D&D 5E Improved Find Familiar

[Corwin]

I really like the notion of treating a familiar upgrade as a piece of "treasure" for *non* chain pact warlocks. Maybe even going so far as to require the spellcaster to attune to it (thus taking up one of their three attunement slots). Yeah. I think I like that.

 

[Gardens & Goblins]

Drones are awesome (Both impressive and terrifying). Familiars are akin to drones.

Find familiar gets your an 'ok' drone. Eyes on target, basic movement options. Limited combat options.

Pact of the Chain gets you a better drone. Opposable thumbs! A brain upgrade, and some nifty spell-like abilities/features.

Pact of the Chain and VotCM gets you the best drone. Best range with sense sharing at any distance. Voice QoL. [sblock]A far ranging little monster that can flit/clamber through a window, deposit a vial of poison into the sleeping Prince's open mouth. That can steal the royal ring from his lifeless body. That can turn the key to lock the door and use the candle to set fire to the curtains. And then be dismissed, into a pocket dimension, a resummoned to your side, on the other side of town (or, heck, the planet). (Where I assume the character has something dastardly planned..)[/sblock]

Let the PoC lock have their special sauce. Imp.Familiar, should it have to exist, for the cost of a feat, could simply provide a skill boost & reduced summoning + cost, for the caster that insists on throwing their familiar near enemies.

Come to think of it - all of the PotC lock's familiars are humanoid in shape. Feet, hands, fingers.. Do magical items still resize themselves to fit folks? If so, there's a few rings and belts that, assuming they can be pried out of the cold dead hands of the other/rival party members, could come in useful..

 

[Xeviat]

My issue is that a familiar's HP never scales. Not much more than that. If they had like half the wizard's HP, or something, I'd feel better about them.


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[Gardens & Goblins]

My issue is that a familiar's HP never scales. Not much more than that. If they had like half the wizard's HP, or something, I'd feel better about them.


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Strictly for a PotC Lock: For all the really useful tricks, if they're taking damage, things have already gone mammaries up. Sure some extra hit points would help mitigate the odd trap or attack but hey - at least this way folks are less likely to try to throw them into combat (where, arguable, you get the least return for your investment, again with regards to PotC lock.) Use their senses, use their thumbs, and heck be sure to use their brains (A standard Owl familiar has an Int of 2. Compare it to say, a Sprite's 14? I know who'd I prefer making judgement calls while my character is asleep!).

 

[Caliban]

Strictly for a PotC Lock: For all the really useful tricks, if they're taking damage, things have already gone mammaries up. Sure some extra hit points would help mitigate the odd trap or attack but hey - at least this way folks are less likely to try to throw them into combat (where, arguable, you get the least return for your investment, again with regards to PotC lock.) Use their senses, use their thumbs, and heck be sure to use their brains (A standard Owl familiar has an Int of 2. Compare it to say, a Sprite's 14? I know who'd I prefer making judgement calls while my character is asleep!).

I don't know, one of the most common uses I've seen for the Imp familiar is to have it use the Help action in combat so as to grant advantage on an attack (your own or someone elses). (Help action isn't an attack and so doesn't break invisibility). Can backfire when you run into an opponent that can target invisible creatures, but tends to be very helpful at the low to mid levels. This is in addition to the normal scouting duties and such.

One of my warlocks has named her Imp "EMI" for "Emergency Medical Imp" - he has a bandoleer with 4 healing potions and can invisibly deliver them to people (and even feed it to them) as needed.

It's also why the Owl is one of the more popular 'normal' familiars in the groups I play with - flyby lets it fly in, "Help Action" and then fly out of reach without provoking.

 

[Gardens & Goblins]

I don't know, one of the most common uses I've seen for the Imp familiar is to have it use the Help action in combat so as to grant advantage on an attack (your own or someone elses). (Help action isn't an attack and so doesn't break invisibility). Can backfire when you run into an opponent that can target invisible creatures, but tends to be very helpful at the low to mid levels. This is in addition to the normal scouting duties and such.

One of my warlocks has named her Imp "EMI" for "Emergency Medical Imp" - he has a bandoleer with 4 healing potions and can invisibly deliver them to people (and even feed it to them) as needed.

It's also why the Owl is one of the more popular 'normal' familiars in the groups I play with - flyby lets it fly in, "Help Action" and then fly out of reach without provoking.

Oh aye, help action is great and I'll happily sacrifice my lock's sprite to get them an edge when it comes to it -- but it's still simply netting a bonus in combat. I'd wager a properly utilised drone familiar has far more impact when use strategically, than when its reduced to buffing some damage-out.

Obviously, one option does not exclude the other - I'm more nodding towards thinking strategically when using a PotC's familiar, which a lot of folks seem to neglect in favour of focusing on their tactical uses.

 

[Guest 6801328]

Sorry if this has been already mentioned in this thread, but you can always get one of the 'special' familiars through roleplay and a cooperative DM.

 

[Ian Castro]

The thing is: Chain Warlock can give up one of his attack to let his familiar attack with its reaction. Wizards, Tome warlocks, any class that could get the Find Familiar magic can't attack with his Familiar. That's the difference between them. Since the Imp has a great poison damage, Chain Warlocks can be much more effective then wizards. And don't even forget about the Invocations Warlocks get.

 

[Caliban]

The thing is: Chain Warlock can give up one of his attack to let his familiar attack with its reaction. Wizards, Tome warlocks, any class that could get the Find Familiar magic can't attack with his Familiar. That's the difference between them. Since the Imp has a great poison damage, Chain Warlocks can be much more effective then wizards. And don't even forget about the Invocations Warlocks get.

Except you use the Imp's attack bonus, and Warlocks only get a single attack. Past level 5 you'll do much more damage with your own Eldritch blast.

 

[MechaTarrasque]

Except you use the Imp's attack bonus, and Warlocks only get a single attack. Past level 5 you'll do much more damage with your own Eldritch blast.

To be fair, it isn't too long before EB is better than the bladelock's sword (unless the DM gives out an extra special magical sword that would benefit the party way more if it went to the fighter) or the tomelock using shillelagh. There is a fairly small window where pact implement is the warlock's best combat option (or at least there was until the last warlock UA). The highly mobile invisible spy (and the invocations if you are dealing with a lot of outsiders) is the familiar's big contribution to the chainlock (or at least until [if] the BBoC gives us some new chainlock invocations).