General Rules - Animal Companion Feats

Animal Companion Feats

These feats all relate to the Animal Companion class feature of druids, outdoorsmen, and rangers. Most of them improve or alter your animal companion, although not all do. They are derived from a variety of source, with the single largest source being the D&D Wiki. Outdoorsmen can select any of these feats as Companion Feats, although they must meet all of the prerequisites to do so.

This list uses several abbreviations to show what sourcebook the entries were drawn from. For guidance as to what sourcebooks these abbreviations reference, see my key to Sourcebook Abbreviations.

All of the material contained on this page and other pages of this blog is presented in accordance with the terms of the Open Game License.

Feat Name	Source	Prerequisites	Benefit
Beast Totem	ECS	Wild Empathy class feature	You gain a bonus to saves based upon your totem beast
Divine Companion	-	Animal Companion class feature	Your companion becomes an anarchic, axiomatic, celestial, or fiendish creature
Elemental Companion	-	Animal Companion class feature	Your companion becomes an aquan, auran, fioð, ice, ignan, or terran creature
Enchanted Companion	D&D Wiki	Animal Companion class feature	Your companion becomes a magical beast
Enhanced Companion	D&D Wiki	Handle Animal 1+ ranks	Your animal companion, dark ally, familiar, fiendish servant, or special mount gains enhanced AC
Exalted Companion	BoED	Ability to acquire a new animal companion, minimum level requirement	You gain a good-aligned magical beast as an animal companion
Feral Animal Companion	CoR	Animal Companion class feature, evil alignment	You gain a feral animal as an animal companion
Improved Animal Companion	D&D Wiki	Animal Companion class feature	Your effective druid level increases for determining animal companion abilities
Natural Harmony	D&D Wiki	Wild Empathy class feature, Animal Companion class feature, Enchanted Companion, Knowledge: Nature 5+ ranks	You gain a plant creature as an animal companion
Radiant Companion	D&D Wiki	Animal Companion class feature, BAB +10, interaction with the Plane of Radiance	Your animal companion becomes a radiant creature
Shadow Companion	D&D Wiki	Animal Companion class feature, BAB +10, interaction with the Plane of Shadow	Your animal companion becomes a shadow creature
Survival Instinct	D&D Wiki	Animal Companion class feature, Survival 12+ ranks	You and your animal companion gain a bonus to saving throws
Totem Companion	ECS	Wild Empathy class feature, Beast Totem, ability to acquire a new animal companion, minimum level requirement	You gain a beast totem animal as your animal companion
Undead Companion	D&D Wiki	Animal Companion class feature, undead type	You gain and undead creature as an animal companion

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General Rules: Feats - Undead Companion

Undead Companion [Monstrous] (from the D&D Wiki)
Your animal companion shares your unlife.
   Prerequisites: Animal Companion class feature, undead type.
   Benefit: You may recruit an undead animal as an animal companion.
   Normal: Your animal companion is a normal animal.
   Special: This feat does not transform a normal animal companion into an undead companion, but you can revive a dead animal companion as an undead creature.

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General Rules: Feats - Totem Companion

Totem Companion [General] (from the Eberron Campaign Setting)
Instead of an animal companion, you have your totem magical beast as a companion.
   Prerequisites: Wild Empathy class feature, Beast Totem, ability to acquire a new animal companion, minimum level requirement (see below).
   Benefit: When choosing an animal companion, you may choose a magical beast of the same kind as your beast totem. Even though your companion is a magical beast, you can cast spells on it that normally target animals as though it were an animal. Apply the indicated adjustment to the character's effective druid level (in parentheses) to determine the companion's special powers (see Alternative Animal Companions, page 36 of the Players Handbook).

Druid Level	Totem Companion
7th Level or Higher (Level -6)	Cockatrice, Displacer Beast, or Krenshar
10th Level or Higher (Level -9)	Basilisk, Digester, Unicorn, or Winter Wolf
13th Level or Higher (Level -12)	Chimera
16th Level or Higher (Level -15)	Gorgon or Yrthak

The totem companion has all the normal abilities of a typical creature of it's kind, as well as the characteristics of an animal companion determined by your druid, ranger, or outdoorsman level.

