RMA: Camels

No, I don't have a cigarette!

I think one of the reasons that camels are rare in my games, and I suspect other peoples is two-fold. One, they are heavily associated with desert climates and most campaigns are not set in the desert (at least not for extended periods). The second reason is that most games don't track resources and travel the way that lets these creatures shine.

Camel (from Cook)

AC: 7
HD: 2
Move: 150' (50')
Att: 1 bite /1 hoof
Damage: 1/1d4
No. App: 0 (2d8)
Save: F1
Morale: 7
Treasure: nil
AL: N

So we can see these stats are not impressive. Camels are not very tough, fast, brave, strong, or impressive in a fight. In the description, it even specifies that riders cannot perform a lance charge from camelback. Horses, on the other hand, can faster, do more damage, have better morale, and/or carrying capacity, depending on what type you choose. So why choose a camel?

Terrain: While it is true that a riding horse can easily outpace a camel (240' vs. 150'), remember that desert terrain drops movement by 2/3. Camels treat this as clear terrain, meaning under those conditions the difference is 160'  vs. 150'. Draft and war horses are even slower. This can make a crucial difference when it comes to overland travel in a harsh environment like a desert.

Climate: It's true that a camel cannot carry as much as some horses, but by moving faster through the desert, you need fewer supplies. Also, you don't need to carry water for the camels (provided you plan on being out for two weeks or less. I know that many campaigns aren't tracking every coin of encumbrance, but water is heavy and in the real world horses be thirsty critters! 5-10 gallons per day is normal for horses (as opposed to 2 quarts for people). For the record, that's 40-80 pounds! So even low-balling it for a horse that's more acclimated to the environment, you'd still need to pack 400cn of water for every day you plan on being out in the sandbox. And that's just for one horse!

Imagine a scenario where a desert caravan with horses has to drag along casks of water in a wagon or some such only to have the containers destroyed by some foe or clever monster. They know the party will never make it out of the desert alive, so they just wait a few days and then pick over the caravan after everyone is dead of dehydration. A cleric with the Create Water spell could thwart this plan, but the odds favor it as a successful tactic. How many 6th+ level clerics are wandering the dunes anyway?

So we can see that using camels in such a situation would mean carrying a couple of gallons of water  per day for a party vs. 20+ gallons. This could be managed with several skins or one small cask. Food is still an issue, but that's true of both horses and camels.

Camels are specialized animals, for specialized environments. While it's true they aren't very impressive in a fight, that shouldn't be the only measure of their worth to a party of adventurers. Especially if they need are traversing the Emirates of Ylaruam or such places. 

RSA: Growth of Animals

Since BX doesn't have druids, this one is under clerical spells. I wonder if elves had a separate list whether the designers would have placed it there? At third level, it competes for attention with some pretty heavy hitters in the cleric's go-to repertoire. Spells like Cure Disease, Remove Curse, or even Continual Light. So in the vein of other RSAs, let's take a look at this sucker and see what's what.

Growth of Animal (from Cook):

Cleric: 3rd

Range: 120'

Duration: 12 turns

So basically it doubles the size, strength, carrying capacity, and damage of a non-intelligent and/or "mundane" creature. It can however, double the size  of a normal creature's giant version: . e.g. Giant Hawks, Weasels, Spiders, etc.

The obvious use of such a spell is to get more out of an allied creature. Your mount, your hound, etc. Changing a dog or tamed wolf into a Game of Thrones-style direwolf would give you an edge in a fight, to be sure. 

But that's low-hanging fruit. Let's look a little deeper, shall we?

First of all, the spell has a decent range. This means you don't have to be right next to the creature. Secondly, nothing says the animal has to belong to you. Imagine suddenly doubling the size of a foe's mount. Sure he's got a great big horse now, but he's too high up to hit you. Now imagine combining that same casting with a followup Cause Fear. You could also cause a helluva distraction in the enemy camp by suddenly having some bird or beast swell up in their midst. Maybe that rickety bridge they are galloping across won't take another half ton of horseflesh?

Next, keep in mind that sometimes bigger isn't better. That giant spider chasing you Shelob-style through the tunnels? Zap! Too big to fit now. Sure it's temporary, but two hours is a nice head start. Granted, a fifth level cleric probably isn't running from Crab Spiders too much, but you get idea. 

I know it's not a spider, but hedgehogs are just so CUTE!

