Druids!!!!

[ransolot]

Ok, so I am looking through my players handbook and it doesn't look like druids (or rangers for that matter) have animal companions anymore. Am I missing something? And, if they don't get companions anymore, would the "handle animal" skill take place to tame a wild animal to have a companion? Thanks all!

[Zacchaeus]

Ranger's get a beast companion at level 3 if they take the Beastmaster archetype. Druids can turn into beasts so the need for a companion is moot. :)

As to using Animal Handling, speaking as a DM I'd have no problem with you having a mount or some such but I'd draw the line at anything you can use in combat or to give you any other kind of advantage. Druids are powerful enough without that. There is probably a way that you could get a familiar with the Find Familiar spell although for me that's dodgy too.

[epithet]

Rangers and druids both have access to the animal friendship spell and the speak with animals spell. I would allow a ranger to cast speak with animals as a ritual even though they aren't ritual casters, but a rule abiding ranger still has access to the ritual caster feat.

Taking those abilities into consideration, it seems to me very reasonable for a druid or a ranger to have a beast as a retainer/henchman/follower/cohort. I would have the druid or ranger role play the process of finding, recruiting, and keeping the beast.

Once you reach level 9, a druid can use the awaken spell to acquire an even more capable animal follower. Or, y'know... Groot.