Animal companion

The advantage of animal companions.

See also: Construct companion, drake companion, elemental companion, undead companion, eidolon, familiar, and spirit animal

An animal companion is an animal chosen as an adventuring aide by a druid, hunter, ranger, animal trainer, beastmaster, Mammoth Lord, or other people and classes. Champions and cavaliers also take animal companions, usually as mounts. The nature of the bond between the individual and their animal companion is particularly strong and loyal. The nature of the bond advances the capabilities of the animal as the master gains experience over time, even resulting in the companion growing in size considerably. A ranger's bond to an animal companion may be not quite as strong as that of a druid. Hunter- or ranger-appropriate animal companions are marked by a superscript ^H or ^R, respectively, in the list below.

Types of animal companion used on Golarion

Gunner and Denna, his she-wolf companion.

Adowyn, the hunter, also has a wolf companion: Leryn.

People on Golarion bond with the following animal companions.

• Ape
  • Megaprimatus
• Baboon^R
• Badger^R
• Dire bat
• Bear
  • Polar bear
• Birds:
  • Axe beak^C
  • Eagle^R
  • Blackwisp egret
  • Enchanter heron
  • Hawk^R
  • Impaler shrike
  • Ostrich
  • Owl^R
  • Giant raven
  • Roc
  • Swan: trumpeter swan^R
  • Giant vulture
  • Whisperfall vulture
  • Yolubilis heron
• Boar^{C, P}
  • Bristle boar
  • Dire boar
• Cameroceras
• Cats:
  • Cheetah^R
  • Digmaul
  • Leopard^R
    • Snow leopard
  • Lion
  • Tiger
  • Warcat of Rull
• Crocodilia:
  • Alligator
  • Blood caiman
  • Crocodile
• Dallo
• Devil monkey
• Dinosaurs:
  • Allosaurus
  • Amargasaurus
  • Ankylosaurus
  • Brachiosaurus
  • Ceratosaurus
  • Deinonychus
  • Dimetrodon
  • Dimorphodon
  • Diplodocus
  • Elasmosaurus
  • Giganotosaurus
  • Iguanodon
  • Kentrosaurus
  • Pachycephalosaurus
  • Parasaurolophus
  • Plesiosaurus
  • Pteranodon
  • Quetzalcoatlus
  • Spinosaurus
  • Stegosaurus
  • Styracosaurus
  • Therizinosaurus
  • Triceratops
  • Troodon
  • Tylosaurus
  • Tyrannosaurus
  • Velociraptor
• Dog^{C, P, R}
• Dolphin
  • Dolphin: Orca
• Dragonne
• Dunkleosteus
• Eels:
  • Electric eel
  • Giant moray eel
• Elephant
  • Mammoth
  • Mastodon
• Figurine of wondrous power
• Frogs:
  • Frog father
  • Giant frog
  • Goliath frog
• Gar
• Goblin dog
• Gorthek^{C, P, R (half-orc or orc)}
• Herd Animals:
  • Antelope^{C, P, R}
  • Aurochs
  • Bison
  • Buffalo
  • Bull of Zagresh
  • Camel^{C, P, R}
  • Deer: Stag^{C, P, R}
  • Elk^{C, P, R}
  • Giraffe^{C, P}
  • Goat: Skittergoat
  • Moose
  • Ringhorn
  • Sheep: Ram^{C, P, R}
    • Sheep: Mindspin ram
  • Yzobu^{C, H, R}
• Hippopotamus
• Horse^{C, P, R}
  • Heavy horse
  • Pony^{C, P, R}
• Hyena
  • Dire hyena
• Lizards:
  • Giant chameleon
  • Gallerok
  • Giant gecko^{C, R}
  • Giant monitor lizard
  • Narlmarch mugger
• Llama
• Marsupials:
  • Kangaroo^{C, R}
  • Thylacine^R
• Megafauna:
  • Archelon
  • Arsinoitherium
  • Baluchitherium
  • Basilosaurus
  • Brontotherium
  • Chalicotherium
  • Deinotherium
  • Elasmotherium
  • Embolotherium
  • Glyptodon
  • Kaprosuchus
  • Megalania
  • Megaloceros
  • Megatherium
  • Moa
  • Titanoboa
  • Uintatherium
• Mokele-mbembe
• Octopus
• Panda
• Pterosaurs:
  • Dimorphodon
  • Quetzalcoatlus
  • Rhamphorhynchus
• Rats
  • Dire rat
  • Riding rat^{C, P, R (ratfolk)}
• Rays:
  • Manta ray
  • Stingray^R
• Rhinoceros or war rhinoceros
• Cave salamander^{C (kobold)}
• Sea crawler
• Giant seahorse^{C, P}
• Shark^R
• Snakes:
  • Constrictor snake^R
  • Riding python^{C (kobold)}
  • Viper^R
• Squid
• Switchback jackal
• Giant toad
• Giant tortoise^C
• Turtles:
  • Gliding turtle
  • Snapping turtle
• Walrus
• Giant weasel^{C, P}
• Wolf^{C, R}
• Wolverine^R
• Whale
  • Blue whale
  • Narwhal
• Wolliped

