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According to the folks over a Hero-Labs, the only animal companions available to Rangers are the ones specifically called out within the text of the Hunters Bond description. This prevents them from getting any of the animal companions other than the dire rat from the Bestiary.
Is this true that Rangers are really that limited on animal companion choice?
According to the folks over a Hero-Labs, the only animal companions available to Rangers are the ones specifically called out within the text of the Hunters Bond description. This prevents them from getting any of the animal companions other than the dire rat from the Bestiary.
Is this true that Rangers are really that limited on animal companion choice?
They are limited to a smaller number of choices than the Druid...
but not to only a dire rat.
Creative Director
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According to the folks over a Hero-Labs, the only animal companions available to Rangers are the ones specifically called out within the text of the Hunters Bond description. This prevents them from getting any of the animal companions other than the dire rat from the Bestiary.
Is this true that Rangers are really that limited on animal companion choice?
Yes. The idea being that a ranger is a combat-focused class, and thus his animal companions should not grant him a huge additional combat bonus. His animal companions are more intended to be scouts, mounts, or spies, not up front and melee types.
There are some options in the Advanced Player's Guide that open up the list of available animal companions for rangers, though.
The animal companions in the Bestiary are primarily for druids (who have no restriction on what kind of animal companions they can choose). But a GM who thinks/feels that some of those animals would be cool additions to the ranger list should not hesitate to make that ruling for his game.
Since Mr. Jacobs was the one who edited the RotR AE, and he's also the one who said "a GM who thinks/feels that some of those animals would be cool additions to the ranger list should not hesitate to make that ruling for his game", I'm inclined to believe that he simply thought a firepelt cougar would be a cool companion for Jakardros and thus gave it to him.
The original could use a bear, since it was written for 3.5, and 3.5 didn't put limitations on the creatures that could be ranger ACs as opposed to druid ACs.
There is a Ranger Archetype that grants rangers an expanded list. Perhaps the NPC in question has that archetype. (I do not have the anniversary edition). Then again, sometimes with NPCs they come up with 3rd party material or 'GM fiat'.
- Gauss
Crusoe:
Thus you have your answer, it is a reskinned animal. And here I decided not to post that option (not knowing what a firepelt cougar was).
Reskinned critters are critters that are mechanically identical but appear different.
- Gauss
Gauss: Crusoe was the one asking; I simply tried to answer as best I could without my copy of the AE at hand :)
Doh, my bad. Brain fading! Fixed
- Gauss