Reviewing, Revising, and Finalizing Prehistoric Animals and Dinosaur Ecology

[Cleon]

Okay, before I post some more dinosaurs, I think I'll add a few words of explanation.

You may note that the previous prehistoric beasts had "Redux" or "Nova" after their names. Those with Redux are reworkings of prehistoric monsters from the SRD, those with "Nova" are new creations that are not based on the SRD, although some of the ones I'll be posting are partly derived from AD&D prehistoric beasts.

One of the changes I made was to give most of the dinosaurs and other prehistoric reptiles an Intelligence of 1. There's no evidence to justify giving most archosaurs the same Intelligence as a mammal, although I did relent on the more advanced theropods like Tyrannosaurus and Velociraptor, an Int of 2, since they had somewhat bigger brains (although they still weren't impressive compared to a wolf or primate).

Some of the stats are a bit exaggerated for effect. For example, the sauropods (if I get around to finishing them) have a weak but effective bite attack, so an enraged Brontosaurus can reach into a tree and chew your PCs too death just like one did in King Kong. They also have a few more Hit Dice than most mammals their size do.

 

[Cleon]

Okay, here's the prehistoric creatures I have lying around ready for posting. They are.

Allosaurus - because it's my favourite dinosaur.

Pliosaurus - for when you want an ancient marine reptile with more bite than Elasmosaurus.

Sauropods - this covers a wide ranges of sizes and build plans of sauropoda and its smaller ancestors, from a 12-foot Messospondylus to truly collossal 100+ ton behemoths such as Argentinosaurus.

Finally, I'll present stats for... crocodiles!

I worked these up because I noticed that the SRD giant crocodile is rather weak compared to the regular crocodile. Its stats are more appropriate for a Croc advanced to Large size than a Huge one.

So, I decided to downgrade the SRD "giant crocodile" to a Large-sized animal and brewed up a version with stats more suitable for a Huge prehistoric reptile such as Sarcosuchus or Deinosuchus.

I also added a "death roll" special attack to the crocodile, since I didn't see how the poor thing could do without it, together with the ability to locate motion in the water, since real-world Crocs actually possess such a sense.

 

[Cleon]

Allosaurus

Allosaurus Nova
Late Jurassic (155-145 MYA)
Large Animal
Hit Dice: 10d8+50 (95 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 50 ft. (10 squares)
Armor Class: 17 (–1 size, +2 Dex, +6 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple: +7/+17
Attack: Bite +12 melee (2d6+6)
Full Attack: Bite +12 melee (2d6+6) and claws +7 melee (1d6+3)
Space/Reach: 10 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Improved grab, swallow whole
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +12, Ref +9, Will +5
Abilities: Str 23, Dex 15, Con 21, Int 1, Wis 15, Cha 10
Skills: Hide +6* [+10 in undergrowth], Listen +9, Spot +9, Survival +9
Feats: Endurance, Power Attack, Run, Track
Environment: Warm forests or plains
Organization: Solitary, pair or pack (3-12)
Challenge Rating: 5
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 11-12 HD (Large); 13-24 HD (Huge); 25–30 HD (Gargantuan)
Level Adjustment: —

An Allosaurus is a classically built predatory dinosaur, with a large head full of serrated teeth and two short but powerful forelimbs ending in 3-fingered hands for grasping prey.

A typical Allosaurus stands about 8 feet tall, with a total length of 25 feet, and weighs about 2500 pounds. They can grow considerably bigger than this, and some of its larger relatives may rival a Tyrannosaurus in size.

Combat
An Allosaurus strikes fast and hard, often from ambush. They usually charge in with their bite attack, and then tries to grapple with its foreclaws and strikes repeatedly with power-attack bite attacks. Against particularly large opponents they attempt to circle around to make hit-and-run attacks against their flanks.

Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, an Allosaurus must hit with its bite or claws attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity.

If it wins the grapple check with a bite attack, it establishes a hold and can try to swallow the foe the following round. If it wins with its claws attack it can full-attack the held opponent with both its bite and claws at their full +12 attack bonus.

Swallow Whole (Ex): an Allosaurus can try to swallow a grabbed opponent of up to two sizes smaller by making a successful grapple check. The swallowed creature takes 1d10+6 points of bludgeoning damage and 8 points of acid damage per round from the Allosaurus’s gizzard. A swallowed creature can cut its way out by using a light slashing or piercing weapon to deal 25 points of damage to the gizzard (AC 13). Once the creature exits, muscular action closes the hole; another swallowed opponent must cut its own way out.

Skills
An Allosaurus has a +4 racial bonus on Hide, Listen, Spot, and Survival checks.

*Its racial bonus to Hide increases to +8 when it is in thick undergrowth.

