D&D (2024) What do people think of the new dragon designs?

[ezo]

What do people think of the new designs?

Nope, nope, nope, don't care for them at all. Shocking, I know, right?

 

[RoughCoronet0]

I’m loving the new designs personally. I also love the previous dragon designs too. I think I’m going to use the different designs to showcase different subspecies within different dragon types.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

I prefer the more traditional looks for each type of dragons. I dob't like unexplained retcons.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

So the titular monsters of Dungeons and Dragons are getting a full visual redesign! The dragons have had a consistent design since 3rd edition, so I was pretty shocked when I heard that they were being redone. However when I saw them I instantly loved them. More than ever before they feel like real flesh and blood monsters, and the design both resembles their previous iteration, while being a lot more distinctive than before.

I'm still hoping that their statblocks get redone to be worthy of both the namesake of DnD, and one of the most commonly used BBEGs in peoples campaigns. 'Big blob of health which occasionally does fire damage' isn't exactly a memorable encounter.

What do people think of the new designs?

Not a fan overall. Head shapes are weirdly pointy and much too narrow/gracile (dragons need to be powerful with grace, these faces look almost fragile). Tails, for whatever reason, have a weird thicker blob about 3/4 of the way out.

Color-wise, the two shown are fine. The bronze, IMO, should not have that color of patina, which I strongly associate with copper and not brass, but having a little patina isn't a bad idea. I like the overall wing shape of the red, the bronze isn't my taste but it isn't bad either.

So...some good ideas, but the overall execution is lacking, especially in the faces, which IMO look outright bad.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

I've always been torn on what dragons should be most based off. I've seen arguments for snakes, lizards, dinosaurs, birds, cats, and even dogs.

But I feel that monitor lizards come closest to the 'traditional western' dragon depiction. Though they're not technically snakes, they're grouped pretty closely together, and have many snake-like traits.

For my part, I think they should be one part wolf, two parts big-cat, one part snake. The depicted dragons look like two parts wolf, two parts snake, one part bear, which means none of the elements I especially look for are present. The red looks outright chubby in body.

 

[Cadence]

My aphantasia is crushing me on this one because I can't conjure up a clear image in my head of many of them. The silver one (that was released a while ago) reminds me of one of the MtG ones though. The others they've revealed seem fine to me so far.

I prefer the more traditional looks for each type of dragons. I dob't like unexplained retcons.

Have they been consistent from 1e - B/X - 2e - BECMI - 3/3.5 - 4 - 5? (Which traditional?)

 

[Corinnguard]

It's a good bet that the Dragonborn in D&D 2024 are also going to get a make over with regards to their looks. Bronze Dragonborn, for instance, are going to sport fins and the same koi-like scale pattern.

 

[Azzy]

Have they been consistent from 1e - B/X - 2e - BECMI - 3/3.5 - 4 - 5? (Which traditional?)

No. AD&D had a fairly consistent look (except for Dragonlance, which had its own distinct, but internally consistent appearance). B/X/BECMI were completely different and didn't really have a consistent design. 3e were loosely based on the AD&D designs. I have no idea about 4e. 2014 5e has iterated on the 3e designs.

 

[dave2008]

One thing I like about the new red is that it is closer (then the lockwood design) to Tolkein's vision of Smaug, see below, but to serpentine.

 

[Mind of tempest]

I like the new designs mostly because they feel like some sort of giant hellish Squamata relative.
the rest of the metallics might not do as well as metallics tend to be odd looking