Pathfinder Chronicles: Dragon's Revisited by Mike McArtor

When Wizards of the Coast took Dungeons and Dragons to the (disastrous) fourth edition, the folks who published then now defunct Dungeon Magazine and Dragon Magazine, Piazo Publishing, took up the cause of Edition 3.5.  We lovingly call their Pathfinder Chronicles Dungeons and Dragons, Edition 3.75.

This 64 page book is not an adventure, but an accessory, discussing everyone's favorite monster, dragons, in surprising depth.

There are ten kinds of basic dragons, five metallic good dragons, Brass, Bronze, Copper, Gold and Silver, and five evil Chromatic dragons, Black, Blue, Green, Red and White.  Each dragon has a breath weapon of either fire, lightning, acid or cold.  It makes for a nice variety of beasts, each with a preferred type of terrain, and kept the players guessing, through first edition.  But now players are so thoroughly informed about each type's strengths and weaknesses, they are not the terrifying monsters they once were.

This book gives the Dungeon Master enough information about each type, their strengths and weaknesses, and how the dragon's themselves view things to give the DM an idea of how to put the terror back in this iconic monster.

Each entry has a brief description of a ‘typical' dragon of the kind; Black Dragons are antisocial and psychotic, Coppers are the good dragons most likely to ‘tarnish' into a neutral world view, Greens are the intellectuals of the Chromatics, and Whites are the stupidest brutes of dragon kind.  It then discusses the ecology and society of the dragon, like the tortured appearing swamplands that surround a black dragon's high and dry lair, or how Brass dragons, due to their gregarious natures often establish their lairs along desert trade routes to ensure themselves a constant supply of visitors to gossip with.  Next it discusses Hoard and Home.  For instance, Bronze dragons love to have a lair with several underwater entrances.  Yet their hoards are most often libraries of accumulated lore.  That means that these dragons have to invest in waterproofing, have drying rooms near the entrance to the lair to not track moisture in, and heat their lairs without using fire, (usually by using copper wire and their own electrical breath to create dragon powered space heaters).  A Bronze dragon whose primary research focus is Knowledge Nature might have a "treasure hoard" that consists of books, rare insects pinned in frames, portfolios of pressed leaves from around the world, a collection of sea shells, and many other things that gold hungry adventurers would consider junk.  The Campaign Role of each dragon discusses how it might be used in a campaign.  For instance, the aforementioned Bronze dragon might be a patron, hiring an expedition to travel the jungles to the lost ruins of an ancient civilization.  The dragon's interest in this gold and jade bedecked city?  A rare butterfly.  Black dragons are monsters that terrorize people, and Copper dragons often help fund revolutions.  The party's wizard might be seeking a lost spell, only known to exist in the horde of a Green dragon arcanist.

The On Golarion section discusses the roll each dragon plays, and their distribution around the globe on Pathfinder's world, Golarion, either discussing the odd institution of Bronze dragon banks run in Taldor, or detailing a single individual, like Tasathyl, the Green dragon of Darkmoon Vale who defies the rulership of  the powerful Red, Daralathyxl.  Names give conventions for naming dragons; Blues have more vowels in their names, Reds frequently contain the combinations dara and thys which mean terrible, and great respectively.  It then details a single example of the species, like the aforementioned Daralathyxl, the most powerful and cunning Red on the planet.  This section also shows what can be done with a dragon; most ‘throw away' of all dragons, the white, has a brilliant example, Lydek who augments her relatively low intelligence with a combination of cowardice, persistence, and low cunning, weakening her foes with traps, and fleeing if she takes a mere 30 points of damage, instead returning to harass and harry the party with more traps into a battlefield of her liking.

There are little side bars as well, adding to the richness of the draconic experience, from the feat Noxious Bite, where any acid spitting dragon can have a bite attack that does continuing damage, and causes nausea in the victim, to the Bronze Dragon's obsession with numerology, and the Bryemirites' (named for the dragon who first proposed the theory) search for the perfect number (don't tell them, but it's 42.) which they think will forestall a coming doomsday.  Then there is the case of Red Snow Falling, a play written by a white dragon about her battle with Daralathyxl which remains a popular play now, centuries later.  These little tidbits add richness and depth to a campaign.

And indeed, these supplements, which are really just cleverly calculated to keep gamers spending money on a regular basis, really do add to the depth and richness of the gaming experience, particularly when they are well designed, and well executed.  This is among the best, worth every penny of the $19.99.

An American Game, an American Company; printed in China....*sigh*....

In fond Memory of Gary Gygax, Father of Dungeons and Dragons.
27 July, 1938 -4 March, 2008
"You enriched my life."

The Pathfinder Series, or Dungeons and Dragons Edition 3.75

Core Rule Book
Bestiary
Bestiary II
Advanced Player's Guide
Game Mastery Guide
The Inner Sea World Guide
Ultimate Magic
Ultimate Combat


Guide to the River Kingdoms: A Pathfinder Companion
Dungeons of Golarion
Classic Horrors Revisited
Inner Sea Magic: A Pathfinder Companion
Lords of Chaos: The Book of the Damned, Volume II
Humans of Golarion: A Pathfinder Companion
Undead Revisited: A Pathfinder Companion
Orcs of Golarion: A Pathfinder Companion
City of Strangers: A Pathfinder Companion
Sargava The Lost Colony: A Pathfinder Companion
Heart of the Jungle: A Pathfinder Companion
Gnomes of Golarion: A Pathfinder Companion
Rule of Fear: Ustalav.  A Pathfinder Companion
Cheliax: Empire of Devils: A Pathfinder Companion
Guide to Darkmoon Vale  A Pathfinder Companion.
Dragons Revisited: A Pathfinder Companion.
Faction Guide: A Pathfinder Companion
NPC Guide: A Pathfinder Companion
Dungeon Denizens Revisited: A Pathfinder Companion
A Guide To Korvosa: A Pathfinder Companion
Into the Darklands: A Pathfinder Companion
Cities of Golarion: A Pathfinder Companion
Faiths of Purity: A Pathfinder Companion

Adventure Paths!

Rise of the Runelords

Burnt Offerings
The Skinsaw Murders
The Hook Mountain Massacre
The Fortress of the Stone Giants

Second Darkness
Shadow in the Sky
Children of the Void
The Armageddon Echo
Endless Night
A Memory of Darkness
Descent Into Midnight

Please look at these Piazo Modules:

The Demon Within
Hungry are the Dead
River of Darkness
Seven Swords of Sin
Gallery of Evil
From Shore to Sea
The Witchwar Legacy
Realm of the Fellnight Queen
Hangman's Noose
Carnival of Tears
The Pact Stone Pyramid
Entombed with the Pharaohs
Treasure of Chimera Cove
Tower of the Last Baron
The Crucible of Chaos


Check out each installment of these Introductory Modules from Wizards of the Coast for Third Edition.

The Sunless Citadel
The Forge of Fury
The Speaker in Dreams
The Standing Stone.
The Heart of Nightfang Spire
Lord of the Iron Fortress

Fourth Edition:
Keep on the Shadowfell
Players Handbook
Dungeon Masters Guide
Monster Manual

Recommended: Yes