Masters of the Wild: First Impressions

[green slime]

Slightly OT: IMC, the ranger just got his first spells (at 4th level), so he befriended a 2HD wolf. When he gets to 6th level and gets an extra HD worth of companions, he'd like to keep his wolf, so I'll advance the wolf to 3HD (by the time the wolf gets 4HD, it becomes Large). Is there any guidelines on that in MotW (beside the advancement ranges in the MM)? For instance, can the animal be taught new skills or something? Can it get, for instance, a level of Barbarian?

Well, you are aware that on page 46 in the DMG under the heading "ANIMAL COMPANIONS", that the text there describes the adventuring Ranger as being able to "maintain animal companionswhose Hit Dice total half the maximum (caster level for druid, half of caster level for a ranger)."

Emphasis was my own of course. This means that the ranger in your campaign can maintain a 1HD toad, and when he is 16th level, will be able to maintain a 4HD Dire Lamb...

 

[Lord Pendragon]

Well, you are aware that on page 46 in the DMG under the heading "ANIMAL COMPANIONS", that the text there describes the adventuring Ranger as being able to "maintain animal companionswhose Hit Dice total half the maximum (caster level for druid, half of caster level for a ranger)."

Emphasis was my own of course. This means that the ranger in your campaign can maintain a 1HD toad, and when he is 16th level, will be able to maintain a 4HD Dire Lamb...

Intriguing. I'd always assumed that a ranger's Animal Companion power was meant to be half of the druid's, meaning that a ranger could control half his HD in animal companions. Reading this quote, I was then sure that a ranger's caster level must be equal to his class level (even though he receives spells at a slower pace.)

Not so. According the PHB pg 45:

Starting at 4th level, a ranger's caster level is one-half his class level.

This would indicate that a ranger receives only one-fourth his level in Animal Companion HD. Yet that still sits wrong with me.

Anyone have any other quotes which would back a 1/2 level claim?

 

[drnuncheon]

1/2 ranger caster level

My guess is it was a typo/thinko - they meant to emphasize that the ranger's caster level is 1/2 character level, and it got edited or came out as 1/2 caster level. Anything else doesn't make much sense.

J

 

[Wolfspider]

This means that the ranger in your campaign can maintain a 1HD toad, and when he is 16th level, will be able to maintain a 4HD Dire Lamb...

LOL! I love a dose of well-done sarcasm!

My guess is it was a typo/thinko - they meant to emphasize that the ranger's caster level is 1/2 character level, and it got edited or came out as 1/2 caster level. Anything else doesn't make much sense.

It doesn't make sense, eh? Kinda like limiting an adventuring druid to his or her level in animal companions?

Nope, sorry. If my druid is going to be limited in some illogical way, your ranger is going to have to be limited as well.

It's only fair.

 

[Lord Pendragon]

It doesn't make sense, eh? Kinda like limiting an adventuring druid to his or her level in animal companions?

Nope, sorry. If my druid is going to be limited in some illogical way, your ranger is going to have to be limited as well.

It's only fair.

While it is true that what's good for the goose is good for the gander, I'd believed that the ranger's limit was built into his limited spellcasting. Basically, the animal friendship spell allows one to befriend up to spellcaster level worth of animal companions. A ranger, with half the spellcasting ability, is limited to half the HD a druid could acquire. This works independently of whether or not one adventures, since I would have told you a settled ranger gets up to level worth of companions, while a settled druid gets up to 2xlevel worth.

However, the quotes seem to bear out a weakened version of the ranger's shtick.

 

[Pielorinho]

However, the quotes seem to bear out a weakened version of the ranger's shtick.

To confuse things further, here's what the SRD says:

While the spell allows a character to have animals whose Hit Dice total double the character's caster level, that maximum assumes optimal conditions. The typical adventurer should be able to maintain animal companions whose Hit Dice total half the maximum caster level.

According to this, an 8th-level adventuring druid can only have a 4 hd critter.

I think they mean "half the maximum HD allowed by the spell." In which case, it'd be 8HD for the druid and 4HD for an 8th-level ranger.

I'm also assuming that a cleric with the animal domain could have, when adventuring, HD equal to their level in critters; is this correct?

Daniel

 

[Wolfspider]

To confuse things further, here's what the SRD says:

Wha?!?!

I think this is a job for The Sage.

 

[UofMDude]

In the PHB itself, in the description of Animal Friendship, mentions that a settled druid (one that tends to avoid long travels) can befriend (Levelx2) worth of HD, while adventuring druids (who tend to go underground or otherwise stick their necks out) can only befriend HD=Level, simply because the demands of adventuring don't allow the druid to care for as many animals. The exception is a 1-st level druid, who managed to befriend his starting companions to such an extent that they follow him even though the exceed his total allowed HD. This information is repeated (in shorter form) under the druid's description.

So it's not a rules change, nor a clarification, it's just repeated for easier reference.

You must have a second printing PHB. My first printing PHB contains no such text. It is perfectly crystal clear (level x 2).

UofMDude

 

[Pielorinho]

You must have a second printing PHB. My first printing PHB contains no such text. It is perfectly crystal clear (level x 2).

UofMDude

Mine too, U; but do you have the first-printing DMG? The restriction of HD levels is very clear there.

Daniel

 

[Axiomatic Unicorn]

Well, you are aware that on page 46 in the DMG under the heading "ANIMAL COMPANIONS", that the text there describes the adventuring Ranger as being able to "maintain animal companionswhose Hit Dice total half the maximum (caster level for druid, half of caster level for a ranger)."

Emphasis was my own of course. This means that the ranger in your campaign can maintain a 1HD toad, and when he is 16th level, will be able to maintain a 4HD Dire Lamb...

Expect you have the maximum wrong. The actual maximum is 2X caster level (PH pg 173). So a druid can travel with his level in HD of animals and a Ranger can have 1/2 his level.

So the 16th level ranger gets 8 HD of animal. Still enough for a Dire Lion.