Dilophosaurus, the Twin-Crested Hunter
Dilophosaurus wetherilli is a large, fast predatory dinosaur recognisable at once by the paired crests rising along its skull. Roughly 23 feet long, it is no delicate poison-spitter: it is a substantial theropod whose long jaws and capable forelimbs make close contact with one a dangerous mistake.
At a Glance
No venom. No acid spit. No expanding neck frill. Those famous traits belong to fictional portrayals, not to the fossil evidence for Dilophosaurus.
Game Mechanics
These builds treat the dinosaur’s comparatively capable forelimbs as its distinctive encounter feature: it catches and controls prey at close quarters before bringing its jaws to bear. That is an RPG interpretation inspired by the animal’s anatomy, not a claim that a particular hunting sequence has been directly preserved in the fossil record.
Dilophosaurus
Large Beast (Dinosaur), Unaligned
AC 13
Initiative +3 (13)
HP 60 (8d10 + 16)
Speed 50 ft.
Skills Perception +3
Senses Passive Perception 13
Languages None
CR 3 (XP 700; PB +2)
Actions
Multiattack. The Dilophosaurus makes one Grasping Claws attack and one Bite attack.
Grasping Claws. Melee Attack Roll: +6, reach 5 ft. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) Slashing damage. If the target is a Medium or smaller creature, it has the Grappled condition (escape DC 14). Until that grapple ends, the Dilophosaurus can’t use Grasping Claws against another target.
Bite. Melee Attack Roll: +6, reach 5 ft. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) Piercing damage, plus 4 (1d8) Piercing damage if the target is Grappled by the Dilophosaurus.
Dilophosaurus
CR 5 • XP 1,600 • N Large animal
Init +2; Senses low-light vision, scent; Perception +15
Defense
AC 18, touch 11, flat-footed 16 (+2 Dex, +7 natural, −1 size)
hp 59 (7d8 + 28)
Fort +9, Ref +7, Will +4
Offense
Speed 50 ft.
Melee 2 claws +10 (1d6+5 plus grab), bite +7 (1d8+2)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Special Attacks grab
Statistics
Str 20, Dex 15, Con 18, Int 2, Wis 14, Cha 8
Base Atk +5; CMB +11 (+15 grapple); CMD 23
Feats Multiattack, Run, Skill Focus (Perception), Weapon Focus (claw)
Skills Perception +15
Ecology
Environment warm river floodplains and badlands, especially Hollow Earth
Organization solitary or pair
Treasure none
Special Ability
Grab (Ex). If the Dilophosaurus hits a Medium or smaller creature with a claw attack, it can attempt to start a grapple without provoking an attack of opportunity. Its +4 bonus from grab is already included in the listed +15 grapple modifier.
Dilophosaurus
Large Animal
Hit Dice 7d8+21 (52 hp)
Initiative +2
Speed 50 ft. (10 squares)
Armor Class 17 (−1 size, +2 Dex, +6 natural), touch 11, flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple +5/+14
Attack foreclaw +9 melee (1d6+5 plus improved grab)
Full Attack 2 foreclaws +9 melee (1d6+5 plus improved grab) and bite +7 melee (1d8+2)
Space/Reach 10 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks improved grab
Special Qualities low-light vision, scent
Saves Fort +8, Ref +7, Will +4
Abilities Str 20, Dex 15, Con 16, Int 2, Wis 15, Cha 8
Skills Listen +9, Spot +9, Survival +6
Feats Multiattack, Run, Track
Environment warm river floodplains and badlands, especially Hollow Earth
Organization solitary or pair
Challenge Rating 5
Treasure none
Alignment always neutral
Advancement 8–14 HD (Large); 15–21 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment —
Combat
A Dilophosaurus closes rapidly and uses its forelimbs to seize prey before biting at close range. It lacks the pouncing attack routine of several other predatory dinosaurs and is most dangerous once it has established a hold.