A Big Allosaurus
Huge Animal
Hit Dice: 15d8+90 (157 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 50 ft. (10 squares)
Armor Class: 18 (–2 size, +1 Dex, +9 natural), touch 9, flat-footed 17
Base Attack/Grapple: +11/+27
Attack: Bite +17 melee (3d6+8/19-20)
Full Attack: Bite +17 melee (3d6+8/19-20) and claws +12 melee (1d8+4)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft.
Special Attacks: Improved grab, swallow whole
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +15, Ref +10, Will +9
Abilities: Str 27, Dex 13, Con 23, Int 1, Wis 15, Cha 10
Skills: Hide +6* [+10 in undergrowth], Listen +9, Spot +10, Survival +9
Feats: Endurance, Improved Critical (bite), Iron Will, Power Attack, Run, Track
Environment: Warm forests or plains
Organization: Solitary, pair or pack (3-12)
Challenge Rating: 7
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 16-24 HD (Huge); 25–30 HD (Gargantuan)
Level Adjustment: —

10 feet high and 35 feet long, weighing around 6000 pounds. This represents the old AD&D 15 Hit Dice Allosaurus.

 

[Cleon]

Pliosaurus

Pliosaurus Nova
Late Jurassic (160-150 MYA)
Huge Animal
Hit Dice: 10d8+60 (105 hp)
Initiative: +2
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares), swim 50 ft.
Armor Class: 13 (–2 size, +2 Dex, +3 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 11
Base Attack/Grapple: +7/+22
Attack: Bite +14 melee (2d8+12)
Full Attack: Bite +14 melee (2d8+12)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. (10 ft. with bite)
Special Attacks: Improved grab, swallow whole
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +15, Ref +9, Will +4
Abilities: Str 26, Dex 14, Con 22, Int 1, Wis 13, Cha 9
Skills: Hide –4*, Listen +4, Spot +9, Swim +16
Feats: Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Weapon Focus (bite)
Environment: Warm aquatic
Organization: Solitary, pair, or herd (5–8)
Challenge Rating: 7
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 11–20 HD (Huge); 21–30 HD (Gargantuan)
Level Adjustment: —

These relatives of Elasmosaurus have short necks and massive heads crammed with large teeth. A typical Pliosaurus is 30 feet long, with a head about 6 feet long, and weighs about 10,000 pounds.

These stats can be used for other species of marine reptile with a similar body plan, such as Liopleurodon (155-160 MYA) or Kronosaurus (120-100 MYA), which may not have been closely related to Pliosaurus but were probably similar to it in their habits.

Combat
A Pliosaurus is aggressive and attacks anything it notices. The creature is strong, fast, and highly maneuverable, able to turn quickly and lunge at prey.

Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a Pliosaurus must hit an opponent of up to one size smaller with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If it wins the grapple check, it establishes a hold and can try to swallow the foe the following round.

Swallow Whole (Ex): A Pliosaurus can try to swallow a grabbed opponent of up to two sizes smaller by making a successful grapple check. The swallowed creature takes 2d8+8 points of bludgeoning damage and 8 points of acid damage per round from the Pliosaurus’s gizzard. A swallowed creature can cut its way out by using a light slashing or piercing weapon to deal 25 points of damage to the gizzard (AC 12). Once the creature exits, muscular action closes the hole; another swallowed opponent must cut its own way out.

A Huge Pliosaurus's gizzard can hold 2 Medium, 8 Small, 32 Tiny, or 128 Diminutive or smaller opponents.

Skills
A Pliosaurus has a +8 racial bonus on Swim checks. It can always choose to take 10 on a Jump or Swim check, even if distracted or endangered. It can use the run action while swimming, provided it swims in a straight line.

* A Pliosaurus has a +8 racial bonus on Hide checks in water.

 

[Cleon]

Sauropods

Sauropods
Sauropods: Early Jurassic to Late Cretaceous (190-65 MYA)
Prosauropods: Early Jurassic to Late Cretaceous (220-185 MYA)

Sauropods are immense reptiles with elephantine bodies, tiny heads and long necks and tails. A classic example is Brontosaurus, or Apatosaurus as it is more properly called. Other varieties of sauropod will be treated as variations on the Brontosaurus, which will be considered a "generic sauropod".

Brontosaurus (Apatosaurus)
Huge Animal
Hit Dice: 16d8+112 (184 hp)
Initiative: –1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 18 (–2 size, –1 Dex, +11 natural), touch 7, flat-footed 18
Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+29
Attack: tail +20 melee (2d8+13) or kick +19 melee (1d8+9) or bite +19 melee (1d8+4)
Full Attack: tail +20 melee (2d8+13) and bite +14 melee (1d8+4); or 2 kicks +19 melee (1d8+9)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. (bite 15 ft., tail 30 ft.)
Special Attacks: Trample 3d8+13
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +19, Ref +9, Will +6
Abilities: Str 29, Dex 9, Con 25, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +13, Spot +12
Feats: Ability Focus (trample), Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Great Fortitude, Weapon Focus (tail)
Environment: Temperate and warm plains or forests
Organization: Solitary, pair, family (3-12) or herd (10–60)
Challenge Rating: 8
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 17–24 HD (Huge); 25-35 HD (Gargantuan); 36–48 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: —

The above stats represent a smallish Brontosaurus with a total length of about 50 feet, weighing in the region of 20,000 pounds. Some sauropods grow much larger.

