Cleon
Legend
That should about cover it.
They're not much use as is, apart from adding a familiar option and mentioning their holes are hazards to horses I can't think of much game-related to add.
Unless you fancy adding a Dire Gopher?
Converting "Real World" Animals and Vermin
- Thread starter Shade
- Start date
That should about cover it.
They're not much use as is, apart from adding a familiar option and mentioning their holes are hazards to horses I can't think of much game-related to add.
Unless you fancy adding a Dire Gopher?
Cleon
Legend
Gopher Working Draft
Gopher [Based on SRD Rat]
Tiny Animal
Hit Dice: ¼d8 (1 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 15 ft. (3 squares), burrow 15 ft.
Armor Class: 13 (+2 size, +1 Dex), touch 13, flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple: +0/-11
Attack: Bite +4 melee (1d4-3)
Full Attack: Bite +4 melee (1d4-3)
Space/Reach: 2½ ft./0 ft.
Special Attacks: —
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +3, Will +1
Abilities: Str 4, Dex 13, Con 10, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 2
Skills: Climb +1, Hide +12*, Listen +3, Spot +3, Move Silently +5, Swim +1
Feats: Alertness, Weapon Finesse (B)
Environment: Any
Organization: Solitary of family (2-5)
Challenge Rating: 1/8
Advancement: —
Level Adjustment: —
A heavily built rodent with protruding incisors, large cheek pouches and a short, thick tail. Its entire body and tail are covered in grey-brown fur the color of soil.
These herbivorous rodents thrive in any terrain where the ground is dry enough for their burrows. The statistics given above are for a true gopher, or pouched gopher, but the name "gopher" is used for other kinds of burrowing rodent that can be considered to have the same game statistics.
All gophers live in burrows, which they use for shelter and to store food (nuts and grain). Many an unwary animal or traveler has tripped over one of these "gopher holes".
True gophers are solitary creatures, their burrow will only house more than one gopher when it is a mother and her immature offspring. Some "gopher" burrowing rodents are social, connecting their own burrows with those of neighbors to create extensive tunnel networks. The plains-dwelling prairie dogs (see below) lives in colonies known as towns or cities that can have populations in the hundreds or thousands.
A character with a gopher familiar gains a +2 bonus to Fortitude saves when the master and familiar are within 1 mile of each other.
A typical gopher is between six inches and a foot long, excluding its tail, and weighs about half a pound.
COMBAT
Gophers usually run away and hide in their burrows when threatened. They bite only as a last resort.
Skills: Gophers have a +3 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks. A gopher uses its Dexterity modifier instead of its Strength modifier for Climb and Swim checks.
*A gopher's racial bonus on Hide checks increases to +6 in areas of exposed earth, such as its burrow.
Prairie Dog
A prairie dog is a ground squirrel that's about half the size of a true gopher, apply the following changes to its statistics (those statistics that are not listed are the same as the gopher described above):
Prairie Dog
Initiative: +2
Armor Class: 14 (+2 size, +2 Dex), touch 14, flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple: +0/-12
Attack: Bite +4 melee (1d4-4)
Full Attack: Bite +4 melee (1d4-4)
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +1
Abilities: Str 2, Dex 15, Con 10, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 2
Skills: Climb +2, Hide +13*, Listen +3, Spot +3, Move Silently +6, Swim +2
Organization: Solitary, family (2-20), town (20-2000), or city (2000+)
A character with a prairie dog familiar gains a +2 bonus to Spot checks when the master and familiar are within 1 mile of each other.
Prairie dogs communicate with each other by barking. While not a language as such, these barks can convey more information than most animal calls (e.g. "fox approaching", "all clear") and identify individual prairie dogs. Their aptitude for understanding language is at least as good as a dog's, and they can be trained to come when called by name.
Gopher [Based on SRD Rat]
Tiny Animal
Hit Dice: ¼d8 (1 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 15 ft. (3 squares), burrow 15 ft.
Armor Class: 13 (+2 size, +1 Dex), touch 13, flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple: +0/-11
Attack: Bite +4 melee (1d4-3)
Full Attack: Bite +4 melee (1d4-3)
Space/Reach: 2½ ft./0 ft.
Special Attacks: —
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +3, Will +1
Abilities: Str 4, Dex 13, Con 10, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 2
Skills: Climb +1, Hide +12*, Listen +3, Spot +3, Move Silently +5, Swim +1
Feats: Alertness, Weapon Finesse (B)
Environment: Any
Organization: Solitary of family (2-5)
Challenge Rating: 1/8
Advancement: —
Level Adjustment: —
A heavily built rodent with protruding incisors, large cheek pouches and a short, thick tail. Its entire body and tail are covered in grey-brown fur the color of soil.
