Pets are small animals that can be bound to a player character. The player and pet have a special relationship where the pet helps the player and in return, the pet gets food and shelter. This symbiotic relationship gives the player a small advantage from their pet’s abilities.
The player can communicate with their pet about 25% of the time. For example, a dog can point, an owl can flap its wings and hoot, or a cat can purr. Communication should be limited to yes or no questions and may only be correctly communicated about 25% of the time.
All pets have an Armor Class of 10 and 1d6 Hit Points, which means they can take some damage in battle, but are easily killed.
Replacing a pet is not easy and requires a difficult task such as going on a quest to a specific location or paying a large sum of money.
Bonding to Pets
The player can attempt to befriend an animal by making a Wisdom Check vs DC 20 (17 for a Druid) the check may vary depending on the animal’s disposition and the circumstances – as your Dungeon Master.
Once the bond is established, the player and animal will work together, with the player providing care and training to the animal in exchange for its assistance and companionship. The pet may provide bonuses to certain skills or abilities as outlined in the campaign’s rules, and it may also have its own personality and quirks that develop over time.
There are several ways in which a player could break the bond with their pet, depending on the specific circumstances and the nature of the relationship between the character and the animal.
- Neglect: If the character consistently fails to provide food, water, and shelter for their pet, the animal may become malnourished or sick, and may eventually die.
- Abuse: If the character mistreats or abuses their pet, the animal may become fearful or aggressive, and may eventually lash out at the character or run away.
- Betrayal: If the character betrays the trust of their pet, such as by forcing it to perform dangerous tasks or sacrificing it to achieve a goal, the animal may become disillusioned or angry, and may refuse to continue following the character’s commands.
Pets and Abilities
This is a sample list and can be expanded or limited based on the rules of your game. Check with your Dungeon Master for more information.
- Bloodhound – An expert tracker. +3 to tracking rolls. Can also growl (60%) when enemies are nearby, alerting the player to potential danger.
- Cat – Stealthy. +1 to all rolls that require sneaking or remaining unnoticed. Has a tendency to wander off (30%).
- Dire Rat – Grants the player character a +3 bonus to their Perception skill, as the rat can sniff out hidden items and traps.
- Faerie Dragon – Grants the player character the ability to cast one additional caltrop per day.
- Falcon – Hunter. +3 to hit when attacking, dealing 1d4 damage. Expensive to obtain at 500 gp+.
- Ferret – Thief. Has a tendency to steal random items (possibly from other players).
- Gecko – Wall-Crawler. Can climb any surface, carrying a small 1/2 lbs cache. May wander off (50%).
- Goldfish – Soothing: Calms other animals, +3 to animal handling rolls, may be fragile and require special care.
- Guinea Pig – Vigilant. +3 to all rolls that involve detecting surprise attacks. Other animals may see it as prey.
- Homunculus – Grants the player character the ability to navigate in complete darkness and detect magical auras.
- Owl – Keen Sight. +3 to all rolls that require sight, including searching for objects or hidden enemies. May fly off (30%).
- Parrot – Mimic: Can mimic voices and sounds, may randomly repeat things said by other characters.
- Potbelly Pig – Comforting. +3 to Charisma checks when interacting with friendly NPCs. Can be easily frightened and make lots of noise.
- Tiny Elemental – Grants the player character the ability to create small gusts of wind, which can extinguish flames or move small objects.