Combat
Sauropods are not terribly aggressive, but will defend themselves if attacked, usually using their massive whiplike tails or simply trampling smaller enemies. They can also rear up on their hind legs and come smashing down upon opponents with their forefeet. A sauropod can bite, but this is not its preferred means of attack.

Trample (Ex): Reflex half DC 29. The save DC is Strength-based.

Lesser Sauropods and Quadrupedal Prosauropods
Some sauropods are smaller than the Huge-sized specimens given above, these are mostly juveniles of larger species, but the stats can be used for unusually small species such as the 30-foot long Nigersaurus or hypothetical "pygmy sauropods".

These stats can also be used for some of the sauropods' primitive relatives, the Prosauropoda. Some of the largest Prosauropods, such as Riojasaurus and Kotasaurus were quadrupedal, with the largest examples being 30-40 feet long. Most would use the stats of a Large standard sauropod, with the biggest individuals (up to ~40-45 feet and 8 tons or so) using the stats for a 16-21 hit dice standard Sauropod of Huge size.

Most Prosauropods, however, walked on two legs and had sizeable claws on their hands, presumably for grasping food and fighting off predators and have different stats as detailed below under Bipedal Prosauropods. Such animals ranged in length from about 5 feet (Thecodontosaurus) to 30 feet (Plateosaurus). Note that some of these bipedal forms may technically be extremely primitive sauropods (like Anchisaurus) or intermediates between basal theropods and prosauropods (like Saturnalia) rather than true Prosauropoda

Some Prosauropods had sharp teeth and may have been omnivorous, supplementing a primarily vegetable diet with small animals and carrion.

Hatchling sauropods and Prosauropoda would have been less than Small-sized, stats for these are not provided since they would be too small to pose any risk to adventurers.

Small Sauropod (Infant)
Small Animal
Hit Dice: 2d8+4 (13 hp)
Initiative: +0
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 15 (+1 size, +4 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple: +1/–2
Attack: tail +3 melee (1d6+1) or kick +3 melee (1d3+1) or bite +3 melee (1d3)
Full Attack: tail +3 melee (1d6+1) and bite –2 melee (1d3); or 2 kicks +3 melee (1d3+1)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: —
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +5, Ref +3, Will +1
Abilities: Str 13, Dex 11, Con 15, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +6, Spot +5
Feats: Alertness
Environment: Temperate and warm plains or forests
Organization: Solitary, pair, family (3-12) or herd (10–60)
Challenge Rating: ½
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 3 HD (Small); 4-7 HD (Medium); 8-15 HD (Large); 16–24 HD (Huge); 25-35 HD (Gargantuan); 36–48 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: —

The above statistics can be used to represent a very young infant sauropod or an adolescent quadrupedal Prosauropod.

A Small-sized sauropod typically ranges from 5 to 7 feet long and weighs between 25 and 60 pounds.

Medium Sauropod (Juvenile)
Medium Animal
Hit Dice: 4d8+12 (30 hp)
Initiative: –1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 15 (–1 Dex, +6 natural), touch 9, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple: +3/+6
Attack: tail +6 melee (1d8+4) or kick +6 melee (1d4+3) or bite +6 melee (1d4+1)
Full Attack: tail +6 melee (1d8+4) and bite +1 melee (1d4+1); or 2 kicks +6 melee (1d4+3)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft. (bite 5 ft., tail 10 ft.)
Special Attacks: —
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +7, Ref +3, Will +2
Abilities: Str 17, Dex 9, Con 17, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +7, Spot +6
Feats: Alertness, Endurance
Environment: Temperate and warm plains or forests
Organization: Solitary, pair, family (3-12) or herd (10–60)
Challenge Rating: 2
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 5-7 HD (Medium); 8-15 HD (Large); 16–24 HD (Huge); 25-35 HD (Gargantuan); 36–48 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: —

The above statistics can be used to represent a young juvenile sauropod or an adolescent quadrupedal Prosauropod.

A Medium-sized sauropod ranges from 7 to 15 feet long and typically weighs between 200 and 500 pounds.

Large Sauropod (Nigersaurus)
Large Animal
Hit Dice: 8d8+40 (76 hp)
Initiative: –1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 16 (–1 size, –1 Dex, +8 natural), touch 8, flat-footed 16
Base Attack/Grapple: +6/+15
Attack: tail +11 melee (1d10+7) or kick +10 melee (1d6+5) or bite +10 melee (1d6+2)
Full Attack: tail +11 melee (1d10+7) and bite +5 melee (1d6+2); or 2 kicks +10 melee (1d6+5)
Space/Reach: 10 ft./5 ft. (bite 10 ft., tail 20 ft.)
Special Attacks: —
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +11, Ref +5, Will +3
Abilities: Str 21, Dex 9, Con 21, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +9, Spot +8
Feats: Alertness, Endurance, Weapon Focus (tail)
Environment: Temperate and warm plains or forests
Organization: Solitary, pair, family (3-12) or herd (10–60)
Challenge Rating: 4
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 9-15 HD (Large); 16–24 HD (Huge); 25-35 HD (Gargantuan); 36–48 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: —

The above stats can be used for an adolescent sauropod or a quadrupedal Prosauropod, such as Riojasaurus.

