Mule Mufflers?!

[cmanos]

Not necessarily looking for guidance here, but I'm DMing a party in a classic dungeon situation, they want to bring a mule down there, and I've had the NPCs sugest that the mule's hoofs will make so much noise that the party will likely never surprise or sneak up on any monsters.

Get this: they want to "strap on" cut off pieces of leather from the leather armor of some orcs they just vanquished, thinking this will muffle the sound of the mule.

I'm still gut-laughing so hard I can't take it seriously...

completely reasonable....apart from the fact that equines HATE enclosed spaces like underground caverns...how are the characters and handling animals? And have they taken precautions on keeping their metal armor from making noise?

 

[diaglo]

except that for D&D mules and donkeys are the only animals that have over the last 30 years been routinely able to go into dungeons.

horses can't.

but mules and donkeys can.

[british humour]why would they put scarves made of leather armor on the feet of mules?[/british humour]

mules don't normally have horseshoes. unlike riding horses.

 

[taliesin15]

Mules don't normally wear horseshoes? Well, they have hoofs right? Either way, I know for a fact they make a lot of noise on paved surfaces, and while some areas of the dungeon in question is more cave dirt oriented, the lower levels for sure are essentially old (and some new) mines and fortress areas cut out of stone.

Also there was this:
They could make sandals, not booties. Cut a circle for the bottom of the hoof, pierce a number of holes around the perimeter, and lace it up to the mule's legs. I'm not sure it'd like it, and I'd probably have the players' be making animal handling checks
****

first of all, there's a number of characters with animal handling/empathy skills, so there's no problem there. They do waste one of the characters by having him/her lead the mule at the back

But *this* idea, MULE SANDALS?!?! I'm about to start cracking up again! How about some MULE BIRKENSTOCKS fer crissakes?! To be serious for a sec here, if I thought something like this was doable in the first place, it would have to be fashioned by someone with horse/mule-tending (or whatever ya call it) as a Profession--pref. in the nearby town. Furthermore, it just seems more realistic, in the setting, a ca. 7th-8th century AD Viking/Anglo-Sxaon milieu, that instead of leather, artisans would probably use felt made from wool.

Last point, someone suggested I was looking for a reason not to do this--this is true to some extent because I found the suggestion hilarious in the first place. Just the name MULE MUFFLERS. Secondly, I wanted to see if other DMs have dealt with this before, and how they did so.

 

[Nellisir]

Furthermore, it just seems more realistic, in the setting, a ca. 7th-8th century AD Viking/Anglo-Sxaon milieu, that instead of leather, artisans would probably use felt made from wool.

I don't think felt would last very long. They just need soft leather instead of the hard-boiled stuff.

Last point, someone suggested I was looking for a reason not to do this--this is true to some extent because I found the suggestion hilarious in the first place. Just the name MULE MUFFLERS.

That'd be me also. Would it help if you called them MULE SNEAKERS?

Good luck with it
Nell.

 

[VisionOfMalkav]

Anyone who's worked with treated leather armor knows how unforgiving the material is. It's thick, nigh inpenetrable, doesn't breath and really builds up a stink after a while. The thing that would immediately worry me is that leather armor is fairly hard. While it might muffle a hoof a little (+1 to the DC of listen checks to hear the animal), there would still be a little bit more noise than cautious PC's would like.

I think Nellisir is on the right track. Soft leather, especially armor-grade leather that hadn't been treated yet, would probably be the best bet.

Now I, too, find myself laughing at the absurdity of making mule shoes.

Not laughing at the necessity for stealth, just the sheer silliness of how they're going about it...

 

[Christopher Lambert]

Maybe suggest to them to use something else soft. Maybe cloth?

Wha'ts so silly about the idea? It's been done, in real life, before. Just not with leather. It doesn't matter if they don't normally wear horseshoes.

(Speaking of which, why do horses wear shoes but mules normally don't? A mule is half-horse!)

 

[Herremann the Wise]

Not necessarily looking for guidance here, but I'm DMing a party in a classic dungeon situation, they want to bring a mule down there, and I've had the NPCs sugest that the mule's hoofs will make so much noise that the party will likely never surprise or sneak up on any monsters.

Get this: they want to "strap on" cut off pieces of leather from the leather armor of some orcs they just vanquished, thinking this will muffle the sound of the mule.

I'm still gut-laughing so hard I can't take it seriously...

Does anyone have Craft(Leatherworking). If not, the whole concept is bound to fail. With the correct equipment, this could possibly work but even then?
There are a couple of fictional stories where this approach has been taken.

Best Regards
Herremann the Wise

 

[diaglo]

Maybe suggest to them to use something else soft. Maybe cloth?

Wha'ts so silly about the idea? It's been done, in real life, before. Just not with leather. It doesn't matter if they don't normally wear horseshoes.

(Speaking of which, why do horses wear shoes but mules normally don't? A mule is half-horse!)

depends on the work being performed. shaving of the hoof is/was a common practice. hooves are like fingernails in that respect. even with horseshoes people still have to have the hooves tended and the shoes replaced.

i'm in agreement about the hard vs. soft leather.

as for using animals in dungeons... shetland ponies.... were used in mines.

packed earth is normal too for flooring in mines. not everything is stone.

 

[cmanos]

except that for D&D mules and donkeys are the only animals that have over the last 30 years been routinely able to go into dungeons

Ahh...a very good arguement. "It's always been done that way."

OK, so now you got a mule with booties. Mules are stubborn and have a tendency to stop dead and bray. You gonna make a crystam ball gag for said mule too?

Just use the silence spells. Spend the xp to make tack for the mule which silence it's hoofs and it's braying.

Or just have the druid talk to the mule and ask it to work on it's Move Silently skill.

 

[diaglo]

Ahh...a very good arguement. "It's always been done that way."

OK, so now you got a mule with booties. Mules are stubborn and have a tendency to stop dead and bray. You gonna make a crystam ball gag for said mule too?

Just use the silence spells. Spend the xp to make tack for the mule which silence it's hoofs and it's braying.

Or just have the druid talk to the mule and ask it to work on it's Move Silently skill.

i'm not making any arguement. just pointing out a fact.

even the new editions make mention of the ability of mules to be less startled. whereas horses ... are skittish.