Races of the Dragon.pdf - The Techno Jesus

CHAPTER 1
DRAGONBORN
OF BAHAMUT
12
Illus. by E. Polak
A dragonborn might use a noble’s soiree as an opportunity
to acquire a patron to fund expeditions against evil dragonkind.
Rendering aid of almost any sort to a friend is a
necessary part of building the trust, confi dence, and amity
central to a functional team of dragon-slayers. Dragonborn
are few, and they must secure allies and better means of
fi ghting Tiamat’s spawn.
LEISURE
The traditional concept of leisure, with its connotations
of aimless use of time, does not fi t with a dragonborn’s
wholehearted dedication to her cause. If a dragonborn
rests, it is to regain her strength when she is tired or
wounded. If she has free time, her leisure pursuits often
seem like work or zealotry to others.
All her thoughts and efforts focus on fighting evil
dragon kind. Understanding that her allies in the
Dragonfall War may not have the capacity for such
single-minded behavior, a dragonborn allows time for
her companions and friends to do as they need. She
frowns only on activities that weaken the mind and
body or that harm others.
Since any time not spent in direct fulfi llment of the
work against the spawn of Tiamat is leisure time, a dragonborn
makes optimal use of these intervals, emphasizing
the need for training and experience. For example, one
leisure pursuit of a dragonborn might be to help her
gnome and dwarf companions hunt down a rampaging
Any humanoid race can be reborn as an emissary of Bahamut
troll. Such an activity serves to bond friends and test
their skills.
ARTS AND CRAFTS
Some dragonborn choose to express their devotion to their
cause through painting, song, or some other craft. These
creations celebrate dragonborn identity and lifestyle. They
are created in praise of Bahamut, to represent some extraordinary
deed done by a dragonborn, or to demonstrate the
hideousness of the spawn of Tiamat.
Elf and human cultures often place artistic pursuits
at the pinnacle of achievement, as the ultimate expression
of a people’s worth. Not so for dragonborn. Art,
crafts, music, and similar cultural pursuits are always
of secondary importance to a dragonborn. They are
fine pursuits to be indulged in while recovering from
wounds or mustering one’s resources for the next
sortie against Tiamat’s spawn, but a dragonborn never
lets herself be distracted from her true vocation. As
a result, dragonborn art might be expressive, but it’s
rarely lauded as superior.
Those who were great sculptors or performers in their
lives before becoming dragonborn certainly retain those
skills. They often continue to produce great masterpieces,
focusing on draconic topics. Because so much of their
time and energy centers on the Dragonfall War, however,
dragonborn artists produce fewer works than many of their
fellow craftworkers or performers.