Questions regarding Monstrous Companions

[Reduxist]

I was building a character when I came over the Monstrous Companion feat, Henceforth MC. For the record, the character is a Lunar Oracle with the Lycanthropy Curse of Corruption. She has aspirations to follow Jezelda's Demonic Obedience to become a true werewolf. She's not intended to be a pc, but rather an antagonist for a story not yet written.

According to the rules of MC, you can gain a cohort at the expense of your animal companion ability. A Lunar Oracle can get an animal companion from the Primal Companion revelation. Specifically, the feat gives you a cohort so I can bet that certain feats such as Boon Companion or Evolved Companion will not work with them. This is completely understandable since, gaining a 16th level Magical Beast such as an Oma or a Grootslang would be ludicrous. That, or a Harridan, I am still unsure of how the leveling formula works for that feat.

Also according to the MC rules, you can only select from a certain list of magical beasts to be your cohort. This means you cannot pick things like Abyssal Wolves or Jackalweres as your cohort, if I am not mistaken.

With all of this information available or at least assumed, I would like to know whether I should continue to include MC in the character build or whether I should swap it out for something like Monstrous Mount to get a Worg or Vile Leadership and gain a pack of Abyssal Wolves from that.

[Murdock Mudeater]

Okay, asked in the rules section, so giving you rules answers.

So first, under a strict rules reading of the feat and your class, you do not have the animal companion class feature. You have a "Primal Companion" which does not qualify for this feat. This is just like how the Nature Oracle's "Bonded Mount" does not qualify as having the Mount class feature for Monstrous Mount requirements.

That said, if you are GM, this may be fine for your group. Just a little tweak and not really a balance issue. These are often modified by GMs, since it's more an issue of poor wording, than a clear violation of rules.

Personally, as an antagonist made by the GM, I really wouldn't bother making a character and cohorts. I'd just make two characters. The cohorts, and leadership rules, are more intended for PCs that want minions, than for the GM. Kinda redundant anyway, since it's a minion for your minion...

It's easier for calculating experience and CRs too, to just have them be seperate creatures.

[Shiniryuu]

Murdock Mudeater wrote:

So first, under a strict rules reading of the feat and your class, you do not have the animal companion class feature. You have a "Primal Companion" which does not qualify for this feat. This is just like how the Nature Oracle's "Bonded Mount" does not qualify as having the Mount class feature for Monstrous Mount requirements.

The nature oracle's bonded mount and lunar oracle's primal companion revalations both iterate that they function as the druid's animal companion class feature

Lunar mystery wrote:

Primal Companion (Ex): You gain the service of a faithful animal of the night. You can select from a bear, boar, crocodile, shark, tiger, or wolf. This animal functions as a druid's animal companion, using your oracle level as your effective druid level.

Nature mystery wrote:

Bonded Mount (Su): You gain the service of an unusually intelligent, strong, and loyal mount. The creature must be one that you are capable of riding and is suitable as a mount. A Medium oracle can select a camel or a horse. A Small oracle can select a pony or wolf, but can also select a boar or a dog if she is at least 4th level. This mount functions as a druid’s animal companion, using your oracle level as your effective druid level. Bonded mounts have an Intelligence score of at least 6.

I don't remember who it was or which thread they had posted it on, but one of the developers said that it's not so much about the name so much as the function of a feature. That said, the cavalier's mount class feature differentiates itself from the animal companion class feature like so:

APG - cavalier wrote:

A cavalier does not take an armor check penalty on Ride checks while riding his mount. The mount is always considered combat trained and begins play with Light Armor Proficiency as a bonus feat. A cavalier's mount does not gain the share spells special ability.