New Fellowship Phase Undertaking: Animal Training

[Otaku-sempai]

I've been thinking about how to train a working animal (dog, horse, hawk, etc.) to perform additional actions or to give them 'tricks'. It might work much like training a Hound of Mirkwood, but with a prerequisite of requiring an appropriate Trait. These are my preliminary thoughts on the matter:

New Fellowship Phase Undertaking: Animal Training

Over the course of a Hero's career there might come a time when he purchases or otherwise acquires an animal intended for work: a fine horse, a hunting dog, perhaps a hawk or other bird of prey. The Hero might want or need such a creature to be able to perform specialized tasks such as flushing and retrieving game, pulling a burden on command, or killing a prey animal and returning with it. Such actions require training--training that the creature might not have yet received.

Before you can train a companion animal for specialized tasks, you must first possess an appropriate Trait (Horsemanship; Falconry; The Speech of Beasts; etc.) that gives you the ability to properly interact with the creature. You may train your animal to assist you with one Common Skill. You can train it to support additional skills as a separate undertaking during later Fellowship phases. It takes a Fellowship phase, two Experience points, and a prolonged action of four successful Craft rolls to teach your animal to complete one task. It takes another Fellowship phase, two Experience points and another prolonged action of four successful Craft rolls to teach your animal to perform an additional task.

• A dog may be trained to support you when making one of the following skill rolls: Awe, Awareness, Explore, or Hunting.

• A horse may be trained to support you when making one of the following skill rolls: Awe, Athletics, Travel, or Hunting.

• A raptor may be trained to support you when making one of the following skill rolls: Awe, Awareness, Explore, or Hunting.

When you are making a roll using one of the skills imparted to your animal, you may roll the Feat die twice, and keep the best result.

If the Hero does not possess an appropriate Trait then an animal trainer may be hired at a cost of 2 Treasure. The trainer must make the Craft rolls, but the Hero pays the cost in Experience.

New Trait: Falconry
You admire the beauty and deadly grace of hawks, falcons and other birds of prey. You are comfortable around such raptors and have learned how to train them, hunt with them, and how best to care for them.

[Otaku-sempai]

New Fellowship Phase Undertaking: Training a Mount for Additional Combat Actions

You can control a mount only if it has been trained to accept a rider. Domesticated horses, donkeys, and similar creatures are assumed to have such training. The initiative of a controlled mount changes to match yours when you mount it. It moves as you direct it, and it normally has only three action options: Dash, Disengage, and Dodge. A controlled mount can move and act even on the turn that you mount it. However, a warhorse or other mount that is bred and trained for mounted combat can be trained to have additional available action options.

Before you can train a mount for additional action options, you must possess a Trait that allows you to properly interact with the animal (for example: Horsemanship). Also, the beast must already be a trained warhorse or other beast that has been trained to withstand the rigors and distractions of warfare.

In addition to the actions Dash, Disengage, and Dodge, you may train your mount to perform one of the following actions under your control: Attack, or Help. It takes a Fellowship phase, two Experience points, and a prolonged action of four successful Craft rolls to teach your mount to perform one of the following actions:

• Attack: You may direct your mount to attack with its hooves (Hoof Strike*, 3). or to perform a Trampling Charge**. Your mount can only be taught one Attack form as part of a single undertaking.

• Help: Your mount may be trained to support you when making one of the following skill rolls: Awe, Athletics, Travel, or Battle. When you are making a roll using one of the skills imparted to your mount, you may roll the Feat die twice, and keep the best result. Only one such task can be taught to your mount as part of a single undertaking.

It takes another Fellowship phase, two Experience points, and another prolonged action of four successful Craft rolls to teach your animal to perform an additional action or learn an additional task.

If the Hero does not possess an appropriate Trait then an animal trainer may be hired at a cost of 2 Treasure. The trainer must make the Craft rolls, but the Hero pays the cost in Experience.


* Weapons (Warhorse): Weapon Type: Hoof Strike; Damage: 6; Edge 10; Injury: 12; Called Shot: Knock down.

** Trampling Charge. If the horse moves at least 20 feet straight toward a creature and then hits it with a hooves attack on the same turn, that target must succeed at a difficulty of TN 12 plus its Parry rating or be knocked prone. If the target is prone, the horse can make another attack with its hooves against it as a bonus action.

[Turin]

I like them. Though the bonus to a skill use being a reroll of a feat die seems a bit powerful for the cost. I would have it cost more experience like 10 or instead have it add a mastery die for 5 experience myself. My other thought is what about it costing advance points instead of exp?

I like having other options for the characters to spend their experience and advancement on.

