# Animals in 40K



## KingOfCheese (Jan 4, 2010)

Besides other races (obviously), are there any animals in 40K?

I've heard of Grox before.
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Grox
They are basically todays cow.

Are their any other animals though?
Pets?
Birds?
Beasts?
Cats?
Insects?


Mainly interested in what the civilian population actually eats, and if they have pets.



(Leave Nids, Orks, etc out of it lol)


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## Tebok (Apr 25, 2008)

I always wondered that myself... with Earth a polluted wasteland, do any of Earth's species survive in zoos or on other worlds, I mean aside from rodents and the like?

What about Space Marine Kettehs? D:


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## Baron Spikey (Mar 26, 2008)

Yeah there are loads of animals, when Humanity originally spread throughout the stars they took the animals of earth with them, that's why there are Wolves/Bears etc on Fenris, Toads on Catachan etc


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## locustgate (Dec 6, 2009)

For civs there are still cats and dogs. Some rouge traders and eldars have empath cats.
As Baron Said, but they also brought back some extinct animals, such as mamoths.


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## OrkByTheGraceOfGork (Jun 9, 2010)

I've heard and read about your typical cats, dogs, and "livestock". There was something about falconry and Grynx the psyker companions. Don't forget the "civilized" Orks and their pervasive Squigs.

Grynx


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## Kulzanar (Aug 10, 2010)

The galaxy is still filled with animals, some taken by the first explorers who left earth, other are native to a planet. For example, in Gaunt's Ghost they describe how dozens of water birds are looking for their daily fish in the river. Ofcourse they decide to shoot some for a nice roasted meal. Also in the same book they see some herders herding a troop of chelons, which seem to be bulls/buffalo's but size times 2-3.

So yes, there are still a lot of animals around, grox could indeed be the new cow, I haven't really found any detailed information on how they look or act in the books.

Thing is though that most of these animals adapt to their new surroundings so you get quite some differences from the animals we know. They just took the next step in evolution.


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## pb100 (Sep 11, 2010)

Huron Blackheart has a pet Hamadrya, but I'm not sure if that's a real animal or some kind of minor daemon. I know he uses it as a familiar.


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## Angel of Blood (Aug 18, 2010)

Again Gaunts Ghosts mention how the Imperium brought(willingly or not) rats and spiders with them and inadvertently spread them across the galaxy


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## jamierobinson94 (Jun 20, 2009)

Kulzanar said:


> grox could indeed be the new cow, I haven't really found any detailed information on how they look or act in the books.


From what I understand the Grox are large docile lizards since in one WD issue (can't remember which) they use a cold one model to represent one.


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## LukeValantine (Dec 2, 2008)

Catchian devils = Giant crabs/centipedes (Possibly freshwater, possibly terrestrial).
Catchian Brainleaf = mind controlling plant.
Catchian Spiker = Plant that turns peaple into plants.
Catchian Flying Swamp Mamba/Catachan Black Viper = deadly snakes
Catchian Great Barking Toads = explodes

Also on Tanith they haunting some sort of animal.

Unfortunately 40k is actually a fairly 1 dimensional narrative that rarely fleshes out the flora/fauna, day to day lives ect of the worlds they mention.

Also the Eldar seem to have weird cat creatures as pets (Ref the main rule book)


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## TheThousandthSon (Sep 30, 2010)

Horses must have been taken with them as most IG rouge riders use them and i know the Death corps of Krieg use a decendant of the earth horse that has evolved abit, Imperial armour should elaborate on that.

I also remember afew years ago in a white dwarf a "creature feature" which gave you examples of native animals you could include in your games of 40k and the means to make up your own.


