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The Dresden Files => DFRPG => DFRPG Resource Collection => Topic started by: Deadmanwalking on May 12, 2010, 09:25:45 AM
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Well, there's a notable lack of mundane beasties in the book, so I (at least) am gonna try and fix that:
A few notes on the rules I, personally, am operating under:
I put the cutoff for Hulking Size at 1,000 lbs. Anything less and it doesn't apply (some 800 lb critters are still quite sneaky). Likewise, Diminutive Size is for things that are 15-20 lbs at most.
That said, to accurately reflect the toughness of large critters who don't deserve Inhuman Toughness, I've given them No Pain, No Gain.
I've also based Endurance scores more on damage capacity than anything, some of these high-Endurance creatures should get compelled to lose in any contest of pure endurance vs. a human.
Some of these creatures should have Investigation-like skills (such as scent-based tracking, for example). They use Echoes of the Beast to use Alertness on any such rolls.
I've obviously gone with the idea that mundane creatures should get powers.
This thread has gotten a bit long, and Jeckel has been kind enough to provide an off-site homepage to the animal list. Check out the Animals' Group Home-Page (http://www.vinlandsolutions.site11.com/Products/DFRPG/SampleChars/DMW/Animals/index.html) for a full listing of the creatures to date, which will be updated somewhat after the thread.
So, without further ado, here are some critters:
Aspects:
High Concept: Silverback Gorilla
Skills:
Superb: Fists, Might
Great: Athletics, Intimidation,
Good: Endurance, Survival,
Fair: Alertness, Empathy,
Average: Presence, Rapport,
Stunts:
Defend My Tribe (Fists)
No Pain, No Gain (Endurance)
Powers:
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOO (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: None.
Aspects:
High Concept: African Lion
Other:
King (Or Queen) of Beasts
Male: Protector of the Pride
Female: Huntress Beyond Compare
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Fists, Intimidate,
Good: Alertness, Endurance, Stealth
Fair: Might, Presence, Survival,
Average: Discipline, Empathy, Rapport,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Pride Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: None.
High Concept: Full Grown Bengal Tiger
Other:
In The Forests of The Night
Savage Jungle Cat
Skills:
Superb: Athletics, Fists,
Great: Alertness, Stealth,
Good: Endurance, Might,
Fair: Intimidate, Survival,
Average: Discipline, Presence
Stunts:
No Pain, No Gain (Endurance)
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOO (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: None.
High Concept: Grizzly Bear
Other:
Never Back Down
Skills:
Superb: Might, Endurance,
Great: Fists, Intimidate,
Good: Discipline, Survival,
Fair: Alertness, Athletics, Conviction,
Average: Empathy, Presence, Stealth,
Stunt:
No Pain, No Gain (Endurance)
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO(OO) (+2 Mild Consequences)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
Note: Kodiacs have Hulking Size as well, making them even more frightening.
High Concept: Black Bear
Other:
Adaptable
Skills:
Great: Endurance, Survival,
Good: Athletics, Fists, Might,
Fair: Alertness, Intimidate, Stealth,
Average: Empathy, Discipline, Presence, Rapport,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
High Concept: Mountain Lion
Other:
Silent Killer
Scaredy Cat
Skills:
Superb: Stealth,
Great: Athletics, Fists,
Good: Endurance, Intimidate,
Fair: Alertness, Survival,
Average: Discipline, Might, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
High Concept: Goddamn Coyote
Other:
Opportunistic To A Fault
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Stealth,
Good: Alertness, Survival
Fair: Deceit, Fists,
Average: Endurance, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
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High Concept: Big Bad Wolf
Other:
Pack Loyalty
Skills:
Great: Alertness, Athletics,
Good: Endurance, Fists
Fair: Intimidate, Might, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Empathy, Presence, Rapport,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Pack Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -5
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Werewolves turn into unusually large and thus unusually strong wolves. Hence the whole Inhuman Strength thing. Normal wolves aren’t as strong or as dangerous.
High Concept: Full-Grown African Elephant
Other:
Smarter Than Some People
Goddamn Huge
Skills:
Superb: Might, Endurance,
Great: Fists, Presence,
Good: Intimidate, Survival
Fair: Alertness, Discipline, Rapport,
Average: Athletics, Conviction, Empathy,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Supernatural Strength [-4]
Supernatural Toughness [-4]
Hulking Size [-2]
Total Refresh: -12
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO(OOOO) (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOOO
Armor: 2.
High Concept: Rhinoceros
Other:
Near-Sighted
Very Tempermental
Skills:
Superb: Endurance, Fists
Great: Intimidate, Might,
Good: Alertness, Survival
Fair: Athletics, Discipline,
Average: Conviction, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Supernatural Strength [-4]
Supernatural Toughness [-4]
Hulking Size [-2]
Total Refresh: -11
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO(OOOO) (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 2.
High Concept: Great White Shark
Other:
Always Hungry
Are You A Seal?
Skills:
Superb: Endurance, Fists
Great: Athletics, Intimidate,
Good: Alertness, Survival
Fair: Discipline, Might,
Average: Conviction, Presence,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Supernatural Strength [-4]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Hulking Size [-2]
Total Refresh: -11
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO(OO) (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
High Concept: Big Doggie
Other:
Loyal To My Master
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Fists
Good: Alertness, Endurance,
Fair: Intimidate, Might, Rapport,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Empathy, Presence, Survival,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Total Refresh: -2
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Dogs likely also have Pack Instincts, but it's only relevant if they have an actual pack to use it with.
High Concept: ‘Domestic’ Cat
Other:
Skilled Hunter
Skills:
Great: Alertness,
Good: Athletics, Fists,
Fair: Rapport, Stealth, Survival,
Average: Discipline, Empathy Might, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Diminutive Size [-1]
Total Refresh: -3
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Really big cats may lack Diminutive Size. Such cats will likely have much higher Stealth (up to Great at least) to compensate. In exchange they will likely lack Might as a skill (due to scale differences), though they may possess Average Endurance and Fair Intimidation, as well as other skills.
High Concept: Lynx
Other:
Skilled Hunter
Skills:
Great: Alertness, Fists, Stealth,
Good: Athletics, Might, Survival,
Fair: Endurance, Intimidation, Presence,
Average: Discipline, Empathy, Rapport,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
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I guess I would probably never go to the length of stating out something like a wild animal/beast myself. At least not for the group of PC we play with right now.
Don't get me wrong, your effort is admirable. You provide nice reference points for shape shifters and stuff. Your Bestiary looks very sophisticated so far. I just don't know how much use can be made during play.
For me it's always simpler to just jot down the one or two things that seem reasonable with the beast. I only bother with skills needed. I note an appropriate physical stress track and thats it.
As fare as powers are concerned. I really wouldn't use them on the critters. They are what they are after all. A wolf has fangs and claws, so has a lion, a lynx and a saber-tooth tiger. A bear has a thick pelt and layers of fat, so that merits some physical stress and perhaps a point of physical armor. For me at least it's not worth the bother as skills and powers will rarely come into play during gaming.
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Oh, it's probably not worth doing on your own for most games. But it's a fun intellectual exercise (for me, at least).
But it's even easier to just grab an entry from this bestiary than do the jotting you're talking about. That's the real purpose of this (beyond amusing me, personally): to allow people a full stat write-up of various animals sans effort on their part.
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But it's a fun intellectual exercise (for me, at least).
Yeah ... I thought as much. I wasn't trying to discourage you. This is still totally worth doing and if it's just for the hell of it ...
I's still not sure about using powers. Those are for the supernatural. Most skills don't apply to animals like they do to humans too. I'd try to use more stunts, but where game mechanics are concerned they are really not worth it without a nice set of Aspects that fuel them with Fatepoints.
If you stick with powers, might I suggest at least not to bother with the refresh cost? That seems really not necessary and at least for me that would make stating out beasts less of a chore ;)
... keep on the good work! Could you stat a couple of demons or a dragon for me? That would really come handy right now *g*
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Yeah ... I thought as much. I wasn't trying to discourage you. This is still totally worth doing and if it's just for the hell of it ...
More or less. :)
I's still not sure about using powers. Those are for the supernatural. Most skills don't apply to animals like they do to humans too. I'd try to use more stunts, but where game mechanics are concerned they are really not worth it without a nice set of Aspects that fuel them with Fatepoints.
Yeah...you'll notice the list of powers is VERY limited: Strength, Speed, Toughness (NOT Recovery), and selected Creature Features. That all sounds appropriate.
And I don't know why animals shouldn't have skills (again, a limited selection). Nor Powers actually, I mean, if a weretiger gets Inhuman Strength why wouldn't an actual tiger?
If you stick with powers, might I suggest at least not to bother with the refresh cost? That seems really not necessary and at least for me that would make stating out beasts less of a chore ;)
That's actually for purposes of guaging threat level (as it is on monsters and NPCs). Very useful to know. And it's no real hassle, I mean, I need to pick powers anyway, and after that it's a second or two of addition.
... keep on the good work! Could you stat a couple of demons or a dragon for me? That would really come handy right now *g*
Sure, if you like, though I'd need more specifics on what kind of demons and/or dragons. Though I'd rather not do it in this thread. It's intended for the mundane stuff. But feel free to start a thread or send me a PM.
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I'm 100% behind the use of powers, because... Well... Stunts are *human* mortal-based. Look at "claws". It's a power, even though any countless number of natural critters have them. What's the simplest way to model a lion's claws? ...The "claws" power. What's the simplest way to model a creature's ability to track via scent, or whatever? "Echoes of the Beast", which is defined as having the abilities of a creature.
The powers are designed and described for use by the supernatural, because the game is based around the assumption that all statted critters will be human-centric, not because there are no natural creatures in the game. A human with claws *is* super-natural; a lion with claws is just being itself.
