Magma dragons have a reputation among other dragons for being unpredictable and brash. Their temperament and tendency for violent outbursts ensure that the typical magma dragon lives a solitary life, with hatchlings often bickering or fighting to establish dominance among themselves before they leave the nest. A magma dragon always has a reason for their outbursts and can always justify their sudden turns in mood, yet they rarely feel the need to do so. Magma dragons build lairs within volcanically active mountains or deep underground amid vast lakes of bubbling magma. As with all true dragons, magma dragons keep hoards of treasure, but the nature of their searing lairs limits the type of valuables they collect to metals, gems, and items capable of resisting the heat of a volcano's core.
Recall Knowledge - Dragon (Arcana): DC 33
Recall Knowledge - Elemental (Arcana, Nature): DC 33
Unspecific Lore: DC 31
Specific Lore: DC 28
Elite | Normal | Weak
Proficiency without Level
Legacy Content
UncommonCNHugeDragonElementalFireSource Bestiary 2 pg. 94 2.0, Pathfinder #148: Fires of the Haunted City pg. 80
Perception +23; darkvision, scent (imprecise) 60 feet
Languages Common, Draconic, Ignan, Terran
Skills Acrobatics +21, Athletics +27, Deception +19, Intimidation +25, Nature +21, Stealth +21, Survival +23
Str +8, Dex +2, Con +5, Int +2, Wis +4, Cha +4AC 34; Fort +26, Ref +21, Will +23; +1 status to all saves vs. magic
HP 270; Immunities fire, paralyzed, sleep; Weaknesses cold 15
Frightful Presence (aura, emotion, fear, mental) 90 feet, DC 30Wing Deflection [reaction] Trigger The dragon is targeted with an attack; Effect The dragon raises a wing, gaining a +2 circ*mstance bonus to AC against the triggering attack. If the dragon is Flying, they descend 10 feet after the attack.Speed 40 feet, fly 140 feet; magma swim 40 feet
Melee [one-action] jaws +27 [+22/+17] (fire, magical, reach 15 feet), Damage 3d10+12 piercing plus 3d6 fireMelee [one-action] claw +27 [+23/+19] (agile, magical, reach 10 feet), Damage 3d10+12 slashingMelee [one-action] tail +25 [+20/+15] (magical, reach 20 feet), Damage 3d12+12 bludgeoningMelee [one-action] horns +25 [+20/+15] (magical, reach 15 feet), Damage 2d10+12 piercingPrimal Innate Spells DC 31, attack +23; 6th burning hands (at will), wall of fire (at will); Cantrips (6th) produce flame
Breath Weapon [two-actions] (evocation, fire, primal) The dragon breathes a blast of magma that deals 9d6 fire damage and 4d12 bludgeoning damage in a 40-foot cone (DC 33 basic Reflex save). They can't use Breath Weapon again for 1d4 rounds.Draconic Frenzy [two-actions] The dragon makes two claw Strikes and one horn Strike in any order.Draconic Momentum The dragon recharges their Breath Weapon whenever they score a critical hit with a Strike.Magma Swim A magma dragon's swim Speed functions only when the dragon is Swimming through magma or molten lava.Volcanic Purge [one-action] If the next action the dragon uses is Breath Weapon, the magma clings to those it damages. Each creature that fails its save against the Breath Weapon takes 4d6 persistent fire damage, and as long as it has this persistent fire damage, it also takes a –10-foot status penalty to its Speeds.
