A beastmaster can use his beastmaster ability to influence normal animals.  Some of these he can befriend, link with, and treat as allies.  This mystical skill require an initial 5 point cost be paid before the character can advance in any of the skill paths. The strength of the  link with a particular animal depends on the number of ranks he has in the beastmaster skill for that animal.  For each animal he chooses to befriend or link with, he creates a new skill path.  The ranks of the links for each animal are treated separately and may be at different levels.  The linked attribute for this ability is Charisma.

Rank 1: The animal becomes the beastmaster's friend.  It views him as the leader of his pack, pride, etc.  This friendship is permanent unless the beastmaster abuses the animal. The animal and the beastmaster can communicate in the manner of a trained pet and will try to follow the beastmaster's instructions to the best of its ability.  In addition if the animal is short lived, it gains a longer life span.  Its lifespan increases to equal that of the beastmaster.  Its stages of aging will parallel that of the beastmaster. 

Rank 2: The beastmaster and the animal can communicate verbally when face to face  The animal understands what the beastmaster is saying and the beastmaster understands what the animal is saying.  This communication is of course limited in complexity to what the animal is able to comprehend.  This communication applies only to this particular creature, not to all members of its species.  In addition the beastmaster and the animal can sense the location of the other and have a general empathetic communication with the other over large distances and  verbal communication with the animal.  

Rank 3: The beastmaster and the animal can telepathically communicate over large distances as if they were having a face to face conversation.  The beastmaster will get brief snapshots or flashes of images, sounds, smells from the animal during this communication, but they will not always be intelligible.

Rank 4: The beastmaster gains the ability to share the senses of the animal over distances, he sees what the animal sees, smells what the animal smells, etc.;

Rank 5: At this rank the beastmaster has two choices.  One choice will awaken the animal to full sentience by increasing its intelligence from animal intelligence to 1d4 points.  At this point the animal becomes its own person, no longer under the beck and call of the beastmaster.  They may continue their association, but as more of a partnership and no longer that of master and beast.  The animal will feel friendly toward the beastmaster if he has been treated well and may welcome the chance to continue this relationship.  If he has been treated poorly he will leave and choose a new life on his own. 

The second choice is for the beastmaster to gain dominate:  the  ability to force the animal to take a particular action.  This is generally only done by evil characters.  The action allows the animal a saving throw to not perform the action.  If successful the animal is forever freed from the character and any link to the character is permanently severed.  The target number for the save is 1 d10 plus the ranks of beastmaster for that particular creature.  The saving throw is 1d20 plus the willpower modifier for the creature, plus any miscellaneous modifiers.  The linked attribute is charisma.  The save must be re-rolled each time the beastmaster attempts to force the animal to do something against its will, or which may harm the animal.  Ranks greater than 5 are not available.

If an animal is released, dies, or is killed, the beastmaster may refill that skill path with a new creature without needing to pay  the initial 5 point cost a second time.  Any ranks in the new creatures path must still be purchased as this is a new creature.

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