The Beastly State of Your Campaign
What's an Animal?
About 2.5 billion years ago, life started on this planet. They were very simple single-celled bacteria that fed on chemicals in the seas. Blue-green algae showed up and started using sunlight and water to make food, which created oxygen. This allowed for the creation of more complex organisms that couldn’t create their own food and consumed oxygen.
The Animal Kingdom now has two basic groupings: Vertebrates and Invertebrates. The invertebrates are the larger group, but we actually rely more on vertebrates for food, livestock, etc. There are 9 or 10 million species currently on this planet, most of them arthropods.
All animals live in certain places, their habitats. A habitat could be a pond, a desert, a city, or a drop of water. All habitats on earth can be described using temperatures and the amount of rainfall/water in that area. These are called biomes.
Basic Biomes
In general, there are certain places where you’ll find certain animals, and if you see one in the wrong place, it’s an anomaly that should be noticed by anyone who’s paying attention. Like the moose that showed up in a town in midstate New York. They don’t belong there, so it was noticed by every local that saw it wandering by. You wouldn’t find a giant snake lounging around in the snow, or any reptile for that matter, unless there is something incredibly interesting regarding that particular creature. Magical creatures actually shouldn’t be exempt from these rules either, unless there is thought put into the reason why.
So you have biomes. While most inhabitable planets (i.e. settings) will not have the same set of biomes Earth does, it is generally noticed that most settings are somewhat Earth-based. You may have more hot sand in your setting, or more snow, but most of these places are still going to need animals.
Why? Lots of reasons. Hunting’s big when character groups are wandering along. So big that I created a plant column so that people could supplement their diet-of-flesh with some needed vitamins. Truth is that most wanderers like to hunt. Or buy mutton at the bar. That’s the other thing. Seriously, diversity is awesome, and some people could cook. If you’re going to add in things like magic or dragons, for Pete’s sake throw in some really decent chefs.
Another thing is that a lot of people made their livings on animals. Fur, raising livestock, herding sheep, collecting bones, tending stables, all of those animal-based professions can add serious color to a campaign. There’s a difference in the livestock you raise in an Ireland-like environment as opposed to an Egypt-like environment. And what if your world is almost all oceans with small islands in between? Animals are found only in certain locations due to limiting factors. Limiting factors on land include temperature, water, light, competition, and soil. Every organism needs certain requirements for its survival.
Most organisms can survive if the temperature is within a certain range. The freezing condition of the tundra has resulted in animals with thick fur, lots of body fat, and small ears. Animals in a desert will have large ears, like the elephant, to disperse body heat. The amounts of sunlight and rainfall are also limiting factors for both plants and animals. Both affect plant growth. Which plants grow in a biome determines which animals inhabit that biome. For example, grey squirrels, which feed on nuts, are found in woodlands, but not in deserts where nuts aren't found.
So here are the basic biomes and what you would expect to find.
Tundra
These regions are usually found north close to the Arctic Circle and are barren lands with permafrost 10 inches to 3 feet deep. In the winter it is cold and dark, and in the summer the top layer of permafrost melts and the region is covered in wetlands. It is also usually windy year around. Even in the summer, temperatures only get to 60 degrees (16 Celsius) maximum. Only 6 to 10 inches of rain fall annually
There are only 48 species of mammals total usually found in the tundra, including thick-haired caribou, reindeer, snowshoe rabbits, polar bears, and wolves. The rest of the animals migrate there. There are sea mammals that come during certain parts of the year, and then there are those that come by flight in the summer and consist of insects and the birds that eat them.
Forests
Forests are important because they are homes to the most diverse animal and plant communities. There are three types of forest: boreal, temperate, and tropical, nearer the equator.
Boreal Forests. Also known as the Taiga, Boreal forests ring the artic cap and consist most of needled trees. The winter is long and cold. The temperature is freezing or below for six months out of the year. Animals generally hibernate or leave during the winter, although a few have accommodated. Although there are less animals here, insects are very abundant throughout the summer. Birds often migrate here to feed on them. There are some herbivores and the predators that feed on them.
