This is a frustrating product. On the one hand, it is beatiful, well-produced, and has a tremendous variety of options for players and DMs alike. Based on this scope and quality, it deserves 5 stars.

On the other hand, one the most important things for me with a dragon book is looking at true dragons in all their age categories. I counted 87 different dragons, each with age categories. However, 55 of them have only one age category, meaning that almost 2/3 of the time, you get just a taste of what the full dragon is like. Some of the dragons are also just templates to be applied to other dragons.

I think if you are aware of this limitation, you will find a wonderful product. I, however, was left angry and annoyed, especially for a $25 pdf.

I was very excited to have found this content especially since making a homebrew world and wanting to port many of the dragons from pathfinder to 5E.

Buying the PDF version brought me disappointment I was unpreparred for. To begin with the PDF is MASSIVE ( a wopping 230 MB) and while many would think this is small this is actually a massive PDF to open that takes up a lot of RAM for your computer. Having a high end computer I thought I wouldn't have any difficulty but even had slight delays when doing even simple tasks such as scrolling the PDF.

My second problem is that only parts of the PDF have grabbable text. This makes it very difficult to transfer this content into any VTT other than fantasy ground and with so many out there this is highly limiting.

I think an update to this product would help tremendously. Rather than make a new version simply break this down into parts of a PDF if someone buys the PDF version and make each PDF no more than 50 MB (Adobe can more than handle this size). Second make it to where all of the pdf's text including those in statblocks can be copied to the computer's clipboard. There are many versions of PDF format's out there and plenty of them have encryption and security while sill allowing the consumer to grab and easily transfer the content.

Many thanks for making this product but the PDF version has flaws that limit the consumer.

The amount of work here puts Fizban's to shame. Awesome spells and magic items are so thematic and cool! Not only is this a fantastic supplement, it's also a joy to read. The first time opening the full product, I kept scrolling and I was just flabbergasted by the sheer amount of content. This work is the stuff of legends. I'm looking forward to whatever comes out of these authors' minds in the future. Excellent stuff.

The Draconomicon contains no shortage of information about dragons and dragonkind. As a compendium of draconic lore ("fluff," if you will), I'd go so far as to call it peerless. Its presented races, spells, and magic items are all interesting, flavorful, and distinct, and the hidden gem of its DM's workshop is a must-read. On the other hand, the book does tend to sputter with regard to mechanical quality ("crunch") in its robust bestiary, and its feats can come up short. For its length, and with regard to its high pricepoint, this book deserves a more thorough examination than a lump-sum of information can provide.

Breakdown:

Chapter 1. Dealing with Dragons (Pages 4 - 45) Other than a few mechanical interludes, this section is almost entirely fluff regarding dragon anatomy and life cycles, as well as detailing typical interactions with dragons. Of particular interest are notes on how to play dragon games, as well as suggestions for bonding with dragons and using dragons as mounts. All in all, this section contains interesting information, but for such a substantial part of the book, the fluff to crunch ratio may water down its value. (2/5)

Chapter 2. Races (Pages 47 - 55) Here, you'll find nine playable races, two of which are reprints from Volo's Guide to Monsters, and all but one of which reference an official printed work with respect to their fluff. This means you get everything you need to play these creatures in a condensed, data-driven format very easy to parse. Each race is distinct, mechanically interesting, and worth adding to any DM's collection. In short, this section is the book at its best. Highlights include the Slig (a larger cousin of the kobold, and the only race not to reference another book) and the draconian dragonborn, which adds flavorful diversity to the rather underwhelming canon variants. (5/5)

Chapter 3. Feats and Gifts (Pages 56 - 59) Building off of a variant rule presented in Mythic Odyssey of Theros, the 25 entries in these few pages can be gifted by a deity or taken as feats. While each feat/gift is distinct from others, their power levels do not necessarily balance with one another, nor with feats presented in official releases. Some, such as Treasure Detector, are exceedingly underwhelming in a way that any player would be hard-pressed to even consider taking it at level-up. Others, such as the racial feats presented near the end of the chapter, are very well crafted, providing unique and tempting benefits for the newly-leveled character. This chapter is a toss-up, easy to digest but ultimately middling in quality. (3/5)

