The latest official Dungeons & Dragons supplement, Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons, provides a horde’s worth of new dragon-related content, including new rules and sub-types for the Dragonborn race. Metallic Dragons are commonly associated with good alignments in most D&D settings, making Metallic Dragonborn a good fit for heroic Dragonborn Player Characters, thematically, but the new breath weapon options also make Metallic arguably the most powerful Dragonborn sub-type, with proper build planning. Dragonborn were added as a core Player’s Handbook race option in 4e D&D, alongside mainstays like Humans, Dwarves, and Halflings. The race remained a core option in the current edition of D&D, but the versions presented in Fizban’s Treasury provide more power and flexibility than the original PHB version, especially the revamped Metallic Dragonborn sub-type.
Many players suspected Fizban’s Treasury would empower D&D’s Dragonborn characters, and this has proven true, especially in the case of the Metallic Dragonborn. The first change players will note is the flexible stat boost choices. The original PHB Dragonborn received +2 to Strength and +1 to Charisma, but the version in Fizban’s Treasury can choose their own stat boosts, per the new paradigm established in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. For Metallic Dragonborn, this lets them start with an increased Constitution, which is valuable in optimizing their new Breath Weapon racial feature. The PHB Dragonborn stats were a good fit for melee Paladin characters, which is appropriate for Metallic Dragonborn from a narrative standpoint, but flexible stat choices allow for more mechanically effective builds.
All Dragonborn are improved thanks to Fizban’s Treasury, which increases the damage from the Breath Weapon racial feature, expands its uses per long rest to equal a character’s proficiency bonus, and alters its action type. Breath Weapon can now replace a single attack taken as part of the Attack Action, meaning characters with the Extra Attack feature can use the racial feature and still attack as part of the same action. Metallic Dragonborn also receive a separate Metallic Breath Weapon at character level 5, useable once per long rest. This 15-foot cone attack has two variants, Repulsion Breath and Enervating Breath. The Repulsion option is resisted by a Strength saving throw, and enemies who fail the save are pushed 20 feet back and knocked Prone. Enervating Breath is the more powerful choice in most cases, as enemies who fail a Constitution saving throw are rendered Incapacitated until the start of the Dragonborn character’s next turn.
D&D Martial Classes' Extra Attack Synergizes With Metallic Breath Weapon
Preventing an enemy from acting is a huge advantage in D&D, and abilities like the Monk’s Stunning Strike provide utility for the otherwise underpowered base class. Incapacitated enemies cannot take actions or reactions, so under the right circumstances, a Metallic Dragonborn could rob a group of tightly clustered foes of their ability to act for a turn, assuming they fail their saving throws. The Metallic Breath Weapon is only useable once per long rest, but it can be substituted for a single attack like the basic Breath Weapon, and gives Metallic Dragonborn characters a valuable option at their disposal for when it is most needed. The Incapacitated status does not grant Advantage to attack rolls against enemies, like the Stunned condition, so building a single-classed Rogue is not ideal for the Metallic Dragonborn. Classes that grant the Extra Attacks feature synergize well, enabling pairing Breath Weapon uses and attacks, or using both the base Breath Weapon and Metallic Breath Weapon as part of the same Attack Action. As the Difficulty Class for the saving throw of all Breath Weapon attacks keys off the Dragonborn’s Constitution stat, investing in the stat makes sense, and Constitution is valuable for all character types.
For players who want to focus on preventing enemy actions, a Metallic Dragonborn Monk doubles down on the concept. Using the option to start with +1 to 3 different stats, and point buy, the character can begin with a 16 in Dexterity, Wisdom, and Constitution. These are key stats for the Monk as well as the most commonly rolled Saving Throws in Dungeons & Dragons. The Monk receives the Extra Attack class feature at level 5, alongside the Metallic Breath Weapon racial feature. Players should raise their Wisdom and Constitution scores when ability increases are afforded, raising the DCs for Stunning Fist and Metallic Breath Weapon. In games where magic items are available, wearing a Belt of Giant Strength might provide better attack and damage bonuses than relying on the Monk’s Dexterity score. At higher levels, the build will have up to 20 Stunning Strike attempts against single targets from the Monk’s Ki points, alongside the once per long rest Metallic Breath Weapon potentially Incapacitating a cluster of enemies.
Powerful damage-oriented builds, like a Polearm-focused D&D Barbarian, can work well for a Metallic Dragonborn as well. Since all Breath Weapons have a fairly short range, a Dragonborn needs to be able to survive in melee to take advantage of them. This build approach uses the Totem Warrior Barbarian sub-class, whose Bear Totem increases the Resistance granted by Rage to all damage types except Psychic, to ensure durability. Multi-classing with Fighter, with a final split of Barbarian 8/Fighter 12, gives access to Tunnel Fighter at Fighter level 1, a Fighting Style from Unearthed Arcana, as well as a third Extra Attack at Fighter level 11. Tunnel Fighter allows a character to use their Bonus Action to enter a defensive stance where “you can make opportunity attacks without using your reaction, and you can use your reaction to make a melee attack against a creature that moves more than 5 feet while within your reach.” Where the Monk focuses solely on preventing enemy actions, the Barbarian/Fighter Metallic Dragonborn provides survivability as well as crowd control.
Spellcasting Class Metallic Dragonborn Can Work, But May Need More Stats
This D&D Barbarian-based build receives six Feat or ability score increases over 20 levels and should pick Polearm Master for their first Feat choice. The feat grants a Bonus Action attack, and Opportunity Attacks trigger when enemies enter the character’s reach, instead of only when they leave it. The next feat choice should be Sentinel, which, among other things, reduces enemy speeds to zero when they are hit with an Opportunity Attack. This character can wield a reach weapon like a Glaive or Halberd, enter the Tunnel Fighter defensive stance, striking at each approaching enemy with an Opportunity Attack Granted by Polearm Master (as their Opportunity Attacks no longer use the character’s Reaction) and stopping their movement thanks to Sentinel. This will likely halt enemies in a close formation which allows the Dragonborn to catch as many foes as possible in their Metallic Breath Weapon, and base Breath Weapon. Later feat choices should include Great Weapon Master, for added melee damage, followed by increasing Constitution to 20, and then the Tough feat. As with the Monk build, a Belt of Giant Strength can serve as a substitute for attack stat increases.
A Draconic Bloodline sub-class Sorcerer build with the Metallic Dragonborn race is another interesting option that leans heavily into the character’s draconic lineage. While this build does not gain the benefits of the Extra Attack feature, Constitution is valuable for spellcasters in maintain concentration, and nothing in the rules prevents a player from selecting one dragon type for their racial features and a different type for their class features. This suggests a character of mixed draconic descent and can provide resistance to two difference damage types, which is as useful as it sounds.
For any Metallic Dragonborn character that wants to focus on optimizing their breath weapon, the “Very Rare” D&D magic item Manual of Bodily Health can increase Constitution beyond the normal maximum. Other classes and builds that include the Extra Attack feature could also work well with the Metallic Dragonborn, including College of Valor Bards, the Battle Smith Artificer, or the iconic Dragonborn class of Paladin. These builds can be more demanding, however, as like the Monk they are more reliant on multiple ability scores beyond Strength, which can easily be replaced by an attuned magic item in many Dungeons & Dragons campaigns.