Large sauropods range between 12 and 30 feet long and weigh between 500 pounds to 2 tons.

Bipedal Prosauropods
See here.

Advanced Sauropods
Sauropods include the largest animals that ever walked the land, with some Brachiosaurs and Titanosaurs reaching weights of over a hundred tons.

An advanced sauropod normally chooses among the feats Awesome Blow, Damage Reduction (often multiple), Improved Bull Rush, Improved Critical (tail or kick), Great Constitution (often multiple), Power Attack and Snatch. Here are some typical examples:

Gargantuan Sauropod (Brontosaurus)
Gargantuan Animal
Hit Dice: 25d8+225 (337 hp)
Initiative: –1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 20 (–4 size, –1 Dex, +15 natural), touch 5, flat-footed 20
Base Attack/Grapple: +18/+43
Attack: tail +28 melee (3d8+19) or kick +27 melee (2d6+13) or bite +27 melee (2d6+6)
Full Attack: tail +28 melee (3d8+19) and bite +22 melee (2d6+6) or 2 kicks +27 melee (2d6+13)
Space/Reach: 20 ft./15 ft. (bite 20 ft., tail 40 ft.)
Special Attacks: Trample 4d8+19 (DC37) 12+13+12
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +25, Ref +13, Will +9
Abilities: Str 37, Dex 9, Con 29, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +15, Spot +15
Feats: Ability Focus (trample), Awesome Blow, Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Great Fortitude, Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack, Weapon Focus (tail)
Challenge Rating: 12

The above statistics can be used for adults of many species of sauropod, including Brontosaurus.

Gargantuan sauropods range between 50 and 120 feet long and weigh 16-64 tons.

Colossal Sauropod (Argentinosaurus)
Colossal Animal
Hit Dice: 36d8+396 (558 hp)
Initiative: –1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 21 (–8 size, –1 Dex, +20 natural), touch 1, flat-footed 21
Base Attack/Grapple: +27/+60
Attack: tail +37 melee (4d8+25/19-20) or kick +36 melee (3d6+17) or bite +36 melee (3d6+8)
Full Attack: tail +37 melee (4d8+25/19-20) and bite +36 melee (3d6+8) or 2 kicks +36 melee (3d6+17)
Space/Reach: 30 ft./20 ft. (bite 30 ft., tail 60 ft.)
Special Attacks: Trample 5d8+25 (DC47)
Special Qualities: Damage reduction 9/–, low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +33, Ref +19, Will +13
Abilities: Str 45, Dex 9, Con 33, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +21, Spot +20
Feats: Ability Focus (trample), Awesome Blow, Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Great Fortitude, Improved Critical (tail), Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack, Weapon Focus (tail)
Epic Feats: Damage Reduction ×3
Challenge Rating: 15

The above statistics can be used for the largest genera of sauropods, such as Argentinosaurus.

Colossal sauropods are between 100 and 150 feet long and weigh 64-160 tons.

Maximized Sauropod
Colossal Animal
Hit Dice: 48d8+576 (792 hp)
Initiative: –1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 21 (–8 size, –1 Dex, +20 natural), touch 1, flat-footed 21
Base Attack/Grapple: +36/+69
Attack: tail +46 melee (4d8+25/19-20) or kick +45 melee (3d6+17) or bite +45 melee (3d6+8)
Full Attack: tail +46 melee (4d8+25/19-20) and bite +45 melee (3d6+8) or 2 kicks +45 melee (3d6+17)
Space/Reach: 30 ft./20 ft. (bite 30 ft., tail 60 ft.)
Special Attacks: Trample 5d8+25 (DC53)
Special Qualities: Damage reduction 15/–, low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +40, Ref +25, Will +17
Abilities: Str 45, Dex 9, Con 34, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +27, Spot +26
Feats: Ability Focus (trample), Awesome Blow, Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Great Fortitude, Improved Critical (tail), Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack, Snatch, Weapon Focus (tail)
Epic Feats: Damage Reduction ×5, Great Constitution
Challenge Rating: 18

Other Types of Sauropods

Diplodocids
Diplodocidsare longer and thinner than a standard sauropod such as Brontosaurus, a 16 HD specimen being about 70-80 feet long. Their tails are even more whiplike than a regular sauropod's. Apply the following changes to the base sauropod: –4 Strength, increase the reach of its bite and tail attacks by 50%.

Note that juvenile diplodocids should probably have proportionally shorter necks and tails, so Large-sized adolescents would have a 15 foot bite reach and a 25 foot tail reach, while Medium-sized and smaller specimens would have a standard sauropod's reach.

