Familiars: A Better Companion

[Deadguy]

I've been looking at the question of Familiars, and what a Wizard/Sorcerer/Adept can do with them. It started because I have a PC Bard-Wizard who's interested in getting more from his Familiar - a tiny viper. Now we have discussed spells, but I am always reluctant to let spells do what should really be covered by a Feat. For example, I tend to believe that using a polymorph other is going to really annoy a familiar - it's likely to be perfectly happy shaped the way it is, thank you!

So has anyone done anything on advancing a familiar? I was wondering if anyone had thought of a Prestige Class that helped a familiar-owner to improve his familiar in preference to other magical enhancements. What would such a class gain as special abilities do you think?

 

[Nifft]

There are some Feats which allow it to get a Template (Wizards => Elemental Templates from MotP; Clerics => Celestial/Fiendish, though how Clerics got Familiars is beyond me).

IMHO a Feat which allowed your Familiar to get type: Shapechanger, and gave it the ability to change into any natural animal of its size category, would be no more unbalancing than turning it into a Tiny Air Elemental.

-- Nifft

 

[Deadguy]

Interesting, Nifft. Anyone know where these Feats are listed? And are there any otehr Feats appropriate to a Familiar?

(BTW, a Cleric can be a Sorcerer or Wizard or Adept, so it is possible to imagine, say, a Cleric-Wizard using his divine connections to modify his Familiar.)

 

[Gez]

I have been working a bit on a "Familiarist" prestige class. Basically, a class whose levels stacks with those of other class for purpose of familiar capacities, with a slightly incomplete spellcasting progression; and bonus feats like these: Extra Familiar (get one additional familiar), Improved Familiar (like in the FRCS and T&B), Token Familiar (familiars can turn into a sort of figurine of wondrous power), Familiar Scrying (can scry on familiar twice more per day each time it's taken), Familiar Speech (familiar can speak the same tongue as the master), etc.

It was one of the racial class I intend to make for my setting, in order to make magic less generic (dwarves get, of course, the runecaster, elves get arcane archer and bladesinger, gnome get classes based on gems or animals, halflings get tattoo magics, and humans craft grigris that hold a spell and can be used the same way a psion with Master Dorje can use dorjes).

 

[Deadguy]

That sounds exactly what I wondered if someone was doing. Did you ever complete the 'Familiarist' class, Gez?

 

[Lucien Black]

Familiar feats....

Take a look at the Kingdoms of Kalamar Player's Guide. It has a number of interesting feats for Familiars, and it's the only non-Wizards company allowed to use the DnD logo.

The feats for making your familiar elemental or planar are NOT feats, but rather spells ("Elemental Familiar, Sor/Wiz 3" and "Planar Familiar (or any other special animal companion gained through a class ability), Clr 3"). These spells are found in the Spellbook archive at the WotC site.
http://wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/sb/sb20021103x

Enjoy.

Lucien

 

[Pbartender]

Re: Familiar feats....

Take a look at the Kingdoms of Kalamar Player's Guide. It has a number of interesting feats for Familiars, and it's the only non-Wizards company allowed to use the DnD logo.

The feats for making your familiar elemental or planar are NOT feats, but rather spells ("Elemental Familiar, Sor/Wiz 3" and "Planar Familiar (or any other special animal companion gained through a class ability), Clr 3"). These spells are found in the Spellbook archive at the WotC site.
http://wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/sb/sb20021103x

Yes, but T&B allows the Improved Familiar feat to be used to gain a "Planar" familiar at 3rd level. The book gives example stats for both a Celestial Hawk and a Fiendish Viper.

My illusionist is using a Celestial Cat. The handy thing about Planar Familiars is that their abilities are based on HD, and the Familiar's HD is equal to the Master's character level. This means the Planar abilities always improve, regardless of whether you multiclass or prestige class.

 

[Deadguy]

Thanks for the pointer to the spells, Lucien. Maybe it's just me, but doesn't the single casting of a mere 3rd level spell seem, well a little cheap for adding a template worth considerable extra power? Compare it with the Improved Familiar feat, and the sorts of creatures that can typically be called as improved familiars.

Certainly, Pbartender, you are right that a strict reading of the celestial/fiendish templates would grant the increasing powers with increasing level of the master.

 

[Vocenoctum]

Fantasy Flights Spells & Spellcraft has a system where you expend XP to give your familiar enhancements.

So far my toad has Cute (people have to make a will save to hit him), Flight (little wings), Glow (as torch at will), See Invisibility (which I also get when he's within 5'), and Speak Common.

In character, most of the powers are actually side effects of me trying to give him enhanced powers, but it's still fun.

 

[Deadguy]

Now why didn't I think of allowing XP-purchase of special abilities? Doh! Definitely something to take a look at!

Thanks.