Familiar (as in: Find Familiar ability/spell)

[madwolf10]

I know it's not high on everyone's priority list to review from the 5e PH, but I am a little curious how they handled Familiars for arcane casters: per ability, per spell, options, benefits, etc??...

[madwolf10]

I know it's not high on everyone's priority list

lol ummm, guess I kinda sabotaged myself with that comment...:smallbiggrin: :smalltongue:

[Yuki Akuma]

First level Wizard spell Find Familiar. One hour casting time, and costs 10 gp each time you cast it. Creates a spiritual version of an animal from a specific list (including favourites such as cats, toads and ravens) that is either the Celestial, Fey or Fiend type. It has a telepathic bond with you that you can use to communicate with it when it's within 100 yards, and you can use an action to use its senses instead of your own. It has its own initiative and acts on its own turn, but it can't attack. It can deliver touch spells as you cast them as long as it's within 100 feet of you.

You can dismiss it and re-summon it as an action. If it's killed, you can re-create it by casting the spell again. You can also re-cast the spell to change its animal form into another one.

[madwolf10]

First level Wizard spell Find Familiar. One hour casting time, and costs 10 gp each time you cast it. Creates a spiritual version of an animal from a specific list (including favourites such as cats, toads and ravens) that is either the Celestial, Fey or Fiend type. It has a telepathic bond with you that you can use to communicate with it when it's within 100 yards, and you can use an action to use its senses instead of your own. It has its own initiative and acts on its own turn, but it can't attack. It can deliver touch spells as you cast them as long as it's within 100 feet of you.

You can dismiss it and re-summon it as an action. If it's killed, you can re-create it by casting the spell again. You can also re-cast the spell to change its animal form into another one.

Ahh, so you trade alertness and skill bonuses for ease of managing and re-summoning... a friendly little spy buddy ;) Gotcha, thanks Yuki Akuma.
(touch spell delivery makes perfect sense but I always thought it rather... high-risk & harsh, sending your pal right smack into the center of danger, but then I haven't often played a caster with one, so maybe it's just me being flawed/lacking in good strategy?)