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Rather wild giant space hamster

A Giant space hamster is a bear-sized rodent from the Spelljammer campaign setting.[1]

"Well, we're certainly not likely to make this mistake again or at least not more than once again anyway."
- Gnome researcher upon creating the Two-headed Lernaean Bombardier Giant Space Hamster.[1]

Overview[]

Giant space hamsters did not evolve naturally, but were instead created by a tinker gnome research committee attempting to develop a relatively passive creature large enough to wind up the giant rubber bands attached to the huge running wheels inside gnomish spelljamming vessels. Teams of gnomes formerly performed this role, producing internal power through torque. The giant space hamsters developed by the research committee happily ran for hours inside their giant hamster wheels, and have been deemed a great success, eventually spreading throughout space wherever there are colonies of Krynnish gnomes.[1]

Description[]

Giant space hamsters are exactly what they sound like - enormous but cute rodents with thick fur. They come in a variety of colors, but are usually golden brown with white underbellies, bands and spots. They are well muscled but appear fat, and can store up to 200 pounds of food in their cheeks.[1]

Combat[]

Giant space hamsters normally only have a single type of attack – a nasty bite. Since most domestic breeds are quite cowardly, they avoid even this on most occasions. However, wild breeds are more aggressive, and they may briefly charge at anyone who approaches a burrow. Domesticated females protecting their litters will also be significantly more aggressive.

Careless gnome handlers have sometimes been bitten and stuffed into a cheek pouch. Gnomes unable to escape are merely covered in hamster spit, and are eventually spat out like old chewing gum when the hamster sees food.[1]

Habitat[]

Giant space hamsters can be found wherever tinker gnomes from Krynn have established a colony, including Ironpiece[2] and the Spectre in Greyspace,[3] as well as Kiri-Jolith in Krynnspace.[4]

Giant space hamsters live in small packs of up to 4 adults which are predominantly female, each of which can produce up to 4 young. Giant space hamsters reach breeding maturity within two years, and can easily have several litters every year. They can live up to 18 years at most, and remain fertile all their adult lives. The gnomes have been unable to figure out how to reduce their breeding rate, aside from separating the sexes (a conclusion suggested after a 22-year-long research program that included five gnome fatalities).[1]

Ecology[]

In the wild, giant space hamster easily fill the niche occupied by large browsing animals, though they lack any means of really defending themselves, and in fact often die out despite their extraordinary reproductive rate. They are preyed upon by large- and medium-size carnivores, but they are immune to all parasites and diseases, magical or not. Cold weather forces them to hibernate for up to six months until the weather improves.[1]

Uses[]

Apart from providing internal power to their spelljamming vessels, the gnomes have found that the meat of giant space hamsters is quite tasty. Known as spaham, most spacefaring gnomes eat large quantities of giant hamster meat with every meal, and many hamster ranches specialize in breeding giant space hamsters as livestock.[1]

Variant hamsters (L-R): Sabre toothed giant space hamster, miniature giant space hamster, and the fire-breathing phase doppelganger giant space hamster

Variants[]

"We completely fail to see why everyone is so upset, especially since biology is such an inexact science and for every step we take forward there must be two steps backward but anyway we said we were sorry and we'd like our funding back so we can pay our bail and go home."
- Gnome researcher upon creating the Fire-breathing Phasing Doppelganger Giant Space Hamster.[1]

Giant space hamsters are incredibly mutable, and introducing magical substances sourced from other creatures (or monsters) into their reproductive cycle has resulted in unbelievable new strains of giant space hamsters. Some gnomish communities deliberately breed unique subspecies in competition with other communities to produce the most interesting varieties.

Usually the results more or less resemble the standard giant space hamster except for what could be considered cosmetic differences. Some of the better known variants include the following:[1]

  • Albino giant space hamster
  • Cave-dwelling giant space hamster
  • Chartreuse giant space hamster
  • Flightless giant space hamster
  • Greater giant space hamster (plus Lesser variant of same)
  • Lesser giant space hamster (plus Greater variant of same)
  • Mottled giant space hamster
  • Ochre giant space hamster
  • Occidental giant space hamster
  • Oriental giant space hamster
  • Spotted giant space hamster
  • Not-quite-so-spotted giant space hamster
  • Only-a-little-spotted giant space hamster
  • Plaid giant space hamster
  • Three-toed giant space hamster
  • Wooly giant space hamster

Sometimes, however, this constant dabbling has resulted in some really unusual varieties, including the following:[1]

