I need a mount for the snow [Archive] - Wizards Community

I need a mount for the snow [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Melvin the Mediocre
02-07-07, 03:39 PM I want to involve my players in a drawn out chase / missile fire fight in the snow, but I can't decide on the enemies mounts. They are only level 2, so nothing super tough. I was thinking of goblins on wolves, but I'm afraid the characters will be on horse and quickly overtake the little gobs. Is there a better mount to use? Or are the any obscure rules I can pull out of my butt to claim the horses are more hindered than the wolves in the snow? Otherwise I'll just have to rely on restricted visibility which will also hamper the arrow plinking, spell weaving, javelin hurling point of this exercise.
Cifer
02-07-07, 03:49 PM What about strangely fast wolves? Maybe their ancestors strayed too far into a zone of magical radiation generated by the war, thus mutating their offspring. A goblin could certainly tell them about this phenomenon and its whereabouts if caught, and there might still be some items for the PCs to collect there - and of course some more dangerous beasts...
SquirrelMortis
02-07-07, 04:25 PM Or just have the goblins cut a deal with House Vadalis. The Magebred template would help.
goblin_pride
02-07-07, 04:59 PM I was thinking of goblins on wolves, but I'm afraid the characters will be on horse and quickly overtake the little gobs. Is there a better mount to use? Or are the any obscure rules I can pull out of my butt to claim the horses are more hindered than the wolves in the snow?

Horses are fine, even if the players have light horses, odds are that an armored warrior will give the horse a medium load*. Goblins on wolves also won't likely run across wide open country, rather they'll prob'ly use the terrain to their best advantage, shortening the range to point blank before breaking into the open to fire back at their pursuers. If speed is still a problem, I use the magebred template for the wolves of the Taarka'khesh to represent the thousands of years of breeding.

*A light horse is carrying a medium load at 151, which is pretty much the character, armor and a couple weapons. If the PCs are carrying anything resembling supplies for a long overland journey, their horses will be encumbered. Heavy horses have a base speed of 50 so they match a wolf straight from the monster manual.
Warforged Goblin
02-07-07, 06:10 PM If you're dead set on goblins on wolves, give the mounts the Run feat. Honestly, IMO, I'd use snow goblins (from Frostburn) on the wolves with the leader riding a worg. Of course, making them all 2nd level druids with the Snowrunner feat, also from Frostburn, could work also.
UnderworldLord
02-07-07, 06:55 PM Goblinoids have a nation now. Why would it be hard to imagine them getting magebred wolves? Or, if druids are involved, Horrid animals could prove fun. I'd have to go look at the template on that one though... Maybe that lead rider could have a horrid wolf, and the others have magebreds? If they were part of the Children of Winter, they might have vermin mounts as well.
goblin_pride
02-07-07, 11:43 PM Goblinoids have a nation now.

They always have had. It's a shame that no one told the Cyrans, we could've avoided an awful lot of bloodshed.
UnderworldLord
02-07-07, 11:50 PM I meant now being the creation of Eberron as a campaign. its the first time they've become a potential political power. Them and monsters as a nation in general. Not to mention the Inspired...
Cabral
02-08-07, 12:54 AM I want to involve my players in a drawn out chase / missile fire fight in the snow, but I can't decide on the enemies mounts. They are only level 2, so nothing super tough. I was thinking of goblins on wolves, but I'm afraid the characters will be on horse and quickly overtake the little gobs.
Boots of the Winterlands (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm#bootsoftheWinterlands) and Snow (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/weather.htm#snow).

Take boots of the winterlands, strip them down to just their walk on snow function and make them wolf only. You're probably looking at about 900 gp or so items. (So it should be okay if the players get a few and sell them as loot)

The horses will be moving at half pace from the snow, so at best, 30 ft speed versus the wolves' full 50 ft speed.

This gives the gobbers speed and maneveurabilty over the horses.

That will let you set the pace of the fight. :D
Kreistor2
02-08-07, 01:13 PM Dog sled.
goblin_pride
02-08-07, 02:29 PM Dog sled.

