I don't understand the rules for Animal Companions [Archive] - Wizards Community

I don't understand the rules for Animal Companions [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Reversefigure4
03-20-06, 10:34 PM New-ish player, playing as a Ranger. Next level I get an animal companion (a Medium Viper), and I'm not sure what skills I need or how I'm allowed to use it.

Basically, I plan on using it as a distraction - having it flank my enemy then have it distract them (use Aid Another) to increase my chances of me hitting the enemy, rather than having the animal attack directly.

However, I'm not sure this agrees with the rules on what can actually be done with Animal Companions. What happens when it comes to the animal's round in combat? Do I get to choose where it goes and what it does?
Tyrasius
03-20-06, 11:11 PM Your animal companion is supposed to be run by the DM as an NPC. But you can prepare straregy (such as your flanking technique) with the animal companion beforehand and a halfway decent DM will have the animal adhere to that. Of course I am playing a game with a ranger and he simply moves for his AC and attacks and totally controls it, and his riding dog (wich isnt his animal companion and he isnt even riding) as well as himself, but this is only because my current DM is too inexperienced to know how abusive this player is to the rules and such ( such as creating new races and riding them without consulting the DM, his dog is a climb dog, whatever the heck thats supposed to be, it doesnt exist outside this players imagination but it still fights for him)
Douglas Zuver
03-20-06, 11:32 PM Basically there are two very different types of Animal Companions
The Druid's and Ranger's
and
The Paladin's and Healer's

The Druid's and Ranger's are animals that must be handled with the handle animal skill. The Druid and Ranger are given certain extras such as +4 Handle Animal, Handle Animal command as a free action, not need to train bonus feats.

But it is still a trained animal. Read carefully. You have to teach it the regular tricks or somehow get it already trained that way. You have to make the DC 10 to give a command. (Increased to DC 12 if hurt)

A Paladin has a intelligent companions that must be dealt with diplomatically.
Intelligence of 6.

A Healer gets a Unicorn that is wiser than the Healer is and can speak a language. It also serves the Healer "unswervingly."
(Because by then, the healer has the lowest offensive attacks of any class.)

So, as you can see, the classes do vary.

You had better read this:
HANDLE ANIMAL (CHA; TRAINED ONLY)
Check: The DC depends on what you are trying to do.

Task Handle Animal DC
Handle an animal 10
“Push” an animal 25
Teach an animal a trick 15 or 201
Train an animal for a general purpose 15 or 201
Rear a wild animal 15 + HD of animal
1See the specific trick or purpose below.

General Purpose DC General Purpose DC
Combat riding 20 Hunting 20
Fighting 20 Performance 15
Guarding 20 Riding 15
Heavy labor 15

Handle an Animal: This task involves commanding an animal to perform a task or trick that it knows. If the animal is wounded or has taken any nonlethal damage or ability score damage, the DC increases by 2. If your check succeeds, the animal performs the task or trick on its next action.
“Push” an Animal: To push an animal means to get it to perform a task or trick that it doesn’t know but is physically capable of performing. This category also covers making an animal perform a forced march or forcing it to hustle for more than 1 hour between sleep cycles. If the animal is wounded or has taken any nonlethal damage or ability score damage, the DC increases by 2. If your check succeeds, the animal performs the task or trick on its next action.
Teach an Animal a Trick: You can teach an animal a specific trick with one week of work and a successful Handle Animal check against the indicated DC. An animal with an Intelligence score of 1 can learn a maximum of three tricks, while an animal with an Intelligence score of 2 can learn a maximum of six tricks. Possible tricks (and their associated DCs) include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following.
Attack (DC 20): The animal attacks apparent enemies. You may point to a particular creature that you wish the animal to attack, and it will comply if able. Normally, an animal will attack only humanoids, monstrous humanoids, giants, or other animals. Teaching an animal to attack all creatures (including such unnatural creatures as undead and aberrations) counts as two tricks.
Come (DC 15): The animal comes to you, even if it normally would not do so.
Defend (DC 20): The animal defends you (or is ready to defend you if no threat is present), even without any command being given. Alternatively, you can command the animal to defend a specific other character.
Down (DC 15): The animal breaks off from combat or otherwise backs down. An animal that doesn’t know this trick continues to fight until it must flee (due to injury, a fear effect, or the like) or its opponent is defeated.
Fetch (DC 15): The animal goes and gets something. If you do not point out a specific item, the animal fetches some random object.
Guard (DC 20): The animal stays in place and prevents others from approaching.
Heel (DC 15): The animal follows you closely, even to places where it normally wouldn’t go.
Perform (DC 15): The animal performs a variety of simple tricks, such as sitting up, rolling over, roaring or barking, and so on.
Seek (DC 15): The animal moves into an area and looks around for anything that is obviously alive or animate.
Stay (DC 15): The animal stays in place, waiting for you to return. It does not challenge other creatures that come by,
though it still defends itself if it needs to.
Track (DC 20): The animal tracks the scent presented to it. (This requires the animal to have the scent ability)
Work (DC 15): The animal pulls or pushes a medium or heavy load.

