The Animal Tamer archetype embodies a friendship between the civilized races and the beasts of the wild. United in focus, Animal and Tamer fight the monsters that threaten civilization and the wilderness alike.

Bonus Proficiency

When you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you gain proficiency in one of the following skills of your choice: Animal Handling, Medicine, Nature, or Survival.

Animal Companion

At 3rd level, you gain a animal companion that accompanies you on your adventures and is trained to fight alongside you. Choose a beast that is no larger than Medium and that has a challenge rating of 1/4 or lower. Add your proficiency bonus to the beast’s AC, attack rolls, and damage rolls, as well as to any saving throws and skills it is proficient in. Its hit point maximum equals the hit point number in its stat block or four times your fighter level, whichever is higher. Like any creature, it can spend Hit Dice during a short rest to regain hit points.

Your animal companion obeys your commands as best as it can. It takes its turn on your initiative. On your turn, you can verbally command your animal companion where to move (no action required by you). You can use your action to verbally command it to take the Attack, Dash, Disengage, or Help action. If you don't issue a command, your animal companion takes the Dodge action. Once you have the Extra Attack feature, you can choose to forgo Extra Attacks for yourself to command your animal companion to take the Attack action.

If you are incapacitated or absent, the beast acts on its own, focusing on protecting you and itself. Your animal companion never requires your command to use its reaction, such as when making an opportunity attack.

If your animal companion dies, you can obtain a new companion by spending 8 hours bonding with a beast that isn’t hostile to you and that meets the requirements.

Beast’s Defense

At 7th level, while your animal companion can see you, it has advantage on all saving throws.

Coordinated Attack

Beginning at 10th level, you and your animal companion form a more potent fighting team. When you use the Attack action on your turn, if your animal companion is within range of your target, it can use its reaction to make an attack.

Superior Beast’s Defense

At 15th level, whenever an attacker that your companion can see hits it with an attack, it can use its reaction to halve the attack’s damage against it.

Storm of Claws and Fangs

At 18th level, whenever you take the attack action you can choose to forgo an Extra Attack to command your animal companion to use its action to make a melee attack against each creature of its choice within 5 feet of it, with a separate attack roll for each target. You can use this feature only once per round of combat.