Bird Companionship (sage ability)

Bird Companion is an amateur-status sage ability in the study of Falconry, expressing the exceptional trust and attachment between the falconer character and the bird, shown by the bird's attachment to its handler and it's spontaneous efforts to assist through behaviour within its natural abilities and training. It is presumed that the character has a deep interest and attachment to the bird also, so that after many hours of releasing, calling, stroking and preening the bird, a relationship is built in the evenings, mornings and even throughout the act of travel, each and every day. The player does not have to "role-play" this relationship, although they may... it develops as a characteristic of assumed game play.

The bond permits the character to benefit from this trust and dependable cooperation. The ability "rouse to hunt" directs the bird to seek food; "Train Falcon" gives the character the ability to teach the bird. Thus the benefits accruing from the bird being a companion are wholly natural and — though for game purposes specified by the player — arise as though from the bird's own motives. Benefits occur only in the outdoors and not in subterranean situations; they include:

• Harry the enemy. If the character is beset by an enemy that is within 3 combat hexes of the character, the bird will, once every three round, attempt to rake the head of that enemy without being directed to, attacking for 1 point of damage; a falcon has a THAC0 of 19; a hawk, 20. The attack will be on the enemy closest to the player; during the attack, that enemy will be distracted whether the hawk hits or not, so that the character will be free to ignore the movement penalty associated with breaking off melee from that specific enemy. If more than one enemy is faced, the bird's attack will be random as to who is actually harried.