Tamer

Beast of Prey

Trainers of wild animals as well as soldiers of nature, Tamers fight side by side with creatures to combat the threats to their habitats and homes. They learn to think like a beast does, honing their instincts and connection to nature to hunt down threats. Tamers quickly learn to fight alongside a beast as a duo, using joint maneuvers to do things that they couldn't accomplish alone.

Tamers rely on their athletic prowess to tame beasts as well as fight in combat. What they lack in pure brute force and magic prowess they make up for in combat experience and the ability to work in tandem with a beast. A Tamer's expertise syncs with the animals they tame to make a pair that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Partner in Savagery

Tamers have reputations of being recluses deep within nature, but in reality can have almost any kind of background or personality. Some Tamers might choose to live in cities, employing their prowess with beasts to earn a living or simply keep their community safe. There are many Tamers that form a close bond with a single creature, making it as close to them as a brother or sister, while others seek to interact with a vast assortment of creatures.

A Tamer's familiarity with the animals of the wilds makes them naturally suited for adventuring. After all, Tamers can only make the most of their talents in places where there are a myriad of beasts to interact with. Tamers often look down on others that treat animals disrespectfully, and watching others that are novices with nature often gives Tamers a sense of amusement, resentment, or pride in their own skills.

Beast Quirks

Each beast has its own peculiarities, and while most of these are harmless they can be interesting for a Tamer to work around. Below are a set of quirks your beast might have. Whenever you gain a new bonded companion, roll on the table to determine what quirk the animal has or simply choose one you want. You can also create your own.

Bonded Companion Quirks

d8	Quirk
1	It acts like it is a size smaller than it actually is
2	It will tear dragons from the sky for some belly rubs
3	Unattended food is clearly meant for it.
4	There was a problem. You weren't paying attention. It solved the problem. Aren't you pleased?
5	It has a tendency to fetch things. Many things. Clearly you wanted this thing.
6	Mid-day sun is prime napping time.
7	The sound of footsteps is clearly a murderer out to get you. It must make lots of noise to save you.
8	It wants to snuggle with you when it sleeps.

Hit Points

Hit Dice: 1d8 per Tamer level

Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier

Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per Tamer level after 1st

Proficiencies

Armor: Light armor, medium armor, shields

Weapons: Simple weapons, martial weapons

Tools: None

Saving Throws: Strength, Wisdom

Skills: Choose two from Animal Handling, Athletics, Acrobatics, Insight, Medicine, Nature, Perception, Stealth, and Survival

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• (a) scale mail or (b) leather armor

• (a) two martial melee weapons or (b) a martial melee weapon and a shield

• (a) a dungeoneer's pack or (b) an explorer's pack

• A simple or martial ranged weapon and 20 pieces of ammunition

Companions In Combat

When initiative is rolled, you may designate a single companion to follow your orders during the following combat. You may not designate another companion to follow your orders until the combat ends. All other companions flee the hostile area or go dormant in a manner that takes them out of harm's way until combat ends. A companion you designate acts on your initiative count, taking its turn immediately before or after you, and can occupy the same space as you. On its turn, a companion will only move and can't take any actions or bonus actions. During your turn, whenever you take the attack action you may choose to forgo making one attack to order your companion to immediately take the attack action. Additionally, during your turn you may, as a bonus action, order the beast to take the disengage, dodge, hide, or search action, or to move up to half its movement speed. You cannot use your bonus action in this way during the same turn you order your bonded companion to attack. At any point, if the beast is not within 120 feet of you and hasn't heard you within the last round, it uses all of its movement to attempt to return to a spot within 120 feet of you.

Note for Clarity

Any feature that references "companions" applies for normal bonded companions as well as subclass-specific companions. However, any feature that references only bonded companions or subclass-specific companions does not apply for any other type of companion.

Archery

You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with ranged weapons.

Defense

While you are wearing armor, you gain a +1 bonus to AC.

Dueling

When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon.

Protection

When a creature you can see attacks a target other than you that is within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to impose disadvantage on the attack roll. You must be wielding a shield.

Thrown-Weapon Fighting

You can draw a weapon that has the thrown property as part of the attack you make with the weapon. In addition, when you hit with a ranged attack using a thrown weapon, you gain a +2 bonus to the damage roll.

Two-Weapon Fighting

When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.

Unarmed Fighting

Your unarmed strikes can deal bludgeoning damage equal to ld6 + your Strength modifier on a hit. If you aren't wielding any weapons or a shield when you make the attack roll, the d6 becomes a d8.

