Dragonfire Adept

“I’ll have no need of spells, skill alarms, or faith to defeat you. At my beck and call are the most powerful forces the world has seen⁠—the flame and fury of dragons!”

Whether they are bold champions defending the weak and downtrodden, or merciless raiders seeking might and riches, dragonfire adepts are imposing figures who command the magic of dragonkind. Able to call upon a dragon’s fiery breath and augment themselves with spell-like abilities, dragonfire adepts have access to powers normally beyond the reach of humanoids.

Dragonfire adepts have no arcane or divine magic, nor are they masters of martial prowess. Instead, they draw upon a direct link with the nature of draconic existence, infusing their soul with the raw magic of dragons. The most obvious incarnation of this link is their breath weapon, but as they gain experience, dragonfire adepts learn powerful invocations that allow them to access different draconic abilities. Cunning, hearty, and learned, dragonfire adepts can be warleaders or sages with equal ease.

A dragonfire adept is a student devoted to understanding the ways of dragons and emulating them. Evil dragonfire adepts are cruel tyrants who impose their will on others, seeking to control land, build strongholds, and amass vast treasures. Good dragonfire adepts are champions of justice and freedom, using their powers to aid others. Like a sorcerer, a dragonfire adept gains new powers automatically as she rises in level, tapping ever deeper into the draconic magic in her soul. Unlike a sorcerer, however, a dragonfire adept manifests this magic not in the form of spells, but as invocations that emulate draconic powers.

Making a Dragonfire Adept

A dragonfire adept is a flexible character, able to provide support in combat and aid her allies directly or indirectly. While she lacks the capacity of a fighter or wizard for dealing damage, she is more resistant to magical effects and can use her abilities to make her comrades more effective.

Abilities: Constitution is critical to a dragonfire adept; it makes her more resilient and affects how well targets can resist her breath weapon attacks. Charisma, her second most important ability, impacts the effectiveness of her invocations.

Of course, Dexterity is useful for any character in combat, but this is especially true for a dragonfire adept. She lacks skill with heavy armor, and her magic focuses on offense over defense. Worse, a dragonfire adept has limited range with her breath weapon attacks, forcing her to move closer to combat than a typical arcane spellcaster. A high Dexterity helps mitigate these various defensive drawbacks.

Races: Most dragonfire adepts are humans, elves, or half-elves, since the study of dragonkind is not unlike the study of arcane magic. A surprising number of half-orcs also become dragonfire adepts, seeking either to find a place for themselves or to create one through force. Dwarves are rarely dragonfire adepts because of their ancient enmity with dragonkind. Most halflings and gnomes lack the burning drive needed to take this class.

Alignment: A dragonfire adept can be of any alignment, though her choice has a strong impact on which dragons she can associate with. Dragonfire adepts often act similarly to dragons of the same alignment; for example, chaotic evil adepts are rapacious hunters of treasure and power, and lawful good adepts are noble defenders of a selected group or territory. Alignment can also influence a dragonfire adept’s choice of affinity when taking the Draconic Heritage feat, though no game rule restricts this choice. For example, a lawful good dragonfire adept can select red dragons when taking this feat.

Neutral dragonfire adepts are rare, but evil, good, lawful, and chaotic representatives are equally common. The urge to delve into the mysteries of draconic energies comes more easily to those who have strong beliefs and wish to actively pursue them.

Class Skills

Class Features

Table: The Dragonfire Adept
Level	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special

1st	+0	+2	+0	+2	Breath weapon 1d6, Dragontouched, least invocations	1
2nd	+1	+3	+0	+3	Breath effect, scales +2	1
3rd	+1	+3	+1	+3	Breath weapon 2d6	2
4th	+2	+4	+1	+4	Dragonkin	2
5th	+2	+4	+1	+4	Breath weapon 3d6, breath effect	2
6th	.3	+5	+2	+5	Damage reduction 2/magic, lesser invocations	3
7th	+3	+5	+2	+5	Breath weapon 4d6	3
8th	+4	+6	+2	+6	Scales +3	4
9th	+4	+6	+3	+6	Breath weapon 5d6	4
10th	+5	+7	+3	+7	Breath weapon range doubles, breath effect	4
11th	+5	+7	+3	+7	Breath weapon 6d6, greater invocations	5
12th	+6/+1	+8	+4	+8	Breath effect	5
13th	+6/+1	+8	+4	+8	Scales +4	6
14th	+7/+2	+9	+4	+9	Breath weapon 7d6	6
15th	+7/+2	+9	+5	+9	Breath effect	6
16th	+8/+3	+10	+5	+10	Damage reduction 5/magic, dark invocations	7
17th	+8/+3	+10	+5	+10	Breath weapon 8d6	7
18th	+9/+4	+11	+6	+11	Scales +5	8
19th	+9/+4	+11	+6	+11	Immunities	8
20th	+10/+5	+12	+6	+12	Breath weapon 9d6, breath effect	8

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Dragonfire adepts are proficient with simple weapons, but not with armor or shields. Like arcane spellcasters, a dragonfire adept wearing armor or using a shield incurs a chance of arcane spell failure (all invocations have somatic components).