For the PCs or the goblins? For the goblins it would seem a bit silly since they're small enough to ride the dogs themselves and squeeze a bit more speed and manueverability that way.
Kreistor2
02-08-07, 03:17 PM The advantage of a dog sled is that it needs only one driver. You can have two or three goblins shooting from it while the other drives. It's also not hard to stop or slow (kill a dog), so you can put in three or four and make it look harder than it really is.
dunkeykong
02-09-07, 10:24 PM well, from a scientific standpoint, wolves are made to traverse snow without sinking in, therefore allowing to move alot quicker that horses who would be atleast knee deep and have their speed reduced by half. Wolves paws are splayed out and create a snowshoe effect as opposed to horses whos hooves are very narrow.
dunkeykong
02-09-07, 10:29 PM well, from a scientific standpoint, wolves are made to traverse snow without sinking in, therefore allowing to move alot quicker that horses who would be atleast knee deep and have their speed reduced by half. Wolves paws are splayed out and create a snowshoe effect as opposed to horses whos hooves are very narrow.

and yes, im a boyscout and im training to work for fish and game. so thats how I know.
Lujayne34
02-10-07, 06:28 PM Tauntauns maybe? :P :)

Seriously tho. There was an adventure that was included on the player disk as part of the PHB 3.0 That involved a wintry area and the hobgoblins were riding some sort of snow creature that looked a lot like tauntauns. I will have to see if I still have the adventure and the stats/name for the creatures
Subtle Knife
02-10-07, 07:10 PM My artificer is waiting to create a Smilodon Effigy - also good in a fight!
SK
dunkeykong
02-10-07, 11:15 PM Tauntauns maybe? :P :)

haha, seriously.

Can i get the 3.5 stats for those?
Melvin the Mediocre
02-13-07, 04:11 PM and yes, im a boyscout and im training to work for fish and game. so thats how I know.

I know that is true, and that is what first led me to wolves carrying goblins as the opposition. However, there are no rules to support it, and I don't want the players to feel like I have arbitrarily stacked things against them.

A dogsled might be worth looking at. Where are rules for a sled?
goblin_pride
02-13-07, 04:14 PM A dogsled might be worth looking at. Where are rules for a sled?

The weight of the sled would be divided among the animals pulling it to determine max load and speed, assuming you followed a logical course of thinking.
Elderich
02-13-07, 04:30 PM This is a weird suggestion. If you can get the Arms and equipment Guide, it has a bunch of neat "mount" stuff, and new mounts.

My favorite is the "Axebeak." What is really neat is they are a two legged, ostrich like bird that carries weight like a quadruped and have a run speed modifier of 5x, instead of the standard 4. And a move of 65. That is a run speed of 325'/rd. Imagine the leg on that thing?

So nothing will ever catch them on foot, or from the air at this low level. And the AaEG has some neat "sidecar" like saddles that might be perfect for goblins.
Melvin the Mediocre
02-13-07, 04:42 PM This is a weird suggestion. If you can get the Arms and equipment Guide, it has a bunch of neat "mount" stuff, and new mounts.

My favorite is the "Axebeak." What is really neat is they are a two legged, ostrich like bird that carries weight like a quadruped and have a run speed modifier of 5x, instead of the standard 4. And a move of 65. That is a run speed of 325'/rd. Imagine the leg on that thing?

So nothing will ever catch them on foot, or from the air at this low level. And the AaEG has some neat "sidecar" like saddles that might be perfect for goblins.

The axebeak is back????
That is so sweet, I thought 2nd edition extincted it like all the magons.
http://www.askaninja.com/node/1244?page=1
Elderich
02-13-07, 04:53 PM The axebeak is back????
That is so sweet, I thought 2nd edition extincted it like all the magons.
http://www.askaninja.com/node/1244?page=1It is 3.0. Can you get your hands on it?
Alex_
02-13-07, 07:51 PM My favorite is the "Axebeak." What is really neat is they are a two legged, ostrich like bird that carries weight like a quadruped and have a run speed modifier of 5x, instead of the standard 4. And a move of 65. That is a run speed of 325'/rd. Imagine the leg on that thing?

You mean "Chocobos" right?
dunkeykong
02-14-07, 02:52 AM Axe beak cant compare to the saddles for gray renders and ogres!

Imagine coming up behind an ogre about to attack, when a damn goblins pops you in the face with a crossbow!
iKitten
02-15-07, 07:48 AM Giant Dire Snowshoe Rabbits. Use a Dire Weasel, remove the Attach and Blood Drain abilities, and give it a racial bonus to Hiding in snow (I'd say plus +4) along with ranks in Jump.

