Alternative Mounts [Archive] - Wizards Community

Alternative Mounts [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
aramilcaelvan
12-16-06, 07:52 PM My players have requested alternative mounts be made available to them. They're tired of having to ride horses around everywhere, and the elves and dwarves of the party especially want racial mounts. Particularly, I've had wolves and rams asked for. I've skimmed through my DMG, and I can't find any rules for such things. Are there, or do I just have to play it by the second?
Alcalientre
12-16-06, 09:07 PM I'm sure there are rules for it somewhere, but I don't know them.
Anyway, I'd just say that because the animals are racial mounts, they're exactly like horses. Not in stats, but in how common they are in racial lands, how much they cost, and how they are trained.
Gahread
12-16-06, 09:17 PM Arms & Equipment Guide
Kradlo
12-16-06, 11:32 PM There used to be some pretty decent Dwarves mounted on rams from Ral Partha. I think they were sculpted by Bob Olley. Chronopia also had some. Grenadier had some Dwarves mounted on grizzly bears, and Reaper makes those as well now. Grenadier even had a Dwarf riding a giant cave bat.

As for Elves, you see them riding horses, or sometimes giant eagles (Grenadier and Games Workshop). Chronopia had Elves riding land dragons (basically dinosaurs), and GW has an Elf riding a full-sized dragon.

Riding wolves is a goblin schtick, apparently.
Wulfgar
12-17-06, 09:17 AM Riding wolves is a goblin schtick, apparently.

I think ELFQUEST'S Wolfrider elves would take issue with that. :D

Ral Partha used to produce some awesom Wolfrider minis, which still show up on eBay from time to time.

Big cats (Lions, Tigers, Sabre-Tooths) would be pretty cool, as well.
pres_man
12-17-06, 10:15 AM I had elves in my campaign ride "war-deer" (specially breed large sized deer), I just use the light warhorse stats for them. There are always dire animals that might work. Also you can create a group of advanced normal wolves that are large using the rules for monster advancement in the MM. Rams? Maybe use bison stats? Of course most of these would not be available until the party is a reasonable level.

If the problem is that eventually the mounts get too squishy (one fireball kills all of the party's mounts). Then feel free to use my houserules for animal advancement. I made it up because 1)I wanted my players to use the handle animal skill more and 2)I rather them advance their animals instead of always trading up.
Animals can be improved using the handle animal skill.
To improve (advance) an animal it requires:
1. Handle animal check DC 20 + (New HD)
2. Cost of 100 gp x (New HD), if a person trains the animal themselves the costs is 1/2 as much.
3. Three weeks of training time, with at least two hours a day dedicated to training, for non-feat obtaining HD. If the increase in HD would allow a feat then it takes four weeks.

Improved animals are difficult to handle and do not respond to handlers/riders who do not have at least 2 more HD than the animal. Druids and Rangers can use this to improve their companions but the difficulty to control still applies.

If in the animal entry, an increase in HD is associated with a larger size, then the animal enlarges as it is advanced. This can be used on animals that would not normally be allowed to advance in the MM. An animal with a fractional HD can be advanced to a full HD, just use the above rules for 1 HD (note it will only take 3 weeks to train, since the animal should already have a feat).

An animal can only be improved by one hit die at a time.
aramilcaelvan
12-17-06, 11:34 AM Woah, not bad mount advancement rules, I can defenetly say those will end up in my campaign. Besides that, I'm just going to use standard horse stats for the other mounts. Thanks everyone.
SunTzuWarmaster
12-17-06, 12:37 PM Flying mounts for the win. Griffon, Pegasus, Hippogriff, small dragons, giant eagle, arrowhawk.

alternate mounts, anything that starts with the word "dire" and looks ridable. Make sure that the players have to a) find one and b) tame it first ;)

also, take a look at the non-standard mounts, depending on area. Bear, bison, monitor lizard. Forgotten realms has a kind of war-trained lizard that can walk on ceilings and walls.

This is DnD, ride a monster.
Araxiss
12-17-06, 02:06 PM Would a surface rothe make a suitable choice for a paladins mount?
savant_warlord13
12-17-06, 05:09 PM There are some in races of stone, and probably races of the wild as well.
Lady Maedhros
12-17-06, 06:13 PM Axebeaks from the A&E are wicked cool, if you can find the stats.

