How many animal companions?

[Legolam]

So we've just gotten a new player who wants to play a druid/beastmaster.
He's arguing that, because they are both different classes, he should have two different animal companions (one at full druid level and one at combined druid beastmaster level).

He's taken druid 5 and beastmaster 3, which would work out (in his estimation) as a wolf with effective bonus for a level 5 druid and a rhino with effective bonus for a level 11 druid.

Thought i'd ask a wider sample their opinion.

[lunar2]

he is wrong. multiple classes granting an animal companion all stack on one animal. beastmaster will give him another companion later on, but that is separate.

familiars and special mounts work the same way.

now, if he really wants 2 companions, he can take the elemental companion druid ACF, and then he would have a druid 5 elemental and a druid 6 animal companion. natural bond feat boosts the animal companion to 9, and with DM permission the elemental companion to 8, but that's as good as he's gonna get for that.

[Morbis Meh]

He could also take wild cohort on top of it XD Get another pet that is basically the same as animal familiar

[prufock]

"If a beastmaster already has an animal companion from another class, her beastmaster class levels stack with class levels from all other classes that grant an animal companion." Doesn't get much clearer than that.