Train an Animal for a Purpose: Rather than teaching an animal individual tricks, you can simply train it for a general purpose. Essentially, an animal’s purpose represents a preselected set of known tricks that fit into a common scheme, such as guarding or heavy labor. The animal must meet all the normal prerequisites for all tricks included in the training package. If the package includes more than three tricks, the animal must have an Intelligence score of 2.
An animal can be trained for only one general purpose, though if the creature is capable of learning additional tricks (above and beyond those included in its general purpose), it may do so. Training an animal for a purpose requires fewer checks than teaching individual tricks does, but no less time.
Combat Riding (DC 20): An animal trained to bear a rider into combat knows the tricks attack, come, defend, down, guard, and heel. Training an animal for combat riding takes six weeks. You may also “upgrade” an animal trained for riding to one trained for combat riding by spending three weeks and making a successful DC 20 Handle Animal check. The new general purpose and tricks completely replace the animal’s previous purpose and any tricks it once knew. Warhorses and riding dogs are already trained to bear riders into combat, and they don’t require any additional training for this purpose.
Fighting (DC 20): An animal trained to engage in combat knows the tricks attack, down, and stay. Training an animal for fighting takes three weeks.
Guarding (DC 20): An animal trained to guard knows the tricks attack, defend, down, and guard. Training an animal for guarding takes four weeks.
Heavy Labor (DC 15): An animal trained for heavy labor knows the tricks come and work. Training an animal for heavy labor takes two weeks.
Hunting (DC 20): An animal trained for hunting knows the tricks attack, down, fetch, heel, seek, and track. Training an animal for hunting takes six weeks.
Performance (DC 15): An animal trained for performance knows the tricks come, fetch, heel, perform, and stay. Training an animal for performance takes five weeks.
Riding (DC 15): An animal trained to bear a rider knows the tricks come, heel, and stay. Training an animal for riding takes three weeks.

Rear a Wild Animal: To rear an animal means to raise a wild creature from infancy so that it becomes domesticated. A handler can rear as many as three creatures of the same kind at once.
A successfully domesticated animal can be taught tricks at the same time it’s being raised, or it can be taught as a domesticated animal later.
Action: Varies. Handling an animal is a move action, while pushing an animal is a full-round action. (A druid or ranger can handle her animal companion as a free action or push it as a move action.) For tasks with specific time frames noted above, you must spend half this time (at the rate of 3 hours per day per animal being handled) working toward completion of the task before you attempt the Handle Animal check. If the check fails, your attempt to teach, rear, or train the animal fails and you need not complete the teaching, rearing, or training time. If the check succeeds, you must invest the remainder of the time to complete the teaching, rearing, or training. If the time is interrupted or the task is not followed through to completion, the attempt to teach, rear, or train the animal automatically fails.
Try Again: Yes, except for rearing an animal.
Special: You can use this skill on a creature with an Intelligence score of 1 or 2 that is not an animal, but the DC of any such check increases by 5. Such creatures have the same limit on tricks known as animals do.
A druid or ranger gains a +4 circumstance bonus on Handle Animal checks involving her animal companion.
In addition, a druid’s or ranger’s animal companion knows one or more bonus tricks, which don’t count against the normal limit on tricks known and don’t require any training time or Handle Animal checks to teach.
If you have the Animal Affinity feat, you get a +2 bonus on Handle Animal checks.
Synergy: If you have 5 or more ranks in Handle Animal, you get a +2 bonus on Ride checks and wild empathy checks.
Untrained: If you have no ranks in Handle Animal, you can use a Charisma check to handle and push domestic animals, but you can’t teach, rear, or train animals. A druid or ranger with no ranks in Handle Animal can use a Charisma check to handle and push her animal companion, but she can’t teach, rear, or train other nondomestic animals.

