| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| sleyvas |
Posted - 04 Mar 2019 : 15:35:52
We've seen it on anime, and sometimes it proves interesting. What am I talking about? Mixing the parts of different creatures to make something we find interesting to see, but not game breaking. What kinds of things am I talking about?
A mini-griffon that mixes DIFFERENT cat and bird parts and is the size of a housepet. Tressym which are a mix of bird and cat. The al-mi'raj, Winged snakes, Couatl, etc...
What are some idea that pop in YOUR head for something that could prove interesting in some way. For instance, I have this picture of a antlered fox in my head (I'm calling it a foxibou). Thinking something with tusks like an elephant or a horn like a rhino might be interesting as well. Obviously, things with wings are also interesting. Things that mix plant and animal together, or animal and butterfly, etc.. are also ideas. I'm interested in things that might make a decent medium/small/tiny familiar that's just "different" OR which might serve as a "different" type of mount. Anyway, just throwing this out to see what just tickles your funny bone or that you may have seen others do, but that isn't just outrageous looking. |
| 18 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 06 Mar 2019 : 22:04:32
quote:
Originally posted by Seethyr
quote:
Originally posted by TBeholder
Mixing random critters, aka "TSR creativity(TM)"? 
Even this random generator does more: http://chaoticshiny.com/monstergen.php
Some of the greatest monsters in the history of the game were made this way. I have the best memories of the owlbear from my very first game.
The owlbear was not a TSR creation. Some of the earliest D&D monsters were plastic toy monsters that Gary and the other early designers purchased for inspiration.
Mixed critters seems to be more of a generic fantasy thing, anyway. I think most of TSR's mixed critters were either those toys, or real world legends/myths. The 937,482.6 various types of undead, and the numerous "ooh, we discovered another color/mineral/weird material to use!" dragon variants are where TSR failed to shine. |
| Seethyr |
Posted - 06 Mar 2019 : 21:19:46
quote:
Originally posted by TBeholder
Mixing random critters, aka "TSR creativity(TM)"?
Even this random generator does more: http://chaoticshiny.com/monstergen.php
Some of the greatest monsters in the history of the game were made this way. I have the best memories of the owlbear from my very first game. |
| TBeholder |
Posted - 06 Mar 2019 : 21:09:43
Mixing random critters, aka "TSR creativity(TM)"?
Even this random generator does more: http://chaoticshiny.com/monstergen.php |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 06 Mar 2019 : 04:24:25
Something I'd like to see as a minor monster... Something like a dog or a panther, crossed with a dragon. A wingless quadruped about the size of a guard dog, but it's scaly, has a dragonlike head, and claws. Basically, shrink a dragon, remove the wings, and make it a guard dog-type critter.
(not actually a mashup, just give a dog or panther draconic features) |
| sleyvas |
Posted - 05 Mar 2019 : 23:07:19
quote:
Originally posted by Diffan
Watch any amount of episodes for Avatar: the Last Air Bender or The Legend of Korra and you can see a good mix of monster/animal combinations. Here is a great article on Buzzfeed for over 15 different hybrid animals from the show. My three personal favorites are the Eelhound (eel/greyhound mix, excellent and fast mounts that are just as fast in water), Rabaroo (rabit/kangaroo, just really cute!), and of course Sky Bison (because Appa is great!). Honorable mention goes to Naga, Korra's companion who's a Polar Bear dog.
OMG.... Sky Bisons…. part of why I was doing this was for "new" monsters for Anchorome that would kind of fit a "native American" feel. Thank you for that reminder. Appa was great and what a great addition to put in the realms.
Hmmm, and looking at the link... Boarcupine…. yeah, I'm digging it... I also like the imagery of that Dragonmoose and the elephant rat (I was literally trying to think of what to put a trunk on)… The platypus bear is an interesting variant of owlbear... I also like that sabretooth moose lion (could make a good simple sabretooth dire moose)
That Komodo rhino doesn't really match native American, but the imagery is definitely something I'd like to see somewhere. It could definitely fit in a dragonborn culture. |
| sleyvas |
Posted - 05 Mar 2019 : 22:23:18
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
I saw some artwork online somewhere that was a ginormous owl/tiger griffon combo.
