General Rules: Monsters - Drake, Scout

Drake, Scout (adapted from Draconic Lore)
Dragon

Special Attacks: Rake

Special Qualities: Bonded Skill, Chameleon Skin, Haste, Hidden Mind, Immunities, Keen Senses, Mental Bond, Scentless

Skills: Scout drakes have (6 + Intelligence modifier) skill points per Hit Die and purchase the following skills at 1 rank per Hit Die: Climb, Jump, Listen, Search, and Spot. Remaining skill points are typically spent on physical skills such as Swim rather than mental or social skills such as Knowledge or Diplomacy.

Feats: Scout drakes have one feat plus an additional feat per 4 hit dice. Drakes favor Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Skill Augmentation (Listen and Spot), Weapon Focus (Bite), and Weapon Focus (Claw). Drakes can also choose from the following dragon feats: Flyby Attack, Hover, and Wingover.

Environment: Any land

Organization: Solitary or pack (2 - 4)

Challenge Rating: Hatchling 1; adult 3; old 5; elder drake 7

Treasure: None
Alignment: Usually lawful neutral

Advancement: Hatchling 3 HD (Tiny); adult 5 HD (Small); old 7 HD (Small); elder drake 9 - 10 HD (Small)

Scout drakes are small draconic creatures that can blend into their surroundings. They are often used as lookouts by the Rhadynnic Great Houses.

Scout drakes superficially resemble tiny copper dragons, although the comparison only lasts until the drake's chameleon skin blends in with its background. Once camouflaged, a drake looks like just another piece of scenery.

These drakes are well-suited to military life. They enjoy a structured schedule and follow orders well. They lack initiative and have difficulty making decisions on their own - a task they turn over to their bonded companion at the earliest opportunity. Because of this, scout drakes make an excellent supplement to more traditional guards, but are completely unsuitable as a replacement.

In the wild, unbonded scout drakes live in small packs. Each member of the pack has a carefully defined place in the packing order of their small society. Stepping outside of this role usually means banishment for the unlucky individual. It is this structured lifestyle that makes scout drakes so good at obeying orders.

Combat
Unless they or their bonded companion are in mortal danger, scout drakes prefer to avoid combat as much as possible. If forced into it, they generally begin by using their haste ability and then attack with their bite and claw attacks. Ultimately, scout drakes are best used for hit and run assaults that rely on the enemy being too confused to put up much defense as scout drakes are simply too fragile for a full scale frontal assault.

Scout Drakes by Age

Age	Size	Hit Dice (hp)	Initiative	Speed	Armor Class	Touch	Flat-Footed
Hatchling	D	2d12 (13)	+1	30 feet; fly 60 feet (good)	15 (+4 size, +1 Dexterity)	15	14
Adult	T	4d12+4 (30)	+1	30 feet; fly 60 feet (average)	17 (+2 size, +4 natural, +1 Dexterity)	13	16
Old	S	6d12+6 (45)	+1	30 feet; fly 60 feet (average)	19 (+1 size, +7 natural, +1 Dexterity)	12	18
Elder Drake	S	8d12+16 (68)	+1	30 feet; fly 60 feet (average)	21 (+1 size, +9 natural, +1 Dexterity)	12	20

Age	BAB/Grapple	Bite	2 Claws	2 Rakes	Tail Slap	Telepathy Range	Skill Bonus	Special Abilities
Hatchling	+2/-12	+4 (1d3-2)	-1 (1d2-2)	-1 (1d3-2)	-	500 feet	+2	Chameleon Skin
Adult	+4/-5	+5 (1d4-1)	+0 (1d3-1)	+0 (1d4-1)	-	1,000 feet	+4	Hidden Mind
Old	+6/+2	+7 (1d6)	+2 (1d4)	+2 (1d6)	-	2,000 feet	+6	Scentless
Elder Drake	+8/+5	+10 (1d6+1)	+5 (1d4)	+5 (1d6)	-	1 mile	+8	Haste

Age	Space/Reach	Fortitude	Reflex	Will	Strength	Intelligence	Wisdom	Dexterity	Constitution	Charisma
Hatchling	1 foot by 1 foot/0 feet	+3	+4	+3	7	9	10	12	11	6
Adult	2½ feet by 2½ feet/5 feet	+5	+5	+4	9	10	10	12	12	7
Old	5 feet by 5 feet/5 feet	+6	+6	+5	11	11	10	12	13	8
Elder Drake	5 feet by 5 feet/5 feet	+8	+7	+6	13	12	10	12	14	9

Bonded Skill (Ex): Scout drakes grant a competence bonus to their bonded companion's Survival checks equal to the amount listed on the table above. Scout drakes also receive this as a racial bonus to their own Survival checks.

Chameleon Skin (Ex): Scout drakes can blend into their surroundings. This gives them a +15 circumstance bonus to Hide checks.

Haste (Su): Once per day, a scout drake can use haste on itself as a 20^th-level sorcerer.

Hidden Mind (Ex): A scout drake's mind cannot be read or detected through magical or psionic means. This ability makes courier drakes such trusted messengers. This ability does not protect against the read memory ability of a courier drake of a higher age category.

Immunities (Ex): Scout drakes are immune to sleep and paralysis effects.

Keen Senses (Ex): A scout drake has low-light vision. A courier drake also has darkvision with a range of 50 feet per age category.

Mental Bond (Su): Drakes posses a telepathic bond that lets them communicate with other members of their species. This ability is used to cry for help when in danger or to seek a mate. The maximum range of this ability is determined by its age category.

Occasionally, a drake finds another sentient creature that greatly impresses it in some fashion. When this happens, the drake may extend a mental invitation to that creature to become its companion. If the invitation is accepted, the drake and its companion are linked for life and the drake can use its mental bond to communicate with its new companion. In addition, each type of drake confers certain instincts to its companion through this link that gives the companion a competence bonus in a certain skill. The extent of this bonus is equal to twice the drake's age category and is only granted when the drake and its companion are within telepathic range of one another.

An individual can only bond with one drake of any type at a time.

Scentless (Ex): A scout drake has no scent. It cannot be detected with the scent ability and cannot be tracked by scent.

Rake (Ex): Rake attacks deal the listed damage. Before a drake can use its rake attacks against an opponent, it must first hit that opponent with both its claw attacks that round. If the drake is grappled, a drake can use bite, claw, and rake attacks. The claws do not need to hit for a drake to be able to use its rake attacks if it is grappled.

Home     Three Worlds     Monsters