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This thread makes me feel warm and fuzzy.
I'm assuming you would use Big Doggie for something like a German Shepard?
Hyenas might be something nice to see stated. I'm trying to think of anything else that I want stated... apart from dinosaurs I'm drawing a blank. :P
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Hey great job!
I was thinking of doing this exact thing. You've done it and done it better. :)
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I could use some bayou anminals. Alligators, non-native Python snake. For the bayou panther or couger, I can use Mountian Lion.
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Thanks for all the kind words. :)
Big Doggie is for everything from Huskies to German Shepherds, to Doberman Pinschers. Any large dog that, say, the police might use. Or could fight a wolf and win. Really big dogs (like Caucasians) are ptobably a bit more impressive (maybe tack on Inhuman Strength, No Pain No gain, or both).
Hyenas, Alligators, and Pythons coming up. And you're right to use Mountain Lion for bayou panthers, they're the exact same species, just in a different place.
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High Concept: Hyena
Other:
Predator and Scavenger
Skills:
Great: Intimidation,
Good: Athletics, Endurance, Fists,
Fair: Alertness, Rapport, Stealth, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Empathy, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Pack Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -5
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: The Inhuman Strength is mostly in the jaws, and doesn’t apply for most non-biting purposes. Then again, what else are they gonna use it for?
High Concept: Python
Other:
I Want To Hug You
Skills:
Great: Endurance, Might, Stealth,
Good: Alertness, Fists, Intimidation,
Fair: Athletics, Discipline, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Rapport, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Notes: Larger Pythons may have No Pain, No Gain or Inhuman Toughness to reflect their greater size and toughness. Really big ones may have Supernatural Strength.
High Concept: Alligator
Other:
Ambush Hunter
Skills:
Great: Fists, Intimidation, Stealth,
Good: Athletics, Endurance, Might,
Fair: Alertness, Discipline, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Empathy, Presence,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
Notes: Also used for crocodiles. Larger Alligators may have No Pain, No Gain or even (in the case of some crocodiles) Supernatural Strength or Toughness to reflect their greater size and toughness.
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Thanks Dmw!
Pretty useful list.
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And thank you. For the kind words. :)
Anyone have anything else they'd like statted?
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Anyone have anything else they'd like statted?
Great list, you do awesome work.
I got a few suggestions for other animals, camel, dolphin, and whale would be awesome. And I have to suggest my favorite animal, the capybara (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capybara).
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And thank you. For the kind words. :)
Anyone have anything else they'd like statted?
Well, since you're asking :)
Horses and their ilk. Riding horse, courser, draft horse, mule, donkey, etc... Whatever you think is worth doing. I would really like to see a large war horse type though.
American Buffalo
Large eagle (like bald or golden)
Badger - Wolverine
Some ice age creatures to populate the Winter Faerie land, maybe including -even though not an actual creature -the spiders Harry fought.
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I really want to ask for a Blue Whale and an Orca, just to see what you come up with. :-P
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Sure, I can manage all hat. I'll at least start late tonight or tomorrow.
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Here are some. Whales are forthcoming, but I'm still figuring out how to go beyond Mythic Strength for things like a Blue Whale, so I'm gonna think about them first.
High Concept: Dolphin
Other:
Social Creature
All Too Human
Skills:
Superb: Alertness,
Great: Athletics, Survival,
Good: Endurance, Fists, Rapport,
Fair: Discipline, Empathy, Stealth, Performance,
Average: Conviction, Deceit, Intimidation, Presence, Scholarship
Stunts:
No Pain, No Gain (Endurance)
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Pack Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Scholarship is too reflect that dolphins may well be as smart as humans. They certainly behave enough like us, with all the good and bad that implies.
High Concept: Camel
Other:
Ornery Cuss
Just Keeps Going
Skills:
Superb: Endurance,
Great: Athletics, Survival,
Good: Fists, Intimidation,
Fair: Alertness, Might,
Average: Conviction, Presence,
Stunts:
No Pain, No Gain (Endurance)
Need No Water (Endurance) (+3 Endurance for the sole purpose of going without water.)
Go Native (Survival)
Powers:
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO (+2 Mild Consequences)
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
High Concept: Capybara
Other:
Delicious Food Animal
Skills:
Great: Alertness, Survival,
Good: Athletics, Endurance,
Fair: Fists, Might, Stealth,
Average: Empathy, Conviction, Discipline, Presence, Rapport,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Pack Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -3
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: I actually had a bizarre premonition I'd be asked to do a capybara...
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Awesome thread!
It reminds me pleasantly of Ars Magica 5th Edition, where Atlas Games has a "Book of Mundane Beasts" available for download:
http://www.atlas-games.com/pdf_storage/ArM5Beasts.pdf
It would be neat to see if we could PDF this up and make it available as a general resource.
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Note: I actually had a bizarre premonition I'd be asked to do a capybara...
FATE works in mysterious ways. :p
And thanks man, those are just bloody awesome!
It would be neat to see if we could PDF this up and make it available as a general resource.
I was thinking a group of web-pages would be cool, but a single PDF file would also be super useful.
What do you think Deadmanwalking, would you be alright with compiling your work, with credit of course, into other forms? If so, I'm happy to volunteer to do the HTML version, would be a nice break from my current project and shouldn't take more then a few days to get up and running.
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Absolutely! :) Go for it, as long as I'm given credit I'm very definitely on board with the idea.
Though, thinking long-term you might want to wait a bit for me to have a few more beasties statted before compliling.
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Sorry for the delay, but here are some of the requested critters. I'm not going above Orca on whales, anything bigger should be a plot device. Donkeys and other beasts of burden may be forthcoming. Other requests are welcome.
High Concept: Riding Horse
Other:
Faithful Steed
Skills:
Great: Athletics,
Good: Endurance, Fists,
Fair: Alertness, Empathy, Might, Rapport,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Presence, Survival,
Stunts:
Fleet of Foot (Athletics)
No Pain, No Gain (Athletics)
Powers:
Claws [-1] (Hooves)
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Herd Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: I considered Inhuman Speed, but it felt wrong. Wild Horses would likely have slightly enhanced skills, such as Survival.
High Concept: Trained War Horse
Other:
Doesn't Like Strangers
Good Soldier
Skills:
Superb: Fists,
Great: Alertness, Athletics, Might,
Good: Discipline, Endurance, Intimidation,
Fair: Empathy, Presence, Rapport,
Average: Conviction, Stealth, Survival,
Stunts:
Fleet of Foot (Athletics)
No Pain, No Gain (Athletics)
Powers:
Claws [-1] (Hooves)
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Herd Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 0 by default but up to 3 with barding.
Note: Basically a Riding Horse with more skills. But more skills make a hell of a difference. War Horses are actually trained not to panic, to kill people, and even to be quiet on command.
High Concept: Killer Whale
Other:
Playful And Friendly
Mercy? What's Mercy?
Skills:
Superb: Endurance, Fists
Great: Intimidate, Might, Presence,
Good: Alertness, Athletics, Survival,
Fair: Discipline, Rapport, Stealth,
Average: Conviction, Deceit, Empathy,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Supernatural Strength [-4]
Mythic Toughness [-6]
Hulking Size [-2]
Total Refresh: -15
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO(OOOOOO) (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOOO
Armor: 3.
Note: Being underwater negates the Stealth penalty to Hulking Size. This is just a general rule, but worth noting.
High Concept: American Bison
Other:
Agressive As Hell
Herd Animal
Skills:
Great: Endurance, Might,
Good: Fists, Survival,
Fair: Alertness, Empathy, Rapport,
Average: Athletics, Conviction, Discipline, Intimidation, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Hulking Size [-2]
Herd Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -9
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
Notes: Yeah, Bison are scary. Bad at Dodging and thus very killable with guns, though.
High Concept: Bald Eagle
Other:
Hunter And Scavenger
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Fists,
Good: Alertness, Stealth,
Fair: Endurance, Intimidation, Presence,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Might, Rapport, Survival,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Wings [-1]
Total Refresh: -5
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Notes: Not as friendly or impressive a bird as legend would have it be.
High Concept: Wolverine
Other:
I'll Eat Anything
Scarier Than You
Never Back Down
Skills:
Superb: Endurance,
Great: Athletics, Fists, Intimidation,
Good: Conviction, Stealth, Survival,
Fair: Alertness, Discipline, Deceit,
Average: Empathy, Presence, Rapport
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Arctic (Wolverines take no penalties of any sort from cold, and ignore barrier values based on snow and ice.) [-1]
Total Refresh: -5
Stress:
Mental: OOOO
Physical: OOOO(OO) (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
Notes: A Badger would likely have lower skills, but about the same powers, except for Arctic. The Wolverine uses it's Deceit to steal food from traps.
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Deadmanwalking, once again my hat is off to you. Thanks for posting these, as this helps me get a better feel for statting out various critters if/when I ever need to do so.
Keep up the good work!
--Crion
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Happy to help. :)
I enjoy statting out critters, mechanics are easy for me and I don't have to write out a background (which, for me, is the hard part of character creation...not coming up with it mind you, but writing it out).
Oh, and in case I haven't mentioned it: Questions and critiques of all sorts are eminently welcome. I'm sure I've screwed up somewhere and having people point it out is always nice.
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Happy to help. :)
I enjoy statting out critters, mechanics are easy for me and I don't have to write out a background (which, for me, is the hard part of character creation...not coming up with it mind you, but writing it out).
Oh, and in case I haven't mentioned it: Questions and critiques of all sorts are eminently welcome. I'm sure I've screwed up somewhere and having people point it out is always nice.
