Animals

Many of the monsters in B/X are animals. While there are differences among them, their are enough similarities that it’s worth having a general reference.

Reaction Tables for Animals

Animals’ main priorities are survival and reproduction. Their reactions should reflect those priorities. Animals ordinarily will not fight to the death if they can escape. If an animal has been injured, is not engaged in melee, and has a route to run away, it will usually flee. Animals protecting their nests, lairs, young, or territory are less likely to flee.

Predators go for the easy prey. Their ideal target is small, weak, and separated from the group. If a party has pack animals, predators are no less likely to attack the animals than to attack the characters. In many cases, the predators are more likely to attack the animals.

Here’s my standard reaction table for animals:

Roll	Reaction	Notes
2	Immediate Attack	The animal is either attempting to eat someone, to protect its young, or to protect its territory.
3-5	Hostile, possible attack.	The PCs may have come too close to the animals young or its territory. The animal makes itself known and attempts to scare the PCs away. It will follow up and attack if the party does not leave quickly. A predator may instead want to eat someone in the party. It stalks them, waiting for an opportunity to attack someone who looks weak and who might be separated from the group.
6-8	Uncertain.	The animal is unsure whether the party is dangerous, whether it is food, or whether they can be ignored. Until it makes up its mind, it keeps its distance and waits to see what the party does, fighting only if provoked.
9-11	No attack.	The animal will leave if it can, unless offered food or some incentive to stick around. Some monsters might approach the party, looking for a handout.
12	Friendly.	The animal is not hostile, and it thinks the characters are its friends. It is likely to approach, hoping to play or expecting the party to give it food. If the characters don’t respond with friendship, the animal will eventually leave. If the party is hostile, the animal will defend itself until it can get away.

Animal Morale and Escape

An animal’s behavior in a fight depends on why it is fighting. If it is defending only itself, its aim is to get away with its life. As soon as it has a path of escape, it will run away unless engaged in melee. It won’t engage enemies in melee unless they are blocking its escape.

If an animal is on the defensive in melee, it will retreat after taking any amount of damage. There is no need for a morale check. The monster’s goal is to get away alive. Its best chance to get away is to go as fast as it can (retreating), while it has enough hit points to survive attacks it takes on the run.

Animals ordinarily aren’t smart enough for fighting withdrawals. When they want out of melee, they retreat.

Predators are trying to get a meal. Again, their aim is survival, and they can’t eat if they’re dead. These animals will try to attack weak party members (including mounts and pack animals) separated from the group. A lone predator will flee if it takes damage before it can damage its prey. Predators in groups are bolder. They’ll keep attacking a tasty target until they fail a morale check. However, injured animals without a target will run away, and their departure might trigger a morale check for those who remain. Give a +2 bonus to the morale of individuals who are about to kill their prey.

The only animals who will fight to the death are those who are protecting their territory and their young. If they are merely protecting their territory, the animals will behave like predators; their territory is worthless if they are dead, so they will leave if they get hurt. If it is protecting its young, however, an animal will likely fight until it and its young can run away, or until it dies, whichever comes first.

When an animal is protecting its young, you could give it a morale rating of 12, or you could give it a +2 bonus to its normal moral rating. In the latter case, it’s possible for the animal to fail a morale check. If it does, that means its sense of self-preservation has overcome its desire to protect its young, and it tries to run away. But it won’t abandon its young. As soon as it gets away, it will come back to see if the threat is still there. If the characters are still there when the animal gets back, make another morale check to see if it runs away again.