These herbivorous rodents thrive in any terrain where the ground is dry enough for their burrows. The statistics given above are for a true gopher, or pouched gopher, but the name "gopher" is used for other kinds of burrowing rodent that can be considered to have the same game statistics.
All gophers live in burrows, which they use for shelter and to store food (nuts and grain). Many an unwary animal or traveler has tripped over one of these "gopher holes".
True gophers are solitary creatures, their burrow will only house more than one gopher when it is a mother and her immature offspring. Some "gopher" burrowing rodents are social, connecting their own burrows with those of neighbors to create extensive tunnel networks. The plains-dwelling prairie dogs (see below) lives in colonies known as towns or cities that can have populations in the hundreds or thousands.
A character with a gopher familiar gains a +2 bonus to Fortitude saves when the master and familiar are within 1 mile of each other.
A typical gopher is between six inches and a foot long, excluding its tail, and weighs about half a pound.
COMBAT
Gophers usually run away and hide in their burrows when threatened. They bite only as a last resort.
Skills: Gophers have a +3 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks. A gopher uses its Dexterity modifier instead of its Strength modifier for Climb and Swim checks.
*A gopher's racial bonus on Hide checks increases to +6 in areas of exposed earth, such as its burrow.
Prairie Dog
A prairie dog is a ground squirrel that's about half the size of a true gopher, apply the following changes to its statistics (those statistics that are not listed are the same as the gopher described above):
Prairie Dog
Initiative: +2
Armor Class: 14 (+2 size, +2 Dex), touch 14, flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple: +0/-12
Attack: Bite +4 melee (1d4-4)
Full Attack: Bite +4 melee (1d4-4)
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +1
Abilities: Str 2, Dex 15, Con 10, Int 2, Wis 12, Cha 2
Skills: Climb +2, Hide +13*, Listen +3, Spot +3, Move Silently +6, Swim +2
Organization: Solitary, family (2-20), town (20-2000), or city (2000+)
A character with a prairie dog familiar gains a +2 bonus to Spot checks when the master and familiar are within 1 mile of each other.
Prairie dogs communicate with each other by barking. While not a language as such, these barks can convey more information than most animal calls (e.g. "fox approaching", "all clear") and identify individual prairie dogs. Their aptitude for understanding language is at least as good as a dog's, and they can be trained to come when called by name.
Last edited:
Cleon
Legend
Hmm, I suggest tweaking the stats. Gophers don't seem as agile as rats, but are heftier (8oz to 2 lbs, approximately twice the weight of a typical rat).
So how about lowering the Dex and increasing the Strength?
They've also got hefty jaws for burrowing, so I'd increase their bite damage dice a stage.
Str 4, Dex 13, bite 1d4-3?
So how about lowering the Dex and increasing the Strength?
They've also got hefty jaws for burrowing, so I'd increase their bite damage dice a stage.
Str 4, Dex 13, bite 1d4-3?
freyar
Extradimensional Explorer
That's all fair enough.
The familiar option seems worthwhile, just to give them some sort of point. What kind of benefit do you think?
Cleon
Legend
I'll update the draft.
Bonus on Fort saves like a Rat?
Alertness? (Since they're always on the lookout for danger, maybe their the standard familiar's Alertness ability is "always on")
A bite attack?
I guess the Rat familiar's +2 Fort bonus is the best so far.
Cleon
Legend
I've updated the draft.
I've added some descriptive text and a proposal for a "Prairie Dog" subentry. I think a prairie dog is different enough from a true gopher to merit its own stats. Note that the description in the Monstrous Manual matches a prairie dog type ground squirrel far better than it does a true gopher.
I've added some descriptive text and a proposal for a "Prairie Dog" subentry. I think a prairie dog is different enough from a true gopher to merit its own stats. Note that the description in the Monstrous Manual matches a prairie dog type ground squirrel far better than it does a true gopher.
Cleon
Legend
I'm not suggesting Alertness for the prairie dog, but a nontyped bonus. The wizard/sorcerer will automatically get Alertness for having a familiar, the prairie dog's Listen/Spot bonus is on top of that.
Rather not give the gopher the same familiar bonus, since I haven't heard regular gophers are notable for their keen senses or being highly alert, while prairie dogs are.
Still, they may be hefty but they don't have a reputation for resistance to injury or disease like a rat does.
Let's see, how about Blind-Fight, since they're used to feeling their way around in the dark?
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