Four companions can carry you: the deer, the cow, the wolf and the bear. Each must first learn the Saddle talent. Riding carries you faster than you can hop, and costs less stamina, or none.
Learning the Saddle
The Saddle is a talent offered only to these four animals, from level 3. Like other talents it has three ranks, chosen at later level-ups.
| Rank | What it gives |
|---|---|
| I | You can ride it. Walking and running cost half the stamina. |
| II | Faster. Walking and running cost no stamina, and blows no longer throw you off. |
| III | Faster again, and running into enemies tramples them. |
Speed
How much faster each animal carries you than you move on foot, by Saddle rank:
| Animal | Rank I | Rank II | Rank III |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deer | 60% faster | 75% faster | 85% faster |
| Wolf | 50% faster | 65% faster | 75% faster |
| Bear | 35% faster | 50% faster | 60% faster |
| Cow | 30% faster | 45% faster | 55% faster |
The Fleet Foot talent adds half its own number to this: 6%, 12% or 18% more at its three ranks.
Climbing on and off
- Climb on: stand beside your companion and press E when RIDE shows. You can't climb on while you are in the air, swimming, hurt, holding a building piece, or while it is in water, knocked out or lying down.
- Climb off: stand still with nothing else to use and press E when GET OFF shows. You step down beside it.
- Steering: you move, run (Shift) and jump (Space) as you do on foot, and it moves with you. You both jump together.
What puts you down
You are set down beside your mount if:
- you leap, plunge or use a special move that needs your feet (the plunge, the whirl and similar moves);
- a blow lands on you (Saddle rank I only);
- you go into deep water, fall, are grabbed or held, lie down to sleep, or go through a dungeon's door;
- your mount is knocked out.
Trampling (rank III)
At rank III, running into an enemy while you ride at speed tramples it: it takes the same damage as your mount's own blow, and an enemy that isn't big or a boss is thrown back and dazed for 0.4 s. The same enemy can be trampled again after 0.7 s.
While you ride
- Blows aimed at you land on you, not on your mount.
- Your mount doesn't fight for you while it carries you.
- With two companions (the Shepherd's Bell), only the first can be ridden. SWAP on the companion's page changes which is first.
- Your mount wears its gear while you ride.
