Conclave of the Wing

While the Beast Conclave allows for rangers with large companions, there are rangers who opt instead for beasts of the wing

Rangers who prefer these animals opt for skill and control over straight damage production. They, like the Beast Conclave rangers, have a deep bond with their animals, and share some of their basic abilities.

These Conclaves uses the Revised Ranger rules. 

 

Animal Companion, Companion's Bond, and Coordinated Actions

 At 3rd level, you learn to use your magic to create a powerful bond with a creature of the natural world.

With 8 hours of work and the expenditure of 50gp worth of rare herbs and fine food, you call forth a bird from the sky to serve as your faithful companion. You normally select your companion from the following birds: hawk, blood hawk, owl, parrot, eagle, or raven. Though more exotic birds are be possible with DM approval (The most common others would likely be Giant Bat and Flying Snake, depending on culture) The only requirement is that it must be a natural creature with a flight speed, be Medium or smaller, cannot deal more than 8 damage (unmodified by Companion’s Bond) with a single attack. As noted in Revised Ranger,  a Challenge rating less than 1/4 usually is appropriate, but there are exceptions

At the end of 8 hours, your animal companion appears and gains all the benefits of your Companion’s Bond ability. You can only have one companion at a time.

If your companion is slain, the magical bond you share allows you to return it to life. With 8 hours of work and the expenditure of 25gp worth of rare herbs and fine food, you call forth the companion’s spirit and use your magic to create a new body for it. You can return an animal companion to life in this manner even if you don’t possess any part of the body.

If you use this ability to return a former animal companion to life while you have a current companion, your current one leaves you and is replaced by the restored companion.

 Companion’s Bond

Your animal companion gains a variety of benefits while it is linked to you.

The animal companion loses mulitattack actions, if it had one.  It retains other features.

The companion obeys your commands as best it can. It rolls initiative like any other creature, but you determine its actions, decisions, attitudes and so on. If you are incapacitated or absent, it acts on its own.

When you use your Natural Explorer feature, you and your companion can both move stealthily at a normal pace.

Your companion has abilities and game stats determined in part by your level. Your companion uses your proficiency bonus rather than its own. In addition to normal areas where proficiency bonus applies, it also adds to AC and Damage rolls for companions.

Your companion gains proficiency in two skills of your choice. It also becomes proficient in all saving throws.

For each level after 3rd, your animal companion gains additional hit die and increases hit points accordingly.

 Whenever you gain the Ability Score Improvement class feature, your companion’s abilities also improve. Your companion can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or it can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, your companion can’t increase scores beyond 20 with this feature unless its description specifies otherwise.

Your animal companion gains the benefits of your Favored Enemy feature when you gain that feature at 6th level. It uses the favored enemy you selected.

Because of your companion’s superior senses, and the bond you share, you gain Expertise in the Perception, Survival, Nature, or Insight skill.

 Your companion shares your alignment, and has a personality trait and a flaw that you can roll for or select from the tables below. Your companion shares your ideal, and its bond is always, “The ranger who travels with me is a beloved companion for whom I would gladly give my life”.

 D6      Trait

1.      I'm curious and observant, and notice small details
2.      Threaten my friends and you threaten me
3.      I am always alert
4.      I have a knack for showing up in the nick of time
5.      Once given, my loyalty is fierce
6.      Nothing intimidates me, no matter the size

D6       Flaw

1.      I steal food
2.      I'm a biter
3.      I can talk, but I'm not good at shutting up
4.      In non-threatening situations, I do my own thing
5.      I very clearly have a liking and disliking of certain people, and make my preferences well known
6.      I do not tolerate other animal companions well

Coordinated Actions

Beginning at 3rd level (If using Revised Ranger, move this ability to 5th), your companion allows you more flexibility in combat, and can use it’s action to grant one of the following actions:

• Allow it’s ranger to take the Disengage or Dodge actions as a free action.
• Use the Help action as a bonus action, with unlimited range, but only on it’s ranger. This bonus action can be taken as a bonus action on an attack if you are both attacking the same target. Otherwise, it is a full action

 

 

 

 

Winged Defense

At 7th level, your companion gains the Evasion feature. If a spell or effect would cause half damage on a successful save and full damage on a failure, it now causes no damage on a success and half damage on a failure. To use this ability, your companion must be in flight.

 

Bird Eyes

At 11th level, as long as your companion is airborne, you both have advantage on Initiative Checks. (If you're using Revised Ranger, substitute this power with Immune to Surprise from visible enemies, you already have advantage on Initiative Checks.)

Additionally, choose a second skill from the list above, you gain Expertise in that skill.

 

Spell Bonded

At 15th level, when you cast any spell, you can choose to use your companion as the origin point for purposes of range and what creatures you can see. Additionally, any spell that targets you, you can choose to also have it affect your companion.