PDA

View Full Version : Fairy like familiar



taltamir
2009-09-13, 02:57 PM
It surprised me see that there is no such thing as a "fairy" in the monster manual. Which make for pretty iconic "familiars".
There are feats that allow taking ... well, ANYTHING as a familiar. But most require unique feats (improved familiar, undead familiar, construct familiar, celestial familiar, dragon familiar, and so on).

I looked around and found the "eladrin coure" in the book of exhalted deeds. and the sylph in the MM2. Also the pixie in the monster manual.
Are there any others that I am missing?

The reason I am thinking of a fairy like familiar, is that I would like to have an alternative for an imp for a good character...I guess a non evil imp is always a possibility if your DM allows, still I would rather it be a more fairy like creature... Anyways, suggestions?

EDIT:
List of know fairy like potential familiars:
MM1: grigs, pixies (nixies cannot leave lake)
MM2: Sylph
MM3: Thorn, Petal
BoED: Eladrin Coure

Catch
2009-09-13, 03:01 PM
All of the sprites are 'fairies.' If you removed the Grig's (Su)/SLAs, I'd say it'd be an acceptable familiar.

Johel
2009-09-13, 03:03 PM
It surprised me see that there is no such thing as a "fairy" in the monster manual. Which make for pretty iconic "familiars".
There are feats that allow taking ... well, ANYTHING as a familiar. But most require unique feats (improved familiar, undead familiar, construct familiar, celestial familiar, dragon familiar, and so on).

I looked around and found the "eladrin coure" in the book of exhalted deeds. and the sylph in the MM2. Also the pixie in the monster manual.
Are there any others that I am missing?

The reason I am thinking of a fairy like familiar, is that I would like to have an alternative for an imp for a good character...I guess a non evil imp is always a possibility if your DM allows, still I would rather it be a more fairy like creature... Anyways, suggestions?

The Grig, while not a familiar by RAW, has abilities similar to an Imp.
He's tiny, can fly, has a few spell-like ability, good psycho stats and is a fey.

EDIT : Damnit !! Ninja !! :smalltongue:
No need to take back the SLA of the grig.
Look at the Imp's description : grigs are a lot weaker than those pesky devils.

Salt_Crow
2009-09-13, 03:48 PM
Courre Eladrin, as OP has already mentioned, would be the best thematically and mechanically. It's really cute to boot.

arguskos
2009-09-13, 03:53 PM
tal, I'll probably permit you to take a Sprite or a Courre Eladrin if you wished to for Imp. Familiar.

Galileo
2009-09-13, 04:39 PM
Hey! Listen!

I don't have anything constructive to add, I just felt this thread was lacking something without a Zelda reference.

Jayngfet
2009-09-13, 04:39 PM
If you take chaotic good and exalted familiar you CAN use Coure as familiars, after you get to second level. It's just a matter of taking a different feat.

taltamir
2009-09-13, 04:43 PM
Catch and Johel: thank you for pointing out the grig.

arguskos: Cool, good to know; now regorn just needs to survive till level 7 ;p

Insanealien: Oh god... I just imagined a DM roleplaying the familiar in such a manner...


If you take chaotic good and exalted familiar you CAN use Coure as familiars, after you get to second level. It's just a matter of taking a different feat.

i thought the coure required level 7 caster with celestial familiar. And what do you mean by TAKE chaotic good? are you referring to the regular limit on familiar alignment?

Jayngfet
2009-09-13, 04:59 PM
Catch and Johel: thank you for pointing out the grig.

arguskos: Cool, good to know; now regorn just needs to survive till level 7 ;p

Insanealien: Oh god... I just imagined a DM roleplaying the familiar in such a manner...



i thought the coure required level 7 caster with celestial familiar. And what do you mean by TAKE chaotic good? are you referring to the regular limit on familiar alignment?

Yes, sorry for poor wording. If you're seventh level and take exalted familiar you can have a coure. If you want something not a familiar proper just take it as an exalted cohort.

BenTheJester
2009-09-13, 08:01 PM
If you take chaotic good and exalted familiar you CAN use Coure as familiars, after you get to second level. It's just a matter of taking a different feat.

You don't need to be chaotic good. You can be one step away from your familiar, so CG, neutral good or chaotic neutral are all good.

Starscream
2009-09-13, 08:37 PM
Hey! Listen!

I don't have anything constructive to add, I just felt this thread was lacking something without a Zelda reference.

Now I want someone to Homebrew a Midna familiar.

Zaq
2009-09-13, 08:46 PM
Now I want someone to Homebrew a Midna familiar.

