Designer's Notes: Extras from GURPS Bestiary, Third Edition

Designer's Notes: Extras from GURPS Bestiary, Third Edition

by Hunter Johnson

Art colored by Keith Johnson

Designer's Notes: Extras from GURPS Bestiary, Third Edition

As far as I know, there haven't been any "Revisor's Notes" published in Pyramid. There have been plenty of Designer's Notes, but nothing for subsequent editions. So I'll have to be first.

The bulk of the book, the animal entries, didn't get revamped too much. They got shuffled around and split up a bit -- the mythological creatures and the speculative creatures each got their own section, like the dinosaurs and domesticated animals had before. A handful of new animals from the Pyramid readership were included as well.

The real change is in the back of the book, in chapter 5. Almost all of this chapter is new, and it was the most fun to work on. The Characters chapter is always the first thing I turn to in a new GURPS book. Even though I GM much more than I play, I like to take a look at any new setting through the characters' eyes first. In the earlier editions of GURPS Bestiary, however, there was no Characters chapter. Now there are rules for creating animal templates, sample templates for a wide variety of animals from Alligator to Yeti, and a sample character for almost every sample template. The chapter grew from my initial outline, at the expense of the folklore chapter (which is also mostly new).

Here are some additional templates that were not included in the final draft, for your enjoyment:


Diatryma

(157 points)

Attributes: Enhanced ST +20 (No Fine Manipulators) [105]; DX +4 [45]; IQ -7 [-60]; HT +6 [80]; Extra Hit Points +8 [40].

Advantages: Acute Hearing +5 [10]; Alertness +5 [30]; Claws (Talons) [40]; Damage Resistance 1 [3]; Enhanced Move x1 [10]; Passive Defense 1 [25]; Penetrating Call [5]; Peripheral Vision [15].
Disadvantages: Attentive [-1]; Bestial [-10]; Color Blindness [-10]; Edgy [-5]; Hidebound [-5]; Increased Life Support [-10]; Incurious [-5]; Innumerate [-5]; Loner [-5]; Mute [-25]; Obdurate [-10]; No Fine Manipulators [-30]; Povery (Dead Broke) [-25]; Presentient [-20]; Short Lifespan x2 [-20]; Social Stigma (Barbarian) [-15].
Skill: Survival (Plains or Woodlands, specialized)-IQ+3/IQ+9 [10]

Notes: The horse was the only mount to get a template in the published book. Here's a more esoteric possibility for Time Travel or New Sun campaigns. As with the Deinonychus (p. BE108), some of this information is guesswork.

Eagle

(-130 points)

Attributes: ST -5 [-40]; DX +2 [20]; IQ -6 [-50]; HT +3 [30]; Reduced Hit Points -8 [-40].
Advantages: Acute Vision +4 [8]; Alertness +4 [20]; Enhanced Dodge x3 (Accessibility: Only while Flying) [32]; Enhanced Move (Flying) x2 [20]; Flight (Winged; Cannot Hover) [24]; Penetrating Call [5]; Peripheral Vision [15]; Sharp Claws [25]; Telescopic Vision 3 [18].
Disadvantages: Bestial [-10]; Edgy [-5]; Fragile [-20]; Hidebound [-5]; Incurious [-5]; Innumerate [-5]; Loner [-5]; Mute [-25]; Poor Grip [-5]; Poverty (Dead Broke) [-25]; Presentient [-20]; Reduced Move (Running) -5 [-25]; Restricted Manipulators [-15]; Short Arms [-10]; Short Lifespan x3 [-30]; Social Stigma (Barbarian) [-15].
Skill: Survival (Mountain or Woodlands, specialized)-IQ+2/IQ+8 [8]

Ferret

(-174 points)

