Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 lormador Apr 24, 2010 9:55:36	I don't have much to contribute, this is more of a question. I'm starting a campaign as a DM that features familiars. Specifically, familiars belonging to masters that have passed away or otherwise become indisposed. The PCs are being hired to take care of them, so I'm creating a menagerie. With that in mind, I'm hunting for things to do with them to make them actually better. This is what I remember. 1. Familiars obtained with Obtain Familiar could have a very curious (and nice) skill set. I'm ruling that the familiars can keep their old master's skills, at least until they find a new master. 2. Stitched Flesh Familiars and Spellstitching. 3. Grafts and Fleshwarper Anything else out there?
#2 Maat_Mons Apr 24, 2010 10:26:23	Urban companion allows a ranger to gain a familiar instead of an animal companion. The familiar gets ¾ the ranger's HP (instead of ½), the ranger's full attack bonus, and the ranger's relatively nice skill ranks. Complete Warrior has some extra options for improved familiar. I don't know if there are any in other books.
#3 necrosnoop110 Apr 24, 2010 14:16:50	1. Familiars obtained with Obtain Familiar could have a very curious (and nice) skill set. I'm ruling that the familiars can keep their old master's skills, at least until they find a new master. I don't understand this. If you obtain a familiar through the Summon Familiar class ability or the Obtain Familiar feat you are the new master, there is no old master. Anything else out there? Here's some stuff to check out. community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/758... community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/758...
#4 lormador Apr 24, 2010 17:58:32	1. Familiars obtained with Obtain Familiar could have a very curious (and nice) skill set. I'm ruling that the familiars can keep their old master's skills, at least until they find a new master. I don't understand this. If you obtain a familiar through the Summon Familiar class ability or the Obtain Familiar feat you are the new master, there is no old master. The campaign is based around a group of familiars whose masters have died. Those dead owners are who I'm referring to as "old masters." I'm also going to open the possibility of the familiars finding a new owner, as sometimes PCs express interest in doing that. I could just reset the familiar, but that seems kind of lame. I'd rather create some some rules for the transfer, to advantge somewhat the character that 'courts' an in-game familiar and completes a quest to adopt it. It's not supported in the current rules, as far as I know. I'm not looking for that now, I'm looking for things that wacko wizards might have done to their familiars to improve them. Thanks for the help!
#5 phaedrusxy Apr 25, 2010 21:50:51	You can give your familiar inherent bonuses to its stats for free by sharing Wish with it when you boost your own. Also: Permanency.
#6 lormador Apr 25, 2010 22:04:12	I'd thought of Permanency but forgot about share spells in conjunction. Nice catch. Now I can put lots of cool stuff on them.
#7 hellehundt Apr 26, 2010 21:17:12	Check out some of the improved familiars from Book of Exalted Deeds, they're pretty nice short of just celestializing your otherwise familiar, theres some nice good outsiders they speak common so they're good npcs the Musteval is a ferret dude, very cool pair some up with evil outsiders and let shenanigans ensue think some improved familiar has a lantern archon, makes for a nice silent floating guide
#8 Balthanon Apr 28, 2010 18:56:23	There were a number of spells and feats on the Wizards website and in Dragon for modifying or updating familiars as well.  They allowed you to turn your familiar into an elemental or animate one when it dies instead of raising it.  The feats let you get multiple familiars and do a few other things as well.
#9 lormador Apr 29, 2010 0:37:03	Thanks for all the help. The craziest and most amusing familiar vehicle (outside of Stitched Flesh and spellstitching, which is wrong) is turning out to be the Fleshwarper. Lots of customizable goodness. BTW if anyone has any houserule material for familiars, I'm open to that as well. I'm the DM of the campaign.