And possibly this:
Improved Flee (Ex) - As a full round action, a creature may attempt to hide even while being observed, as if it had the Hide in Plain Sight class feature, provided it is adjacent to a suitable medium. The medium is suitable if it provides at least a 50% concealment bonus yet can be moved through by the creature at at least a reduced speed (such as murky water, a pile of hay, a snowbank, ecetera).

The goblins wrap themselves in cloaks of white fur and hide saddled on their mounts. To the untrained eye, they appear to be little more than a snowbank. When travelers pass though a corridor of such banks, the trap is sprung and they are surrounded. At least, that's the plan.
mightyix
02-15-07, 01:39 PM How fast do the Talenta halfling dinosaur mounts move? It might be worth saying that this is a 'winterized' breed of dinosaur that has feathers or primitive fur, or is warm blooded or something.
Melvin the Mediocre
02-15-07, 04:28 PM How fast do the Talenta halfling dinosaur mounts move? It might be worth saying that this is a 'winterized' breed of dinosaur that has feathers or primitive fur, or is warm blooded or something.

Actually most modern scientist thng that dinosurs either were warm blooded, or at least were somewhere between warm blooded and cold blooded.
http://www.amonline.net.au/palaeontology/faqs/dinosaur.htm
in fact, there have been finds of massive herds of dead dino's that are believed to have suffocated in snow banks generated by massive blizzards. I found this stuff out when I was trying to figure out if the Talenta halflings could raid Karnath in the winter.
UnderworldLord
02-15-07, 07:12 PM Magrebred giant Snowshoe rabbits. Medium size. I like it. I want one for my swiftwing shifter ninja now.
Glenn D.
02-25-07, 12:14 AM This is a weird suggestion. If you can get the Arms and equipment Guide, it has a bunch of neat "mount" stuff, and new mounts.

My favorite is the "Axebeak." What is really neat is they are a two legged, ostrich like bird that carries weight like a quadruped and have a run speed modifier of 5x, instead of the standard 4. And a move of 65. That is a run speed of 325'/rd. Imagine the leg on that thing?

So nothing will ever catch them on foot, or from the air at this low level. And the AaEG has some neat "sidecar" like saddles that might be perfect for goblins.

"Aye, we bred'em fer the drumsticks".

"How do they taste?"

"I dinnae ken, we never catched one".

