Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Which prehistoric animals would be best in ancient warfare? From theropod dinosaurs to monstertooth dolphins to hyaenodonts the size of polar bears, we’ll discuss how ancient militaries could have utilized prehistoric animals to wage battles for dominance. In the first section, we’ll focus on realism, accounting for which animals could be best domesticated, care and feeding requirements, and practical roles that they could fill, including: Scouts and Communication; Light Cavalry; Shock Troops; Beasts of Burden; and Mascots. Then we’ll take more of an epic fantasy approach to see how prehistoric animals could be used in battle when a little bit of magic allows for better domestication and communication. How would megatheropods and megasauropods be used in an epic military setting?
Thanks to @GojiGuyy for his guest appearance! Thumbnail variants art by SkymanPaleo and Rudolf Hima! Goji Lisowicia by Dung Tien Nguyen instagram.com/counldntthinkof1
00:00: Which prehistoric animals would be best in ancient warfare?
00:49: How animals have been used in warfare historically
02:38: Prehistoric Animals for Scouts and Communication
04:39: Prehistoric Animals as Light Cavalry
08:00: Prehistoric Animals as Shock Troops
11:48: Prehistoric Animals as Beasts of Burden
14:06: Prehistoric Animals as Mascots of War
15:38: Prehistoric Animals in Epic Military Fantasy
REFERENCES
Extinction Theme by Poliostasis
Art references by Alphonse Milne-Edwards; Dinosaurs Rock Superstore; Dega180; Tomasz Sulej and Grzegorz Niedźwiedzki 2019;
War animals military-history.org/feature/war-culture-animals-of-war.htm
Marine mammals in warfare navalunderseamuseum.org/marinemammals/#:~:text=Navy%20dolphins%20and%20sea%20lions,that%20outperform%20human%2Dmade%20technology.
Molossian hounds scipioafricanus.org/2016/02/26/the-dogs-of-war-molossus
Messenger pigeons atlasobscura.com/articles/ancient-egypt-pigeon-problem
First fossilized evidence of magnetoreception in animals cam.ac.uk/research/news/ancient-animal-gps-identified-in-magnetic-fossils
Crows potentially understanding recursion better than non-human primates researchgate.net/publication/7738662_Magnetoreception_and_Its_Use_in_Bird_Navigation/link/5b0a388da6fdcc8c2532591c/download?_tp=eyJjb250ZXh0Ijp7ImZpcnN0UGFnZSI6InB1YmxpY2F0aW9uIiwicGFnZSI6InB1YmxpY2F0aW9uIn19
Camel warfare nzhistory.govt.nz/page/imperial-camel-corps
Dogsleds have been around for thousands of years nature.com/articles/349374a0
Hadrosaur intelligence anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ar.20984
Check out Extinction: Obsidian Dawn in eBook and hardcover!
Amazon eBook: amazon.com/Obsidian-Dawn-Book-One-Extinction-ebook/dp/B0FHR3VP8F/?tag=offa01-20
Kobo eBook: kobo.com/us/en/ebook/extinction-obsidian-dawn?sId=5a79bcb5-e681-411d-b57d-6f273187dc72&ssId=RYkToGs62_3kAhonq0dnq&cPos=1
Amazon hardcover: https://a.co/d/c6s9Fer
IngramSpark hardcover: shop.ingramspark.com/b/084?params=SdJgbIcIl69Zc2idsXehvxQzEDSBzhl0z1s0NhxMHNe
Which prehistoric animals would be best in ancient warfare? From theropod dinosaurs to monstertooth dolphins to hyaenodonts the size of polar bears, we’ll discuss how ancient militaries could have utilized prehistoric animals to wage battles for dominance. In the first section, we’ll focus on realism, accounting for which animals could be best domesticated, care and feeding requirements, and practical roles that they could fill, including: Scouts and Communication; Light Cavalry; Shock Troops; Beasts of Burden; and Mascots. Then we’ll take more of an epic fantasy approach to see how prehistoric animals could be used in battle when a little bit of magic allows for better domestication and communication. How would megatheropods and megasauropods be used in an epic military setting?
Thanks to @GojiGuyy for his guest appearance! Thumbnail variants art by SkymanPaleo and Rudolf Hima! Goji Lisowicia by Dung Tien Nguyen instagram.com/counldntthinkof1
00:00: Which prehistoric animals would be best in ancient warfare?
00:49: How animals have been used in warfare historically
02:38: Prehistoric Animals for Scouts and Communication
04:39: Prehistoric Animals as Light Cavalry
08:00: Prehistoric Animals as Shock Troops
11:48: Prehistoric Animals as Beasts of Burden
14:06: Prehistoric Animals as Mascots of War
15:38: Prehistoric Animals in Epic Military Fantasy
REFERENCES
Extinction Theme by Poliostasis
Art references by Alphonse Milne-Edwards; Dinosaurs Rock Superstore; Dega180; Tomasz Sulej and Grzegorz Niedźwiedzki 2019;
War animals military-history.org/feature/war-culture-animals-of-war.htm
Marine mammals in warfare navalunderseamuseum.org/marinemammals/#:~:text=Navy%20dolphins%20and%20sea%20lions,that%20outperform%20human%2Dmade%20technology.
Molossian hounds scipioafricanus.org/2016/02/26/the-dogs-of-war-molossus
Messenger pigeons atlasobscura.com/articles/ancient-egypt-pigeon-problem
First fossilized evidence of magnetoreception in animals cam.ac.uk/research/news/ancient-animal-gps-identified-in-magnetic-fossils
Crows potentially understanding recursion better than non-human primates researchgate.net/publication/7738662_Magnetoreception_and_Its_Use_in_Bird_Navigation/link/5b0a388da6fdcc8c2532591c/download?_tp=eyJjb250ZXh0Ijp7ImZpcnN0UGFnZSI6InB1YmxpY2F0aW9uIiwicGFnZSI6InB1YmxpY2F0aW9uIn19
Camel warfare nzhistory.govt.nz/page/imperial-camel-corps
Dogsleds have been around for thousands of years nature.com/articles/349374a0
Hadrosaur intelligence anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ar.20984
Check out Extinction: Obsidian Dawn in eBook and hardcover!
Amazon eBook: amazon.com/Obsidian-Dawn-Book-One-Extinction-ebook/dp/B0FHR3VP8F/?tag=offa01-20
Kobo eBook: kobo.com/us/en/ebook/extinction-obsidian-dawn?sId=5a79bcb5-e681-411d-b57d-6f273187dc72&ssId=RYkToGs62_3kAhonq0dnq&cPos=1
Amazon hardcover: https://a.co/d/c6s9Fer
IngramSpark hardcover: shop.ingramspark.com/b/084?params=SdJgbIcIl69Zc2idsXehvxQzEDSBzhl0z1s0NhxMHNe