Start as a Shadowcaster, not a normal arcanist. Take Shadow Familiar (which gets you a familiar with the Dark template), then whatever Improved Familiar you want (Coure or whatever). Shadow Familiar explicitly says that the Dark template carries over to whatever improved familiar you take, so there you have it. All that's left is to roleplay it properly.

Galileo
2009-09-13, 10:24 PM
Start as a Shadowcaster, not a normal arcanist. Take Shadow Familiar (which gets you a familiar with the Dark template), then whatever Improved Familiar you want (Coure or whatever). Shadow Familiar explicitly says that the Dark template carries over to whatever improved familiar you take, so there you have it. All that's left is to roleplay it properly.

You mean always let your familiar speak for you?

Zaq
2009-09-13, 10:29 PM
You mean always let your familiar speak for you?

Not me personally, though I have had a player before who played a character (basically a mime) who didn't speak but had her Elemental Envoy (sort of like Improved Familiar for psicrystals, only not actually that good) do the talking. It's as good a way as any, right?

taltamir
2009-09-14, 12:14 AM
You don't need to be chaotic good. You can be one step away from your familiar, so CG, neutral good or chaotic neutral are all good.

The regular familiars are all animals without sentience OR magic, as such they are all true neutral. No alignment restrictions exist.

the improved familiar specifies:


When choosing a familiar, the creatures listed below are also available to the spellcaster. The spellcaster may choose a familiar with an alignment up to one step away on each of the alignment axes (lawful through chaotic, good through evil).

Explicitly saying you can be one step away PER alignment axis, so a true neutral familiar can have ANY alignment as a master. And a CG familiar can have a CG, NG, CN, and TN master.

@Salt_Crow: yes, they sure are.

gorfnab
2009-09-14, 01:56 AM
A Soulspark Familiar from MoI could almost work too.

Rixx
2009-09-14, 03:55 AM
Ask the DM: "Hey, for a familiar, can I have a little fairy?"

If he says "Sure," you're golden. If he says "No," you're boned.

bosssmiley
2009-09-14, 06:24 AM
Re-fluff one of the improved familiars (Imp, Quasit, Pseudo-dragon, etc.) as a pixie-type with a poisoned bite. Job done.

arguskos
2009-09-14, 07:51 AM
Ask the DM: "Hey, for a familiar, can I have a little fairy?"

If he says "Sure," you're golden. If he says "No," you're boned.
Seeing as I'm the DM in question for the OP, this has already been covered. :smallcool:

Another_Poet
2009-09-14, 08:52 AM
And since the OP's question has ben answered, I feel okay continuing the derail.

Midna doesn't make sense as a familiar (Navi does, but not Midna). Instead, Midna should be a fey Druid4 or so, and Link is her Animal Companion. It's not glorious but someone has to do it. And really, with the level of hamfisted railroading in that game, did you ever feel like you were the PC?

:)

ap

arguskos
2009-09-14, 08:53 AM
Ugh, Navi, I'd never be happier sending my familiar to die. :smallamused:

Fizban
2009-09-14, 09:44 AM
And since the OP's question has ben answered, I feel okay continuing the derail.

Midna doesn't make sense as a familiar (Navi does, but not Midna). Instead, Midna should be a fey Druid4 or so, and Link is her Animal Companion. It's not glorious but someone has to do it. And really, with the level of hamfisted railroading in that game, did you ever feel like you were the PC?

:)

ap
Oddly enough, I did. Maybe I just like riding the rails, but it was nice having people actually know Link for a change, and I blew through the first half of the game racing to rescue them. Midna's one of the few "party members" of the pops out of nowhere with no mechanical effect variety that I actually like. Sure, you get railroaded hard, but it's cause Midna's jerking your chain, and it's really what Link wants to do anyway, so he goes along with it.

Oh, and uh... yay fairy familiars? I was going to suggest the Musteval Guardinal as a roundabout way of getting healing, but upon further review it seems that the lay on hands ability is not in fact a universal guardinal trait. The Grig looks just fine stat-wise, though the grasshopper body isn't what a lot of people (myself included) think when they first hear "fairy". A Sylph minus the spellcasting could work. A Petal from MMIII is a bit lacking for an improved familiar with only a lullaby song, so I'd let the master sing with it to produce the sleep song as well.

LibraryOgre
2009-09-14, 01:11 PM
What would also work quite well is take a Raven, call it a Fairy, and let it have the ability to speak and hold tiny items. The world does not end.

taltamir
2009-09-14, 01:28 PM
A Soulspark Familiar from MoI could almost work too.

what is that?

arguskos
2009-09-14, 01:31 PM
Magic of Incarnum is something we're actually not using, tal. It's a cool source though, go take a look at it. :smallwink:

taltamir
2009-09-14, 01:39 PM
ill check it out... also, while I am getting a coure for this game (fits the chaotic good character perfectly), I am still curious to know if there are any other fairy like familiars that i overlooked, especially ones with varied alignments, just because I am curious like that :).