Improved Grab (Ex). To use this ability, the Dilophosaurus must hit a creature at least one size category smaller than itself with a foreclaw attack. It can then attempt to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity.
Skills. A Dilophosaurus has a +4 racial bonus on Listen and Spot checks.
Encountering a Dilophosaurus
At Close Quarters
Its danger lies in reach, speed and control rather than exotic powers. A Dilophosaurus that reaches human-sized prey tries to catch it with the forelimbs and keep it inside biting distance. Open ground therefore favours the dinosaur; obstacles, elevation and narrow approaches give its quarry more opportunities to deny the charge.
Signs of the Hunter
Deep theropod tracks, disturbed river margins, stripped carcasses and sudden silence among smaller animals can announce a large predator before the animal itself appears. Its conspicuous paired crests make an unobstructed adult difficult to mistake for another large theropod.
Ecology & Behaviour
Dilophosaurus wetherilli lived in the Early Jurassic of what is now the American Southwest. Fossils come from the Kayenta Formation, whose rocks preserve an arid landscape crossed by streams and rivers, with floodplains, small lakes and periodically wetter corridors rather than an endless tropical jungle.
Modern anatomical work has overturned the old picture of an unusually fragile predator with jaws too weak for serious hunting. The skull was more robust than earlier reconstructions suggested, while the forelimbs were strongly built and capable of grasping or manipulating prey.
The paired skull crests are genuine. They probably supported a keratinous covering that made them even more conspicuous in life, but their precise function remains uncertain. Display, recognition or signalling are reasonable possibilities; hypnotising prey is not established behaviour.
Its social life is likewise uncertain. The game statistics allow solitary animals and occasional pairs without turning speculative pack hunting into palaeontological fact.
Dilophosaurus in 1454
Stable populations survive in the ancient river systems, badlands and forested basins of Hollow Earth, where prehistoric ecosystems persist beneath the surface world.
A Dilophosaurus encountered above ground is therefore exceptional rather than commonplace. It may have followed prey through an interior passage, escaped from a collection of living curiosities, survived within an isolated subterranean refuge, or been transported deliberately by travellers who badly underestimated the difficulty of containing a seven-metre predator.
Such encounters are especially dangerous because surface communities have little practical experience of dinosaur behaviour. A frightened horse, narrow village street or crowded river crossing can turn the animal’s arrival into a disaster even before it attacks anyone.
A Scientific Reconstruction
Reconstructions change as new fossils are described and old specimens are re-examined. This older image remains useful for showing the animal in a natural resting posture, while later anatomical work has substantially refined the reconstruction of the skull, body and forelimbs.
The Dinosaur Popular Culture Invented
The Fossil Animal
- About 7 metres long.
- A substantial Early Jurassic predator.
- Two genuine bony cranial crests.
- Capable forelimbs and a more robust skull than older reconstructions suggested.
- No demonstrated venom apparatus.
The Famous Fictional Version
- Much smaller than the real animal.
- Spits venom at distant targets.
- Possesses a large expanding neck frill.
- Uses these invented features as its main weapons.
The cinematic creature is memorable fantasy design, but venom-spitting and the expandable frill have no supporting fossil evidence. They are deliberately excluded from the standard SpiralWorlds Dilophosaurus.
Further Viewing
For a useful overview of the modern reconstruction, including the skull, crests, forelimbs and the famous venom-and-frill misconceptions:
Explore More
Sources & Licensing
- Marsh, Adam D. & Timothy B. Rowe. “A comprehensive anatomical and phylogenetic evaluation of Dilophosaurus wetherilli.” Journal of Paleontology 94, Supplement S78 (2020).
- U.S. National Park Service — Kayenta Formation .
- Natural History Museum, London — Dilophosaurus .
- Heather Kyoht Luterman — Dilophosaurus wetherilli reconstruction , 2009, CC BY 2.5 .
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