Player want to be an animal

[Umbran]

This is what I'm afraid of but as Lindeloef suggested, telepathy with an interesting background can work nicely.

As I said, one of the routes out is a workaround. Being able to talk to only one person will still grate eventually - or you'll handwave it and say that the guy who the dog communicates with always translates. At which point, you've now completely walked around the issue, so why bother? Next thing you know, the guy's looking for dancing weapons, so he can fight normally without hands!

What, then, is the point?

 

[Fetfreak]

Yeah you are correct. It can spin out of control easily.

 

[Alarian]

another thing to keep in mind depending on what system you're playing is the group is going to quickly out level/out power the normal animal very quickly. It may be fun to play a dog when everyone is low level/powered, but as the rest of the group gains powers and your still playing that same dog, I think it would get old real fast. Sure an animal can learn to fight better but there is a definite limit. If he really wanted to play an animal, I would say let him, but make sure you don't fudge the game and give him powers and abilities a normal animal wouldn't get.

 

[Stormonu]

Well, it's not truly an animal, but a good compromise might be something like the Tibbit from the Dragon Compendium. A tibbit is a werecat - a human that can turn into a cat. Could do something similar with a dog or other smallish animal (squirrel? kitsune/fox? badger?). Perhaps the player could be a former friend or ally of the PCs reincarnated as a animal with some vestigial sense of his former humanoid self. Or an animal on the verge of magical sentience. Perhaps even a former Druid's companion or Wizard's familiar that was dismissed or survived its master's untimely death.

Animals masquerading as humans and vice versa are common in mythology. And I don't see why having a party consisting of a 7th level Dog warrior, 8th level Cat rogue, 5th level blue jay wizard and a 6th level Honey Badger cleric would be any stranger than some of the parties tossed around in many D&D games.

 

[Stormonu]

I guess the question I would ask the player is what sort of style he wants to play the animal in.

Does he want it to be a "true" animal with heroic properties like Lassie, Rin Tin Tin, Ol' Yeller, Flipper or the Grizzly bear from Grizzly Adams?
Does he imagine the animals to have their own "world" in which they have human-like intelligence such as in Watership Down, Homeward Bound or the Jungle Book?
Does he imagine the animal to physically be of human intellect and manners (or perhaps even transformed from human) such as in The Cat from Outer Space, The Shaggy DA or the like?
Would he be open to an animal-humanoid such as a hengeyokoi, kitsune, werewolf (human to wolf, no hybrid form) or the like?
Would he be open to an anthropomorphic animal, like a cat girl, gnoll, lupin or other "human with an animal head" or "bipedal animal" sort of character?

 

[Fetfreak]

Thanks for the replies but like I said before the player wants a regular animal, nothing magical and we prefer a low fantasy game.

Either way, I'm gonna allow the player to play a war dog as a companion to some other player and we'll see where that takes us.

 

[Tonguez]

another thing to keep in mind depending on what system you're playing is the group is going to quickly out level/out power the normal animal very quickly. It may be fun to play a dog when everyone is low level/powered, but as the rest of the group gains powers and your still playing that same dog, I think it would get old real fast. Sure an animal can learn to fight better but there is a definite limit. If he really wanted to play an animal, I would say let him, but make sure you don't fudge the game and give him powers and abilities a normal animal wouldn't get.

A dog barbarian is a possibilty and 3 intelligent is human minimum so an intelligent animal should be able to act tactically, especially a dog who would identify the party as its pack (wolves are tactical hunters).

The big issue ic is lack of hands and ooc the need to talk to and get buy in from the other players. If the other players are happy to be the scooby gang then I say do it....

 

[Hand of Evil]

Either way, I'm gonna allow the player to play a war dog as a companion to some other player and we'll see where that takes us.

Just remember...when it ends...dog burgers. There is a lesson in it.

 

[Fetfreak]

Just remember...when it ends...dog burgers. There is a lesson in it.

I'll keep that in mind

 

[Dioltach]

Just remember...when it ends...dog burgers. There is a lesson in it.

Don't you mean hotdogs?