Jarbo

Jarbo
2nd Edition Statistics
Size	Tiny
Alignment	Neutral
General Information
Activity cycle	Varies (usually night)
Diet	Herbivorous
Homeland(s)	The North
Intelligence	Animal
Favored climate	Any
Favored terrain	Desert
Appearance
Average height	2 ft (0.61 m)
History
Based on	Jerboa

A jarbo was a desert-dwelling rodent known for its speed and its preternatural ability to sense the presence of water.

Description

Jarbos were characterized by their large hind legs, which could propel their furry bodies forward at tremendous speeds. Their forelegs were stubby and their tails were long to provide balance. Different subspecies could vary in appearance, notably in their number of toes, the size of their ears, and/or whether there was fur on their tails. While their coats were generally a sandy color to help them camouflage in desert terrain, their coloration also varied depending on the environment. A mature jarbo grew to a height of about 2 feet (61 centimeters), but could squeeze into a much smaller space.

Behavior

While timid and skittish, jarbos were loyal companions if they recognized someone as a master or friend.

Jarbos were drawn to water, and even a small amount could be used as a lure for them.

Abilities

Jarbos were known to be blindingly fast.

They possessed a psionically enhanced sense of smell that allowed them to detect water across great distances regardless of the direction of the wind. For example, they could sense even a spoonful of water from 100 yards (91 meters), a barrelful from 1 mile (1.6 kilometers), and an oasis from across an entire region. This enhanced sense also helped them to detect edible and fluid-rich plants and insects.

Combat

While their teeth were quite sharp, jarbos were not particularly dangerous, especially because their first instinct was to flee from any creature bigger than them. The only exceptions to this were either if a tame jarbo sensed that its master was in danger or if a jarbo was driven mad by sickness: in rare instances, a jarbo came down with a rabies-like disease that caused them to foam at the mouth and to attack anything in sight, often fighting to the death. Creatures bitten by such a jarbo were at risk of becoming seriously ill.

Ecology

A jarbo enjoys a snack.

Jarbos could be found in the arctic, subarctic, and temperate deserts of the the North, such as in Anauroch. They were preyed upon by all manner of predators in their native deserts, and served as a key link in many food chains. To avoid these predators, jarbos were migratory, using their speed to outpace any pursuers. They traveled in colonies, known as "flocks", that migrated from one source of water to the next, generally by night. When a flock arrived at a new water source, they would locate a dry area to construct dozens of nests by digging out long, winding tunnels barely 1‑foot-wide (30‑centimeter) that led to burrows that were 3 feet (91 centimeters) across. When predators inevitably caught up after a few days, the jarbos would leave that night to flee to a new source of water.

While their migrations were dictated by water, jarbos actually needed very little water to survive: an adult could thrive on little more than 1 fluid ounce (30 milliliters) of water per day, and could survive almost a tenday with no water at all. This was in part because their diet—consisting of seeds, grass, and insects—provided them with enough water to survive.

Despite the occasional jarbo being overcome by the insanity-inducing "foaming disease", jarbos were generally not prone to disease.

Uses

The right buyer might pay as much as one gold piece for a jarbo pelt in good condition. These were occasionally used for ritualistic purposes, such as in clothing or ceremonial furniture, however their skins were generally too small and thin to be valuable to fur traders.