Kobold Beast Master help?

[Vasrock]

Hello everyone! I’m bringing in a new character for Dungeon of the Mad mage, and could use some advice!

Our party just finished up Dragon Heist, and the composition is as follows: all 5th level; Bladesinger Wizard, Arcane Trickster Rogue, Eldritch Knight fighter, and a Drunken Master monk. With the new UA, and some of the changes it brought it Ranger, I wanted to give it a try. I’ve also always like Kobolds, so why not throw the two together!

I also decided to use the new ‘Beast of the Earth’ stat block for my animal companion.

My stats are standard array, and at 4th level, I picked up alert, which fits with my character. Besides maxing Dex, are there any feats/items/tips you find folks could give? I would appreciate it!

[moonfly7]

Start thinking early on about what buffs you want to drop on your partner, and what roles you play in combat. Are you both going to be melee? Or are you going to cover him while he wades into combat?
Also, are you using all the new swap out features, or just the beast master ones?

As for items, anything like gauntlets of ogre strength or headband of intellect for your companion is good, but a cloak of protection for you is always good.

[Vasrock]

Thanks for the quick reply! I’m pretty much using all the UA stuff, the most recent one with all the feature swaps; I intend on staying at Range if possible, and probably Barkskin was the only ‘buff spell’ I had picked up at the moment!

[moonfly7]

Thanks for the quick reply! I’m pretty much using all the UA stuff, the most recent one with all the feature swaps; I intend on staying at Range if possible, and probably Barkskin was the only ‘buff spell’ I had picked up at the moment!

Well, ranger doesn't get too many buffs anyways, I wouldn't worry too much about that. I'd suggest that you start thinking about different tactics and maneuvers you and your companion can pull off. You can always flank of course, but you might could do things like stealth archer while your companion keeps the enemy distracted, using your action to hide after shooting and still dealing damage with your partner.
Or you could grapple an enemy, and then let your pet tear him up. Another good thing to remember is that if both of you are fighting someone at once, of it tries to run away, then you BOTH get an attack of opportunity.
Hope this stuff helps, and always remember that your companion allows you to innact all those combat plans the other PCs didn't want to waste their actions on, and the party will actually be super happy about them.