Temperate Forests. Deciduous, or temperate forests generally have four seasons and trees that lose their leaves during the winter. Animals generally hibernate during the winter and forage for food the other three seasons. The animals have adapted by trying the plants to see if they’re good for food. Trees provide shelter, water, and food. Most animals are camouflaged to look like the ground.
Tropical Forests. The temperatures in tropical forests, or rainforests, generally stay warm, averaging between 93 °F (34 °C) and 68 °F (20 °C). They are also humid; the average humidity is between 77 and 88% and rainfall is often more than 100 inches a year. There is usually a brief season of less rain. In monsoonal areas, there is a real dry season. Almost all rainforests lie near the equator. There are complex layers to the land, from the ground all the way to the tops of the trees, and there are some creatures that stay in their layer for lifetimes.
Most animals in the rainforest are adapted to trees, including the mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and birds. Many develop bright coloring so they can be seen from a distance, and are adapted to eating fruit. Many also have adapted loud vocalization for picking up mates.
Grasslands
These are lands dominated by grasses rather than shrubs or trees. Generally these regions are precipitated (millions of years) by mountains that push up and make the climates windward of them favorable for grasslands. Generally rainfall is sporadic leading, leading to droughts and fires that make trees impossible to grow. Tropical grasslands are called pampas and temperate grasslands are called prairies or steppes. In temperate regions between 10 and 30 inches of rain fall and temperatures stay between -40° F and 70° F. In tropical and sub-tropical grasslands the average rainfall per year ranges from 25 and 60 inches per year. Herd animals like bison live readily on the grasslands, along with those predators that chase them, such as wolves.Savannah
A savannah is a rolling grassland sparsely covered with shrubs and trees. There are actually two seasons in a savanna; a very long dry season and a very wet season. In the dry season only an average of about 4 inches of rain falls. Between December and February no rain falls at all. The temperatures remain at is around 70° F.In the summer there is lots of rain. The monsoon season begins in May. An average of 15 to 25 inches of rain falls during this time. It gets hot and very humid during the rainy season. In the afternoons on the summer savanna the rains pour down for hours. The African savannas have large herds of grazing and browsing hoofed animals. Each animal has a specialized eating habit that reduces competition for food.
Most of the animals on the savanna have long legs or wings to be able to go on long migrations. Many burrow under ground to avoid the heat or raise their young. Birds of prey have a clear view of their prey, hot air updrafts keep them soaring, and there is the occasional tree to rest on or nest in. Animals don't sweat to lose body heat, so they lose it through panting or through large areas of exposed skin, or ears. Each predator species has its own preference, making it possible to live side by side and not be in competition for food.
Chaparral
The west coasts of most continents—where the winds often come onto shore, often have a bit of this unique biome. Chaparrals are characterized as being very hot and dry. The winter is very mild and is usually about 10° C. The summer is so hot and dry at 40 °C that fires and droughts are common. The animals are all mainly grassland and desert types adapted to hot, dry weather.
Deserts
Deserts occur where precipitation is under 50 cm a year. Although most deserts occur at low altitudes, some, which are colder, occur in basin and range areas. There can be four types of desert: hot and dry, semiarid, coastal, and cold. All require specialized plants and animals in order to survive.
Alpine
Alpine biomes are found in the mountain regions all around the world, usually at an altitude of about 10,000 feet or more but just below the snow line of a mountain. In the summer, average temperatures range from 10 to 15° C. In the winter the temperatures are below freezing. The winter season can last from October to May. The summer season may last from June to September. The temperatures can also change from warm to freezing in one day.Alpine animals have to deal with two types of problems: the cold and too much UV rays. There is less atmosphere to filter UV rays from the sun. There are only warm-blooded animals and insects. Alpine animals adapt to the cold by hibernating, migrating to lower, warmer areas, or insulating their bodies with layers of fat. Animals will also tend to have shorter legs, tails, and ears, in order to reduce heat loss. Alpine animals have larger lungs, more blood cells, and hemoglobin because of the increase of pressure and lack of oxygen at higher altitudes. This is also true for people who have lived on mountains for a long time.