Invocations: A dragonfire adept has a repertoire of attacks, defenses, and other abilities known as draconic invocations, which allow her to focus the draconic energy that suffuses her soul. A dragonfire adept can use any invocation she knows at will.

A dragonfire adept’s invocations are spell-like abilities: using an invocation is therefore a standard action that provokes attacks of opportunity. To avoid provoking such attacks, a dragonfire adept can use an invocation defensively by making a successful Concentration check. An invocation can be disrupted, just as a spell can be ruined during casting. If a dragonfire adept is hit by an attack while invoking, she is entitled to a Concentration check to successfully use the invocation, just as a spellcaster would be. Her invocations are subject to spell resistance unless an invocation’s description specifically states otherwise. A dragonfire adept’s caster level with her invocations is equal to her class level. She can dismiss any invocation as a standard action, just as a wizard can dismiss a spell.

If an invocation allows a saving throw, its DC is 10 + the equivalent spell level + the dragonfire adept’s Cha modifier. Since spell like abilities are not spells, a dragonfire adept cannot benefit from the Spell Focus feat or from draconic feats that let her convert or spend an arcane spell slot to produce some other effect. She can, however, benefit from the Ability Focus feat, as well as from feats that emulate metamagic effects for spell-like abilities.

The four grades of draconic invocations, in order of their relative power, are least, lesser, greater, and dark. A 1st-level dragonfire adept begins with knowledge of one least invocation, gaining access to more invocations and higher grades as she attains levels. At any level when a dragonfire adept learns a new invocation, she can also replace an invocation she already knows with another invocation of the same or lower grade. See Draconic Invocations, below, for a list of available invocations.

Unlike other spell-like abilities, draconic invocations are subject to arcane spell failure chance as described under Weapon and Armor Proficiency, above.

Breath Weapon (Su): At 1st level, you gain a breath weapon that you can use at will as a standard action. Each time you use your breath weapon, you can choose whether it takes the form of a 15-foot cone or a 30-loot line. This breath weapon deals 1d6 points of fire damage; a successful Reflex save (DC 10 + ½ your class level + your Con modifier) halves the damage. As you gain levels, your breath weapon’s damage increases, as shown on the Dragonfire Adept table.

You are immune to the effect of your own breath weapon (but not to other breath weapons that produce similar effects, even those of other dragonfire adepts).

At 10th level, your cone-shaped breath weapon’s range doubles to 30 feet, and your line-shaped breath weapon’s range doubles to 60 feet.

Breath Effect: At 2nd, 5th, 10th. 12th, 15th, and 20th level, you can select one of the breath effects in the Dragonfire Adept Breath Effects table for which you meet the minimum level prerequisite. These breath effects can alter your breath weapons damage type or area, or apply a condition to targets in place of damage. Each time you use your breath weapon, you can choose to apply any one breath effect that you know. The chosen effect either replaces the normal fire damage dealt by your breath weapon or replaces the standard area of your breath weapon. Some effects can be applied only to a cone-shaped breath weapon, and others only to a line-shaped breath weapon. You can’t apply more than one breath effect to your breath weapon unless the effect specifically states otherwise. Also, you can’t apply the same breath effect to your breath weapon in two consecutive rounds (though you still can use your normal fire breath weapon every round).

Table: Dragonfire Adept Breath Effects
Minimum Level	Breath Effect	Benefit
2nd	Frost Breath	Cone-shaped breath weapon deals cold damage
2nd	Lightning Breath	Line-shaped breath weapon deals electricity damage
2nd	Sickening Breath	Cone-shaped breath weapon sickens creatures
5th	Acid Breath	Breath weapon deals acid damage
5th	Shaped Breath	Create safe zones in your breath weapon’s area
5th	Slow Breath	Cone-shaped breath weapon slows creatures
5th	Weakening Breath	Cone-shaped breath weapon imposes −6 penalty to Strength
10th	Cloud Breath	Breath weapon can take form of 20-foot radius cloud
10th	Enduring Breath	Breath weapon deals damage over 2 rounds
10th	Sleep Breath	Cone-shaped breath weapon puts weak creatures to sleep
10th	Thunder Breath	Cone-shaped breath weapon deals sonic damage
15th	Discorporating Breath of Bahamut	Line-shaped breath weapon deals double damage, disintegrates creatures
15th	Force Breath	Line-shaped breath weapon deals force damage
15th	Paralyzing Breath	Cone-shaped breath weapon paralyzes creatures for 1 round
15th	Fivefold Breath of Tiamat	Breathe five different breath weapons simultaneously