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## Giant Fossil Penguin (Apr 11, 2009)

Most of the times that an animal is referenced in the fluff, they go for a more generic name; so rather than call it a horse, they will go for 'Hippines'. There will be a huge number of different horse types around, taking them to different planets will certainly have increased the number of breeds and probably introduced some new, but closely related species, especially if they could interbreed/hybridise the horse with xenos animals so being more generic will make it easier to get the point across, but without worrying about the exact flavour of beast we're talking about.
Apart from Hippines, we also have Ovines (Sheep-type), Porcines (Pig-type) and Ursines (Bear-type) mentioned. In one Ghosts book, on the world with the trench war, there is an elite formation that seems to ride Ostrich-analogues and have had some sort of 'mind link' implanted so they can control the beasts without using their hands.
There is also the Ambull which seems to some sort of insect-like, burrowing beast with an armoured exoskeleton; it is huge and seemingly incredibly dangerous. These are mentioned in the Cain book 'Caves of Ice'.
The Chelons are actually, if my tiny mind hasn't betrayed me, some sort of Tortoise-type beast.
The Rogue Trader book was really good for this type of stuff. There was a type of Clam thing, wasn't there? It hid under the sand and would grab anything that walked nearby.
I suppose that if you want to leave-out Xenos animals, then there is probably a myriad variation of those animals that Humanity has found 'useful'; any other animals that Humanity hasn't found a use for has probably become extinct. After all, I'm not sure what use we could find for a Sloth?

GFP


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## DestroyerHive (Dec 22, 2009)

I know Space Wolves have giant wolves. Also, the "Stormcaller" has a bird on his shoulder (I don't play SW, so I don't know what specie it is). Also, there's the Rough Riders who have horses.


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## SnoopyChicken (Sep 23, 2010)

In the first space wolves book, Ragnar and his blood claw hunt a deer on Fenris.
Oh and there are giant spiders on terra (in the undercities).
Rats just about everywhere.


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## Romolo (Sep 6, 2010)

_Theres no wolves on Fenris_.


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## gen.ahab (Dec 22, 2009)

They are wolves, but then again they are not. Think about it, are all indians indians? No, but they are still called indians. Same goes for the wolves on Fenris; they aren't wolves as we know them to be, but they are still wolves because that is what they are called.


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## Imperious (May 20, 2009)

Do orks count? They're really just green gorillas...


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## KingOfCheese (Jan 4, 2010)

Imperious Rex said:


> Do orks count? They're really just green gorillas...


They could almost be categorized as flora rather than fauna.


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## Serpion5 (Mar 19, 2010)

There`s also mention of creatures called ambulls in the Ciaphas Cain series, Caves of Ice I believe. Small angry things that maul you and such...

And yes, cats and dogs, thousands of types of birds, horses, cattle creatures, various aquativ life forms, I have read of plenty of animals in fluff all over the place. You tend to just glance and forget these things until you actually think about it.


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## Chimaera (Feb 1, 2010)

gen.ahab said:


> They are wolves, but then again they are not. Think about it, are all indians indians? No, but they are still called indians. Same goes for the wolves on Fenris; they aren't wolves as we know them to be, but they are still wolves because that is what they are called.


That reasoning works for me gen.ahab


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## ThatOtherGuy (Apr 13, 2010)

I wouldn't be surprised if during the dark age of technology humans brought almost all of the species of earth along with them... except for chihuahuas... Because nobody loves chihuahuas.


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## Chompy Bits (Jun 13, 2010)

Giant Fossil Penguin said:


> In one Ghosts book, on the world with the trench war, there is an elite formation that seems to ride Ostrich-analogues and have had some sort of 'mind link' implanted so they can control the beasts without using their hands.


Hahahaha... I can just imagine that. A bunch of ostriches charging into battle. "Be careful son, treat your vehicle with respect or it might kick the shit out of you."




Imperious Rex said:


> Do orks count? They're really just green gorillas...


I've never heard of a gorilla with a rocket strapped to its back carrying a giant cleaver.


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## KingOfCheese (Jan 4, 2010)

Chompy Bits said:


> I've never heard of a gorilla with a rocket strapped to its back carrying a giant cleaver.