Attributes: ST -9 [-80]; DX +5 [60]; IQ -5 [-40]; HT +2 [20]; Reduced Hit Points -8 [-40].
Advantages: Acute Taste/Smell +4 [8]; Alertness +5 [25]; Combat Reflexes [15]; Decreased Life Support [10]; Early Maturation x1 [5]; Enhanced Move x1/2 [5]; Faz Sense (3-hex range, -20%) [8]; Four Legs [5]; Night Vision [10]; Sharp Teeth [5].
Disadvantages: Attentive [-1]; Bestial [-10]; Color Blindness [-10]; Dull [-1]; Horizontal [-10]; Inconvenient Size [-15]; Innumerate [-10]; Mute [-25]; No Fine Manipulators [-30]; Poverty (Dead Broke) [-25]; Presentient [-20]; Short Arms [-10]; Short Lifespan x6 [-60]; Sleepy (75%) [-25]; Social Stigma (Barbarian) [-15]; Staid [-1].
Skill: Survival (Plains or Woodlands, specialized)-IQ+1/IQ+7 [6]

Notes: Pet-store ferrets will rarely have any Survival skill at all. This is true for many quasi-domesticated animal species.

Gibbon

(-84 points)

Attributes: ST -7 [-60]; DX +5 [60]; IQ -4 [-30]; HT +3 [30]; Reduced Hit Points -10 [-50].
Advantages: Alertness +4 [20]; Ambidexterity [10]; Brachiator [5]; Enhanced Move (Brachiating) x1/2 [5]; Extra Arms x2 (Short Arms; temporary disadvantage: "legless" while in use; -35%) [6]; Fur [4]; Increased Speed x1 [25]; Penetrating Call [5]; Perfect Balance [15]; Super Climbing x3 [9]; Super Jump x4 [40].
Disadvantages: Bestial [-10]; Cannot Swim [0]; Dull [-1]; Edgy [-5]; Intolerance (other gibbons of the same sex) [-5]; Mute [-25]; Odious Racial Habit (noisy) [-5]; Poverty (Dead Broke) [-25]; Presentient [-20]; Reduced Move (Running) -1 [-5]; Short Arms [-10]; Short Livespan x4 [-40]; Social Stigma (Barbarian) [-15].
Skill: Survival (Jungle or Mountain, specialized)-IQ/IQ+6 [4]
Quirks: Highly territorial [-1].

Notes: Siamangs share the same template with the following changes: ST -5 [-40]; Super Jump x3 [30]; Reduced Hit Points -8 [-40]. Template cost for siamangs is -49 points.

Orangutan

(40 points)

Attributes: ST +5 [60]; DX +3 [30]; IQ -4 [-30]; HT +4 [45]; Extra Hit Points +1 [5].
Advantages: Alertness +4 [20]; Brachiator [5]; DR 1 [3]; Enhanced Move (Brachiating) x1 [10]; Extra Arms x2 (Short Arms; temporary disadvantage: "legless" while in use; -35%) [6]; Long Arms [20]; Super Climbing x3 [9].
Disadvantages: Bestial [-10]; Cannot Swim [0]; Careful [-1]; Dull [-1]; Laziness [-10]; Loner [-5]; Mute [-25]; Poor Grip [-5]; Poverty (Dead Broke) [-25]; Reduced Move (Running) [-5]; Semi-Upright [-5]; Short Lifespan x3 [-30]; Sleepy (50%) [-10]; Social Stigma (Barbarian) [-15].
Skill: Survival (Jungle or Mountain, specialized)-IQ/IQ+6 [4]

Raccoon

(-90 points)

Attributes: ST -6 [-50]; DX +4 [45]; IQ -4 [-30]; HT +4 [45]; Reduced Hit Points -7 [-35].
Advantages: Acute Hearing +2 [4]; Acute Vision +1 [2]; Alertness +6 [30]; Cast Iron Stomach [15]; Claws [15]; Decreased Life Support [10]; Early Maturation x1 [5]; Faz Sense (Eye Contact Only; -20%) [8]; Metabolism Control x4 (Hibernation; -50%) [10]; Night Vision [10]; Reproductive Control [2]; Sharp Teeth [5]; Super Climbing x2 [6]; Thick Fur [29].
Disadvantages: Attentive [-1]; Bestial [10]; Color Blindness [-10]; Curious [-5]; Horizontal [-10]; Inconvenient Size [-15]; Innumerate [-5]; Mute [-25]; Poor Grip [-5]; Poverty (Dead Broke) [-25]; Presentient [-20]; Reduced Move (Running) x1 [-5]; Short Arms [-10]; Short Lifespan x5 [-50]; Sleepy (50%) [-10]; Social Stigma (Barbarian) [-15].
Skills: Swimming-DX [1], Survival (Swampland, Urban, or Woodlands, specialized)-IQ/IQ+6 [4].