Animal Companion (Ex): A druid may begin play with an animal companion selected from the following list: badger, camel, dire rat, dog, riding dog, eagle, hawk, horse (light or heavy), owl, pony, snake (Small or Medium viper), or wolf. If the campaign takes place wholly or partly in an aquatic environment, the following creatures are also available: crocodile, porpoise, Medium shark, and squid. This animal is a loyal companion that accompanies the druid on her adventures as appropriate for its kind.
A 1st-level druid’s companion is completely typical for its kind except as noted below. As a druid advances in level, the animal’s power increases as shown on the table. If a druid releases her companion from service, she may gain a new one by performing a ceremony requiring 24 uninterrupted hours of prayer. This ceremony can also replace an animal companion that has perished.
A druid of 4th level or higher may select from alternative lists of animals (see below). Should she select an animal companion from one of these alternative lists, the creature gains abilities as if the character’s druid level were lower than it actually is. Subtract the value indicated in the appropriate list header from the character’s druid level and compare the result with the druid level entry on the table to determine the animal companion’s powers. (If this adjustment would reduce the druid’s effective level to 0 or lower, she can’t have that animal as a companion.)

THE DRUID’S ANIMAL COMPANION
A druid’s animal companion is different from a normal animal of its kind in many ways. A druid’s animal companion is superior to a normal animal of its kind and has special powers, as described below.

Class Level Bonus HD Natural Armor Adj. Str/Dex Adj. Bonus Tricks Special
1st–2nd +0 +0 +0 1 Link, share spells
3rd–5th +2 +2 +1 2 Evasion
6th–8th +4 +4 +2 3 Devotion
9th–11th +6 +6 +3 4 Multiattack
12th–14th +8 +8 +4 5
15th–17th +10 +10 +5 6 Improved evasion
18th–20th +12 +12 +6 7 Animal Companion Basics: Use the base statistics for a creature of the companion’s kind, but make the following changes.
Class Level: The character’s druid level. The druid’s class levels stack with levels of any other classes that are entitled to an animal companion for the purpose of determining the companion’s abilities and the alternative lists available to the character.
Bonus HD: Extra eight-sided (d8) Hit Dice, each of which gains a Constitution modifier, as normal. Remember that extra Hit Dice improve the animal companion’s base attack and base save bonuses. An animal companion’s base attack bonus is the same as that of a druid of a level equal to the animal’s HD. An animal companion has good Fortitude and Reflex saves (treat it as a character whose level equals the animal’s HD). An animal companion gains additional skill points and feats for bonus HD as normal for advancing a monster’s Hit Dice.
Natural Armor Adj.: The number noted here is an improvement to the animal companion’s existing natural armor bonus.
Str/Dex Adj.: Add this value to the animal companion’s Strength and Dexterity scores.
Bonus Tricks: The value given in this column is the total number of “bonus” tricks that the animal knows in addition to any that the druid might choose to teach it (see the Handle Animal skill). These bonus tricks don’t require any training time or Handle Animal checks, and they don’t count against the normal limit of tricks known by the animal. The druid selects these bonus tricks, and once selected, they can’t be changed.
Link (Ex): A druid can handle her animal companion as a free action, or push it as a move action, even if she doesn’t have any ranks in the Handle Animal skill. The druid gains a +4 circumstance bonus on all wild empathy checks and Handle Animal checks made regarding an animal companion.
Share Spells (Ex): At the druid’s option, she may have any spell (but not any spell-like ability) she casts upon herself also affect her animal companion. The animal companion must be within 5 feet of her at the time of casting to receive the benefit. If the spell or effect has a duration other than instantaneous, it stops affecting the animal companion if the companion moves farther than 5 feet away and will not affect the animal again, even if it returns to the druid before the duration expires.
Additionally, the druid may cast a spell with a target of “You” on her animal companion (as a touch range spell) instead of on herself. A druid and her animal companion can share spells even if the spells normally do not affect creatures of the companion’s type (animal).
Evasion (Ex): If an animal companion is subjected to an attack that normally allows a Reflex saving throw for half damage, it takes no damage if it makes a successful saving throw.
Devotion (Ex): An animal companion gains a +4 morale bonus on Will saves against enchantment spells and effects.
Multiattack: An animal companion gains Multiattack as a bonus feat if it has three or more natural attacks and does not already have that feat. If it does not have the requisite three or more natural attacks, the animal companion instead gains a second attack with its primary natural weapon, albeit at a –5 penalty.
Improved Evasion (Ex): When subjected to an attack that normally allows a Reflex saving throw for half damage, an animal companion takes no damage if it makes a successful saving throw and only half damage if the saving throw fails.
Thorak
03-20-06, 11:36 PM Your animal companion is supposed to be run by the DM as an NPC.
I don't see that anywhere in the PHB or DMG.

