Finally revealed in Alien Archive, finally available for players, what is your opinion about the dragonkin?
For newcomers, dragonkin were Pathfinder dragon-type creatures that 1) serve as mounts, 2) could wield weapons and 3) come from another planet. In Starfinder, being extraplanetary creatures, they were showcased in Alien Archive... and are also playable.
What I dislike about them:
- LARGE!; you might have seen my opinion on this... and it stills stands. The Starfinder Core Rulebook stated that many dragonkin have resorted to DNA engineering to reduce their size in order to fit in cramped quarters and starships. However, the major technical issue is that the wording made it sounds like dragonkin would have been Medium, not "smaller in size, but still considered Large". Whether or not Starfinder is better suited for Large PCs than Pathfinder remains to be seen but still, the whole premise kinda got me confused and overhyped for nothing.
- Flight; It also refers the flavor text, but I would have thought that the DNA engineering would have weaken its wings granting it gliding capabilities instead of full flight... especially if the fly speed is 4 times slower than the regular dragonkin's. Furthermore, nerfing this ability would have given the devs some rooms to expand on other racial traits.
- Weak breath weapon; That they have one isn't much of a problem, it's just that we... have the Dragon Gland... which follows the same rule. Yeah, from a mecanic perspective I would have simply give them something similar that deals 1d6/level in damage and maybe as an Energy ranged attack instead of a cone. While I get the damage scaling, it feels a bit tacked on, especially when weapons in SF have extra dice instead of flat damage modifiers.
What I like about them:
- SF Dragonborn; it is what it is.
- Rather easy customization; I don't see how broken it would be to:
* change the breath weapon's energy damage from fire to cold, electricity, acid or sonic.
* change the appearance to match a true dragon's.
* change the glaive's energy damage from electricity to other types.
- Partner Bond; Surprisingly good adaptation for PCs.
- Dragonglaives; a doshko-like weapon that isn't unwieldy? Yes please ^_^ We do have doshkos that are more maneuvrable, but their pure energy damage might be problematic in some situations.
So, what about you?
I like them as they're presented.
Well the race entry is for Dragonkin, not for Engineered Dragonkin so it makes sense they are represented at the "pure" version of the race not the one you want.
The average terrestrial dragonkin is 15 to 20 feet long and weighs roughly 2,000 pounds, while the spacefaring variety can be as small as half that size.
Wouldn't be simplier and safer to assume that you're playing the spacefaring variety instead?
I'd also say that the breath weapon damage scaling isn't tacked on, but that it is keeping in line with the rules for natural weapons set by the Vesk. They get improved weapon specialization with thier natural weapon, just like the Vesk do. It's just their natural weapon is breathing fire not swiping claws.
Oooooooooooooh, I see :)
I'm looking forward to when they become playable in SFS.