(trolllord) Book o' Familiars in my mailbox!

[Driddle]

Finally.

I just picked it up from home during my lunch break. And after a brief perusal, I can say the product is worth the cost. (I avoid saying "worth the wait" because I'm still perturbed at the delayzzzz. Note to publishers: DON'T DO THAT!)

At the very least, the BoF is excellent resource material that can be easily adapted for various campaigns -- pick and choose what you like; nothing is unbalanced. The multiple options for familiar (or familiar-like) critters are nicely designed and delivered. Taken as offered, however, the book is even stronger, clarifying the differences between those 'familiar' variations and assigning them logically to specific classes.

Only a few, very few, minor editing/layout problems that I noticed -- and you have to realize that I'm a career journalist with an eye for that sort of thing anyway. Not even worth repeating the glitches here; they definitely didn't disrupt the content in the slightest.

My first-impression conclussion: A good investment for anyone (DM or player) interested in playing a critter companion as more than just a gear accessory. This will put to rest tired complaints that a wizard's familiar is just a wasted game element.

 

[Driddle]

The descriptions and explanations for each potential familiar are excellent, but I won't go into those now. Instead, I expect some readers here merely want examples of universal utility. So here's the backup stuff:

Appendix A, New Animals, lists stat blocks (including description and combat style paragraphs) for fairly mundane critters ranging from Antelope to Yak. That includes, but is not limited to, chameleons, crabs, doves, foxes, hedgehogs, kangaroos, lizards (all sorts), pandas, sheep(!), skunks and, yes, SQUIRRELS. Thank goodness. ... Appendix B, New Monsters, goes further afield, including dark familiars, mercurials, familiar eaters, muses, and the like. The fey companions will tickle the pointed little ears of elf-lovers among us, and includes critters such as bloodsprites, dream fauns, mantrids and moon cats. Then we round it out with various homunculi - elemental, mechanical, etc.

Appendix D, New Magic Items (I'm skipping the new magic spells in C), includes various familiar-handy goodies such as a collar of protection, familiar's kennel, tomes and whatnot. ... And, yes, the book ends -- NOT the focus -- with a few prestige classes: The Animus Gemini is appropriate for monkish characters; Faunsilva should appeal to them pesky nature elf-lovers again; Familiar Masters can be anyone who wants lots of familiars (probably at the cost of his other abilities, natch); and then there's the Night Lord and Umbral Stalker.

 

[thundershot]

Are there lots of "regular" animals? You list about a dozen... is that just a sample, or are there a lot more?


Thanks
Chris

 

[Driddle]

Are there lots of "regular" animals? You list about a dozen... is that just a sample, or are there a lot more?

As I noted: "... mundane critters ranging from Antelope to Yak. That includes, but is not limited to ..."
Yes, there are a lot. But I don't feel like listing every animal in the book.

 

[Treebore]

Cool! Now put this together into a review and post it in the reviews section.

 

[Driddle]

Cool! Now put this together into a review and post it in the reviews section.

Oops. I keep forgetting such a site exists here. Sorry.
Perhaps someone could move this thread to the appropriate column? Then maybe I'll get around to a genuine review later this week.

 

[Treebore]

Its not an actual column, and there are guidelines. Check the guidelines out and read some to see what you need to do. I just got this book today, if I like it I'll write one too.

 

[Moulin Rogue]

Can I quickly ask that since it has sheep, does it have goats and chickens too? On top of the whole familiars thing, I've kinda wanted stats for common trade animals handy.

Appendix B sounds pretty interesting.

 

[Hairy Minotaur]

Can I quickly ask that since it has sheep, does it have goats and chickens too? On top of the whole familiars thing, I've kinda wanted stats for common trade animals handy.

Appendix B sounds pretty interesting.

It's got goats but no chickens. It has hummingbird, pig, penguin, kangaroo, walrus, and yak among others.

I really like how they tied the clerics familiars to their domains.

 

[Driddle]

As I continue to thumb through the book, I find layout/editing errors every other page or so. It's minor stuff, really, and doesn't detract from the content itself -- stuff like a dropped letter "I" here, a failed boldface header there, a misplaced paragraph indent over yonder, a piece of art used twice ... that sort of thing. On a grading system, it's just enough points to drop a product from an A to a still-respectable B+.

Critter count? Let's see... 46 standard familiars listed with their requisite bonuses, 72 greater familiars, 63 supreme familiars, and dozens of alternative options provided throughout the text (for example, a mammoth isn't listed by itself, but the book suggests using the same stats as an elephant.) BUT several of them are marked with asterisks noting that you can find that info in the good ol' MM.

I'm not going to whine and complain about which familiars didn't make the cut, because let's face it: You can't list every bleepin' creature on Noah's ark, and everyone has a personal favorite. So I'm disappointed that bunnies aren't included -- at least we got squirrels this time!

(And here's an option for you to consider, available via feats in the book: A dire squirrel guardian familiar that rages like a high-level barbarian. Oh yeah, baby! And that's before you empower it further with the "distracting" ability.)

The good still far outweighs minor nitpicks, though. Excellent book.