Christopher Lambert
First Post
Holy ... I hope you're not serious. I would wear the tack if the DM ever made the mistake of allowing that in the game!
Ow... steel on the teeth! At least they can't hear me groaning in pain!
Mule Mufflers?!
- Thread starter taliesin15
- Start date
Holy ... I hope you're not serious. I would wear the tack if the DM ever made the mistake of allowing that in the game!
Ow... steel on the teeth! At least they can't hear me groaning in pain!
taliesin15
First Post
harreman the wise sez:
Does anyone have Craft(Leatherworking). If not, the whole concept is bound to fail.
*nobody has Leatherworking. There is a druid and a ranger (and someone else) with animal handling skills (and/or spells).
i think it was Chris Lambert who suggested using cloth--i think others suggested some other material, softer leather (which isn't around in said dungeon--cloth can be hacked away from some bags, or from orc clothing)
but there's another problem I think with this--don't you think the mule is probably used to walking on its hooves? Seems like whatever soft material you come up with there's going to be a danger of the mule losing its footing (not to mention balking) on trickier places, such as on slopes, and when its carrying a big load
for perspective here, I've been rereading The Iliad--there's all these encounters on the battlefield where some Greeks will kill some Trojans, then try to take away their nice expensive arms and armor, but then *they* in turn run the risk of leaving themselves exposed to the spears of other Trojans
just seems like this is an age-old problem in warfare--how to take away the spoils--almost as much a problem as killing your foe
Does anyone have Craft(Leatherworking). If not, the whole concept is bound to fail.
*nobody has Leatherworking. There is a druid and a ranger (and someone else) with animal handling skills (and/or spells).
i think it was Chris Lambert who suggested using cloth--i think others suggested some other material, softer leather (which isn't around in said dungeon--cloth can be hacked away from some bags, or from orc clothing)
but there's another problem I think with this--don't you think the mule is probably used to walking on its hooves? Seems like whatever soft material you come up with there's going to be a danger of the mule losing its footing (not to mention balking) on trickier places, such as on slopes, and when its carrying a big load
for perspective here, I've been rereading The Iliad--there's all these encounters on the battlefield where some Greeks will kill some Trojans, then try to take away their nice expensive arms and armor, but then *they* in turn run the risk of leaving themselves exposed to the spears of other Trojans
just seems like this is an age-old problem in warfare--how to take away the spoils--almost as much a problem as killing your foe
Christopher Lambert
First Post
taliesin15 said:
Call for Balance checks when appropriate; I don't know about mules but DnD donkeys have the Balance skill. (Where are there stats for mules?)
There shouldn't be a penalty for carrying a heavy load and wearing the soft shoes, however. The heavy load is already applying a penalty to Balance checks as it is. Maybe -2 if you think cloth is that slippery; cloth footwear was common among peasants in the Middle Ages. Of course they were used to this and not climbing slopes often *shrug*
Don't loot in the middle of a battle! Not unless you're experienced at that kind of thing
Put guards around and just have a few loot. Even so, it leaves you vulnerable. Then again, same thing goes for bathroom breaks.
Parlan
First Post
Seems like a cool idea that should be encouraged. ure no one has Leather craft, but it can be used untrained, right? If they took ten, they shuld be able to jury rig something. Say if gives +4 to move silently, maybe a -2 on balance (because the cloth under hoof makes their footing less secure) checks. Maybe reduce their movement a little if you really feel like its important. After all, its not like mules have maxed ranks in Move silently anyway...
Nellisir
Hero
OK. Checked with my wife (12+ years of dressage riding, Animal Science degree, 7+ years in a vet's office; but I'm recalling this from a midnight conversation last night, so my recollections may be imperfect) and lots of horses wear booties.
Miniature horses are sometimes used as therapy animals in hospitals -- they wear booties to cut down on the clip-clop clip-clop.
Horses can get an infection or inflamation of the hoof called "thrush"; a bootie filled with ointment is fastened around the hoof to soak it.
Horses that "overstep" wear "bells" around their hooves (but not under) to keep them from stepping on themselves.
The horses don't need any special training or conditioning to get used to the bootie -- ties around their ankles don't bother them alot, and whatever's underneath is just another surface to walk on. Unlike dogs (who also wear booties on occasion), horses don't have toes or nerve endings in the bottoms of their feet (hooves are dead material, just like fingernails), so they're really not so aware of the bootie.
On a related matter, horses wear horseshoes if they walk on hard surfaces alot, or they don't have a pasture or large area to run in. Horses that are let out to pasture usually have their shoes pulled, while one that works in a city will be shod (the shoe actually acts as a buffer, spreading out the impact of the stone on the hoof and protecting it). Nowadays shoes are also used correctively -- to keep a horse's hoof from spreading (or splitting?), or even (in theory) if one leg was slightly shorter than the others, to even things out with a "high shoe" (this is my example, not hers).
A horse might also be shod if it works on slippery or steep surfaces -- the shoes can be studded, giving the horse much better traction.
Mules and donkeys can be shoed -- most of them just don't need to be nowadays.
Hope that helps,
Nell.
Miniature horses are sometimes used as therapy animals in hospitals -- they wear booties to cut down on the clip-clop clip-clop.
Horses can get an infection or inflamation of the hoof called "thrush"; a bootie filled with ointment is fastened around the hoof to soak it.
Horses that "overstep" wear "bells" around their hooves (but not under) to keep them from stepping on themselves.
The horses don't need any special training or conditioning to get used to the bootie -- ties around their ankles don't bother them alot, and whatever's underneath is just another surface to walk on. Unlike dogs (who also wear booties on occasion), horses don't have toes or nerve endings in the bottoms of their feet (hooves are dead material, just like fingernails), so they're really not so aware of the bootie.
On a related matter, horses wear horseshoes if they walk on hard surfaces alot, or they don't have a pasture or large area to run in. Horses that are let out to pasture usually have their shoes pulled, while one that works in a city will be shod (the shoe actually acts as a buffer, spreading out the impact of the stone on the hoof and protecting it). Nowadays shoes are also used correctively -- to keep a horse's hoof from spreading (or splitting?), or even (in theory) if one leg was slightly shorter than the others, to even things out with a "high shoe" (this is my example, not hers).
A horse might also be shod if it works on slippery or steep surfaces -- the shoes can be studded, giving the horse much better traction.
Mules and donkeys can be shoed -- most of them just don't need to be nowadays.
Hope that helps,
Nell.
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