FREQUENCY: Common
NO. APPEARING: 1-20
ARMOR CLASS: 6
MOVE: 9 to 12
HIT DICE: 9 to 36
NO. OF ATTACKS: 2 (kick/kick)
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 2-12/1-12 to 3-36/3-36
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Trample, tail-swipe
SPECIAL DEFENSES: Nil
INTELLIGENCE: Non
SIZE: L (30 to 40 long)
Sauropods are saurischian dinosaurs from
the Jurassic, resembling prosauropods. They include the largest of the
dinosaurs.
Unlike prosauropods, they never move about
on their hind legs,
though they may rear up to reach high
vegetation. The smallest
sauropods are comparable to elephants
in size, while the largest
rival whales. They are exclusively herbivorous.
The construction
of their feet is such that they do not
bog down in the mud despite
their size, and they are comfortable in
and around water. Though
they are peaceful enough under ordinary
circumstances, they do
protect their young, and they can inflict
terrible damage if they
are molested. Sauropods vary with size
as follows:
| MOVE: | 12" | 12" | 9" | 9" | 9" | 9" |
| HD: | 9-12 | 13-16 | 17-20 | 21-24 | 25-30 | 31-36 |
| DAMAGE: | 2-12/2-12 | 2-16/2-16 | 2-20/2-20 | 3-24/3-24 | 3-30/3-30 | 3-36/3-36 |
| SIZE: | L(30-45) | L(46-55) | L(56-85) | L(66-75) | L(76-90) | L(91-105) |
A sauropod defends itself with its massive
front feet. As with
prosauropods, the thumb supports an elongated
nail. A sauropod
can also swing its tail at enemies who
are near its hindquarters,
inflicting damage equal to a kick. The
lengths given above are for
a normal sauropod. In actuality, there
is considerable variation
in build. Sauropods that do not conform
to the general type are as
follows:
Brachiosaurids are the giants of
the group, having no fewer than
13 HD. The largest varieties, found in
Jurassic settings, may reach
the 31 to 36 HD range the only sauropods
known to do so.
Brachiosaurids are also unusual in that
their front legs are longer
than their hind legs, rather than the
other way around, and in
that the tail is short and thick. A brachiosaurid
with any given
number of hit dice has the length of a
sauropod one size-class
smaller (i.e., a 21 HD individual has
a length of 90 or less).
Diplodocids include such beasts
as Apatosaurus (a.k.a. Brontosaurus) and Diplodocus. They are from the
Jurassic and the Cretaceous, and the Jurassic forms include the longest
sauropods.
Because they are so long and thin, diplodocids
have the length of a
sauropod one size class larger. They may
have up to 26 HD.
Titanosaurids are 9-22 HD sauropods
of normal build, found in
the Cretaceous. They differ from other
sauropods in having bony
plates and nodules in their skin, which
confer an AC of 5.