When it comes toDungeons & Dragons, you’ll be dealing with dungeons and well, facing dragons. However, did you know that there are many different types of dragons? This isn’t just a case of there being a rare variation your DM might pull out, and the type of dragon that you face could mean very different things to you.
There are two categories of dragons, with chromatic dragons the evil ones and metallic dragons being forces of good, but even within those categories, there are different types. Don’t worry, it won’t be too confusing as we go through each color for you.
Updated on Jul 10, 2025, by Alfredo Robelo:As one would expect, dragons are the essence of Dungeons & Dragons, being the ones behind many political ploys and unbelievable destruction. We’ve updated this article to add clarity and organization, so you can easily find the ideal dragon for whatever encounter or adventure you might be planning.
Forest
Hunters being hunted, hidden threat
Chromatic dragons are known to be bad-tempered, but green dragons take it to another level. They are creatureswho live in woodlandsor bayous and love to hoard artistic items such as carvings and instruments.
Green dragons will stalk their prey just to investigate them, and try to find any weaknesses for the right time to attack. They’re willing to be deceitful to get the upper hand, and they have a poisonous breath.
Icy Tundra
Monster hunting, obvious threat
White dragons are vengeful beasts that will attack first and ask later, and as you can probably tell, they tend to like the cold. They have a menacing cold breath and tend to resist cold damage as well, so try not to use any of those frost spells if you get into a fight with them.
You will probably know when to expect a fight with these beasts because they tend to only live in icy caverns and mountains, so if you’re adventuring in a similar environment, be prepared.
Swamps
Hidden lair (underwater) with many traps, hidden threat
You may think that, if white dragons are cold, then black dragons will probably be fire, right? Wrong. Black dragons are some of the most unique ones, aquatic in nature, and prefer to live in swamps and marshlands.
They make for excellent swimmers, naturally, and prefer to keep their lairs near water bodies, like a lake. Black dragons are cunning, resorting to tactics like ambushing, and they have acid breath.
Lightning
Wastelands and Mountaintops
Aerial combat, ambush when flying over mountains or sailing past them.
Blue dragons are often referred to as storm dragons for a pretty good reason; they love to fly and are some of the best fighters at aerial combat. They tend to live in arid wastelands and desertic places.
Oh, and their element is lightning, having a lightning breath that will shock you. Just know that this is the last dragon that you’ll ever want to face on a stormy day.
Fire
Mountains and abandoned Castles
Enslaved village or tormented town, usual villain at the end of a campaign or adventure
The Red Dragons are perhaps the most iconic out of all the dragons, even if they are also chromatic. They tend to be the most hot-headed of any type of dragon and are some of the most greedy, amassing huge hoards of treasures, especially gold.
Interestingly enough, they aren’t outright hostile to other creatures. They’ll charm creatures to go out and scout for information, and they’re fine with civilizations living nearby, so long as they are worshiped and appeased with tributes. Red dragons dwell in mountains and, yes, use fire.
Deserts and ruins
Wise guardian of knowledge, quest giver
Now we’re onto the metallic dragons. Brass dragons are different from their chromatic counterparts since they are more sociable, even with their enemies, and love to talk for hours on end.
They rarely get into fights and tend to live in arid regions and ruins. Don’t worry, though; they still come equipped with some powerful fire, but also possess a sleeping gas breath.
Coastal caves
Savior NPC, possible quest giver
When it comes to bronze dragons, they are an interesting bunch. They are outwardly friendly and can also alter their form, tending to turn into humanoids so that they can help others during a disaster and then disappear, uninterested in taking credit.
Bronze dragons live in more coastal regions, are aquatic, and have powerful lightning breaths. They also have a repulsing gas breath to keep their enemies at bay.
Deserts
Social encounter
Copper dragons are unique in that they are sociable but only with the right crowd, and usually, that crowd is bards. They are good-humoredand love riddles and wit, which is why they tend to go after bards and spend hours listening to them.
But they can be envious. They live in dry uplands and sport acid breath, but like other metallic dragons also have an ace up their sleeve with a slowing breath, which will make their enemies beleaguered.
Towns and castles
Social encounter, quest giver
When it comes to gold dragons, they tend to be more people than dragons a lot of the time. They spend more of their time disguising themselves as humanoids than dragons and will live in caves and castles, recruiting other creatures as guards.
They are honorable and give themselves quests to stamp out evildoers in the world. They have a fire breath and also a weakening breath which can drain the strength out of their foes.
Snowlands
Silver dragons are regal-looking and are known to be intelligent and beautiful. They are averse to murder if they can help it and often take the shape of humanoids to enjoy feasts and celebrations with other people.
Much like White dragons, they tend to prefer the cold, have a cold breath and a paralyzing gas breath to freeze foes, and also live in icy mountains.
