Post/Author/DateTime	Post
GhoulLord 12-17-07, 02:47 PM	When you advance an animal companion in HD, why do they do not increase in size? And would it be too game breaking to allow it as a house rule?
Silverthumb 12-17-07, 04:03 PM	Its my understanding(i.e. interpretation) that the HD gained through Animal Companion aren't the same HD that an Animal would need in order to increase in size. Think of it as multi-classing, where the first class would grant a size bonus, the second, Animal Companion, wouldn't. I wouldn't allow it, myself, but I can't think of an instance where it would break the game. Your pet will be doing more damage but would be a bigger target. Its situationally handy.
Slagger the Chuul 12-19-07, 02:26 AM	You could certainly allow it (there are already some quite large creatures available in return for a reduced effective druid level), but it can be troublesome, since big creatures are hard to take to all the places an adventurer might go. Add to that the need to find food for a big creature, equip it with bigger armour, hide it for stealth and so on, and it becomes quite a pain. As for why, the animal gains increased power through a stronger bond with nature via its companion druid. The Hit Dice gained by this means just aren't the same as being born bigger or stronger (which is what Hit Dice normally represent for animals).
DonThelonious 12-19-07, 03:50 AM	I am currently playing a druid with a baby dinosaur as my companion. I worked it out with my DM so that as I leveled up the dinosaur would gain the Companion HD, and through that it would grow up. It reaches full adult size about the time I would be reaching level 20, and leaves a lot of room for epic. Just our way of doing it.
mvincent 12-21-07, 05:25 PM	From the 3.5 FAQ: "An animal companion doesn’t get bigger when it adds extra Hit Dice for the master’s levels. The advancement entries for creatures, and the rules for advancing monsters, refer to unusually powerful specimens that are simply tougher (and perhaps bigger) than normal for their kinds." Later, the FAQ also answers this question again (which is good, since it gets asked a lot): "The animal companion rules—or, for that matter, pretty much any other effect that grants a creature bonus Hit Dice— don’t use the monster improvement rules presented in Chapter 4 of the Monster Manual. The rules in Monster Manual are for creating tougher versions of existing monsters, not for increasing the statistics of creatures who gain Hit Dice. An animal’s normal advancement line has absolutely nothing to do with the benefits it gains from being an animal companion, and vice versa. A wolf animal companion doesn’t become size Large when its Hit Dice increases to 4, nor is it limited to the “normal” Hit Dice cap for wolves."
DonThelonious 12-24-07, 01:19 PM	I actually think this is semi bull. IMO when your animal companion gains new HD it gains new HD. A HD is a HD, so advancing animal companions is only right. I would also like to point out that it says the creature is a 'special' version, and I ask what is more special than being an animal companion? Thats just my humble opinion and how I play my game.
Darth Sephiroth 12-25-07, 09:19 PM	I've allowed it in the games I run, mainly because it makes the animal companion a bit more usable in situations. Of course nothing prevents you from training your Animal Companion as a Warbeast. You can probably also get away with the Magebreed template if you word it right.
runestar 12-25-07, 09:43 PM	I prefer to just keep it at medium. Makes trekking in dungeons that much easier.:D