Meerkat (3.5e Creature)

Meerkat

Size/Type:	Tiny Animal
Hit Dice:	1/2 d8 (2 hp)
Initiative:	+2
Speed:	40 feet (8 squares) running, 5 feet (1 square) walking on hind legs
Armor Class:	14 (+2 size, +2 dex), touch 14, flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple:	0/-12
Attack:	bite +4 melee (1d4-3)
Full Attack:	bite +4 melee (1d4-3)
Space/Reach:	1 ft./1 ft.
Special Attacks:	painful bite, disease
Special Qualities:	low-light vision, scent, summon pack, werewolf bane
Saves:	Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +0
Abilities:	Str 3, Dex 15, Con 10, Int 2, Wis 10, Cha 12
Skills:	Balance +10, Climb +10, Hide +12, Listen +4, Move Silently +8, Spot +3, Survival +1
Feats:	Agile, Weapon Finesse
Environment:	desert, savanna
Organization:	solitary, pack (4-40, plus 20-50% pups, 1d4 elders with 1d8 hp, and 1 (usually female) leader with 2d8 hp)
Challenge Rating:	1/3
Treasure:	none
Alignment:	always neutral
Advancement:	1-3 HD (tiny)
Level Adjustment:	+2

From The Lion King

A brown ferretlike animal with black spots climbs up to the top of the branch in front of you and stands on its hind legs. It stands 13 inches high.

Meerkats are small ferretlike creatures found in desert environments where there are plenty of weeds and fine - sized vermin that make up the bulk of their diet. Though mostly harmless, a full pack can put up a fight. They are among the cutest of all animals, but close inspection reveals a set of teeth and claws that could belong to a creature out of a horror film. Meerkats are expert diggers and a pack can create a burrow in dusty sand to house all its members in just 1d4+1 hours.

Meerkats reproduce rapidly, with females producing 1-6 liters of 2-5 pups per year; the infant mortality rate is very high except for pack leaders.

Yes, these are a D&D version of those things from that show.

Combat

Against prey, Meerkats target the neck for a quick kill; against larger foes, they attack sensitive areas, back off, and attack again, in hopes of forcing the opponent to fall back. Meerkats packs are highly territorial and prefer to mob a major opponent as a group, forming a semicircle around it and attacking and feinting from multiple directions at once.

Painful Bite (Ex)

The meerkat's teeth are shaped like a basilisk's and while they rarely deal a serious injury to creatures larger than themselves and have no poison, the bite is very painful and anyone bitten must make a fortitude save at DC 10 or be at -4 to all actions for the next turn. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Disease (Ex)

Unfortunately, meerkats often carry common, nonmagical diseases such as rabies. There is a 5% chance per individual encountered that it is carrying a disease. If bitten, the base chance of transmission is 60%.

Summon Pack (Ex)

Meerkats can cry out if lost or in danger. If the individual is a member of a pack, and the pack is within earshot (Typically, up to 200 feet away), there is an 80% chance the pack will immediately run to help if not already engaged.

Werewolf Bane (Ex)

Lycanthropes don't like the smell of Meerkat pheromones and avoid areas where meerkats are present. However, they will enter the area in pursuit of an opponent, etc.

Advancement

In addition to the normal advantages of increased hit dice, meerkats gain 5 points of damage reduction against scorpion stings at 1 full HD, spider poison at 2 HD, and snake venom at 3 HD. The reduction applies to either hit point or any ability damage but does not affect bites from any creature with 'giant', 'monstrous', 'fiendish', etc. in the description, just the ordinary vermin meerkats normally eat.

Meerkats as familiars or companions

Meerkats can be kept as pets but they do not domesticate completely and will still bite. They are easy to care for and can find their own food if there are plenty of grasses and fine - size vermin around. They tend to be loyal to owners who are willing to put in a lot of time into the relationship, but dislike strangers until they are used to having new people around. They also have a tendency to wander off in search of mates, food, water, a good burrowing spot, etc. As familiars, meerkats give their masters a +2 bonus on Reflex saves.

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