There was also a 3rd party book I supported on Kickstarter called Atlas Animalia -- it took some common fantasy critters and made different versions of them for different regions/terrain types -- including aquatic variants, like the undersea chimera:
"The undersea chimera consists of the heads of a dolphin, angler fish, and eel, with the elongated boneless body and long, grasping tentacles of a giant squid."
Yeah, one of the minor things I absolutely loved in DMs Guild was someone's Owlcat as a variant of griffin. The imagery was exceptionally different, for basically the same basic creature concept. Even better was that he gave stats for different sizes of owlcat from mount sized to effectively familiar sized.
Its weird how sometimes the simple imagery can really stick with you on things. For instance the elves on Netflix's dragon prince have simple "goat-like" horns. That got me thinking about adding horns on other things just to make them look different. I particularly like the idea of spiraling horns like a kudu (but shorter, more tight in turning). Then, when I started thinking about other types of dragonborn, I started thinking "what if these spiraling horns aren't bone... what if they're wood". That got me thinking about dragonborn born of "fey" types of dragons.... ones with bark for scales, moss and mushrooms growing on them, teeth of sharpened wood, etc...
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| Diffan |
Posted - 05 Mar 2019 : 22:14:39
Watch any amount of episodes for Avatar: the Last Air Bender or The Legend of Korra and you can see a good mix of monster/animal combinations. Here is a great article on Buzzfeed for over 15 different hybrid animals from the show. My three personal favorites are the Eelhound (eel/greyhound mix, excellent and fast mounts that are just as fast in water), Rabaroo (rabit/kangaroo, just really cute!), and of course Sky Bison (because Appa is great!). Honorable mention goes to Naga, Korra's companion who's a Polar Bear dog. |
| ericlboyd |
Posted - 05 Mar 2019 : 20:34:23
quote:
Originally posted by sleyvas
quote:
Originally posted by ericlboyd
My son and I were discussing a hybrid of a tiger and a giant snake. The "stripes" are varying colored scales. It has the front and back claws of a tiger and a tiger head, but the sinewy scaled body of a snake. It can spit a paralyzing venom before closing with its prey. It can also constrict while raking its prey.
I like this concept, and it could have its own variants. A black panther variety, a leopard spotted variety... smaller variants resembling house cat sized.... It would fit in well in areas of jungle or areas where you find oriental types of dragons.
Yes, in some respects it would look like some Asian depictions of dragons. In the Realms, I can see them powerful predators in the Chult area. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 05 Mar 2019 : 20:21:33
I saw some artwork online somewhere that was a ginormous owl/tiger griffon combo.
There was also a 3rd party book I supported on Kickstarter called Atlas Animalia -- it took some common fantasy critters and made different versions of them for different regions/terrain types -- including aquatic variants, like the undersea chimera:
"The undersea chimera consists of the heads of a dolphin, angler fish, and eel, with the elongated boneless body and long, grasping tentacles of a giant squid." |
| sleyvas |
Posted - 05 Mar 2019 : 14:37:47
quote:
Originally posted by ericlboyd
My son and I were discussing a hybrid of a tiger and a giant snake. The "stripes" are varying colored scales. It has the front and back claws of a tiger and a tiger head, but the sinewy scaled body of a snake. It can spit a paralyzing venom before closing with its prey. It can also constrict while raking its prey.
