Converting "Real World" Animals and Vermin
- Thread starter Shade
- Start date
Cleon
Legend
Oops, just noticed a typo. It should be "desperate" in "if pressed or desparate" under tactics.
Apart from that we seem to be finished.
Shade
Monster Junkie
I fixed the typos.
I'm going to throw out all the hyena varieties from the article in one lump here, and we can determine if any of them warrant conversion.
______________________________________________________________
Hyenas
Although hyenas are more closely related to cats than they are to canids, they parallel the canids in a number of ways. With the few exceptions mentioned here, the earlier general remarks concerning canids apply to hyenas as well.
Like canids, hyenas are runners and attack their prey by biting; this is related to their somewhat similar appearance. However, hyenas have relatively large forequarters and small hindquarters, so that the back slopes downward from shoulders to hips. Hyenas typically have less elegant pelts than canids do; their fur is coarse and unkempt, though hyenas keep themselves as well groomed as any canids. Hyenas also differ from canids in that they are better adapted to scavenging the remains of large animals, though they are by no means poor hunters.
Hyenas have powerful jaws, and teeth specially adapted to crushing bones, not to mention a robust digestive system. They can finish off not just the meat and internal organs of a kill, but the hide and bones as well. Even the most predatory hyenas seldom pass up a free (effortless) meal, and some villages depend on hyenas to clean up refuse. Male hyenas are no larger than females, contrary to the situation among canids. In fact, female spotted or cave hyenas are larger than the males.
Unlike canids, hyenas do not cooperate in caring for their young. Raising the pups is the sole responsibility of the female that gave birth to them, and other hyenas may eat these pups if they are undefended. As with canids, the lair is typically a cave or burrow, but the further reaches of the lair are extended by the pups themselves among the hyenas, and adult hyenas cannot reach them. Among social hyenas, several females may keep their pups in the same den. Each female typically has 1-2 pups, and as with canids there is a 30% chance that the pups in any single litter encountered will be young enough to be tameable.
Prehistoric hyenas
In Pleistocene settings the modern varieties of hyenas will be present, along with the larger sorts mentioned above. Also present will be slender hyenas of cheetahlike build and habits (as the cheetah, but 3” slower). Hyenas date back to the Miocene epoch. Similar creatures of earlier times will be 3” slower and of animal intelligence rather than semi-intelligent. Hyaenodons are prehistoric carnivorous animals that were common predators during the Oligocene, before the rise of dogs, cats, hyenas, weasels, and their relatives. They had relatively short legs, long jaws full of large teeth, and small brains. They resembled hyenas, if at all, in the shapes of some of their teeth (Hyaenodon = “hyena tooth”). These animals ranged from kittensized to lion-sized, and the figures given under .Hyaenodon. in the Monster Manual describe one of the larger varieties quite well, even to the relatively slow movement rate and low intelligence, though there is some tenuous evidence that these animals were solitary.
Cave Hyena
FREQUENCY: Common
NO. APPEARING: 2-12
ARMOR CLASS: 7
MOVE: 15”
HIT DICE: 4
% IN LAIR: 5%
TREASURE TYPE: Nil
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-8
SPECIAL ATTACKS: NIl
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Semi-
SIZE: M (200 lbs.)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
LEVEL/XP. VALUE: III/60+4/hp
Cave Hyena: The cave hyena is a large variety of spotted hyena from the temperate plains and the steppes of the Pleistocene. It is of the same species as the spotted hyena, and is like it in all but size.
Spotted Hyena
FREQUENCY: Common
NO. APPEARING: 2-12
ARMOR CLASS: 7
MOVE: 15”
HIT DICE: 3
% IN LAIR: 5%
TREASURE TYPE: Nil
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-7
SPECIAL ATTACKS: NIl
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Semi-
SIZE: M (140 lbs.)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
LEVEL/XP. VALUE: II/35+3/hp
Spotted Hyena: Spotted hyenas are dirty orange in color, with small black spots. The spotted hyena has a large repertoire of calls, including the famous .laugh,. which really does sound like it ought to be coming out of a lunatic asylum in a third-rate movie. This laugh brings other scavengers and predators on the run, for it means the hyenas have made a kill. Swift runners, spotted hyenas hunt cooperatively, and will attack anything that doesn.t put up too much of a light.
Where they depend on refuse, spotted hyenas may start in on the human population if the supply of garbage falls off. These hyenas can be tamed and used as hunting beasts if they are caught when young. They inhabit open country in tropical climates, in settled and wilderness areas.