Just a realism note (I know, no place in D&D, but in case anyone cares) - carnivores tend to have loose skin and make bad mounts. If you have a dog or a cat, try this - put your hands on its flanks and sort of roll toward and away from their spine, and watch as the flesh moves with your hands (your dog will probably appreciate this, your cat might claw your face off). You can't do that on a horse, it's all anchored to the bones. A saddle would just roll off the side of a tiger or wolf, but it stays on an ungulate.

Anyway, I know you've solved your issue, but in case you're still curious, IMC rams are the standard mount in most of the northern world, horses are found in the south. I used the Temple of Horrors dire ram and removed their Dire template to get the stats (it's online somewhere as a PDF, if you want to google it).
clannagh
12-17-06, 07:21 PM There are some in races of stone, and probably races of the wild as well.

Dire Eagles from Races of Stone absolutely rock as mounts. Flying mount with 10' reach and fly by attack ? Wooot !!
savant_warlord13
12-17-06, 07:42 PM Axebeaks from the A&E are wicked cool, if you can find the stats.

Just a realism note (I know, no place in D&D, but in case anyone cares) - carnivores tend to have loose skin and make bad mounts. If you have a dog or a cat, try this - put your hands on its flanks and sort of roll toward and away from their spine, and watch as the flesh moves with your hands (your dog will probably appreciate this, your cat might claw your face off). You can't do that on a horse, it's all anchored to the bones. A saddle would just roll off the side of a tiger or wolf, but it stays on an ungulate.

