Companions
Source Tech Core pg. 72
Some explorers travel with loyal allies known as companions and familiars. Companions begin as young animals or commercial robots but acquire impressive physical abilities as you level up, while familiars share a magical bond with you.
Companions and familiars are special benefits from certain classes or class feats. Most companions are animals or robots. If you simply want a pet regardless of your class, you can take the Pet feat. If you want a basic robot minion, you can purchase a minibot. You can have a familiar or pet, but not both. You can have an animal companion or a robot companion, but not both. Because companions function much differently, you can have both a companion and a familiar or pet.
Companions and familiars are special benefits from certain classes or class feats. Most companions are animals or robots. If you simply want a pet regardless of your class, you can take the Pet feat. If you want a basic robot minion, you can purchase a minibot. You can have a familiar or pet, but not both. You can have an animal companion or a robot companion, but not both. Because companions function much differently, you can have both a companion and a familiar or pet.
Animal Companions
Source Tech Core pg. 72
An animal companion is a loyal comrade who follows your orders. Your animal companion has the animal and minion traits, and it gains 2 actions during your turn if you use the Command an Animal action to command it; this replaces the usual effects of Command an Animal, and you don’t need to attempt a Nature check. If your companion dies, you can spend a week of downtime to replace it at no cost. You can have only one animal companion at a time.
Young Animal Companions
Source Tech Core pg. 72
The following are the base statistics for a young animal companion, the first animal companion most characters get. You adjust these statistics depending on the type of animal you choose. Animal companions calculate their modifiers and DCs just as you do with one difference: The only item bonuses they can benefit from are to Speed and AC (their maximum item bonus to AC is +3). As you gain levels, you might be able to make your companion stronger by advancing it.
An animal companion's starting statistics are as follows.
Level: Your animal companion's level is equal to yours.
Proficiencies: Your animal companion is trained in its unarmed attacks, unarmored defense, barding (a type of armor for companions), all saving throws, Perception, Acrobatics, and Athletics. Animal companions can't use abilities that require greater Intelligence, such as Coerce or Decipher Writing, even if trained in the appropriate skill, unless they have a specialization that allows it.
Attribute Modifiers: An animal companion begins with the base attribute modifiers listed in its stat block.
Hit Points: Your animal companion has ancestry Hit Points from its type, plus a number of Hit Points equal to 6 plus its Constitution modifier for each level you have.
An animal companion's starting statistics are as follows.
Level: Your animal companion's level is equal to yours.
Proficiencies: Your animal companion is trained in its unarmed attacks, unarmored defense, barding (a type of armor for companions), all saving throws, Perception, Acrobatics, and Athletics. Animal companions can't use abilities that require greater Intelligence, such as Coerce or Decipher Writing, even if trained in the appropriate skill, unless they have a specialization that allows it.
Attribute Modifiers: An animal companion begins with the base attribute modifiers listed in its stat block.
Hit Points: Your animal companion has ancestry Hit Points from its type, plus a number of Hit Points equal to 6 plus its Constitution modifier for each level you have.
Companion Types
Source Tech Core pg. 72
The species of animal you choose is called your companion’s type. Each companion type has its own statistics, as follows.
Size The companion’s size
Unarmed Attacks One or more entries with the companion’s unarmed attacks and their traits and damage
Attribute Modifiers Starting attribute modifiers
Hit Points The companion’s ancestry Hit Points
Skill An additional trained skill your companion has
Senses Special senses your companion has
Speed Your companion’s Speeds
Special If present, this lists any special ability your companion has, such as whether it often serves as a mount.
Support Benefit A special benefit you gain by Commanding the Animal to use the Support action (see below).
Advanced Maneuver A powerful new action your companion learns how to use if it becomes a burly or deft animal companion.
Size The companion’s size
Unarmed Attacks One or more entries with the companion’s unarmed attacks and their traits and damage
Attribute Modifiers Starting attribute modifiers
Hit Points The companion’s ancestry Hit Points
Skill An additional trained skill your companion has
Senses Special senses your companion has
Speed Your companion’s Speeds
Special If present, this lists any special ability your companion has, such as whether it often serves as a mount.
Support Benefit A special benefit you gain by Commanding the Animal to use the Support action (see below).
Advanced Maneuver A powerful new action your companion learns how to use if it becomes a burly or deft animal companion.
Companion Advancement
Source Tech Core pg. 74
You can advance an animal companion, usually due to one of your class feat choices. Normally, you can advance a young animal companion to a mature animal companion, advance a mature companion to either a burly or deft companion, and advance a burly or deft companion into a specialized companion.
Robot Companions
Source Tech Core pg. 74
Some talented engineers construct artificial companions that they can remotely command, called robot companions. Robot companions follow the same rules as animal companions, with the following changes.
A young robot companion is called a commercial robot companion, and a mature robot companion is called a tactical robot companion. A burly or deft robot companion is an advanced robot companion, and a specialized robot companion is a superior robot companion.
A robot companion is an artificial construct that follows your orders. Your robot companion gains the construct, robot, and tech traits and loses the animal trait. It's neither a living creature nor undead. It gains 2 actions during your turn if you use the Command action to command it.
As a construct, your robot companion can't be healed, but it can be repaired. Effects that heal living creatures can't help it recover Hit Points. Restoring Hit Points to it requires using the Repair action or other means that can restore Hit Points to objects and nonliving creatures. While constructs are usually immediately destroyed at 0 Hit Points, your robot companion is a little harder to destroy than other constructs. When your robot reaches 0 Hit Points, it becomes broken and might be destroyed if you don't Repair it. This works the same as the normal dying rules and determines if your robot is destroyed, with the following two changes. First, most effects that end the dying condition don't work to save a robot companion, but a robot companion can be stabilized using the Administer First Aid action, using the Crafting skill instead of Medicine. Second, instead of gaining and tracking the wounded condition, if your robot becomes broken in this way more than twice within a 10-minute period, it's destroyed, and you'll need to reconstruct it by spending a day of downtime.