A basic Diplodocus has the following stats:

Diplodocus
Huge Animal
Hit Dice: 16d8+112 (184 hp)
Initiative: –1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 18 (–2 size, –1 Dex, +11 natural), touch 7, flat-footed 18
Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+27
Attack: tail +18 melee (2d8+10/19-20) or kick +17 melee (1d8+7) or bite +17 melee (1d8+3)
Full Attack: tail +18 melee (2d8+10) and bite +12 melee (1d8+3); or 2 kicks +17 melee (1d8+7)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. (bite 20 ft., tail 45 ft.)
Special Attacks: Trample 3d8+10 (DC27)
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +19, Ref +9, Will +6
Abilities: Str 25, Dex 9, Con 25, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +13, Spot +12
Feats: Ability Focus (trample), Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Great Fortitude, Weapon Focus (tail)
Environment: Temperate and warm plains or forests
Organization: Solitary, pair, family (3-12) or herd (10–60)
Challenge Rating: 8
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 17–24 HD (Huge); 25-35 HD (Gargantuan); 36–48 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: —

Long-Necked Sauropods
Some sauropods had extravagantly extended necks even for this long-necked group of dinosaurs. The majority of long-necked sauropods, like Barosaurus had necks a little shorter their tails, but one example, Mamenchisaurus was about 70 feet long with a neck 30-35 feet long - nearly half its entire length!

Note that like many sauropods, many long-necked sauropods would have been Gargantuan animals as mature adults, 80-100 foot long creatures weighing 20-40 tons.

To create a long-necked sauropod, simply take a standard sauropod and give it a bite reach equal to its tail reach.

A basic long-necked sauropod has the following stats:

Mamenchisaurus
Huge Animal
Hit Dice: 16d8+112 (184 hp)
Initiative: –1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 18 (–2 size, –1 Dex, +11 natural), touch 7, flat-footed 18
Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+29
Attack: tail +20 melee (2d8+13) or kick +19 melee (1d8+9) or bite +19 melee (1d8+4)
Full Attack: tail +20 melee (2d8+13) and bite +14 melee (1d8+4); or 2 kicks +19 melee (1d8+9)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. (bite 30 ft., tail 30 ft.)
Special Attacks: Trample 3d8+13
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +19, Ref +9, Will +6
Abilities: Str 29, Dex 9, Con 25, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +13, Spot +12
Feats: Ability Focus (trample), Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Great Fortitude, Weapon Focus (tail)
Environment: Temperate and warm plains or forests
Organization: Solitary, pair, family (3-12) or herd (10–60)
Challenge Rating: 8
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 17–24 HD (Huge); 25-35 HD (Gargantuan); 36–48 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: —

Brachiosaurs
A Brachiosaurus has a sturdy body, with a shorter tail and longer forelegs than other sauropods. This group includes massive species that grow Gargantuan and Colossal size, such as Giraffatitan brancai. Apply the following changes to the base sauropod: +4 Strength, bite reach equals the sauropods's Space, tail reach is twice the base reach, Weapon Focus is in kick instead of tail. Juveniles and adults of less than Huge size have both bite reach and tail reach equal to their Space.

Brachiosaur stats can also be used for other types of sauropod with bulky bodies and comparatively short necks and tails, such as Barapasaurus.

A basic Brachiosaurus has the following stats:

Brachiosaurus
Huge Animal
Hit Dice: 16d8+112 (184 hp)
Initiative: –1
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 18 (–2 size, –1 Dex, +11 natural), touch 7, flat-footed 18
Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+31
Attack: kick +22 melee (1d10+11) or tail +21 melee (2d6+16) or bite +21 melee (1d8+5)
Full Attack: 2 kicks +22 melee (1d10+11); or tail +21 melee (2d6+16) and bite +16 melee (1d8+5)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. (bite 15 ft., tail 20 ft.)
Special Attacks: Trample 3d8+16 (DC31)
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +19, Ref +9, Will +6
Abilities: Str 33, Dex 9, Con 25, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +13, Spot +12
Feats: Ability Focus (trample), Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Great Fortitude, Weapon Focus (kick)
Environment: Temperate and warm plains or forests
Organization: Solitary, pair, family (3-12) or herd (10–60)
Challenge Rating: 8
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 17–24 HD (Huge); 25-35 HD (Gargantuan); 36–48 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: —

Armoured Sauropods
Some sauropods had small bony plates in their skin and a row of defensive spikes down their spines, a typical genus is Ampelosaurus. Use a base sauropod with the following changes: –2 Dexterity, reduce speed to 20 ft., add Damage Resistance 5/– plus 1/– per 4 Hit Dice.

Armoured Sauropods are usually fairly small for sauropods, seldom exceeding Huge size. Their armour may be needed to compensate for their smaller size.

