Problem with a lion.

[AvarielAvenger]

Let's set D&D aside here. Essentially, then, the male isn't as stealthy as the female, because they are more easily spotted. I mean, I don't know of any male lions shaving their manes in order to be stealthier.

It was a joke. You could argue that the male isn't as stealthy, but if you put the two in a situation (like night time hunting) where the mane isn't a factor, the male lion is just as stealthy, if not moreso, than the female lion. That's basically the point.

And I do understand that you're saying the male lion can't be considered as stealthy because they are easier to see in the daytime, just to head off any replies of that kind.

PS

And yes, male lions are just as fast and agile as female lions. Again, it was a misconception that has been dispelled that female lions were faster, more agile, etc.

 

[Piratecat]

If you would like to avoid straining credibility, try this: the lion was smuggled in by a group of rogues who supply animals for gladitorial fights, rare animals for spell components, and exotic pets. Someone high in the greek political structure hired this group to bring him a baby lion. They did, but it escaped, and now the rogues want it back at all costs or their client will crush them. Worse, if the PCs destroy the smugglers, the noble will be irritated enough to take a hand in it himself, sending the curator of his private zoo and a number of thugs after them.

That might work!

 

[JacktheRabbit]

Their lack of manes could be explained several different ways.

1. Simple genetic variation.

2. Young males who had not developed manes yet.

3. They were crossbreed lion-jaguars or lion-leopards which while normally only seen in zoos could potentially happen in the wild.

Interestingly, the man-eating lions of Tsavo (who were the inspiration for the Ghost and the Darkness, and are subjects of a good chunk of Col. Patterson's "Man Eaters of Tsavo" book written around 1909 about incidents in the late 19th century), were male, but did not have manes. I'm guessing that they were ostracized, so to speak, by other lions due to this lack of a mane - they wouldn't have a clear niche in the hierarchy - ended up rogue, and teamed up as hunting partners out of instinct.

 

[Zhure]

Interestingly, the man-eating lions of Tsavo (who were the inspiration for the Ghost and the Darkness, and are subjects of a good chunk of Col. Patterson's "Man Eaters of Tsavo" book written around 1909 about incidents in the late 19th century), were male, but did not have manes. I'm guessing that they were ostracized, so to speak, by other lions due to this lack of a mane - they wouldn't have a clear niche in the hierarchy - ended up rogue, and teamed up as hunting partners out of instinct.

If memory serves me I *believe* the male's of Tsavo are notorious for lacking a mane. Or rather their distinctive mane isn't nearly as full as other lions. Scientists believe this is due to the lack of water in the area for some reason. I don't recall the exact correlation. I'll surf around and see if I can find the information.There was a recent article in National Geographic about it.

added- http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0204/feature2/zoom1.html
http://www.nrc.ca/cisti/bacr/rp_lion_full_e.shtml
Greg

 

[Mark]

It was a joke. You could argue that the male isn't as stealthy, but if you put the two in a situation (like night time hunting) where the mane isn't a factor, the male lion is just as stealthy, if not moreso, than the female lion. That's basically the point.

And I do understand that you're saying the male lion can't be considered as stealthy because they are easier to see in the daytime, just to head off any replies of that kind.

PS

And yes, male lions are just as fast and agile as female lions. Again, it was a misconception that has been dispelled that female lions were faster, more agile, etc. [/B]

You are correct and thanks for saving me the trouble.

Being stealthy and being effective are not mutually exclusive. The misconception about a perceived disparity in male and female lion abilities is easily disspelled by pointing to the survival rate of rogue males.

 

[apsuman]

The last time I was at the zoo I saw a lion and lioness and she was bigger. The male did not look immature, full mane and all, but she was definately larger (not by much but I was surprised).

Plot twists for how the lion was found:

the "lion" is actually a person cursed into the form of a lion, they have not idea of their real past.

The cub was lost when a cage fell open on a caravan taking animals to the circuses for fights with the gladiators.

The cub was acquired by a wizard and the thugs that were bringing it back came to a bad end. The wizard finds out that the cub has a new "friend" and now hunts the party down.



g!

 

[Turlogh]

The European lion is actually called the Asiatic Lion and is not extinct there is a small preserve of them in India. They are smalller than African lions, hunt smaller prey and travel in smaller packs (prides). The male still has a mane but it is much less prominent. The female reaches maturity in 3-4 years and the male in 5-8 years, and they live between 16- 21 years. The ranged between Greece and India, but when driven to extinction in the Greecian region about 100AD and in the Holy Lands during the crusades.

For more information check out http://www.asiatic-lion.org/

Hope this helps.

 

[ColonelHardisson]

First, I'm not disputing that rogue male lions are effective hunters (where is that coming from? I never said they weren't). Quite the opposite; they're good hunters. They may well be as agile as the females. However, reasoning that the male has to be as fast as a female because it's just as effective a hunter is a bit of a leap in logic - by such reasoning, then, a cheetah would be a much more effective hunter than a lion. Still, I can't find a source to back up the assertion that the female is faster, so I'll concede on that point until I can find something to back it up, and assume that I'm wrong until I do. The males are considerably larger and heavier than the females, though...

For the curious, here's a link about the American lion -

http://www.beringia.com/02/02maina5.html

 

[Desdichado]

It'll never work, PC, the Greeks didn't have gladiators, that was the Romans several centuries later.

Err, actually, when is the game set, anyway? If I were to do ancient Greece, I'd go for the time right before the Greek Dark Age: have them do the Trojan War, the Sea Peoples, etc. You're probably doing classic era Greece, though, right? More along the lines of the Pelopponesian war and the Persian Wars?

Anyway, lion behaviour is predicated a lot on the environment. Tigers and other large cats show incipient pride behaviour at times, while Asian lions do not show pride behaviour. The Asian lion is probably the same breed as the European lion. I'd do some research on Asian lion behaviour and use that as your guide. It will be more standard cat-like, though.