Dire badger

Dire badgers were bigger, tougher, smarter cousins of regular badgers. There were known to be animal companions of rangers, druids, and gnome cavaliers.

"Training a dire badger requires patience, endurance, and a good supply of berries."

- Excerpt from Races of Stone

Description
These sort and tough creatures had thick brown fur, short legs, and dangerously sharp claws. Their pointed faces had a mouth of sharp teeth.

Behavior
Dire badgers tended to live in solitude or cetes of up to five animals. They were fiercely territorial in the wild. They laired underground in the tunnels they burrowed. Their tough claws could dig through most things but rocks and the tunnels' diameter was around.

Combat
In combat, dire badgers became a fierce ball of claws and teeth, attacking their opponents relentlessly. Most hunters were wary of dire badgers' berserker rage was triggered by the creatures' being hurt in battle. The rage only passed if the dagger or the opponent were dead.

Ecology
Dire badgers were known to be tamed, trained, and serve as mounts. Gnomes were known to use trained dire badgers for their elite cavalry, with the riders having the ability to speak with animals once a day. A dire danger youth could cost around 100 gp with additional 15 gold to pay for their training. Upkeep of a domesticated or trained badger could come up to 8 gold per month.

Wild dire badgers could be found in the Forest of Amtar of Dambrath, South Faerûn, as well as the lands of Unther.

Dire badgers are one of the animals that could be summoned via the summon creature I spell.

History
In 1374 DR, the Cult of Tiamat in Unther fed dire badgers and other dangerous creatures to Grelixtralithimon, a redspawn birther.

Notable Dire Badgers

 * Zulkir was the awakened dire badger companion of Ryngoth, a member of the Cult of the Dragon in the ruins of Myth Drannor circa 1369 DR.

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * Pool of Radiance: Attack on Myth Drannor &bull; Tyranny of the Dragon Queen
 * Video Games
 * Neverwinter Nights &bull; Neverwinter Nights 2