Aquatic
Water is an important factor in all the biomes but there and plants and animals that rely exclusively on water.Freshwater. Freshwater biomes supply all land-based creatures with the basis of life. They include streams and rivers, ponds and lakes, and wetlands. Some are temporary and some last thousands of years. Most are filled with fauna that live at different levels in the water. These plants and animals are adapted to water with low salinity and could not survive in saltwater.
Ponds and lakes: Scattered across the earth in varying sizes, many are seasonal and often have limited species due to their distance from one another. There are three zones to lakes and ponds. The surface layer nearest the shores is called the littoral zone. This is where the most diversity of creatures lives. The zone at the surface in the middle of the lake or pond is called the limnetic zone and has plenty of plankton and freshwater fish. The deep water section is called the profundal zone and this is where hetertrophs (animals that eat dead, decaying matter) live.
Streams and rivers: These are flowing waters heading in a direction. These flowing waters are generally clearer and filler with more oxygen at the head, allowing for more diversity. At the mouth it is murky and has less oxygen, thus requiring fish that don’t need oxygen as much.
Wetlands: These regions of standing water generally support a lot of plants. Marshes, bogs, and swamps are all wetlands. They generally have the highest species diversity of all ecosystems. Many species of amphibians, reptiles, and birds all live in wetlands, and most fur-bearing mammals live within wetlands. There are a few saltwater wetlands and they contain shrimp, shellfish, and their predators.
Marine. Marine water covers most of Earth’s surface, although this does not have to be true for every setting. Marine algae supply much of a planet’s oxygen, however, and not utilizing means that low-oxygen environments have to be dealt with. Also, most of the rains for land surfaces come from the evaporation of oceans. Marine settings include oceans, coral reefs, and estuaries.
Ocean: Oceans also have layers, and specialized animals live in each layer, with most never leaving them. The intertidal zone is where ocean meets the land and sometimes this land is exposed and sometimes not. Very few plants and algae can establish themselves because of the moving water, and there are many invertebrates and few fish. Shorebirds are the main predator here. The pelagic zone is the open ocean and its surface and contains surface seaweeds. There are many species of fish and some dolphins and porpoises. The benthic zone is below the pelagic zone, but does not include the deepest regions. The land here is covered in sand, silt, and dead organisms. Many invertebrates wander the sea floor and fish are plentiful.
The deep ocean is the abyssal zone. The water here is highly pressures, cold, oxygen-rich, but very low in nutrition. It is too dark for sunlight to penetrate and therefore lacks photosynthetic organisms. There are still plenty of fish and invertebrates here and chemosythetic bacteria live near hydrothermal vents and are the start of the food chain for these deep-sea creatures.
Coral reefs: Widely distributed in shallow waters, the corals are living creatures that ring islands and atolls and establish colonies that allow other creatures to live among them, including microorganisms, invertebrates, and fish.
Estuaries: This is where freshwater biomes mix with saltwater biomes at the mouths of rivers and streams when they meet the oceans. Unique photosynthesizing organisms live here such as algae, seaweeds, marsh grasses, and—in some places—mangrove trees. Waterfowl is most plentiful, and there are plenty of invertebrates, such as worms, crabs, and shellfish.
Game Terms: Hunting the Biomes
Tundra. In the winters, it is difficult to find animals to choose from unless you follow a herd. Edible animals include caribou and musk-ox, although they migrate south for a time, arctic hares, lemmings, and other rodents, or rock ptarmigan. In the short summers, waterfowl, seabirds, and song birds flock to the region to raise their young. Ermines and arctic foxes are not as edible, but have great fur. Animals of the tundra have small ears, short round bodies, and thick fur. In the summers there will be plenty of migratory animals. Dangerous animals include polar bears, tundra and arctic wolves, and wolverines. Whales, walruses, and seals make the regions along the coasts somewhat tricky, although most won’t attack unless they feel threatened.