Once I finish my coffee, I'll take a deeper look into what you have posted and see if I find anything amiss. From what I've skimmed, it looks fitting so far. Then again, I also don't have a full grip upon the mechanics of this game just yet, but I thoroughly enjoy the Aspects and background portions (which is why is getting me into this in the first place). Let's see what happens. . .
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Superb job! The horses are going to get used this weekend :)
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So, how did the horses work out?
And does anyone have any other creatures they wish to see created?
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Dolphins really shouldn't have average scholarship. The idea that they are as smart as humans or even close is an old wives tale. They aren't. They're barely as smart as dogs and harder to train. In fact, the smartest dolphin I've ever seen was half killer whale, and I'm still more impressed when I interact with my Uncle's yellow lab (I paid $400 so my little brother and I could swim and interact with dolphins at Sea Life Park). Most PC characters don't even have average scholarship, and you're claiming every dolphin does. That's beyond a little silly.
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I'm a Psych Major and actually had a class on Comparitive Psychology (ie: animal psychology), as well as having looked into the various data on dolphin intellect. By all the tests we have they are just about the smartest animals we've ever run across. They also demonstrate an ability to understand actual sentence structure (something very rare in animals, and approaching an actual understanding of our language...which would require Scholarship). I'm not actually saying they're as smart as humans, I'm saying all evience seems to point at them being closer than anything else, and giving them something to reflect it.
Now, I wouldn't dispute the 'harder to train' bit, but then humans are harder to train than dogs, too. And one brief encounter doesn't seem to me to be a good barometer for a species' intelligence, it's an anecdote not scientific data (which exists, and all points at them being damn smart).
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For every scientific or psychological study you can cite that claims Dolphins are as intelligent as you are claiming, I can find a scientific or psychological study claiming they aren't. It's a highly disputed topic. Many psychologists have even tried to claim Dolphins are smarter than humans. They're usually the tree hugging ones that think Dolphins would do a better job ruling the world than us hyper destructive, evil humans.
My point being that you've given them above average human intelligence. That's what the average skill means. We can put aside the "so long and thanks for all the fish" argument and at least agree that they aren't more intelligent than humans. At least I hope we can agree that. And if you don't think they're more intelligent than the average human than it doesn't make sense to give your "average dolphin" a scholarship at average.
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Like I said in the actual writeup, the Scholarship is probably undeserved, it's just to reflect them being brighter than most of the other critters listed.
If it makes you feel better, re-read or remember how dolphins show up in Small Favor and assume that dolphins are smarter in the Dresdenverse. :)
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Like I said in the actual writeup, the Scholarship is probably undeserved, it's just to reflect them being brighter than most of the other critters listed.
If it makes you feel better, re-read or remember how dolphins show up in Small Favor and assume that dolphins are smarter in the Dresdenverse. :)
I kind of got the feeling those dolphins were scions or something.
But in any event, I was just offering my critique which you seemed to keep asking for and no one had anything but compliments ;)
And that's really the only criticism I have. I'll probably end up GMing in the Fall and I'll be saving these for future reference. Plus I'll suggest running into some Mountain Lions in my current Houston game.
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Cool. I actually appreciate the critique, I don't get nearly enough constructive criticism. I just happen not to agree with this particular one. :)
And I'm very glad you'll be getting some use out of the list.
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So, how did the horses work out?
And does anyone have any other creatures they wish to see created?
The session is this Saturday. I'll let you know how it goes.
Since our game is set in east tennessee, and involves the appalachians and Cherokee Indians, we'll be making extensive use of the animal list. I'll let you know when things get used.
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So, it being Sunday, how'd it go? I'm desperately curious. :)
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Well, there was a bit of a surprise. I actually got to play instead of GM - that's pretty rare. One of my players who is really stoked about Dresden asked if he could run a short session so I jumped at the chance to play. Riding horses played a pretty important role.
We were riding on some the back trails investigating some disappearances on the Appalachian Trail. The horses' keen senses alerted us to some nearby danger as they got a bit spooked while we were making camp. Also had a horse chase - well my horse was chased - by a nasty wereboar ;D had I been on foot it would have been ugly. Alamo (my horse) for the win, though 8)
Went very well and everyone felt the horse stats were right on. I'll be GMing next time and more animals will be used. I did realize there is another I would like to request - Wild Boar ;D
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Ah! I Knew I was forgetting something important. :) Wild Boar will be up shortly.
And I'm very glad you got some use out of the stats and that they worked well. It's always nice to know things work in practice as well as theory.
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This is pretty cool. I'd be interested in seeing a Raven or a Crow.
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High Concept: Raven
Other:
Battlefield Scavenger
Smarter Than You’d Think
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Survival,
Good: Alertness, Fists,
Fair: Burglary, Discipline, Intimidation,
Average: Conviction, Endurance, Presence, Rapport, Stealth,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Wings [-1]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Ravens, somewhat like Dolphins, don’t really deserve Scholarship. However, they are quite a bit brighter than most critters you’re likely to meet, and can learn English much like a parrot, so it seemed appropriate.
EDIT: Upon further consideration, I took it away. A trained raven might have Scholarship, but not a randomly selected wild one.
High Concept: Wild Boar
Other:
I'll Eat Anything
Scarier Than I Look
Crazy Vicious
Skills:
Superb: Endurance,
Great: Athletics, Fists,
Good: Conviction, Survival,
Fair: Alertness, Discipline, Intimidation
Average: Empathy, Might, Presence, Rapport, Stealth,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OOOO
Physical: OOOO(OO)(+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
Note: Wild Boars vary greatly in size, this is a mid-size one (around 200 lbs), larger ones may gain No Pain, No Gain and higher Might to reflect their bulk, while smaller ones may lack Inhuman Strength (though at 150 lbs or so, they might, too, have higher Might).
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Wow, with the forum move and all it seems I've fallen behind, I didn't even notice the two new animals. That wild boar was exactly what I was looking for. I have a small one-player session this weekend to introduce his character to the upcoming campaign setting and I'm going to be using the horses and, now that you posted it, some boars. It things work out I might through a bear or mountain lion into the mix. I'll post next week and let ya know how they worked out. 8)
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I'm now starting to compile the animals into a list so I can archive them on my dfrpg resources site. I'm not officially opening the site for another month or so, but I want animals on there when I do. Seeing as your up to 28 post animal sheets now, I think it is worthwhile at this point. Below is the lists of animals so far. :)
Forum Post (http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,18099.msg815834.html#msg815834)
- Silverback Gorilla
- King (Or Queen) of Beasts
- Savage Jungle Cat
- Grizzly Bear
- Black Bear
- Mountain Lion
- Goddamn Coyote
Forum Post (http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,18099.msg815835.html#msg815835)
- Big Bad Wolf
- Full-Grown African Elephant
- Rhinoceros
- Great White Shark
- Big Doggie
- 'Domestic' Cat
- Lynx
Forum Post (http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,18099.msg816845.html#msg816845)
Forum Post (http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,18099.msg819656.html#msg819656)
Forum Post (http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,18099.msg831658.html#msg831658)
- Riding Horse
- Trained War Horse
- Killer Whale
- American Bison
- Bald Eagle
- Wolverine
Forum Post (http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb/index.php/topic,18099.msg839555.html#msg839555)
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Looking through the list, a few suggestions popped to mind. How about Cow, Pig, Goat, and Chicken? A few more common domestic animals couldn't hurt.
-
Chicken is going to be awfully sparse...but sure, I should be able to do those.
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Thanks man and feel free to ignore the chicken, just kinda fell into the list when I was thinking of farm animals. ;)
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High Concept: Milk Cow
Other:
Placid Creature
Skills:
Good: Endurance,
Fair: Empathy, Fists, Rapport, Might,
Average: Alertness, Athletics, Presence, Survival,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Hulking Size [-2]
Herd Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
High Concept: Large Bull
Other:
Territorial
Vicious Horns
Skills:
Great: Might,
Good: Endurance, Fists,
Fair: Intimidation, Rapport,
Average: Alertness, Athletics, Conviction, Empathy, Presence, Survival,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Hulking Size [-2]
Herd Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
High Concept: Goat
Other:
I'll Eat Anything
Stubborn And Ornery
Skills:
Great: Survival,
Good: Athletics, Endurance,
Fair: Alertness, Discipline, Fists,
Average: Conviction, Intimidation, Presence, Stealth,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
High Concept: Domestic Pig
Other:
I'll Eat Anything
Smarter Than I Look
Skills:
Great: Endurance,
Good: Athletics, Survival,
Fair: Alertness, Fists,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Empathy, Might, Presence, Rapport,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Total Refresh: -2
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Like their Wild Boar cousins, pigs vary in size...but the average is lower. Larger pigs might (at least in theory) have any or all of the additional powers of their wild cousins...though their skill list will remain unchanged.
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Awesome, that fills my farm out nicely. I hadn't considered a Bull, but now I can't imagine one of my players not having to stay on a bull for 8 seconds at some point. You rock. 8)
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If you're still taking requests, what about a hippopotamus, one of the more reasonably sized sharks (like a blacktip or sand tiger, something in the generally humanish size range), and maybe a giraffe? (Weregiraffe sounds like a cool idea...)
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I am ALWAYS taking requests. Often begging for them. It's just an assumption you should make. :)
And yeah, I can and will do all those.
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I request a Komodo Dragon! Yeah baby, those things are sweet (and have saliva loaded with bacteria!)
