Wizard's familiar

[Oneiros]

Originally Posted by JohnPaulB

Does the Cat explode 3d damage if you pick it up without the wizards permission? Sorry, couldn't help that.

It only explodes if it's a kitten

[hcobb]

Suggestion:

A wizard can have either a staff or a familiar. (He can still carry a club around if he likes.)

IQ8 Familiar I(S) The wizard has a small animal of no more than half her base ST and an IQ of one greater than a normal creature of that type as a familiar. The familiar's IQ after this adjustment must be less than the wizard's. The familiar will obey the wizard's instructions as best it understands them. If the wizard is in physical contact with the familiar she may use the familiar's fatigue to help power her spellcasting. Takes one day to cast and costs one of the wizard's starting attribute points at character creation or sufficient XPs to raise the wizard's attribute by one to replace a lost familiar. Each time this spell is cast it does raise the wizard's attribute total by one for purposes of XP cost to raise an attribute.

IQ11 Familiar II(S) as Familiar I except that the familiar may have ST at most equal to the wizard's own and has IQ of two higher than a normal creature of that type. The wizard may see through the familiar's senses and give it commands as per Summon Scout at no fatigue cost, but only when concentrating on this task. Cost: One attribute point (or equivalent XP) if upgrading an existing Familiar I, two otherwise.

IQ13 Familiar III(S) as Familiar II except that the familiar may have ST as high as the Wizard's ST or IQ (whichever is greater) and has IQ 3 higher than normal for its type. The wizard can cast spells (drawing only on the familiar's ST) from the familiar at -1 to the wizard's DX for each hex distant the familiar is from her. Cost: One attribute point (or equivalent XP) if upgrading an existing Familiar II, two if upgrading from Familiar I, or three otherwise.

IQ15 Familiar IV(S) as Familiar III except that the wizard now can coordinate actions with the familiar without needing any special concentration. The familiar has IQ 4 higher than normal for its type and may cast any of the wizard's spells (and use any of her talents) of no higher than its own IQ using its own DX and ST. Cost: Four attribute points or equivalent with trade ins as above.

IQ17 Familiar V(S) as Familiar IV except that the familiar may have a ST+IQ (after the familiar boost) combined total as high as twice the wizard's combined ST+IQ. The Familiar's IQ is 5 higher than normal and the cost is 5 attribute points with trade ins for lower level Familiar spells. The familiar's IQ after this adjustment still must be less than the wizard's.

Further suggestion: If you really are going to use Familiar V then at least make it a Small Dragon to save on flight spells.

Minimum cost path for a Small Dragon familiar: ST 8, DX 8 wizard raises her starting IQ from 16 to 22 by spending 3,200 XP then she saves up 99,200 XP to buy her first dragon.

[platimus]

I consider 'familiars' to be different things from 'pets'. I would consider 'pets' to be Trained Animals. ITL p. 94 already has some nice rules for this.

[TippetsTX]

Originally Posted by platimus

I consider 'familiars' to be different things from 'pets'. I would consider 'pets' to be Trained Animals. ITL p. 94 already has some nice rules for this.

I agree, which why I found the entry for cats confusing. We have rules for pets, but not familiars.

I like the idea and spell progression proposed above, however.

[platimus]

Originally Posted by TippetsTX

I agree, which why I found the entry for cats confusing. We have rules for pets, but not familiars.

I like the idea and spell progression proposed above, however.

TBH, I thought the thing about Wizards and pet cats was basically "flavor text" and indication that Steve has a cat or two :P

[luguvalium]

I've been thinking about familiars since I made this post:

http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?p=2193378

this thread and that one should be moved to the House Rules section.

I had already written five levels of familiars like what hcobb has written. I'll churn on it more and if I come up with something I like, I'll post it here.

[Shadekeep]

Originally Posted by larsdangly

It isn't something the 'canon' game supports, but will appear in a supplement of spells I'll submit once the W23 publishing process kicks off.

One kind of familiar appears in the book I'm working on as well (the Homunculus). It has the following special abilities:

1. Can cast Aid on its master when required
2. Can count as an assistant wizard in item enchantment
3. Can function as an already-summoned Scout
4. Can also act as the magical item Proxy

Animals that are made into a familiar would probably have most of these abilities as well, though the assistant wizard one might not make sense for them, unless they also gain supernatural intelligence as part of the familiarisation.