3 - Loyal Companion

"If I could only take one thing with me into battle it would be a sword. If I could take a second thing - it would be someone to watch my back."

Loyal Companion
Tier: 3 Activation: Passive Ranked: Yes
Your character creates a bond with a single intelligent NPC approved by your GM. Typically, this requires the person be appropriately befriended and have a positive relationship with character before this talent can be used on it. The bond persists as long as your character chooses, although at your GM’s discretion, the bond may also be broken due to abusive treatment or other extenuating circumstances. As long as the bond persists, the companion follows your character, and you dictate the person’s overall behavior (although, since the companion is only loyal to you, not dominated, it may still perform inconvenient actions such disagreeing with you, getting drunk, and pursuing their own private objectives).
Once per round in structured encounters, your character may spend one maneuver to direct their companion in performing one action and one maneuver during your character’s turn. The person must be within hearing and visual range of your character (generally medium range) to do this. Otherwise, the person does not contribute to the encounter. The specifics of its behavior are up to you and your GM.
When choosing the statline for your companion, refer to the Alternative Conjuring Rules - Templates and use the Minion summon type as your starting template. You may use any of the non-forbidden elemental profiles available there to reflect your companion (such as using Earth to reflect an armored knight) however the GM has final say on whether such a profile makes narrative sense for that NPC. For each additional rank of Construct Companion you may increase the complexity of your companion. (From Minion to Rival and then to Nemesis)
Note: You may only have one active companion talent per character.