Carnivorous ape

The carnivorous ape is a larger, stronger, and more aggressive relative of the gorilla. It lives in tropical jungles and plains, sometimes lairing in tall trees. Carnivorous apes have broad shoulders, thick bodies covered with black hair, long arms, and short legs. Hooked black claws grow from their fingers and toes. They have light brown faces, flaring nostrils, and mouths full of long sharp teeth for shredding and ripping flesh from prey. Carnivorous apes walk on all fours, using the knuckles of their hands for support. They can also swing through the trees.

Carnivorous apes have a fair intelligence and are very cunning. They typically hide in trees and stalk their prey for miles, dropping down to attack when their victim pauses to drink from a stream or is otherwise off-guard. In plains or other areas devoid of trees, they hide in tall grasses and thick bushes, leaping at a victim from behind. Carnivorous apes attack by rearing on their hind legs, flailing with their massive arms, and snapping with their powerful jaws.

When a carnivorous ape defeats an opponent or wishes to frighten an intruder, it stands on its hind legs, beats its hands against its chest, and bellows thunderously. The sound of a bellowing ape has been known to panic the timid.

Though aggressive by nature, carnivorous apes normally kill only for food or in defense of their families. They enjoy fruit and nuts, but most of their diet consists of rodents, small reptiles, eggs, and fish, as well as the occasional giant insect or carrion. Wild game supplements the family menu; antelope, buffalo, deer, and horses are among the apes' favorite prey.

The carnivorous ape's reputation as a man-eater is overrated. Although it is true that some eat humans exclusively, raiding villages and attacking hunting expeditions for prey, such families are rare. More common is the solitary man-eater, usually a frustrated ex-leader who attacks humans as much out of anger as hunger. Carnivorous apes are a favorite target for human sportsmen, who hunt them for trophies (pelts, hands, and heads). Additionally, certain primitive tribes mandate the killing of a carnivorous ape as a rite of passage.

Note: Carnivorous apes originally appeared in this form in the Monstrous Compendium Volume Two for the AD&D game from TSR. Their use here is for the purposes of providing context for the campaign only.