Mercury Dragonborn

I love mercury dragons, and it is disappointing not to have Mercury Dragonborn, so here is my homebrew for them. For the most part it follows other Dargonborn but with changes that fit a Mercury Dragon's build, abilities, and temperament. This race has been published on DnD Beyond for your use there.

Mercury Dragonborn

Dragonborn that share ancestry with Mercury Dragons are incredibly rare. They are visibly different from other Dragonborn, with a lithe frame and fine, mirror-like scales that reflect even the faintest of light. When young their eyes are purple with yellow irises, which change as they mature to take on the same colour as their scales, making Mercury Dragonborn look like moving statues of liquid metal. While other Dragonborn are strong and hardy, the Mercury Dragonborn are agile creatures. With their unusual and vibrant appearance they cannot help but draw attention to themselves.

The differences are not all physical. Mercury Dragonborn share their draconic ancestor's connection to the Elemental Chaos, making them chaotic by nature. They often find it difficult to keep to one task for long lengths of time, finding themselves getting bored and searching for new experiences. They are almost always good, but their often strange and unpredictable nature may find this, at times, difficult to convey.

These Dragonborn rarely share their cousins' desire for gold and gems. To Mercury Dragonborn collecting such wealth has little meaning. They are far more likely to hoard strange trinkets, and dislike duplicates of trinkets they already possess. This in no way means that they are not aware of the value gold and gems have for others, and have been known to use such wealth to exchange for items that take their interest.

Mercury Dragonborn Traits

Your draconic heritage manifests in a variety of traits you share with other dragonborn.

Ability Score Increase

Your Dexterity score increases by 1, and your Charisma score increases by 2.

Age

Young dragonborn grow quickly. They walk hours after hatching, attain the size and development of a 10-year-old human child by the age of 3, and reach adulthood by 15. They live to be around 80.

Alignment

Dragonborn tend to extremes, making a conscious choice for one side or the other in the cosmic war between good and evil (represented by Bahamut and Tiamat, respectively). Most dragonborn are good, but those who side with Tiamat can be terrible villains. Mercury Dragonborn are usually Chaotic Good.

Size

Echoing their Mercury Dragon heritage, Mercury Dragonborn are shorter and more slender than other Dragonborn, averaging around 6 feet tall and 200 pounds. Your size is Medium.

Radiant Glow

You know the light cantrip.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Draconic Ancestry

You have mercury draconic ancestry.

Breath Weapon

When you take the Attack action, you can replace one of your attacks with an exhalation of a magical energy in a 15-foot cone. Each creature in the area must make a Dexterity saving throw against a DC equal to 8 + your Charisma modifier + your proficiency bonus. A creature takes 2d8 Radiant damage on a failed save, and half as much damage on a successful one. Undead and oozes have disadvantage on this save. This damage increases by 1d8 when you reach 5th level (3d8), 11th level (4d8), and 17th level (5d8).

You can use this trait a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Damage Resistance

You have resistance to radiant damage.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and Draconic. Draconic is thought to be one of the oldest languages and is often used in the study of magic. The language sounds harsh to most other creatures and includes numerous hard consonants and sibilants.

Metallic Breath Weapon

At 3rd level you gain a second breath weapon. When you take the Attack action, you can replace one of your attacks with an exhalation of a magical gas in a 15-foot cone. The save DC for this breath is 8 + your Constitution modifier + your proficiency bonus. When you use this ability, choose one:

• Each creature in the area must succeed on a Strength saving throw or be pushed 20 feet away from you and be knocked prone.
• Each creature in the area must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or become incapacitated until the start of your next turn.

Once you use your Metallic Breath Weapon, you can’t do so again until you finish a long rest.