Wondermount (3.5e Optimized Character Build)

Introduction

[[3e Summary::There are a number of ways to have a compatriot with your character. The most common are the druid's animal companion, the paladin's special mount, the wizard/sorcerer's familiar, and the Leadership feat's cohort. This build aims to maximize the effectiveness of such a compatriot.]] It stacks the benefits of a special mount with those of an animal companion onto a single creature (special companion).

The base concept of this build (and variants thereof) is known as supermount and ubermount and uses strongheart halfling paladin 5/beastmaster 2/wild plains outrider 3/halfling outrider 10. This build, wondermount, produces a more powerful "special companion" without using the wild plains outrider (Complete Adventurer), the halfling outrider (Complete Warrior), nor the paladin classes.

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References

Complete Adventurer (CAd): beastmaster (page 26), Devoted Tracker (page 108), Natural Bond (page 111)
Draconomicon (Dra): Awaken Spell Resistance (page 67), Dragon Steed (page 105), dragons as special mounts game rule information (page 139)
Dragon Magazine #317 (Dr317): ranger knight of Furyondy (page 68)
Dragon Magazine #325 (Dr325): Holy Mount (page 62)
Frostburn (FB): Winter's Mount (page 50)
Monster Manual: celestial creature template, Flyby Attack, gold dragon, Improved Multiattack, Multiattack, Wingover
Player's Handbook: The rest...

Game Rule Components

Progression

Starting Ability Scores (Before Racial Adjustments): This build uses the elite ability score array: Str 8, Dex 10, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 15, Cha 13. All ability score increases are dumped into Wis. As far as ability scores are concerned, Cha is the only ability required for this build in order to qualify for Dragon Steed^Dra. It must be at least 13 at ECL 17th (character level 15th).

Race (Templates): [[3e Race::Celestial human]]; this build works with any race that satisfies the following: has a +0 level adjustment, gets a bonus feat at first level, and can have the celestial template applied to the race.

Starting Racial Traits (of note): Bonus feat, smite evil 1/day

ECL	Class/HD/LA	Base Attack Bonus	Saving Throws			Feats	Class Features	Special
ECL	Class/HD/LA	Base Attack Bonus	Fort	Ref	Will	Feats	Class Features	Special
1st	Druid	+0	+2	+0	+2	Mounted Combat^B, Trample	Animal companion, nature sense, wild empathy
2nd	Celestial Creature LA	+0	+2	+0	+2			Smite evil 1/day, darkvision 60 ft.
3rd	Celestial Creature LA	+0	+2	+0	+2			Resistance to acid 5, cold 5, and electricity 5, spell resistance 6
4th	Ranger	+1	+4	+2	+2	Track^B	Favored enemy: undead	Spell resistance 7
5th	Ranger	+2	+5	+3	+2	Skill Focus (Handle Animal), Two-Weapon Fighting^V	Combat style: two-weapon	Spell resistance 8
6th	Druid	+3	+6	+3	+3		Woodland stride	Damage reduction 5/magic, Spell resistance 9
7th	Druid	+4	+6	+4	+3		Trackless step	Spell resistance 10
8th	Druid	+5	+7	+4	+4	Natural Bond^CAd	Resist nature's lure	Spell resistance 11
9th	Ranger knight of Furyondy^Dr317	+6	+9	+6	+4		Mounted track, special mount	Spell resistance 12
10th	Beastmaster^CAd	+7	+11	+8	+4		Animal companion, wild empathy	Resistance to acid 10, cold 10, and electricity 10, Spell resistance 13
11th	Druid	+7	+11	+8	+4	Devoted Tracker^CAd	Wild shape (1/day)	Spell resistance 14
12th	Druid	+8	+12	+9	+5		Wild shape (2/day)	Spell resistance 15
13th	Druid	+9	+12	+9	+5		Wild shape (3/day)	Spell resistance 16
14th	Druid	+10	+13	+9	+6	Holy Mount^Dr325	Wild shape (Large)	Damage reduction 10/magic, spell resistance 17
15th	Druid	+10	+13	+10	+6		Venom immunity	Spell resistance 18
16th	Druid	+11	+14	+10	+7		Wild shape (4/day)	Spell resistance 19
17th	Druid	+12	+14	+10	+7	Dragon Steed^Dra	Wild shape (Tiny)	Spell resistance 20
18th	Druid	+13	+15	+11	+8		Wild shape (plant)	Spell resistance 21
19th	Druid	+13	+15	+11	+8		A thousand faces	Spell resistance 22
20th	Druid	+14	+16	+11	+9	Winter's Mount^FB	Wild shape (5/day)	Spell resistance 23

Final Character Progression: 3e Final Class Progression::Druid 14/ranger 2/ranger knight of Furyondy 1/beastmaster 1 with special mount 20/animal companion 21

Special Companion Progression

Base Creature: Young gold dragon.

