Can A halfling and a leopard ride a dire eagle?

[leif.nyland]

I just made a halfling character that owns a dire eagle and a leopard.I was wondering if the eagle could carry both the leopard and the halfling?

[Inevitability]

What book is this dire eagle from? More importantly, what are its strength score and size category?

[Gruftzwerg]

IIRC Dire Eagles are medium size, while your leopard is also medium and your halfling is small. Your halfling would be small enough to ride it (if it has enough loading capacity and still be able to fly due to Str score). The leopard is to big to begin with.. no, won't work.

[Inevitability]

IIRC Dire Eagles are medium size, while your leopard is also medium and your halfling is small. Your halfling would be small enough to ride it (if it has enough loading capacity and still be able to fly due to Str score). The leopard is to big to begin with.. no, won't work.

Fairly sure you're thinking of the dire hawk.

[weckar]

The eagle is at the very least large (It's an advanced druid companion)

[Andezzar]

The eagle is at the very least large (It's an advanced druid companion)You may be under the erroneous assumption that animal companion advancements change the size of a creature. This is not the case. This type of improvement only changes whatever is in the description of the animal companion class feature. A size change is not in there. Whether normal advancements from the description of the base creature grant size increases through additional HD is irrelevant.

In conclusion unless the base animal is large or bigger, the animal companion is not large or bigger either.

[weckar]

I'm not. The mention of it being an advanced druid companion was merely to point out where I learned this fact.

[Darrin]

The Dire Eagle is from Races of Stone (p. 186). It's a large-sized 5HD animal that can be taken as an animal companion by a 4th level druid. You can train them as a mount.

By RAW... the dire eagle can take up to 399 lbs as a light load. Leopards weigh about 120 lbs, so... it looks like you could have the Halfling mount the leopard as a rider, and then have the leopard mount the dire eagle. You'd need an exotic saddle and the leopard would need some way to make Ride checks to control the dire eagle. Share Soulmeld + Riding Bracers might work. Or cast awaken on the leopard.

The other method would be to have the halfling ride the dire eagle, and then have the dire eagle grapple the leopard (carrying in its talons). The dire eagle could then move as a standard action, but can only move at half-speed (30'). Unfortunately, the minimum forward speed is 30', so the dire eagle would have trouble ascending without stalling. It could fly up 5' (speed halved) and then glide down 5'/40' (speed doubled), but couldn't really get any higher than that. If you added the Warbeast template (MM2) to the dire eagle, this adds +10' speed, and then it could fly up 10', glide down 5'/40', and slowly gain altitude that way.

[hamishspence]

Dire Eagles are in Races of Stone. They are Large.

I recall Advanced Dire Hawks being a popular mount - in Races of Valor, one of the sample characters (for a PRC based on flying mounts - I think Zhentarim Skyrider) got one.

I would suggest that if the "base animal" had already been advanced to Large size at the moment you took it (or found it and befriended it) - it works.

In Arms & Equipment Guide, I think a point was made of how it's possible to carry passengers in addition to the rider - though there's limitations. Might be possible for the leopard to be a passenger, if it's strapped firmly into place.

[Gildedragon]

Is it an African or European Dire Eagle?

[Baby Gary]

Is it an African or European Dire Eagle?

I don't know

lol

[Gildedragon]

I don't know

lol

Because the African Dire Eagle is non migratory.

[Psyren]

I just made a halfling character that owns a dire eagle and a leopard.I was wondering if the eagle could carry both the leopard and the halfling?

Can you clarify what you mean by "own?" Are you a druid and one of these is your animal companion? If so, what level are you? There are spells and items that can help with this situation.


I don't know

lol

*waves goodbye*

[Jay R]

My first thought was, "Sure, the leopard and the halfling can both ride a dire eagle. But at the end of the trip, there will only be a well-fed leopard."

[Celestia]

Sure, but you can't fit the sheep and sack of grain, too.

[Zanos]

The other method would be to have the halfling ride the dire eagle, and then have the dire eagle grapple the leopard (carrying in its talons). The dire eagle could then move as a standard action, but can only move at half-speed (30'). Unfortunately, the minimum forward speed is 30', so the dire eagle would have trouble ascending without stalling. It could fly up 5' (speed halved) and then glide down 5'/40' (speed doubled), but couldn't really get any higher than that. If you added the Warbeast template (MM2) to the dire eagle, this adds +10' speed, and then it could fly up 10', glide down 5'/40', and slowly gain altitude that way.
Do you have to grapple something to carry it? Can't the dire eagle just pick it up?

