Eagle 5e: Stats, Eagle Familiars and Cliff Encounters

An eagle is a CR 0 Small beast with AC 12, 3 hit points (4 in 2024), a 60-foot fly speed and talons that hit at +4 for 4 (1d4 + 2) slashing damage. That's four times what a hawk, owl or raven deals, and its eyesight matches the hawk's. Players usually look it up for one question: can I have an eagle familiar? Under the 2014 rules, no. Under the 2024 rules (SRD 5.2.1), yes, because Find Familiar now accepts any CR 0 Beast.

Table of Contents

• •Eagle Stat Block (2014)
• •The Eagle in the 2024 Rules
• •Eagle Familiars, Wild Shape and Messengers
• •How an Eagle Fights
• •Running an Eagle Encounter
• •How Players Beat an Angry Eagle
• •Eagle Encounter Ideas
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Eagle Stat Block (2014)

Perception +4 with Keen Sight (Advantage on sight-based Perception) gives the 2014 eagle an effective passive Perception of 19 for anything it can see. It has no darkvision, so all of that needs light.

The Eagle in the 2024 Rules

The 2024 eagle trades Keen Sight for a flat Perception +6. Its passive score drops from an effective 19 (for sight) to 16, but it now hears and smells as well as it sees.

Eagle Familiars, Wild Shape and Messengers

Familiar. The 2014 Find Familiar list is fixed (bat, cat, crab, frog, hawk, lizard, octopus, owl, poisonous snake, quipper, rat, raven, sea horse, spider, weasel). No eagle. The 2024 spell lists eleven forms and then adds "or another Beast that has a Challenge Rating of 0," and the eagle is CR 0.

So in 2024, eagle or hawk?

The eagle has four times the hit points of the hawk at the same speed and Perception. A hawk familiar disappears the first time anything damages it; an eagle survives a hit of 3 damage or less. The costs: it's Small, so it can't hide in places a Tiny bird can, it has no darkvision, and it lacks the owl's Flyby. Since familiars can't attack, the eagle's better talons don't matter.

Wild Shape. An eagle flies, and flying forms are locked until druid level 8 in both editions. In 2014 the giant eagle (CR 1 beast, 26 hit points, fly 80 feet) is legal at that level too, so the small eagle only makes sense when you need to look like an ordinary bird. In 2024 the giant eagle is a Celestial, not a Beast, so it isn't a Wild Shape option. A 2024 druid picks the eagle when an ordinary bird is the disguise it needs.

Animal Messenger. The spell needs a Tiny beast. An eagle is Small, so it can't carry the message. A hawk can.

How an Eagle Fights

An eagle defends a nest or a kill, and it fights from the air. It has 10 feet of walking speed, so on the ground it's helpless; in the air it swoops in, rakes with its talons and rises.

The math: +4 against AC 14 hits on 10 or higher, 55% of the time, for 4.5 average damage, about 2.5 a round. It matters when the target is clinging to a cliff. The SRD doesn't say taking damage knocks a climber off, but a DM ruling of "a creature hit while climbing makes a DC 10 Strength (Athletics) check or falls" turns a 10 XP bird into a real threat 60 feet up a rock face.

Without Flyby, an eagle that swoops in and flies off provokes an Opportunity Attack. A smart eagle attacks a climber, who has both hands busy, rather than the fighter standing below.

Running an Eagle Encounter

At 10 XP, eagles belong in the environment, not the budget. Four level 1 characters have a 2024 Low budget of 200 XP; you could spend it on twenty eagles and get a silly fight. Use one or two eagles as a complication during a climb or a chase. Our encounter calculator gives the 2014 group math if you want it.

For an eagle that is the fight, use the giant eagle (CR 1, 200 XP). For a flying threat between the two, the blood hawk (CR 1/8) attacks in flocks.

How Players Beat an Angry Eagle

• •Leave the nest alone. An eagle that isn't defending anything flies away. Climb a different route.
• •Shoot it, don't chase it. With 3 or 4 hit points, one hit from any ranged attack usually ends it. Melee only works when it swoops in, so Ready an attack for that moment.
• •Calm it. Animal Friendship works (Intelligence 2). Speak with Animals turns it into a lookout: an eagle that circled the valley today knows where the camp smoke was.
• •Rope up. If the DM is using a fall rule, a rope tied to a partner turns a 60-foot fall into a dangle.

Eagle Encounter Ideas

The nest on the pass. The only path over a mountain pass runs within 10 feet of an eagle's nest. Two eagles attack anyone on the narrow ledge. Clever parties distract them with meat; strong ones just keep walking and take the scratches.

The trained hunter. A noble's falconer flies an eagle at the party's messenger hawk. The two birds' fight is a short skill scene with real stakes: the hawk is carrying a letter the noble wants to read.

The witness. An eagle saw where a raiding party went. Speak with Animals gets the answer if the characters can offer it something it wants.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you have an eagle familiar in 5e?

Not under the 2014 rules, where Find Familiar has a fixed list without eagles. Under the 2024 rules, yes: the spell allows any CR 0 Beast, and the eagle is CR 0.

What's the difference between an eagle and a giant eagle?

The eagle is a CR 0 Small beast with 3 or 4 hit points. The giant eagle is CR 1, Large, with 26 hit points, an 80-foot fly speed and two attacks, and in 2024 it's a Celestial rather than a Beast. Only the giant eagle is big enough to carry a Medium rider.

When can a druid Wild Shape into an eagle?

At druid level 8 in both editions, because the eagle has a fly speed.

How much damage do eagle talons do in 5e?

4 (1d4 + 2) slashing damage at +4 to hit in both the 2014 and 2024 rules.

Stat blocks: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Tactics, encounter math and ideas are Loreify's own.