Familiars and feats

[Beholder Bob]

I personally think familiars are great - but not very useful. Perhaps allow wizards & sorcerer a bonus feat every 4 levels only useful for increasing his familiar (as in make new feats for familiar use). If you do not continue advancing as a wizard or sorcerer, fine, spend your normal feats.
2nd thought) per the ongoing discussion, allow familiar to maintain control of a spell 1/3 the caster level of the master. lv/5 times a day, for up to lv/2 rounds.
off hand) familiar can channel a touch spell without ever being near his master (you are in a pub, when your cat reaches a guard. you cast vampire touch, the cat rubs his leg, viola!)
2nd pair of eyes) familiar makes his own perception rolls instead of just giving you awareness. Note: I assume the alertness feat represents the familiar aiding other to your perception rolls, rather then granting sharpened senses. This would mean the familiar can either give you alertness OR make its own perception checks, but not both at the same time.
eye to eye) caster level/5 times a day, sense through your familiar while retaining your own senses, lasts lv minutes, requires 2nd pair of eyes
lethal little friend) when your familar attacks, you can sacrifice a spell/spell slot as a free action (limit 1 spell per round), adding d3/spell level damage to a single attack of your familiars. If the spell had an energy descriptor, so to does the familiar's attack.
Killer Kat) as per lethal little friend, except it does d6/spell level damage and requires lethal little friend. Limit is now 1 spell per attack
Little Buddy) heal that sweet little pal of yours, you can sacrifice a spell/spell slot as a free action (limit 1 spell per round), to heal (by touch) your familiar, healing 1d3/spell lv damage.
Best Friends) your little friend can now return the favor. 1/day per 4 levels, cast shield other between you and familiar (either can be target). As a move action, sacrifice a spell or spell slot, the shield other lasts for # rounds = spell level. Requires little buddy.
Come to Me) you can, 1/day and as a partial action, teleport your familiar (no further then 300’ + 10’/LV) to your current location.


1st: would this be worthwhile?
2nd: are these too powerful or too weak?
3rd: the names of the feats are not too grand, suggestions?
4th: other feats to add to the list
5th: what about a prestige class arcanist who develops a more powerful familiar?

 

[Crothian]

There are some great familiar abilities in spells and spellcraft. Mongoose also has a book on familiars as well. So, I think the idea is pretty sound since some of the big guys have done it.

 

[AbsintheCurdle1]

Wow, two posts in a row that perfectly relate to what I'm working on. My "Witch" is a spontaneous-casting druid with a familiar instead of an animal companion- both for flavor and to tone down the class, but if I use KaeYoss' idea maybe I can ramp familiars up just a bit. I like it. Judging the power depends a lot on whether you use your "bonus familiar feats" idea, or whether they need to come from general feats. Personally, I'd add some of these to automatic level-based abilities, and require a regular feat for others. My comments will be based on that assumption:

2nd thought) per the ongoing discussion, allow familiar to maintain control of a spell 1/3 the caster level of the master. lv/5 times a day, for up to lv/2 rounds.

Maybe an INT requirement for the familiar? I'll have to look at the "ongoing discussion"; must've missed that. Certainly feat-worthy.

off hand) familiar can channel a touch spell without ever being near his master (you are in a pub, when your cat reaches a guard. you cast vampire touch, the cat rubs his leg, viola!)

I think it says somewhere that held touch spells are visible, which is why I guess you'd want this. Maybe require the familiar be in line-of-sight; at least some range requirement. Feat-worthy.

2nd pair of eyes) familiar makes his own perception rolls instead of just giving you awareness. Note: I assume the alertness feat represents the familiar aiding other to your perception rolls, rather then granting sharpened senses. This would mean the familiar can either give you alertness OR make its own perception checks, but not both at the same time.

I dislike this as a DM; adding yet another spot roll to every situation is not a direction I want to go.

eye to eye) caster level/5 times a day, sense through your familiar while retaining your own senses, lasts lv minutes, requires 2nd pair of eyes

I've already put this as a level-dependent part of having a familiar, coming after verbal telepathic communication, not letting you retain use of your own senses (for one thing, I can't imagine simultaneously having two sets of perceptions), with no duration limit. (See below). It's such a classic ability in fiction...

lethal little friend) when your familar attacks, you can sacrifice a spell/spell slot as a free action (limit 1 spell per round), adding d3/spell level damage to a single attack of your familiars. If the spell had an energy descriptor, so to does the familiar's attack.
Killer Kat) as per lethal little friend, except it does d6/spell level damage and requires lethal little friend. Limit is now 1 spell per attack

Ouch. Doesn't seem too unbalanced, though.

Little Buddy) heal that sweet little pal of yours, you can sacrifice a spell/spell slot as a free action (limit 1 spell per round), to heal (by touch) your familiar, healing 1d3/spell lv damage.

Sure, okay.

Best Friends) your little friend can now return the favor. 1/day per 4 levels, cast shield other between you and familiar (either can be target). As a move action, sacrifice a spell or spell slot, the shield other lasts for # rounds = spell level. Requires little buddy.

This one I don't like, since familiar hit points are already based on the mage's.
Double-dipping or something. Maybe it's just me.

Come to Me) you can, 1/day and as a partial action, teleport your familiar (no further then 300’ + 10’/LV) to your current location.

Another one that I'm not sure if I like the flavor of. Doesn't seem unbalanced, though. If I used it, I'd use standardized Long range (400' + 40'/level) and specify only the familiar's body, not anything worn or carried.


1st: would this be worthwhile?

Sure, variety is always worthwhile!

3rd: the names of the feats are not too grand, suggestions?

Heh. No, all mine are worse.

4th: other feats to add to the list

This is what I have for level-based automatic powers for a Witch's familiar:
Deliver Touch Spells (Su): As normal.
Speak with Witch (Ex): If the witch is 5th level or higher, the familiar can communicate verbally with the witch as if the witch understood its language.
Speak with Animals of Its Kind (Ex): as normal.
Telepathic Link (Su): At 9th level and above, the witch and her familiar may communicate verbally without speech, to a distance of one mile.
Sensory Link (Sp):If the witch is 13th level or higher, she or her familiar may choose to perceive through the other's senses if they are within one mile of each other, and both are willing. This takes full concentration on the part of the one doing the borrowing.

Note, no scrying. And since a familiar shares its masters' skills, it already understands any language the master speaks, so I changed that ability. I just like the image of a witch carrying on (apparently) one-sided conversations with her familiar...

5th: what about a prestige class arcanist who develops a more powerful familiar?

I don't think it would be popular enough to justify making one, but if ya want...