Animal Handling
When there is any question whether you can calm down a domesticated animal, keep a mount from getting spooked, or intuit an animal’s intentions, the GM might call for a Wisdom (Animal Handling) check. You also make a Wisdom (Animal Handling) check to control your mount when you attempt a risky maneuver.
Control Mount in Battle: In place of your own movement, you can attempt to control a light horse, pony, heavy horse, or other mount not trained for combat riding while in battle with a DC 20 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check. If you fail the Animal Handling check, you can do nothing else in that round. You do not need to roll for horses or ponies trained for combat.
Fast Mount or Dismount: You can attempt to mount or dismount from a mount of up to one size category larger than yourself as a bonus action by making a Dexterity (Animal Handling) skill check. If you fail the Animal Handling check, mounting or dismounting takes an action. You can't use fast mount or dismount on a mount more than one size category larger than yourself.
Guide Mount with Knees: You can guide your mount with your knees so you can use both hands in combat. Make a DC 10 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check at the start of your turn. If you fail, you can use only one hand this round because you need to use the other to control your mount. This does not take an action.
Mounted Leap: You can get your mount to leap obstacles as part of its movement with a DC 15 Wisdom (Animal Handling) skill check. If the Animal Handling check to make the leap succeeds, make a jump check using your mount’s Athletics skill or your Animal Handling, whichever is lower, to see how far the creature can jump. If you fail your Animal Handling check, you fall off the mount when it leaps and take the appropriate falling damage (at least 1d6 points). This usage does not take an action but is part of the mount's movement.
Placate Beast: If you have a tasty morsel or other treat, you can silence an angry beast or convince it to leave you alone. You can attempt to influence a beast’s mood by giving the creature a day’s worth of edible food appropriate to its diet and making an DC 10 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check. If the check succeeds, the beast ignores you to devour the food. If you exceed the DC by 10, the target will regard you as friendly the next time it encounters you. Failure results in you provoking an opportunity attack from the creature and you cannot try again against the same target for 24 hours. This skill works only against creatures of the beast creature types.
Spur Mount: You can spur your mount to greater speed as a bonus action with a DC 15 Wisdom (Animal Handling) skill check. A successful Animal Handling check increases the mount's speed by 10 feet for 1 round but deals 1d3 points of damage to the creature. You can use this ability every round, but the mount becomes fatigued after a number of rounds equal to its Constitution score. This ability cannot be used on a fatigued mount.
Stay Mounted: You can react instantly to try to avoid falling when your mount rears or bolts unexpectedly or when you take damage with a DC 10 Dexterity (Animal Handling) skill check. This usage does not take an action.
Study Beast: Animals rely on relatively simple tactics and maneuvers in combat, allowing you to get a handle on their plans with a close study of their actions and bearing. You may make a Wisdom (Animal Handling) check against an animal as an action. The DC of this check equals the creature’s passive Deception (10 + Deception bonus). If the check succeeds, you know one of the creature’s abilities or gain either a +1 bonus on attacks or Armor Class against the creature as you learn to anticipate its actions in combat. If you fail, you cannot try again against the same creature type for 24 hours.
Use Mount as Cover: You can react instantly to drop down and hang alongside your mount, using it as cover with a DC 15 Dexterity (Animal Handling) skill check. You can't attack or cast spells while using your mount as cover. If you fail your Animal Handling check, you don't get the cover benefit. Using this option is a reaction, but recovering from this position is a bonus action (no check required).
Teach an Animal a Trick: You can teach an animal a specific trick with one week of work and a successful Animal Handling check against the indicated DC. An animal with an Intelligence score of 1 can learn a maximum of three tricks, while an animal with an Intelligence score of 2 can learn a maximum of six tricks.
The following tricks can be taught to animals by training the animal for a week and making a successful Handle Animal skill check against the listed DC.
Aid (DC 15): The animal can use the Help action to aid a specific ally in combat. You may point to a particular creature that you wish the animal to aid, and it will comply if able. The animals aid grants advantage on the roll if applicable.
Attack (DC 15): The animal attacks apparent enemies. You may point to a particular creature that you wish the animal to attack, and it will comply if able. Normally, an animal will attack only humanoids, giants, or other animals. Teaching an animal to attack all creatures (including such unnatural creatures as undead and aberrations) counts as two tricks.
Bombard (DC 25): A flying animal can deliver projectiles on command, attempting to drop a specified item that it can carry (often alchemist's fire or some other incendiary) on a designated point or opponent. The animal cannot throw the object and must be able to fly directly over the target.
Break Out (DC 20): On command, the animal attempts to break or gnaw through any bars or bindings restricting itself, its handler, or a person indicated by the handler. If not effective on its own, this trick can grant the target character advantage on skill or ability checks to escape bonds. The animal can also take certain basic actions like lifting a latch or bringing its master an unattended key. Weight and Strength restrictions still apply and pickpocketing a key or picking any sort of lock is still far beyond the animal's ability.
Bury (DC 15): An animal with this trick can be instructed to bury an object in its possession. The animal normally seeks a secluded place to bury its object. An animal with both bury and fetch can be instructed to fetch an item it has buried.
Come (DC 15): The animal comes to you, even if it normally would not do so.
Defend (DC 20): The animal defends you (or is ready to defend you if no threat is present), even without any command being given. Alternatively, you can command the animal to defend a specific other character. When defending you, it can cause one attack per round against an adjacent creature that attacks you to be made with disadvantage.