Scales (Ex): At 2nd level, your skin becomes thick and scaly, granting you a +2 bonus to your natural armor. The scales can be of any color or metallic hue; they are often (but not always) of a draconic hue that matches your outlook and alignment. This bonus improves to +3 at 8th level, to +4 at 13th level, and to +5 at 18th level. If you already have a natural armor bonus, use the higher of the two values.

Dragonkin (Ex): At 4th level, you gain a +4 competence bonus on Diplomacy checks made to influence the attitude of dragons or creatures of the dragonblood subtype. You are treated as a dragon for the purpose of determining whether frightful presence can affect you.

Damage Reduction (Ex): At 6th level, you gain damage reduction 2/magic. At 16th level, this improves to damage reduction 5/magic.

Draconic Invocations

Each draconic invocation falls into one of four grades: least, lesser, greater, or dark. These invocations are briefly described below and are hyperlinked to full descriptions later in this section.

Least Invocations

Aquatic Adaptation: Breathe and use breath weapon underwater; gain swim speed.

Scalding Gust: Use gust of wind as the spell; any creature in area takes fire damage equal to your level.

Lesser Invocations

Draconic Flight: Sprout wings and fly at good maneuverability; fly longer overland.

Greater Invocations

Baleful Geas: A single creature becomes your servant, but slowly sickens and dies.

Devour Magic: Use targeted greater dispel magic with a touch and gain temporary hit points based on the level of the spell successfully dispelled.

Wingstorm: Create powerful gusts of wind with your invocation-granted wings.

Dark Invocations

Draconic Flight, Greater: Sprout wings and fly at perfect maneuverability; gain overland speed.

Energy Immunity: Gain immunity to acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic damage.

Perilous Veil: Use veil as the spell; anyone succeeding on Will save to negate the illusion takes damage.

Playing a Dragonfire Adept

You are a student of what is arguably the oldest and most powerful force any mortal can manipulate⁠—the fiery breath of dragons. Remember the nobility and grace of the forces you seek to understand, and act in all ways as you would expect a dragon to act. You are fierce as a friend, terrible as a foe, and confident in all actions. You see the value of treasure, but refuse to be defined or slowed down by what you own. The only improvement worth your time is self-improvement, and you take any opportunity to test yourself against the challenges of the world. You are steadfast in your goals, never allowing your quest for dragonlike powers to eclipse what you want to do with those powers. Your goals are both simple and grand, requiring years or even a lifetime of work⁠—eliminating one entire race of foes, ruling your own kingdom, founding your own school or community, righting an ancient wrong, being acknowledged by true dragons as one of their kind, and so on. Nothing less is worthy of your time.

Religion

Most likely, you don’t pay much attention to religion, focusing more on dragons than deities. If you do have religious tendencies, you’re drawn to the same gods as sorcerers: Wee Jas, Vecna, and Boccob. Dragon deities, including Bahamut and Tiamat, are also popular choices, and you’re willing to worship them even in lands where few others do so.

Other Classes

You value study, discipline, and raw power. You get along well with spellcasters of all kinds, especially bards and druids, whom you see as delving into the essence of music or nature much as you delve into the essence of breath weapons. You’re similarly impressed with the skill shown by monks and fighters, who have devoted themselves to mastering styles of combat and self-improvement. In fact, you’re tolerant of all classes, as long as members of those classes show you respect and have compatible alignments.

Combat

You are best served by hitting your foes first and keeping your distance from them. More resilient than a sorcerer, you still lack the defensive power of spellcasters or the armor of fighters, making you vulnerable (especially in melee). However, you need not move close to a foe to deal damage, and you can often catch multiple targets in a breath weapon attack. You are a heavy hitter in your party, but you depend on allies to keep foes from closing with you or focusing on you with ranged attacks.

As you advance, you are well served to invest in breath effects and invocations that have an effect other than dealing damage. If you can’t drop a foe in one or two attacks, you can use Sickening Breath, Slow Breath, the frightful presence invocation, or the like to make your opponent less dangerous in a prolonged fight.