At the start of each of your turns, you can deal ld4 bludgeoning damage to one creature grappled by you.

Command: Arm!

Your companion targets the arm of an enemy while you are attacking. If you hit with your attack, add the command die to the attack's damage roll. In addition, the first weapon attack roll the target makes during its next turn is made with disadvantage.

Command: Blitz!

Prerequisite: Medium size or bigger companion

Your companion rushes an enemy while you are attacking, attempting to push or pull it to the ground. If you hit with your attack, add the command die to the attack's damage roll. In addition, if the target is of large size or smaller, it must succeed on a Strength saving throw or be knocked prone.

Command: Brace!

Prerequisite: Medium size or bigger companion

Your companion bolsters itself in anticipation of incoming damage. Your bonded companion gains temporary hp equal to the result of your command die + your proficiency bonus. This temporary hp lasts only while still in combat.

Command: Craze!

Your companion makes a series of wild and distracting feints at an enemy while you are attacking. Add the command die to your attack roll.

Command: Disrupt!

Your companion attempts to break an enemy's concentration while you are attacking. If you hit with your attack, add the command die to the attack's damage roll. In addition, any concentration roll the enemy makes due to your attack is made with disadvantage.

Command: Ear!

Your companion targets the ear of an enemy while you are attacking. If you hit with your attack, add the command die to the attack's damage roll. In addition, the enemy is deafened for 1 minute.

Command: Eyes!

Your companion targets the eyes of an enemy while you are attacking. If you hit with your attack, add the command die to the attack's damage roll. In addition, the enemy is blinded to anything beyond 10 feet away until the end of its next turn.

Command: Fetch!

Before or after you make your attack, your companion retrieves something within close distance and delivers it to you or an ally. Your companion may move a number of feet up to its movement speed. While moving in this way, if it enters a space where there is an object that can be grabbed without resistance and that weighs no more than your companion's Strength score * 3, then your companion can take the object into its possession. The companion can drop this object or put it into a willing creature's open hand at-will on their turn or whenever you or a friendly creature enter a space within 5ft of the companion. The companion drops the item if it becomes grappled or incapacitated.

Command: Harass!

Your companion snaps at the enemy in an annoying and painful way. If you hit with your attack, add the command die to the attack's damage roll. In addition, the enemy must make a Wisdom saving throw. If the enemy fails, they have disadvantage on any attack rolls they make against targets other than your bonded companion until the beginning of your next turn.

Command: Go!

Your attack allows your companion to pivot and sprint to a nearby location. Your bonded companion immediately disengages and moves to a spot of your choosing no further than half its movement speed away.

Command: Gut!

Your companion targets the gut of an enemy while you are attacking. If you hit with your attack, add the command die to the attack's damage roll. In addition, the target can't take reactions until the end of your next turn.

Elite Command: Bunker!

You and your companion form a wall with your flesh. When you and your companion are within 5ft of each other and either of you would take damage that would reduce one of you to 0 hit points, even if that damage would kill one of you outright, you can use your reaction to expend a Command Die to combine your and your companion's hit points into one, causing you or your companion to take the remaining damage that would otherwise reduce their hit points to 0. If this effect would cause both you and your companion to fall to 0 hit points, only your companion falls to 0 hit points and you fall to 1 hit point.

Elite Command: Pierce!

Prerequisites: Medium size or smaller companion

In place of an attack, you can expend a Command Die and have your companion move up to half its normal movement speed in a straight line, forcing creatures in that line out to the normal range of the weapon to make a Dexterity saving throw. Creatures take your companion's Strike damage plus piercing damage equal to your Command Die on a failed save, and half as much damage on a successful save.

Elite Command: Scream!

In place of an attack, you can expend a Command Die and have your companion issue a mighty scream of aggression, forcing any creature in an adjacent 30 foot cone that can hear them to make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, creatures drop whatever they are holding and are frightened of them until the end of their next turn.

Elite Command: Slam!

Prerequisite: Medium size or larger companion

Your companion slams the ground with great force in an attempt to destabilize your enemies. Instead of making an attack, you can expend a Command Die to have your companion strike the ground at their feet with all of their might, forcing creatures in an adjacent 20-foot cube to make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, creatures take bludgeoning damage equal to your companion's Strength modifier + the Command Die rolled and fall prone. On a successful save, they take half damage and don't fall prone. Any objects within this area take the maximum amount of damage.

The area of the 20-foot cube becomes difficult terrain until a creature takes 1 minute to clear it.

