Effects of head-chaining

[Axelmania]

Say there is a level 10 Demon Dragon-Mage who is considered a Greater Demon and who has cut off the head of a Chaing-Ku and merged it to his chest...

If a necromancer then cuts off the Demon Dragon-Mage's head would he get the powers of a dragonmage and of Chaing-Ku?

Or would he simply get the Dragon-Mage's ability to attach for dragon powers and then need to remove the Chaing-Ku from the Dragon'-Mage's chest and attach it to his own?

Also: if the necromancer somehow had multiple heads, could they do this multiple times for multiple dragon-mages?

[ShadowLogan]

i would have to say that the knowledge/powers derived from the Dragon's head reside in the dragon, the magic nature allows the DDM to access them.

A necromancer putting a DDM's head on then would not get the bonded Dragon's powers or even the knowledge, though could put the dragons head on instead.

If a necromancer had multiple heads (rare) then yes, they could put on more than one head.

IMHO.

[Axelmania]

Necros who bond with demon heads get the demon powers I thought... wouldn't that include the magical ability to access the dragon?

[ShadowLogan]

While the Necro can get the Demon head's powers, I do no think that would include the ability to access the dragon's head, which is another part of the body. You don't get abilities derived from other limbs after all (putting on a dragon claw doesn't grant one the ability to magically fly or breathe fire).

It is also reasonable that the bonding may be considered broken at the time of death for the demon-dragonmage.

[Axelmania]

Heads are an exception, you get all of the demon's natural abilities, I'm pretty sure.

If death broke the link, I imagine we would be told something that important, after all they might be resurrected after a death and being resurrected without your stolen dragon powers would suck.

In cases where you lose powers on death we are usually told, like with the Shaman OCCs in Spirit West, which is why as a munchkin I am not tempted into learning those in spite of their awesomeness.

[eliakon]

It would be a GM call as to if the power is inherent to the Demon Dragon mage, and thus its own head, or if it is still tied up into the Dragon head.
There are arguments for both sides, so you could make a call either way.
If you didn't get the head's power though, you would likely get the ability to bond a head to you (at least while the DDM head was bonded) has that is a natural power of theirs...

[Axelmania]

I'm thinking you keep the ability and can choose a new head or rip the old head off the corpse and use it that way, gives more customizability for the necromancer if the Demon Dragonmage they kill made a silly choice and bonded a hatchling.

This makes me wonder though: could Demon Dragonmates also get a similar freedom to ditch a weak head to upgrade to a better one?

[eliakon]

I'm thinking you keep the ability and can choose a new head or rip the old head off the corpse and use it that way, gives more customizability for the necromancer if the Demon Dragonmage they kill made a silly choice and bonded a hatchling.

This makes me wonder though: could Demon Dragonmates also get a similar freedom to ditch a weak head to upgrade to a better one?

No
Bonding the head is the ritual that turns them into an adult and a 'greater demon'
Which would suggest to me in fact that on consideration that only a lesser DDm skull would have the knowledge, and only if it was the appropriate level itself to use it, and that further even assuming the necromancer maintained the skull link for the entire ritual that while they would know how to use the ritual, they can not perform it unless they are a DDm on the threshold of adulthood themselves as the ritual enchants and transforms the DDm not just grafts a dragon head.
There is nothing that allows a necromancer to get around racial restrictions on magic after all. They can use the magic that the demon had... but that doesn't mean that if a human bonds with the skull of an Oni that knew the spell Metamorphosis: Oni to Animal that they could use it...they are still not an Oni.

[Axelmania]

The transformation into a Greater Demon happens when they reach a certain level, the merger with a dragon head is independent of that.

No rules appear to exist for prying off a dragon head anyway so we could treat it as one final being so you get the dragon's knowledge.