Advancement

You have spent your life trying to learn the secrets of a race older and more powerful than your own. This interest in dragons is more than academic⁠—it has been the motivating force for years of difficult study, practice, and experimentation. Perhaps a dragon’s breath weapon once destroyed your home or killed a loved one. and you vowed to gain control of the power that ruined your life. Or perhaps a good dragon used its breath weapon to eliminate an entire horde that otherwise would have raided your homeland. Whatever the case, since the day you first set foot on this path, you’ve worked to master a magic that is more primal than spells and more likely to provide defense than training with shields and armor.

The invocations you choose strongly shape your abilities. You are heavily invested in combat prowess as a result of the confrontational nature of breath weapons, but you have some flexibility in how you develop your power. If you choose only offensive invocations, you will have few defenses and limited versatility beyond combat, but you’ll be devastating even in situations when your breath weapon is not a strong tactical choice. If you focus on other invocations, you will have more options outside a fight, but you might have only area attacks that could accidentally hurt a friend, or you might lack the elemental damage type needed to harm a particular foe.

Human Dragonfire Adept Starting Package

Weapons: Morningstar (1d8, crit ×2, 6 lb., one-handed, bludgeoning and piercing).

Skill	Ranks	Ability	Armor Check Penalty
Appraise	4	Int	—
Bluff	4	Cha	—
Diplomacy	4	Cha	—
Intimidate	4	Cha	—
Knowledge (arcana)	4	Int	—
Knowledge (nature)	4	Int	—
Knowledge (the planes)	4	Int	—
Knowledge (religion)	4	Int	—
Spot	4	Wis	—

Gear: Backpack with waterskin, one day’s trail rations, bedroll, sack, flint and steel, quiver with 20 bolts, hooded lantern, 3 pints of oil.

Dragonfire Adepts in the World

“Tatiana is effective, devoted, and loyal, but she’s disturbing. Dedicating yourself wholeheartedly to becoming something better, that I understand. Dedicating yourself to becoming something inhuman⁠—that I don’t.”

Dragonfire adepts allow players to take the roles of dragons without eclipsing other characters. A dragonfire adept can serve as a wise sage, a heavy-hitting source of mystic damage, or a crafty ally who confuses and weakens foes with invocations and breath effects. Though its primary abilities are based on familiar game mechanics, this class gives players new options without making other classes obsolete. It also brings dragons to the fore in a campaign, which gives players and Dungeon Masters alike new opportunities.

Daily Life

Dragonfire adepts divide their time between practicing the power of their breath weapon, undertaking study of their arcane invocations, and working to build a strong base of allies and friends. Good-aligned dragonfire adepts defend the weak and frightened, bringing the power of dragons to the aid of those in need. Evil dragonfire adepts chase after more treasure and more power, not caring who they harm in the process. Dragonfire adepts of all alignments remain alert for new sources of draconic lore and investigate likely leads or promising instructors.

Notables

Dragonfire adepts know they are constantly struggling to become more like a race other than their own, and they revere figures in history who accomplished this to an amazing degree. Among these notables, dragonfire adepts most commonly speak of Gannon Darkheart and Vorelei Frilltips. Both rose to master the draconic arts so perfectly that they were accepted by true dragons as equals, though not without trials and setbacks.

Gannon was a human of draconic heritage, the blood of black dragons having mixed into his family generations earlier. Though born into the noble life, his avarice and wild temper made him an outcast, and he sought to become more dragonlike to punish his community for spurning him. He had no concern for good or evil and willingly allied with any creature that could help him accomplish his goal. Though not actively evil, Gannon could not be trusted to keep his word or honor any deal or agreement he struck. He focused on the most damaging invocations and breath effects, charging heedlessly into battle under the assumption that he could kill any foe before it had a chance to seriously harm him. Gannon earned his place beside true dragons after defeating the gold dragon Aghutyr in single combat and taking its lair as his own. He established a small kingdom from Aghutyr’s tower, slowly changing the surrounding territory into a dread marsh.

By contrast, Vorelei Frilltips began life poor and homeless on the streets of a large elf city, but she had an innate sense of fair play and concern for those in trouble. Her bravery drew the attention of Gaulirden, a silver dragon living incognito in the city. Gaulirden took her under his wing and raised her with his older children. Constantly surrounded by dragons. Vorelei learned their ways and assumed their powers as a means of helping the less fortunate. She was responsible for destroying the Circle of Fire, a vile school for evil wizards, and she gave her life defending a town from a blackguard’s army long enough for the innocent to escape. After she fell, a council of good dragons buried her as one of their own, granting her in death an honor she never asked for in life.

If dragonfire adepts are a new element of your campaign, the stories of these notables might refer to legends from the ancient past or tales of dragonfire adepts on other worlds. They could also exist as allegories⁠—stories of fictional figures that all dragonfire adepts use to explore their philosophies and beliefs.

