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What exactly is a dread wolf?

TethorilofLathanderTethorilofLathander Member Posts: 427
in Archive (General Discussion)
I've found no links to it on the Forgotten Realms wiki or Baldur's Gate wiki. I've heard various things about it varying from it being undead/summoned/just a tougher wolf.

Can anyone confirm what a dread wolf truly is?

Comments

  • karnor00karnor00 Member Posts: 680
    It's just a bigger scarier wolf as far as I'm aware.
  • TethorilofLathanderTethorilofLathander Member Posts: 427
    elminster said:

    Lore wise its an undead wolf. But mechanically the game doesn't treat it as being undead.

    Do you know if they become undead after being revived by mages? Or just 'naturally'?
  • AlexisisinneedAlexisisinneed Member Posts: 470
    I always though Dread wolves where wolves corrupted by darkness.
  • scriverscriver Member Posts: 2,072
    Huh. I always figured Dread Wolves were based on the architypical "extraordinary big scary wolves" of folklore.
  • scriverscriver Member Posts: 2,072
    Direwolves aren't dread enough and also it sounds bad :P
  • EudaemoniumEudaemonium Member Posts: 3,199
    Sertorius said:

    http://www.lomion.de/cmm/wolfdrea.php

    this should explain

    These things are way more hardcore than the ones in BG.
  • CorvinoCorvino Member Posts: 2,269
    Dire Wolves are based on an actual creature of the same name (now extinct) that lived in North America during the last ice age. They were similar to large grey wolves, but got outcompeted by their smaller cousins as very large prey became scarce at the end of the ice age.
  • SertoriusSertorius Member Posts: 172
    @Eudaemonium

    Indeed they are, but I would imagine most of the monsters you face in BG have been adjusted somewhat to fit into this setting. Like Gibberlings which are supposed to be packs of 40-100.

  • the_spyderthe_spyder Member Posts: 5,018
    Syntia13 said:

    elminster said:

    Lore wise its an undead wolf. But mechanically the game doesn't treat it as being undead.

    So they are zombie wolves, basically?
    Is it equivalent to ordinary human zombie? ... Not likely, since dread wolves are much nastier than normal ones, while human zombies are pushovers, much easier beat than human bandits. Maybe it's more like mummy wolf? Or is it a separate type of undead?
    There are human and elf vampires, and there are vampiric wolves, so if there are dread wolves, does it mean there are also 'dreadful undead humans' out there?
    Oh, oh, or is a dread wolf more like a revenant, or a lich? Man, the Forgotten Realms afterlife is complicated...
    ...please excuse the silliness, I had an intense day today, and I think my brain shut off. :D

    ...graaaahhh, braaaaaains..... *shuffles away*
    What if the zombies are of normal citizens. Certainly a zombie is tougher than a zero level.
    Wanderon said:

    Wolf with dreadlocks of course...

    Isn't that a rasta-wolf?

  • EudaemoniumEudaemonium Member Posts: 3,199
    In my mind, my Cleric/Necromancer's cat familiar is actually undead.
  • the_spyderthe_spyder Member Posts: 5,018
    Eudaemonium said:

    In my mind, my Cleric/Necromancer's cat familiar is actually undead.

    It's a cat. How can you tell the difference between alive (asleep) and dead?

  • DinoDino Member Posts: 291
    the_spyder said:

    Eudaemonium said:

    In my mind, my Cleric/Necromancer's cat familiar is actually undead.

    It's a cat. How can you tell the difference between alive (asleep) and dead?

    http://whyevolutionistrue.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/schrodingers-cat.jpg
  • CorvinoCorvino Member Posts: 2,269
    It depends on the age of the cat. I had a cat that got so elderly and skinny that it looked and smelled pretty dead even when it was walking around.
  • PugPugPugPug Member Posts: 560
    You know the Dread Pirate Roberts?

    Pirate Roberts doesn't have the same ring to it, does it? There's your answer.
  • TethorilofLathanderTethorilofLathander Member Posts: 427
    You know the saying...It's good luck to have a cat in the north.
  • MornmagorMornmagor Member Posts: 1,160
    It's the Wolf of Judge Dredd probably.

    Rumor has it that when you kill a dread wolf, you can hear screams involving "the Law" and betrayal.
  • meaglothmeagloth Member Posts: 3,806
    Dino said:

    the_spyder said:

    Eudaemonium said:

    In my mind, my Cleric/Necromancer's cat familiar is actually undead.

    It's a cat. How can you tell the difference between alive (asleep) and dead?

    http://whyevolutionistrue.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/schrodingers-cat.jpg
    That's awesome. So many schrödingers cat jokes....
  • smeagolheartsmeagolheart Member Posts: 7,963
    Dread Wolf, Dire Wolf. According to Theasarus.com these are still available: awful wolf, fearful wolf, fearsome wolf, frightening wolf, horrendous wolf, horrific wolf and terrible wolves. All they need is a palette swap!
  • NeonfiskNeonfisk Member Posts: 75
    If Dread Wolves are undead wolves and Dire Wolves are big wolves, what is keeping people from creating "Dread Dire Wolves™" ?
  • EudaemoniumEudaemonium Member Posts: 3,199
    Neonfisk said:

    If Dread Wolves are undead wolves and Dire Wolves are big wolves, what is keeping people from creating "Dread Dire Wolves™" ?

    The sanctity of the English language.
  • TethorilofLathanderTethorilofLathander Member Posts: 427
    Neonfisk said:

    If Dread Wolves are undead wolves and Dire Wolves are big wolves, what is keeping people from creating "Dread Dire Wolves™" ?

    Because there's bound to be a musical about 'The Dread Undead'.
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