Kindly explain why the DM gets to run part of my character's class. Sure, the DM gets to take over if circumstances dictate it, but the DM does the same to PCs under similar circumstances. And yes, there are limits on how complex it can get tactically. But only an idiot tries to get around that; it's metagaming to a large extent.

If I'm issuing the orders to the animal in the first place, why does the DM's finger have to move the mini to where I say? If you use the rules for commanding animals and the limits on them, there's really nothing to abuse.
Squaba
03-20-06, 11:51 PM I don't see that anywhere in the PHB or DMG.

That's because it's not in there. He's most likely speaking about a House Rule. The Druid/Ranger gets to control their animal by directing them via a handle animal check as pointed out above.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Reversefigure4 03-20-06, 10:34 PM	New-ish player, playing as a Ranger. Next level I get an animal companion (a Medium Viper), and I'm not sure what skills I need or how I'm allowed to use it. Basically, I plan on using it as a distraction - having it flank my enemy then have it distract them (use Aid Another) to increase my chances of me hitting the enemy, rather than having the animal attack directly. However, I'm not sure this agrees with the rules on what can actually be done with Animal Companions. What happens when it comes to the animal's round in combat? Do I get to choose where it goes and what it does?
Tyrasius 03-20-06, 11:11 PM	Your animal companion is supposed to be run by the DM as an NPC. But you can prepare straregy (such as your flanking technique) with the animal companion beforehand and a halfway decent DM will have the animal adhere to that. Of course I am playing a game with a ranger and he simply moves for his AC and attacks and totally controls it, and his riding dog (wich isnt his animal companion and he isnt even riding) as well as himself, but this is only because my current DM is too inexperienced to know how abusive this player is to the rules and such ( such as creating new races and riding them without consulting the DM, his dog is a climb dog, whatever the heck thats supposed to be, it doesnt exist outside this players imagination but it still fights for him)
Douglas Zuver 03-20-06, 11:32 PM	Basically there are two very different types of Animal Companions The Druid's and Ranger's and The Paladin's and Healer's The Druid's and Ranger's are animals that must be handled with the handle animal skill. The Druid and Ranger are given certain extras such as +4 Handle Animal, Handle Animal command as a free action, not need to train bonus feats. But it is still a trained animal. Read carefully. You have to teach it the regular tricks or somehow get it already trained that way. You have to make the DC 10 to give a command. (Increased to DC 12 if hurt) A Paladin has a intelligent companions that must be dealt with diplomatically. Intelligence of 6. A Healer gets a Unicorn that is wiser than the Healer is and can speak a language. It also serves the Healer "unswervingly." (Because by then, the healer has the lowest offensive attacks of any class.) So, as you can see, the classes do vary. You had better read this: HANDLE ANIMAL (CHA; TRAINED ONLY) Check: The DC depends on what you are trying to do. Task Handle Animal DC Handle an animal 10 “Push” an animal 25 Teach an animal a trick 15 or 201 Train an animal for a general purpose 15 or 201 Rear a wild animal 15 + HD of animal 1See the specific trick or purpose below. General Purpose DC General Purpose DC Combat riding 20 Hunting 20 Fighting 20 Performance 15 Guarding 20 Riding 15 Heavy labor 15 Handle an Animal: This task involves commanding an animal to perform a task or trick that it knows. If the animal is wounded or has taken any nonlethal damage or ability score damage, the DC increases by 2. If your check succeeds, the animal performs the task or trick on its next action. “Push” an Animal: To push an animal means to get it to perform a task or trick that it doesn’t know but is physically capable of performing. This category also covers making an animal perform a forced march or forcing it to hustle for more than 1 hour between sleep cycles. If the animal is wounded or has taken any nonlethal damage or ability score damage, the DC increases by 2. If your check succeeds, the