Short-Faced Hyena
FREQUENCY: Common
NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: 7
MOVE: 15”
HIT DICE: 5
% IN LAIR: 5%
TREASURE TYPE: Nil
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-12
SPECIAL ATTACKS: NIl
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Semi-
SIZE: L (300 lbs.)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
LEVEL/XP. VALUE: III/90+5/hp
Short-faced Hyena: The short-faced hyena is a lion-sized relative of the striped hyena from the Pleistocene. Its habits are those of its smaller cousin, though it can tackle larger game. It lives in temperate climates.
Striped Hyena
FREQUENCY: Common
NO. APPEARING: 2-12
ARMOR CLASS: 7
MOVE: 15”
HIT DICE: 2
% IN LAIR: 5%
TREASURE TYPE: Nil
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-5
SPECIAL ATTACKS: NIl
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Semi-
SIZE: M (90 lbs.)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
LEVEL/XP. VALUE: I/20+2/hp
Striped Hyena: This hyena (and its relative the brown hyena, which is essentially the same in size and habits) conforms best to the hyena stereotype. It seldom attacks something larger than itself (goats and small humanoids are near the upper limit), and shows little or no social behavior. Striped hyenas eat human refuse, and will also raid crops of melons, dates, grapes, or other sweet fruits. A striped hyena is greyish, with vertical stripes on its sides and a crest of longer hair running down the back. Its ears are larger and more pointed than those of the spotted hyena. Brown hyenas are essentially the same, except that they are (as the name bears out) brown. Striped hyenas can be tamed if they are captured as juveniles, though they may be rather shy. Striped hyenas live in open country in tropical and subtropical regions.
Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #102 (1985).
I'm going to throw out all the hyena varieties from the article in one lump here, and we can determine if any of them warrant conversion.
______________________________________________________________
Hyenas
Although hyenas are more closely related to cats than they are to canids, they parallel the canids in a number of ways. With the few exceptions mentioned here, the earlier general remarks concerning canids apply to hyenas as well.
Like canids, hyenas are runners and attack their prey by biting; this is related to their somewhat similar appearance. However, hyenas have relatively large forequarters and small hindquarters, so that the back slopes downward from shoulders to hips. Hyenas typically have less elegant pelts than canids do; their fur is coarse and unkempt, though hyenas keep themselves as well groomed as any canids. Hyenas also differ from canids in that they are better adapted to scavenging the remains of large animals, though they are by no means poor hunters.
Hyenas have powerful jaws, and teeth specially adapted to crushing bones, not to mention a robust digestive system. They can finish off not just the meat and internal organs of a kill, but the hide and bones as well. Even the most predatory hyenas seldom pass up a free (effortless) meal, and some villages depend on hyenas to clean up refuse. Male hyenas are no larger than females, contrary to the situation among canids. In fact, female spotted or cave hyenas are larger than the males.
Unlike canids, hyenas do not cooperate in caring for their young. Raising the pups is the sole responsibility of the female that gave birth to them, and other hyenas may eat these pups if they are undefended. As with canids, the lair is typically a cave or burrow, but the further reaches of the lair are extended by the pups themselves among the hyenas, and adult hyenas cannot reach them. Among social hyenas, several females may keep their pups in the same den. Each female typically has 1-2 pups, and as with canids there is a 30% chance that the pups in any single litter encountered will be young enough to be tameable.
Prehistoric hyenas
In Pleistocene settings the modern varieties of hyenas will be present, along with the larger sorts mentioned above. Also present will be slender hyenas of cheetahlike build and habits (as the cheetah, but 3” slower). Hyenas date back to the Miocene epoch. Similar creatures of earlier times will be 3” slower and of animal intelligence rather than semi-intelligent. Hyaenodons are prehistoric carnivorous animals that were common predators during the Oligocene, before the rise of dogs, cats, hyenas, weasels, and their relatives. They had relatively short legs, long jaws full of large teeth, and small brains. They resembled hyenas, if at all, in the shapes of some of their teeth (Hyaenodon = “hyena tooth”). These animals ranged from kittensized to lion-sized, and the figures given under .Hyaenodon. in the Monster Manual describe one of the larger varieties quite well, even to the relatively slow movement rate and low intelligence, though there is some tenuous evidence that these animals were solitary.
