X, dire X, and legendary X

[Somensjev]

ok, so, after looking over this (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/tiger.htm), this (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/direTiger.htm), and this (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/epic/monsters/legendaryAnimal.htm) i was wondering if there's any particular formula that was used to make the original creature into the other two types (there's also a legendary bear, but that's the only two in the SRD), or if they just winged it?

thanks for any and all answers

[eggynack]

My understanding is that these things are of the winging it variety, especially because I couldn't possibly come up with a formula that accounts for dire tortoises.

[Somensjev]

My understanding is that these things are of the winging it variety, especially because I couldn't possibly come up with a formula that accounts for dire tortoises.

there goes my plans of using their formula to make a legendary whale :smallannoyed:

[hamishspence]

There's a bunch of other Legendary animals in MM2.

I think they're always the same size as the regular animal.

[Saidoro]

If you ask around on the homebrew forum you could probably find someone willing to put one together, they don't look like particularly complicated monsters. (Says someone who knows next to nothing about monster design.)

[Slipperychicken]

Would the Monster of Legend template help our purposes?

[Chronos]

The Monster of Legend template comes from the same source as the Legendary Animals, and clearly does not do the same thing. The lion that Androcles pulled the splinter out of was a Legendary Lion; King Kong is a Monster of Legend.

[Urpriest]

Legendary Whale would be pointless: Legendary Animals exist to give 3.0 Druids animal companions that are powerful but can still fit into dungeons.

Monster of Legend Whale would be a different matter altogether, but at that point you might be more interested in the Leviathan (MMII) or something else sapient-ish.

[hamishspence]

King Kong is a Monster of Legend.

Monsters of Legend tend to have special powers rather than great size. Like fire-breathing.

A Behemoth Gorilla would fit Kong better- though it's an Outsider rather than an animal, it is low in INT and has nothing in the way of magical powers beside Spell Resistance.

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/epic/monsters/behemoth.htm#behemothGorilla


Legendary Whale would be pointless: Legendary Animals exist to give 3.0 Druids animal companions that are powerful but can still fit into dungeons.

Legendary Shark is Huge.

[Chronos]

Oh, right, 3.0 animal companions used different rules, didn't they? IIRC, they were explicitly limited by nothing but HD. So they didn't need to say in the monster entry how to use them for animal companions, because it was already settled.

[Urpriest]

Legendary Shark is Huge.

Aquatic dungeons are pretty spacious. :smallwink:

[Agent 451]

Necromancy Games published a dire template in the Tome of Horrors (http://web.archive.org/web/20110823023517/http://necromancergames.com/pdf/ToHDire.pdf).