Arctic Stallion (3.5e Monster)

Arctic Stallion
''This horse has a thick coat of fur covering its body. Strands of the fur glitter with an icy blue gleam as if the creature has cold magic flowing right through it.''

Arctic stallions are the result of regular horses being infused with cold magic. They consume grasses that grow on top of snowy steppes, but can survive almost indefinitely just by being in the presence of cold magic.

The process of the cold infusion has granted this former species of animals sentience. Although they are unable to speak, they can easily understand the native languages of nearby humanoid species and often will work with friendly humanoid settlements in return for protection.

As a result, many humanoid settlements have tamed arctic stallions and it is not uncommon for them to be reared and trained by a skilled beast tamer.

Combat
Arctic stallions that live on the borders of the arcane arctic have learned that their cold magics can be very effective in warding off dangerous enemies. They are reluctant to make a full-scale assault immediately against creatures that threaten their herd and instead prefer to employ hit-and-run tactics.

Arctic stallions prefer to use difficult terrain to their advantage so that they can make a quick retreat if necessary. A typical attack from a herd will employ 3-5 stallions to quickly close in on their targets and use a Chill Touch coupled with a full attack to weaken their enemy.

If the enemy stays close together, the stallions will often try to fire several waves of Burning Hands to hopefully cause enough damage to cause the group to retreat.

If a wild arctic stallion is brought to less than half of its hit points, it will flee the battle and use its at will Ray of Frost to recover its hit points back to full. Once the entire herd has recovered from an attack, they will strike again (usually this is about 10-15 minutes later).

Training an Arctic Stallion
Although intelligent, an arctic stallion requires training before it can bear a rider in combat. To be trained, it must have a friendly attitude toward the trainer (this can be achieved through a successful Diplomacy check). Training a friendly arctic stallion requires six weeks of work and a DC 25 Handle Animal check.

An arctic stallion can fight while carrying a rider, but the rider cannot also attack unless he or she succeeds on a Ride check.

Arctic stallion foals are worth 4,000 gp each on the open market. Professional trainers charge 1,000 gp to rear or train an arctic stallion.

Carrying Capacity: A light load for an arctic stallion is up to 300 pounds; a medium load, 301–600 pounds; and a heavy load, 601–900 pounds. An arctic stallion can drag 4,500 pounds.