Elite Command: Swift!

Prerequisites: Small size or smaller companion

You can expend a Command Die at the beginning of your companion's turn to have them make the most of their fleetness, as if it were for the fate of their life. They gain the following benefits until the end of their turn:

• Their movement is unaffected by difficult terrain.
• Their movement speed increases by 10 feet.
• Spells and other magical effects can neither reduce their speed nor cause them to be paralyzed or restrained.
• They can spend 5 feet of movement to instantly escape from nonmagical restraints like manacles or a grapple.
• Swimming or being underwater imposes no penalties on their movements or their attack or skill check rolls.

Elite Command: Tear!

Prerequisites: Medium size or larger companion

Your companion rips into your enemy with everything they've got. When your companion hits a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can expend an Exploit Die and force it to make a Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, it takes additional bludgeoning damage equal to two rolls of your Command Die and until the end of the creature's next turn, it has disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks, and it cannot take reactions.

Stalwart Companion

When you choose this beast companion at 1st level, any time you finish a long rest, you may turn a medium or large size, non-flying bonded companion you have or that you just made into a Stalwart Companion. You may only ever have one Stalwart companion at a time. A stalwart companion is functionally the same as a bonded companion, but replace the normal statistics for a bonded companion with the statistics below:

Your stalwart companion regains hit points equal to 6 + your beast's constitution modifier every time you expend a hit die, and regains all of its health at the end of a long rest.

If your stalwart companion dies and is then revived by magical means, it immediately becomes your stalwart companion again unless you already have another stalwart companion, in which case it becomes a bonded companion.

The following subclass features and traits for stalwart companions do not apply to bonded companions. A bonded companion must meet the criteria for becoming a stalwart companion and then be made into one at the end of a long rest before gaining any of the features and traits.

Get Big

At 3rd level, you understand the importance of size and standing your ground around hostile or territorial beasts. When you make a Wisdom (Animal Handing) or Charisma (Intimidation) skill check against a creature that is not friendly towards you or a party member, you may add your Strength modifier to the result.

Unbreakable Fortitude

At 7th level, whenever your stalwart companion is forced to make a saving throw you may use your reaction to give it advantage on the saving throw. If you do this and your stalwart companion succeeds on the saving throw, you may have your stalwart companion move to the nearest adjacent space to the creature and make one melee weapon attack against it if the creature is within 15 feet of your stalwart companion.

Moving Mountain

At 13th level, your stalwart companion acts as a defensible moving mound on the battlefield. When you use your bonus action to order your stalwart companion to take the help action, the creature it helps is considered behind half cover until the beginning of your next turn.

Barbaric Ferocity

At 17th level, your stalwart companion gains the Barbarian class features Reckless Attack and Rage as if they were 5th level barbarian.

Stalwart Beast Traits

Alpha Assistant

You have advantage on one type of saving throw as long as your stalker companion is within 30 feet of you. This trait may be taken up to three times, choosing a different type of saving throw each time.

Climber

If your stalker companion is a land animal, it gains a climbing speed of 20 feet. It cannot climb upside down without a successful DC 15 Athletics skill check on a turn in which they attempt it.

Constrictor

If your stalker companion is a medium size snake or other appropriate animal, you gain the ability to order it to make a grapple check as a bonus action. This trait is incompatible with the quick trait. If you pick this trait, you cannot pick the other.

Charger

If your beast moves at least 20 feet towards an enemy and then hits that enemy with a melee weapon attack, that enemy must succeed on a Strength saving throw (DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + the beast's Strength modifier) or take additional damage equal to your proficiency bonus and either be knocked prone or moved to a different spot within 5 feet (your choice).

Defend the Pack

You have +2 to your AC as long as your stalker companion is within 10 feet of you.

Enhanced

Improve two different ability scores of your beast by 2. The maximum for any ability score is 20. This trait may be taken up to two times.

Follow the Trail

By letting your beast smell an object or a piece of an object a creature has worn or carried within the last 24 hours, it can pick up the scent of the creature or its trail. After smelling the object, your beast becomes aware of any locations the creature has been within half a mile of the beast in the last 24 hours and can guide you to any location along the trail you order it to take you. This can include the location of the creature, if that creature is within the half mile radius.

Keen Sense

Your beast has advantage when making perception (Wisdom) checks that rely on two of the following senses of your choice: sight, smell, or hearing.

Nocturnal

Your beast has 120 feet of darkvision and while you and/or party members are sleeping can act as an alert sentry that will wake you if it perceives something undesirable within its range of vision.

