This is the list of horror-game-appropriate animals for Demon City. If you see anything missing, inconsistent, or that you think should be fleshed out more, let me know. No, I didn't include hippose, the most dangerous animal in Africa. Yes, what was on purpose.
Note that "Calm Check" is how much seeing the animal in the wild freaks people out.
And remember: in real life animals are our friends and we are far more dangerous to them than they are to us--except for ones from Australian who can fuck right off.
ANIMALS
Animals can become menacing in many ways—as familiars to witches (see pg XXX), as drone slaves (see pg XXX) to necromancers or demons (see pg xxx), as revenants (see pg xxx) come back from the dead—and its also possible that they could simply decide on their own they’ve had enough and begin to kill us all.
Statistics for some horror-friendly animals are listed here: All animals have Cash and Knowledge at 0—Appeal scores indicate how likely the average naive observer is to approach the animal. Insects, rats and other vermin attacking in groups together are covered under “Swarms” (see pg XXX). Supernaturally intelligent or controlled animals which are not normally dangerous like birds or housecats will generally attack a target’s eyes first.
Alligator/Crocodile
Calm: 2
Agility: 4
Toughness: 6
Perception: 2
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 4/5 if attacking
Notes: Amphibious, bite grapples & inflicts damage simultaneously, can’t open their mouths if held closed.
Bat
Calm: 1
Agility: 4
Toughness: 0
Perception: 6
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 2/4 if attacking
Notes: Echolocation, Flying
Bear
Calm: 2
Agility: 4
Toughness: 8
Perception: 6
Appeal: 1
Calm Check: 4/5 if attacking
Notes: Bite or “hug” inflicts damage and grapples simultaneously
Boar/Wild Pig
Calm: 2
Agility: 2
Toughness: 5
Perception: 4
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 1/4 if attacking
Bobcat/Lynx
Calm: 1
Agility: 5
Toughness: 2
Perception: 6
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 3 only if attacking
Cat
Calm: 1
Agility: 5
Toughness: 0
Perception: 6
Appeal: 3
Calm Check: 2 only if attacking
Chameleon
Calm: 2
Agility: 5
Toughness: 0
Perception: 3
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 1 only if attacking
Notes: When hidden, requires a Perception Check against a 6 to find
Cheetah
Calm: 2
Agility: 6
Toughness: 4
Perception: 6
Appeal: 3
Calm Check: 3/4 if attacking
Notes: Can run 40 mph over sprint distances
Coyote/Jackal
Calm: 2
Agility: 4
Toughness: 2
Perception: 6
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 1/3 if attacking
Crane
Calm: 3
Agility: 3
Toughness: 0
Perception: 2
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 2 only if attacking
Notes: Flying
Crow/Raven/other small birds
Calm: 1
Agility: 7
Toughness: 0
Perception: 6
Appeal: 1
Calm Check: 2 only if attacking
Notes: Flying
Dog
Calm: 3
Agility: 3
Toughness: 0-2
Perception: 6
Appeal: 3
Calm Check: 2 only if attacking
Eagle/Falcon/Hawk
Calm: 1
Agility: 7
Toughness: 1
Perception: 7
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 2 only if attacking
Notes: Flying
Electric Eel
Calm: 2
Agility: 6
Toughness: 0
Perception: 3
Appeal: 3
Calm Check: 2/3 if attacking
Notes: Aquatic, tts only attack is a painful shock—failing a Toughness check vs a 0 causes damage as an ordinary attack.
Elephant
Calm: 3
Agility: 2
Toughness: 9
Perception: 4
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 0/5 only if attacking
Notes: Trample attack is made at Agility 1 but causes Massive Damage
Fox
Calm: 1
Agility: 5
Toughness: 1
Perception: 6
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 2 only if attacking
Frog/Toad
Calm: 2
Agility: 5
Toughness: 0
Perception: 6
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 1 only if attacking
Notes: Some are amphibious, the only ones that can effectively attack humans are poison arrow frogs, which range from mildly to immensely toxic (like the tiny Golden Poison Frog)—Intensity 1-10.
Goat
Calm: 3
Agility: 2
Toughness: 1
Perception: 3
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 2 only if attacking
Gorilla
Calm: 2
Agility: 6
Toughness: 7
Perception: 5
Appeal: 1
Calm Check: 0/4 only if attacking
Notes: Climbing, opposable thumb
Hare/Rabbit
Calm: 0
Agility: 3
Toughness: 0
Perception: 6
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 1 only if attacking
Notes: Lagomorphs ordinarily have no effective attack against humans. Hares can run up to 30mph for short distances.
Horse
Calm: 1
Agility: 4
Toughness: 7
Perception: 5
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 4 only if attacking
Notes: Can run up to 25-30 mph
Hyena
Calm: 2
Agility: 4
Toughness: 4
Perception: 6
Appeal: 1
Calm Check: 3/4 if attacking
Insects/Spiders
Calm: 0
Agility: 1 (land) 7 (flying)
Toughness: 0
Perception: 6
Appeal: 0-3
Calm Check: 0-1
Notes: Some amphibious or aquatic or amphibious, some fly. Most have no effective attack alone, except venomous ones (including bees, wasps, harvester ants, caterpillars and spiders) which can vary wildly, from Intensity 1-10. The most dangerous ones are spiders, including Brazilian Wandering Spiders and Australia’s Northern Funnel Web.
