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I appreciate the answers (and more are welcome from anyone reading this thread after I post this). I think a lot of them are pretty valid ways of looking at things.

This had me thinking of a setting where this question is part of a central mechanic, where there are some people in the world who were more in tune with the mystical energies of the world (much like what TheMagicIndian suggested) and they either became infused with the energies to perform great feats of prowess (martial classes) or could learn to bend the energies (magic classes). Normal people would be normal people, and there could be strife between the two types (see anything related to X-Men).

As the title states, how do you all rationalize a 100+ hp character in a world where most common folk have 10 hp or so? I understand how mechanically it needs to be the case, as one needs to have the higher number in order to defeat more powerful monsters, but I'm approaching the question from a strictly lore sense.

I suppose the question might just boil down to what is the nature of hit points. I'd assume some part of it is just being tougher from experience, but I'm trying to figure out what about a higher level character would prevent them from being bbq'd by a dragon more than a normal person would.

Thanks!

On the contrary, in Pathfinder, unconscious = willing unless the particular spell says otherwise. It's in the spell targeting rules. Given a little search-fu, I'll find it shortly.

EDIT: It's under Aiming a Spell.

Aiming a Spell wrote:

Some spells restrict you to willing targets only. Declaring yourself as a willing target is something that can be done at any time (even if you're flat-footed or it isn't your turn). Unconscious creatures are automatically considered willing, but a character who is conscious but immobile or helpless (such as one who is bound, cowering, grappling, paralyzed, pinned, or stunned) is not automatically willing.

Dead is another matter.

Awesome, thanks. Hopefully the ruling on unconscious will solve most of the issue, but if nothing else for the academic point, does anyone know what the status of "willing" is for dead creatures?

I have a hunter who carries around his deinonychus animal companion while in towns using the Carry Companion spell (dinosaurs tend to draw attention). I've reread the spell recently and the wording has me curious about whether the spell could be used on the companion if it fell unconscious or died. I had hoped that if something were to go wrong and it were badly injured that I could turn it to stone and get it out of danger until it could be healed, also possibly allowing for simpler revival magic to be done because the body hadn't decayed at all (Level 5 Hunter at the moment, don't get companion revival until level 10).

The part of the wording that is of concern is "An intelligent animal or magical beast must be a willing subject in order for this spell to take effect". Jokes aside, I'm guessing a creature cannot be "willing" if its unconscious or dead?

Setup:
I'm playing a glaive wielding hunter with a deinonychus companion in a party with a learned dualist fighter, a rogue, a gunslinger, and a spiritualist. We just hit level 5, and in a lot of the previous combats its become apparent that I'm the main damage dealer of the party and also effectively the main tank mostly because some of the members are new. My character isn't great at too much out of combat, which is fine because it lets the others shine in the RP. Going forward I'm attempting to tweak the character a bit so he's not taking up the entire spotlight in combat.

Question:
I'm looking for a new level two spell, and wanted to consult the various minds of the forums as to what might be the best/most fun addition to the character. I already have Barkskin for combat and Carry Companion for flavor and RP purpose (dinosaurs tend to turn heads in towns). I'm aiming against anything that makes me do just more damage (though vine strike looks beautiful for a deinonychus), as I've got that pretty in hand right now. Things I've been considering are Burst of Radiance, Hunter's Lore, and Versatile Weapon.

I welcome any suggestions or questions you all have.

Much obliged for all the answers. Definitely going to make playing my character easier and more clear going forward.

Foreclaws are secondary.

Multiattack can't be taken by a creature with less than 3 natural attacks, but Animal Companions with fewer than three natural attacks instead gain a second attack with one of their natural weapons, albeit at a –5 penalty.

You quote the character sheet of the actual creature, but I was under the impression that you only work with the sheet of the companion version, which does not mark them as secondary (see Allosaurus, Drake, etc. for examples of creatures that are marked with secondary attacks).

Oh, secondary question, what, if anything would the Multiattack feat do for this? Based on the description of the companion it doesn't look like any of these attacks count as secondary. I say that because other companions (such as the large cat) specifically have labels for secondary attacks. So when the companion hits level 9, does it just get a feat that its not going to use?

Good to know. Thanks all.

I recently started a game playing a hunter with a Deinonychus companion. Under attacks it is listed as 2 talons, 1 bite. I am assuming that for basic attacks I would get the two talons (and a bite if its a full attack), but how would an attack of opportunity work? Can I choose which attack to use (talons, bite, or post lvl 7, claws?), and if I chose talons would I only get one talon instead of the normal two? Just want to make sure I'm playing this right.