D&D 5E What can a dragon do to accelerate its aging?

[Urriak Uruk]

Hi! So I'm curious about making a specific dragon a recurring enemy, but I want her to grow stronger as the party does.

Of course, dragons do have several stages of life, but they grow slowly with age; the difference between a "young" dragon and "adult" dragon can be decades, and the difference between adult and ancient can be hundred of years.

So my question is... what can a dragon do if it decides to accelerate its own aging, in an effort to defeat troublesome adventurers?

The idea is that this young dragon failed to defeat the heroes within it's own lair, and although escaped, sees no other recourse but to "hit puberty quick!"

The dragon does have some humanoid assistance in local followers, including lizardfolk, ogres and bullywugs. What I want suggestions for are things like specific spells, rituals, items or patrons that the dragon would seek out to accelerate its aging.

If you can, point to a source in a D&D book where this has happened (I'm sure it has somewhere). But if you've got a great idea, I'd love to hear it!

EDIT: It's a black dragon, starting this as young.

 

[Krachek]

Smoking, eat junk food, watch tv, it’s accelerate aging, at least for human.

 

[Bitbrain]

Make friends with a sphinx?

Have it find an ancient artifact that lets it enter a Demi Plane inhabited by unique creatures, but more importantly have time move faster in there, and then have it exit when it feels old and strong enough?

 

[Prakriti]

High Magic.

Magic ritual.

Eating (and absorbing) magic items.

Chosen of Tiamat.

Made a deal with an Archfiend.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

Make friends with a sphinx?

Have it find an ancient artifact that lets it enter a Demi Plane inhabited by unique creatures, but more importantly have time move faster in there, and then have it exit when it feels old and strong enough?

Well, I'm not sure this dragon is willing to be friends... but I do think she's likely to try and force a sphinx to help her.

I think she could probably get her allies to summon, and imprison a sphinx for her to force her to do her bidding. Or maybe use Charm Monster repeatedly on the Sphinx to trick it into using the aging magic.

 

[The Crimson Binome]

I once heard that a dragon's power was directly tied to the size of its hoard. Something about magical resonance or something. Once it gains sufficient wealth, it necessarily must grow to protect that wealth.

If I wanted to model a dragon taking the party as its sworn enemy, I would say that it retains its original age category, but gains levels in "dragon" the same way as a human would gain levels in fighter or sorcerer. It wouldn't get any bigger or (much) stronger, but it would learn how to take a hit better, and become more proficient at using what it has.

 

[darjr]

It can DIE!!!

then become the most precious wonderful thing in the whole of the planes, a Draconic!

 

[Oofta]

Ignore the age category and just make the dragon as powerful as you think it should be is one option. Just hand-wave it as magic that's dramatically shortening the dragon's life and potentially making it more unstable.

Another is to have it go to a different plane of existence where time moves differently. Rip Van Winkle the dragon by sending it to the feywild.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

Ignore the age category and just make the dragon as powerful as you think it should be is one option. Just hand-wave it as magic that's dramatically shortening the dragon's life and potentially making it more unstable.

Another is to have it go to a different plane of existence where time moves differently. Rip Van Winkle the dragon by sending it to the feywild.

I don't really like hand-waving things away. But I like your idea of the dragon going to another Plane of Existence; paying Tiamat a visit in the Nine Hells seems like a great way to do this quick and easy.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

A easy way for this to happen is for it to go the Feywild were time explicitly works differently, and it can spend centuries there with only days passing in the Material Plane.