Dracotaur

In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the dracotaur is a dragon. They are sort of a dragon-centaur, having the upper body of a reptilian humanoid and the lower body of a dragon. They are nomadic hunter-warriors who practice sorcery and occasionally serve true dragons.

Dracotaurs are usually neutral evil or chaotic evil in alignment. They appeared in the Monster Manual III.

Physical Description
Dracotaurs are large creature which have the upper torso of a muscular reptilian humanoid, and the lower, quadrupedal body of a wingless dragon. Their eyes are black, their feet large and clawed, and their sharp teeth glisten. Dracotaurs are sly, merciless predators incapable of showing compassion and expecting none in return. Hard scales that vary in color from green to brown cover a dracotaur from head to tail. Males have ornate cresting on their heads, throats, and chests ranging from bright red to deep purple. A dracotaur's four-foot-long tail, although used primarily for balance, ends in wicked spikes that can be brought to bear in battle.

Dracotaurs excrete body oil that helps keep their scales and leather armor supple. They typically wield sharp spears.

An adult dracotaur stands seven feet tall and measures ten feet long, weighing about two thousand pounds.

Society
Dracotaurs gather in small, nomadic tribes. Dracotaurs respect power above all, and they measure power in terms of raw strength and arcane magical ability. Their leaders are usually mighty warriors, sorcerers, or both.

Although dracotaur tribes occasionally fight over land, rival tribes quickly band together when faced with a common outside threat. Dracotaurs will also ally with other reptilian creatures, including lizardfolk and nagas. Although they are not devout creatures, dracotaurs see true dragons as powerful embodiments of the ancient gods and will give their lives in the service of such creatures. Much of the race's arcane knowledge comes from the ancient teachings of the true dragons.

Dracotaurs rarely stay in any one place long enough to warrant the building of permanent settlements. However, tribes will often lay claim to ancient ruins and use them as sanctuaries, training grounds, or neutral meeting places.

Dracotaurs and centaurs despise one another, and many a dracotaur warrior dreams of devouring the flesh of a fallen centaur foe.

The favored class of the Dracotaur is the sorcerer. Dracotaur barbarians, fighters, and rangers are also common. Dracotaurs are not overly religious, with clerics of them being rare. If not, however, Dracotaurs worship Tiamat.

Dracotaurs speak Draconic.

Combat
Dracotaurs overwhelm their foes quickly using ambushes and flanking tactics. Cold, calculating creatures, dracotaurs usually announce their presence by spitting gouts of fire at their foes and then charge forward with their spears. In the unfolding conflict, a dracotaur relies on its brute strength and multiple attacks to win the day.

Dracotaurs can spit a glob of fire as a standard action. Once a dracotaur spits, it cannot spit again for one minute. The dracotaur's spittle is a sticky adhesive substance that ignites when exposed to air, much like alchemist's fire.

Dracotaur Ragers
The most feared warriors in a dracotaur tribe are often barbarians who use their brute strength and ferocity to claim power. These such warriors are known as dracotaur ragers.

Twice per day a dracotaur rager can go into a state of rage which increases the potency of many of their fighting aspects.

Dracotaur ragers can also sense traps more than others can and react to danger before their senses would normally allow them to do so.