20th-Level Special Mount Benefits: +2 bonus hit dice, +4 natural armor increase, +1 Str increase, +2 racial Con increase, cold subtype, empathic link, improved evasion, share saving throws, share spells

21st-Level Animal Companion Benefits: +14 bonus hit dice, +14 natural armor increase, +7 Str and Dex increase, devotion, improved evasion, link, Multiattack, share spells

HD	BAB	Saving Throws			NAB	Ability Scores			BW DC	Feats	Special Abilities
HD	BAB	Fort	Ref	Will	NAB	Str	Dex	Con	BW DC	Feats	Special Abilities
14	+14	+9	+9	+9	+13	25	10	17	20	Alertness, Flyby Attack, Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Wingover	1 bite (2d6), 2 claws (1d8), 2 wings (1d6), 1 tail slap (1d8), alternate form, blindsense 60 ft., dragon traits, immunity to fire, sleep and paralysis, low-light vision ×4, darkvision 120 ft., spells (as 1st-level sorcerer), vulnerability to cold, water breathing, speed 60 ft., fly 200 ft. (poor), swim 60 ft., breath weapon (40 ft. cone 6d10 fire or 3 Str damage gas)
16	+16	+10	+10	+10	+17	26	10	19	22	Leadership	Empathic link, immunity to cold, improved evasion, share saving throws, share spells
30	+30	+17	+17	+17	+31	33	17	19	29	Awaken Spell Resistance^Dra, Improved Multiattack, Multiattack^B, <epic feat>, <epic feat>, <epic feat>	Devotion, link, spell resistance 30

Highlights

As stated above, this build combines the special mount and animal companion class features into one special companion. This is done by using the Devoted Tracker^CAd feat. However, this feat has some prerequisites that need to be met: Track, smite evil, wild empathy. This feat was obviously intended for a paladin/ranger build (possibly paladin/beastmaster), but we're going to forego the paladin and satisfy the requirements in a different way. Track and wild empathy are easy to meet with just one level of druid. This build, however, uses a couple levels of ranger to meet this feat requirement along with another. Smite evil, however, is satisfied by applying the celestial creature template to our human.

So now we have an animal companion, we have Devoted Tracker, but we're still missing a class that grants a special mount. Again paladin is the obvious choice, however, we find that the ranger knight of Furyondy^Dr317 works even better! Not only does it grant special mount, but it stacks with levels of paladin (not useful to this build but worth noting), and it also gives the mount abilities as though the ranger knight were five levels higher. So immediately the special mount is treated as though the ranger knight is a level 6 paladin.

The next important piece of this build is the Holy Mount^Dr347 feat. This lovely gem allows levels in a non-paladin divine spellcasting classes to stack for determining the abilities of a special mount. So every level of druid affects both the animal companion benefits and the special mount benefits. (There's a question as to whether or not two levels of ranger count towards levels in a spellcasting class, so this build errs on the side of "no".) Prior builds used the halfling outrider prestige class (Complete Warrior page 38) to accomplish dual advancement. With fourteen levels of druid it puts the special mount at 20th level.

The Natural Bond feat adds up to three levels of animal companion benefits (can't cause it to exceed the character level). So it covers the gaps in the animal companion progression due to the levels of ranger and ranger knight. This puts the effective druid level for the animal companion at 7th at character level 7th (ECL 9th).

The beastmaster class stacks for animal companion benefits and adds three more levels to boot (which can exceed character level). 11th for animal companion at character level 8th (ECL 10th).

From here it's nothing but ten more druid levels all the way to 18th level (ECL 20th) putting animal companion benefits at 21st level.

The Dragon Steed feat expands the creature options for special mounts to various dragon types including a limited set of true dragon types.

Munchkin-Size Me

Oddly enough, the sample gold dragon in the Monster Manual has the Leadership feat. If a 30-HD creature (such as the sample special companion) takes that feat, it should be able to get a celestial human druid 11/ranger 2/ranger knight of Furyondy 1/beastmaster 1 for a cohort...

Which in turn could have a very young gold dragon special companion with 25 HD...

Which in turn could take the Leadership feat and have a celestial human druid 11/ranger 2/ranger knight of Furyondy 1/beastmaster 1 for a cohort...

Which in turn could have a very young gold dragon special companion with 25 HD...

Which... well, you get the idea.

Side Notes

DM Counters

One adjustment is to not allow animal companion and special mount levels overlap. If gaining a level in a class can apply to both, the character must choose animal companion or special mount but not both.

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