animal performs the task or trick on its next action. Teach an Animal a Trick: You can teach an animal a specific trick with one week of work and a successful Handle Animal check against the indicated DC. An animal with an Intelligence score of 1 can learn a maximum of three tricks, while an animal with an Intelligence score of 2 can learn a maximum of six tricks. Possible tricks (and their associated DCs) include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following. Attack (DC 20): The animal attacks apparent enemies. You may point to a particular creature that you wish the animal to attack, and it will comply if able. Normally, an animal will attack only humanoids, monstrous humanoids, giants, or other animals. Teaching an animal to attack all creatures (including such unnatural creatures as undead and aberrations) counts as two tricks. Come (DC 15): The animal comes to you, even if it normally would not do so. Defend (DC 20): The animal defends you (or is ready to defend you if no threat is present), even without any command being given. Alternatively, you can command the animal to defend a specific other character. Down (DC 15): The animal breaks off from combat or otherwise backs down. An animal that doesn’t know this trick continues to fight until it must flee (due to injury, a fear effect, or the like) or its opponent is defeated. Fetch (DC 15): The animal goes and gets something. If you do not point out a specific item, the animal fetches some random object. Guard (DC 20): The animal stays in place and prevents others from approaching. Heel (DC 15): The animal follows you closely, even to places where it normally wouldn’t go. Perform (DC 15): The animal performs a variety of simple tricks, such as sitting up, rolling over, roaring or barking, and so on. Seek (DC 15): The animal moves into an area and looks around for anything that is obviously alive or animate. Stay (DC 15): The animal stays in place, waiting for you to return. It does not challenge other creatures that come by, though it still defends itself if it needs to. Track (DC 20): The animal tracks the scent presented to it. (This requires the animal to have the scent ability) Work (DC 15): The animal pulls or pushes a medium or heavy load. Train an Animal for a Purpose: Rather than teaching an animal individual tricks, you can simply train it for a general purpose. Essentially, an animal’s purpose represents a preselected set of known tricks that fit into a common scheme, such as guarding or heavy labor. The animal must meet all the normal prerequisites for all tricks included in the training package. If the package includes more than three tricks, the animal must have an Intelligence score of 2. An animal can be trained for only one general purpose, though if the creature is capable of learning additional tricks (above and beyond those included in its general purpose), it may do so. Training an animal for a purpose requires fewer checks than teaching individual tricks does, but no less time. Combat Riding (DC 20): An animal trained to bear a rider into combat knows the tricks attack, come, defend, down, guard, and heel. Training an animal for combat riding takes six weeks. You may also “upgrade” an animal trained for riding to one trained for combat riding by spending three weeks and making a successful DC 20 Handle Animal check. The new general purpose and tricks completely replace the animal’s previous purpose and any tricks it once knew. Warhorses and riding dogs are already trained to bear riders into combat, and they don’t require any additional training for this purpose. Fighting (DC 20): An animal trained to engage in combat knows the tricks attack, down, and stay. Training an animal for fighting takes three weeks. Guarding (DC 20): An animal trained to guard knows the tricks attack, defend, down, and guard. Training an animal for guarding takes four weeks. Heavy Labor (DC 15): An animal trained for heavy labor knows the tricks come and work. Training an animal for heavy labor takes two weeks. Hunting (DC 20): An animal trained for hunting knows the tricks attack, down, fetch, heel, seek, and track. Training an animal for hunting takes six weeks. Performance (DC 15): An animal trained for performance knows the tricks come, fetch, heel, perform, and stay. Training an animal for performance takes five weeks. Riding (DC 15): An