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Melvin the Mediocre 02-07-07, 03:39 PM	I want to involve my players in a drawn out chase / missile fire fight in the snow, but I can't decide on the enemies mounts. They are only level 2, so nothing super tough. I was thinking of goblins on wolves, but I'm afraid the characters will be on horse and quickly overtake the little gobs. Is there a better mount to use? Or are the any obscure rules I can pull out of my butt to claim the horses are more hindered than the wolves in the snow? Otherwise I'll just have to rely on restricted visibility which will also hamper the arrow plinking, spell weaving, javelin hurling point of this exercise.
Cifer 02-07-07, 03:49 PM	What about strangely fast wolves? Maybe their ancestors strayed too far into a zone of magical radiation generated by the war, thus mutating their offspring. A goblin could certainly tell them about this phenomenon and its whereabouts if caught, and there might still be some items for the PCs to collect there - and of course some more dangerous beasts...
SquirrelMortis 02-07-07, 04:25 PM	Or just have the goblins cut a deal with House Vadalis. The Magebred template would help.
goblin_pride 02-07-07, 04:59 PM	I was thinking of goblins on wolves, but I'm afraid the characters will be on horse and quickly overtake the little gobs. Is there a better mount to use? Or are the any obscure rules I can pull out of my butt to claim the horses are more hindered than the wolves in the snow? Horses are fine, even if the players have light horses, odds are that an armored warrior will give the horse a medium load. Goblins on wolves also won't likely run across wide open country, rather they'll prob'ly use the terrain to their best advantage, shortening the range to point blank before breaking into the open to fire back at their pursuers. If speed is still a problem, I use the magebred template for the wolves of the Taarka'khesh to represent the thousands of years of breeding. A light horse is carrying a medium load at 151, which is pretty much the character, armor and a couple weapons. If the PCs are carrying anything resembling supplies for a long overland journey, their horses will be encumbered. Heavy horses have a base speed of 50 so they match a wolf straight from the monster manual.
Warforged Goblin 02-07-07, 06:10 PM	If you're dead set on goblins on wolves, give the mounts the Run feat. Honestly, IMO, I'd use snow goblins (from Frostburn) on the wolves with the leader riding a worg. Of course, making them all 2nd level druids with the Snowrunner feat, also from Frostburn, could work also.
UnderworldLord 02-07-07, 06:55 PM	Goblinoids have a nation now. Why would it be hard to imagine them getting magebred wolves? Or, if druids are involved, Horrid animals could prove fun. I'd have to go look at the template on that one though... Maybe that lead rider could have a horrid wolf, and the others have magebreds? If they were part of the Children of Winter, they might have vermin mounts as well.
goblin_pride 02-07-07, 11:43 PM	Goblinoids have a nation now. They always have had. It's a shame that no one told the Cyrans, we could've avoided an awful lot of bloodshed.
UnderworldLord 02-07-07, 11:50 PM	I meant now being the creation of Eberron as a campaign. its the first time they've become a potential political power. Them and monsters as a nation in general. Not to mention the Inspired...
Cabral 02-08-07, 12:54 AM	I want to involve my players in a drawn out chase / missile fire fight in the snow, but I can't decide on the enemies mounts. They are only level 2, so nothing super tough. I was thinking of goblins on wolves, but I'm afraid the characters will be on horse and quickly overtake the little gobs. Boots of the Winterlands (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm#bootsoftheWinterlands) and Snow (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/weather.htm#snow). Take boots of the winterlands, strip them down to just their walk on snow function and make them wolf only. You're probably looking at about 900 gp or so items. (So it should be okay if the players get a few and sell them as loot) The horses will be moving at half pace from the snow, so at best, 30 ft speed versus the wolves' full 50 ft speed. This gives the gobbers speed and maneveurabilty over the horses. That will let you set the pace of the fight. :D
Kreistor2 02-08-07, 01:13 PM	Dog sled.
goblin_pride 02-08-07, 02:29 PM	Dog sled. For the PCs or the goblins? For the goblins it would seem a bit silly since they're small enough to ride the dogs themselves and squeeze a bit more speed and manueverability that way.
Kreistor2 02-08-07, 03:17 PM	The advantage of a dog sled is that it needs only one driver. You can have two or three goblins shooting from it while the other drives. It's also not hard to stop or slow (kill a dog), so you can put in three or four and make it look harder than it really is.
dunkeykong 02-09-07, 10:24 PM	well, from a scientific standpoint, wolves are made to traverse snow without sinking in, therefore allowing to move alot quicker that horses who would be atleast knee deep and have their speed reduced by half. Wolves paws are splayed out and create a snowshoe effect as opposed to horses whos hooves are very narrow.
dunkeykong 02-09-07, 10:29 PM	well, from a scientific standpoint, wolves are made to traverse snow without sinking in, therefore allowing to move alot quicker that horses who would be atleast knee deep and have their speed reduced by half. Wolves paws are splayed out and create a snowshoe effect as opposed to horses whos hooves are very narrow. and yes, im a boyscout and im training to work for fish and game. so thats how I know.
