Converting "Real World" Animals and Vermin

[freyar]

Maybe Jump, too, if they're anything like pet rodents I've seen. Frankly, though, I could see the skills you have with Hide at 6 and the rest at 3.

Make it a bonus feat and keep the others as listed. Sure.

 

[Cleon]

Are we keeping them timid, or making them aggressive? That will factor into the feat selection greatly. I think I'd prefer them as simply "mice of unusual size".

Mice can be quite pugnacious towards each other, and they aren't timid about creatures a lot smaller than them.

A Giant Mouse would likely view an average PC like a regular mouse would a juicy little insect...

 

[Cleon]

In that case...

Skills: 15
Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Spot?

Feats: 5
Alertness, Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Run, Stealthy?

Having seen mice run, I wanted to give it Fleet of Foot, but it's Dex is too low. Bonus feat?

I'd give them Skill Focus (Hide) instead of either Lightning Reflexes or Run.

Wouldn't bother about Fleet of Foot. A mouse the size of an elephant oughtn't to be as good as ducking-and-dodging as a regulation-sized miniscule mouse.

Maybe Jump, too, if they're anything like pet rodents I've seen. Frankly, though, I could see the skills you have with Hide at 6 and the rest at 3.

Make it a bonus feat and keep the others as listed. Sure.

I'd prefer a racial bonus on Jump.

Actually, checking their current Homebrew they already have +8 to Jump, which gives them Jump +20 with their Str and speed bonuses. I think that's plenty.

Do we want any changes to their racial bonuses? It's currently "+4 racial bonus on Hide checks and a +8 racial bonus on Balance, Climb, Jump, Move Silently, and Swim checks".

I'd swap the Hide and Move Silently:

Skills: Giant mice have a +4 racial bonus on Move Silently checks and a +8 racial bonus on Balance, Climb, Hide, Jump, and Swim checks. They can always choose to take 10 on Climb checks, even if rushed or threatened.

 

[freyar]

That's all fine.

 

[Shade]

Updated.

Challenge Rating: 5?

A giant mouse is 20 feet long and weighs x pounds.

 

[Cleon]

That's all fine.

OK, if the skills and feats are OK by Shade that just leaves confirming the CR and a weight.

They look more like a CR6 to me - the Trample special attack tips the balance, methinks.

According to my notes from a Field Guide To The Mammals Of Britain & Europe, a house mouse (Mus musculus or domesticus) has a body 60-100 mm long and weighs 10-25g, while a harvest mouse (Micromus minutus) is 3.5-13g for a 50-78mm bodylength.

The 20 foot long body of the Giant Mouse equals 6100 mm, which scales up to somewhere around 6000 kg from those weights.

Call it 12,000 to 15,000 pounds?

 

[Shade]

Updated. Finished?

 

[freyar]

Looks like it.

 

[Shade]

Here's a similar one from the same source...

Rat, Gigantic
AC:7 MV:12//6 HD:1 hp:8 #AT:1 Dmg:2-6 SA: Disease SD:Nil AL:N(E) THAC0:19

Originally appeared in Adventure Pack I (1987).


That's it...all we have to go on. As it stands, its just a dire rat and we can skip it. I'd recommend we take the name and run with it, making a truly gigantic rat. Dire rats only advance to Medium, but I'm thinking Huge or bigger for it to truly be "gigantic".

 

[GrayLinnorm]

It could also be bigger than the giant mouse.