Van Richten's Monster Hunter's.pdf - Askadesign.com

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ral animal. Werebears have a low AC
largely because they're such powerful,
thick-skinned animals. However, a
wererat's AC derives mainly from its
quick, darting movements, which allow
it to evade a blow. Since badgers are
small, low to the ground, and have a
thick, furry hide, an AC of 5 seems
about right for our werebadger.
Don't forget that the Armor Class
may alter with the lycanthrope's own
change of form. A hybrid's AC should
lie somewhere between that of the
animal form and AC 10 (since armor
owned by a werebeast would have to
be donned after the change). Consider
how much of the animal form's natural
AC would remain with a hybrid. Our
werebadger would certainly lose some
of its advantages-namely, being
low-slung and the thickness of hide in
hybrid aspect-so AC 7 seems about
right.
Of course, attribute scores and
armor dictate the AC of the human
form.
Most other attributes derive from the
nature of the phenotype. Badgers tend
to live alone, unless it's a mother with
young. While they prefer to avoid con-
frontations with creatures larger than
themselves, they are fierce fighters if
cornered or protecting young. Badgers
are not solely predators, but omni-
vores. Our werejaguar might have
treasure class M, Q, or V, if any. While
normal badgers are neutral in align-
ment, a werebadger (especially in
Ravenloft) would have an alignment of
chaotic evil, Number appearing would
normally be 1. Badgers are aggressive
fighters when provoked, so a Morale of
Elite (14) is appropriate.
Specit11 Abilities
Certain types of lycanthropes, by
virtue of their phenotype, gain some
special capabilities. For example,
werefoxes have an ability to charm
victims. A werebeast's special skill
might be magical or simply a physical
3
ability. It might be arbitrary or related
in some way to the phenotype. DMs
have a free hand in this area, giving
them the chance to create unique (and
PC-surprising) lycanthropes.
Our werebadger is a skilled digger
and, as mentioned, can be quite
ferocious when angered. Extrapolating
from this, werebadgers are likely to do
more damage with their claws than
with their teeth, and they also may go
berserk in combat.
Yulnembilifies
Each werebeast has at least one
nonmagical vulnerability, Most, but not
all, creatures of a particular phenotype
share the same vulnerability
(werewolves fear silver, for example).
DMs should first decide upon a basic
vulnerability for a new phenotype, and
then decide whether the individual
creature(s) in question conforms to the
generic weakness. The vulnerability
might be something traditional
(wolfsbane, silver, etc.), or it might be
symbolically related to the nature of
the phenotype.
As noted elsewhere in this text, the
oil of poppy seeds (and to a lesser
extent, the seeds themselves) are
poisonous to werebadgers.
Sociefy
Social behavior should relate to the
characteristics of the natural animal. If
the animal is pack-oriented, the
lycanthrope will be social. If it is
aggressively territorial, so is the
lycanthrope, These creatures are
intelligent, however, so they can
suppress their natural tendencies if
necessary. The propensities will
remain, however, even if they're not
obvious, and they will tend to color the
creatures' philosophies and behaviors.
Badgers are often solitary. Hence,
the werebadger might be a lone
adventurer or a hermit living on the
outskirts of a settlement.