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High Concept: Giraffe
Other:
Really Goddamn Tall
Skills:
Great: Alertness, Athletics,
Good: Endurance, Survival,
Fair: Fists, Might, Rapport,
Average: Discipline, Empathy, Presence
Powers:
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Hulking Size [-2]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOOOO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
High Concept: Hippopotamous
Other:
Far More Deadly Than You'd Think
Curious And Temperamental
Skills:
Superb: Endurance,
Great: Fists, Might,
Good: Athletics, Intimidate,
Fair: Alertness, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Presence,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Claws [-1]
Supernatural Strength [-4]
Supernatural Toughness [-4]
Hulking Size [-2]
Total Refresh: -12
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO(OOOO) (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 2.
High Concept: Tiger Shark
Other:
Always Hungry
I'll Eat Anything
Skills:
Superb: Fists
Great: Athletics, Endurance, Intimidate,
Good: Alertness, Might, Survival
Fair: Empathy, Discipline, Stealth,
Average: Conviction, Presence, Rapport,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
High Concept: Komodo Dragon
Other:
Ruthless Patience
Hunter And Scavenger
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Fists
Good: Endurance, Might,
Fair: Alertness, Stealth, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Intimidation, Presence, Rapport,
Powers:
Claws (Venomous) [-3]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
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Nice work, I'm now trying to figure out a way to work a Komodo into 1878 Arizona. :D
A few ideas for animals have popped to mind, White-tail Deer, Elk, Squirrel, Rat, Raccoon, or Parrot.
I've been trying to think of a little animal, on level with Toot in size, that is worth stating and Squirrel or Rat is the only ones I've come up with. Ignore any of these that don't spark your interest, just some suggestions. :)
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I do this thread in my spare time (which I have rather a lot of over summer break, I'm a student) specifically to have fun, and I have fun statting up almost anything. If I don't want to stat something (and I can't imagine why I wouldn't), I'll say so and probably apologize. Barring that, I'm always happy to recieve suggestions.
So, in other words, those'll be coming right up. :)
And I'll also be throwing in a Rattlesnake, because that seems needed.
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For small creatures, how about swarms of wasps/hornets/bees, locust swarms, armies of ants and rat or spider swarms. I can see these being summoned up by spells or encountering them in abandoned city areas. Perhaps with different swarm sizes? Thanks DMW
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High Concept: White-tail Deer
Other:
Prey, Not Predator
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Survival,
Good: Endurance, Fists,
Fair: Alertness, Rapport, Stealth,
Average: Discipline, Empathy, Intimidation, Might, Presence,
Powers:
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Herd Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Do you know more hunters are killed every year by deer than anything else? And think about the fact that wolves only hunt deer as a pack. Deer are quite frightening, really. Well, if they don't flee or get shot, anyway. Bucks sometimes have Claws as well as the listed powers due to having antlers.
High Concept: Elk
Other:
Weak Against Disease
Very Adaptable
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Fists, Survival,
Good: Endurance, Intimidation, Might,
Fair: Alertness, Rapport, Stealth,
Average: Discipline, Empathy, Presence,
Stunts:
No Pain, No Gain (Endurance)
Powers:
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Herd Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOO (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Like deer, male elk sometimes have Claws as well as the listed powers due to having antlers.
High Concept: Squirrel
Other:
Hoarder Of Food
Bird Fighter
Skills:
Great: Survival,
Good: Alertness, Athletics,
Fair: Burglary, Fists, Rapport,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Presence, Stealth,
Stunts
Infuriate (Intimidate)
Powers:
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Total Refresh: -5
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
High Concept: Dirty Rat
Other:
Dangerous Vermin
Skills:
Great: Survival,
Good: Alertness, Fists,
Fair: Athletics, Intimidate, Stealth,
Average: Burglary, Discipline, Presence, Rapport,
Powers:
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: This represents a BIG rat, maybe 9 to 12 inches long. One big enough to be dangerous even to cats. A 'junkyard rat' if you will. Smaller rats (or mice) will have worse skills.
High Concept: Rattlesnake
Other:
Ruthless Patience
Providing A Polite Warning
Skills:
Great: Alertness, Fists, Intimidate,
Good: Athletics, Discipline, Stealth,
Fair: Endurance, Might, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Presence, Rapport,
Stunts:
On My Toes (Alertness)
Powers:
Claws (Venomous) [-3]
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
High Concept: Parrot
Other:
Uncanny Mimic
Smart And Long-Lived
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Survival,
Good: Alertness, Rapport,
Fair: Discipline, Empathy, Fists,
Average: Conviction, Endurance, Presence, Scholarship, Stealth,
Powers:
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Wings [-1]
Total Refresh: -3
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: The parrot has Scholarship to represent it's 'linguistic' traing, though it likely doesn't truly deserve it.
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For small creatures, how about swarms of wasps/hornets/bees, locust swarms, armies of ants and rat or spider swarms. I can see these being summoned up by spells or encountering them in abandoned city areas. Perhaps with different swarm sizes? Thanks DMW
Hmmm. I'll have to consider how to build a swarm...but with Cassius's snae swarm as a baseline I should be able to manage something. Give me a bit of time and I'll whip something up.
EDIT: Oh, and for reference, the Raven entrry has been edited. I normally don't announce Edits when they're just skills the critter NEEDS being added or typo correction, but this is an actual change.
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I'd like to suggest ferret/weasel/stoat and rabbit/hare, if you could.
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Velociraptor might be fun to see stated up, in zombie-form the could be as old as Sue and rip a horde of zombies apart in a small pack. Plus weren't they the dinosaur equivalent of a genius? I think they might even have the Killer Blow stunt from when they gut you with their claws :P
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Had a good session last night. Started with the player killing some coyotes that were attacking one of the cows. The player got some good rolls and was able to take out two of them with his rifle, his dog Scooter used its 'Big Doggie' aspect and was able to kill another of the coyotes and the last coyote gave up and was able to escape with a few good athletics rolls.
Later a pack of wolves attack while the player was traveling. The wolfs attempted an ambush, but the player's horse rolled good and alerted its rider. The player decided to escape, and pushing the horse to the most (a series of endurance rolls for the horse and survival for the rider). Both rider and horse gain a little stress and as did two of the wolves, but the dice were kind and both rider and horse survived.
All in all, it was a very enjoyable session and having premade animal sheets kept rp moving along and allowed me to spend time beforehand preparing my NPCs instead of the animals. Good work Deadmanwalking, me and my player both thank you. :)
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Been going through the animals one by one, while converting them to html, and have a couple questions.
1) On the 'Silverback Gorilla', what is the stunt 'Defend My Tribe'?
2) What kind of animal is 'Savage Jungle Cat'; jaguar, panther, some other type, or any type?
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Some dinosaurs could, in fact, be fun, though one should be wary about the differences between a velociraptor, a deinonychus, or a utahraptor - common usage often says "velociraptor" when we really mean one of the latter two.
Fox might be nice, though it'd be trivially easy to re-purpose one of the existing small predators you've posted, so no actual need there.
However, my main request is a bit more detail on the ones you've posted; in particular, the Echoes of the Beast power has some definite options to it - most notably the extra skill trapping or skill bonus from "beast trappings", though there might also be some variation in which senses are affected by "beast senses".
For example, a default bat wouldn't get the beast senses bonus to sight, and would have a skill trapping of echolocation, while a fruitbat *would* get a sight bonus off beast senses, and would probably use the beast trappings bonus to get an extra +1 to vision in dimly lit conditions. (Or possibly the ability to identify how ripe fruit is by smell, but that seems a bit too narrow a bonus for beast trappings.)
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Good work Deadmanwalking, me and my player both thank you. :)
You're very welcome. And it sounds like you're making good use of the critters.
1) On the 'Silverback Gorilla', what is the stunt 'Defend My Tribe'?
Check Moe in OW, in short, it gives +2 Stress on attacks when defending his tribe.
2) What kind of animal is 'Savage Jungle Cat'; jaguar, panther, some other type, or any type?
Tiger, actually, It's a Calvin and Hobbes Joke. I'll go back and shift that to a non-High Concept Aspect to avoid confusion. I'll do the same with the Lion. There's a reason I've gotten less cute with High Concepts as the list grew longer.
As for dinosaurs: I'll consider it. I'm actually familiar with the distinctions between velociraptors and their larger cousins...I just don't want to get too far afield from mundane creatures people might run into. This thread is quite focused, and that's to the good, I think. Maybe another thread...
Foxes, Weasels, and Rabbits will all be done.
As for more details on Echoes of the Beast: I'd consider it, but I think it's almost better left open so the GM can just use it whenever the creature in question should really get a bonus.
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High Concept: Cute Little Rabbit
Other:
Prey, Not Predator
Skills:
Great: Alertness, Survival,
Good: Athletics, Rapport,
Fair: Fists, Stealth,
Average: Empathy, Presence,
Powers:
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
High Concept: Weasel
Other:
Blood-Mad Killer
Guile And Trickery
Skills:
Great: Athletics
Good: Alertness, Fists,
Fair: Deceit, Stealth, Survival,
Average: Burglary, Conviction, Discipline, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Total Refresh: -5
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
High Concept: Fox
Other:
Clever Creature
Skills:
Great: Alertness, Athletics,
Good: Deceit, Fists,
Fair: Might, Stealth, Survival,
Average: Burglary, Conviction, Discipline, Endurance, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Total Refresh: -3
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
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I'm not sure that diminutive size should apply to a fox. They're rather larger than most of the things you'd normally give it to.
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They're less than 15 lbs, which is my cutoff. According to wikipedia they average around 12, or abou 1 lb. more than a House Cat. You'll note that I gave them high Might, to be used in comparison to other Diminutive things.
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When you figure out how to stat a swarm, I vote for Piraña, because they are vicious.
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You are....
AWESOME!!!!! (Rhino the Gerbil voice from Bolt).
;D ;D ;D
can I get a bearded dragon please. :)
Also, do you mind me shooting you an email to help stat some NPCs for Detroit?