Pack Tactics

Your beast has advantage on an Attack roll against a creature if you or at least one of your allies is within 5 feet of the creature and you or the ally isn't Incapacitated.

Pounce

If your beast moves at least 20 feet towards an enemy and then hits that enemy with a melee attack roll, that enemy must succeed on a Strength saving throw (DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + the beast's Strength modifier) or your beast may immediately make another Strike against the enemy.

Quick

Your companion is particularly quick and its movement speed becomes 50 feet. This trait is incompatible with the constrictor trait. If you pick this trait, you cannot pick the other.

Steed

While acting as a mount, your beast can be issued commands, take the help action, and attack with its strike.

Sinister Companion

When you choose this beast companion at 1st level, any time you finish a long rest, you may turn a small size, non-flying bonded companion you have or that you just made into a Sinister Companion. You may only ever have one Sinister companion at a time. A sinister companion is functionally the same as a bonded companion, but replace the normal statistics for a bonded companion with the statistics below:

Your sinister companion regains hit points equal to 4 + your beast's constitution modifier every time you expend a hit die, and regains all of its health at the end of a long rest.

If your sinister companion dies and is then revived by magical means, it immediately becomes your sinister companion again unless you already have another sinister companion, in which case it becomes a bonded companion.

The following subclass features and traits for sinister companions do not apply to bonded companions. A bonded companion must meet the criteria for becoming a sinister companion and then be made into one at the end of a long rest before gaining any of the features and traits.

Angel on the Shoulder

At 3rd level, your bond with small animals naturally charms other people who love animals. After making a skill check that causes a small size or smaller animal to like you or your bonded companion, and that animal belongs to another humanoid, you have advantage on the next Charisma (Persuasion) check you make against that animal's owner in the next 10 minutes. Once you have used this ability on a humanoid, you cannot use it on that same humanoid again for 24 hours.

Unnerving Duplicity

At 7th level, you have advantage on dexterity saving throws against enemy spells. In addition, the first creature your sinister companion successfully hits with its strike on the first round of combat must make a Wisdom saving throw. The saving throw DC equals 8 + your proficiency bonus + the beast's Charisma modifier. On a failure, your beast threw the enemy off guard, giving all attack rolls made against that creature advantage until the beginning of your next turn.

Devil on the Shoulder

Starting at 13th level, your sinister companion's presence near an enemy causes them to make mistakes. Whenever you use your bonus action to order your sinister companion to take the help action, after the attack is made the enemy must make a Wisdom saving throw. The saving throw DC equals 8 + your proficiency bonus + the beast's Charisma modifier. On a failure, the enemy loses its reaction and its movement is halved until the end of its next turn as it spends the time shooing and being wary of your sinister companion.

Rogue Cunning

At 17th level, your sinister companion gains a special action it can use once on each of its turns. It can use this action only to take the Dash, Disengage, or Hide action. Additionally, it gains the Rogue class feature Sneak Attack as if it were 5th level rogue.

Adhesive Toes / Spider Climb

If your beast is a land animal, it can climb difficult surfaces, including upside down on ceilings, without needing to make an ability check.

Barbed Hide

Your beast has spikes, needles, or scales on its body that provide +1 to its AC and make it unable to be swallowed by any creature with a size smaller than gargantuan. In addition, when a creature grapples your beast or hits it with a melee attack that doesn't use a weapon, such as a bite or claw attack, your beast can make one melee weapon attack against the attacker.

Blindsight

Your beast gains a blindsight of 30 feet.

Camouflage

Your beast has advantage on Stealth (Dexterity) skill checks while in its normal habitat, as determined by the DM. Additionally, once per day while in this habitat, it can become invisible as an action until it makes an attack or one minute passes. You may only take this trait if you have first picked the sneaky trait.

Cute

Your beast is adorable to most creatures. It gains +2 to Charisma and has proficiency in Deception (Charisma), Performance (Charisma), and Persuasion (Charisma).

Enhanced

Improve two different ability scores of your beast by 2. The maximum for any ability score is 20. This trait may be taken up to two times.

Gouging Claws / Venomous

When your beast has advantage on a melee weapon attack, you can choose to have it sacrifice the advantage. If you do and it hits, it deals either additional piercing or poison damage (your choice) equal to 1d8 + half your level in Tamer (rounded down) and the enemy gains the poisoned condition until the end of your next turn.

