DM: The dragons wreak havoc on Helix.
Fluttershy: Are the people okay? Is there anything we can do?
DM: The mayor is in the town square, directing everyone to safety. The best thing for you to do would be stop the spell at its source.
Twilight Sparkle: Which means we need to get back to the castle...that we were teleported an unknown distance from.
Applejack: Dagnabbit.
Twilight Sparkle: Does the mayor know where the castle is and how to get there quickly?
DM: He has some animals you can ride, but no clue where the castle is, since it moves.
Fluttershy: Does Uni have a spell that could track it?
DM: Yes, but she can't ride the animals.
Fluttershy: With Bobby's strength, that's easy enough to solve, I think.
Pinkie Pie: What's our ride, Spike?
DM: They're...uh...horses.
Fluttershy: What are their names?
DM: They're not the talking kind.
Fluttershy: Oh, have they taken a vow of silence?
DM: ...yes.
Guest Author's Note: "Sometimes, your players will say something so out of left-field to you that the only option is to say yes. You can see where they were coming from, given that they're working with limited information, and as DM, you are not. They don't know what is or isn't possible, given the general weirdness of TTRPGs. Sometimes, the idea is cooler than whatever you had planned. Sometimes, you don't want to break their heart. Sometimes, you're just confused and the yes slips out in the awkward silence. Either way, congrats on making horse monks canon. I guess the caparisons you see on them on this page are the traditional robes of their order.
Honestly, I'm tempted to add an order of monastic horses to one of my future campaigns. Just imagine how unsettling it would be to encounter a horse, a 1,000 pound animal, that makes absolutely zero sounds. That's somehow more strange than a horse that talks."
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Sounds like the Azata commander just got some new recruits! They'll feel right at home with the treants and the squad of mimics led by Sir Cultist's Bed.
Wrath of the Righteous is fun.
That's a nasty thought. A horse's kick is bad enough news to begin with. Now you just gave them Improved Unarmed Strength, and eventually Flurry of Blows.
That sounds like classic war horse training if you want a realistic way to create the build. War horses were taught to never spook which would work nicely as a type of meditation and trample/kick those approaching on foot and fallen enemies at their rider's command. Horse monks would be the most desired steeds ever and a group mounted exclusively on them would be feared. Add in a vow of silence, and you have a terrifying mount that would be great for skirmishing or cavalry charges.
Indeed. I've always wanted to try my PC concept of playing an intelligent monk pony (or is that pony monk?) In 5e, but finding a group willing to let me try is difficult. I could steal some of the centaur race build to make it easy.
I recall seeing somebody's idea for an adventure many years ago, replacing the standard 'Mad Wizard' with a 'Mad Druid' who was uplifting animals so they could take class levels. Things like a Viper with rogue levels, so it can get sneak attack damage to go with it's venom, a Barbarian Bear, a wolf who's also a fighter, maybe a raccoon wizard with the Silent Spell feat, etc
Tongue of the Sun and Moon. Let the horses communicate via silent body language.
Alternatively, all the ponies of Equestria save the very youngest are at least 13th level monks, and that is why Equestria does not fear its neighbors, not even the dragons.
Well one time I played a group with the DM allowed an companion elephant into a dungeon, so an Unicorn riding a monk-horse it's not that far-fetched...
Guest Author's Note: "Sometimes, your players will say something so out of left-field to you that the only option is to say yes. You can see where they were coming from, given that they're working with limited information, and as DM, you are not. They don't know what is or isn't possible, given the general weirdness of TTRPGs. Sometimes, the idea is cooler than whatever you had planned. Sometimes, you don't want to break their heart. Sometimes, you're just confused and the yes slips out in the awkward silence. Either way, congrats on making horse monks canon. I guess the caparisons you see on them on this page are the traditional robes of their order.
Honestly, I'm tempted to add an order of monastic horses to one of my future campaigns. Just imagine how unsettling it would be to encounter a horse, a 1,000 pound animal, that makes absolutely zero sounds. That's somehow more strange than a horse that talks."