[Otaku-sempai]

A cost of 10 (or even 5) Experience Points seems far too high in comparison to other undertakings, especially since the undertaking needs to be taken more than once if the animal is to learn more than one task. Maybe the cost should be 2 Experience. The use of Advancement Points opens up another can of worms as this does not seem to reflect their intended use.

[Yepesnopes]

Is the horse attack intended for TOR or another game?

[Otaku-sempai]

Is the horse attack intended for TOR or another game?

You mean Trampling Charge? I included it for use in mounted combat for TOR with the Riders of Rohan specifically in mind, as well as others who might employ similar tactics such as a Man of Minas Tirith with the Horseman background or the Leofrings. I converted it from the D&D SRD-OGL entry for the Warhorse, so it seemed fair to include the attack. Should it be further revised? Possibly the difficulty of the attack should be "TN 12, plus the Parry rating of the target" as per Horse-lords of Rohan, page 137 (fixed). For AiMe: It would read as follows:

Trampling Charge. If the horse moves at least 20 feet straight toward a creature and then hits it with a hooves attack on the same turn, that target must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. If the target is prone, the horse can make another attack with its hooves against it as a bonus action.

[Turin]

A cost of 10 (or even 5) Experience Points seems far too high in comparison to other undertakings, especially since the undertaking needs to be taken more than once if the animal is to learn more than one task. Maybe the cost should be 2 Experience. The use of Advancement Points opens up another can of worms as this does not seem to reflect their intended use.

Well if it is 2 Exp per attempt then that would make more sense. I am just comparing the advantage to the cost, having a skill roll a feat die twice and keep the best is extremely powerful, more then most virtues that are out there. Since it would allow them to have an ability more powerful then the majority of virtues but not take up one of the Wisdom ranks to do so I suggested 10 experience points, that is the cost of a Mastery using the exercise your talent undertaking, though it is far more powerful then any of the masteries.

It seems to me far more powerful then any other fellowship undertaking in the books.

The suggestion of advancement points is perhaps more from my own campaign purview as the player heroes are all starting to look the same as far as skill ranks are concerned. Since an animal would affect a characters common skill the use of advancement points actually seems in line, instead of raising hunting by themselves the character focuses his advancement on working in tandem with his falcon etc... Though I would still suggest it be a mastery die instead roll feat die twice.

[Yepesnopes]

it normally has only three action options: Dash, Disengage, and Dodge. A controlled mount can move and act even on the turn that you mount it. However, a warhorse or other mount that is bred and trained for mounted combat can be trained to have additional available action options.

In addition to the actions Dash, Disengage, and Dodge, you may train your mount to perform one of the following actions under your control: Attack, or Help. It takes a Fellowship phase, two Experience points, and a prolonged action of four successful Craft rolls to teach your mount to perform one of the following actions:

• Attack: You may direct your mount to attack with its hooves (Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) bludgeoning damage). or to perform a Trampling Charge*. Your mount can only be taught one Attack form as part of a single undertaking.

I mean those ones

[Otaku-sempai]

Well if it is 2 Exp per attempt then that would make more sense. I am just comparing the advantage to the cost, having a skill roll a feat die twice and keep the best is extremely powerful, more then most virtues that are out there. Since it would allow them to have an ability more powerful then the majority of virtues but not take up one of the Wisdom ranks to do so I suggested 10 experience points, that is the cost of a Mastery using the exercise your talent undertaking, though it is far more powerful then any of the masteries.

It seems to me far more powerful then any other fellowship undertaking in the books.

The undertaking plays off of the Support function from the Hound of Mirkwood Virtue. I had to be careful to maintain the uniqueness of the Cultural Virtue and not make the undertaking too similar.

[Otaku-sempai]

it normally has only three action options: Dash, Disengage, and Dodge. A controlled mount can move and act even on the turn that you mount it. However, a warhorse or other mount that is bred and trained for mounted combat can be trained to have additional available action options.

In addition to the actions Dash, Disengage, and Dodge, you may train your mount to perform one of the following actions under your control: Attack, or Help. It takes a Fellowship phase, two Experience points, and a prolonged action of four successful Craft rolls to teach your mount to perform one of the following actions:

• Attack: You may direct your mount to attack with its hooves (Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 11 (2d6 + 4) bludgeoning damage). or to perform a Trampling Charge*. Your mount can only be taught one Attack form as part of a single undertaking.

I mean those ones

I see; I did not convert the Warhorse's normal hooves attack for TOR. Thanks for pointing that out! I'll see what I can do with it, but suggestions are welcome. Here's what I've come up with:

Weapons (Warhorse): Weapon Type: Hoof Strike; Damage: 6; Edge 10; Injury: 12; Called Shot: Knock down.