The Baby Drake

Type Vendor and Story

Description

Background

Products, General

• Lizards and snakes.
  • Different sizes.
  • Might 5-20.
• A prize peacock in cage.
  • Might 20
  • Bird of Beauty.
  • Master of charm and illusions.
• Three crows in a cage.
  • Might 5-10

Personalities

The breeder and owner of the animals is a mature Tytalus magus, but busy with his other schemes, he is rarely seen at the pen. It is suggested that he be someone otherwise mentioned and named in the saga. His apprentice, Daphne, is left in charge of the animals and the business.

Daphne the Apprentice

• Age 13.
• Personality Sly +3, Helpless +1
• Offers a black egg, of a mysterious lizard, to those who can capture the escaping drake

Cuhriða the Baby Drake

Cuhriða is a baby dragon who is mad about gems and silver, and she would steal like a magpie.

• Young Dragon
• Magic Might 12 [Ignem]
• Size -2
• Int -2, Per +1, Str -3, Sta 0, Com -1, Pre [cute] +2, Dex +2, Qik +4
• Cuhriða is not fully grown and cannot fly; the wings are still useful to slow falls and jumps.
• Brawl [teeth] 2, Charm [first impression] 2, Athletics [jump] 4, Stealth [hiding] 2, Awareness 1, Latin 1, Penetration 2
• Gift of Speech (1), Greater Power x2 (6), Soak (1) Greater Immunity to Fire (3)
• Avaricious [silver and gems] (-1)
• Personality Traits Avaricious +6, Cheeky +3, Jolly +2
• Vis 2p Ignem in Heart
• Appearance. Cuhriða has the size and build of a chubby toddler. The snout is a wee bit longer, but the loveable smile is the same, at least when you look it in its eyes. It has wings, but the wings are small and weak. The hands and feet are claws with two fingers and a thumb.

Combat

• Claws Init +3; Atk +6; Def +9; Dam -1
• Fangs/Teeth Init +4; Atk +8; Def +8; Dam -2
• Soak +3

Powers

Peering Into the Mortal Mind, 1 points, Init +3, Mentem R: Eye, D: Mom, T: Ind As the spell on page 149 of ArM5, but the drake can read the mind of anyone he can see; the target does not need to make eye contact with him. InMe 30 (Base 25, +1 Sight): Greater Power (30 levels, –2 Might cost)

Puff of Flame, 1 point, Init +1, Ignem R: Voice, D: Mom, T: Ind The drake can spit a cabbage-sized ball of flame out to about 15 paces, inflicting +5 damage. CrIg 10 (Base 4, +2 Voice): Greater Power (10 levels)

Devouring the Heat of the Fire, 0 points, Init +14, Ignem R: Touch, D: Mom, T: Ind Like the Salamander of Virtue, Cuhriða can instantly extinguish any fire it touches, even the hottest furnace. If the fire is very large, only a three-pace radius around the creature is extinguished. Even if it does not use this power, the creature is completely unharmed by heat and flames. PeIg 15 (Base 4, +1 Touch, +1 Part, +2 Size): Greater Power (15 levels, +5 Initiative, –2 Might cost)

Story

Scenes.

1. The drake is mocks a vendor conversing with the PCs, trying to get the PC to laugh.
2. The drake climbs the roofs, puffing fire. Possibly it creates small fires in awkward places.
3. The drake cuts purses of one or more people in the market.
4. The drake robs a stall, running away with a couple of lab text scrolls. Possibly, the scrolls are dropped in the PCs’ yard, thus incriminating them.
5. The drake is spying on some magi.

Possible solutions

• Kill the drake. The vendor will not be happy, but the others in the market will be safe.
• Pay it off with silver or gems. It will feel cheated if it cannot keep the precious goods in captivity.
• Entertain it; play, talk, and befriend.
• When we played this in Hibernia, the players discovered that the drake spoke a few words of Latin and should thus be treated as the like of man. They put a case to the presiding quaesitoris, arguing that the breeder was in breech of the Peripheral Code when he kept the drake captive.