BTW, I'll PDF the thing with pics if you shoot me the whole list. Not sure where I would post it though.
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When you figure out how to stat a swarm, I vote for Piraña, because they are vicious.
I would imagine it would be the same as normal, but you would just give it an swam like aspect. Also when defeated it will just disperse with X survivors, where X = some die roll. Unless the total damage done to swarm = x
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You are....
AWESOME!!!!! (Rhino the Gerbil voice from Bolt).
;D ;D ;D
Always good to hear. :)
can I get a bearded dragon please. :)
Sure. As soon as I finish up with the swarms or get some other animals to stat.
Also, do you mind me shooting you an email to help stat some NPCs for Detroit?
Not at all, though I'd prefer (and be more likely to answer promptly) Private Massaging on this board to e-mail.
BTW, I'll PDF the thing with pics if you shoot me the whole list. Not sure where I would post it though.
I'll think about it. I believe Jeckel may be doing something like that, site and all, but he might be willing to accept some help...
I would imagine it would be the same as normal, but you would just give it an swam like aspect. Also when defeated it will just disperse with X survivors, where X = some die roll. Unless the total damage done to swarm = x
Not exactly. A magically summoned swarm might fight to the last...
I do have an idea though, which should be fun, actually.
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Okay, first off, I think swarms of anything smaller than rats should be handled as environmental effects rather than creatures. It just seems simpler that way. If you want to stat them as creatures, use the following rules, but give them Physical Immunity instead of Inhuman or Supernatural Toughness (with the same Catch), Diminutive Size, Claws if they're something dangerous like wasps, and Wings if they've got 'em. Give them Zone wide attacks or not as usual based on size. That should give you something appropriate-ish.
Second, Swarms come in two sizes: Person, and Zone. A Person sized Swarm is only big enough to attack a single person at a time, a Zone sized one can attack everyone in a zone. These stats are for Zone sized swarms, to lower them to Person sized, just drop Supernatural Toughness to Inhuman (keeping the same Catch and thus the same cost), and drop Zone Wide Attack entirely.
High Concept: School of Pirranha
Other:
Always Hungry
Can Skeletonize A Cow In Two Minutes
Skills:
Superb: Fists,
Great: Athletics, Intimidate,
Good: Endurance, Stealth,
Fair: Alertness, Discipline, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Might, Presence,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Supernatural Toughness [-4]
The Catch is area effects, or anything else that would effect a significant portion of the swarm [+3]
Zone Wide Attack (The creature can attack every individual in a zone with it's normal attack)[-2]
Total Refresh: -8
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO(OOOO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 2
High Concept: Rat Swarm
Other:
Dangerous Vermin
More Rats Than You Can Shake A Stick At
Skills:
Great: Survival, Fists, Intimidate,
Good: Alertness, Athletics, Endurance,
Fair: Discipline, Presence, Stealth,
Average: Burglary, Conviction, Rapport,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Supernatural Toughness [-4]
The Catch is area effects, or anything else that would effect a significant portion of the swarm [+3]
Zone Wide Attack (The creature can attack every individual in a zone with it's normal attack)[-2]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO(OOOO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 2
Note: Rats are braver in groups, hence the enhanced mental skills.
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BTW, I'll PDF the thing with pics if you shoot me the whole list. Not sure where I would post it though.
I'll think about it. I believe Jeckel may be doing something like that, site and all, but he might be willing to accept some help...
Yea, I've been working on displaying the animals in HTML, but with an eye toward other ways to display the info I'm storing each animal in its own xml file. Shouldn't be to hard to write a small script to turn the xml files into any desired output format.
I've been thinking that pictures for each animal would be very cool, and I love pdfs. Send me a private message Ravangames, I'm curious as to how you were planning to do the pdf version and I have a current list of posted animals that might help ya. Heck, at the very least your pictures could make my pages better and I can offer a place to host your pdf. :)
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Yea, I've been working on displaying the animals in HTML, but with an eye toward other ways to display the info I'm storing each animal in its own xml file. Shouldn't be to hard to write a small script to turn the xml files into any desired output format.
I've been thinking that pictures for each animal would be very cool, and I love pdfs. Send me a private message Ravangames, I'm curious as to how you were planning to do the pdf version and I have a current list of posted animals that might help ya. Heck, at the very least your pictures could make my pages better and I can offer a place to host your pdf. :)
Sounds good to me... I'll send ya a pm.
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I got em all and aphatized it. A little formatting... anyone want to proof read the 32 page doc?
Will add more formatting and pics later.
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Any other requests? Right now I've got a bearded lizard, but I usually wait till I've got at least three, before I stat 'em up.
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Oh well, how about a Penguin? And a polar bear, if you think it'd be sufficiently different from a normal bear.
Also: Rhinoceros, Elephant, and Panda? You might have done some of these, but I didn't bother to check. (Sorry!)
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For a polar bear, add the Arctic power from Wolverine to a Grizzly, and shuffle a few Aspects and you're good to go. They're primarily different in temperament, not capabilities.
And I have done both E;ephant and Rhino.
Still, that leaves penguin, bearded lizard, and panda. And that's enough for a new post, which'll be up sometime soon-ish.
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I was watching Biblical Disasters on History International channel, and Swarm of Locusts could be pretty interesting, though I'm not sure if small swarms are worth stating and if big swarms might fall into Plot Device territory.
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Okay, first off, I think swarms of anything smaller than rats should be handled as environmental effects rather than creatures. It just seems simpler that way. If you want to stat them as creatures, use the following rules, but give them Physical Immunity instead of Inhuman or Supernatural Toughness (with the same Catch), Diminutive Size, Claws if they're something dangerous like wasps, and Wings if they've got 'em. Give them Zone wide attacks or not as usual based on size. That should give you something appropriate-ish.
Thus Locusts would have the following for powers:
Diminutive Size [-1]
Wings [-1]
Physical Immunity [-8]
The Catch is area effects, or anything else that would effect a significant portion of the swarm [+3]
Zone Wide Attack (The creature can attack every individual in a zone with it's normal attack)[-2]
But really, I think they're better handled as an environmental hazard.
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O, doh, I forgot about the quoted smaller the a rat part. A question though. When you say 'environmental effects', are you using the general meaning, like "things that affect the environment" or is there some explanation on the topic in the books? The nearest I could find by searching the books is page YS:257 in the example for Backlash & Fallout. I'm thinking to use a mixture of person sized swarms and simple narrative, maybe with a final zone wide swarm near the end. And thanks bro, looks like my players' farm is about to have a bad harvest. :D
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Environmental Hazards, YS p. 325. Basically, a swarm of attacking locusts isn't meaningfully different than a cloud of corrosive gas, except in what sort of things you do to remove it.
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Ahh, 'hazards', that will teach me to do two word searches in the pdf. I read it over and it is what I figured, their example of rolls for walking through the tundra is exactly how I've been handling my players in the desert. That gave me some ideas like big swarms of insects doing a maneuver to put a 'Obscured Vision' aspect on the characters.
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Need a bit of help though. So locusts eat all the crops and the farm has to sell all the cattle and the herd of horses since there is no food to feed them. The money that they get from the sells will be enough to invest in the start up of a new venture for the farm.
After talking with the two players that would want input on the animals maybe going away (the farm owner and the main foreman), they both agreed that given the choice they would like to stay with horses in some fashion. I thought for a bit and decided it would be fun for me, and surprising to the characters, if they got possession of a small stock of Shetland Ponies (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shetland_pony) (the little dwarf horses).
My thoughts are to take the Riding Horse, drop the Inhuman Strength, lower Athletics from 4 to 3, and both Endurance and Fists from 3 to 2. Does that sound about right to you?
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High Concept: Shetland Pony
Other:
Hardy And Intelligent
Skills:
Good: Athletics, Endurance, Fists,
Fair: Alertness, Might, Rapport,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Empathy, Presence, Survival,
Stunts:
Fleet of Foot (Athletics)
Powers:
Claws [-1] (Hooves)
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Herd Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Shetland Ponies are actually surprisingly tough, strong, little bastards, so here's what I'd give 'em.
High Concept: Panda Bear
Other:
Playful And Friendly
Mostly Herbivorous
Skills:
Great: Survival,
Good: Endurance, Fists, Rapport,
Fair: Alertness, Athletics, Empathy, Might,
Average: Conviction, Intimidation, Presence, Stealth,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
High Concept: Penguin
Other:
Social Creature
Awkward On Land
Skills:
Great: Survival,
Good: Athletics, Rapport,
Fair: Alertness, Empathy, Endurance,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Fists, Presence,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Arctic (Penguins take no penalties of any sort from cold, and ignore barrier values based on snow and ice.) [-1]
Total Refresh: -3
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Notes: Some Penguins are much smaller, possessing Diminutive Size and only 2 Physical Stress.
High Concept: Bearded Lizard
Other:
Doglike Devotion
Omnivorous
Skills:
Good: Athletics, Survival,
Fair: Alertness, Discipline, Empathy, Rapport,
Average: Conviction, Fists, Presence, Stealth,
Powers:
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Total Refresh: -2
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0
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Super totally awesome, and (since I'm keeping track ;)) that brings the total animal count to 51. Your like some kind of DFRPG machine, my hat is off to you sir.
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Awesome creatures!
What about a Giant or Colossal Squid, Elephant Seal, and Moose?
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High Concept: Male Elephant Seal
Other:
Terrifying Preadator
Awkward On Land
Skills:
Superb: Fists,
Great: Endurance, Might, Survival,
Good: Alertness, Athletics, Stealth,
Fair: Discipline, Intimidation, Rapport,
Average: Conviction, Empathy, Presence,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Supernatural Strength [-4]
Supernatural Toughness [-4]
Hulking Size [-2]
Total Refresh: -13
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO(OOOO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 2.
