Beast Master

Many rangers are more at home in the wilds than in civilization, to the point where animals consider them kin. Rangers of the Beast Conclave develop a close bond with a beast, then further strengthen that bond through the use of magic.

Animal Companion

At 3rd level, you learn to use your magic to create a powerful bond with a creature of the natural world. With 8 hours of work and the expenditure of 50 gp worth of rare herbs and fine food, you call forth an animal from the wilderness to serve as your faithful companion. Choose a beast that is no larger than Medium and that has a challenge rating of 1/2 or lower (appendix D presents statistics for the ape, black bear, and panther as examples), the chosen beast should be appropriate to the region you are going to be playing in so make sure to check with your DM what types of beasts are nearby that can be called forth and bonded with using this feature. At the end of the 8 hours, your animal companion appears and gains all the benefits of your Companion’s Bond ability. You can have only one animal companion at a time. If your animal companion is ever slain, the magical bond you share allows you to return it to life. With 8 hours of work and the expenditure of 25 gp worth of rare herbs and fine food, you call forth your companion’s spirit and use your magic to create a new body for it. You can return an animal companion to life in this manner even if you do not possess any part of its body. If you use this ability to return a former animal companion to life while you have a current animal companion, your current companion leaves you and is replaced by the restored companion. If you attempt to tame a creature of a higher challenge rating than 1/2 and successfully form a bond with it (talk to your DM about animal taming), it may still benefit from your Companion's Bond ability, however will not benefit from the Animal Companion feature.

Companion's Bond

Your animal companion gains a variety of benefits while it is linked to you.

• The animal companion loses its Multiattack action, if it has one.
• The companion obeys your commands as best it can.
• The companion is an ally to you and your party. In combat, the beast shares your initiative count, but it takes its turn immediately after yours. It can move and use its reaction on its own, but the only action it takes on its turn is the Dodge action, unless you take a bonus action on your turn to command it to take another action. That action can be one in its stat block or some other action. If you are incapacitated, the beast can take any action of its choice, not just Dodge.
• When using your Natural Explorer feature, you and your animal companion can both move stealthily at a normal pace.

Your animal companion has abilities and game statistics determined in part by your level. Your companion uses your proficiency bonus rather than its own. In addition to the areas where it normally uses its proficiency bonus, an animal companion also adds your proficiency bonus to its AC and uses your proficiency bonus as its damage roll modifier. Your animal companion gains proficiency in two skills of your choice. It also becomes proficient with all of the saving throws that you have.
Your animal companion's hit points are determined by your ranger level. Each time you gain a level in the ranger class, your animal companion increases it's hit points by the average value of it's hit die times by the number of levels you have put into the ranger class. It has a number of hit die equal to your ranger level which it can use to regain health during a short rest. The table below shows how to work out your companion's hit point value based on the size of your animal companion.

Size of Companion	Hit Points	Hit Die
Tiny	3+3 times your ranger level	d4
Small	4+4 times your ranger level	d6
Medium	5+5 times your ranger level	d8
Large	6+6 times your ranger level	d10
Huge	7+7 times your ranger level	d12

*animal companion hit point values are not affected by their individual Constitution modifiers, this is to reflect the effect your bond has on the creature as you both grow stronger.

Whenever you gain the Ability Score Improvement class feature, your companion’s abilities also improve. Your companion can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or it can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, your companion can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature unless its description specifies otherwise. Your companion shares your alignment, and has a personality trait and a flaw that you can roll for or select from the tables below (or write yourself but make sure to consult your DM to make sure what you have down is appropriate). Your companion shares your ideal, and its bond is always, “The ranger who travels with me is a beloved companion for whom I would gladly give my life.” Your animal companion gains the benefits of your Favored Enemy and Favoured Terrain features.

d6	Trait
1	I’m dauntless in the face of adversity
2	Threaten my friends, threaten me.
3	I stay on alert so others can rest
4	People see an animal and underestimate me. I use that to my advantage
5	I have a knack for showing up in the nick of time.
6	I put my friends’ needs before my own in all things.

d6	Flaw
1	If there’s food left unattended, I’ll eat it.
2	I growl at strangers, and all people except my ranger are strangers to me.
3	Any time is a good time for a belly rub.
4	I’m deathly afraid of water.
5	My idea of hello is a flurry of licks to the face
6	I jump on creatures to tell them how much I love them.

Coordinated Attack

Beginning at 5th level, you and your animal companion form a more potent fighting team. When you use the Attack action on your turn, if your companion can see you, it can use its reaction to make a melee attack.

Beast's Defence

At 7th level, while your companion can see you, it has advantage on all saving throws.

Storm of Claw and Fangs

At 11th level, your companion can use its action to make a melee attack against each creature of its choice within 5 feet of it, with a separate attack roll for each target.

Superior Beasts Defence

At 15th level, whenever an attacker that your companion can see hits it with an attack, it can use its reaction to halve the attack’s damage against it.