If not friend, why friend shaped?

Has your character ever had a beloved pet, a steed, or an NPC companion that, as your character leveled up, became too weak to take along on adventures? Your funny goblin friend or pet owlbear might have once been useful battle companions, but you can’t really bring them into the great wyrm’s den and expect them to survive. With regrets, you must bid them adieu.

Or maybe one kobold survives your raid on its lair and vows revenge--over your adventuring career you meet them time and time again, growing in power as you do. Your personal Moriarty, a nemesis to rival you no matter how strong you become!

Pets and Sidekicks fixes all that. In games like Dungeons & Dragons and Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition, which are predicated on the heroes becoming more powerful over time and facing ever-more powerful villains, allies (and recurring foes!) should become more powerful too. In Pets and Sidekicks, you’ll find rules for NPCs that level up along with the characters.

So, how does it work? Well, a companion generally levels up at half the rate that you do.

• Like you, as it levels up it gains hit dice, hit points, and proficiency bonuses.
• At every odd level it gets to choose a combat training option like Attack Enhancement, First Blood, New Combat Maneuver, New Innate Spell, or New Spell Slot.
• At levels 1, 4, 8, and 10 it gains heroic features which are listed in the stat block and which are unique to the creature.
• Or it can choose from a menu of about 30 general heroic features like Awe-Inspiring, Dreadful Aspect, Fast Movement, Icky, Thunderous Stomp, and more.

Whether it's a flumph pet, a bard companion, or a goblin nemesis, the creature levels up as you do and remains able to accompany you into battle or to challenge you after a prolonged absence. It even applies to wildshapes and polymorphs, so if you really like being a dire wolf, you can still change into a dire wolf throughout your entire adventuring career.

Of course, the book isn't just pages and pages of pets and sidekicks (though it does have that); there's also player options like subclasses and feats and backgrounds, and new equipment, and a ton of magic items like the collar of disguise, saddle of recall, and awakening gem.

Plus pet tricks, traits and flaws, and loyalty rules, this book brings recurring companions, allies, and foes to your D&D and A5E games in a big way!

Who doesn't want a pet tiger? Well, I suppose you might choose a dragon wyrmling or a bard sidekick or a really nice dog. But assuming that, of the many, many choices of pets and sidekicks in, well, Pets & Sidekicks, you go for a tiger, this is what it looks like--a companion which levels up as you do!

Pets & Sidekicks is fully compatible with Dungeons & Dragons and—of course—Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition.

You can use this book in your D&D game, or add it to your library of Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition rulebook.

EN Publishing ran the hugely successful Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition Kickstarter in 2021, raising nearly a million dollars. Since then Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition has been featured on major outlets like Kotaku, Polygon and of course here on Rascal!

A5E.tools is the official Level Up online tools site. It contains the rules of the game, along with searchable databases of spells, magic items, monsters, and more.

Level Up Gateway is the online character builder currently in development for Level Up A5E. You can register now for free and create characters!