Forests. Most opportunities for hunting and eating will be in forests, boreal, tropical, and temperate. Unfortunately, the ideal growing seasons mean that much of these forests will be converted to farmlands or be used for timber, which means there may be times when one cannot hunt.
Boreal Forests: Many species of rodents and migratory animals. Elk and other deer family members prefer the taiga, as well as plenty of small mammalian herbivores. Although not a carnivore, the bull moose is one of the most dangerous animal of these types of forests, although only found in North America. Most predators in these forests are canines or felines, including bobcats, Siberian tigers, and lynxes, as well as timber wolves and the like. Bears roam the forest and can be very dangerous but do not actively hunt humans. These regions are still cold enough that animals may be difficult to find in the dead of winter.
Temperate Forests: The warmer temperatures bring about a larger diversity of animals to hunt and of which to be wary. Small mammals, deer, and elk are available almost all year around. Black bears and red pandas are generally only dangerous when protecting their young. In Asia there are leopards and tigers in the forests. Coyotes and even wolves can wander into the deciduous forests. Surprisingly some of the most dangerous animals are not out to eat humans. Rattlesnakes, copperheads, and (in Europe) adders frequent deciduous forests, mainly among rocks, marshlands, and streams. Diseases from infected biting insects are also common.
Rainforests: Most of the edibility in rainforests is from the numerous plants and fruits, but there are some that are poisonous so go to my other column for more information. Most food in the rainforest comes from local large rodents or fish. Rainforests are filled with predators and dangerous animals of all shapes and sizes. A large amount of primates live in the rainforests, sloths, anteaters, otters, colorful birds. For local tribes, these animals, including the primates, are hunted for food using blowpipes, spears, and bows and arrows. Animals that are dangerous to humans include black caimans, alligators, anacondas, jaguars, poison dart frogs, Bengal tigers, vipers, and cobras.
Grasslands and Savannahs. Grasslands consist of the largest of herd animals, including elephants, giraffes, bison, rhinos, horses, and deer of all kinds. Most of the animals found in grasslands can get reall fast really quickly. Elephants are intelligent and know how to work together. Any hunting for large game will take a team. Likewise, predators come in teams and are a threat to any humans, including lions, wolves, and hyenas. Animals like warthogs and ostriches are fast and territorial, and can seriously do injury.
Chaparrals. The chaparrals are like hot grasslands or deserts with a bunch of shrubbery. Most of the animals that end up in chaparrals are found elsewhere. Food animals include birds, jackrabbits, small deer, kangaroo, and wild goats. Elephants and other grassland creatures can also wander in from time to time. Predators include jackals and coyotes, pumas and other cats. Animals like aardwolves look like dogs but give off scents like skunks.
Deserts. Desert animals are well-adapted to living in the driest lands of the world. In hot deserts, most of the animals are nocturnal and hard to find. Edible animals include jackrabbits and other rodents, ostriches and roadrunners, and pronghorn antelope or addax. Camels are also associated with deserts. Predators can include the spotted hyena, dingo, or coyote if a pack is around. There are a lot of venomous creatures in the deserts, including snakes, spiders, scorpions, toads, and lizards.
Alpine. The world’s highest places have plenty of animals to hunt, including mountain goats and sheep, alpaca, ibex, marmot, chinchilla, pika, and yak. Predators include snow leopards and mountain lion. Most of them are sure-footed, able to scale vertical cliffs, and not likely to be caught by just anyone.
Marine. Out in the ocean there are a lot of risks in traveling. One can eat fish, but one can also get eaten by fish. This will be discussed at length in a later article.
Coming Up next: Domestication and where it’s at for traditional Sword & Sorcery Gaming.
