Creature Catalogue Overhaul Project Revisited

[freyar]

Let's work out the retinue.

Wolves are a bit tougher than hawks or (I think) banded lizards, so maybe let's go for 5-30 wolves. 3-18 dire wolves is probably ok, or we could adjust a tiny bit for CR to 3-15. I'm going to guess that a legendary wolf is also higher than CR 8, so maybe 2-9 of them. What do you think?

 

[Cleon]

Let's work out the retinue.

Wolves are a bit tougher than hawks or (I think) banded lizards, so maybe let's go for 5-30 wolves. 3-18 dire wolves is probably ok, or we could adjust a tiny bit for CR to 3-15. I'm going to guess that a legendary wolf is also higher than CR 8, so maybe 2-9 of them. What do you think?

Banded Lizards are CR 1/2 according to our conversion of them, which suggest we should have roughly half as many CR 1 wolves.

However, I like the current 2d10+12 because it gives a range of 14-32, which is exactly double the 7-16 range of a pack of wolves in the SRD. The original description says the Wolf Lord "leads huge wolf packs", which suggests twice the normal numbers as a bare minimum.

3-15 is an awkward number to roll on dice - I don't much fancy putting "1d6+1d8+1" or "4d4–1" in the summoning table. Considering how little effect a CR 3 Dire Wolf will have compared to the CR 25 Wolf Lord, I'm inclined to just forget about it and use 3d6 like the other Lords.

Legendary Wolves are from the 3E Monster Manual II and are CR 7, the same as a Giant Banded Lizard, so we're OK keeping the 2d6 number for them.

 

[freyar]

That's fine --- it's an art, not a science. I'm happy to go with your numbers.

Ideas for tactics: tries to rip the throats of spellcasters or others with vocal abilities, trips when possible, ?

 

[Cleon]

Just noticed a minor error in the full attack line - he's got a dagger/bite/2 claws attack which ought to be a dagger/2 bites/claw attack.

His Bite Alacrity allows him to chomp opponents twice in a round, but he doesn't attack with three arms!

Updating the Wolf Lord Working Draft.

 

[freyar]

True enough! What did you think about the proposed tactics?

 

[Cleon]

True enough! What did you think about the proposed tactics?

What the blazes? I posted a reply to your tactics proposal last week, but it appears to have vanished without trace.

If I remember correctly, it was something like:

The wolf lord prefers to fight in dire wolf form, but switches to hybrid form if his wolf's fang dagger is his most effective choice. He trips his opponents at every opportunity and loves it when a throat ripping bite stops an enemy using verbal spells.

A pack of wolves often fights alongside the wolf lord, helping him with Aid Another and flanking actions, or just by milling around so much it's unclear which of the wolves is the actual wolf lord.

 

[freyar]

Works for me!

We've lost some updates in the last year, too. I'd suggest mentioning it in meta, but it's so hard to document...

You have anything in mind for description or background?

 

[Cleon]

Works for me!

Updating the Wolf Lord Working Draft.

We've lost some updates in the last year, too. I'd suggest mentioning it in meta, but it's so hard to document...

Speaking of things that have gone AWOL, didn't we decide on an Organization line for them?

Currently, we only have X, Y and Z for the numbers of the various types of wolfies.

For the other Animal Lords, we used the same numbers as their Summon Animal ability for the Org line, so I'll assume we'll just do the same here.

You have anything in mind for description or background?

I don't have anything prepared, but how's this for a description:

A human youth, barely older than a boy, armed only with a dagger. His bright eyes and sharp features seem alive with intelligence.

A bright-eyed grey wolf who looks in peak condition; its great size and confident posture suggests this might be a pack leader.

 

[freyar]

Let's do that for the org line. And I'm happy enough with that for description.

 

[Cleon]

Let's do that for the org line. And I'm happy enough with that for description.

Updating the Wolf Lord Working Draft.

All we have left is fleshing out the background. I'll just rearrange the Hawk and Lizard versions a bit and plug in the few titbits of information we have from the MC entries:

The wolf lord is the animal lord who has dominion over wolves everywhere. His behavior seems a lot more human than most animal lords. However, he can be alarmingly savage and wily, although he is no more evil than a timber wolf. The lord of wolves spends much of his time running across the Beastlands with enormous packs of his lupine followers.

The Lord of Wolves may appear on the Prime Material Plane wherever wolves are being threatened with extinction, especially if the danger comes from intelligent or unnatural entities. He is cunning and ruthless, and is as willing to solve problems with diplomacy as brutality. Like all animal lords, the wolf lord has little interest in natural threats to the lives of individual animals. He is a guardian of all wolf-kind.