Your robot companion is immune to bleed, death effects, disease, doomed, drained, fatigued, healing, mental, nonlethal attacks, paralyzed, poison, sickened, spirit, unconscious, vitality, and void. It has weakness to electricity equal to half its level rounded up. It doesn't eat, breathe, or sleep. It has precise vision, imprecise hearing, and vague touch senses, but no sense of smell or taste.
Your robot companion's proficiency with simple and martial weapons is equal to its proficiency in unarmed attacks (although it requires the integrated weapon mount or manual dexterity customization to wield weapons). Its companion DC is equal to your class DC. Any size increases it would gain as a result of advancement are optional, not mandatory.
Your robot companion begins with one commercial customization of your choice. It gains one tactical customization when it becomes a tactical companion. It gains one advanced customization when it becomes a burly or deft companion. It gains one superior customization when it becomes a specialized companion. It can also gain additional customizations from feats.
Mechanics have special robot companions called drones that alter some of the rules in this chapter, as noted in the mechanic class.
A young robot companion is called a commercial robot companion, and a mature robot companion is called a tactical robot companion. A burly or deft robot companion is an advanced robot companion, and a specialized robot companion is a superior robot companion.
A robot companion is an artificial construct that follows your orders. Your robot companion gains the construct, robot, and tech traits and loses the animal trait. It's neither a living creature nor undead. It gains 2 actions during your turn if you use the Command action to command it.
As a construct, your robot companion can't be healed, but it can be repaired. Effects that heal living creatures can't help it recover Hit Points. Restoring Hit Points to it requires using the Repair action or other means that can restore Hit Points to objects and nonliving creatures. While constructs are usually immediately destroyed at 0 Hit Points, your robot companion is a little harder to destroy than other constructs. When your robot reaches 0 Hit Points, it becomes broken and might be destroyed if you don't Repair it. This works the same as the normal dying rules and determines if your robot is destroyed, with the following two changes. First, most effects that end the dying condition don't work to save a robot companion, but a robot companion can be stabilized using the Administer First Aid action, using the Crafting skill instead of Medicine. Second, instead of gaining and tracking the wounded condition, if your robot becomes broken in this way more than twice within a 10-minute period, it's destroyed, and you'll need to reconstruct it by spending a day of downtime.
Your robot companion is immune to bleed, death effects, disease, doomed, drained, fatigued, healing, mental, nonlethal attacks, paralyzed, poison, sickened, spirit, unconscious, vitality, and void. It has weakness to electricity equal to half its level rounded up. It doesn't eat, breathe, or sleep. It has precise vision, imprecise hearing, and vague touch senses, but no sense of smell or taste.
Your robot companion's proficiency with simple and martial weapons is equal to its proficiency in unarmed attacks (although it requires the integrated weapon mount or manual dexterity customization to wield weapons). Its companion DC is equal to your class DC. Any size increases it would gain as a result of advancement are optional, not mandatory.
Your robot companion begins with one commercial customization of your choice. It gains one tactical customization when it becomes a tactical companion. It gains one advanced customization when it becomes a burly or deft companion. It gains one superior customization when it becomes a specialized companion. It can also gain additional customizations from feats.
Mechanics have special robot companions called drones that alter some of the rules in this chapter, as noted in the mechanic class.
Customizations
Source Tech Core pg. 76
You can customize your robot companion, granting it new abilities called customizations. Your robot companion’s customizations are adaptable—you select which customizations your robot companion has each day during your daily preparations. All robot companions begin with one commercial customization. You can select feats to gain additional customizations.
Familiars
Source Tech Core pg. 78
Familiars are mystically bonded creatures tied to your magic. Most were originally animals, though becoming a familiar makes them something more. You gain the Pet general feat, except your pet has special abilities. Common choices for familiars include cats, crows, rats, and squoxes. Some familiars are different, usually described in the ability that granted you a familiar. A familiar differs from a basic pet in the following ways.
Modifiers and AC: For Perception, Acrobatics, and Stealth, you can have your familiar use your spellcasting attribute modifier + your level instead of 3 + your level if it's higher. Communication: Your familiar can communicate empathically with you as long as it's within 1 mile of you, sharing emotions. It doesn't understand or speak languages normally, but it can gain speech from a familiar ability.
Familiar and Master Abilities: Instead of choosing two abilities only when you gain your familiar as with a normal pet, you can choose the two abilities each day during your daily preparations. You can choose from familiar abilities and master abilities. You can also choose pet abilities from the Pet feat as familiar abilities. You can't swap out abilities that are innate to your familiar. For example, you couldn't choose not to give a raven familiar flying.
Modifiers and AC: For Perception, Acrobatics, and Stealth, you can have your familiar use your spellcasting attribute modifier + your level instead of 3 + your level if it's higher. Communication: Your familiar can communicate empathically with you as long as it's within 1 mile of you, sharing emotions. It doesn't understand or speak languages normally, but it can gain speech from a familiar ability.
Familiar and Master Abilities: Instead of choosing two abilities only when you gain your familiar as with a normal pet, you can choose the two abilities each day during your daily preparations. You can choose from familiar abilities and master abilities. You can also choose pet abilities from the Pet feat as familiar abilities. You can't swap out abilities that are innate to your familiar. For example, you couldn't choose not to give a raven familiar flying.