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General Rules: Feats - Survival Instinct

Survival Instinct [General] (from the D&D Wiki)
Living in the wilderness has sharpened your will to survive.
   Prerequisites: Animal Companion class feature, Survival 12+ ranks.
   Benefit: You and your animal companion gain a +1 insight bonus to all saving throws. If your animal companion changes the new one also gains this bonus.

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General Rules: Feats - Shadow Companion

Shadow Companion [General] (from the D&D Wiki)
Magical energy gives your animal companion shadow powers.
   Prerequisites: Animal Companion class feature, BAB +10, interaction with the Plane of Shadow.
   Benefit: Your animal companion gains the Shadow Creature template.
   Special: You cannot take this feat and the Divine Companion, Elemental Companion, or Radiant Companion feats.

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General Rules: Feats - Radiant Companion

Radiant Companion [General] (from the D&D Wiki)
Magical energy gives your animal companion radiant powers.
   Prerequisites: Animal Companion class feature, BAB +10, interaction with the Plane of Radiance.
   Benefit: Your animal companion gains the Radiant Creature template.
   Special: You cannot take this feat and the Divine Companion, Elemental Companion, or Shadow Companion feats.

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General Rules: Feats - Natural Harmony

Natural Harmony [General] (from the D&D Wiki)
Your animal companion is energized by your presence.
   Prerequisites: Wild Empathy class feature, Animal Companion class feature, Enchanted Companion, Knowledge: Nature 5+ ranks.
   Benefit: You may select a plant creature as an animal companion. The selected creature has a level modifier that reduces your effective druid level for purposes of determining the companion's characteristics and special abilities that depends on their challenge rating. Creatures with a challenge rating of one or less have no modifier; other creatures use twice their challenge rating minus one, rounded to the closest multiple of three levels, in accord with the table below. You may also use your Wild Empathy class ability against plants, but the check suffers a -6 penalty.

Challenge Rating	Level Modifier
1	No Modifier
2	(-3)
3 - 4	(-6)
5	(-9)
6 -7	(-12)
8 - 9	(-15)
10	(-18)

   Normal: Only animals may be selected as animal companions. Wild Empathy only works on works on animals and magical beasts.

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General Rules: Feats - Improved Animal Companion

Improved Animal Companion [General] (from the D&D Wiki)
Your animal companion is more powerful than normal.
   Prerequisite: Animal Companion class feature.
   Benefit: Your effective druid level for the Animal Companion ability is three levels higher than normal. This improves the abilities of your existing animal companion, or alternatively allows you to attract a more powerful one. Your effective druid level cannot exceed your character level.
   Special: You may select this feat multiple times. The effects stack.

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General Rules: Feats - Feral Animal Companion

Feral Animal Companion [General] (from Champions of Ruin)
You can enslave a feral animal and adopt it as your animal companion.
   Prerequisites: Animal Companion class feature, evil alignment.
   Benefit: Instead of calling a normal animal companion, you can call a feral animal companion that foams at the mouth. Any creature harmed by the animal's bite attack must succeed on a DC 15 Fortitude save or contract red ache (see the Dungeon Master's Guide, page 292). The disease has no harmful effect on the feral animal. In addition, your feral animal companion gains a +2 bonus to Strength and Constitution. Attempts by others to influence your feral animal companion with Handle Animal checks take a -10 penalty.
   Special: This feat does not transform a normal animal companion into a feral animal companion.

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General Rules: Feats - Exalted Companion

Exalted Companion [Exalted] (from the Book of Exalted Deeds)
Instead of an animal companion, you have a magical beast of good alignment.
   Prerequisites: Ability to acquire a new animal companion, minimum level requirement (see below).
   Benefit: When choosing an animal companion, you may choose a magical beast as shown on the table below. You must choose a companion whose alignment is the same as yours, so only a ranger or outdoorsman can have a blink dog, pegasus, or unicorn as a companion. Even though your companion is a magical beast, yon can cast spells on it as though it were an animal. The exalted companion has all the normal abilities of a typical creature of its kind, as well as the characteristics of an animal companion determined by the character's druid, outdoorsman, or ranger class level.