Tiki Snakes
2009-09-14, 03:05 PM
What would also work quite well is take a Raven, call it a Fairy, and let it have the ability to speak and hold tiny items. The world does not end.

That's pretty much how My 4th ed sorcerer has aquired his. Of course, this fairy used to be an Owl, rather than raven. (passive bonus giving him 'helpful but insipid advice, ie, a 1d4 bonus on certain checks, and active allowing him to cutscene-style look through it's eyes. ^_^)

taltamir
2009-09-14, 05:34 PM
That's pretty much how My 4th ed sorcerer has aquired his. Of course, this fairy used to be an Owl, rather than raven. (passive bonus giving him 'helpful but insipid advice, ie, a 1d4 bonus on certain checks, and active allowing him to cutscene-style look through it's eyes. ^_^)

Very cool solution. And you can just say they are not in the MM because nobody considers them a threat. (as they have no real "powers" of their own and while sentient, not very smart; or even non sentient, also depending on the creature in question).

I hadn't really thought of that simple idea.
But I think it will make a simple solution in future games to have practically any familiar you want, by simply making it a practically powerless creature of fantasty. That is, before it becomes a familiar.

Tiki Snakes
2009-09-14, 06:52 PM
Very cool solution. And you can just say they are not in the MM because nobody considers them a threat. (as they have no real "powers" of their own and while sentient, not very smart; or even non sentient, also depending on the creature in question).

I hadn't really thought of that simple idea.
But I think it will make a simple solution in future games to have practically any familiar you want, by simply making it a practically powerless creature of fantasty. That is, before it becomes a familiar.

I've been wondering about this, and suspect it is pretty much the official stance on them, in the new edition. Their is an evil, 'umbral' version, that exists as a swarm though. It manages a terrifying level 4.

At best, you can summon a load of them armed with tiny bows to make a single attack, as one particular (Arcane?) power. they really are basically just fey wildlife. I kind of like it, because it reminds me of their treatment* in the Labyrinth.

by which I mean use of fairy-pesticides and a tendancy to bite.

Epinephrine
2009-09-14, 07:12 PM
I see Petals got a mention (MMIII), but Thorns haven't yet. A Thorn might fit as an improved familiar? Not as tinkerbell an option, but they're certainly fey with some backbone - and since they are the guards of the fey, assigning one to watch over a fey friend would be in keeping with the fluff.

taltamir
2009-09-14, 07:28 PM
I see Petals got a mention (MMIII), but Thorns haven't yet. A Thorn might fit as an improved familiar? Not as tinkerbell an option, but they're certainly fey with some backbone - and since they are the guards of the fey, assigning one to watch over a fey friend would be in keeping with the fluff.

Squeee! the petals are adoreable! little living humanoid flowers, whose only power is sing a lullaby (if two or more sing together it works as the sleep spell, one of them just get a lullaby spell off).
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/lullaby.htm

Any creature within the area that fails a Will save becomes drowsy and inattentive, taking a -5 penalty on Listen and Spot checks and a -2 penalty on Will saves against sleep effects while the lullaby is in effect. Lullaby lasts for as long as the caster concentrates, plus up to 1 round per caster level thereafter.

Totally harmless fay wildlife, well, almost, they can accidentally put you in danger, because they take off all that cumbersome armor (not steal it, just disrobe) and dress you in a nice comfy clothes in your sleep... which is a problem if a wolf or something comes to eat you. As a bonus, petals are NG, meaning they can be familiar to any non evil wizard.

Thorns are also awesome. Not fairies per se, but very cool and fit the whole "good wizard familiar".

Please keep them coming people. If it was not listed in this thread then I do not know of its existence!

taltamir
2009-09-14, 08:05 PM
A Soulspark Familiar from MoI could almost work too.



Magic of Incarnum is something we're actually not using, tal. It's a cool source though, go take a look at it. :smallwink:

I did, it is a pretty cool book. But honestly, I think DnD already has too many separate alternative systems of magic. (Ok party, arcane caster - check, divine caster - check, Incarna resistance - check, spell resitance - check, psi resistance - check, truenamer... HA! that was a joke, they aren't really dangerous... ok party, anything I am forgetting?)

As for the soulspark. It will require a complete rewrite. Like a wizard with a psycrystal familiar. Maybe doable, there is precent for wizards and crystals, there is even an alternate "familiar staff" using a crystal... it is NOT an item familiar btw. A neat idea, to be certain, and way cool. But not quite what I am looking for right now.