Familiars Left Alone

[Marius Delphus]

If you're the DM, and you think the player would have more fun playing the familiar than {whatever the player's other options are}, then the familiar stays an intelligent creature until you say otherwise.

You can come up with a rationale for it later... if you even need one. But perhaps even the familiar itself is not sure what's going on, and this particular event is part of a mystery that'll need solving in a future adventure...!

 

[Shemeska]

Imagine the familiar of a tremendously powerful (aka high level) wizard. This otherwise normal animal is going to be themselves more intelligent than most wizards, with a stupendous amount of theoretical knowledge, but usually no actual magical ability possessed by their former master.

Now imagine them hellbent on avenging their master's death, using their intelligence and knowledge and possibly the master's remaining resources to ruin and destroy those responsible. And all the while the clock is ticking as they slowly lose their connection and suffer an agonizing reversion to their original state.

Imagine such a creature as the BBEG in a campaign. Now that would be damn fun to play in IMO.

Actual rules on this topic for any edition be damned. Make every case an exception and make it awesome for all involved.

 

[Ambrus]

Imagine such a creature as the BBEG in a campaign. Now that would be damn fun to play in IMO.

Ooh! Or have the party slaying of its old wizard master be a part of its plan. Perhaps it had its sights set on the PC wizard as a superior replacement master and it was secretly aiding their efforts all along; anonymously passing off key details of the evil wizard's machinations to the party. Imagine the PCs standing over the slain wizard's body when his cat familiar steps out of the shadows and reveals itself to be their secret patron.

Edit: Have the familiar be named "Brutus".

 

[MarkB]

Imagine the familiar of a tremendously powerful (aka high level) wizard. This otherwise normal animal is going to be themselves more intelligent than most wizards, with a stupendous amount of theoretical knowledge, but usually no actual magical ability possessed by their former master.

Now imagine them hellbent on avenging their master's death, using their intelligence and knowledge and possibly the master's remaining resources to ruin and destroy those responsible. And all the while the clock is ticking as they slowly lose their connection and suffer an agonizing reversion to their original state.

Imagine such a creature as the BBEG in a campaign. Now that would be damn fun to play in IMO.

I love the idea. I'm imagining the critter strung out and hooked on increasingly-frequent doses of Potions of Intellect as it strives to hold onto its enhanced mental faculties. The demand for magical props to its intelligence could even be the trail that finally leads the PCs to the villain.

 

[Nebrok]

Shemeska: "Actual rules on this topic for any edition be damned. Make every case an exception and make it awesome for all involved."

I think I like your answer the best. I declare it to be the definitive answer!
*Hands over the reward* (lol)

 

[slwoyach]

OMG, that familiar's guild is a great idea. Now I want to build "The Severed Bond", it's a secret tavern in a major city for masterless familiars. I'm thinking a monkey bartender serving cat-nip whiskey, among other things. And the thought of throngs of familiars yelling "pick me, pick me!" at every young wizard entering a wizard's guild is also amusing.

 

[weem]

Gotta love these threads - what started as a simple rules question turned into an inspiring thread with great session/campaign potential.

Good stuff!

Myself, I keep imagining a tropical "pirates cove" kind of small town on a long forgotten island (except to those with inside info) populated by mostly intelligent animals, many of them former familiars coming to the one place in the world where they are not treated any worse than any other being. They are not only looking for new 'masters' but even work in general...

A cat on the corner offers to clear out the mice from your home for a gold a month, etc, "C'mon sir, i need off this rock now! You KNOW we don't swiiim".

An aging baboon, a local on this island, runs the most popular tavern here "Bobo's Bunker" - don't forget to try his Banana-Rum and Coconut drink "Gut Anchor".

Walk through the wrong ally and you might get caught in the middle of a turf war between the "Black Sand Hyenas" and members of "Tirra'Za", a local gang of mixed creatures (mostly reptiles).

Anyway, kinda random, but it's fun to imagine

 

[Garthanos]

For some weird reason this entire thread makes me think "Harry Potter"

 

[Crothian]

There is a fantasy adventure for Fudge called Another Fine Mess that has a group of intelligent animals going to rescue their human companion. Sounds a bit like this.

 

[Garthanos]

Speaking animals... The animated flick... The Lost Unicorn has catch this a "Pirate Cat" accent and all.