Lujayne34 02-10-07, 06:28 PM	Tauntauns maybe? :P :) Seriously tho. There was an adventure that was included on the player disk as part of the PHB 3.0 That involved a wintry area and the hobgoblins were riding some sort of snow creature that looked a lot like tauntauns. I will have to see if I still have the adventure and the stats/name for the creatures
Subtle Knife 02-10-07, 07:10 PM	My artificer is waiting to create a Smilodon Effigy - also good in a fight! SK
dunkeykong 02-10-07, 11:15 PM	Tauntauns maybe? :P :) haha, seriously. Can i get the 3.5 stats for those?
Melvin the Mediocre 02-13-07, 04:11 PM	and yes, im a boyscout and im training to work for fish and game. so thats how I know. I know that is true, and that is what first led me to wolves carrying goblins as the opposition. However, there are no rules to support it, and I don't want the players to feel like I have arbitrarily stacked things against them. A dogsled might be worth looking at. Where are rules for a sled?
goblin_pride 02-13-07, 04:14 PM	A dogsled might be worth looking at. Where are rules for a sled? The weight of the sled would be divided among the animals pulling it to determine max load and speed, assuming you followed a logical course of thinking.
Elderich 02-13-07, 04:30 PM	This is a weird suggestion. If you can get the Arms and equipment Guide, it has a bunch of neat "mount" stuff, and new mounts. My favorite is the "Axebeak." What is really neat is they are a two legged, ostrich like bird that carries weight like a quadruped and have a run speed modifier of 5x, instead of the standard 4. And a move of 65. That is a run speed of 325'/rd. Imagine the leg on that thing? So nothing will ever catch them on foot, or from the air at this low level. And the AaEG has some neat "sidecar" like saddles that might be perfect for goblins.
Melvin the Mediocre 02-13-07, 04:42 PM	This is a weird suggestion. If you can get the Arms and equipment Guide, it has a bunch of neat "mount" stuff, and new mounts. My favorite is the "Axebeak." What is really neat is they are a two legged, ostrich like bird that carries weight like a quadruped and have a run speed modifier of 5x, instead of the standard 4. And a move of 65. That is a run speed of 325'/rd. Imagine the leg on that thing? So nothing will ever catch them on foot, or from the air at this low level. And the AaEG has some neat "sidecar" like saddles that might be perfect for goblins. The axebeak is back???? That is so sweet, I thought 2nd edition extincted it like all the magons. http://www.askaninja.com/node/1244?page=1
Elderich 02-13-07, 04:53 PM	The axebeak is back???? That is so sweet, I thought 2nd edition extincted it like all the magons. http://www.askaninja.com/node/1244?page=1It is 3.0. Can you get your hands on it?
Alex_ 02-13-07, 07:51 PM	My favorite is the "Axebeak." What is really neat is they are a two legged, ostrich like bird that carries weight like a quadruped and have a run speed modifier of 5x, instead of the standard 4. And a move of 65. That is a run speed of 325'/rd. Imagine the leg on that thing? You mean "Chocobos" right?
dunkeykong 02-14-07, 02:52 AM	Axe beak cant compare to the saddles for gray renders and ogres! Imagine coming up behind an ogre about to attack, when a damn goblins pops you in the face with a crossbow!
iKitten 02-15-07, 07:48 AM	Giant Dire Snowshoe Rabbits. Use a Dire Weasel, remove the Attach and Blood Drain abilities, and give it a racial bonus to Hiding in snow (I'd say plus +4) along with ranks in Jump. And possibly this: Improved Flee (Ex) - As a full round action, a creature may attempt to hide even while being observed, as if it had the Hide in Plain Sight class feature, provided it is adjacent to a suitable medium. The medium is suitable if it provides at least a 50% concealment bonus yet can be moved through by the creature at at least a reduced speed (such as murky water, a pile of hay, a snowbank, ecetera). The goblins wrap themselves in cloaks of white fur and hide saddled on their mounts. To the untrained eye, they appear to be little more than a snowbank. When travelers pass though a corridor of such banks, the trap is sprung and they are surrounded. At least, that's the plan.
mightyix 02-15-07, 01:39 PM	How fast do the Talenta halfling dinosaur mounts move? It might be worth saying that this is a 'winterized' breed of dinosaur that has feathers or primitive fur, or is warm blooded or something.
Melvin the Mediocre 02-15-07, 04:28 PM	How fast do the Talenta halfling dinosaur mounts move? It might be worth saying that this is a 'winterized' breed of dinosaur that has feathers or primitive fur, or is warm blooded or something. Actually most modern scientist thng that dinosurs either were warm blooded, or at least were somewhere between warm blooded and cold blooded. http://www.amonline.net.au/palaeontology/faqs/dinosaur.htm in fact, there have been finds of massive herds of dead dino's that are believed to have suffocated in snow banks generated by massive blizzards. I found this stuff out when I was trying to figure out if the Talenta halflings could raid Karnath in the winter.
UnderworldLord 02-15-07, 07:12 PM	Magrebred giant Snowshoe rabbits. Medium size. I like it. I want one for my swiftwing shifter ninja now.
Glenn D. 02-25-07, 12:14 AM	This is a weird suggestion. If you can get the Arms and equipment Guide, it has a bunch of neat "mount" stuff, and new mounts. My favorite is the "Axebeak." What is really neat is they are a two legged, ostrich like bird that carries weight like a quadruped and have a run speed modifier of 5x, instead of the standard 4. And a move of 65. That is a run speed of 325'/rd. Imagine the leg on that thing? So nothing will ever catch them on foot, or from the air at this low level. And the AaEG has some neat "sidecar" like saddles that might be perfect for goblins. "Aye, we bred'em fer the drumsticks". "How do they taste?" "I dinnae ken, we never catched one".