Monoceros

Basic Information

The Monoceros is a creature of Roman mythology somewhat similar to unicorn. It has a horse body, but is something composite monster in that it has the feet of an elephant, and the tail of a boar, and it's head is that of a stag. Instead of antlers on the stag head, it has an impressive 3-foot (1 meter) long black horn.

The monoceros had the power to survive a fall from any height by turning to take all the impact on its unbreakable horn, and would escape hunters by jumping off steep cliffs.

Sources

Bibliography

1. Wikipedia

2. Pliny the Elder's Natural History described the monoceros

Game and Story Use

• Can be used in all the ways a unicorn could in your story, but transposed to a different environment somewhere from ancient Greece or Rome to the miombo of Africa.
• The huge unbreakable horn is somehow cushioned it enough to survive a fall of any height. So that says some interesting things about the horn and/or skull of the beast.
  • Perhaps the horn has a springy, shock-absorbing quality, that might make it excellent raw material to build a bow, or maybe bracers or even lamellar armour. The unbreakable quality makes it seem like it would make a good spear, but if it absorbs shock too well, it might actually reduce the effectiveness of your attacks. I guess that depends on how you explain it.
  • If the monoceros decides to get aggressive, those shock-absorbing properties may mean it can really throw caution to the wind and charge headlong into danger. You might consider giving it an extra bonus on a charge attack.
• Noting the obvious: the "foot like an elephant" bit suggests the monoceros might just be a rhinoceros seen from a safe distance and described from imperfect memory then later embellished by listeners.