Cave Hyena
FREQUENCY: Common
NO. APPEARING: 2-12
ARMOR CLASS: 7
MOVE: 15”
HIT DICE: 4
% IN LAIR: 5%
TREASURE TYPE: Nil
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-8
SPECIAL ATTACKS: NIl
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Semi-
SIZE: M (200 lbs.)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
LEVEL/XP. VALUE: III/60+4/hp
Cave Hyena: The cave hyena is a large variety of spotted hyena from the temperate plains and the steppes of the Pleistocene. It is of the same species as the spotted hyena, and is like it in all but size.
Spotted Hyena
FREQUENCY: Common
NO. APPEARING: 2-12
ARMOR CLASS: 7
MOVE: 15”
HIT DICE: 3
% IN LAIR: 5%
TREASURE TYPE: Nil
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-7
SPECIAL ATTACKS: NIl
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Semi-
SIZE: M (140 lbs.)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
LEVEL/XP. VALUE: II/35+3/hp
Spotted Hyena: Spotted hyenas are dirty orange in color, with small black spots. The spotted hyena has a large repertoire of calls, including the famous .laugh,. which really does sound like it ought to be coming out of a lunatic asylum in a third-rate movie. This laugh brings other scavengers and predators on the run, for it means the hyenas have made a kill. Swift runners, spotted hyenas hunt cooperatively, and will attack anything that doesn.t put up too much of a light.
Where they depend on refuse, spotted hyenas may start in on the human population if the supply of garbage falls off. These hyenas can be tamed and used as hunting beasts if they are caught when young. They inhabit open country in tropical climates, in settled and wilderness areas.
Short-Faced Hyena
FREQUENCY: Common
NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: 7
MOVE: 15”
HIT DICE: 5
% IN LAIR: 5%
TREASURE TYPE: Nil
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-12
SPECIAL ATTACKS: NIl
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Semi-
SIZE: L (300 lbs.)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
LEVEL/XP. VALUE: III/90+5/hp
Short-faced Hyena: The short-faced hyena is a lion-sized relative of the striped hyena from the Pleistocene. Its habits are those of its smaller cousin, though it can tackle larger game. It lives in temperate climates.
Striped Hyena
FREQUENCY: Common
NO. APPEARING: 2-12
ARMOR CLASS: 7
MOVE: 15”
HIT DICE: 2
% IN LAIR: 5%
TREASURE TYPE: Nil
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-5
SPECIAL ATTACKS: NIl
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Semi-
SIZE: M (90 lbs.)
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
LEVEL/XP. VALUE: I/20+2/hp
Striped Hyena: This hyena (and its relative the brown hyena, which is essentially the same in size and habits) conforms best to the hyena stereotype. It seldom attacks something larger than itself (goats and small humanoids are near the upper limit), and shows little or no social behavior. Striped hyenas eat human refuse, and will also raid crops of melons, dates, grapes, or other sweet fruits. A striped hyena is greyish, with vertical stripes on its sides and a crest of longer hair running down the back. Its ears are larger and more pointed than those of the spotted hyena. Brown hyenas are essentially the same, except that they are (as the name bears out) brown. Striped hyenas can be tamed if they are captured as juveniles, though they may be rather shy. Striped hyenas live in open country in tropical and subtropical regions.
Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #102 (1985).
Cleon
Legend
Well the differences from standard AD&D hyenas are pretty minor, but they're not smaller than the Canines we decided we could be bothered with.
Any other paleontological info would be good, too.
Shade
Monster Junkie
I'm assuming the standard D&D hyena is the spotted hyena. If that's the case, I'd suggest we skip that one, and start with the cave hyena, since it's the closest variant.
Cave Hyena - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
They are slightly bigger, so probably slightly higher Str and perhaps Con?
Cave Hyena - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
They are slightly bigger, so probably slightly higher Str and perhaps Con?
Cleon
Legend
Unfortunately, you assume wrong.
If you look at the SRD Hyena you'll see "The statistics presented here are for a striped hyena".
That explains why they both have 2 HD.
3E stats for a real-world Striped Hyena shouldn't have any size advancement, and it probably ought to have Speed 40 ft., since they're slower than wolves or foxes. Since the SRD specifies the species, I suppose we shouldn't do new stats for Hyaena hyaena.
I'm OK skipping the Spotted variety and starting with the Cave Hyena.
They've got twice the HD of the SRD Hyena and weighed twice as much. I'd be fine with Str 16, but would leave the Con unchanged, at least for the time being.
Shade
Monster Junkie
Cleon
Legend
There's a first time for everything!
Works for me.
So, time for a Working Draft?
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