Any Playtest info on Rangers and / or Animal Companion mechanics?

[Vidmaster7]

Oh ok I see what you guys are saying.

[Deadmanwalking]

It's very possible there will be a Skill Feat to grant your Animal Companion more extensive training and a third action (that sounds like a solid Master level boost to me). What I'll bet there isn't is a Feat to get rid of the action cost to command it.

[Subparhiggins]

In the previous rules, an animal companion would carry out the command until the command changed, similar to a summon. I'd be okay with it controlling like a Starfinder drone, but if it stays the same as the old companions, that's fine too.

Also if you have an animal companion and you don't want it, thats when you get a small useful non-combat animal like a hawk and use it entirely for outside of combat skill use. Have it scout, have it carry messages, etc.

[Knight Magenta]

I have 3 items on my animal companion wish-list:

1. Make is so that the replacement option for the AC is just as good. It's lame when I build a character that does not make sense with an animal, but I feel like I am taking the inferior option when I pass up the AC.

2. Make a martial class with full AC scaling from level 1. A warrior and his faithful hound should be a core option.

3. I want the ability to make characters with non-animal pets. Like an outsider or a skeleton.

[Malk_Content]

Knight Magenta wrote:

I have 3 items on my animal companion wish-list:

1. Make is so that the replacement option for the AC is just as good. It's lame when I build a character that does not make sense with an animal, but I feel like I am taking the inferior option when I pass up the AC.

2. Make a martial class with full AC scaling from level 1. A warrior and his faithful hound should be a core option.

3. I want the ability to make characters with non-animal pets. Like an outsider or a skeleton.

Well for 2 it seems any character can do it with sufficient skill investment. The question really is how much (hopefully low enough that you can get it at low levels without being unbalanced.) I'm really hoping 3 will be similar but with the Occult skill.

[Benchak the Nightstalker]

ElSilverWind wrote:

Hopefully it’s just my players doing something wrong. Does anyone here know how to make a “Druid Level -3” Animal Comanion useful in combat?

Take Boon Companion and make it a full-level animal companion.

[khadgar567]

And 3rd one begs to be used by casters and invalidates improved familiar feat

[Knight Magenta]

khadgar567 wrote:

And 3rd one begs to be used by casters and invalidates improved familiar feat

The Improved familiar feat serves sort of a different purpose. In P1, Familiars were never supposed to compete with animal companions for combat effectiveness. Improved familiar doesn't even make the familiar super combat-focused, it only improves versatility.

As to making pet feats more attractive to casters in P2; that's fine? Presumably, if commanding the AC is the same action cost for everyone and casters and martials are balanced, then it all works out.

Another way to make pets more attractive for martial characters (if that's what you want) is to make the action economy better. If the command "attack who I attack" takes no actions for example.

[Chief Cook and Bottlewasher]

Rysky wrote:

Chief Cook and Bottlewasher wrote:

octopi are intelligent

Welcome back :3

Thank you, although I have been lurking (pesky real life eating up my time). I'm very interested in seeing the playtest snippets appearing (pesky pathfinder eating up my real life :) )