# Ranger Alternate Class Features



## Herzog (Apr 15, 2009)

A player in my campaign has indicated he wants to get rid of his animal companion, feeling it is more of a burden than help. 

I want to give him an alternate class feature instead, but the only one I could find was the alternate class feature in the PH2, and although that's a nice feature, it's bonus is limited by the fact there is no rogue in the party.

Does anyone know of other sources containing replacements for the rangers animal companion?


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## Runestar (Apr 15, 2009)

Some handy links for CO work - Wizards Community

Scroll down and search for alternate class features. Can't be any more specific since I am currently at work and can't spare the time to do a more detailed analysis.


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## Mistah J (Apr 15, 2009)

A quick and easy option is trading in your animal companion for the benefit of having your favoured enemy bonus apply to attack rolls as well.

It's from a Dragon Magazine.. I just can't remember which one.


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## StreamOfTheSky (Apr 15, 2009)

Mistah J said:


> A quick and easy option is trading in your animal companion for the benefit of having your favoured enemy bonus apply to attack rolls as well.
> 
> It's from a Dragon Magazine.. I just can't remember which one.




It's also on the crystalkeep website pdf for class features.  Solitary Hunting, I think it's called.  That'd be the easiest way to go.

In UA, a sorc/wiz can trade a familiar for an animal companion w/ ranger advancement, so you could also extrpolate that to mean you can trade ranger's companion for a familiar.  Of course, the player's problem is that the companion's a burden, so I doubt getting something that costs you xp when it dies would fix the problem.


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## insanogeddon (Apr 16, 2009)

*Yo check it !   bRaaaatttttttTT*

Complete Champion
Unearthed Arcarna (I like the replace it with druids wild shape MEDIUM CREATURES ONLY ... internalise your animality !)
Complete Mage
Dragon Magic
Dungeonscape
Champions of Valour
PH 2


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## milo (Apr 16, 2009)

Solitary Hunting Dragon 347, p91


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## Herzog (Apr 16, 2009)

Don't think I have access to that Dragon magazine (or is it one of the online ones?)

Most of these alternate class features replace spellcasting, favored enemy, or the combat bonus feats.

I'm specifically looking for a replacement for animal companion.

Although at the moment, I'm inclined to let him take a fighter bonus feat instead (part of my houserules: Martial classes can replace one class feature per level with a fighter bonus feat.)


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## aboyd (Apr 16, 2009)

In Complete Champion, there are 3 variant builds.  One requires you to give up spellcasting, one requires you to drop wild empathy, and the last one requires you to drop your animal companion.  Bingo!

*Spiritual Guide*
*Level* 4th
You are befriended by a spiritual guide that aids you in the wilderness.  Once you enter any civilized area larger than a hamlet, your spiritual guide departs, returning when you are back in the wild.  The guide cannot fight or protect you, but it can give a sense of impending danger.  It grants you a divine bonus of 1/4 ranger level on Handle Animal, Knowledge (nature), Listen, Search, Spot, and Survival checks.  In addition, the spell Commune with Nature is added to your ranger spell list, and you are granted a free casting of it 1x/day.

So at 8th level, that's +2 to 6 skills -- the equivalent of a couple of feats, plus a free spell.

The other option is to really _try_ to make the animal companion work.  There are some ways to improve it.  For example, At level 8, your ranger can get the enhanced 4th-level druid animal companions.  If you selected the ape, you'd have an ally with 10' reach, so guarantee a lot of AOO. The 3 attacks per round would net you an extra 3d6 + 12 points of damage.  That really helps to offset a ranger's waning potency as the levels go up.

Or you could get a dire bat. It can carry up to 173 pounds and fly 30' per round. If you can stay under that weight limit, you might have a new, awesome mount. His attacks are worse than the ape (just 1 bite at 1d8 + 4) but his AC is higher, so he won't get hit as much.

Then take Natural Bond feat from Complete Adventurer.  It adds 3 to your "druid level" for determining the animal companions stats.  A ranger's "druid level" is half his ranger level.  So at level 8, he'd be equivalent of a 4th level druid.  Yet with the feat, he'd be considered level 7.  It _almost_ offsets the "half ranger level" thing, which means more potency.  Yay!

Finally, use the spell Nature's Favor (from Complete Adventurer, or Spell Compendium) to give your animal +1 to hit & damage for every 3 levels you have.  It lasts 1 minute.  If you have a 10 round battle and your ape companion hits 2 times per round, that's an extra 40 points of damage, so it's really not bad.

The Enrage Animal spell will also buff an animal companion.  It grants +4 to Str & Con but AC becomes 2 worse.  It's like the Nature's Favor spell, but with an AC penalty and bonus hit points.  It's also just level 1 (Nature's Favor is level 2).


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## Jhaelen (Apr 16, 2009)

There's also an alternative class feature in PHB2 that let's you trade the animal companion for the ability to consider an enemy you've hit flanked (IIRC).


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## Plane Sailing (Apr 16, 2009)

have you looked in the PHB and DMG for the articles about changing class features? There are at least two examples given there, and it could give you some useful ideas.

An option that I would consider would be giving him a +1d6 sneak attack damage in place of the animal companion.


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## Aus_Snow (Apr 16, 2009)

Some things spring to mind, either for 4th level, or for 4th level and some later level(s), replacing abilites or filling in 'dead levels' as need be. Mainly, Scout stuff.

Trackless Step, Uncanny Dodge (+ Improved Uncanny Dodge?), Fast Movement +10 ft. Any or all of these, as appropriate.

Or, they could get Evasion at 4th and Improved Evasion at 8th (where they normally get plain old Evasion).

An extra spell per day of each level, from the time they first get access to those spell levels? It would hardly be treading on 'real' spellcasters' toes, but could be handy, particularly with the Spell Compendium, or to a lesser extent, even Complete Adventurer (I think), in use.


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## Herzog (Apr 16, 2009)

Thanx all!

I like the idea of giving him extra spells. He will like that...
I'll also suggest the Spiritual Guide. It fits the dismissal of animal companion and getting something in return.

As to the reason why he wants to get rid of it: I may have frased it wrong.

It's not that the animal companion isn't dealing out enough damage or anything, it's that it tends to die (or almost die). He feels his character can't in all fairness keep dragging the companion into danger like that.

If I hadn't stepped in as DM, he would probably have let the companion go without asking for anything in return. I just would like to compensate him for giving up a class feature through good roleplay


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