A basic Ampelosaurus has the following stats:

Ampelosaurus
Huge Animal
Hit Dice: 16d8+112 (184 hp)
Initiative: –2
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares)
Armor Class: 18 (–2 size, –1 Dex, +11 natural), touch 7, flat-footed 18
Base Attack/Grapple: +12/+29
Attack: kick +22 melee (1d10+11) or tail +21 melee (2d6+16) or bite +21 melee (1d8+5)
Full Attack: 2 kicks +22 melee (1d10+11); or tail +21 melee (2d6+16) and bite +16 melee (1d8+5)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. (bite 15 ft., tail 20 ft.)
Special Attacks: Trample 3d8+16 (DC31)
Special Qualities: Damage reduction 9/–, Low-light vision, scent
Saves: Fort +19, Ref +8, Will +6
Abilities: Str 29, Dex 7, Con 25, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Listen +13, Spot +12
Feats: Ability Focus (trample), Alertness, Diehard, Endurance, Great Fortitude, Weapon Focus (kick)
Environment: Temperate and warm plains or forests
Organization: Solitary, pair, family (3-12) or herd (10–60)
Challenge Rating: 8
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 17–24 HD (Huge); 25-35 HD (Gargantuan); 36–48 HD (Colossal)
Level Adjustment: —

 

[Cleon]

Building a Better Crocodile

Crocodile Redux
Medium Animal
Hit Dice: 3d8+9 (22 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares), swim 30 ft.
Armor Class: 15 (+1 Dex, +4 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 14
Base Attack/Grapple: +2/+6
Attack: Bite +6 melee (1d6+4) or tail slap +6 melee (1d10+2)
Full Attack: Bite +6 melee (1d6+4) and tail slap +1 melee (1d10+2)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Death roll (1d6+6), improved grab
Special Qualities: Hold breath, low-light vision, 60 ft. ripplesense
Saves: Fort +6, Ref +4, Will +2
Abilities: Str 19, Dex 12, Con 17, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 2
Skills: Hide +7* [+11 in water, +21 when mostly submerged], Listen +4, Spot +4, Survival +2, Swim +12
Feats: Alertness, Skill Focus (Hide)
Environment: Warm marshes
Organization: Solitary or colony (6–11)
Challenge Rating: 2
Advancement: 4–6 HD (Medium), 7-12 HD (Large)
Level Adjustment: —

Crocodiles are aggressive predators 11 to 12 feet long. They lie mostly submerged in rivers or marshes, with only their eyes and nostrils showing, waiting for prey to come within reach.

Combat
Crocodiles seek to establish a hold upon an opponent with its mouth and drag it into deep water, attempting to pin it to the bottom until it drowns. Opponents that resist will be hit by death roll attacks.

A threatened crocodile defends itself with its jaws and tail. They can not attack the same opponent with both attacks, since these natural weapons threaten opposite ends of the crocodile.

Death Roll (Ex): A swimming crocodile can violently thrash its body to tear up any creature it holds in its jaws, dealing 1d6+6 damage if it succeeds on a grapple check.

Improved Grab (Ex): To use this ability, a crocodile must hit with its bite attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. If it wins the grapple check, it can follow up with normal grapple actions or its Death Roll special attack.

Hold Breath (Ex): A crocodile can hold its breath for a number of rounds equal to 4 × its Constitution score before it risks drowning.

Ripplesense (Ex): A crocodile can detect disturbances in the water using vibration-sensitive pits in its scales. This functions like blindsense (q.v.), except the crocodile can only sense the location of creatures through water. It must itself be in contact with the water, and the creatures must be moving.

Skills
A crocodile has a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to perform some special action or avoid a hazard. It can always choose to take 10 on a Swim check, even if distracted or endangered. It can use the run action while swimming, provided it swims in a straight line. *A crocodile gains a +4 racial bonus on Hide checks when in the water. Further, a crocodile can lie in the water with only its eyes and nostrils showing, gaining a +10 cover bonus on Hide checks.

Notes: The SRD version's skill modifiers did not add up - it worked out to Hide 3(+1Dex, +3 Skill Focus), Listen 1(+1 Wis +2 Alertness), Spot 1(+1 Wis +2 Alertness), Swim 0(+4 Str, +8 racial), so one skill rank is missing. I decided a point in Survival was appropriate.

Crocodile, Large
Large Animal
Hit Dice: 7d8+35 (66 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares), swim 30 ft.
Armor Class: 17 (–1 size, +1 Dex, +7 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 16
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+17
Attack: Bite +12 melee (1d8+8) or tail slap +12 melee (1d12+4)
Full Attack: Bite +12 melee (1d8+8) or tail slap +7 melee (1d12+4)
Space/Reach: 10 ft./5 ft. (10 ft. with tail)
Special Attacks: Death roll (1d8+12), improved grab
Special Qualities: Hold breath, low-light vision, 60 ft. ripplesense
Saves: Fort +10, Ref +6, Will +3
Abilities: Str 27, Dex 12, Con 21, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 2
Skills: Hide +5* [+9 in water, +19 when mostly submerged], Listen +5, Spot +5, Survival +2, Swim +16
Feats: Alertness, Endurance, Skill Focus (Hide)
Environment: Warm marshes
Organization: Solitary or colony (6–11)
Challenge Rating: 4
Advancement: 8–12 HD (Large)
Level Adjustment: —

These creatures usually live in salt water and can be more than 20 feet long.

Large crocodiles fight and behave like their smaller cousins.

