Leadership feat to gain a magical mount?

[dave 42]

Howdy all, someone mentioned the DMG had some rules on using the leadership feat to get something like a unicorn or dire wolf. Now the question i have is can I get the leadership feat at 6th level and get a creature up to ecl 5? Or 5 hit dice? If It makes sense to ride it could I ? If the max ecl or hit dice I can get with leadership is 5, Can I get a creature with 3 hit dice and say two levels of fighter? A cohort mount seems like a good idea, Has anyone done this before? what kind Of creatures have you used? Anyone have any good ideas about cohort mounts? let me know. thanx dave 42

 

[dave 42]

ok

ok I found a post at wizards.com that suggested challenge rating + any class levels for your total available cohort. So I could in theory get a cr3 critter with 2 class levels when i turn 6th level. I still want to hear any ideas. Thanx again

 

[Rackhir]

It's not quite that simple. For example a Griffon in a CR 4 creature but has a "cohort level" of 9. So I don't think that if you have a cohort level of 6 shall we say, that you can simply take any CR creature up to 6 as a steed. Remember CRs and ECL are balanced on the assumption that the creature is only going to be around for a short period before it is killed. ie. If the creature has the ability to cast Cure Light Wounds once per round, that isn't much of an advantage if it's only going to live for 2 rounds in combat. However if it's attached to a party of adventurers and can do the same thing it's far more valuable since it can heal the entire party in 10-15 rounds at no cost. Defenders of the Faith has a list of optional mounts for paladins, I would use that as a guide for the ratings as it lists most of the exotic mounts.

 

[Malin Genie]

You definitely should use ECL.

In Masters of the Wild, it suggests a creature of CR less than or equal to level-3, or level-4 if flying.

I do quite like the idea of having a mount who can gain class levels, though...

 

[Artoomis]

Of course there is always the issue where you find such a creature. Merely taking the leadership feat doesn't make creatures appear to bid on being your cohort.

 

[dave 42]

ok thanx for the reply's has anyone ever done this? anyone with experience having a cohort mount? any ideas ? that's what i'm looking for. thanx

 

[Rackhir]

I have a character with a griffon as a mount, which he got as a cohort. If you are doing it for power, don't bother. Take a cleric or sorc as a follower they will give you much more bang for your buck. However, having one is really cool and it adds a lot of favor and style to a character. Plus, it's great for impressing the peons.

 

[Malin Genie]

I wonder - if a Paladin character has a Mount, with ECL lower than his Leadership cohort level, could taking the Leadership Feat allow the mount to gain character levels ?

 

[dave 42]

it's just an idea i was kicking around. I wanted to get some ideas i could impress upoun my dm It's not a power issue I just really like the idea of a character other than a palladin having a cool mount sidekick. Maybe a mount cohort that can shapeshift!? what's the ecl + for a shapeshifter template? griffin sounds cool any other ideas?