Chapter 4. Spells (Pages 61 - 72) Like its races, the spells of The Draconomicon are amongst its most valuable assets. Dragon-related magic is sorely lacking in official canon, and this book brings a host of new spells to the table. The best part, perhaps, of this chapter is that some spells may not seem to fit the theme of draconic relation at first glance. However, a moment or two of thought brings to mind exactly the characteristic of dragons each spell aims to emulate. There are two reprinted spells from official works, meaning 42 of the 44 total spells are unique and new. The very first spell described, Animated Breath is a gleeful introduction to this chapter's uniqueness, and a highlight of its quality. (5/5)

Chapter 5. Magic Items (Pages 73 - 79) Of the 57 magic items presented in this chapter, only 9 are reprinted from official materials. Divided neatly between rarities and presented in standard format for a chapter on items, it would be a waste of words to say much more about this section other than it continues the trend of excellence from the previous chapter. Highlights include cursed items that both benefit and impede the character, as well as artifacts that feel flavorfully distinct from those that have previously been presented, (5/5)

Chapter 6. Bestiary (Pages 92 - 225) Here, we find the book's bread and butter, it's main draw, its longest chapter, and yet, its weakest portion. Sadly, where The Draconomicon manages to make each race, spell, feat, and magic item read as distinct and unique, the creatures in this section blend together with ill-fitting ease. Numerous dragons are described within the chapter's fluff, some decidedly more verbosely than others, only to be followed with a reference to an officially printed dragon and a note to change one or two aspects of its stats (such as its breath weapon) to better fit the flavor of the type described. This means that some dragons rely on their narrative descriptions to differentiate them from others, and cannot, therefore, be added to a game "at a glance." Even dragons whose stat blocks are fully printed succumb to an overly monotonous feeling of functional indistinguishability from one another. Very few stand out as exemplars of creativity, and the length of this chapter makes reading it to find those gems (no pun intended) a chore.

All in all, this chapter constitutes the lowpoint of this book, focusing far more on description than function, and may instill buyer's remorse if the purpose of a purchase is this section alone. While robust and visually well-formatted, with regard to the content itself, quantity is simply no substitute for quality. (1/5)

Chapter 7. DM's Workshop (Pages 227 - 250) The Draconomicon ends on, perhaps, its strongest note of all. In two dozen pages it presents five interesting tools for DMs to use when running dragon-themed encounters, each more useful than the last. From rules for how to handle a dragon swallowing a creature to changing dragons' statistics as they grow, this should absolutely draw a second glance from any DM who may be on the fence about buying this book. (5/5)

Conclusion Overall, The Draconomicon is a worthwhile purchase for a lore-conscious DM, or for any player or DM looking for draconic character-facing content. Its weak link is unfortunately its expansively barren bestiary, which, as the book's longest portion and arguably biggest selling point, diminishes its value. While its feats section also flounders somewhat, all other mechanical content in the book is exceptional, the fluff is on point (for those who enjoy such things in a sourcebook) and the professional quality formatting deserves recognition too.

Final Recommendation: At a lower price point, I'd recommend this book to practically anyone (it's currently about the same price as most official WotC sourcebook PDFs). As it stands, anyone looking for D&D lore on dragons, running a dragon-themed campaign, or who just wants to expand dragon-related player options, this book is definitely for you.

The Draconomicon is very well done and I'd recommend it for anyone looking to add dragon lore or encounters into their game. Wonderful art, a professional quality presentation, and a large range of topics to flesh out your dragons.

The only parts of the book that I didn't quite understand or thought could use improvement:

1. Adding non-draconic/lizard like races to the PC race portfolio
2. Adding dragon types but only including Adult dragon stats. While this only applies to a handful of dragons it doesn't fit with the expectations set elsewhere in the book, and I would expect the desire of the DMs purchasing.
3. Some of the feats are beyond the power scope of most published feats.

A full preview and review can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWdmA943J0E

really love all the new combat options for dragons even if some of them are not for you, you can easily pick and choose what you want

Useful, but missing feathered dragons, rain dragons/tlalocoatls

Having been a huge fan of 3.5e’s Draconomicon, I was very excited to dive into QL Games’ new update of the book’s content. And by god, did they deliver; this book is an absolute unit. Every obscure dragon we fought, bargained with, or fled from is in here, all with updated stat blocks, or as a template to apply onto an existing stat block. It also comes with an immense amount of lore to get you up to speed on dragons, and a good mix of player options and DM tools to really bring your dragons to life at the table.