Companion	Alignment	Druid Level1 2
Blink Dog	Lawful Good	4th (-3)
Aspen3	Neutral Good	7th (-6)
Giant Eagle	Neutral Good	7th (-6)
Giant Owl	Neutral Good	7th (-6)
Pegasus	Chaotic Good	7th (-6)
Unicorn	Chaotic Good	7th (-6)
1 A ranger's effective druid level, for purposes of this feat, is his druid level plus half his ranger level.
2 Subtract the number in parentheses from the druid's level (or the ranger's effective druid level) for purposes of determining the companion's characteristics and special abilities as shown on page 36 of the Player's Handbook.
3 Monster detailed in the Monster Manual II.

   Special: The animal companions provided by this feat cannot be subject to the Divine Companion, Elemental Companion, Radiant Companion, or Shadow Companion feats.

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General Rules: Feats - Enhanced Companion

Enhanced Companion [General] (from the D&D Wiki)
Your animal companions are energized by your presence.
   Prerequisite: Handle Animal 1+ ranks.
   Benefit: You form a special bond with your companion. When it is within 60 feet of you, it gains a +2 Dodge bonus to its Armor Class.
   Special: The effects of this feat apply to animal companions, dark allies, familiars, fiendish servants, and special mounts.

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General Rules: Feats - Enchanted Companion

Enchanted Companion [General] (from the D&D Wiki)
You can choose a magical beast as your animal companion.
   Prerequisite: Animal Companion class feature.
   Benefit: You may select a magical beast as an animal companion. The selected creature has a level modifier that reduces your effective druid level for purposes of determining the companion's characteristics and special abilities that depends on their challenge rating. Creatures with a challenge rating of one or less have no modifier; other creatures use twice their challenge rating minus one, rounded to the closest multiple of three levels, in accord with the following table:

Challenge Rating	Level Modifier
1	No Modifier
2	(-3)
3 - 4	(-6)
5	(-9)
6 -7	(-12)
8 - 9	(-15)
10	(-18)

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General Rules: Feats - Elemental Companion

Elemental Companion [General]
Your animal companion becomes an elemental.
   Prerequisite: Animal Companion class feature.
   Benefit: Your animal companion gains the aquan, auran, fioð, ice, ignan, or terran template. Subtract one from your effective druid level for purposes of determining the companion's characteristics and special abilities.
   Special: You cannot take this feat and the Divine Companion, Radiant Companion, or Shadow Companion feats.

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General Rules: Feats - Divine Companion

Divine Companion [General]
Your animal companion becomes an anarchic, axiomatic, celestial, or fiendish creature.
   Prerequisite: Animal Companion class feature.
   Benefit: Your animal companion gains the anarchic, axiomatic, celestial, or fiendish template. You must choose a companion whose alignment is the same as yours. Subtract one from your effective druid level for purposes of determining the companion's characteristics and special abilities.
   Special: You cannot take this feat and the Elemental Companion, Radiant Companion, or Shadow Companion feats.

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General Rules: Feats - Beast Totem

Beast Totem [General] (from the Eberron Campaign Setting)
In the druidic custom of your people, you have claimed a kind of magical beast as your totem - a patron, protector, and source of strength.
   Prerequisite: Wild Empathy class feature.
   Benefit: Choose one of the magical beasts on the table below. You gain a +4 circumstance bonus on saving throws against the specified attack form, thanks to the protection afforded by your connection with your magical beast totem.

Magical Beast	Attack Form
Chimera	Breath Weapons
Digester	Acid
Displacer Beast	Targeted Spells
Gorgon	Petrification
Krenshar	Fear
Unicorn	Poison
Winter Wolf	Cold
Yrthak	Sonic

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General Rules: Feats - Corrupt Spell-Like Ability

Corrupt Spell-Like Ability [General] (from the Book of Vile Darkness)
Your spell-like abilities are powered by evil. A dark pact provides you with unholy energy.
   Prerequisite: Evil alignment.
   Benefit: This feat adds the evil descriptor to your spell-like abilities. Furthermore, if a spell-like ability deals damage, half of that damage (rounded down) is unholy damage. Each of your spell-like abilities can be corrupted three times per day, though this feat does not allow you to exceed your normal usage limit for any ability.
   Special: This feat can be taken multiple times. Each time it is taken, you can apply it to each of your spell-like abilities three additional times per day.

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