I like this concept, and it could have its own variants. A black panther variety, a leopard spotted variety... smaller variants resembling house cat sized.... It would fit in well in areas of jungle or areas where you find oriental types of dragons. |
| sleyvas |
Posted - 05 Mar 2019 : 14:35:44
Another one that came to mind on my somewhere else yesterday would be a combination of traits we've seen in the Pegasus, the Hippogriff, and J.K. Rowling's Thestral. Basically, a horses head that has lips replaced by a beak, but whose mane is a tufted line of loads and loads of colorful feathers instead of hair, and these extend down to its feathered wings, across the top of its back, and down to its 4 "rat-like" tails that are covered in feathers as well so that you don't see the flesh of the tails. Instead of hooves, it would have 4 taloned legs, which enable it to land in high areas where it resides in mountains. It would be a colorful breed of horse-bird (I'm picturing some with black/whites/grays/browns, and others with reds/browns/blacks/yellows/oranges, and rarer blue/green/purple/yellow), with a penchant for enjoying eating nuts and apples. I'm picturing this as being a creature in northern Anchorome, and POSSIBLY an experiment at one time by the Aearee. |
| moonbeast |
Posted - 05 Mar 2019 : 05:30:52
I'd call it a Vargle! |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 05 Mar 2019 : 03:10:29
quote:
Originally posted by sleyvas
We've seen it on anime, and sometimes it proves interesting. What am I talking about? Mixing the parts of different creatures to make something we find interesting to see, but not game breaking. What kinds of things am I talking about?
A mini-griffon that mixes DIFFERENT cat and bird parts and is the size of a housepet.
I used that idea in one of my Hooks, lo these many moons ago. I originally called them "grifflings" because I couldn't think of anything better, but then I went back and dubbed them "falcats," following the naming scheme of other duhlarkin.
Another mixed critter... Transformers: Beast Wars was, in my opinion, a really bad idea and a low point for the franchise. My then-roommate, CallMeGene, is a Transformers freak and loved it. So I saw some bits of the show, and a lot of the toys... Including the Lawful Clueless paladin-type, Silverbolt, a wolf/eagle mashup. He was mostly wolf, but the front legs were the eagle's legs, and he had the wings.
I wish I could come up with a good name for that particular mix!
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| Seethyr |
Posted - 04 Mar 2019 : 21:48:59
Giant octopi go great with a lot of other animals. Look up Lusca from Bahamaian mythology - sometimes depicted as a shark and octopus (sharktopus!!!) or a dragon/octopus.
It’s also fun to mix the froghemoth with just about anything - I made one once that had a tigers head. My players loved it until it ate half of them. |
| Varl |
Posted - 04 Mar 2019 : 17:06:07
I once decided to look into mixed mutants online, and some of the pics I found were....interesting to say the least. Here's a list of some of them I found:
The Allirrot- A parrot body with an small alligator head.
Crabadillo- Body of an armadillo and 8 legs of a crab.
Crocofrog- Body of a small green tree frog with a miniature crocodile head.
Granine- Body of a Labrador retriever with the head of a griffon.
Quarterhorse (my favorite)- Basically, a two-legged horse. Think ostrich with a horse head and legs. I even have a gif of it running. lol The perfect mount for gnomes and halflings.
Panthagator- Body of an alligator and head of a black panther. Imagine it's speed and agility!
Snapping Turtbull- Body of a pit bull and head of a snapping turtle.
I have a few others, but those are quite ridiculous such as a shark with a spider's face. Every time I see I laugh. |
| Zeromaru X |
Posted - 04 Mar 2019 : 16:58:12
You should check Digimon or Pokémon. You can get a lot of crazy animals from there. Personally, I like the concept of the Deva Digimon. There are a winged tiger, a rat spider, and a sheep centaur, among other weird things.
https://wikimon.net/Deva |
| ericlboyd |
Posted - 04 Mar 2019 : 16:46:24
My son and I were discussing a hybrid of a tiger and a giant snake. The "stripes" are varying colored scales. It has the front and back claws of a tiger and a tiger head, but the sinewy scaled body of a snake. It can spit a paralyzing venom before closing with its prey. It can also constrict while raking its prey. |
| moonbeast |
Posted - 04 Mar 2019 : 16:40:03
I once saw an illustration of a winged owlbear on Pathfinder…. somewhere. |
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