Cat Dragons: The Cutest Creatures You Should Fear in D&D

There are few creatures more dangerous than a dragon, unless that dragon happens to be a cat.

Cat Dragons combine the curiosity, independence and questionable judgement of a cat with the magic and destructive potential of a dragon. They are capable of being affectionate, mischievous and genuinely dangerous, sometimes within the same five minutes. The fact that they are usually small and undeniably cute only makes their behaviour more difficult to deal with.

A Cat Dragon does not necessarily want to eat the adventurers. It may simply want their belongings. Anything shiny, unusual or interesting is likely to attract its attention. A polished sword, a wizard's collection of spell components or the rogue's favourite dagger could all become treasured additions to its hoard. The creature may have no understanding of why the adventurers are annoyed when it disappears up a chimney carrying a silver dagger in its mouth. As far as the Cat Dragon is concerned, it found something interesting, so naturally it belongs to the cat.

Their hoards can be just as peculiar. Coins and jewellery are welcome, but a Cat Dragon might value a collection of buttons, an old key, a feather, a silver spoon or a battered wooden toy just as highly. The most treasured object in the hoard may be worth almost nothing to anyone else, yet the dragon has kept it for years because it reminds it of something important.

That makes Cat Dragons excellent creatures for encounters that do not begin with combat.

The characters might be hired to investigate a series of strange thefts, only to discover a small dragon living in an abandoned tower with half the town's missing possessions piled around it. Perhaps the party finds a Cat Dragon beside their campfire and makes the mistake of feeding it. By morning, it has followed them. It has also stolen the wizard's hat.

A Cat Dragon can become an entertaining recurring NPC without ever being evil. It might decide that one particular adventurer is its favourite person and begin following the party from town to town, sleeping on their bedrolls and bringing them strange gifts that it has acquired during the night. The party may eventually realise that those gifts belonged to somebody else.

Their draconic abilities only make this behaviour more troublesome. A fire-breathing Cat Dragon might produce a puff of flame when irritated, while a lightning-breathing variety could make its fur stand on end before releasing a crackling burst of electricity. Even then, its instincts remain decidedly feline.

A Cat Dragon might completely ignore a terrifying monster because something shiny has caught its attention or decide that the middle of a dangerous fight is the perfect time to curl up in someone's lap.

That mixture of feline behaviour and draconic power is what makes Cat Dragons such useful additions to a D&D campaign. They can be a dangerous encounter, a troublesome companion, a recurring NPC or simply the creature responsible for the strangest story your players tell years later.

There is only one thing you should be careful about, never let the players name the Cat Dragon. Once they do, you will never get rid of it.