to use moves that will make the PCs’ life harder, as detailed above.

Note that just because they’re driving the dragon does not mean that they know exactly when to brace themselves. They’re controlling two separate characters, that doesn’t mean that the characters are mentally connected (barring magic shenanigans).

 

Adult Silver Dragon Mountain Encounter

Combat Encounter (difficulty 19) 

 

I already mentioned in my previous article that mountains are the worst possible place to have to fight an intelligent dragon. It will have no trouble getting out of the way to buy time to let its breath weapon recharge, it can bring boulders onto them without exposing itself, it can move them while they’re paralyzed, and more.

Let’s revisit the topic, and look at all the extra ways the dragon has to make your life impossible now that it’s adult.

• Wing Attack: Costs two legendary actions, and knocks them prone. Prevents them being able to climb when they can be knocked down so easily (maybe if a fellow PC distracts the dragon), and realistically should have a chance of knocking them over a cliff if their footing was in any way precarious.
• Control Weather effect: Within six miles of its lair, the dragon decides the weather. This means strong winds, and pouring rain to make the floor slippery, doubly so after the dragon’s cold breath freezes it. (Note: If you want, you could just use one effect or the other. Say that the dragon needs calm for flying, or that it needs visibility.)
• Fear radius: This one is so deadly, it might be worth forgoing multiattack just to save in up in order to hit the players with it at the worst possible time. This can be when climbing, upon approaching the cliff’s top; After the dragon takes down one end of a bridge, looping around to stop retreat; or just to force them into different directions along a mountain ledge, with the dragon in the middle.
• Creatures within six miles of the dragon’s lair fall in slow motion, which means if the cliff above them juts out at all, you can hit them with a paratroop type attack from the dragon’s allies. Even a weak attack can be nasty, when it takes them by surprise, possibly surrounding and/or landing between them.

In my previous article, I suggested that given the deadly nature of mountains (and the silver dragon’s nature of being a really nice creature), it might be an idea to have the scenario be that the dragon is being controlled, and the player’s job is breaking the control before the dragon kills them.

How to Free a Captive Silver Dragon

Unlike in the last scenario, you don’t want a single being or object to be controlling the dragon. High level PCs have a lot of spells, abilities, and items, and a single point to attack could get taken down really fast. Have the spell tied to three different items, or beings, in three different areas.

You might or might not want to give them guardians, but be wary of using creatures with control abilities like (paralyze, charm, or even anything that affects movement). The dragon already has these, and adding more to the mix will be very lethal, especially as this scenario is likely to cause them to split up.

Places to put the binding items (based off of the ideas above):

• On the far side of a long, flat, slanted area. While free of obstacles, it’s also exposed, with no way to hide from the dragon, and its smooth face means that someone knocked down might start rolling and not stop. The rock face is slippery in rain, even more so if/when the rain gets frozen.
• Protected by very strong winds. A ledge along a cliff or above. Ideas: 1) Needs careful timing to move when the wind’s quiet, and perhaps grab something (a rope?) when the wind rises. 2) They have to keep their hands free to hold onto the walls/boulders when moving. 3) Can go around, but will take longer. (Also, any combination).
• At the top of a cliff that they’ll have to climb.
• On a mountain peak opposite them. There might be a bridge which they can use to cross over to there, but see wing attack, above.
• In the shadow of a cliff that overhangs a wide-open area. (Note: Even if you decide against putting guards by the mind controlling objects, this one needs a guard. After all, they might end up taking it down last, and once the dragon’s free the ambush will become pathetically anticlimactic.)

Summary: Six Ways to Use

• The adult silver dragon can be kept back until near the end of the campaign, and then used to visit areas that they haven’t seen since the beginning, or areas they couldn’t get to. It’s needed elsewhere, but it can carry them there.
• The adult silver dragon is great as a force to rescue them, carrying them to safety at the end of a quest. To avoid stealing the players thunder, focus the story on the players having to reach the spot where the dragon can reach them.
• Being carried by an adult silver dragon allows for an attack by flying enemies. Should the dragon maneuver, it will knock them prone, diving through cloud will blind them, and they have to knock enemies off the dragon’s back.
• When fighting in the mountains, the adult silver dragon can use its wing attack to knock players down cliffs, its fear aura to stop them reaching the top, and storm lair effect to blow them away. Have them trying to reach an objective to win.
• As the adult silver dragon is good, and powerful in its environment, consider having it mind controlled. The players goals will be to break the spell mind controlling it, as the dragon is forced to try to stop them.
• As they struggle to reach an objective, have a hostile adult silver dragon take down a rope bridge, then loop around and use fear aura so they can’t climb back up. Or have minions jump down from a cliff at them, with the lair effects slowing their fall.