Fighting Familiars!

[Zen]

Anyone use thier familiar in combat?

Share your tales of tiny, intelligent companion glory!

Or do all these tales end badly, with dead critters and lost xp?

--Z

 

[Thunderfoot]

Have seen others do it with some success (more of a last ditch effort done out of desperation than an actual planned tactic) but mostly, it just ends up in "familiar fricassee".
Unless my familiar was a heavily armored warhorse, young dragon or other such buff animal (and we know that isn't possible), I wouldn't try it.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Technically Iron Defenders in the Eberron book are familiars.

I ran my group through the Forgotten Forge adventure in the campaign setting. The PC Monk climbed up to the ceiling and fell through the hole in the roof. He was playing a human and had no light source but being constructs the Iron Defenders had no trouble chomping him into unconsciousness. The Warforged Fighter jumped in to attempt to save the Monk but also took no light source with her and also was chomped up into deactivation. Finally, the Elven Ranger threw a sunrod into the building so he could see the Iron Defenders and pelted them with shots from his bow while he was standing on the roof so that the Iron Defenders couldn't retailiate.

 

[Thunderfoot]

I hate the Eberron setting so my statement still stands! TTPPTHHHTTPPTTT.

 

[Rhun]

All of my tales of familiars in combat have ended badly...they just don't have the staying power to get involved.

 

[Stormborn]

Unless my familiar was a heavily armored warhorse, young dragon or other such buff animal (and we know that isn't possible), I wouldn't try it.

Dragonomicon has rules for aquiring a wyrmling familiar, which is by no means a cmobat brute, but could be useful. Improved Familar (CW version), however, does allow for familars that would be effective in combat. A blink dog, for example, would be great for setting up flanking for an Arcane Trickster. A lot of the Complet books have feats for buffing familars, however the best Familiar buffing is from the Bonded Summoner PrC in the Miniatures Handbook. I know its technically is a Elemental Companion that replaces the familiar but its the same principle. Even at 6th level you could have a Wiz 5/Bonded Summoner 1 with a Medium Elemental that would be quite effective in combat. by Wiz 5/BonSum 9 an Elder Elemental watching your back would be a powerhouse. Of course in exchange for all that you would loose out on about half of your spellcasting progression, but that seems fair. IIRC the Hexblade also has a spell that increases the familar's effectiveness in combat.

Basically I am saying it can be done. However, it requires a PC dedicating themselves to boosting their familar through feats, PrC, and items. Probablly not the most effective expenditure of resources, but doable within the rules if thats what you want. I would never do it with an ordinary familar. The most I would use one of those for is scouting, and even thas a dangerous process depending on your DM.

 

[Ozmar]

I believe familiars are constitutionally unsuitable for battle.

I recently sent my familiar into combat with a sphinx. Predictably, in retrospect, he died, and now I have no familiar. Now, I thought that he would be relatively safe, because I had buffed him up with a number of spells, including body of war, turning him into a warforged titan. (I was a 14th level wizard/incantatar in the Forgotten Realms.) But he died in the second round, as the sphinx proved to be a spellcaster and hit him with a flame strike. I hadn't (couldn't have) protected him against all possible attacks, and as he had lost his evasion ability when transmuted into a warforged titan, he failed his save and was incinerated.

All this came about because I really wanted to use that warforged titan miniature. It looked really cool right up to the point when my familiar was fried.

Familiars suck in battle.

-Ozmar the Less Experienced

 

[Ozmar]

The most I would use one of those for is scouting, and even thas a dangerous process depending on your DM.

Indeed, it can be dangerous!. With some DMs, using your familiar is inviting death. I once sent my toad familiar off with another PC while we fled battle (so we could locate each other later) and the familiar felt abandoned and left me!

Ozmar the Rejected.

 

[Agent Oracle]

 

[Whisper72]

At low (i.e. first or second) level, the familiar can sometimes be a nice distraction in combat. Usually, when I DM, I allow the players to use their familiars (usually cats, rats or ravens) as a sort of 'breaking of concentration' on enemy spellcasters (which at those levels are usually humanoid adepts or max 3rd level mages anyhoo).

Haven't really seen any combat by familiars where real damage was dealt tho...