Is using a familiar in combat to grant advantage a common tactic?

Istbor · Apr 11, 2019

Alright. This is interesting. I read often especially here or in guides about the Owl Familiar as that way to get advantage.

Now, I am running a home game. Our wizard, has an Owl familiar (was a Hawk). Also has a magic cloak that provides Proficiency score amount of raven familiars. They are just 5th level, and so that means 4 total familiars.

I haven't seem him use it once, to grant advantage. Uses them for scouting, and for delivering goodberries ( well did, rest in piece Druid), and some touch attacks.

So I find that interesting. He is all about being effective as he can be in combat, and trying to create a powerful support/controller. And he does a fine job currently.

And before this current campaign, I hadn't seen a wizard at my table use this tactic. So, I don't think right now, I could say it is as common and some would lead me to believe. I know I have only seen a fraction of a subset of magic users, but still. It's there.

Edit: And you better believe I have killed that Owl, or a couple of Ravens here and there, once intelligent enemies see that he is using them for spell delivery.

krunchyfrogg · Apr 11, 2019

I don’t know how I never knew about this.

:

rool::

Oofta · Apr 11, 2019

I was in a game where a player did this so often that the familiar started having PTSD from getting killed so often. Mostly played for laughs, but I do think the DM started throwing in low level allies that didn't add to the CR whose only purpose was to snipe the owl. Well, then they'd snipe us too, but they rarely hit PCs with enough damage to matter.

Eventually the guy toned it down a bit. This was all in good fun, we were all in on the joke and having fun with it. It wasn't just the DM nerfing the caster's toy.

Dausuul · Apr 11, 2019

Paul Farquhar said:
You could hold your action until your familiar has it's turn.

If you have a familiar, you're probably a spellcaster. Readying spells is rarely a good choice in 5E. You still have to cast the spell on your turn and then hold concentration until your reaction. If you end up not taking the reaction, or if your concentration is disrupted, you lose the spell.

But if you're a caster, why are you looking for advantage on attack rolls anyway? Most of your attack rolls are with cantrips, and it's hardly worth the risk to get advantage on those. Send the familiar to Help someone else. The party rogue is ideal for this. You enable Sneak Attack, and you maximize the value of advantage by giving it to someone who relies on one big strike instead of a barrage of little ones.

5ekyu · Apr 11, 2019

Dausuul said:
If you have a familiar, you're probably a spellcaster. Readying spells is rarely a good choice in 5E. You still have to cast the spell on your turn and then hold concentration until your reaction. If you end up not taking the reaction, or if your concentration is disrupted, you lose the spell.

But if you're a caster, why are you looking for advantage on attack rolls anyway? Most of your attack rolls are with cantrips, and it's hardly worth the risk to get advantage on those. Send the familiar to Help someone else. The party rogue is ideal for this. You enable Sneak Attack, and you maximize the value of advantage by giving it to someone who relies on one big strike instead of a barrage of little ones.

Agree, the concentration risk is real dicey.

As for advantage, it's often for others. If it's for you, it had better be good.

Sometimes I used its deliver touch to hand out cures and such, or inflict wounds instead. But a few spells can make familiar interesting.

All that said, as a GM I am usually happy to see the familiar in combat. It means they are gambling its use going forward cuz thst hour to recast is a tough but sometimes.

As a player, mostly scouting and utility, I tend to snap it out if combat is evident.

UngeheuerLich · Apr 11, 2019

No, not really. It is one tactic, but it is usually throwing 10 gold and one hour of scouting away for one single attack with advantage and maybe preventing one attack on you. It is also not 100% clear if the help lasts if you wander out of the 5ft range, although most seem to handle it that way.
The tactic might be used agains a high priority target once in a while, but by no means is it a standard thing.

iserith · Apr 11, 2019

Istbor said:
Alright. This is interesting. I read often especially here or in guides about the Owl Familiar as that way to get advantage.

Now, I am running a home game. Our wizard, has an Owl familiar (was a Hawk). Also has a magic cloak that provides Proficiency score amount of raven familiars. They are just 5th level, and so that means 4 total familiars.

I haven't seem him use it once, to grant advantage. Uses them for scouting, and for delivering goodberries ( well did, rest in piece Druid), and some touch attacks.

So I find that interesting. He is all about being effective as he can be in combat, and trying to create a powerful support/controller. And he does a fine job currently.

And before this current campaign, I hadn't seen a wizard at my table use this tactic. So, I don't think right now, I could say it is as common and some would lead me to believe. I know I have only seen a fraction of a subset of magic users, but still. It's there.

Edit: And you better believe I have killed that Owl, or a couple of Ravens here and there, once intelligent enemies see that he is using them for spell delivery.

In my current Eberron campaign, the group's wizard, Arthur d'Cannith, salvaged parts from an iron mutt construct named BNJ-1. He kept the name, but reworked the parts into a robo-owl familiar. He typically uses him for scouting or casting spells through him. Here he is exterminating some mutant flying kruthiks with a poisonous dragon breath while Arthur uses a shield spell to avoid their claws (art by @Valmarius).

krunchyfrogg · Apr 11, 2019

This has me literally drooling over the idea of my EB/controlling warlock.

He starts as a fighter, then becomes a fiend chainlock, taking all the goodies that enhance EB.

Wearing heavy armor, gaining temporary HP when he finishes an enemy (which will happen often with 1d10+CHA blasts), he’ll be pretty hard to kill. With advantage, he’ll hardly miss.

Paul Farquhar · Apr 12, 2019

Dausuul said:
If you have a familiar, you're probably a spellcaster. Readying spells is rarely a good choice in 5E. You still have to cast the spell on your turn and then hold concentration until your reaction. If you end up not taking the reaction, or if your concentration is disrupted, you lose the spell.

But if you're a caster, why are you looking for advantage on attack rolls anyway? Most of your attack rolls are with cantrips, and it's hardly worth the risk to get advantage on those. Send the familiar to Help someone else. The party rogue is ideal for this. You enable Sneak Attack, and you maximize the value of advantage by giving it to someone who relies on one big strike instead of a barrage of little ones.

My character with a familiar is an eldritch knight. But his familiar does more commonly help the party rogue rather than it's master.

smbakeresq · Apr 12, 2019

As I stated elsewhere also, your familiar can deliver touch spells and the light cantrip is a touch spell. Therefore your familiar can deliver the light cantrip right into the enemies midst, for example touching something in the enemy camp to light them up.

Is using a familiar in combat to grant advantage a common tactic?

Istbor

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krunchyfrogg

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Oofta

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Dausuul

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5ekyu

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UngeheuerLich

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iserith

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krunchyfrogg

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Paul Farquhar

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smbakeresq

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