Note: Female's skills are likely a bit less combat focused and, being smaller, may only have Inhuman Toughness and/or Strength. These things are scary.
High Concept: Giant Squid
Other:
Lots Of Tentacles
Smarter Than You'd Think
Skills:
Superb: Endurance, Might,
Great: Athletics, Fists, Intimidate,
Good: Presence, Survival, Stealth
Fair: Alertness, Discipline, Rapport,
Average: Conviction, Deceit, Empathy,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Aquatic [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Supernatural Strength [-4]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -9
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO(OO) (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOOO
Armor: 1.
Note: Smaller than you might think, but stil capable of grappling Kller Whales and maybe winning. Collossal Squid are likely a bit bigger, and the largest have Hulking Size.
High Concept: Moose
Other:
Agressive As Hell
Still A Prey Animal
Skills:
Superb: Endurance,
Great: Fists, Survival,
Good: Alertness, Might,
Fair: Athletics, Discipline, Rapport,
Average: Conviction, Empathy, Intimidation, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Hulking Size [-2]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Notes: Moose sometimes lack antlers and thus claws. Some are small enough to lack Hulking Size, and will have No Pain No Gain instead. Still scary critters.
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After a week or so of catch-up, I now have all the currently posted animals (except the two swarms) archived on the web and have given each sheet a picture to boot. Each animal is stored in an XML file and converted to HTML for its web-page, and I am hard at work on a simple interface to retrieve each sheet in various different formats for ease of use and transfer to your favorite gaming tools, be that notepad, forum posts, wikis, email, etc. I'm shooting for that stuff to be done by August.
The animals' Group Home-Page (http://www.vinlandsolutions.site11.com/Products/DFRPG/SampleChars/DMW/Animals/index.html) has links to all the animal's pages. Enjoy and I hope people find it useful. :)
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Okay, that looks awesome. :)
One suggestion: Remove the descriptors (Good+3 for example) from the Stress Tracks. That's only going to cause confusion.
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sent PDF to Jekel for proofing. Do you want a copy too Dead?
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Thank-you, this is only my second web-site, but I had a couple years of desktop interface programing since the first one and I think the lessons have paid off.
On the stress track part. I kinda like the number, but I see your point about the word, and since the number can never be negative the sign also seems unneccessary. What if I change it to just show the number, like "Mental (3): OOO" instead of "Mental (Good, +3): OOO"?
Either way, I only have to modify one line of code to make the change, so for the moment I have removed it all together and will put the number back in if you think it makes sense. But for now, I'm off to prepare for rp. Tonight is the night my players have devastation inflicted on their farm and get rewarded with Shetland Ponies. :D
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sent PDF to Jekel for proofing. Do you want a copy too Dead?
Sure, PM me a link.
And yeah, the number on it's own with no word or + should be fine and unconfusing.
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Looking at the page, under armor and Consequences, you might want to note that the extra consequences are Physical, just to avoid confusion.
Anyone have any additional requests? I'm still perfectly happy to stat up whatever.
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It's getting pretty hard to think of an animal that isn't pretty much already on that list and still worth stating.
Nevertheless, I did my best:
Ostrich
Otter
Seal(regular)
Armadillo
Kangaroo
Koala
And most importantly: a Dropbear ;D
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I should be able to manage everything but the Dropbear. Those things are totally supernatural. ;)
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The PDF from Ravangames is now uploaded and linked from the animals page. :)
Looking at the page, under armor and Consequences, you might want to note that the extra consequences are Physical, just to avoid confusion.
Dang, I thought I had fixed all those, I'll go through the files and make sure I get them all corrected today.
EDIT: Also, a giant sea turtle would be very cool.
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Thanks. I'll try to keep the sucker updated.
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Here are three of the six, the other three are still to come:
High Concept: Ostrich
Other:
Fast As Hell
Deadly Kick
Not As Stupid As People Think
Skills:
Great: Athletics,
Good: Alertness, Endurance, Fists,
Fair: Intimidate, Rapport, Stealth, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Empathy, Presence,
Powers:
Claws [-1]
Inhumann Strength [-2]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Total Refresh: -6
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Scary kick and very dodgy, but can be taken out by lions and such fairly easily if needed.
High Concept: Nine-Banded Armadillo
Other:
Tough Little Bastard
Surprising Skills
Skills:
Great: Endurance,
Good: Athletics, Survival,
Fair: Alertness, Burglary, Fists, Might, Stealth,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Empathy, Presence, Rapport,
Stunts:
Tough Shell (May use Endurance to defend against melee attacks smaller than about car sized.)
Powers:
Diminutive Size [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -5
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
Note: Other Armadillos will vary wildly. They're really half a dozen different species and subspecies with varying capabilities.
High Concept: Seal
Other:
Social Creature
Awkward On Land
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Fists,
Good: Alertness, Endurance,
Fair: Rapport, Stealth, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Empathy, Intimidation, Presence,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Arctic (Seals take no penalties of any sort from cold, and ignore barrier values based on snow and ice.) [-1]
Total Refresh: -4
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
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Looking back on my Elk, I broke my own rules: Those things really shouldn't have Inhuman Toughness. So I've edited them, dropping it for No Pain, No Gain.
Here's the revised version:
High Concept: Elk
Other:
Weak Against Disease
Very Adaptable
Skills:
Great: Athletics, Fists, Survival,
Good: Endurance, Intimidation, Might,
Fair: Alertness, Rapport, Stealth,
Average: Discipline, Empathy, Presence,
Stunts:
No Pain, No Gain (Endurance)
Powers:
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Inhuman Strength [-2]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Herd Instincts [-1]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOOO (+1 Mild Consequence)
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
Note: Like deer, male elk sometimes have Claws as well as the listed powers due to having antlers.
I'll be noting any Edits I make after the first few minutes like this from now on, since people are putting things up on websites and such.
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updated pdf and sent to Jekel
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Found a typo, you've got School of Piranha spelled 'Pirranha'. :)
Thanks for the notice on sheet changes, that will make things so much easier. I followed suit and added a line to the bottom of each sheet telling what date its data was last modified on the web-site. Also, I added the last modified date after the link to Ravangames's PDF. Now people will know if your updates have been propagated to the other formats yet.
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Doing the locusts swarm as an environmental hazarded mixed with a few "Person sized swarms" worked out really well. My players planned ahead very well and managed to save 2 of their 6 fields. I finally got to throw a Grizzly Bear at them when they were driving their cattle to the auction house in the next territory. The wizard (who is a Coward With a Heart of Gold) lost his intimidation defense and was ran away "screaming like a little girl". :D Long story short, one of the NPC cattle herders was injured pretty bad, but no cattle were lost and the sale was made.
They had so much fun with the locusts and the bear that we paused before returning to the farm. Next session I'll get to break the Shetland Pony twist to the rest of the group. These have been some of the funnest sessions I've had since college. 8)
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Awesome! :)
I'm very glad my list is actually useful to someone, it honestly brings a warm glow.
And the remaining four critters in the queue will be up some time today or tomorrow-ish.
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Sorry for the delay, my last few days have been hectic. Otter and Giant Sea Turtle still to come.
High Concept: Red Kangaroo
Other:
Marsupial
Deadly Kick
Skills:
Great: Alertness, Athletics,
Good: Endurance, Fists,
Fair: Intimidate, Rapport, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Discipline, Empathy, Presence, Stealth,
Powers:
Inhumann Strength [-2]
Inhuman Speed [-2]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Total Refresh: -5
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0.
High Concept: Koala
Other:
Marsupial
Cute, But Tempermental
Skills:
Great: Alertness,
Good: Rapport, Survival,
Fair: Athletics, Fists, Stealth,
Average: Empathy, Discipline, Endurance, Presence,
Stunts:
'Human' Spider (Athletics)
Powers:
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Total Refresh: -2
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0
Note: Some smaller Koalas will possess Diminutive Size. They drop Stealth to Average, and buy Might at the same level.
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I know this is more of a nitpick but some exceptional animals like Dolphins, Elephants, Ravens, Crows, Whales (as a species compared to individuals like domesticated cats and dogs) seem to have something between Scholarship (Language) and Lore
Maybe you could give them Lore and say Echoes of the Beast allows them to use the skill for
trying to decipher human language and other intelligence/sapience based uses?
Or maybe create a totally new, animal only, skill like "Ancestral Pack (Pod, Herd, whatever their group is called) Lore" and use that instead of scholarship?
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Lore is knowledge of the supernatural, which is just...really wrong for mundane animals.
And as others have pointed out, most humans lack Scholarship and/or Lore at above Medocre, I'd just assume that such creatures have a base of Mediocre, the same as a human would, for anything within their sphere of knowledge.
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Sorry i meant lore as it's dictionary meaning not in game :(
seem to be making such mistakes a lot lately...
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My Koala was...off. I've revised it a bit.
Otter and Giant Sea Turtle still to come.
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Saw this was about to fall onto page three, so thought I would give it a much deserved bump.
Timing of RP has been sporadic lately, but got a couple hours with the group a few days ago and did the big reveal of the Shetland Ponies and it was a huge hit. While describing the ponies I mentioned the farm up the street from me and the performances they put on for kids' birthday parties. Sure enough, within a few minutes they were organizing a little "wild west" show. The shaman sung a beautiful song, the wizard did some magic tricks, our gun fighter shot coins and fruit out of the air, my wild-man-of-the-desert character "fought" two wolves, and the farm owner made the costumes, did a martial arts demonstration, and did some acrobatic tricks on the wagon while it was being raced around by the ponies (she doesn't make most sessions, so we let her take the front seat for most of it). Both the opening, closing, and half-time acts were centered around the ponies running in different formations and doing various tricks (taught to them by the gun fighter/horse trainer character), as well as pulling a fancy wagon (designed by the group and build with help from an NPC) which was given extra flair and effects (like it being "consumed by flames" during the closing act) by the wizard/stage magician character.
