Converting prehistoric creatures

[Shade]

I've begun compiling a list, but this one immediately caught my attention...

CAT, SABRE-TOOTH
Despite the common name, sabre-tooth cats and their kin were not tigers or any other kind of feline cat; they were a branch of cats separate from modern felines. Sabre-tooth cats existed in many sizes; Smilodon was merely the largest. Included here is Thylacosmilus, a marsupial predator that looked almost exactly like a sabre-tooth cat. Those sabre-tooth cats smaller than Smilodon can be treated as the appropriately sized feline cat, except for bite damage. All sabre-tooth cats have a +2 bonus to hit with their fangs. Bite damage is adjusted as follows:

Cat size Bite damage
Tiger/lion 2-11
Jaguar (and Thylacosmilus) 2-9
Leopard 2-8

Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #137 (1988).

That can open us up to anything listed here:
Saber-toothed cat - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I'd never heard of a sabre-tooth jaguar or leopard, but I like the concept.

 

[Cleon]

Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #137 (1988).

That can open us up to anything listed here:
Saber-toothed cat - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I'd never heard of a sabre-tooth jaguar or leopard, but I like the concept.

There were quite a lot of species of catlike carnivores with large canines back in the Cenozoic, in a whole range of sizes. Prey animals tended to be big back then, so having sabre-teeth (or scimitar-teeth) was presumably quite advantageous.

Which reminds me, I've got a copy of Alan Turner's [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Big-Cats-Their-Fossil-Relatives/dp/0231102291/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1316903409&sr=8-1"]The Big Cats and their Fossil Relatives[/ame] somewhere on my bookshelves. I wonder what's happened to it.

 

[Shade]

Any objections to converting some of these?

 

[freyar]

None here.

 

[Cleon]

None here.

Start with the smallest and work our way up?

 

[freyar]

Sounds good.

 

[Cleon]

Sounds good.

So, take the SRD Leopard and tweak it, I guess.

Will these be Dire Beasts (like the Frostburn Smilodon) or standard Animals?

 

[freyar]

Might as well make them dire, I think.

 

[Shade]

Comparing a standard tiger to a saber-tooth...

3 more HD
+1 natural armor
1 less damage die for claws (probably due to sample tiger having Improved Natural Attack feat; smilodon does not)
Augmented critical
+1 Str, -1 Dex, -1 Con
Feats: Alertness, Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack (rather than Improved Natural Attack)
*In forest terrain, their Hide bonus improves to +8. (rather than grassy terrain)

Applying the same to a leopard yields...

Medium Animal
Hit Dice: 6d8+12 (39 hp)
Initiative: +4
Speed: 40 ft (8 squares), climb 20 ft.
Armor Class: 15 (+4 Dex, +1 natural), touch 14, flat-footed 11
Base Attack/Grapple: +4/+7
Attack: Bite +8 melee (1d6+3/x3)
Full Attack: Bite +8 melee (1d6+3/x3) and 2 claws +1 melee (1d3+1)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Augmented critical, improved grab, pounce, rake 1d3+1
Special Qualities: Dire, low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +7, Ref +9, Will +6
Abilities: Str 17, Dex 18, Con 14, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 6
Skills: Balance +12, Climb +11, Hide +8*, Jump +11, Listen +6, Move Silently +8, Spot +6, 3 more ranks
Feats: Alertness, Weapon Finesse, 1 more (and possibly replace some)
Environment: Warm forests (cold forests like smilodon?)
Organization: Solitary or pair
Challenge Rating: x
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: x–x HD (Medium)
Level Adjustment: --

Augmented Critical (Ex): A saber-toothed leopard deals triple damage if it scores a critical hit with its bite attack.

Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a saber-toothed leopard must hit with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If it wins the grapple check, it establishes a hold and can rake.

Pounce (Ex): If a saber-toothed leopard charges a foe, it can make a full attack, including two rake attacks.

Rake (Ex): Attack bonus +8 melee, damage 1d3+1.

Skills: Saber-toothed leopards have a +8 racial bonus on Jump checks and a +4 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks. Saber-toothed leopards have a +8 racial bonus on Balance and Climb checks. A saber-toothed leopard can always choose to take 10 on a Climb check, even if rushed or threatened.

 

[Cleon]

Comparing a standard tiger to a saber-tooth...

3 more HD
+1 natural armor
1 less damage die for claws (probably due to sample tiger having Improved Natural Attack feat; smilodon does not)
Augmented critical
+1 Str, -1 Dex, -1 Con
Feats: Alertness, Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack (rather than Improved Natural Attack)
*In forest terrain, their Hide bonus improves to +8. (rather than grassy terrain).

I'd go for +50% Hit Dice rather than a straight +3 HD.

e.g.

3 HD Leopard => 4 HD.
5 HD Lion => 7 HD.

That suggests a "Sabre Toothed Jaguar" would have 6 HD, since they have 4 HD in AD&D.