NPC Reactions

The reactions dragonfire adepts receive from communities are directly tied to how those cultures regard dragons and those who wish to emulate them. Residents who have suffered under the ravages of evil dragons are often fearful of⁠—or hostile to⁠—anyone who walks into town and lights a fireplace with a breath weapon, no matter her alignment. In places where dragons are seen as defenders, or at least neutral sages, dragonfire adepts are more likely to be received as great manipulators of magic similar to sorcerers. Kingdoms in which dragonfire adepts are common are often more savvy in their dealings with the class.

Races: Dwarves are extremely suspicious of dragonfire adepts, viewing them as two-legged versions of the greedy, treasure-loving monsters that often raid their settlements. They are especially doubtful of dwarf dragonfire adepts, who are seen as traitors to their own race.

Other Classes: Sorcerers are drawn strongly to dragonfire adepts because the two classes share a primal link to dragonkind. Monks, however, are often puzzled, branding dragonfire adepts as fools who seek to become something that is at best freakish and at worst monstrous.

Dragonfire Adept Lore

Characters with ranks in Knowledge (arcana) can research dragonfire adepts to learn more about them. When a character makes a skill check, read or paraphrase the following, including the information from lower DCs.

DC 10: Dragonfire adepts are manipulators of arcane power who focus on breath weapon abilities.

DC 15: Dragonfire adepts access draconic magic not through the mystic spells of sorcerers but through invocations that give them dragonlike power. Despite this strong connection to magic, they are not spellcasters.

DC 20: Dragonfire adepts can do things with breath weapons that even dragons can’t match, allowing them to harm, hamper, or demoralize foes with a range of line and cone effects.

Dragonfire Adepts in the Game

As bottomless sources of arcane damage, dragonfire adepts serve roles similar to those of sorcerers and fighters, though they duplicate the abilities of neither. They also contribute to overall party support, as do bards and clerics, though this is not their primary role. The class should suit players who dislike the bookkeeping that comes with spellcasters but still want to experiment with arcane options and work with other characters to bring down particularly formidable foes.

Though the dragonfire adept class is not more powerful than other standard classes, it allows characters to forge a close connection to one of the most popular elements of the game⁠—dragons. Even if a dragonfire adept never faces other draconic foes, the player gets to call on dragonlike abilities often enough to feel important and special. The DM should make sure that NPCs occasionally react to a character who commands the breath weapon of a dragon with the respect and awe the player is likely to expect.

Generally, dragonfire adepts act similarly to dragons of the same alignment, but they often display the concerns and biases of their own race as well. An elf dragonfire adept can be found defending the forest home of his ancestors, or a half-orc dragonfire adept leading a raiding party into human territories. Rather than devote their lives purely to the draconic, they add their desire to prove their dragonlike nature on top of more typical concerns.

Adaptation

With some work, it’s possible to link dragonfire adepts to other powerful mythic creatures instead. Any beast with a breath weapon and a tie to arcane magic can replace the dragon, allowing for winter wolf adepts or similar variants. The class can also be adapted to elemental powers, making them closely related to genies or elemental outsiders.

Sample Encounter

Dragonfire adept NPCs can take the place of fighters or true dragons in any encounter. At first, the player characters should know them only as leaders and commanders, not rank-and-file flunkies or hirelings. If the class becomes more commonplace in the campaign, the DM can begin adding them to the background of larger groups.

EL5: Tatiana Flameworthy is a devoted champion of the weak and downtrodden who actively pursues evildoers. A strong believer in vengeance, she is tracking a band of marauding raiders who pose as adventurers. In this quest, she comes upon the PCs, whom she suspects of being the criminals she seeks. Knowing that she is a better bluffer and diplomat than a judge of character, she tries to draw the PCs into a discussion of their goals and recent activities. If they convince her of their innocence, she asks their aid in hunting down the group responsible for the crimes.

Female human dragonfire adept 5

LG Medium humanoid (human, dragonblood)

Init +1; Senses darkvision 60 feet, see invisibility, Listen +2, Spot +10

Languages Common, Draconic

AC 15 (+1 Dex, +2 natural, +2 bracers), touch 11, flat-footed 14

hp 38 (5 HD)

Fort +8, Ref +3, Will +5; +1 against paralysis and sleep effects

Speed 30 ft. (6 squares)

Melee mwk morningstar +2 (1d8+1)

Base Atk +2; Grp +3

Special Actions breath weapon

Invocations Known (CL 5th):
Least (at will)⁠—beguiling influence (bonuses already added to skills), see the unseen

Breath Effects Known (CL 5th):
Lightning Breath, Weakening Breath

Abilities Str 13, Dex 12, Con 16, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 14

Feats Draconic Aura, Dragonfire Assault, Dragontouched, Power Attack

Skills Bluff +16, Concentration +11, Diplomacy +8*, Intimidate +12, Knowledge (arcana) +7, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +3, Listen +2, Search +3, Sense Motive +6, Spot +10, Use Magic Device +10

* Tatiana has a +4 competence bonus on Diplomacy checks made to influence the attitude of dragons or creatures of the dragonblood subtype.

