How do i prep for a young red dragon fight in chult

[Josato]

*Spoilers for the chult adventure*





So we cleared out kraghammer of the lava newts. Next thing the dwarfs ask for is to slay the young red dragon 40 miles away in their adamantine mine. Im playing a
lvl 6 life domain cleric. All i can think of is to cast energy protection and maybe blade ward.
Any advice is appreciated. We have a Ranger, fire wizard, sorcerer and a barbarian. Possibly getting a paladin later.

[Throne12]

While half the party was Arguing about what to do about the dragon the halfling got picked up by the dragon and was about to dunk her into lava. Like a chicken nugget into BBQ sauce. Thanks to the dragonborn Suggesting it. Luckily I was paying Attention and cast ray of frost to freezes the lava be for the halfling was dunked into it.

[intermedial]

Consider avoiding it until you can gain some solid intel on the layout of the lair. The dragon might have minions, or special defenses, or environmental hazards. You also want to determine if the dragon has "choke points" in it's lair where it can easily hit the entire party with it's breath weapon, or open spaces where the dragon can keep airborne. Avoid engaging the dragon in these areas at all costs.

If your spellcasters have access to Invisibility, familiars/ animal companions/ lackeys -- you may consider using magic to scout the lair and determine exactly where the dragon lairs. Be careful doing so however as dragons have blindsight and high perception scores. If the dragon has minions, capturing and interrogating one might also provide you with more information, but be aware that may also arouse the dragon's suspicions of an imminent attack.

Fire protection is essential: the breath weapon of a young adult dragon hits about as hard as a pair of fireball spells, which can one-shot weaker characters. Use other spells such as Aid and Bless to bolster your group's defences, hit points, and saving throws.

A smart dragon will never land to engage in melee, and will instead simply strafe with their breath weapon while keeping out of reach. This will put your Barbarian at a large disadvantage. Your Fire Wizard will not be able to use their best damage-dealing spells either. The Ranger and the Sorcerer will likely be singled out as priority targets by the dragon, as they are likely your only sources of strong ranged damage.

You will want to determine if any people in your party have the means to incapacitate the dragon or knock it prone from range. This will allow you to pull the dragon out of the sky, where your barbarian (and paladin) can leverage their powerful attacks.

[Unoriginal]

*Spoilers for the chult adventure*





So we cleared out kraghammer of the lava newts. Next thing the dwarfs ask for is to slay the young red dragon 40 miles away in their adamantine mine. Im playing a
lvl 6 life domain cleric. All i can think of is to cast energy protection and maybe blade ward.
Any advice is appreciated. We have a Ranger, fire wizard, sorcerer and a barbarian. Possibly getting a paladin later.

A Dragon's biggest advantages are flying and its breath. Protect against fire, and find a way to limit their movement (like fighting in a low-ceiling cave with lots of obstacles). But remember that they're killing machines in melee, too, so the melee combatants will need help, at minimum to not get killed by the monster's focused attacks.

If the Dragon has minions, they can't be ignored.

If you fight a dragon in their lair, remember it will know it incredibly well, and that the environment is working to hinder you.

See if the Dwarves would be willing to give you a siege engine, even if it diminishes the reward. The engine isn't likely to do much damage, but at least it'll grab the dragon's attention.

A Wizard using Levitation against the Dragon can help, but it's very risky for the Wizard.

While half the party was Arguing about what to do about the dragon the halfling got picked up by the dragon and was about to dunk her into lava. Like a chicken nugget into BBQ sauce. Thanks to the dragonborn Suggesting it. Luckily I was paying Attention and cast ray of frost to freezes the lava be for the halfling was dunked into it.

Errr, Ray of Frost shouldn't have done anything to the lava. Though I get why your DM allowed it.

[Josato]

Thank you everyone for the advice. We are getting the layout from the dwarves. Will be going to town for fire resistance gear and hirlings.

[Unoriginal]

Hirelings are likely to be useless in this fight, though. Unless the dragon doesn't have fear aura yet?

[AttilatheYeon]

Bring hotdogs and marshmellows. It'll make being roasted in dragonsbreath less painful.

[Josato]

It does seem useless to bring hirelings but they could prove useful against kobolds. I was curious to see if we could convince the dragon to work with us on a buisness venture. We currently own a port, the 2nd port in chult that doesnt have the turtle dragon in its path. Was thinking to harm the other port to grasp the monopoly of the buisness for a short a while.