Help creating an animal companion

[Catalystphoenix]

First time druid trying to figure out how to build my animal companion. I am a level 6 human druid. I took the feat natural bond. Am I able to have a dire lion or some type of bear. basically I want to focus on wild shaping and buffing me and my animal companion and meleeing. Do i need a feat to share my buffs with my animal companion or is it automatic?

[Red Fel]

First time druid trying to figure out how to build my animal companion. I am a level 6 human druid. I took the feat natural bond. Am I able to have a dire lion or some type of bear. basically I want to focus on wild shaping and buffing me and my animal companion and meleeing. Do i need a feat to share my buffs with my animal companion or is it automatic?

Several things.

First: Natural Bond is designed for multiclass Druids. That's because of how the feat works - although it increases your effective Druid level as regards your animal companion, it cannot exceed your total character level. In other words, if you're a Druid 3/ Monk 3, you can be treated as a Druid 6 for animal companion purposes. But as a Druid 6, you're just a Druid 6; the feat is wasted on you.

Second: There is a list of alternate Druid animal companions. Your Druid level is 6, so you can have any that require Druid level 6 or less. For example, you can have a Black Bear. At level 7, you can have a Brown Bear or a Lion (although you would treat your Druid level as -6); at level 10, a Polar Bear or Dire Lion.

Third: Look at the Animal Companion table (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/classes/druid.htm#theDruidsAnimalCompanion) for the Druid class. It explains the Share Spells feature as follows:
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).
Got all that? So, in essence, your buffs are shared automatically if you want them to be.

[Khedrac]

It is arguable that Natural Bond can help with "level - N" companions because the total is still less than your current level...

More to the point is you probably want the feat companion spellbond from PHBII.
Essentially it allows your companion to share your buffs so long as it remains within 30' not 5' - much more useful for a combat-focused companion.

[Larrx]

It is arguable that Natural Bond can help with "level - N" companions because the total is still less than your current level...



Indeed, and I believe this is what eggy argues, and while I respect (let's be honest - deeply fear) Red Fel, I tend to default to agreeing with eggy on druid stuff. He should be along soon to debate the point himself.

*casts summon eggynack*

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

You get to add your own effects in the most beneficial order, so you can apply the "Level -X" first for having a stronger companion, and then add Natural Bond's +3 afterward to help counteract that drawback.

RAW, the text always trumps the table when the two would disagree. The last line of the text description of the Animal Class feature is as follows: "A druid of 4th level or higher may select from alternative lists of animals. 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 table of alternative animal companions lists a Lion at "7th Level or Higher (Level -6)" which normally would not be available until 7th level due to the last sentence of the above quote. However, since Natural Bond would bring your effective Druid level to a value greater than zero, and since you're at least 4th level, you meet all the qualifiers in the text description to gain a Lion as your animal companion at your current level, so it should be available to you despite the table's minimum level reference. You would count as a 3rd level Druid for its bonus HD and other benefits. A Tiger is statistically better, though.

Take the Lion's (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/lion.htm) (or Tiger's) stats, it has the skills and feats printed. Add two levels of Animal (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/typesSubtypes.htm#animalType) for its two bonus HD, which give it the BAB of a Druid and the base saving throws of a Ranger of its total HD. It gets two more skill points (its class skills are what's listed for it already), and it goes from 5 HD to 7 HD so it gets another feat at its 6th HD (the Tiger goes from 6 HD to 8 HD, it won't get another feat until 9th). It also gets +2 natural armor, +1 Str, and +1 Dex, plus the other animal companion benefits listed for a 3rd level Druid (Link, Share Spells, Evasion).

[TheifofZ]

Hum. In theory, then, given that a druid with all feat slots invested in toughness (except the 6th level Class Feature 'Natural Spell' they gain instead of a feat) isn't terrible at all...
That would mean a Druid that's invested 5 feats in Natural Bond to negate the penalty could have a T-Rex that was far stronger than the party's fighter guy, and the druid would still be decently powerful. They'd even have a feat left over after Natural Spell and the five natural bonds to take something else. Like metamagic. Or improved toughness.

... I really want to do this now. I know that, statistically, the T Rex is sub par, but on the other hand, there's a certain level of sheer awesomeness to be had by doing that.

[Troacctid]

You can only take Natural Bond once, and it doesn't affect the type of companion you can select. A 4th level Druid with Natural Bond can have a 4th level companion at an effective level of 4, but they can't have a 7th level companion. (Biffoniacus is mistaken.)

[TheifofZ]

Double checking that, you are absolutely correct.
The exact wording of the feat is as follows: "Add three to your effective druid level for the purpose of determining the bonus Hit Dice, extra tricks, special abilities, and other bonuses that your animal companion receives (see page 36 of the Player's Handbook). This bonus can never make your effective druid level exceed your character level. "

It would negate the penalty of a 'Druid level -3' animal companion, but could not be used to get an animal companion of above your current capabilities.
It also can't be taken multiple times according to RaW, although it functions identically to Practiced Spellcaster (except for animal companions instead of caster level), which can be taken multiple times. (Which is why I thought it could be as well.)

[eggynack]

Indeed, and I believe this is what eggy argues, and while I respect (let's be honest - deeply fear) Red Fel, I tend to default to agreeing with eggy on druid stuff. He should be along soon to debate the point himself.

*casts summon eggynack*
I am summoned, though it seems mostly covered. The penalty that applies to your companion level based on choosing higher level companions is impacting your effective druid level for the purposes of animal companions, which means that you get more advancement. It's a very much rules legal combination.

However, as always, I must point out that Biff is mistaken in his assertion that you can get higher level companions through natural bond. Just at the outset, natural bond impacts companions that you have, rather than companions that you're bringing in. After all, it says that it grants bonuses to these things relative to "Your animal companion". Therefore, because you don't have the bonus while pulling in companions, it is impossible for the feat to grant higher level companions, because your effective druid level is zero when attempting to get the companion.

The second issue is that this just isn't a thing that natural bond does. The explicit list for natural bond's region of effect is, "Bonus Hit Dice, extra tricks, special abilities, and other bonuses," and, "Being a higher variety of animal companion," is not any of those things. Therefore, even if you somehow gained the companion, it still would be at or below zero for the purpose of choosing a companion, so the feat wouldn't help.

[Enran]

However, as always, I must point out that Biff is mistaken

Pretty harsh, man.

[eggynack]

Pretty harsh, man.
It's just as applies to this. Biff keeps posting this specific thing, and I keep explaining why it's wrong. Other things he says tend to be fine, I think, though I don't keep perfect track.