animal trained to bear a rider knows the tricks come, heel, and stay. Training an animal for riding takes three weeks. Rear a Wild Animal: To rear an animal means to raise a wild creature from infancy so that it becomes domesticated. A handler can rear as many as three creatures of the same kind at once. A successfully domesticated animal can be taught tricks at the same time it’s being raised, or it can be taught as a domesticated animal later. Action: Varies. Handling an animal is a move action, while pushing an animal is a full-round action. (A druid or ranger can handle her animal companion as a free action or push it as a move action.) For tasks with specific time frames noted above, you must spend half this time (at the rate of 3 hours per day per animal being handled) working toward completion of the task before you attempt the Handle Animal check. If the check fails, your attempt to teach, rear, or train the animal fails and you need not complete the teaching, rearing, or training time. If the check succeeds, you must invest the remainder of the time to complete the teaching, rearing, or training. If the time is interrupted or the task is not followed through to completion, the attempt to teach, rear, or train the animal automatically fails. Try Again: Yes, except for rearing an animal. Special: You can use this skill on a creature with an Intelligence score of 1 or 2 that is not an animal, but the DC of any such check increases by 5. Such creatures have the same limit on tricks known as animals do. A druid or ranger gains a +4 circumstance bonus on Handle Animal checks involving her animal companion. In addition, a druid’s or ranger’s animal companion knows one or more bonus tricks, which don’t count against the normal limit on tricks known and don’t require any training time or Handle Animal checks to teach. If you have the Animal Affinity feat, you get a +2 bonus on Handle Animal checks. Synergy: If you have 5 or more ranks in Handle Animal, you get a +2 bonus on Ride checks and wild empathy checks. Untrained: If you have no ranks in Handle Animal, you can use a Charisma check to handle and push domestic animals, but you can’t teach, rear, or train animals. A druid or ranger with no ranks in Handle Animal can use a Charisma check to handle and push her animal companion, but she can’t teach, rear, or train other nondomestic animals. Animal Companion (Ex): A druid may begin play with an animal companion selected from the following list: badger, camel, dire rat, dog, riding dog, eagle, hawk, horse (light or heavy), owl, pony, snake (Small or Medium viper), or wolf. If the campaign takes place wholly or partly in an aquatic environment, the following creatures are also available: crocodile, porpoise, Medium shark, and squid. This animal is a loyal companion that accompanies the druid on her adventures as appropriate for its kind. A 1st-level druid’s companion is completely typical for its kind except as noted below. As a druid advances in level, the animal’s power increases as shown on the table. If a druid releases her companion from service, she may gain a new one by performing a ceremony requiring 24 uninterrupted hours of prayer. This ceremony can also replace an animal companion that has perished. A druid of 4th level or higher may select from alternative lists of animals (see below). Should she select an animal companion from one of these alternative lists, the creature gains abilities as if the character’s druid level were lower than it actually is. Subtract the value indicated in the appropriate list header from the character’s druid level and compare the result with the druid level entry on the table to determine the animal companion’s powers. (If this adjustment would reduce the druid’s effective level to 0 or lower, she can’t have that animal as a companion.) THE DRUID’S ANIMAL COMPANION A druid’s animal companion is different from a normal animal of its kind in many ways. A druid’s animal companion is superior to a normal animal of its kind and has special powers, as described below. Class Level Bonus HD Natural Armor Adj. Str/Dex Adj. Bonus Tricks Special 1st–2nd +0 +0 +0 1 Link, share spells 3rd–5th +2 +2 +1 2 Evasion 6th–8th +4 +4 +2 3 Devotion 9th–11th +6 +6 +3 4 Multiattack 12th–14th +8 +8 +4 5 15th–17th +10 +10 +5 6 Improved evasion 18th–20th +12 +12 +6 7 Animal Companion Basics: