Wyverns

Wyverns are dragons.

A dragon is a reptile-like creature, usually winged, with magical or unusual abilities.

Dragons have darkvision and low-light vision.

They are immune to magic sleep and paralysis effects.

Dragons breathe, eat, and sleep.

Wyverns are nasty, brutish, and violent reptilian beasts akin to more powerful dragons. They are always aggressive and impatient, and are quick to resort to force in order to accomplish their goals. For this reason, dragons generally look down upon wyverns, considering their distant cousins nothing more than primitive savages with a distinct lack of style or wit. In most cases, this generalization is spot-on. Although far from animalistic in intellect, and capable of speech, most wyverns simply can’t be bothered with the subtlety of diplomacy, and prefer to fight first and parley later, and even then only if faced with a foe they can neither defeat or flee from.

If a wyvern hits with its bite, it deals normal damage and attempts to start a grapple without provoking an attack of opportunity. Grab can only be used against targets of Large or smaller size. A wyvern has the option to conduct the grapple normally, or simply use its bite to hold the opponent. If it chooses to do the latter, it is harder to make and maintain the grapple, but does not gain the grappled condition itself. A successful hold does not deal any extra damage. Each successful grapple check it makes during successive rounds automatically deals bite damage.

Wyverns are territorial creatures. Though they occasionally hunt in small groups for large prey, they are generally solitary creatures, hunting in areas ranging in size from 100 to 200 square miles. Wyverns have been known to fight to the death among themselves for the right to hunt a territory rich with prey.

A wyvern gains extra talon attacks when it grapples its foe. A wyvern must begin its turn already grappling to use its rake – it can’t begin a grapple and rake in the same turn.

Although constantly hungry and prone to mayhem, a wyvern that can be befriended (usually through a delicate combination of flattery, intimidation, food, and treasure) becomes a powerful ally. They often serve giants and monstrous humanoids as guardians, and some lizardfolk and boggard tribes even use them as mounts, although such arrangements are quite costly in terms of food and gold, for few are the wyverns who would willingly serve as steeds for lesser creatures for long.

A wyvern can poison those it stings. Poisons can be removed through neutralize poison and similar effects.

A wyvern is about 16 feet in length, half of which is tail. The average wyvern weighs 2,000 pounds.

A wyvern can detect opponents by sense of smell. If the opponent is upwind, the range increases; if downwind, it drops. Strong scents, such as smoke or rotting garbage, can be detected at longer ranges. Overpowering scents, such as skunk musk or troglodyte stench, can be detected at even longer ranges.

When a wyvern detects a scent, it doesn’t know the exact location of the source – only its presence somewhere within range. A wyvern can note the direction of the scent though. When the wyvern is next to the source, it pinpoints the source’s location.

A wyvern can follow tracks by smell. The difficulty increases or decreases depending on how strong the quarry’s odor is, the number of creatures, and the age of the trail. Wyverns tracking by scent ignore the effects of surface conditions and poor visibility.