Anyway, I know you've solved your issue, but in case you're still curious, IMC rams are the standard mount in most of the northern world, horses are found in the south. I used the Temple of Horrors dire ram and removed their Dire template to get the stats (it's online somewhere as a PDF, if you want to google it).
In the wild a dog or cat's skin would be much tighter (although cats would still be somewhat loose).
darthchicken37
12-17-06, 09:13 PM i played a bugbear who rode on a rhino, i got it from arms and eguipment guide.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
aramilcaelvan 12-16-06, 07:52 PM	My players have requested alternative mounts be made available to them. They're tired of having to ride horses around everywhere, and the elves and dwarves of the party especially want racial mounts. Particularly, I've had wolves and rams asked for. I've skimmed through my DMG, and I can't find any rules for such things. Are there, or do I just have to play it by the second?
Alcalientre 12-16-06, 09:07 PM	I'm sure there are rules for it somewhere, but I don't know them. Anyway, I'd just say that because the animals are racial mounts, they're exactly like horses. Not in stats, but in how common they are in racial lands, how much they cost, and how they are trained.
Gahread 12-16-06, 09:17 PM	Arms & Equipment Guide
Kradlo 12-16-06, 11:32 PM	There used to be some pretty decent Dwarves mounted on rams from Ral Partha. I think they were sculpted by Bob Olley. Chronopia also had some. Grenadier had some Dwarves mounted on grizzly bears, and Reaper makes those as well now. Grenadier even had a Dwarf riding a giant cave bat. As for Elves, you see them riding horses, or sometimes giant eagles (Grenadier and Games Workshop). Chronopia had Elves riding land dragons (basically dinosaurs), and GW has an Elf riding a full-sized dragon. Riding wolves is a goblin schtick, apparently.
Wulfgar 12-17-06, 09:17 AM	Riding wolves is a goblin schtick, apparently. I think ELFQUEST'S Wolfrider elves would take issue with that. :D Ral Partha used to produce some awesom Wolfrider minis, which still show up on eBay from time to time. Big cats (Lions, Tigers, Sabre-Tooths) would be pretty cool, as well.
pres_man 12-17-06, 10:15 AM	I had elves in my campaign ride "war-deer" (specially breed large sized deer), I just use the light warhorse stats for them. There are always dire animals that might work. Also you can create a group of advanced normal wolves that are large using the rules for monster advancement in the MM. Rams? Maybe use bison stats? Of course most of these would not be available until the party is a reasonable level. If the problem is that eventually the mounts get too squishy (one fireball kills all of the party's mounts). Then feel free to use my houserules for animal advancement. I made it up because 1)I wanted my players to use the handle animal skill more and 2)I rather them advance their animals instead of always trading up. Animals can be improved using the handle animal skill. To improve (advance) an animal it requires: 1. Handle animal check DC 20 + (New HD) 2. Cost of 100 gp x (New HD), if a person trains the animal themselves the costs is 1/2 as much. 3. Three weeks of training time, with at least two hours a day dedicated to training, for non-feat obtaining HD. If the increase in HD would allow a feat then it takes four weeks. Improved animals are difficult to handle and do not respond to handlers/riders who do not have at least 2 more HD than the animal. Druids and Rangers can use this to improve their companions but the difficulty to control still applies. If in the animal entry, an increase in HD is associated with a larger size, then the animal enlarges as it is advanced. This can be used on animals that would not normally be allowed to advance in the MM. An animal with a fractional HD can be advanced to a full HD, just use the above rules for 1 HD (note it will only take 3 weeks to train, since the animal should already have a feat). An animal can only be improved by one hit die at a time.
aramilcaelvan 12-17-06, 11:34 AM	Woah, not bad mount advancement rules, I can defenetly say those will end up in my campaign. Besides that, I'm just going to use standard horse stats for the other mounts. Thanks everyone.
SunTzuWarmaster 12-17-06, 12:37 PM	Flying mounts for the win. Griffon, Pegasus, Hippogriff, small dragons, giant eagle, arrowhawk. alternate mounts, anything that starts with the word "dire" and looks ridable. Make sure that the players have to a) find one and b) tame it first ;) also, take a look at the non-standard mounts, depending on area. Bear, bison, monitor lizard. Forgotten realms has a kind of war-trained lizard that can walk on ceilings and walls. This is DnD, ride a monster.
Araxiss 12-17-06, 02:06 PM	Would a surface rothe make a suitable choice for a paladins mount?
savant_warlord13 12-17-06, 05:09 PM	There are some in races of stone, and probably races of the wild as well.
Lady Maedhros 12-17-06, 06:13 PM	Axebeaks from the A&E are wicked cool, if you can find the stats. Just a realism note (I know, no place in D&D, but in case anyone cares) - carnivores tend to have loose skin and make bad mounts. If you have a dog or a cat, try this - put your hands on its flanks and sort of roll toward and away from their spine, and watch as the flesh moves with your hands (your dog will probably appreciate this, your cat might claw your face off). You can't do that on a horse, it's all anchored to the bones. A saddle would just roll off the side of a tiger or wolf, but it stays on an ungulate. Anyway, I know you've solved your issue, but in case you're still curious, IMC rams are the standard mount in most of the northern world, horses are found in the south. I used the Temple of Horrors dire ram and removed their Dire template to get the stats (it's online somewhere as a PDF, if you want to google it).
clannagh 12-17-06, 07:21 PM	There are some in races of stone, and probably races of the wild as well. Dire Eagles from Races of Stone absolutely rock as mounts. Flying mount with 10' reach and fly by attack ? Wooot !!
savant_warlord13 12-17-06, 07:42 PM	Axebeaks from the A&E are wicked cool, if you can find the stats. Just a realism note (I know, no place in D&D, but in case anyone cares) - carnivores tend to have loose skin and make bad mounts. If you have a dog or a cat, try this - put your hands on its flanks and sort of roll toward and away from their spine, and watch as the flesh moves with your hands (your dog will probably appreciate this, your cat might claw your face off). You can't do that on a horse, it's all anchored to the bones. A saddle would just roll off the side of a tiger or wolf, but it stays on an ungulate. Anyway, I know you've solved your issue, but in case you're still curious, IMC rams are the standard mount in most of the northern world, horses are found in the south. I used the Temple of Horrors dire ram and removed their Dire template to get the stats (it's online somewhere as a PDF, if you want to google it). In the wild a dog or cat's skin would be much tighter (although cats would still be somewhat loose).
darthchicken37 12-17-06, 09:13 PM	i played a bugbear who rode on a rhino, i got it from arms and eguipment guide.