Which Mount is More Epic?

[Caged Maiden]

True about white-tailed deer vs. elk, moose and reindeer which run more like horses. The picture you posted was of a white-tailed deer, so I wanted to mention the difference in movement. I think an elk variety would be a great mount. However, how fast are they and what kind of stamina do they have? Moose rarely out-run wolves, wading into water for escape to my knowledge. Are elk better runners? I'd still make them apaloosa or something to differentiate their breed as something special. Also, elk are huge. It's be akin to riding a clydesdale into battle. I think you're on the right track, choosing something akin to what's on earth but changing it to fit your needs. I only mentioned wildabeests because they're something other than a buffalo, horse, ass, etc. They're related to buffalo but obviously are much different. You could invent a close cousin for a colder climate, maybe cross it with a musk ox or something. Depends how much reality you want in your fantasy or how much into the realm of fantasy you're willing to go.

 

[Saigonnus]

I did consider mammoths, actually. I'm still considering them. But something about them doesn't quite "click" with my vision of this culture.

They'd be good for more than just combat. They could be trained for heavy lifting or pulling wagons, just like a horse/horses with a higher amount of strength. Their fur could be used for thread (sewing) and should one die, the hide could made into leather and the flesh eaten, same as a horse or oxen. Since they are herbivores, the same fodder you'd have for a horse would probably be okay for a mammoth. Even though you would probably have fewer mammoths than horses or deer, each could potentially carry two riders, one covering each side.

 

[Caged Maiden]

I guess the critical thing you need to think about before you decide is: What is the function of said animal? Is it to be fast? Light on it's feet? What is the terrain? Is there a reason horses, deer, or maybe even a goat-like animal might be best? I have a scene with a mountain pony having a terrible time in a swamp. It has narrow feet for rocky terrain and a short, stocky body, the opposite of wetland horses like those of the Camarouge which have wide, flat hooves and light, lean bodies.

Also, if you're writing a woodland race, deer make more sense because they eat fallen fruit, grass, even tree bark. Horses require a lot of grass to eat, not a commodity found in a forest. So diet is somethign to consider. Also, whereas draft horses eat a lot of food for their weight, wild asses function better on poor quality food and require less. Something to consider if your race is keeping large numbers of animals in a relatively small area (which is what it sounds like).

Mounted archers require a lot of animals. Someone has to raise all that food, tend all those hooves, make all those shoes or maybe leather boots if it's deer. Also, with deer, you might want to see what effect a rider would have. Some horses have a weight capacity or their feet suffer from the extra burden. WHich is why horseshoes are a necessity, not a luxury. An armored knight needed a special horse, not just a plow nag...

I read once about the number of pounds specific kinds of horses could carry for my novel. You'd be surprised how many animals have a 200 pound capacity. Think about that... it's an average-sized man without any armor.

 

[Mindfire]

As for where these people live, a handy map:

It's a fairly flat, cool grasslands region. Does the terrain inform your opinon, CM?

 

[Jess A]

I just invented a goat-relative for my mounts for some cultures/areas, and designed it from there with practicality etc in mind. Horses are also used in my world, as they are more suited for flat terrain and other things. I would just go with what Nihal did - make a deer relative, make it suit your purposes for the story.

Since you're using flat terrain, why not make a deer creature that is horse-like in many ways but has a tufted tail and antlers? And thrives on flat land?

Also, on the fox breeding program - I saw a documentary on that once. Fascinating, how they developed the traits often found in domestic dogs.

 

[Jabrosky]

I like the mammoth idea, though they would move very slowly. Mammoths are cool!

 

[Mindfire]

I'm thinking about giving them some kind of deer species as their regular mount, but having shamans and rogues (ronin) ride terror birds to show their specialness. Also I might give mammoths to a rival civilization. Just one question: how would mammoths fare in hilly terrain?

 

[Saigonnus]

I'm thinking about giving them some kind of deer species as their regular mount, but having shamans and rogues (ronin) ride terror birds to show their specialness. Also I might give mammoths to a rival civilization. Just one question: how would mammoths fare in hilly terrain?

Probably fairly well if the real world is any judge since the asian elephants live in China, Nepal, India and southeast asia; which has lot of hills and mountains beside the jungles and flatlands. As long as there is fodder, they would go nearly anywhere to get it. The Indians (Mughals I believe) used elephants in battle all throughout India against Alexander the Great, so they must have traversed mountains and hills at some point during the campaign.

 

[Caged Maiden]

@Jess... I loved the fox documentary. It's really interesting how you can breed certain animals for agreeability and within a short time ( looking back, I think it was 16 generations, but still short in the scheme of evolution) you end up with something completely different. Supposedly, the attitudes and friendliness of wild canines is linked to their dog-like traits. Which then made them useless for the fur trade. Who wants to wear a fox fur coat that looks like a dalmation? haha.