Possessions masterwork morningstar, bracers of armor +2, cloak of resistance +1, wand of cure light wounds (50 charges)

Breath Weapon (Su) At will; 30-foot line or 15-foot cone, 3d6 fire damage, DC 15 Reflex half; or 30-foot line, 3d6 electricity damage, DC 15 Reflex half (Lightning Breath); or 15-foot cone, −6 penalty to Strength for 4 rounds, DC 15 Fortitude reduces duration to 2 rounds (Weakening Breath). Tatiana cannot use her Lightning Breath or Weakening Breath in 2 consecutive rounds, though she can continue to use her standard breath weapon.

Dragonkin (Ex) In addition to her Diplomacy skill bonus, Tatiana is treated as a dragon for the purpose of determining whether frightful presence can affect her.

Dragonfire Adept Breath Effects

The breath effects available to dragonfire adepts are described below. Each description starts with the minimum level at which the breath effect can be selected.

Acid Breath

Cloud Breath

Your breath weapon takes the form of a 20-foot-radius spread, centered on you. You can choose to apply any one other breath effect that you know to the same breath weapon, as long as it can be applied to a cone-shaped breath weapon. For example, you could create a cloud of cold (with Frost Breath) or sleep (with Sleep Breath), but not a cloud of lightning or force.

Discorporating Breath of Bahamut

Your breath weapon loses its normal energy type and becomes a blue-white line of pure energy. This breath effect doubles the number of dice of damage normally dealt by your breath weapon (for example, from 7d6 to 14d6). In addition, any creature that is reduced to 0 or fewer hit points by the breath weapon is disintegrated (as the disintegrate spell). A successful Fortitude save halves the damage dealt. Unlike disintegrate, this breath effect has no effect on objects, even those made of force.

When you use Discorporating Breath of Bahamut, you also take a number of points of damage equal to twice your class level, which can’t be lessened by damage reduction or any similar benefit. A non-good dragonfire adept instead takes damage equal to four times her class level.

You can apply this breath effect only to a line-shaped breath weapon. You must have a non-evil alignment to learn or use this invocation.

Enduring Breath

Your breath weapon deals damage over 2 consecutive rounds. When you use Enduring Breath, the target takes the normal amount of damage from your breath weapon. In the next round, the same target takes half that amount of damage. For example, a creature that takes 22 points of damage from your breath weapon’s initial use takes 11 more points of damage in the next round. A creature that takes no damage from the initial use (whether because of evasion, resistance, immunity, or any other reason) also takes no damage in the next round. No save is allowed against this damage.

Fivefold Breath of Tiamat

As a full-round action, you create five different breath weapons simultaneously: a cone of acid, a cone of cold, a cone of fire, a line of acid, and a line of electricity. Each breath weapon deals damage equal to your normal breath weapon damage, and each one allows a Reflex save to halve the damage dealt.

When you use this breath effect, you also take a number of points of damage equal to twice your class level, which can’t be lessened by damage reduction or any similar benefit. A non-evil dragonfire adept instead takes damage equal to four times her class level. In addition, you can’t use any breath weapon in the round following the one in which you apply this breath effect.

Force Breath

Your breath weapon becomes a force effect. Its damage has no energy type, but it affects incorporeal creatures normally.

Frost Breath

Lightning Breath

Paralyzing Breath

Rather than dealing damage, your breath weapon paralyzes all creatures in its area for 1 round. A successful Fortitude save negates this effect.

Shaped Breath

You can choose to leave up to 4 squares within the area of your breath weapon unaffected by the breath weapon. Effectively, you create one or more small “safe zones” within the area of your breath weapon (typically to prevent it from affecting allies). These unaffected squares need not be adjacent to one another.

You can choose to apply any one other breath effect that you know to the same breath weapon.

Sickening Breath

Rather than dealing damage, your breath weapon sickens all creatures in its area for 2 rounds. A successful Fortitude save reduces the duration to 1 round.

Sleep Breath

Rather than dealing damage, your breath weapon puts all living creatures in its area to sleep for 1 round. Any creature that makes a successful Will save is instead exhausted for 1 round. Any creature whose Hit Dice exceeds your class level is unaffected by this breath weapon.