RMA: Crocodile Rock

I think any discussion of crocodilians and their ability to intimidate is best summed up by the World's Greatest Secret Agent, Sterling Archer:

"Maybe deep down I'm afraid of any apex predator that lived through the K-T extinction. Physically unchanged for a hundred million years, because it's the perfect killing machine. A half ton of cold-blooded fury, the bite force of 20,000 Newtons, and stomach acid so strong it can dissolve bones and hoofs."

In BX, alligators, crocodiles, caimans, etc. are all basically crocs for stat purposes. Which is fine. The DM can describe the subtle differences in scales and jaw if he wants, but all the players are going to be thinking is:

I don't know how much these critters have gotten used in people's campaigns, but I can certainly see them coming up in swamp or river-themed adventures. Certainly that is where they are most likely on the wandering encounter tables.

Since I looked at these originally as part of the "Lost World" series I started with Neanderthals, we'll begin with the giant croc.

These are described as only appearing in lost world regions or settings and over 50' long. They can and will attack small boats or even ships.

Now, to put fifty feet long into perspective, we will assume that includes the tail (as most of these measurements in the real world do). Here is a photo of a fairly enormous croc (this is real):

That is Lolong, the largest crocodile ever captured (d. 2013). Lolong measured in at 20ft., 3 in. and was a saltwater variety from the Philippines. So imagine more than x2 that long, which means a LOT bigger in terms of mass. The biggest prehistoric "supercroc" known was Sarcosuchus, which came in about 40'.

OK, enough of the Discovery Channel stuff. Onto the stats!

The different sizes are really just for threat scaling (no real changes other than bigger stats). So obviously 15 HD for the giant version is kinda scary (more than dragons). AC is fair and its damage is rough. Even the smallest type would be a nasty surprise while crossing a river or similar.

It's important to note something about these critters (all three types) and this is based on the real-world versions: They can run as fast as they swim. An encumbered character may well not be able to outrun a croc.

Crocs are reptiles, which is to say they aren't super-bright. They are also not super-emotional. This is reflected in their morale score. If a meal is proving too difficult (or pointy), they may well give up and move on. They are great ambush predators, though. So there's always the chance they pop up again when you least expect it. 

As a DM, I would use them tactically. Knocking PCs out of their canoes, etc. or striking from the reeds and shallows. Once the PCs are in the water, they are usually -quite literally- out of their element. A swamp witch with an animal control magic item or spell could turn things ugly real quick. 

Curious Objects: Staff of Command

Welcome to the first in a new category of posts on this blog. I've decided to call it "Curious Objects." In these posts, I will take a look at some of the more obscure and/or interesting items in "Classic" (e.g. Basic/Expert) D&D.

For our first installment, I chose the Staff of Command. I came across this magical item in Cook Expert and was immediately struck at how powerful this thing could be a game.

Brief aside: In Moldvay's Basic, staves held 1d10 charges and were cleric-only (wands were for wizardly types). That was changed in Cook to vary by staff type. Some are clerical, some are "arcane" (MU/Elf), and some are usable by all three spell casting classes. Their charges were boosted to 3d10 as well.

The Staff of Command is usable by any spell caster type and it can emulate the powers of three very powerful rings: Human, Plant, and Animal Control. Of course, a staff has limited charges (rings don't), but even so, this opens up all sorts of possibilities for zaniness.

Human Control is basically a charm person spell. The target can save (albeit at -2), and there are limits to how many people can be controlled as well as what they can or can't do (no spellcasting from the thralls).

Animal Control is limited by the fact that you have to concentrate on the control or it ends. The beasts also have a negative reaction modifier toward the caster.

Plant Control is the one that looks the most fun. The staff allows you to "animate and control all plants and plant-like creatures" in a 10'x 10' area up to 60' away. It too has a concentration requirement, but let's just look at two things:

1) No save. I know, they're plants. BUT -
2) Plant. Like. Creatures.

That means you can take control of a treant, it gets no save, and you it will fight for you as long as you maintain concentration.

(Oddly, if you want to get technical, the Treant is the only plant-like creature in the BX monsters sections. As fungus is not a plant, etc.)

I don't see the staff as a game-breaking item. If nothing else, its limited charges keep it from being too OP. But there is SO much fun to be had with something like this, either in an NPC or PC's hands. Horses throwing riders, merchants becoming charmed, thorn bushes grabbing sentries, and so on. Any wizard would find it well worth his treasure share to get hold of one.