Rock Dogs are a type of mount found in Volcana, Neo Babylon pens, and Pet Shops.
Properties[]
Rock Dogs are completely immune to fire, and will not even flinch if attacked by an attack exclusively made of fire, such the flames of a Fire Bug or the presence of a Magmar. Riders atop Rock Dogs also share this ability. Despite their resistance to fire, it is only just that, and Rock Dogs are not immune to Lava and riders wearing a flammable pack item such as a Jetpack will still explode if they make contact with fire.
When untamed, Rock Dogs will spit their fireballs at the player, dealing two damage, igniting any pack items they are wearing, and having the potential to infinitely stun the player until their eventual death.
In order to make players mounting a Rock Dog appear normally, The hitbox for landing on and taming a Rock Dog is slightly elevated compared to all other mounts, making it much more difficult to properly get onto a Rock Dog when attempting to tame one from a diagonal angle.
When tamed, the player can use their fireball attack to easily dispatch of most enemies, burn specific objects, and even cook Cave Turkeys. Note that they do not grant any extra mobility other than its double jump unlike other mounts.
Cavemen can occasionally be seen riding tamed Rock Dogs, who will order them to shoot their fireballs at the player and move at incredibly high speeds. If the Rock Dog is relieved of its rider, they will be already tamed and will no longer attack the player.
Strategy[]
- Rock Dogs are arguably one of the most dangerous enemies in Spelunky 2 when untamed. Their elevated mounting hitbox makes an attack from a diagonal direction much more difficult, and facing a Rock Dog head-on will likely get the player stuck in an infinite loop of being hit by their fireballs and/or detonate any flammable pack items that they may be wearing.
- Because of this, the best way to deal with a Rock Dog is to throw an item at it from a safe distance. Players wanting to tame a Rock Dog may want to stun them with their whip and place their stunned body into a one tile wide space so that they do not move, allowing the player to more easily land on them.
- Rock Dogs are an incredibly valuable mount when tamed, as not only will the player enjoy all of the benefits that all other mounts provide, but they may also deal heavy damage or cook Cave Turkeys with its fireballs, while passing through most hazards in Volcana with impunity.