Deliver (DC 15): The animal takes an object (one you or an ally gives it, or that it recovers with the fetch trick) to a place or person you indicate. If you indicate a place, the animal drops the item and returns to you. If you indicate a person, the animal stays adjacent to the person until the item is taken.
Detect (DC 25): The animal is trained to seek out the smells of explosives and poisons, unusual noises or echoes, air currents, and other common elements signifying potential dangers or secret passages. When commanded, the animal uses its Perception skill to try to pinpoint the source of anything that strikes it as unusual about a room or location and goes on point. Note that because the animal is not intelligent, any number of strange mechanisms, doors, scents, or unfamiliar objects may catch the animal's attention.
Down (DC 15): The animal breaks off from combat or otherwise backs down. An animal that doesn’t know this trick continues to fight until it must flee (due to injury, a fear effect, or the like) or its opponent is defeated.
Entertain (DC 25): The animal can dance, sing, or perform some other impressive and enjoyable trick to entertain those around it. At the command of its owner, the animal can make a Charisma (Performance) check to show off its talent. Willing onlookers or those who fail an opposed Insight check suffer disadvantage on Perception checks to notice anything but the animal entertaining them. Tricksters and con artists often teach their animals to perform this trick while they pickpocket viewers or sneak about unnoticed.
Exclusive (DC 20): The animal takes directions only from the handler who taught it this trick. If an animal has both the exclusive and serve tricks, it takes directions only from the handler that taught it the exclusive trick and those creatures indicated by the trainer's serve command. An animal with the exclusive trick does not take trick commands from others even if it is friendly or helpful toward them (such as through the result of an animal friendship spell), though this does not prevent it from being controlled by other enchantment spells (such as dominate animal), and the animal still otherwise acts as a friendly or helpful creature when applicable.
Fetch (DC 15): The animal goes and gets something. If you do not point out a specific item, the animal fetches some random object.
Flank (DC 20): You can instruct an animal to attack a foe you point to and always attempt to be adjacent to (and threatening) that foe. If you or an ally is also threatening the foe, the animal attempts to flank the foe, if possible. It always takes opportunity attacks when possible. The animal must know the attack trick before it can learn this trick.
Flee (DC 20): The animal attempts to run away or hide as best it can, returning only when its handler commands it to do so. Until such a command is received, the animal does its best to track its handler and any creatures with him or her, remaining hidden but within range of its sight or hearing. This trick is particularly useful for thieves and adventurers in that it allows the animal to evade capture, then return later to help free its friends.
Get Help (DC 20): With this trick, a trainer can designate a number of creatures up to the animal's Intelligence score as “help.” When the command is given, the animal attempts to find one of those people and bring her back to the handler, even if that means journeying a long distance to the last place it encountered the target creature.
Guard (DC 20): The animal stays in place and prevents others from approaching. It makes threatening noise when it detects the approach of others it is not familiar with.
Heel (DC 15): The animal follows you closely, even to places where it normally wouldn’t go.
Hunt (DC 20): This trick allows an animal to use its natural stalking or foraging instincts to find food and return it to the animal's handler. An animal with this trick may attempt Wisdom (Survival) checks to provide food for others or lead them to water and shelter. An animal with this trick may use the Help action to assist Survival checks made by its handler for these purposes.
Perform (DC 15): The animal performs a variety of simple tricks, such as sitting up, rolling over, roaring or barking, and so on.
Maneuver (DC 20): The animal is trained to use a specific combat maneuver on command. An animal must know the attack trick before it can be taught the maneuver trick, and it only performs maneuvers against targets it would normally attack. This trick can be taught to an animal multiple times. Each time it is taught, the animal can be commanded to use a different combat maneuver.
Menace (DC 20): A menacing animal attempts to keep a creature you indicate from moving. It does its best to intimidate the target, but only attacks if the target attempts to move from its present location or take any significant action (particularly a hostile-seeming one). As soon as the target stops moving, the animal ceases attacking, but continues to menace.
Seek (DC 15): The animal moves into an area and looks around for anything that is obviously alive or animate.
Serve (DC 15): An animal with this trick willingly takes orders from a creature you designate. If the creature you tell the animal to serve knows what tricks the animal has, it can instruct the to perform these tricks using your Animal Handling bonus on the check instead of its own. The animal treats the designated ally as friendly. An animal can unlearn this trick with 1 week of training. This trick can be taught to an animal multiple times. Each time it is taught, the animal can serve an additional creature you designate.
Sneak (DC 15): The animal can be ordered to make Stealth checks in order to stay hidden and to continue using Stealth even when circumstances or its natural instincts would normally cause it to abandon secrecy.
Stay (DC 15): The animal stays in place, waiting for you to return. It does not challenge other creatures that come by, though it still defends itself if it needs to.
Track (DC 20): The animal tracks the scent presented to it. (This requires the animal to have the scent ability)
Throw Rider (DC 15): The animal can attempt to fling a creature riding it to the ground. Treat this as a trip combat maneuver that applies to all creatures riding the animal, and that does not provoke opportunity attacks. An animal that knows the throw rider and exclusive tricks can be instructed to attempt to automatically throw anyone other than its trainer who attempts to ride it.
Watch (DC 15): The animal can be commanded to keep watch over a particular area, such as a campsite, and raise an alarm if it notices any sizable or dangerous creature entering the area.
Work (DC 15): The animal pulls or pushes a medium or heavy load. You can attempt to push an animal to perform a trick that it does not know, but the skill attempt is made with disadvantage. The GM may not allow the roll at all if the attempt is too unrealistic.