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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Cleon" data-source="post: 5712243" data-attributes="member: 57383">Yes, I'd better refresh my memory about what a Short-Faced Hyena is like...Hmm, we're talking Pachycrocuta brevirosta (a literal translation of which is "thick-hyena, short-faced").They're the largest hyena (Hyaenodons are bigger, but they're not strictly speaking hyenas)m being the size of lions.Probably laired in caves like a Cave Hyena.Heaviset and not built for long-distance chases. That suggests to me it used an ambush strategy, like its feline ancestors?There's a <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9412000/9412549.stm" target="_blank">recent study</a> that claims Pachycrocuta was almost entirely a scavenger that bullied other predators and stole their kills. Although I am happy to say it like to steal kills, I don't want to make it an exclusive scavenger. Almost all predators will scavenge if given an opportunity, but I think they also need to be able to catch their own prey. Besides, a good scavenger needs to be able to cover a lot of ground without expending much energy while searching for carrion, and Pachycrocuta don't seem to be built for that.So, let's make it an ambush killer, with some bonus to Hide and Spot, and possibly Stealthy. Could give it keen scent to help it find carrion.They're fairly low-set for their weight,  because they have proportionally shorter legs than modern hyenas.Possible size range 35-40 inches at the shoulder and 220-400 pounds  (probably averaged ~250-300 lbs). Let's say at least 3 feet at the  should and about 300 pounds.Its jaws were great at cracking bones but may not have been so good for  biting/grappling onto struggling prey (cut the Trip attack to represent  this?).Likely to have lived in packs.Oh, and short-faced hyenas definitely <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/laelaps/2009/06/the_skull-crushing_hyenas_of_d.php" target="_blank">ate people</a>, or at least our hominid ancestors, so we could say they have a reputation as man-eaters.Some cryptozoologists suggest the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nandi_Bear" target="_blank">Nandi Bear</a> is a short-faced hyena. Maybe we should give it the Nandi's love of eating brains?The Nandi Bear theory would match up with the Hide and Move Silently bonus - they have to be sneaky or the scientists would discover them. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f61b.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":p" title="Stick out tongue    :p"  data-smilie="7"data-shortname=":p" /></blockquote>

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