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Mounts and other classes

Druids and rangers may be the most iconic masters of animal companions, but adventurers of other stripes also bond to animal companions, including cavaliers and champions. Cavaliers and champions often use animal companions specifically as mounts. Suitable animals for these classes are marked in the list above with a superscript ^C for cavalier and a superscript ^P for paladin. Some oracles can also take an animal companion.

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Other animal companions

A sea crawler, an Azlanti animal companion.

Elemental animal companions

See also: Elemental companion

Sometimes, an animal companion is infused with raw elemental power—air, earth, fire, or water—that manifests in an element-appropriate fashion, such as the power of flight for an air-infused companion; toughened skin for earth-infused; flaming attacks for fire-infused; and the ability to thrive under water for water-infused companions.

Plant companions

Fungal pilgrim druids are specialised in their care for nature by seeking to become more plant-like, eventually transforming into a fungal form. Their animal companion eventually becomes a fungal creature.

Urdefhan animal companions

Urdefhans train, kill, and then raise as undead skaveling animal companions.

Vampiric animal companions

Some vampires and dhampirs can call a vampiric animal companion.

Verminous companions

Some druids choose to bond to a companion classified as vermin. Known vermin companions include: giant ants; giant beetles; giant centipedes; giant crabs; giant leeches; giant mantises; giant scorpions; giant slugs; giant spiders; and giant wasps.

Cavaliers native or travelling frequently in the Darklands may find the usually available animal mounts unsuitable and vermin tamer cavaliers have learnt to train Darklands creatures to perform as their mounts, such as giant beetles,^C giant centipedes,^C giant geckos,^C giant slugs,^C or giant spiders,^C all better suited to the terrain.

Alien animal companions

Numeria

In Numeria, some animals from the planet Kasath are found and can be taken as animal companions, including pilos and soricos.

Castrovel

Maraxes are a large predator on their home-world of Castrovel and may be taken by lashunta as animal companions; some are also found on Golarion, in Numeria and southern Garund.

Triaxus

On Triaxus, the seventh planet in Golarion's Solar system, wollipeds are trained as mounts and animal companions.

Named animal companions

Taldara Meirlanel and Mordimor, her animal companion.

Lini and Droogami, her animal companion.

The following are known animal companions of particular people on Golarion:

Name	Type	Associated person
Biter	Badger	Harsk
Denna	Wolf	Gunner
Droogami	Snow leopard	Lini
Fallow Grain	Horse	Ling Yayao
Feargus	Wolf	Damon Vancaskerkin
Kij, Rej & Yarkus	Hawks	Birdfood
Leryn	Wolf	Adowyn
Mordimor	Badger	Taldara Meirlanel
Ruanni	Cougar	Jang
Saluxer (cavalier mount)	Lion	Calhadion Vernisant
Steelbristles	Boar	Torgra Stigardsdam
T'kamo	Black bear	Linnorm King Nankou

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References

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