Animal Companions and Polymorph

[sukael]

How would you adjudicate a POA cast on a companion familiar with regards to the bonus stuff that a Druid gives to his animal companion?

My vote: the animal companion keeps everything, but it since it now has an Int score and a sentient personality, it might decide to exit stage left (though almost certainly not during an active battle) and un-companion itself.

However, since your animal companion already has an Int score (being a familiar, too) there's no special reason to presume it might think differently, rather than just...better.

 

[Cameron]

Young Gold Dragon

Int: 16
Wis: 17
Cha: 16

Why WOULDN'T he reevaluate your relationship with him? Unlike a familiar and paladins mount (which has a spiritual tie) the animal companion is simply a (better than normal variety for balance) normal animal that is friendly to you and happens to follow you around.

DS

I am talking about a companion familiar. It is my familiar as well. It not only has a tie to me, it is part of me.

Also, it only gets the Int, not the rest.

 

[hong]

No d00d, you cannot have a gold dragon animal companion familiar.

You also cannot have a pony.

 

[Cameron]

Using a high level spell to kill an enemy's animal companion doesn't sound weird--at all. So what if it's polymorph?

I've always wondered about casting true resurrection on someone's dragonhide armor as well.

Anyway, to the original point, I think the others here have covered it fairly thoroughly. PAO is a bit more robust than the lower-level polymorph spells, so, barring a reversal of some sort, the druid may in fact be without his animal companion after that.

Dave

It is less the kill the animal, and more turn the animal against the entire party in the form of a humungous near brain-dead and very hungry magical beast.

 

[Ridley's Cohort]

No d00d, you cannot have a gold dragon animal companion familiar.

You also cannot have a pony.

http://sc.tri-bit.com/images/2/23/pony.jpg

 

[Destil]

It is less the kill the animal, and more turn the animal against the entire party in the form of a humungous near brain-dead and very hungry magical beast.

Why is it so hungry? Have you been starving your animal companion? Angry druids are a lot worse than PETA, you know...

 

[Plane Sailing]

It is less the kill the animal, and more turn the animal against the entire party in the form of a humungous near brain-dead and very hungry magical beast.

I don't quite see 'brain dead' for a Behir. Animal intelligences are in the range 1-2 no? Thus Int 2 are the smartest animals - as clever as an elephant, chimp or pig probably. I'd go for 'elephant' intelligence for a sense of style.

If you've treated it well, I can't see any reason why it wouldn't treat you with respect at least, certainly no reason for it mindlessly attacking you.

Of course, you could pick monstrous scorpion instead!

 

[Cameron]

I don't quite see 'brain dead' for a Behir. Animal intelligences are in the range 1-2 no? Thus Int 2 are the smartest animals - as clever as an elephant, chimp or pig probably. I'd go for 'elephant' intelligence for a sense of style.

If you've treated it well, I can't see any reason why it wouldn't treat you with respect at least, certainly no reason for it mindlessly attacking you.

Of course, you could pick monstrous scorpion instead!

I take exception to the whole Int 2 thing anyway. A Chimp would be at least Int 5. They have the reasoning abilities of a 6 year old human child, for Pete's sake! Int 2 is a joke...!

Anyway, I was just thinking about how aggressive some of the forms are (Remorhaz and Behir are pretty much see-kill creatures...), and if it reverts back to nature (Int 2 is pretty much nature, if you follow the DnD line of thinking with regards to stats)... I wonder how much food a Gargantuan creature needs compared to a Large or Medium creature... *burp*

And yeah, a Colossal/Gargantuan Monstrous Scorpion would be very... ouchies... on a sleeping party...

 

[Shin Ji]

If the best a 15th+ level caster can think to do to a sleeping party is polymorph your animal companion into a Behir- then you have nothing to fear from your DM.

Your party is casting 8th level spells and you sleep? You should be in your own demiplane by now...

Your DM is correct about the Gold Dragon not being your familiar any more. The rules for familiars allow for specific choices at specific levels. Anything outside of those choices is a houserule.

You remind me of a player in one of my campaigns. I was a newish DM then, and I really struggled with polymorph- trying to understand exactly what it did and did not do was driving me nuts. Skip's useless Rules of the Game did nothing to help- that just made the problem worse.

On our last session (we didn't quit because of this or anything- it was going to be the end in any case- we had a few people moving away), the player I mentioned, who was an 18th level Diviner, used Shapechange to become a Hydra. I mentioned casually that he would retain his Wizard BAB, and to account for that, which was true at the time (about 2 years ago). He threw a total hissy fit, just started screaming and yelling about how I was "nerfing" him and all this. Never mind that I could show him exactly where it said that in the PHB...

Not only that, he was singlehandedly taking on a huge horde of demons with a gated Marilith at the time. The Hydra Shapechange was just gravy.

Even giving him free entry into the Archmage PrC didn't stop his whining.

As I said before, your posts remind me of that guy. You might not really be that bad, I could be misinterpreting- but my advice to yuor DM based on what I've read from you so far is to dump you and not look back.

 

[Cameron]

If the best a 15th+ level caster can think to do to a sleeping party is polymorph your animal companion into a Behir- then you have nothing to fear from your DM.

Your party is casting 8th level spells and you sleep? You should be in your own demiplane by now...

Your DM is correct about the Gold Dragon not being your familiar any more. The rules for familiars allow for specific choices at specific levels. Anything outside of those choices is a houserule.

You remind me of a player in one of my campaigns. I was a newish DM then, and I really struggled with polymorph- trying to understand exactly what it did and did not do was driving me nuts. Skip's useless Rules of the Game did nothing to help- that just made the problem worse.

On our last session (we didn't quit because of this or anything- it was going to be the end in any case- we had a few people moving away), the player I mentioned, who was an 18th level Diviner, used Shapechange to become a Hydra. I mentioned casually that he would retain his Wizard BAB, and to account for that, which was true at the time (about 2 years ago). He threw a total hissy fit, just started screaming and yelling about how I was "nerfing" him and all this. Never mind that I could show him exactly where it said that in the PHB...

Not only that, he was singlehandedly taking on a huge horde of demons with a gated Marilith at the time. The Hydra Shapechange was just gravy.

Even giving him free entry into the Archmage PrC didn't stop his whining.

As I said before, your posts remind me of that guy. You might not really be that bad, I could be misinterpreting- but my advice to yuor DM based on what I've read from you so far is to dump you and not look back.

Wizard BAB is still in the rules now. What is your point?

My point is that I am not asking for any changes to the *base* creature. I am happy to following the PAO rules (change in physical stats, Int, retain BAB, skills, etc.). However, the fact that you are saying PAO makes it *dangerous* to have pets and Familiars (especially Familiars, where you also lose a chunk of XP, and have a harder time resisting the Fort save (being as Wizards tend to have bad Fort saves to begin with) around is more than a little silly, don't you think?

Skip was fairly clear on what constitutes what in the game. It is *not* his fault that you can't understand what he is trying to convey. I found it pretty straight forward. Stop blaming him, please.