Topaz dragon

Topaz dragons were a breed of gem dragon known to be selfish and unsociable and for their similarity to topaz.

Description
When a wyrmling, a topaz dragon had scales that were dull yellow with orange highlights. As it grew older, its scales hardened and turned translucent and faceted while they brightened in color, with individual scales becoming indiscernible. By adulthood, they were light orange in hue and sparkled under the sun and from far off they appeared as if carved from pure topaz. Conversely, their pupils faded with age, so a great wyrm's eyes were naught but fiery glowing orbs.

A hatchling had a body and  tail, while an adult had a body length of  and a tail length of. The biggest great wyrms grew to long in the body, with tails  long.

Personality
While not really malevolent, they were selfish and unfriendly, with no interest in meeting others or in having others meet them. They often behaved erratically and this made them unpleasant and even dangerous to deal with.

Abilities
Topaz dragons breathed a cone of dehydration, ironically resembling a blast of water. For an adult, this could be some long and up to  wide or  long and up to  wide. This would dry objects and vaporize many cubic feet of water and water-based liquids, causing salt and other suspended compounds and particles to precipitate out. Living creatures caught in the blast would be severely dehydrated, losing much of their strength and needing extensive care and rest to recover, and potentially even falling into a coma and dying.

Topaz dragons were naturally immune to cold spells and could breathe water as well as they could air.

Like any dragon, and in addition to the common powers of gem dragons, topaz dragons gained an array of magical powers as they aged, though accounts of these varied. In one version, young dragons could cast protection from evil or protection from good thrice a day, juveniles could cast blink thrice a day, adults could create a wall of fog thrice a day, mature adults could cast airy water thrice a day, and old dragons could part water once a day. Alternatively, adults could create a fog cloud thrice a day, old dragons could control winds thrice a day, and ancient dragons could control weather once a day. If psionic, juveniles could featherfall, old dragons could control air rather than control winds, and great wyrms could shape change.

Similarly, emerald dragons could acquire and cast new spells of their own, whether arcane or divine, but they were most noted for their talent in psionics. Those who were so gifted learned the psionic attacks mind thruster and id insinuation or ego whip and the psionic defenses mind blank or thought shield and mental barrier. For general powers, they favored the disciplines of psychometabolism Common psychometabolism powers for topaz dragons were biofeedback, body equilibrium, cause decay, chemical simulation, energy containment, life draining, and metamorphosis and common psychokinesis powers were animate object, control wind, molecular manipulation, soften, and telekinesis.

They were skilled in swimming, hiding, and survival.

Society
Topaz dragons were disinterested in parenting. They would even abandon their own offspring in order to save themselves.

Lairing near the coast as they did, they favored a seafood diet, preying on fish, shark, and particularly giant squid.

Topaz dragons spoke Draconic and both their own language and a language shared among all gem dragons. Moreover, more than one in eight hatchlings could communicate with any sentient being, and the others gained this power as they aged, with almost two-fifths possessing it by the time they were mature adults and two-thirds when great wyrms.

Like the rest of the gem dragons, topaz dragons were rarer in the Realms than the common chromatic and metallic dragons.

Relationships
Occupying the same or similar environments, topaz dragons and bronze dragons regularly quarreled. Topaz dragons disliked the bronze dragons and typically attacked on sight. Their battles were invariable violent and lethal.

Lairs
Topaz dragons made their lairs by the sea, in bleak and rocky coastal areas such as secluded beaches, caves above or below the waterline, or structures they built themselves. At these places, they liked to sun themselves on rocky outcrops, under the wind, sea spray, and crashing waves, and from where they could keep an eye out for prey.

In spite of this, topaz dragons did not enjoy the water as their bronze dragon neighbors did. In fact, they had little liking of it and swam only as necessary for hunting and battle. They kept their lairs scrupulously dry, even when on the Plane of Water, no matter how difficult that may seem.

Lands
Topaz dragons were most commonly found in the Inner Planes but sometimes live in lairs on secluded beaches on the Prime Material Plane.

In the Unapproachable East, topaz dragons could be found around the coastal regions of Aglarond.

Tactics
While they did not like visitors or trespassers to their lairs, topaz dragons also did not like fighting. In fact, while they avoided conversing at the best of times, they would do so to prevent a fight and to conceal their magical and psionic preparations. When trespassers proved hostile, or just uninteresting or annoying, the topaz dragon would strike first if it could. They opened battle with their psionic powers and their magic as needed, and loved fighting with fang and claw. If outside, it would use its powers to control wind and weather, before entering melee. If inside, it often began with its dehydrating breath instead. Otherwise, they saved their breath until they were hurt.

If outmatched, a topaz dragon might propose or pretend to surrender to buy itself time, and if overwhelmed it would retreat. However, some retreats were feigned, and the topaz dragon would return to surprise its attacker.

Notable Topaz Dragons

 * Tithonnas, a thane of the gem dragon deity Sardior, the Ruby Dragon.
 * Kisonraathiisar
 * Iltharagh
 * Gaulauntyr

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * Dungeon #64: "Grotto of the Queen"
 * Novels
 * Queen of the Depths