Slow Breath

Rather than dealing damage, your breath weapon slows all creatures in its area for 2 rounds. A successful Fortitude save reduces the duration to 1 round. A slowed creature can take a single move action or standard action each turn, but not both (nor can it take full-round actions). Additionally, it takes a −1 penalty to its Armor Class and on its attack rolls and Reflex saves. A slowed creature moves at half its normal speed (round down to the next 5-toot increment), which affects the creature’s jumping distance as normal for decreased speed. Multiple uses of this breath effect on the same creature don’t stack; use only the longer duration. Slow Breath suppresses any haste effect on creatures in its area for the duration of the slow effect.

Thunder Breath

Your breath weapon deals sonic damage instead of fire damage. A successful Fortitude save halves the damage. You can apply this breath effect only to a cone-shaped breath weapon.

Weakening Breath

Rather than dealing damage, your breath weapon imposes a −6 penalty to the Strength scores of all creatures in the area for 4 rounds. A successful Fortitude save reduces the duration to 2 rounds.

Draconic Invocation Descriptions

Aquatic Adaptation

When you use this invocation, you gain the ability to breathe underwater. You also gain a swim speed equal to your base land speed. Your breath weapon functions normally underwater regardless of its effect. The invocation’s effect lasts 24 hours.

Aura of Flame

You become wreathed in an aura of orange fire, which gives off light equivalent to a torch. Any creature striking you with a natural weapon or a nonreach melee weapon takes a number of points of fire damage equal to your caster level. If the attacker has spell resistance, it applies to this effect.

Baleful Geas

You place a magical command on a living creature to carry out a service or to refrain from an action or course of activity, as you desire. The creature’s Hit Dice must be no more than your class level. Twenty-four hours after the target becomes affected by this invocation, it takes 1d4 points of Strength damage; this damage repeats every 24 hours thereafter. If the target’s Strength is reduced to 0, the invocation immediately ends. Creatures immune to Strength damage instead take 2d4 points of damage every 24 hours.

Beguiling Influence

You can invoke this ability to beguile and bewitch your foes. You gain a +6 bonus on Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks for 24 hours.

Breath of the Night

A misty cloud of fog spreads in a 20-foot radius around you, as the spell fog cloud. The fog does not block line of sight, but all creatures in the fog have concealment. A moderate wind or any fire larger than a torch immediately disperses the fog. Otherwise, the fog disperses on its own after 1 minute.

Charm

You can beguile a creature within 60 feet. The creature must succeed on a Will save or instantly regard you as its comrade. This is a language-dependent ability. Other than these differences, this ability works as the charm monster spell. You can never have more than one target charmed at a time with this ability. If a second creature is charmed, you lose your hold on the first creature.

Chilling Fog

You create a cold magical fog, as the solid fog spell. Each creature within the area takes 2d6 points of cold damage at the start of its turn. You can have only one chilling fog in place at a time; creating a second chilling fog automatically dismisses any chilling fog you previously created.

Darkness

Deafening Roar

You utter a loud roar that fills a 30-foot cone. All creatures within this area that fail a Fortitude save become deafened for 1 hour.

Devour Magic

You can deliver a targeted greater dispel magic with your touch, gaining 5 temporary hit points for each spell level dispelled. For example, if you successfully dispel a wall of ice, you gain 20 temporary hit points. These temporary hit points fade after 1 minute and do not stack with other temporary hit points. It you devour a new spell, you can replace the old temporary hit points with the hit points gained from the more recent spell, thus resetting the duration. You cannot devour your own invocations.

Draconic Flight

When you use this invocation, you sprout spectral wings resembling those of a dragon. You can fly at a speed equal to your land speed with good maneuverability for 24 hours. Your wings allow you to cover overland distances with great endurance; you gain a +4 bonus on Constitution checks made to avoid nonlethal damage from a forced march.

Draconic Flight, Greater

As draconic flight, except that your fly speed is 30 feet faster than your land speed, and your maneuverability is perfect.

Draconic Knowledge

This invocation gives you access to the great ancestral memories of dragonkind. You gain a +6 bonus on Knowledge and Spellcraft checks for a period of 24 hours, and such checks are treated as though you are trained even if you have no ranks in the skill.

Draconic Toughness

You gain temporary hit points equal to your caster level. These hit points last for 24 hours or until you use the invocation again (in which case any remaining temporary hit points are replaced by the new value).

Endure Exposure

With a touch, you grant a creature (or yourself) the ability to withstand hot or cold environments as if affected by the endure elements spell. In addition, the target is immune to any effects of your breath weapon. This invocation’s effect lasts for 24 hours.

