Does an animal companion of a different creature type have that type's traits?

[Samandriel Autumnvale]

I'm playing an Elf Druid Treesinger, and this popped up when we encountered a Ghoul. Instead of a regular animal companion, I have a plant companion. In the description of the Treesinger, it says Except for the companion being a creature of the plant type, drawn from the list below, this ability otherwise works like the standard druid's animal companion ability.
What exactly changes? My companion is of the Plant type, but does it also get all the traits associated with it? Meaning:

- d8 Hit Die.
- Base attack bonus equal to 3/4 total Hit Dice (medium progression).
- Good Fortitude saves.
- Skill points equal to 2 + Int modifier (minimum 1) per Hit Die. Some plant creatures, however, are mindless and gain no skill points or feats. The following are class skills for plants: Perception and Stealth.

Traits: A plant creature possesses the following traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature's entry).

- Low-light vision.
- Immunity to all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, morale effects, patterns, and phantasms).
- Immunity to paralysis, poison, polymorph, sleep effects, and stunning.
- Proficient with its natural weapons only.
- Not proficient with armor.
- Plants breathe and eat, but do not sleep.

This is a pretty large departure from the standard animal companion. While I'm not complaining, I'm just trying to make 100% sure I'm doing this right. The immunities to mind-affecting effects are especially powerful. Back to my example, we encountered a Ghoul, and my companion wouldn't have to worry about being paralyzed.

The reason I'm asking this is because I'm confused as to what changes. In my cited bit, it said it's of the Plant type, but otherwise works as a regular animal companion. This could be interpreted as "yeah, your companion is a plant, but it uses the stats as used in the Animal Companion section (meaning, more class skills, no immunities, and so on).

In a similar vein, I also have a Halfling Cavalier riding a Worg, using the Monstrous Mount feat. While that doesn't state my companion's type changes, but a Worg is a Magical Beast type. This would mean a bigger hit die and full BAB. I'm a bit fuzzier on this as this is never stated anywhere, but it would seem logical if the same is true for the Plant companion.

[DesolateHarmony]

PRD on animal Type:

ANIMAL
An animal is a living, nonhuman creature, usually a vertebrate with no magical abilities and no innate capacity for language or culture. Animals usually have additional information on how they can serve as companions. An animal has the following features (unless otherwise noted).

d8 Hit Die.
Base attack bonus equal to 3/4 total Hit Dice (medium progression).
Good Fortitude and Reflex saves.
Skill points equal to 2 + Int modifier (minimum 1) per Hit Die. The following are class skills for animals: Acrobatics, Climb, Fly, Perception, Stealth, and Swim.

Traits: An animal possesses the following traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature's entry).

Intelligence score of 1 or 2 (no creature with an Intelligence score of 3 or higher can be an animal).
Low-light vision.
Alignment: Always neutral.
Treasure: None.
Proficient with its natural weapons only. A noncombative herbivore treats its natural weapons as secondary attacks. Such attacks are made with a –5 penalty on the creature's attack rolls, and the animal receives only 1/2 its Strength modifier as a damage adjustment.
Proficient with no armor unless trained for war.
Animals breathe, eat, and sleep.

Subce an animal Animal Companion gets these features and traits because of the Animal Type, your Plant Companion should get those traits that do not conflict with the entry on Plant Companions. The entry on Plant Companions is the actual rule you have to follow.

For the Worg, the information should be with the Monstrous Mount feat. Since the feat is not on the PRD (Inner Sea Combat), I am using the SRD as a guide.

SRD wrote:

Taking on a monstrous mount requires a feat, but otherwise uses the rules for the animal companion class feature.

You do not use the bestiary entry for animal companions, and there is no mention of the Type (magical beast). Therefor you don't get abilities for the Type. Use the chart under Animal Companions in the Druid entry, as modified by the Monstrous Mount feat.

[Samandriel Autumnvale]

So, my Worg is just a regular old animal companion, and my Treant behaves like any Plant creature would? Thanks for that!

[DesolateHarmony]

The worg is not quite just an animal companion. It has an INT of 6, and so knows 12 tricks more than a normal animal companion. That's a LOT! It also can speak two languages, which other animal companions cannot. And, with Monstrous Mount Mastery, you can get it to use the Fearful Howl power. Quite a bit beyond most animal companions.

[Ascalaphus]

(Yesterday's alchemist Dr. Isambard talking *wave*)

As I understand it, your AC is a plant, and therefore has the Plant Type with all that implies, except for everything spelled out as different in the AC rules in the druid section. So it has whatever HD, saves, BAB and so forth are written in the druid section, regardless of what plants normally get. But everything that's not changed by the druid AC section remains as normal for plants. Including the immunities.

Likewise for your Worg, it's gonna have the BAB and saves from the druid AC table, even though magical beasts might have better BAB and HD. But apart from what the druid AC table says, it's a regular magical beast.

[Samandriel Autumnvale]

DesolateHarmony wrote:

The worg is not quite just an animal companion. It has an INT of 6, and so knows 12 tricks more than a normal animal companion. That's a LOT! It also can speak two languages, which other animal companions cannot. And, with Monstrous Mount Mastery, you can get it to use the Fearful Howl power. Quite a bit beyond most animal companions.

Sorry for the confusion, I meant that it behaves just like a normal animal companion other than its regular stats, just like you said. Poor choice of words.

Ascalaphus wrote:

(Yesterday's alchemist Dr. Isambard talking *wave*)

As I understand it, your AC is a plant, and therefore has the Plant Type with all that implies, except for everything spelled out as different in the AC rules in the druid section. So it has whatever HD, saves, BAB and so forth are written in the druid section, regardless of what plants normally get. But everything that's not changed by the druid AC section remains as normal for plants. Including the immunities.

Likewise for your Worg, it's gonna have the BAB and saves from the druid AC table, even though magical beasts might have better BAB and HD. But apart from what the druid AC table says, it's a regular magical beast.

Thanks for that clarification, I had some trouble understanding what got overwritten and what didn't (basically, all the regular features are overwritten, except its traits).

[Darrell Impey UK]

Ok, now let's throw the migrus locker into the mix...