We had so much fun that it seems the focus is going to center around the show for a while, so I'm going to have an NPC approach them for a real show in Australia. That should give me a chance to work in the kangaroo and I know that as soon as I mention Australia the farm owner is going to want to get her character a Koala, "there just so darn cute" I'm guessing will be the justification. :p Might try to work in a great white and some seals, and/or a komodo, if the opportunity presents itself.
I'm still using the crap out of these animals and I can tell you that at least two other GMs I know, who don't do the forum thing, are using them in there games and wish to give you major props. :)
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I was concerned at your cat having claws right at the front.
May I suggest you go "claws like razors" as an aspect and lose the power. This is mainly because the damage bonus counts and stacks with the size limitation. This means a cat with claws will do 2 damage with each hit not just 1 due to size. In addition the aspect "9 lives" springs to mind.
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Actually, since Claws are a +2 it maxes out at three stress a hit. Which is appropriate. Your average house cat is NOT going to ever attempt to kill a human, using Maneuvers and such to get away instead...but if they did (perhaps guided by some malign intellect), their odds wouldn't actually be that bad. A cat can rip your throat out pretty effectively if it's suddenly granted human intelligence.
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Sorry this took so long, I've been kinda listless and tired all week.
High Concept: Giant Sea Turtle
Other:
Mild Mannered Creature
Tough Carapace
Surprisingly Good Eyesight
Skills:
Great: Endurance,
Good: Alertness, Athletics, Fists,
Fair: Discipline, Rapport, Stealth, Survival,
Average: Conviction, Empathy, Intimidation, Presence,
Stunts:
Tough Shell (May use Endurance to defend against melee attacks smaller than about car sized.) (Endurance)
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Hulking Size [-2]
Inhuman Toughness [-2]
Total Refresh: -7
Stress:
Mental: OOO
Physical: OOOOOO(OO)
Social: OOO
Armor: 1.
Notes: Some are smaller than Hulking Size would indicate and thus lack it.
High Concept: Sea Otter
Other:
Playful And Intelligent
Tool User
Adorable
Skills:
Great: Athletics,
Good: Fists, Survival,
Fair: Alertness, Rapport, Stealth,
Average: Empathy, Discipline, Endurance, Presence,
Powers:
Aquatic [-1]
Claws [-1]
Echoes of the Beast [-1]
Total Refresh: -3
Stress:
Mental: OO
Physical: OOO
Social: OOO
Armor: 0
Note: Sea Otters are bigger (up to 100 lbs!) and possibly nastier than you'd think. Also, adorable.
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I love the turtle. ;D
Do you think Tough Shell could work as a PC stunt? Why did you make the distinction about "melee attacks smaller than about car sized"?
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Because it's originally from the Armadillo (who get run over a lot)...and because mass trauma will ignore even the toughest animal shell to some extent.
And yeah, it's perfectly acceptable for PC use as is, mechanically (adding a limited Dodge trapping as it does), you'd just need to justify the mechanic somehow.
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Mal_Luck - Think of The Blob from X-men, he's not very athletic but he's sure got a good defense :)
For the Giant Sea Turtle, can I suggest the aspect 'Surprisingly Good Eyesight' as they can see fantastically well, both at night and during the day. They can also see a wider range of colours. Might be important if someone tries to veil or stealth past them.
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Aspect added. It does indeed both seem reasonable and relevant.
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Has anyone made stats for Raccoons? I was surprised to see they didn't include Little Brother in Listen-to-wind's sheet. They just question if Little Brother was a familiar. I have a player wanting to make a template for a Were-Raccoon (he sorta has a pet raccoon which he started feeding).
I was looking at the stats in the bestiary file for Domestic Cats and was going to tweak it.
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I'll do Raccoons within the day, they're a bit badder than most House Cats.
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I've been trying to think of animals which are quite different to ones that have already been done but could also somehow be useful in a game... how about a bats, moles and chameleons? Or a beetle of some kind like a scarab beetle? I can imagine all of these used for magic either because they have unique abilities or because they could be ritually significant.
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Beetles are a bit small, but Bats, Moles, and Chameleons are all doable.
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That turtle looks real good, and I'm already thinking of all the ways I can use bats and moles. :)
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the most BAMF wereform of all time, The were-Platypus
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How about a swan? Beautiful, graceful and it can break your arm with a beat of it's wings!
Were-Swan would be interesting too :)
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Not exactly related, but this is the closest pre-existing thread and I don't want to start another one.
Mobile Suit: Gundam Pixie
Backstory: I've got some technically wild fae, that are all members of a largely forgotten court of fairy. They're pretty much all little folk of some variety due to political pressures from Summer and Winter. Led by Queen Aoibheal (pronounced ae-vahl, but generally known as "Scoot"), the Midnight Court has decided to embrace the recent developments in the mortal world. As such, the concepts that concern the court have begun to evolve. Formerly, the court was concerned only with traditional midnight activities (sex, promiscuity, faithfulness), but lately the little folk have begun sneaking into mortal homes and watching TV and playing video games.
Due to some recent security problems for the Midnight Court, Queen Aoibheal's guards have gotten it into their heads to build "giant mechas" . . . as far as giant goes to a creature that's 5 inches tall.
Aoibheal's Guard
High Concept: For the honor of Aoibheal! . . . and Pizza!
Trouble: Ooh, look. Shiny!
Skills:
Driving: 4
Guns: 2-3
All others default to normal pixie levels. (OW50)
Stunts and Powers:
[-2] Gundam Pilot Training While using a mobile suit construct, this character may roll Driving to attack instead of the construct's Weapons or Fists. The character can also roll Driving instead of the construct's Athletics to dodge. Use the higher of either this character's skills or the construct's skills when taking an action or determining initiative.
All other powers default to Pixie writeup.
________________________________________________
Mobile Suit "Leo"
High Concept: Run of the mill mobile suit
Skills:
Endurance: 3
Athletics 2
Weapons: 1-2
Might: 1
Guns: 1
All others default to Mediocre. Mental/Social stats default to pilot stats
Powers:
[-0] Human Sized: Pilots cannot use their diminutive size or wings powers.
[-0] Ectoplasm Body: Cannot be left unattended in the mortal world
[-2] Fangs: Technically a pair of beam sabers, not fangs.
[-2] Inhuman Toughness
[-2] Inhuman Recovery
[+3] Catch: Cold Iron
[+0] Second Catch: Must return to Midnight, Nevernever to "heal"
Optional:
[-1] Wings: See thruster pack
Weapon Carried: (pick one)
10.5mm Rifle (Gun 3)
Beam Rifle (Gun 2, can spray)
Bazooka (Gun 4, explosive, must be reloaded each use)
________________________________________________
Mobile Suit "Tallgeese"
High Concept: The only thing that can stand up to the gundams!
Trouble: Rough on my pilots
Skills:
Endurance: 5
Might: 4
Athletics 2
Weapons: 1-2
Guns: 1
All others default to Mediocre. Mental/Social stats default to pilot stats
Powers:
[-0] Human Sized: Pilots cannot use their diminutive size or wings powers.
[-0] Ectoplasm Body: Cannot be left unattended in the mortal world
[-2] Fangs: Technically a pair of beam sabers, not fangs.
[-2] Inhuman Speed
[-2] Inhuman Strength
[-6] Mythic Toughness
[-2] Inhuman Recovery
[+3] Catch: Cold Iron
[+0] Second Catch: Must return to Midnight, Nevernever to "heal"
[-1] Wings: See thruster pack
Weapon Carried:
Dober Gun - Gun 5, cannot be fired on consecutive turns without a -3 penalty due to recoil
Other Gundams created as needed, but this is where I'm calling a stopping point on the post. :p
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No, I'm pretty sure that has NOTHING to do with this thread.
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Dude. Don't be afraid to start your own thread. It's not uncommon. Or search out one of the previous Gundam threads, there was at least one and it wasn't long ago. Or the thread on uncommon mythological creatures
In fact, please do one of those things and get the Pixie Gundams the hell out of this thread, this is explicitly for mundane animals, not supernatural creatures, not Gundams, not even dinosaurs (they're too far out there). I have no inherent objections to others contributing here, but only in an On Topic way. That post is pretty much the defintion of Off Topic.
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Bump for awesomeness staying on the front page. in fact, anyway we could get this thread of pure raw awesomeness stickied? lol.
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Sorry for the delay, folks. I haven't abandoned this thread, my last week has just been a bit hectic.
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I finally got to throw a Giant Squid at my group. The were on a small magically-indestructible boat in the middle of an ocean and the squid attacked. All three players failed their alertness horribly and were surprised. A hectic battle ensued, a bunch of bruises, many cuts, and several broken bones were inflicted on the party. It was only ended when the Gunslinger maneuvered the Blinded aspect on the squid with a spray from his repeater. He handed the tag to our Clockwork Crafter who tossed a small bomb right done the squid's beak and blew the crap clean out of it. Later on, the tentacles that were still stuck to the boat came in handy as food after their meager supplies had run out.
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On a different note. I've been working on a small session to do in Africa while my group is on their way to Austraila and I noticed that Silverback Gorilla doesn't have any aspects other then the High Concept.
I was thinking that these aspects might work, though they might need a little rewording.
Defender of the Troop
Almost Human
User of Simple Tools
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A few other ideas for neat animals.
Sloth. I had no idea that these things can swim and actually prefer to travel distance in the water rather then on the ground or in trees.