Heartening

Your beast can nuzzle up to an ally it ends its turn within 5 feet of in an exceptionally adorable way. If it does, that ally either adds your beast's Charisma modifier to one saving throw of its choice it makes before the beginning of your next turn or to one skill check of the its choice it makes within the next minute. Once the beast uses this trait, it can't use it again until you have finished a short or long rest.

Keen Sense

Your beast has advantage when making Perception (Wisdom) checks that rely on two of the following senses of your choice: sight, smell, or hearing.

Poisonous

Once per turn, when your beast is dealt damage, all enemies within 5 feet of your beast must succeed on a Constitution saving throw (DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + the beast's Dexterity modifier) or take poison damage equal to 1d8 + half your level in Tamer (rounded down).

Pounce

If your beast moves at least 20 feet towards an enemy and then hits that enemy with a melee weapon attack, that enemy must succeed on a Strength saving throw (DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + the beast's Dexterity modifier) or your beast may make another Strike against the enemy.

Skitterer

Your beast can move through the spaces of other creatures without it being considered difficult terrain and can occupy another creature's space. In addition, if your beast ends its turn in another creature's space and remains in its space until the beginning of your next turn, it learns of and informs you of any small objects the creature is hiding on its body or in its clothing.

Sneaky

Your beast gains proficiency in the Stealth (Dexterity) skill, using your proficiency bonus and its own Dexterity modifier.

Scout Companion

When you choose this beast companion at 1st level, any time you finish a long rest, you may turn a small or medium size, flying or swimming bonded companion you have or that you just made into a Scout Companion. You may only ever have one Scout companion at a time. A scout companion is functionally the same as a bonded companion, but replace the normal statistics for a bonded companion with the statistics below:

Your scout companion regains hit points equal to 4 + your beast's constitution modifier every time you expend a hit die, and regains all of its health at the end of a long rest.

If your scout companion dies and is then revived by magical means, it immediately becomes your scout companion again unless you already have another scout companion, in which case it becomes a bonded companion.

The following subclass features and traits for scout companions do not apply to bonded companions. A bonded companion must meet the criteria for becoming a scout companion and then be made into one at the end of a long rest before gaining any of the features and traits.

Eyes of an Apex

At 3rd level, you have learned to see like a bird of prey. You can tell exactly how far something you can see is away from you, to the nearest foot. You can also tell exactly what size category a creature you can see is, its obvious physical characteristics, and if it belongs to a species you have seen before, regardless of its distance from you.

Visual Acuity

Starting at 7th level, your scout companion is always actively guarding you from potentially unseeable surprises and alerting you of their presence before you are caught off guard. You cannot be surprised by creatures within 60 feet of you that are not invisible.

Additionally, you gain the ability to order your beast to fly/swim between 100 and 1000 feet above you and observe the area within a mile radius around you for something of your choice that can be easily spotted from above, whether it be a certain creature/object, something potentially dangerous, or anything odd. After 1 minute of observation, it will return to you and report its findings in a simple yet understandable way to you.

Calculated Strike

Your beast adds its Wisdom modifier to the damage of its strikes.

Dive Attack

If your beast is at least 30 feet above an enemy and moves in a straight line to that enemy before making a melee weapon attack, the first attack it makes on that turn deals an additional 2d6 damage.

Enhanced

Improve two different ability scores of your beast by 2. The maximum for any ability score is 20. This trait may be taken up to two times.

Entrancing Performance

You and your beast have perfected a small gimmick that awes people. Your beast attempts to induce the effects of charm person at a spell level equal to your proficiency bonus - 1. The saving throw DC is equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + the beast's Wisdom modifier. You must finish a short or long rest before you use this trait again.

Flyby

Your beast doesn't provoke opportunity attacks when it flies or swims out of an enemy's reach.

Keen Sense

Your beast has advantage when making perception (Wisdom) checks that rely on two of the following senses of your choice: sight, smell, or hearing.

Nocturnal

Your beast has 120 feet of darkvision and while you and/or party members are sleeping can act as an alert sentry that will wake you if it perceives something undesirable within its range of vision.

Rescue Pet

Your beast is trained at providing you and your allies with aid. You may use your bonus action to order your beast to perform the spare the dying cantrip. You may alternatively order it to perform the cure wounds spell at first level, using the beast's Wisdom as its spellcasting ability modifier, but then you must finish a short or long rest in order to use this trait again. Both of these spells require no components to use.

Second Eyes

You have advantage on one type of Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma skill check of your choice as long as your beast is within 30 feet of you. This trait may be taken up to three times, picking a different skill each time.