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Axe Beak. An axe beak’s splayed toes allow it to run across snow, and it can carry as much weight as a mule, 420 pounds. Axe beaks, if expertly trained, could pull 2100 pounds, but they're notoriously fickle and a bit mean. A domesticated axe beak can be purchased in Ten-Towns for 50 gp.
Sled Dog. A sled dog (use the wolf stat block) costs 50 gp 30gp and can pull 360 pounds. Sled dogs must take a short rest after pulling a sled for 1 hour; otherwise, they gain one level of exhaustion.
[!tip]+ Carry Capacity and Pulling Strength Carrying capacity for a creature is 15 times their base Strength. A large creature or beast of burden can carry twice this amount. An animal pulling a carriage, cart, chariot, sled, or wagon can move weight up to five times its base carrying capacity, including the weight of the vehicle. If multiple animals pull the same vehicle, they can add their carrying capacity together.
![[axe_beak.png]] ![[wolf_or_sled_dog.png]]
- Barding. Barding, or mount armor, can protect your mount. Barding costs four times the equivalent armor for humanoids and weighs twice as much. See barding for more. For reference, Axe Beaks have AC11 and +1 DEX while Sled Dogs have AC13 and +2 DEX.
- Saddles. A variety of saddles exist. For standard mounts, a riding saddle or a military saddle may be considered, the latter granting advantage against checks to remain mounted. Exotic mounts may require exotic saddles.
- Saddlebags. Can be used to store a modest amount of cargo on a mount.
- Bit and bridle. Standard gear to help direct a mount.
| Mounts and Equipment | Price (gp) | Weight (lbs) |
|---|---|---|
| Axebeak | 50 | NA |
| Dog | 30 | NA |
| Sled | 20 | NA |
| Barding | x4 | x2 |
| Bit and bridle | 2 | 1 |
| Saddle, Riding | 10 | 25 |
| Saddle, Military | 20 | 30 |
| Saddlebags | 4 | 8 |
Mountain Travel. At the end of each hour, the character or NPC leading the expedition must make a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) check. On a successful check, the hour’s journey was not hindered by weather or terrain. On a failed check, the party comes to an impasse and must backtrack, which costs an extra hour of travel. If the check fails by 5 or more, the party is caught in an avalanche as it backtracks. The avalanche starts 2d6 x 100 feet above the characters (see “Avalanches,” page 10).
| Method of Travel | Road (mph) | Tundra (mph) | Mountain (mph) | Endurance (h) | Carry/Hauling (lbs) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Axe Beak | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 420/NA |
| Dogsled, 6-7 dogs | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 720/2160 |
| Dogsled, 4-5 dogs | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 720/1440 |
| Dogsled, 2-3 dogs | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 720/720 |
| On foot, with snowshoes | 2 | 1 | 1/2 | 4 | NA |
| On foot | 2 | 1/2 | 1/4 | 4 | NA |
Notes:
- Endurance and Exhaustion. At the given endurance duration, if a short rest is not taken, mounts and characters on foot suffer 3 levels of revised exhaustion. Traveling on foot on roads ignores endurance restrictions.
- Hauling:
- Axe Beaks. Axe Beaks are not known to haul sleds nor wagons due to their fickle and fiery nature. Thus they are most commonly used for a single rider and small cargo. For reference, an axe beak's carrying capacity is 420 lbs. Theoretically, a hauling axe beak could pull up to 2100 lbs.
- Dogsleds. While the maximum hauling capacity for dogs scales with the number of dogs, the given speeds in this table are for an assumed load of up to 720 lbs. This load covers the maximum hauling capacity of two dogs and constitutes the musher and light cargo or a couple passengers. If hauling a greater load than 720 lbs, then use the speed and endurance statistics for a dogsled team with two fewer dogs.
- Mounted combat. The agility of an Axe Beak lends itself to mounted combat, as if the rider was mounted on a riding horse. The dogsled is less flexible in this regard, while ranged attacks may be made during a chase, the lack of maneuverability and the demands of coordinating a sled team makes it prohibitive to use the dogsled as a combat mount.