Well, if I had to guess, it's standard power creep. 1st Edition comes out and then other games come out. Most notable is Rifts. Everything in Rifts is bumped up, and things from later books are bumped up from earlier books in Rifts. So, as the second edition comes out they want to make it more compatible with the Rifts megaverse. Thus, super dragons.
As to why they made them more powerful in Rifts, I think everything in Rifts is designed to be superpowerful, excpet for all of the usual races people know from fantasy.
-Vek
"We all know I did this little quote thing first, and Smiling Bandit is just copying."
Dragonest dragons that ever dragoned
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Re: Dragonest dragons that ever dragoned
I believe the first ed dragons could be too weak. No dragon should be able to have single digit hp so I generally never had a dragon under 100hp initially.
But I believe Vek is correct, it is the munchkinising that came from rifts being imported into PFRPG, i mean PFRPG being made more compatible with rifts.
I think they are too tough now so i also tend to make them weaker, hp wise but use the TMNT size chart for physical bonuses. Dragons can generally kill a character with a hit or 2 unless they are specifically kitted out for fighting a dragon (Which i believe is the way it should be, but Dragons aren't on my random encounter tables except for some very specific locations).
In 2nd ed a human can actually be stronger than a 25 ton fire dragon.
But I believe Vek is correct, it is the munchkinising that came from rifts being imported into PFRPG, i mean PFRPG being made more compatible with rifts.
I think they are too tough now so i also tend to make them weaker, hp wise but use the TMNT size chart for physical bonuses. Dragons can generally kill a character with a hit or 2 unless they are specifically kitted out for fighting a dragon (Which i believe is the way it should be, but Dragons aren't on my random encounter tables except for some very specific locations).
In 2nd ed a human can actually be stronger than a 25 ton fire dragon.
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Re: Dragonest dragons that ever dragoned
Dragons appear all over the place in Rifts Earth. I noticed you don't see them that much in Palladium Fantasy, but with Yin Sloth Jungles about to get
updated to 2nd edition that's about to change. I have a deep passion for dragons and as a writer for Palladium Fantasy RPG I try to find ways to include
them and for players to be able to interact with them, and if they really want to, try to fight them. Yes, they did get updated significantly in 2nd editions as
did elementals, angels, entities, vampires, and gods. Back in the first edition days, a well-armed and versatile party could take one down. Now that is only
going to happen with a Hatchling or with a very creative and high-level adventure party with a little assistance from the G.M. Kevin and Eric wanted to really
distinguish these and those I mentioned from all the other monsters you encounter in the PFRPG (in Monsters and Animals and the other sourcebooks. I
mean the Earthshaker (from Baalgor Wastelands) is 300 feet (92 m) tall and their shell is 1500 feet (457 m) in diameter! The thing weighs 1000
tons! Yet it has 1D4x100 S.D.C. and Hit Points P.E. attribute (2D6+50) x 50 compared to a 8-foot (2.4 m) Basilisk which has 4D6x10+40 S.D.C. and
3D4x100+40 plus P.E. attribute (4D6)! Dragons have to be the power houses of PFRPG and everything else is below them. My goal is to try and include
them in some fashion going forward. Not that I'm advocating that adventure parties should be out there trying to kill them because Smog they are not.
Interacting with them in some fashion seems preferable, giving these guys the proper respect, they deserve. However, if the G.M. does want to throw an
immature Hatchling for the party to go after, I see nothing wrong with that. Way back in 1990 I type a letter (yes typed using a typewriter) to Kevin and
asked him it seem to me killing a dragon would make an adventure party rich for life. He said and I quote, "The world is a very large place fraught with
dangers. Carrying around a fortune in dragon chunks would be an invitation not only to bandits, but even to hostile (and greedy) armies." I took that to
mean somehow or in some way word gets around. And because every part of them gives off some kind of magic vibe, you really don't want huge hunks of
dragon meat on your person. Thus, the reason we have only tiny parts sold by alchemist while sea serpents on the other hand the Kingdom of Bizantium has
turned them into the equivalent of fish sold at Long John Silvers.
updated to 2nd edition that's about to change. I have a deep passion for dragons and as a writer for Palladium Fantasy RPG I try to find ways to include
them and for players to be able to interact with them, and if they really want to, try to fight them. Yes, they did get updated significantly in 2nd editions as
did elementals, angels, entities, vampires, and gods. Back in the first edition days, a well-armed and versatile party could take one down. Now that is only
going to happen with a Hatchling or with a very creative and high-level adventure party with a little assistance from the G.M. Kevin and Eric wanted to really
distinguish these and those I mentioned from all the other monsters you encounter in the PFRPG (in Monsters and Animals and the other sourcebooks. I
mean the Earthshaker (from Baalgor Wastelands) is 300 feet (92 m) tall and their shell is 1500 feet (457 m) in diameter! The thing weighs 1000
tons! Yet it has 1D4x100 S.D.C. and Hit Points P.E. attribute (2D6+50) x 50 compared to a 8-foot (2.4 m) Basilisk which has 4D6x10+40 S.D.C. and
3D4x100+40 plus P.E. attribute (4D6)! Dragons have to be the power houses of PFRPG and everything else is below them. My goal is to try and include
them in some fashion going forward. Not that I'm advocating that adventure parties should be out there trying to kill them because Smog they are not.
Interacting with them in some fashion seems preferable, giving these guys the proper respect, they deserve. However, if the G.M. does want to throw an
immature Hatchling for the party to go after, I see nothing wrong with that. Way back in 1990 I type a letter (yes typed using a typewriter) to Kevin and
asked him it seem to me killing a dragon would make an adventure party rich for life. He said and I quote, "The world is a very large place fraught with
dangers. Carrying around a fortune in dragon chunks would be an invitation not only to bandits, but even to hostile (and greedy) armies." I took that to
mean somehow or in some way word gets around. And because every part of them gives off some kind of magic vibe, you really don't want huge hunks of
dragon meat on your person. Thus, the reason we have only tiny parts sold by alchemist while sea serpents on the other hand the Kingdom of Bizantium has
turned them into the equivalent of fish sold at Long John Silvers.