You could just make a big pouch for the leopard and stick it in there.


My first thought was, "Sure, the leopard and the halfling can both ride a dire eagle. But at the end of the trip, there will only be a well-fed leopard."
Looking at the statblocks, you'd actually have a well-fed dire eagle. Remember, the eagle is like a regular eagle...but it's dire.

[hamishspence]

Same would probably apply with a Small eagle, and a Tiny cat. Some eagles hunt and carry off cat-sized animals like foxes or monkeys.

[Nupo]

Maybe you can use this information to extrapolate what a fantasy eagle can carry:

In real life, birds of prey can carry up to about half their own weight. At the top end of that it's a struggle, and their maneuverability suffers. More than half their own weight they can only carry short distances, and can usually only take off if on a slope. Also, in real life, a big golden eagle weighs around 15 pounds.

[Ashtagon]

No.

In order to ride something, you must be at least one size category smaller than the mount (DMG 204). Additionally,a flying mount can only carry a light load. The leopard by itself would consume the eagle's size class based carrying capacity (assuming the eagle is Large). Adding the halfling would push the eagle over the edge of that limit. I am aware of the "halfling rides leopard; leopard rides eagle" trick, but I'd call shenanigans on that one. Without the ability to manipulate reins (since it lacks actual hands; looping them around a paw really isn't the same), that leopard is taking a substantial penalty to any Ride check, at the very least.

fwiw, giant eagle can carry 300 lb (light load); I'd guess dire eagles can do better. Leopard weighs 120 lb. Halfling weighs 30-35 lb plus gear. Assuming the size cateries weren't an issue, the eagle can carry the two plus reasonable gear.

Having the halfling ride the eagle, which carries the leopard in its claws, could possibly work though (need to read up on dire eagle). But it might not be a very pleasant ride for the leopard. I think Races of the Wild also has a tow sack solution for carrying the leopard as "cargo".

[hamishspence]

D&D abstractifies it a bit - they can either lift their Light load with no movement penalties, or they can't take off at all.

There were a couple of feats in Races of the Dragon (Reinforced Wings and Heavyweight Wings) allowing flight with heavier loads and movement penalties, but they require Str 13 and Str 15 respectively - small birds can't take them.

The dire eagle (and the Giant Eagle, a Magical Beast) both have carrying capacities as appropriate to quadrupeds rather than bipeds.

Giant Eagle: Str 18 Large: 300 lb Light Load
Dire Eagle: Str 20 Large: 399 lb Light Load


Which, extrapolated to smaller birds, gives them amazing lifting power.


Raven: Str 1 Tiny: 2.25 lb Light Load
Owl: Str 4 Tiny: 9.75 lb Light Load
Hawk: Str 6 Tiny: 15 lb Light Load
Eagle: Str 10 Small: 33 lb Light Load


Even treating an Eagle as having only "biped lifting power" would allow it to lift 24 lb.

I think Races of the Wild also has a tow sack solution for carrying the leopard as "cargo".

Yes - Carry net - unfortunately (sized for Medium raptorans) they can only hold 100 lb. One could allow a Large carry net though.

[Malacandra]

Because the African Dire Eagle is non migratory.

Quite correct. Or, in full:


European Dire Eagles are migratory birds, and fly south for the winter
African Dire Eagles are primarily farm fowl, and do not fly south for the winter

[Zanos]

Which, extrapolated to smaller birds, gives them amazing lifting power.


Raven: Str 1 Tiny: 2.25 lb Light Load
Owl: Str 4 Tiny: 9.75 lb Light Load
Hawk: Str 6 Tiny: 15 lb Light Load
Eagle: Str 10 Small: 33 lb Light Load
That doesn't seem insanely high to me, as predatory birds are known to occasionally kill and carry away small dogs and cats. Eagles as I recall sometimes hunt mountain goats by dragging them off cliffs and letting them fall.

[hamishspence]

The biggest eagles generally don't exceed 20 lbs, and generally can't transport anything heavier than half their weight.

So, a D&D Eagle has over 3x the lifting power of a big real-world eagle.