Chapter 1 is almost entirely lore. It works through draconic spirituality, religion, and culture, before moving into the more biological elements, including a whole section on hatching dragon eggs, bonding with wyrmlings, and raising dragons. Very cool, if you’ve ever used such a thing as a plot device (and if not, you should consider it). There’s also sections on what can be learned about dragons with knowledge rolls, along with some common misconceptions for failed knowledge rolls. I love this, and wanna see more of these kinds of tables, full stop. They make Intelligence checks way more meaningful.

That said, I do take issue with some of the content in this chapter which is just copy-pasted from the PHB and DMG; it feels like padding in an already-massive book. Furthermore, there’s some sections in anatomy which prove to be rather dry, and not really usable at the table; why would I need to know that all dragons have 68 vertebrae and 500 bones? Though I respect the commitment to bringing this information forward from older editions, I feel TTRPG has moved past this kind of fluff in supplements, for the most part.

Chapter 2 dives into races, and here we see a couple more reprinted elements, which is unfortunate, because the handcrafted content here is really quite excellent, and doesn’t demand padding. The Draconian, Gnoll, Bullywug, Slig, Thri-Kreen, and Troglodyte are all fantastic, and very clearly well thought-out, even if the connection to dragonkind is a little thin at times. I would’ve liked some fluff explaining what they have to do with dragons in some cases, but I still appreciate their inclusion.

Chapter 3 contains Feats and Gifts, so more player options. Truth be told, there’s nothing in here that isn’t, at a bare minimum, interesting. A ton of thought and passion has been put into making these options evocative and exciting. My personal favourite is Hoardstealer, a feat which lets you turn a coinpurse into a bag of holding for an hour, while also giving you a +1 ASI to work with; very, very cool. However, some of these, such as Discipline of Ashardalon (allows you to pick three spells known from any spell list, and change them out on a long rest) really throw balance into question. I love a lot of what’s here, but I would almost definitely want my players to run it by me before using any of it, as there’s quite a few options I would have to tune down to allow at the table.

Chapter 4 is all spells, some for players and some more clearly meant for foes to use. Personally, I was incredibly enamoured with all the spells, especially considering how many of them so faithfully recreated their effects from older editions. Almost every one is evocative, and has a very clear narrative tie to dragons, either to be used by their slayers, servants, or by the dragons themselves. These spells are the perfect reward to leave stashed away in a dragon’s hoard for a wizard to find, or on a bookshelf in a Cult of the Dragon hideout. That said, in some cases, the balance can be somewhat dubious; for example, Dragon Ally, cast with an 8th-level slot, lets you summon an adult dragon of any type, which obeys your commands, and requires no concentration to maintain, for 1 hour. ‘Nuff said.

Chapter 5 is magic items; I won’t say too much as many of them are reprinted from elsewhere, but those that are original, or forward-ports of older-edition content, are pretty interesting.

Chapter 6 is the real behemoth. This Bestiary constitutes almost 150 of this book’s 256 pages, and is almost entirely stat blocks and lore. Truth be told, my greatest critique of this chapter is quantity over quality. There’s so much content here that it’s overwhelming, and the individual stat blocks don’t necessarily stand out as much as I would like for them to. Though it makes for an impressive page count, I would’ve much preferred to see half or a quarter as many dragons, and a lot more attention put toward making every single one feel distinct, and giving them all a useful narrative role. Still, if you’re nostalgic for a specific, obscure dragon from an older edition, you can bet it’s in here, as the team spared no expense in this undertaking.

Chapter 7 is all DM tools, and, honestly? Tucked behind Chapter 6, I think it’s liable to get missed, which is a shame, because apart from some elements reprinted from the DMG, it might be the most innovative section. It provides rules for countless combat maneuvers for dragons to use, from body-slamming, to swallowing, to tail swiping, all of which should help you raise your dragons from “bag of hit points” to “legendary foe”. It also comes packed with tools to make your dragon lairs more than just a cave in a rock face, and suggested spellcasting builds for those who were disappointed with 5e’s base rules for spellcasting dragons. Very solid stuff.

All in all, I give the Draconomicon a rating of 4/5. My high-level critique is that it’s quantity over quality, and it could’ve stood to be about half as long with a greater degree of refinement. However, if you need evocative content which will get you and your players stoked about putting the Dragons back in Dungeons and Dragons, look no further, because it’s all in here, and there is a clear love for the material, and commitment to keeping mechanics tied to narrative every step of the way.