Magma Dragon Spellcasters
To make a magma dragon spellcaster, remove the dragon’s Draconic Frenzy and draconic momentum abilities and give it the following spells. You can swap out any number of these with other primal spells, provided you keep the same number of spells for each level. You might also want to increase the dragon’s Wisdom or Charisma modifier by 1 or 2 to reflect its mastery of magic. Young Magma Dragon
Primal Prepared Spells DC 28, attack +20; 4th stoneskin, wall of fire; 3rd fireball, haste, wall of wind; 2nd glitterdust, obscuring mist, restore senses; 1st air bubble, grease, pass without trace; Cantrips (5th) detect magic, electric arc, light, produce flame, read aura
Adult Magma Dragon
Primal Prepared Spells DC 33, attack +25; As young magma dragon, plus 6th chain lightning, true seeing; 5th cloudkill, prying eye; 4th solid fog; Cantrips (7th)
Ancient Magma Dragon
Primal Prepared Spells DC 42, attack +34; As adult magma dragon, plus 8th earthquake, horrid wilting, wind walk; 7th energy aegis, plane shift, volcanic eruption; 6th flesh to stone; Cantrips (9th)
All Monsters in "Dragon, Magma"
Name | Level |
Adult Magma Dragon | 13 |
Ancient Magma Dragon | 18 |
Young Magma Dragon | 9 |
Magma dragons have a reputation among other dragons for being unpredictable and brash. Their temperament and tendency for violent outbursts ensure that the typical magma dragon lives a solitary life, with hatchlings often bickering or fighting to establish dominance among themselves before they leave the nest. A magma dragon always has a reason for their outbursts and can always justify their sudden turns in mood, yet they rarely feel the need to do so.
Magma dragons build lairs within volcanically active mountains or deep underground amid vast lakes of bubbling magma. As with all true dragons, magma dragons keep hoards of treasure, but the nature of their searing lairs limits the type of valuables they collect to metals, gems, and items capable of resisting the heat of a volcano's core.
Dragon, Primal
Related Groups Dragon, Brine, Dragon, Cloud, Dragon, Crystal, Dragon, UmbralThe strange and otherworldly primal dragons hail from realities adjacent to the Material Plane—the four Elemental Planes and the Shadow Plane. These true dragons have natures and powers that exemplify their plane of origin and an affinity for primal magic, unlike chromatic and metallic dragons, who favor arcane or divine magic. Although they come from distant planes, primal dragons can be found on the Material Plane in regions touched by or reminiscent of their home plane. Although such encounters are rare, adventurers and travelers have sometimes found a brine dragon dwelling near a salty inland sea, for example, or a crystal dragon living in massive natural caverns deep in the Darklands. Unlike chromatic and metallic dragons, primal dragons tend not to develop shape-changing powers, and they are less interested in infiltrating settlements or influencing others from the shadows.
Primal Dragon Spellcasters
Each type of primal dragon features a note in the margins on spellcasting dragons of that type. To make a primal dragon spellcaster, remove the dragon’s Draconic Frenzy and Draconic Momentum abilities and give it the spells outlined in its sidebar. You can swap out any number of these with other primal spells, provided you keep the same number of spells for each level. You might also want to increase the dragon’s Wisdom or Charisma modifier by 1 or 2 to reflect their mastery of magic.Primal Dragons of Golarion
Golarion is not home to many primal dragons. Yet primal dragons do still come to Golarion now and then, whether to escape persecution in their home plane, build new lairs, torment and brutalize weaker creatures, or seek knowledge and resources that are scarce or unavailable at home.Brine dragons can be found along Golarion’s coastlines but are often frustrated by piracy and other lawless elements. They tend to avoid heavily populated coastal areas like the Shackles and instead choose remote islands in the oceans as their homes, where they can rule small communities of their own curation. Cloud dragons are even more isolated, and lacking any interest in politics, they prefer to dwell in large mountain ranges like the Kodars or the Barrier Wall. Crystal dragons’ vanity compels them to seek places that complement their natural beauty, such as gem-studded caverns in the Darklands. Of all the primal dragons, cantankerous magma dragons may be the ones most often found dwelling on Golarion, where they are drawn to volcanic ranges like the Five Kings Mountains. Umbral dragons hail not from an Elemental Plane but the Shadow Plane, and they can be encountered anywhere the borders to that plane grow thin, particularly in the sinister nation of Nidal.