  • Abominable giant space hamsters are an albino variant adapted to arctic terrain, where they feed on conifers.
  • Armor-plated giant space hamsters are furless but instead have a thick rhino-like hide, and are incredibly aggressive.
  • Carnivorous flying giant space hamsters are the result of a "regrettable if understandable line of enquiry", and are bat-winged carnivores with claws and fangs.
  • Ethereal giant space hamsters are not actually ethereal; they are in fact translucent, with the result that only their skeletons can be clearly seen, which may frighten passing observers (as per the scare spell).
  • Fire-breathing phasing doppelganger giant space hamsters can breathe a 30-foot long cone of fire 3 times a day that is ten-foot wide at the end. They can also phase in and out of the Material plane like a phase spider six times a day, and can change their form and appear as any other bear-sized mammal within a minute. Worst of all, they are reasonably intelligent and can use these abilities to their best advantage.
  • Great horned giant space hamsters have a rhino-like horn at the end of their muzzle and can charge opponents.
  • Invisible giant space hamsters can become invisible at will once per day (as per the spell) for up to 80 minutes, and will remain invisible even if they enter combat.
  • Miniature giant space hamsters resemble normal terrestrial hamsters and are often kept as pets.
  • Rather wild giant space hamsters are more aggressive than normal, but make great breeding studs.[5]
  • Sabre-toothed giant space hamsters have a nasty overbite and can attack with their overgrown fangs, They remain omnivorous, however.
  • Subterranean giant space hamsters have enormous claws and can burrow through any material up to and including soft rock.
  • Sylvan or Jungle giant space hamsters can climb up any non-slick surface without falling.
  • Two-headed Lernaean bombardier giant space hamsters have two heads which can attack independently; can regenerate any injury; and can belch so loudly once per day they may stun anyone within 30-feet.
  • The Tyrranohamsterus Rex is an immense hamster variant that stands 25-feet high at the shoulder and weighs 75 tons. Harmless for the most part, they are easily frightened by loud noises, bright lights, fire, etc. and are prone to fleeing in a panic, flattening anything and everyone in their path for up to 4 miles. The now-defunct gnome colony that first bred this variant did so "because it was there."
  • Yellow musk giant space hamsters have yellow fur and emit a terrible odor. They produce a cloud of poisonous gas that can cause nausea, blindness and weakness in anyone within 30-feet.

Notable Giant space hamsters[]

  • Boo was a miniature giant space hamster and animal companion to the ranger Minsc.[6]
  • Fluff was a pet giant space hamster owned by the gnome Oswuggle.[7]
  • Nelly and Tinker powered the helm onboard the gnomish tradesman, the Astral Empress.[8]
  • Ruff and Widget powered the hydrodynamic pumping station onboard the gnomish vessel, the Perilous Halibut.[9]
  • The Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen, also known as Wooly Rupert, was reputedly an enormous, highly intelligent spelljamming giant space hamster who was greatly feared by all tinker gnomes.[1]

Signature Spelljammers[]

Giant space hamsters can be found on any gnomish vessel, running inside giant wheels and providing internal power to the ship, but they are most closely associated with the gnomish sidewheeler.[10]

Appendix[]

Gallery[]

External Links[]

References[]

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 Roger Moore, MC7 Monstrous Compendium Spelljammer Appendix, 1990, (TSR Inc.), Hamster, Giant Space entry
  2. Roger E. Moore, The Cloakmaster Cycle, The Maelstrom's Eye, 1992, (TSR Inc.), pages 140-141
  3. Nigel D. Findley, SJR6 Greyspace, 1992, (TSR Inc.), the Spectre chapter, pages 67-68 and 69
  4. Jean Rabe, SJR7 Krynnspace, 1993, (TSR Inc.), Zivilyn chapter, pages 53 and 55
  5. TSR Trading Card #716, 1992, (TSR Inc.), Rather Wild Giant Space Hamster
  6. James Ohlen, Baldur's Gate video game, 1998, (BioWare), publisher(s) Black Isle Studios, Interplay Entertainment
  7. TSR Trading Card #323, 1993, (TSR Inc.), Oswuggle
  8. Steve Kurtz, "An Artist's Errand", Dungeon Magazine issue 45, January/February 1994, (TSR Inc.), pages 13-14
  9. Roger E. Moore, The Cloakmaster Cycle, The Maelstrom's Eye, 1992, (TSR Inc.), page 164
  10. Jeff Grubb. AD&D Adventures in Space; Concordance of Arcane Space, TSR, Inc., 1989, Gnomish Sidewheeler entry, chapter 3: Ships of Wildspace (p.33)
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