Pathfinder Animal Companions: A Guide To Faithful Friends
Pathfinder, the popular tabletop role-playing game, offers a unique aspect of gameplay through animal companions. These faithful friends can provide companionship, assistance, and even combat support to adventurers. In this article, we'll delve into the world of animal companions in Pathfinder, exploring their benefits, characteristics, and how to integrate them into your campaigns.
What are Animal Companions?
In Pathfinder, animal companions are creatures that can be trained and bonded with by certain classes, such as druids, rangers, and cavaliers. These companions can be animals, magical beasts, or even vermin, and they offer a range of benefits to their owners. Animal companions can provide combat support, skills, and abilities, making them invaluable members of any adventuring party.
Benefits of Animal Companions
Animal companions offer several benefits to adventurers:
- Combat Support: Animal companions can fight alongside their owners, providing additional attacks and damage.
- Skill Support: Many animal companions possess skills such as Perception, Survival, or Athletics, which can aid their owners in various situations.
- Ability Support: Some animal companions have abilities like keen senses, darkvision, or low-light vision, which can enhance their owners' abilities.
- Companionship: Animal companions can provide emotional support and comfort to their owners, helping to alleviate stress and fatigue.
Types of Animal Companions
Pathfinder offers a wide range of animal companions, each with unique characteristics and abilities. Some popular types of animal companions include:
- Dogs: Loyal and trainable, dogs are popular animal companions for many adventurers.
- Horses: Strong and majestic, horses are often used as mounts and companions by cavaliers and other mounted classes.
- Birds: Intelligent and agile, birds can serve as messengers, scouts, and combat companions.
- Reptiles: Cold-blooded and deadly, reptiles like snakes and lizards can make effective animal companions for certain classes.
How to Get an Animal Companion
In Pathfinder, animal companions can be obtained through various means:
- Class Features: Certain classes, such as druids and rangers, have access to animal companions as a class feature.
- Spells and Magic Items: Some spells and magic items can summon or create animal companions.
- NPCs: Adventurers can also obtain animal companions by befriending or purchasing them from non-player characters (NPCs).
Training and Bonding with Animal Companions
To get the most out of an animal companion, adventurers must train and bond with them. This can be done through:
- Training: Adventurers can train their animal companions using skills like Handle Animal or Ride.
- Bonding: Building a strong bond with an animal companion can enhance its abilities and loyalty.
Integrating Animal Companions into Your Campaign
Animal companions can add a new layer of depth and excitement to your Pathfinder campaigns. Here are some tips for integrating animal companions into your games:
- Create a Backstory: Develop a rich backstory for your animal companion, including its origin, personality, and motivations.
- Use Them in Combat: Don't be afraid to use your animal companion in combat, as they can provide valuable support and distractions.
- Roleplay Their Personality: Bring your animal companion to life by roleplaying its personality, quirks, and habits.
Common Challenges and Solutions
When working with animal companions, adventurers may encounter certain challenges. Here are some common issues and solutions:
- Loyalty: Animal companions can become disloyal if neglected or mistreated. Solution: Spend quality time with your animal companion, and provide it with regular training and attention.
- Health: Animal companions can become injured or ill. Solution: Use spells, potions, or rest to heal your animal companion.
What classes can have animal companions in Pathfinder?
+Druids, rangers, and cavaliers are some of the classes that can have animal companions in Pathfinder.
How do I train my animal companion?
+You can train your animal companion using skills like Handle Animal or Ride.
Can animal companions fight in combat?
+In conclusion, animal companions are a wonderful addition to any Pathfinder campaign, offering a new layer of depth and excitement to gameplay. By understanding the benefits, characteristics, and challenges of animal companions, adventurers can build strong bonds with their faithful friends and create unforgettable experiences.