Technological Companions and Vehicles

You may find that some classes, such as the cavalier, druid, hunter, and ranger, don’t fit as well in your high-technology campaign setting.

Perhaps living animals are incredibly rare and most people can only afford artificial replacements, or perhaps the mounted knights of the modern era ride steeds made out of chrome and rubber instead of flesh and blood. Included in the following chapter are a variety of options for bringing your animal focused characters into the future.

Technological Companion Options

The following options are available in place of mounts or animal companions. Some options may not be appropriate for all classes (motorcycle riding druids, for example, may not make sense even in a futuristic setting).

Variants presented as companion options below use Table: Mech Companion Base Statistics when determining their advancement and gain mech enhancements instead of the standard benefits gained by the animal companion they are replacing. All listed vehicles use either magical or technological means of propulsion and are self-sustaining, though a GM may decide that their campaign’s primary source of conflict stems from a world where technology is fueled by a highly limited resource, such as gasoline. Options for integrating such a concept into your campaign will be discussed later in this chapter. These companion vehicles are intended to serve as a simple and accessible option for introducing character-oriented vehicles to your campaign and should not be used in conjunction with the standard vehicle combat rules, instead using only the rules presented here.

A companion vehicle can be mounted or dismounted as a move action, though a driver may attempt a Ride check to attempt a fast mount or dismount just as with a normal mount. Companion vehicles do not have any actions of their own, and the driver must expend his own actions to control the vehicle. Unless otherwise noted, a driver may use any weapon equipped to a companion vehicle, using their own feats, base attack bonus, and other bonuses but using the companion vehicle’s physical ability scores in place of their own. A companion vehicle must be at least one size category larger than its driver. The driver of a companion vehicle is treated as mounted for all feats and effects unless otherwise noted. A driver’s weight is not counted against a companion vehicle’s total carrying capacity, though any gear he carries beyond a set of clothing does.

A companion vehicle that is lost or destroyed can be replaced with 24 hours of uninterrupted work in a garage or similar environment where basic machining tools can be accessed.

Combat Transport Vehicle (Companion Vehicle)

Starting Statistics

Size Huge; Speed 40 ft.; AC 17 (+8 armor, +1 Dexterity, -2 size); Ability Scores Str 20, Dex 12, Con -; Weapon Affinity heavy; Weapon Slots 2

Special Qualities: Transporter-The C.T.V. can safely carry up to 3 Medium creatures in addition to the driver without counting them against its carry capacity.

Cumbersome Weaponry: A C.T.V.’s ranged weaponry is seated behind the driver’s seat, and as such cannot be operated by the driver, requiring at least one additional passenger to operate it.

Special: Starting at 5th level and every 5 levels thereafter (10th, 15th, 20th), the C.T.V. gains an additional weapon slot at no additional cost.

Infiltration Transport Vehicle (Companion Vehicle)

Starting Statistics

Size Medium; Maximum Speed 50 ft.; AC 17 (+3 armor, +4 Dexterity); Ability Scores Str 12, Dex 18, Con -; Weapon Affinity ranged; Weapon Slots 1; Special Qualities Personal Transport-The I.T.V. is designed as a single person compact transportation device and can safely accommodate a rider of the same size category.

Throttle: An I.T.V.’s driver can spend a swift action to increase its base speed to 70 ft., but while its speed is increased in this manner, attempting any turn of 45 degrees or greater requires it to sacrifice an additional 5 feet of movement. The driver can end this effect as a free action.

Special: At 5th level and every 5 levels thereafter, the I.T.V.’s base speed increases by 10 feet.

Motorcycle (Companion Vehicle)

Starting Statistics

Size Large; Maximum Speed 60 ft.; AC 16 (+4 armor, +3 Dexterity, -1 size); Ability Scores Str 14, Dex 16, Con -; Weapon Affinity melee; Weapon Slots 1; Special Qualities Throttle-A motorcycle’s driver can spend a swift action to increase its base speed to 90 ft., but while its speed is increased in this manner, attempting any turn of 45 degrees or greater requires it to sacrifice an additional 5 feet of movement. The driver can end this effect as a swift action.

5th level Upgrade

Thundering Crash: While a motorcycle’s throttle ability is active, the driver deals double damage with melee weapons on the first attack made as part of a charge but must succeed on a DC 25 Ride check after the attack is resolved or both the driver and motorcycle fall prone. This ability does not stack with the Spirited Charge feat.

Special: At 5th level and every 5 levels thereafter, the motorcycle’s base speed increases by 10 feet.

Sports Car (Companion Vehicle)

Starting Statistics

Size Large; Maximum Speed 60 ft.; AC 16 (+4 armor, +3 Dexterity, -1 size); Ability Scores Str 16, Dex 16, Con -; Weapon Affinity ranged; Weapon Slots 2; Special Qualities: Two-Seater-The sports car can safely carry 1 Medium creature in addition to the driver without counting them against its carry capacity.

5th level Upgrade

Boost: As a swift action, the driver of a sports car can double the sports car’s base land speed for 1 round. While the sports car is boosted in this manner, attempting any turn of 45 degrees or greater requires the driver to make a Profession (driver) check with a DC equal to 5 + 1 per 10 feet in its new base land speed (for example, a 5th level driver using boost would need to succeed at a DC 19 Profession (driver) check). Failure to succeed at this check means the sports car continues to move forward and the driver cannot attempt another turn until he has moved at least 10 feet from the point at which he failed the check.

Special: At 5th level and every 5 levels thereafter, the sports car’s base speed increases by 10 feet.

Ship (Companion Vehicle)

Starting Statistics

Size Gargantuan; Maximum Speed 90 ft. (Over Water); AC 14 (+8 armor, -4 size) Ability Scores Str 24, Dex 10, Con -; Weapon Affinity heavy; Weapon Slots 4; Special Qualities Immense-The ship can safely carry up to 30 Medium creatures in addition to the driver without counting them against its carry capacity. Increase this number by 10 every time the ship increases in size. In addition, the ship has twice the normal carrying capacity, which doubles with every size increase.

Special: At 5th level and every 5 levels thereafter, the ship’s size increases by 1. If the ship is already colossal, it becomes 20 feet longer one way and 10 feet longer on the other axis. Each time the ship’s dimensions are altered or its size is increased, its armor bonus and strength score increase by 2, and it gains 10 additional hit points.

Non-Companion Mechs and Vehicles

The rules presented for companion vehicles and mechs can also be used to generate vehicles and mechs for general use in your campaign world.

A character with the Craft Companion Vehicle feat and access to a garage or production lab can craft any of the vehicles detailed earlier. Crafting a vehicle requires a Craft (mechanical) check with a DC equal to 15 + the vehicle’s hit dice + the number of enhancements, and costs 800 pieces x (vehicle’s hit dice + total number of enhancements). Use the mech advancement table when determining the abilities of the crafted vehicle; a character cannot craft a vehicle in this manner whose required pilot level exceeds his total character level -4.

A character with the Craft Mech feat and access to a garage or military lab can craft any of the mech types detailed earlier. Crafting a mech requires a Craft (mechanical) check with a DC equal to 20 + the mech’s hit dice + the number of enhancements, and costs 1000 pieces x (mech’s hit dice + total number of enhancements). Use the mech advancement table when determining the abilities of the crafted mech; a character cannot craft a mech in this manner whose required pilot level exceeds his total character level -4.