Notes: Brian Smithson created this one after the Bestiary playtest, and agreed to let me include it here. Along with the ferret, very useful for running Grey Ghost Games' new adventure Another Fine Mess with GURPS.

Velociraptor

(13 points)

Attributes: ST -2 [-15]; DX +5 [60]; IQ -6 [-50]; HT +2 [20]; and Reduced Hit Points -6 [-30].
Advantages: Acute Hearing +2 [4]; Acute Taste and Smell +2 [4]; Alertness +6 [30]; Claws (Long Talons) [55]; Combat Reflexes [15]; Early Maturation [5]; Enhanced Dodge [15]; Enhanced Move x2 [20]; Peripheral Vision [15]; Scales [3]; Sharp Teeth [5].
Disadvantages: Attentive [-1]; Bestial [-10]; Color Blindness [-10]; Edgy [-5]; Hidebound [-5]; Incurious [-5]; Innumerate [-5]; Mute [-25]; No Depth Perception [-10]; Poverty (Dead Broke) [-25]; Poor Grip [-5]; Presentient [-20]; Social Stigma (Barbarian) [-15]; Sleepy (50%) [-10].
Skills: Survival (Plains or Woodlands, specialized)-IQ+2/IQ+8 [8].

Notes: I created the Velociraptor template and was trying to wedge Johnny Dino (p. BE101) into its small package when I decided to switch to the Deinonychus instead. But this will certainly fit into 100-point campaigns better!

Wild Boar

(47 points)

Attributes: Enhanced ST +10 (No Fine Manipulators) [66]; DX +4 [45]; IQ -4 [-30]; HT +5 [60]; Extra Hit Points 5 [25].
Advantages: Acute Taste and Smell +4 [8]; Alertness +4 [20]; Damage Resistance +1 [3]; Early Maturation x1 [5]; Enhanced Move x1/10 [1]; Faz Sense (3-hex range, -20%) [8]; Four Legs [5]; Fur [4]; Passive Defense 1 [25]; Sharp Teeth [5].
Disadvantages: Bestial [-10]; Color Blindness [-10]; Dull [-1]; Horizontal [-10]; Innumerate [-10]; Mute [-25]; No Fine Manipulators [-30]; Poverty (Dead Broke) [-25]; Presentient [-20]; Short Lifespan x4 [-40]; Sleepy (50%) [-10]; Social Stigma (Barbarian) [-15]; Staid [-1].
Skill: Survival (Woodlands, specialized)-IQ/IQ+6 [4].

Research

Determining the levels of Extended or Short Lifespan, Early or Late Maturation, and Less Sleep or Sleepy can be tricky, since the normal Bestiary entries do not include any data. General encyclopedias are often useful for this, and here are some websites which have some of this information for multiple animal species:

http://library.thinkquest.org/25553/english/animals/when/index.shtml
http://www.sleephomepages.org/sleepsyllabus/fr-b.html
http://www.geocities.com/longevityrpt/lr57.htm
http://www.ris.net/~yarberry/Brett1697/animals.htm




Article publication date: December 15, 2000


Copyright © 2000 by Steve Jackson Games. All rights reserved. Pyramid subscribers are permitted to read this article online, or download it and print out a single hardcopy for personal use. Copying this text to any other online system or BBS, or making more than one hardcopy, is strictly prohibited. So please don't. And if you encounter copies of this article elsewhere on the web, please report it to webmaster@sjgames.com.