Manatee. The mild mannered cows of the sea and cute in a weird way.
Zebra. I have an idea of a guy on a zebra challenging one of my group to a joust-y kind of contest. Not sure if this warrants a new animal sheet or if one of the horse sheets would work with a change or two.
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How do those animal builds compare to modern weaponry though?
An AK-47 is weapon 3. A group of 4 troopers with fair to good guns and AK-47s will need more than 2 exchanges to take out the elephant.
Someone with an elephant gun (Weapon 4? Maybe weapon 4 and armor piercing?) would almost never be able to kill the elephant in one shot, which is what the gun was designed to do.
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How do those animal builds compare to modern weaponry though?
An AK-47 is weapon 3. A group of 4 troopers with fair to good guns and AK-47s will need more than 2 exchanges to take out the elephant.
And this is unrealistic how? Elephants take quite a lot of killing.
Someone with an elephant gun (Weapon 4? Maybe weapon 4 and armor piercing?) would almost never be able to kill the elephant in one shot, which is what the gun was designed to do.
As an unaimed shot? No, they can't. Shooting an elephant somewhere non-vital is extremely unlikely to kill it, though. They're huge. If you take a few round to aim (applying multiple Aspects to the creature) and get a good bead on it, then you can kill it.
And bear in mind the Elephant's Mediocre dodging skills, so a really good shot could take it down even without that. I mean, an 8 to hit (very doable with a couple of FP) and a single point of armor piercing (which I very much would give to an elephant gun) is enough to take it out on average.
Also, an experienced hunter might well know an Elephant's Catch (ie: it's precise vulnerable spots and the ways to target them) and be able to manage it much more easily.
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Well, a shot with a .600 Overkill bullet penetrates 6 feet into solid oak. The game hunters would shoot more or less center-mass on the elephant and it would go out the other side. Just about any non-supernatural creature will drop after that.
(those kind of guns and rounds were made as emergency backup to stop charging attacks where you didn't have time to aim so 1-hit-kill was essential)
The reason I am contesting Supernatural and Mythic toughness for animals is that this kind of ability is for creatures that can lose up major parts of their own mass or otherwise suffer tremendous harm and keep going.
The way I'd do the big animals would be Inhuman Toughness at most and a stunt to reduce stress from low-weapon-rating attacks (the reverse of lethal weapon that gives bonus damage to unarmored targets). That way they'd be resistant to harm from what animals normally resist but any big weapon would drop them. As is, an elephant could eat a blast from a weapon 7 rocket launcher and survive. It could even take 2-3 hits to take him out if the attacker's skill was only great or so.
In contrast, a supernatural toughness black court vampire should take a weapon 4 armor piercing 2 shot to the torso that would open a fist-sized hole into it and keep going. Animals aren't supposed to do that.
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Well, a shot with a .600 Overkill bullet penetrates 6 feet into solid oak. The game hunters would shoot more or less center-mass on the elephant and it would go out the other side. Just about any non-supernatural creature will drop after that.
Eventually? Probably; at least without serious medical care. Right then and there? Unless you lucked out and hit the heart or the spine, I'd really doubt that. And then the elephant tramples you. The end.
The thing here is that toughness powers for large animals are for things that can take grievous amounts of person-scaled damage and keep going. Which, hey, an elephant *can*. You can take a chunk out of it the size of a guy's arm, and that really won't do more - in the short term - than make it angry.
The one thing I would do as a GM, is say that the toughness stress boxes on things like elephants do represent actual serious injury; they won't clear between scenes, and without medical treatment can get infected and lead to death. Other than that... a glancing hit with a rocket launcher not killing one? Sure, I can totally see that. A dead on hit, on the other hand - no, the elephant can't take that; and it wouldn't take anywhere near as much aim as you'd need to hit heart or brain with an elephant gun, either. I'd probably declare that high explosives satisfy the elephant's catch, too; that sort of damage isn't something raw mass will protect against very well.
Still, if you want big animals to be more fragile - go for it. Won't break the game either way.
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But that's the kind of situation that kind of guns were used for; stopping cold a suddenly charging big animal. And they worked...
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Hm. Then maybe I just don't know what I'm talking about? This is always possible, especially when I'm trying to derive game-useful information from wikipedia.
Or possibly elephant guns are rather more than weapon: 4?
I dunno. I do know that at least early elephant guns weren't anywhere near the sort of lethality you're describing, but there doesn't seem to be much info on modern ones, at least in the places I've gone looking.
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Well, a shot with a .600 Overkill bullet penetrates 6 feet into solid oak. The game hunters would shoot more or less center-mass on the elephant and it would go out the other side. Just about any non-supernatural creature will drop after that.
Not really. Rhinos and Grizzly Bears can casually keep coming after that sort of thing (and do). Shooting a Grizzly Bear with a 30-06 is about as likely to stop it as throwing rocks at it. It might die later, but that doesn't help you in the mean time.
Debatably the Stress on such creatures shouldn't heal between scenes...but that's kind of an academic distinction most of the time with mundane critters.
The reason I am contesting Supernatural and Mythic toughness for animals is that this kind of ability is for creatures that can lose up major parts of their own mass or otherwise suffer tremendous harm and keep going.
Well, then a lot of mundane animals should totally have it. The Grizzly bear Lewis and Clark ran into got shot repeatedly, including through the eye, and still chased them off a cliff. Large animals are tougher than you're giving them credit for.
You'll also note that I don't give it out all willy-nilly. I think the only critters with higher than Inhuman on Toughness are the Elephant and the Orca. Both of whom would seem to warrant it.
The way I'd do the big animals would be Inhuman Toughness at most and a stunt to reduce stress from low-weapon-rating attacks (the reverse of lethal weapon that . That way they'd be resistant to harm from what animals normally resist but any big weapon would drop them. As is, an elephant could eat a blast from a weapon 7 rocket launcher and survive. It could even take 2-3 hits to take him out if the attacker's skill was only great or so.
Uh? Not really in any actual fight. At Great skill and a single FP that's a one hit kill for the most part. Especially if you consider being ground zero of large explosions like that to satisfy the elephant's Catch (which I probably would).
In contrast, a supernatural toughness black court vampire should take a weapon 4 armor piercing 2 shot to the torso that would open a fist-sized hole into it and keep going. Animals aren't supposed to do that.
Big enough ones absolutely do. Or take it and survive any way. The big difference between supernatural critters and most mundane animals is that the supernaturals are smart and/or agressive enough to charge the gunman. Most animals will panic and/or run, allowing the gunman several shots. This is actually a general (and important) note on animals: The few that keep coming after being wounded are feared far and wide by hunters, and likely enough to kill you: Wild boars, Grizzly Bears, Cape Buffalo, stuff like that.
Being charged by an Elephant is the sort of thing you should need to burn FP on surviving (say, the 2 or 3 it'd take to kill the critter). Well, unless you do this all the time (and know the aforementioned Catch).
I actually found a youtube video of some elephant hunters. They take some time to set up...and still require four shots to kill the creature. I'll admit they weren't using an Elephant gun, though. Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SP_AaKuIkqY
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Meh. Judging from the pathetic recoil and small bore of their rifles they were using sissy high penetration low caliber rounds, maybe 7.62 × 39 mm. Those got a muzzle energy of ~2000 joules. Heavy Elephant guns can go as high as 16.000-19.000 joules (.600 Overkill and .700 Nitro Express repsectively) , nearly ten times that much power in a single shot.
In comparison, the .44 Magnum round is at about 1.400 joules. Another comparison, the .30-06 Springfield is at about 4.000 joules. Elephant guns are serious firepower.
Hmm. Maybe it is the gun that's the problem. What would you give as weapon rating for that kind of firepower? I have it as Weapon 4, Armor Piercing 2, slightly better than a grenade which is just weapon 4.
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I freely admitted it wasn't an elephant gun. :)
Hmm. Maybe it is the gun that's the problem. What would you give as weapon rating for that kind of firepower? I have it as Weapon 4, Armor Piercing 2, slightly better than a grenade which is just weapon 4.
Hmmm. For guns that big (or things like a .50 caliber sniper rifle) I'd actually be inclined to go Weapon: 5, Armor Piercing: 2, and in most cases at least one Resources declaration for an extra Aspect (since you don't pull those out without some prep being involved). I mean, we're talking guns that go through cinderblocks like they were paper, here.
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Fantastic work, Deadmanwalking! I'm planning on using a number of animal stats in my game (which uses the Dresden rules, but isn't part of the Dresdenverse) for skinwalkers. Any chance you're still looking to do a few more animals? Along with Jeckel's requests, I'd like to see:
Ducks/Geese
Jellyfish
Malayan flying foxes (or some other large bat)
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Very nice stats you have here. You're quite the public benefactor, Deadmanwalking. Still, I have a bit of (hopefully constructive) criticism.
1. The rules for alertness and athletics are designed for humans. Animals have a completely different balance of senses and athletic abilities. While the sensory part of this is partly represented by the Echoes Of The Beast power that all animals have, I don't feel that it goes far enough. It only gives a +1 bonus to alertness, which doesn't come close to covering the difference between the sense of smell of a human and that of a shark or dog. I would fix this with stunts, if I were you. Same goes for athletics: the animals with the Awkward On Land aspect don't have anything backing it up. Once again, you can fix this with stunts.
2. It's often not clear what benefits an animal gets from Echoes Of The Beast. It would be most helpful if you could list what you have in mind for each.
3. It's not entirely clear what the catches on the toughness abilities of the animals are. In fact, I'm not even sure whether they have catches. Should we just assume that the catch is always vulnerable points on the body of the animal?
Don't take all this as a sign that I think you did a bad job. On the contrary, this is great stuff. But you can always improve, right?