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Message: <blockquote data-quote="FoxWander" data-source="post: 1163088" data-attributes="member: 1356">I like this quite a bit. This seems like an equal replacement for an animal familiar, I'd make some small changes though- see below.I'd make the +3 bonus apply to Concentration. The idea that a wizard is more intense and focused because of the Staff feels better than that he knows more about spells. And I agree that the Staff should be just as enchantable as any other staff. I think it balances the fact that the Staff, with out the wizard's influence, is just an inanimate object; whereas an animal familiar can do all the useful things that an intelligent animal ally could do (move on it's own, attack, spy, fetch, etc.)Now for the adjustments I would make to your table (and why after)...Levels_____Special (replacing)1-2_______Spell Mastery(Alertness), Mage Hand-Staff only at will (Improved evasion), "Scribe" Spell to Staff-XP cost only (Share spell), Locate Object-Staff at will (Empathic link.)3-4_______Deliver Touch Spells5-6_______Detect Magic at will (Speak with Master)7-8_______Identify at will (Speak with Animals of its kind)9-10______-11-12_____Telekinesis on Staff at will (Spell resistance)13-14_____Scry on Staff (Scry on Familiar)15-16_____-17-18_____-19-20_____-Spell Mastery for Alertness so that it's a Feat for a Feat. Plus the idea that a Wizard with just his Staff is partially self-sufficient makes sense to me. I'd allow the spells "mastered" with this feat to be changed out whenever the Wizard gains a new spell level he can cast. I prefer "Scribe" spells to Store Spells because Scribing is something all Wizards can do anyway, this just gives them a new medium to do it with. Simply "Storing Spells" at will and without cost seems too useful. Scribing them would have a small XP cost at least. I'd consider changing this to be either the XP cost OR the full base price cost, I'm not sure though. Also this gives a reason for the typical "rune covered staff" of fantasy.Locate Object rather than Empathic Link because the Staff isn't sentient so empathy doesn't really apply. I might make the range for Locate Object 1 mile. Playing that a Staff familiar becomes sentient would change all the things I decided for the various "communication" swap outs.I put Detect Magic for Speak with Master because that's what I picture the Staff could "communicate"- the presence of magic. This would function exactly like the spell, so school ID would be possible also. I might give this the special effect of the Staff's crystal glowing when touched to magic and with a different color based on the school. Identify at will is just an improvement on this kind of "communication".I delayed the TK at will for 2 reasons- to make room for the other swap outs I made, and so it's more in line with the level a Wizard might get that spell anyway. That way it's not so powerful since TK can be used very effectively if your creative.I think this would make a quite balanced and interesting replacement option for a standard familiar. Does anybody have any comments about either version? And if you adapted Purzel's Power level abilities into rituals that could be applied to any familiar then familiars of any kind would be really spiffy.  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f60e.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":cool:" title="Cool    :cool:"  data-smilie="6"data-shortname=":cool:" /></blockquote>

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