If you took teh leadership feat, could you, instead of getting an NPC of the appropriate level, take an intelligent monster of the apprporiate CR in it's stead, with all the limitation of alignment that exist on that matter with the feat?
Don't go by the CR. The Bestiaries list equivalent levels for cohort-appropriate monsters, and they are generally of a higher effective level than the CR indicates.
What page? And what beastiary?
