So up until the release of direwolves, wolves were -- frankly -- not as good as companions in combat due to low stats. To illustrate, here's every release breed's statline:

By contrast, a Furmus is 22 / 5 / 6 / 9 / 10% / 0% -- 42 + 10%; a Rodill is 27 / 6 / 6 / 6 / 5% / 1% -- 45 + 6%; a Thrasher is 45 + 10%... etcetera. Kits and Jocols are indispensable in Gauntlet & Campaign not because they're really good but because Intersect & Blossom Maul are necessary for survival... and you need wolves to attach your companions to.

But then along come dires: 24 / 10 / 6 / 8 / 20% / 20% -- 48 + 40%, and you can FEEL how monstrous they are in combat. The only reason I can't get mine to do better in Gauntlet is you really need three sources of healing (Siphoning Scratch, Blossom Maul, Healer(3) affinity), two Intersects, and Coordinate at very high levels -- but up until they die from chip damage the dang things absolutely shred face in a way nothing else does. And really, I'd like my other wolves to feel that cool!!

I get that lorewise direwolves are supposed to be terrifying monsters, but Lupin lore does not imply that Lupins are harmless potatoes -- nevertheless, they have the worst stats of just about anything.

So please, bring the other breeds up a little closer to dires in strength. It will make companion restrictions feel less onerous and will improve overall wolf awesomeness by at least 75%.

@SlimedSerpent I disagree there. Pack Mentality builds are very nice in Arena when you can get them, but the individual units (Lupins excepted) still do pretty well by themselves if you need them for their affinities or other abilities. Giving it a flat buff as you propose by removing the restrictions on the bonus would make for less choice when it comes to using PM units, not more.

If they buffed the entire party, not just PM units, based on the number of party members present, you'd definitely want as many as you could fit because you'd get a 200% damage bonus with five of them. If they buffed only themselves, they'd be much better than most other units so you'd still prioritize them if you didn't need a different ability or affinity.

Right now, they have a good balance of risk/reward in trying to build with them in Arena. Outside Arena, they don't much matter in Gauntlet because the best team right now requires a very rigid composition, and you can kinda just do anything in Campaign for everything that's not a boss provided you don't bring too many low-level Volmyr or Lupins.

@SlimedSerpent I disagree there. Pack Mentality builds are very nice in Arena when you can get them, but the individual units (Lupins excepted) still do pretty well by themselves if you need them for their affinities or other abilities. Giving it a flat buff as you propose by removing the restrictions on the bonus would make for less choice when it comes to using PM units, not more.

If they buffed the entire party, not just PM units, based on the number of party members present, you'd definitely want as many as you could fit because you'd get a 200% damage bonus with five of them. If they buffed only themselves, they'd be much better than most other units so you'd still prioritize them if you didn't need a different ability or affinity.

Right now, they have a good balance of risk/reward in trying to build with them in Arena. Outside Arena, they don't much matter in Gauntlet because the best team right now requires a very rigid composition, and you can kinda just do anything in Campaign for everything that's not a boss provided you don't bring too many low-level Volmyr or Lupins.