Energy Immunity

You gain immunity to acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic damage for 24 hours. Choose the energy type when you use the invocation. If you use this invocation again while the first duration is still active, the new immunity replaces the old one.

Energy Resistance

You gain resistance 10 to acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic damage for 24 hours. Choose the energy type when you use the invocation, if you use this invocation again while the first duration is still active, the new resistance replaces the old one.

Enthralling Voice

Your speech causes all enemies within a 40-toot radius of you who fail a Will save to become fascinated. To be affected, targets must have Hit Dice equal to or less than your caster level and must be able to hear you, but you need not share a common language. Affected targets remain fascinated for as long as you continue to speak and concentrate on the effect (up to a maximum of 1 round per level), plus 5 rounds thereafter.

Even after the effect ends, any creature that failed its Will save regards you in a better light than it did previously. Irs attitude to you is adjusted one step toward friendly (see Influencing NPC Altitudes) for the next 24 hours. Multiple uses of this invocation do not further adjust the attitude.

Frightful Presence

In any round in which you attack or use your breath weapon, you can use this invocation as a swift action. Any enemies within 30 feet of you who fail a Will save become shaken for 10 minutes. This is a mind-affecting fear effect. Dragons and other creatures immune to the frightful presence of dragons are likewise immune to this invocation.

Humanoid Shape

You can assume any humanoid form, as the change shape special ability. You can remain in the form for up to 24 hours or until you take a standard action to assume a new form or return to your natural form.

Instill Vulnerability

You imbue a single creature within 30 feet with vulnerability to a particular type of energy (acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic). A successful Fortitude save negates the effect; creatures that have immunity to the chosen energy type automatically succeed on the saving throw to resist this effect.

The vulnerability lasts for 24 hours or until you use the invocation on the creature a second time, in which case the first effect ends and the new vulnerability and duration take effect.

Magic Insight

You can use detect magic as the spell. While the invocation is active, you can end the effect as a full-round action to determine all properties of a single touched item (as the identify spell, but with no components required).

Perilous Veil

You instantly change the appearance of one or more subjects, as the veil spell. Any creature that succeeds on a Will save to disbelieve (and thus see through) the glamer takes 5d6 points of damage. Spell resistance applies against this secondary effect.

Scalding Gust

You create a strong blast of wind (as the gust of wind spell, except that the duration is instantaneous). Any creature within the effect takes 1 point of fire damage per caster level, regardless of whether it succeeds on the Fortitude save to avoid the gust.

See the Unseen

You grant yourself great powers of vision, allowing you to see invisible creatures and objects, as the see invisibility spell. You also gain darkvision out to 60 feet for 24 hours.

Terrifying Roar

You utter a powerful roar that fills a 30-foot cone. All creatures within the area whose Hit Dice are equal to or less than your caster level become panicked for 1 round. Any creature that succeeds on a Will save is shaken for 1 round instead, during which time it cannot make a melee or ranged attack against you, nor target you with a spell or other effect.

Voidsense

You sharpen your hearing and sight, gaining blindsense out to 30 feet for 24 hours.

Voracious Dispelling

You can use dispel magic as the spell. Any creature with an active spell effect dispelled by this invocation takes 1 point of damage per level of the spell effect (no save).

Walk Unseen

You gain the ability to fade from view. You can use invisibility (self only) as the spell, except that the duration is 24 hours.

Wingstorm

Your spectral wings create a storm of winds around you, pushing away and knocking down nearby creatures. All creatures within 20 feet of you are pushed away until they are at least 25 feet away and then knocked prone. A successful Fortitude save negates the effect; creatures more than one size category larger than you are immune. If an affected creature encounters an obstacle (such as a wall or another creature), both it and the obstacle each take 2d6 points of damage (as if they had fallen 20 feet).

Dragonfire Adepts and Prestige Classes

Dragonfire adepts benefit in a specific way from prestige classes that have a level advancement benefit of “+1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class” or “+1 level of existing spellcasting class”. A dragonfire adept taking levels in such a prestige class does not gain any other benefits of that level increase, but she does gain an increased caster level when using her invoca tions and increased damage with her breath weapon. Levels of prestige classes that provide +1 level of spellcasting effectively stack with the dragonfire adept’s level to determine her breath weapon damage and save DC. She also gains new invocations at each prestige class level as though she had risen a level in the dragonfire adept class.

A dragonfire adept cannot qualify for prestige classes (or other game options) with spellcasting level requirements, because she never actually learns to cast spells. However, prestige classes with caster level requirements are allowed⁠—her caster level for her invocations fulfills this requirement. Her spell-like abilities do meet requirements for specific spell knowledge if they mimic the required spell.