Jaguar/Leopard/Panther
Calm: 3
Agility: 5
Toughness: 6
Perception: 6
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 4/5 if attacking
Notes: Can climb trees
Jellyfish
Calm: 2
Agility: 1
Toughness: 0
Perception: 1
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 0/3 if attacking
Notes: Aquatic. Jellyfish stings range from harmless in some species to intensity 10 toxicity. They have no other effective attack alone. Australia’s Box Jellyfish is toxicity 10 as are tiny Irukandji Jellyfish—no bigger than a thumbnail. The massive (8 ft diameter) and eerie Lion’s Mane Jellyfish has an Intensity 1 toxin.
Komodo dragon
Calm: 2
Agility: 2
Toughness: 4
Perception: 1
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 3/4 if attacking
Notes: Komodo dragon’s mildly toxic bites cause the victim to make a Toughness check vs intensity 1 or lose a point of Toughness, however this toxin alone can never bring an adult below 0.
Leech/Slug
Calm: 5
Agility: 0
Toughness: 0
Perception: 1
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 0/3 if on the character
Notes: Some are amphibious, normally have no way of attacking humans, though leeches can spread infections.
Lemur
Calm: 1
Agility: 6
Toughness: 0
Perception: 6
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 2 only if attacking
Notes: Climbing, semi-opposable thumb allows some ability to manipulate objects
Lion
Calm: 4
Agility: 5
Toughness: 7
Perception: 6
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 4/5 if attacking
Monkey/Chimp
Calm: 1
Agility: 7
Toughness: 1
Perception: 4
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 4 if attacking
Notes: Climbing, opposable thumb
Octopus/Squid
Calm: 4
Agility: 6
Toughness: 0-4
Perception: 3
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 3 for giant squid only, 4 if attacking
Notes: Aquatic, eject obscuring ink clouds (Perception vs 2 to find your way through), chameleonlike coloration (5 to find a hidden octopus), the only ones with an effective attack against humans are the blue ringed octopus (Poison intensity 7 or suffer total paralysis for 1-10 hours and die within 1-10 minutes if not given cpr) and, possibly, the giant squid.
Owl
Calm: 1
Agility: 7
Toughness: 1
Perception: 7
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 0, 2 if attacking
Notes: Flying, night vision
Peacock
Calm: 1
Agility: 1
Toughness: 0
Perception: 2
Appeal: 5
Calm Check: 0 only if attacking
Notes: No effective attack against humans unless their face is already very close to beak or claws
Piranha
Calm: 1
Agility: 4
Toughness: 0
Perception: 3
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 4 if recognized
Notes: Aquatic. Piranha are only dangerous in Swarms.
Raccoon
Calm: 3
Agility: 4
Toughness: 0
Perception: 6
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 1/4 if attacking
Notes: Climbing
Rat
Calm: 0
Agility: 4
Toughness: 0
Perception: 4
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 2/4 if attacking
Notes: Climbing, sometimes disease-carrying
Reindeer/Stag
Calm: 1
Agility: 4
Toughness: 7
Perception: 5
Appeal: 3
Calm Check: 4 if attacking
Rhinoceros
Calm: 3
Agility: 3
Toughness: 8
Perception: 2
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 1/4 if attacking
Shark
Calm: 2
Agility: 4
Toughness: 7
Perception: 3
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 4/5 if attacking
Notes: aquatic
Snake—constrictor
Calm: 2
Agility: 6
Toughness: 1-3
Perception: 4
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 3/4 if attacking
Note: amphibious, the largest pythons are technically capable of killing an adult human but in practice it’s incredibly rare, in most cases the constrictor is frightening and perhaps an impediment but not a real danger.
Snake—venomous
Calm: 2
Agility: 6
Toughness: 0-1
Perception: 4
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 3/4 if attacking
Notes: Amphibious, snake venoms vary wildly in toxicity by species as well as amount of venom delivered per bite—Intensity 1-10. Intensity 10 snakes mostly come from Australia including the Inland Taipan, the Dubois Sea Snake (widely distributed there and in Southeast Asia), and the excitingly-named Eastern Brown Snake.
Stingray
Calm: 3
Agility: 3
Toughness: 1
Perception: 3
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 0/3 if attacked
Notes: Aquatic. Most stings are merely painful, but if the victim fails a Toughness check vs 0, the embedded spine can cause a standard damage.
Swan
Calm: 2
Agility: 2
Toughness: 0
Perception: 2
Appeal: 4
Calm Check: 1 only if attacked
Notes: Flying, floating, swans usually have no way of hurt adult humans.
Tiger
Calm: 2
Agility: 5
Toughness: 7
Perception: 6
Appeal: 2
Calm Check: 4/5 if attacking
Tortoise/Turtle
Calm: 4
Agility: 0
Toughness: 1
Perception: 1
Appeal: 1
Calm Check: 2 only if attacking
Notes: Amphibious, shell can provides protection equal to Toughness 1-4 against incidental damage, they’re normally harmless, other than snapping turtles, which can bite off a finger—treat as an Agility 3 standard attack that’s never fatal.
Vulture
Calm: 2
Agility: 2
Toughness: 1
Perception: 4
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 3 only if attacking
Notes: Flying, harmless normally
Wolf
Calm: 2
Agility: 4
Toughness: 4
Perception: 6
Appeal: 1
Calm Check: 3/4 if attacking
Wolverine
Calm: 2
Agility: 4
Toughness: 3
Perception: 6
Appeal: 0
Calm Check: 2/4 if attacking
Notes: Climbing
