Send the Weasel in! He can take 'em!

[Nullmancer]

I was talking with a friend of mine about animal companions, and somewhere along the line, the conversation took a look at diminutive and tiny animals as possible friends in crime. They'ed be cool for the simple cuteness and awesomeness of it, like, who wouldn't want a hamster as a pet? Or hedgehogs. 20th level druid comes around with a hedgehog that kicks royal butt, haha.

But here's the problem. When you first get them, they're tiny...or diminutive. They have no health, contribute nothing to combat, and are generally weak in every sense of the word. So, I'm asking what you guys would do to bring a creature whose CR is lower than 1, up to par.

Any ideas are completely welcome. :D

[Eltacolibre]

The giant weasel is the regular animal companion from Bestiary 4, so you want to use a regular weasel for an animal companion? There isn't really any animal companion smaller than small. Tiny is more appropriate for familiars. I guess maybe talking with your dm to give it the advanced template but then again this might give the tiny weasel a little too much power boost compared to regular animals...frankly not too sure how to go about it.

[Hawktitan]

The stuff of legends! Right Boo!

[Nullmancer]

Go for the eyes Boo, GO FOR THE EYES!! RrraaaAAGHGHH!!!

[Eltacolibre]

Lol Minsc and Boo.

[Nullmancer]

So, we've got the advanced template, but that might be too much.

Any other ideas?

[tkul]

Don't even really need to do that. A level 9 druid's weasle companion has 36HP 24AC +13/+8/+8 attack routine for 1d4-1 damage per hit before any spells are shared. Unless your GM is running a game where every creature is the same level as the party that weasle can handle one or two mooks by himself and with a +18 stealth check they'll never see him coming.

[tkul]

You can also eventually awaken the weasle which then takes levels in ranger and gets his own weasle companion. Thus does the rat army begin.

[Nullmancer]

I guess a little explanation would be better. I have a Level 3 Rakshasa-Born Cleric of Animal and Trickery. At fourth level, I'll have an animal companion, and seeing as the campaign we're playing in isn't optimized in the least, I wanted to go about things a little unorthodox.

I would like to choose either a grey heron, raccoon, or otter as my animal companion because they each hold meaning to me. Suffice it to say I live on a lake and I want to take part of it and apply it to my character.

That's where I'm having a bit of trouble, though, because if I was the DM for this game, I don't know any ways of making one of the above an actual viable animal companion with survivability that can also contribute to combat in some way.

[KingmanHighborn]

Aasimar get a feat that lets their animal companions take the celestial template. So Smite away!

[tkul]

I don't know if there's a way to make any of those viable below level 9 (or equivalent druid level). The key is getting to Multiattack on the druid benefits and multiple stat ups and improved natural attack which the animal can't get till level 6 if I recall... Below that the tiny-small range creatures just do not have the ability to do damage, they're still ok scouts but fluff but just not combat critters. Even at that level they just become passable not really good by any stretch.