Crocodile, Giant
Huge Animal
Hit Dice: 13d8+91 (149 hp)
Initiative: +0
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares), swim 30 ft.
Armor Class: 18 (–2 size, +10 natural), touch 8, flat-footed 18
Base Attack/Grapple: +9/+29
Attack: Bite +20 melee (2d6+12) or tail slap +19 melee (2d8+6)
Full Attack: Bite +20 melee (2d6+12) or tail slap +14 melee (2d8+6)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. (20 ft. with tail)
Special Attacks: Death roll (2d6+18), improved grab
Special Qualities: Hold breath, low-light vision, 60 ft. ripplesense
Saves: Fort +15, Ref +8, Will +5
Abilities: Str 35, Dex 10, Con 25, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 2
Skills: Hide +5* [+9 in water, +19 when mostly submerged], Listen +6, Spot +6, Survival +2, Swim +20
Feats: Alertness, Endurance, Power Attack, Skill Focus (Hide), Weapon Focus (bite)
Environment: Warm marshes
Organization: Solitary or colony (6–11)
Challenge Rating: 6
Advancement: 14–24 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment: —

These huge creatures can be more than 40 feet long, they often prey upon dire animals and dinosaurs.

Dire Crocodiles
I applied a homebrewed "Dire Animal" template to my revised crocodile and giant crocodile and came up with the following (I tweaked the tail-reach to match the Large crocodile redux).

Since I applied the template to different base creatures the Advancements don't match up (there's a 15-20 HD gap between the regular dire crocodile and the giant dire crocodile), I was tempted to tweak them to close the Advancement gap but decided there is no need to do so because they are dire forms of different genera (one being a dire form of a regular crocodile á la the Nile crocodile, the other being a dire version of a prehistoric dinosaur-eater.

Dire Crocodile
Large Animal (Dire)
Hit Dice: 7d8+42 (73 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares), swim 30 ft.
Armor Class: 18 (-1 size, +1 Dex, +8 natural), touch 10, flat-footed 17
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+19
Attack: Bite +14 melee (2d6+10) or tail slap +14 melee (1d12+5)
Full Attack: Bite +14 melee (2d6+10) and tail slap +9 melee (1d12+5)
Space/Reach: 10 ft./5 ft. (10 ft. with tail)
Special Attacks: Death roll (2d6+15), improved grab
Special Qualities: Hold breath, low-light vision, 60 ft. ripplesense
Saves: Fort +11, Ref +6, Will +6
Abilities: Str 31, Dex 12, Con 23, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 6
Skills: Hide +5* [+9 in water, +19 when mostly submerged], Listen +5, Spot +5, Survival +2, Swim +18
Feats: Alertness, Power Attack, Skill Focus (Hide)
Environment: Warm marshes
Organization: Solitary or colony (6–11)
Challenge Rating: 5
Advancement: 8-14 HD (Large); 15-21 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment: —

Dire Crocodile, Giant
Huge Animal (Dire)
Hit Dice: 21d8+168 (262 hp)
Initiative: +1
Speed: 20 ft. (4 squares), swim 30 ft.
Armor Class: 21 (–2 size,+1 Dex, +12 natural), touch 9, flat-footed 20
Base Attack/Grapple: +15/+37
Attack: Bite +28 melee (3d6+14/19-20) or tail slap +27 melee (2d8+7)
Full Attack: Bite +28 melee (3d6+14/19-20) or tail slap +22 melee (2d8+7)
Space/Reach: 15 ft./10 ft. (20 ft. with tail)
Special Attacks: Death roll (3d6+21), improved grab
Special Qualities: Damage reduction 3/–, hold breath, low-light vision, 60 ft. ripplesense
Saves: Fort +20, Ref +13, Will +13
Abilities: Str 39, Dex 12, Con 27, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 6
Skills: Hide +9* [+13 in water, +23 when mostly submerged], Listen +8, Spot +8, Survival +2, Swim +22
Feats: Alertness, Cleave, Endurance, Improved Critical (bite), Power Attack, Skill Focus (Hide), Weapon Focus (bite)
Epic Feat: Damage Reduction
Environment: Warm marshes
Organization: Solitary or colony (6–11)
Challenge Rating: 9
Advancement: 22–42 HD (Huge); 43-63 HD (Gargantuan)
Level Adjustment: —

 

[Cleon]

That's it for the time being. I don't believe I have any more Mesozoic fauna conversions ready for release, and I'm not sure when the mood will next take me to do some, or what prehistoric beast I'd do.

Although Stegosaurus is looking tempting...

Hmm, I've just noticed that Elasmosaurus is missing the standard Swim entry under Skills like it does in the SRD. I suppose I should fix that.

I'm tempted to give it and the Pliosaurus the Agile Swimmer SQ I made for the Potamotherium conversion, since the tactics makes a big deal about their aquatic manoeuvrability. Maybe I'll add it later.

 

[xidoraven]

One question though, what do we do about "non-historical prehistoric beasts". Things like man-eating pterodacytls with a 60 foot wingspan, which never existed in reality but are very common in fiction.

Obviously, we can't have an actual era or scientific name for them, since they never actually existed.

Fictional critters go to the Phantasy Prehistorium homebrew forum for creative liberties on the prehistoric theme. This one will be only for reviewing and revising stats for real-history creatures, many of which have already been drafted but not finished or reviewed for balance. I will edit an index into the first posting of this forum when I get a chance. Things are hectic for me this weekend right now though - big interview/presentation Monday.

