Dire Lion (3.5e Monster)

You may be looking for the Dire Lion from the SRD instead.

Dire Lion
Dire lions are patient hunters, just like their smaller cousins, but apt to take on bigger prey.

Dire lions grow to be up to 15 feet long and weigh up to 3,500 pounds.

Strategies and Tactics
A dire lion is all about the initial attack. It waits patiently, hiding in very tall grass and then suddenly charges out with a deadly pounce. If all its attack hit on a pounce, it will deal 11d6+10 damage (average 48.5).

After a pounce however, the lion is not as strong a fighter, although still no pushover. Dire lions tend to hunt in pairs to make good use of their sneak attack through flanking. At the beginning of combat they usually focus on a single target, one dire lion charging from one side, while the other readies an action to pounce from the other side as soon as its opposite is adjacent to the enemy so that both get their sneak attacks off in tandem.

Treasure
A dire lion pelt is actually exceptionally durable. It can either be used as 1,500 gp worth of materials towards creating any magic item that provides damage reduction or the pelt can provide enough material to fashion a non-magical cloak that provides DR 1/&mdash;. Dire lion pelts can be sold on the open market for 1,500 gp, generally, as well.

&rarr; Bestiary