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Grawk

Climate/Terrain: Desert
Frequency: Uncommon
Organization: Solitary
Activity Cycle: Day
Diet: Omnivore
Intelligence: 1 (Animal Intelligence)
Treasure: Nil
Alignment: Neutral
No. Appearing: 1
Armor Class: 5
Movement: 6
Hit Dice: 5
Thac0: 15
Number of Attacks: 3 (claw/bite/tail)
Damage/Attack: d6/d8/d6
Special Attacks: Nil
Special Defenses: Nil
Magic Resistance: Nil
Size: L
Morale: 11 (steady)
XP Value: 175

The Grawk is about the size of a large horse, with sand brown, tough leathery skin. It is a quadruped, with short clawed legs that hold it close to the ground. Its body is large, its head human sized and it has a long tail with bony spikes. It has a nasty disposition, and shambles along with all four feet. It smells like very stale bread and has very bad breath. It makes a sound like "grawk", hence its name. They can be tamed, but this is very difficult and somewhat dangerous. Even then, a rider must be on his guard to avoid being bitten or whacked with its tail.

Combat: Grawks attack their prey with one claw, then they attempt to bite. During combat, the tail swings back and forth automatically, but can only hit creatures near the beasts rear. For smaller prey, the grawk attempts to hold it steady with one claw, then bite. If an enemy jumps on its back, the beast rolls over, doing d6 damage to the creature on its back and dislodging it. They may also try do this to a rider, which is why it is so important to train a grawk well.

Habitat/Society: Grawks dislike pretty much every creature, including other grawks. They avoid grawks and other large creatures but fight if forced to. They have no real territories and wander randomnly through the desert, eating any food they find. Grawks have no lair, and go about their business regardless of weather, although they curl into a ball during sand storms and wait them out.

Ecology: Grawks eat pretty much anything. They eat any plants them find, from small spiny bushes to the bark of trees. They will eat any small animal, except that most small animals are smart enough to run when a grawk happens by. Grawks will eat carrion. What makes grawks especially useful in the desert is that they need only the equivalent of a waterskin of water every three days.

Movement Rate at Different Speeds
Walk Trot Canter Gallop
3 6 9 12

Maximum Weight in Pounds at Different Speeds
Full Speed Half Speed One Third Speed
280 410 540