@ Mindfire, I think a grassland is ideal for any grazing animal. Deer are woodland creatures, but thrive in the wetlands of Wisconsin and the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. I was just pointing out that certain animals are not suited to woodlands because of the great amount of specific food they eat. Horses are specifically not woodland animals and if you had a woodland race, I'd avoid horse-relatives entirely. You could certainly raise huge herds of deer in a grassland. But whereas deer can survive a winter woods, horses could not. They won't eat tree bark to survive the scarce months.

 

[Mindfire]

Thanks! I do have a wood-dwelling culture (different continent), but they tend to rely on their superhuman speed and strength rather than mounts, Tarzan-style. The only forest-dwellers on this continent are the Inazuma of the mountain forests, and they usually get around via flash-stepping (lightning magic based teleportation) and ninja sneakiness.

 

[ThinkerX]

Uhhh...being a fantasy world, why not just make up a suitably epic fantasy mount? Step way outside the box.

Sticking with conventional steeds...this was one of the things that made me realize Feist was going downhill. He had this impressive race of lizardman warriors...but instead of suitably saurian steeds, he had them ride normal, if overly large, horses.

In my world, there is a elephant sized creature called a 'droath': six legs, two trunks, and a smell that will make you want to puke at forty feet. Not fast, but one droath can pretty much outpull ten horses. Docile - except during mating season, then you just go away for a few weeks till thats over with.

If I need another horse equivilent for nomads, I'll just make one up.

 

[mbartelsm]

I'll just drop this here:

Why not a rhino? rhinos are strong bulky and very dangerous, specially when charging, they have a natural armor thingy, the are herbivorous which means you don't have to worry about your livestock being killed for food, and as far as domesticability goes, I'd bet my ass they are easier to tame than a lion.
Plus the awesome factor, I'd be more scared of a rhino running at me than a lion.

Now the cons:
They are slow, sure, they can sprint like crazy, but when it comes to actually travelling long distances they are probably much slower than a horse
They are very aggressive, maybe not as much as a lion, in the sense that eventually you could say that a rhino may be trustworthy, but getting one of them in the first place may be, well, complicated.
I don't know how to word this in english but here it goes: they do not reproduce much, which is part of the reason they are currently endangered.

Of course you can just handwave the cons just because you say so.

 

[Mindfire]

Thanks for your input mbartelsm, but I already made a decision. Plus, I'm not sure rhinos would work since they're adapted to a much warmer climate.

Oh, and that horn is obviously photoshopped.

 

[mbartelsm]

It's ok, but I think I've convinced myself to use them

PS: Damn, you noticed

 

[SeverinR]

Might want to consider travel cost,
Meat eaters will need to take time to hunt, carrying meat in that quantity would be cumbersome. If you run out of meat, they might look to the weakest of the humanoids for a quick meal. I'm thinking a carnivoure that could carry a man would need to eat 1/2 a man in meat a day(75-125lbs), minimum. Meat eaters are burst runners, they have great speed but little stamina to maintain it. They can out run their prey. Mounts would need pack mentality(fight together to survive together), or else fighting between the mounts would occur.

Plant or omnivoures, they can eat alot of grass and get alittle grain to meet their requirements. Run out of grain? They will survive on grazing for some time. Grass eaters are distance runners, they can out distance a preditor. I think they can manuver better too. They would need herd mentality(work together to defend the herd from attackers), so they work together as a herd, rather then several individuals or fight against one another.

Not sure if large flightless birds have pack/herd mentality?

 

[Mindfire]

Might want to consider travel cost,
Meat eaters will need to take time to hunt, carrying meat in that quantity would be cumbersome. If you run out of meat, they might look to the weakest of the humanoids for a quick meal. I'm thinking a carnivoure that could carry a man would need to eat 1/2 a man in meat a day(75-125lbs), minimum. Meat eaters are burst runners, they have great speed but little stamina to maintain it. They can out run their prey. Mounts would need pack mentality(fight together to survive together), or else fighting between the mounts would occur.

Plant or omnivoures, they can eat alot of grass and get alittle grain to meet their requirements. Run out of grain? They will survive on grazing for some time. Grass eaters are distance runners, they can out distance a preditor. I think they can manuver better too. They would need herd mentality(work together to defend the herd from attackers), so they work together as a herd, rather then several individuals or fight against one another.

Not sure if large flightless birds have pack/herd mentality?

That confirms my decision then. Most of the Kudan will use war-deer as mounts. Loners like shamans or rogues (essentially ronin) will use terror-birds.