Tiger

A tiger ally is almost always a druid's animal companion, a ranger's bonded beast, or a temple guardian in a region where tigers are sacred. The framing that earns the page is the bond: the tiger walks with one specific PC, ignores everyone else, and will not perform tricks for strangers. Establish that the tiger answers to one voice and write down which voice.

In combat the tiger is a flanker. Walk 40 ft., Stealth +7, and Strength 17 mean it can circle a fight and hit the enemy backline turn two while the party engages the front. The Rend action knocks Large or smaller creatures prone, removing one enemy from the action economy for a round while the party closes. It will not stay in melee against a target that is not going down. If the first pounce does not work, the tiger withdraws, repositions, and tries again from a new angle.

Out of combat the tiger is a presence. Townsfolk react. Horses bolt. Children either hide or try to pet it, and the player who owns the tiger has to decide which problem they are solving. Tigers do not perform. They sit and stare, growl at strangers the player should be suspicious of, and sleep through long stretches of the day. Play the dignity, not the trick-pony angle.

If the tiger dies, do not bring it back lightly. Reincarnate, Revivify, a druid's circle reborn in a different cat. The grief beat is the whole reason the bonded beast was worth a stat block, and a too-easy resurrection costs the party the moment.

A tiger is an ambush predator. CR 1, 30 HP, AC 13, Stealth +7, Darkvision 60 ft., walk 40 ft. The Rend action gives +5 to hit for 2d6+3 slashing damage and knocks Large or smaller creatures prone. The encounter is positioning and strength contests rather than a damage trade. Run it as a single strike from concealment, a grab to drag the prey away, and a fight only if the prey survives the first round.

The opener is the surprise round. Stealth +7 against the party's passive Perception is a real roll for most low-level groups. The tiger drops out of the canopy or rises from the long grass on a target who did not know the encounter was happening. Nimble Escape as a bonus action lets it Disengage or Hide after the strike, so it can reposition and strike again without drawing opportunity attacks.

Target priority is the smallest, slowest, or most isolated PC. Tigers do not pick fights they cannot win. If the party is bunched and ready, the tiger watches and does not attack. If a single PC strays to gather firewood at dusk, that PC is the encounter. Run it as a survival horror beat rather than a combat encounter; the party returns to find blood, drag marks, and a torn cloak. The fight, if there is one, happens on the tiger's terms in its lair the next morning.

Tigers retreat the moment the math turns. Below 15 HP and outnumbered, the tiger bounds back into the trees at 40 ft. and is gone before the second round of crossbow bolts. It will not be back tonight. It will be back tomorrow night in the same place with the same plan, unless the party tracks it home. Make the tracking the second half of the encounter.