Update: I added an index of creatures already created which need to be reviewed and revised in many cases. There are multiple versions with vastly different stats and abilities, and they need to be refined and a definitive balanced creature list developed - with only stat block per creature. I have a pdf file of notes I have made for as many as I could when I first began tracking creatures for the final ecology; even these are unfinished, because of how many variations and thoughts I had about them during the project. Many of them are extremely unbalanced or else too low or high HD for what would be expected.

I like the idea of your 'redux's... I will have to read your statement one more time to get the difference between that and a nova, but it seems legitimate. If it's not a real-life creature, it needs to go to the other thread though. I like precedent, like they did in the conversion thread - it should line up well compared to other similar but contrasting animals, etc. Anything here could be of animal, vermin, or ooze types (yes, jellyfish and some other invertebrates are oozes). No dires, giant versions, feaux dinos, or magical beasts - those can all go to the creative thread, and are fun but not currently necessary. Because of the campaign, however, there will be a future need for dire versions, celestial versions, and anarchic/axiomatic versions of those creatures because of the divine nature of the Nymian Beastlands (related even to the outer plane of the same name - but more fun).

So I am all for hearing about those fun fictional ideas, just not here in this thread. <== That sounds really rude now that I have read a few of these ones posted. It wasn't intended to - these look great, like the crocodile versions - but they should be much better suited on the other thread, and let's just stay precise, critical, and scientific here in this one.

Also just noticed your 'redux' crocodile also has a closer bite and tail damage die to what is recommended in the creature creation section, and also with primary/secondary strength bonus to damage - which is a decent balance when you consider giving it the special abilities. Now, I know the bite&roll and others were all true, but is ripplesense an actual physical element of crocodilian perception? It doesn't shock me if yes - it just wasn't something I had ever considered?

You might event make a listing with generic creature states like for a 'crocodile' - and say something like "These stats are adequate and comparable for any of the following creatures: genus/species, genus/etc ..." included in the body content, along with size, weight - where known languages might go on another creature with speech. That might be helpful if someone starts getting picky for a named creature like one forum member got over Gigantosaurus one time... lol, anyways. It's late and that's all I've got for now.
-will

 

[Cleon]

I like the idea of your 'redux's... I will have to read your statement one more time to get the difference between that and a nova, but it seems legitimate. If it's not a real-life creature, it needs to go to the other thread though. I like precedent, like they did in the conversion thread - it should line up well compared to other similar but contrasting animals, etc. Anything here could be of animal, vermin, or ooze types (yes, jellyfish and some other invertebrates are oozes). No dires, giant versions, feaux dinos, or magical beasts - those can all go to the creative thread, and are fun but not currently necessary. Because of the campaign, however, there will be a future need for dire versions, celestial versions, and anarchic/axiomatic versions of those creatures because of the divine nature of the Nymian Beastlands (related even to the outer plane of the same name - but more fun).

Well the "Redux" creatures are basically monsters that already have official WotC stats which had things I didn't like (e.g. lots of Toughness feats), so I reworked them.

The "Nova" creatures are ones that either don't have WotC versions, or if they do I haven't got them, so I statted them up from scratch. Although I sometimes sought inspiration from a published monster (my Pliosaurus, for example, uses a fair bit of the Elasmosaurus).

I' don't feel having the Dire versions of the animals on a separate thread to the regular versions is a good idea, since it would surely make them harder to find for a "regular user".

As for the crocodiles, I think my take on the regular, large and giant crocodiles are pretty close to being realistic. The standard Medium croc represents a 10-12 foot long animal, a Large croc is one up to 20 feet long (about the largest size real-world living crocodiles have reliably been measured at), while the giant groc stats are suitable for the various extinct species of super-sized crocodilians, such as Sarcosuchus.

but is ripplesense an actual physical element of crocodilian perception? It doesn't shock me if yes - it just wasn't something I had ever considered

The "ripplesense" is real and crocodilians can certainly use them to locate prey in murky or pitch black water by feeling their movements. Do a search for Crocodile Integumentary Sense Organs or Dermal Pressure Receptors for background on these pressure-sensitive pits. The organs may have additional functions in some species like chemical sensitivity, they're still not well understood.

I will confess that I have probably grossly exaggerated the range of a crocodile's Ripplesense in these stat. We may want to cut it to 20 feet or 30 feet.

 

[Cleon]

Oh, and I forgot to thank you for the index of monster links. That looks like it was a lot of work to compile, Xidoraven.

I've already found some interesting material through it, enough to inspire me to start work on my own take on Stegosaurus.

If you can find the time, you seem to be missing some relevant creatures from Enworld's Converting prehistoric animals threads (part 1, part 2). For example, part one of that thread has one or two takes on Iguanodon that are different from the Creature Catalogue version you posted.

Oh, and Demiurge1138 posted some excellent World of Kong conversions here on Enworld. I suggest you ask him if he minds you linking to them on your Phantasy Prehistorium thread.