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Designed by: Bryan Holmes, with Ashton Duncan, Cassandra MacDonald, E. R. F. Jordan, J. A. Valeur, Magnus Vogel, Noah Grand, Steve Fidler
Old Gnawbone. Iymrith. The Axe Mother. Daurgothoth. The Dark Lady. Tiamat. These are names (or nicknames) of ancient dragons with long, infamous histories in the Forgotten Realms, and they’re all included in Wyrms of the Realms, a large, 150+ page supplement that includes over 30 named dragons, along with unique new mythic traits and actions for even more epic battles.
Wyrms of the Realms features 33 named dragons, mostly variants of the ancient dragon statblock found in the Monster Manual, along with dozens of new, high-level boons, spells, and magic items as personalized loot drops from each entry.
We’ve got dragons who are profane cannibals, dragon pirate queens, undead dracoliches, draconic music-lovers, Underdark assassins who lead Drow rebels, ghostly librarian guardians, and one who prefers to spend her time as a famous actress and socialite in Waterdeep. Who wouldn’t?
Partially due to 5e’s relative simplicity, all the dragon statblocks are a bit too similar to one another, despite their vast differences in personality, history, and powersets. While the actual numbers of saving throws and damage can vary, all dragons have Multiattack that includes bite, claws, and Frightful Presence, and Legendary Actions that include tail and wing attacks.
It begins to feel like once you’ve faced any dragon, you’ve faced them all. That’s where Mythic actions come in.
Mythic actions are unlocked if you want to use a dragon’s Mythic trait. When a Mythic dragon is reduced to 0 hit points, it regains full hit points, gains a new Mythic trait, and unlocks new Mythic actions, which act as additional Legendary Actions.
These Mythic Actions are much more flavorful and interesting, and properly reflect each’s dragon’s unique abilities and stature.
Balagos, the Flying Flame, is a cruel, tyrannical red dragon who enjoys hunting, killing, and torturing other dragons, ripping off their wings and forcing them to guard his lair. A real asshole of a dragon.
His volcanic Lair actions include erupting magma, earthshaking tremors, and poisonous volcanic gases.
His actual statblock is a slightly over-tuned Ancient Red Dragon, but when reduced to 0 hit points (from an average of 546!) he goes Mythic, encasing himself in restorative magma that burns melee attackers. His new Mythic actions include using his fire breath and flying, casting powerful spells such as Melf’s Minute Meteors, or bursting magma from the ground (essentially gaining another use of a Lair action). Now we’re talking!
Daurgothoth is another of my favorites, an evil dracolich who lairs in a necropolis, where the very bones of the walls can reach out and attack. His awesome breath weapon spews bone-shrapnel, and raises them as zombies and skeletons. Yes!
His Mythic transformation raises another skeletal body for himself, along with two undead wyrmlings. New Mythic actions include recharging that awesome zombie-raising breath weapon, casting 3rd level spells, attacking with his paralyzing claws, or commanding the undead army around him.
It’s not just evil chromatic dragons that are given the Mythic treatment; every kind of dragon is represented here, from kindly gold dragon patrons to the Dragon Queen of Silverymoon.
Saryndalaghlothor, also known as the Axe Mother, is a crystalline dragon who has allied with a clan of dwarves in their mutual mountain home as she seeks out magical artifacts.
I’m particularly enchanted by Lady Jalanvoss, an actress and socialite in Waterdeep, whose lair is the main stage of the biggest theater in town. Her Mythic trait has her revealing her true form as a steel dragon, and she wields a unique debilitating gas breath weapon.
All of these dragons originally appeared in earlier editions of D&D, or in a series of Dragon magazine articles by Ed Greenwood — save one.
Orothdroun was another older dragon designed by Greenwood but was apparently left on the cutting room floor, and has now officially appeared in D&D for the first time. Orothdroun is a ghost dragon who can split his soul into multiple orbs of light that can occupy different spaces, and his Mythic actions include moving through creatures and activating their own magic items!
Defeating a legendary dragon is one thing. Defeating a Mythic-powered dragon is literally twice as challenging. Thankfully the supplement also includes a rich tapestry of boons, magic items, and spells as highly thematic loot for each dragon.
For defeating the dracolich Daurgothoth, you could reward the survivors the Rod of the Undead King, the Ichor of Life, and the Bonemelt spell.
In addition to increasing spell attacks and saves, the rod can be used to command any undead creature, while the Ichor restores hit points and hit dice, and can reverse reverse the effects of the Wish spell.
I’ll let you take a wild guess at what the Bonemelt spell does.
Other magic items include daggers of vicious mockery, necklaces that auto-stabilizing, cloaks of shapechanging, portable libraries, and a dimensional elevator. A literal treasure trove of high-level loot.
I’m very impressed with the magic items and how well they tie into their respective dragons, especially if those dragons use unique gear, such as Tostyn’s love of scrying orbs and crystal balls, or The Black Death’s acquisition of one half of the twin crowns of Myrmoran.
Eldenser wins the magic item competition, however. He literally becomes a sentient blade whose power level ascends to increasing levels as you obey his tenants of killing evil dragons. I love the idea of magic items with their own ongoing storylines and unlockable powers!
As someone who’s mostly unfamiliar with the wider Forgotten Realms lore beyond Fifth Edition (and a smattering of D&D video games), I loved reading the rich histories of these infamous dragons, though some are given more love and attention than others. For Forgotten Realms fans and dragon fans, this supplement is an absolute must-have, and for everyone else, it’s a great introduction to some of the Realms’ most fearsome creatures.
Pros:
- Over 30 epic dragon statblocks, with legendary actions, lair actions, and new mythic actions.
- Each dragon has a highly thematic mythic trait to enter their second stage.
- Full page artwork for every dragon.
- Notations provide further reading in older sourcebooks and issues of Dragon Magazine where the dragons first appeared.
- Over 80 new boons, mythic spells, and mythic magic items as rewarding loot.
Cons:
- Despite their varying history, personalities, and powers, most dragon statblocks are still very similar to one another.
The Verdict: Wyrms of the REalms thrusts legendary dragons from decades of Forgotten Realms lore into Fifth Edition, granting them powerful new mythic traits and actions, creating end-game statblocks worth of their infamy.
This review has been sponsored by the publisher Find more reviews on my website and YouTube channel.
Support my work by using affiliate links for shopping and pledging via Patreon.
RogueWatson 