Use the base statistics for a creature of the companion’s kind, but make the following changes. Class Level: The character’s druid level. The druid’s class levels stack with levels of any other classes that are entitled to an animal companion for the purpose of determining the companion’s abilities and the alternative lists available to the character. Bonus HD: Extra eight-sided (d8) Hit Dice, each of which gains a Constitution modifier, as normal. Remember that extra Hit Dice improve the animal companion’s base attack and base save bonuses. An animal companion’s base attack bonus is the same as that of a druid of a level equal to the animal’s HD. An animal companion has good Fortitude and Reflex saves (treat it as a character whose level equals the animal’s HD). An animal companion gains additional skill points and feats for bonus HD as normal for advancing a monster’s Hit Dice. Natural Armor Adj.: The number noted here is an improvement to the animal companion’s existing natural armor bonus. Str/Dex Adj.: Add this value to the animal companion’s Strength and Dexterity scores. Bonus Tricks: The value given in this column is the total number of “bonus” tricks that the animal knows in addition to any that the druid might choose to teach it (see the Handle Animal skill). These bonus tricks don’t require any training time or Handle Animal checks, and they don’t count against the normal limit of tricks known by the animal. The druid selects these bonus tricks, and once selected, they can’t be changed. Link (Ex): A druid can handle her animal companion as a free action, or push it as a move action, even if she doesn’t have any ranks in the Handle Animal skill. The druid gains a +4 circumstance bonus on all wild empathy checks and Handle Animal checks made regarding an animal companion. Share Spells (Ex): At the druid’s option, she may have any spell (but not any spell-like ability) she casts upon herself also affect her animal companion. The animal companion must be within 5 feet of her at the time of casting to receive the benefit. If the spell or effect has a duration other than instantaneous, it stops affecting the animal companion if the companion moves farther than 5 feet away and will not affect the animal again, even if it returns to the druid before the duration expires. Additionally, the druid may cast a spell with a target of “You” on her animal companion (as a touch range spell) instead of on herself. A druid and her animal companion can share spells even if the spells normally do not affect creatures of the companion’s type (animal). Evasion (Ex): If an animal companion is subjected to an attack that normally allows a Reflex saving throw for half damage, it takes no damage if it makes a successful saving throw. Devotion (Ex): An animal companion gains a +4 morale bonus on Will saves against enchantment spells and effects. Multiattack: An animal companion gains Multiattack as a bonus feat if it has three or more natural attacks and does not already have that feat. If it does not have the requisite three or more natural attacks, the animal companion instead gains a second attack with its primary natural weapon, albeit at a –5 penalty. Improved Evasion (Ex): When subjected to an attack that normally allows a Reflex saving throw for half damage, an animal companion takes no damage if it makes a successful saving throw and only half damage if the saving throw fails.
Thorak 03-20-06, 11:36 PM	Your animal companion is supposed to be run by the DM as an NPC. I don't see that anywhere in the PHB or DMG. Kindly explain why the DM gets to run part of my character's class. Sure, the DM gets to take over if circumstances dictate it, but the DM does the same to PCs under similar circumstances. And yes, there are limits on how complex it can get tactically. But only an idiot tries to get around that; it's metagaming to a large extent. If I'm issuing the orders to the animal in the first place, why does the DM's finger have to move the mini to where I say? If you use the rules for commanding animals and the limits on them, there's really nothing to abuse.
Squaba 03-20-06, 11:51 PM	I don't see that anywhere in the PHB or DMG. That's because it's not in there. He's most likely speaking about a House Rule. The Druid/Ranger gets to control their animal by directing them via a handle animal check as pointed out above.