Gaaah, I really must move my butt and get to working at an expanded minion table. I totally intended it to be able to apply templates and select other things as minions. For example, at first level you could apply both the fiendish and celestial template for free on any of the sample minions, since it doesn't increase CR. You could even have skeletal minions, since they have very low CR too! If your character is some kind of vermin lover, you could get a Giant Fire Beetle, a Small Monstrous Centipede, a Small Monstrous Scorpion or a Small Monstrous Spider. And that's only at first level! At 2nd level, you could have Small elementals, at 3rd, both a Lemure and a Dretch. At 5th level, for example, you could get a Heavy Warhorse, just like a Paladin -- it would just advance later as per the table "Minion's Special Abilities". I modeled it somewhat after both the familiar, the animal companion and the paladin's mount. The difference would mainly rest in the variety, not in the mechanics... Anyways, I will try to put an "advanced minions" table together to explain the concept
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