Never heard of a fungus doing it either lol.


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## Chompy Bits (Jun 13, 2010)

KingOfCheese said:


> Never heard of a fungus doing it either lol.


This is true . So does that mean we've got gaint, murderous fungus-gorillas with guns? Man, you gotta love 40k.


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## Giant Fossil Penguin (Apr 11, 2009)

We've got all the psyber-animals- Ravens/Eagles/Rats etc. In Nemesis there are Cockroaches and other, winged, insects that are slaved to a data/computer-system. There must also be loads of Bovines out there on the various Agri-worlds; unless the humble cow has been out-competed by the Grox, or hybridised with it until there is no longer anything that we recognise as a Cow. Although, does milk come from Grox? If not, then there'll still be Cows; after all, they're a known quantity and who'd trust milk from Xenos that don't go 'Moo'?

GFP


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## Serpion5 (Mar 19, 2010)

ThatOtherGuy said:


> I wouldn't be surprised if during the dark age of technology humans brought almost all of the species of earth along with them... except for chihuahuas... Because nobody loves chihuahuas.


'Penguins? Check...

Mosquitoes? Check...

Chihuahuas?! What the fuck? Leave them here!'



Giant Fossil Penguin said:


> We've got all the psyber-animals- Ravens/Eagles/Rats etc. In Nemesis there are Cockroaches and other, winged, insects that are slaved to a data/computer-system. There must also be loads of Bovines out there on the various Agri-worlds; unless the humble cow has been out-competed by the Grox, or hybridised with it until there is no longer anything that we recognise as a Cow. Although, does milk come from Grox? If not, then there'll still be Cows; after all, they're a known quantity and who'd trust milk from Xenos that don't go 'Moo'?
> 
> GFP


Cows were wiped out by a combination of Mad Cow Disease and a sudden influx of new beef repipes invented during the early years of the 24th millennium. I think...


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## locustgate (Dec 6, 2009)

Serpion5 said:


> 'Penguins? Check...
> 
> Mosquitoes? Check...
> 
> ...


Sooooo.....the milk comes from goats.


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## MuSigma (Jul 8, 2010)

There are Carnadons (6 limbed sabre tooth tiger type predators almost as large as a horse) on Gudrun.
Some giant Mammoths on a planet visited in Ravenors first book.
Wild life features heavily in the Eisenhorn and Ravenor series.


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## Waaagh_Bong (Aug 10, 2010)

Just something i think about from time to time. On Tyran Primus, the outpost was heavily fortified to resist the fearsome storms and sea creatures. Most have been some rather large pissed off things on that rock.


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## SnoopyChicken (Sep 23, 2010)

MuSigma said:


> There are Carnadons (6 limbed sabre tooth tiger type predators almost as large as a horse) on Gudrun.
> Some giant Mammoths on a planet visited in Ravenors first book.
> Wild life features heavily in the Eisenhorn and Ravenor series.


Just read the fight with the carnadons today 

Currently(for me at least) eisenhorn is on a planet with "ball trees" which are trees filled with a gas lighter than air so they can roll around, on the same planet their are also creatures that sound like elephants with thin slender legs that eisenhorn hypothesises contain some sort of gas bladder to support them


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## Brother Arnold (Aug 29, 2010)

SnoopyChicken said:


> eisenhorn is on a planet with "*ball trees*"


That sounds SO wrong...:rofl:

How are you all forgetting the Ptera-Squirrels?


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## locustgate (Dec 6, 2009)

SnoopyChicken said:


> Just read the fight with the carnadons today
> 
> Currently(for me at least) eisenhorn is on a planet with "ball trees" which are trees filled with a gas lighter than air so they can roll around, on the same planet their are also creatures that sound like elephants with thin slender legs that eisenhorn hypothesises contain some sort of gas bladder to support them


Everything there is gassy


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