Find familiar how to use it.

[Whit]

Hi all. I am going to use find familiar ( owl) with my Eldritch knight.
1. How can I use it under help function
A. Ability check. Would it be for perception only or other ability checks as well?
B. Combat. It can grant advantage for 1 attack by harassing opponent if the owl goes before me. So I should (ready) attack and wait for owl if it’s initiative is after me.
2. Within 100ft I can communicate telepathically. Does this mean relaying back and forth in telepathically words since it’s a celestial fey or fiend or as an animal it’s thought or fears?
3. Any other useful find familiar things I’m missing

[Matrix_Walker]

A. It's really up to your DM. I would say it could Help you on any task it could do itself.
B. You could dot it that way or your familiar could move into position and Ready the help action to be executed just before your Attack. A readied action is wasted once your through the order, it can be executed any time "the next round" before your (or your familar's) initiative.

2. Jeremy Crawford says
" I allow a familiar to telepathically communicate simple concepts to its master." https://www.sageadvice.eu/2014/11/04/owl-familiar-spying/

3. Retrieve weapons, give signals, go for backup, scouting/spying gold, create distractions, carry a torch and set fires, the possibilities are endless.

[Millstone85]

1. How can I use it under help function
A. Ability check. Would it be for perception only or other ability checks as well?* Animal Handling / Insight: Part of it is reading the emotional state of a creature, something maybe the owl can do.
* Intimidation: Some NPCs ought to be uncomfortable around someone with an owl on their shoulder.
* Performance: An owl that understands and obeys you so well could make for quite the entertaining routine.
* Persuasion / Deception: Make yourself appear more sympathetic by petting the owl.
* Sleight of Hand / Deception: The owl acts as a distraction.
* Survival: Your bird of prey helps you find and capture game. But a DM might rule that if it can't attack, it is no bird of prey.

That's all I can think of right now.


B. Combat. It can grant advantage for 1 attack by harassing opponent if the owl goes before me. So I should (ready) attack and wait for owl if it’s initiative is after me.You could also wait for your next turn, as that also counts as going after the familiar.

[Christian]

A neat trick I used with an owl familiar and a human wizard was to navigate through a pitch-dark dungeon through the familiar's eyes. Then, when we found enemies the party was going to fight, the owl flew ahead and the wizard would cast light on a rock or something in the room. The spell lit up the area we were attacking into so we could see to cast spells or fire missiles, but didn't reveal the party's position the way carrying torches or lanterns would, or the way casting light on something in the wizard's reach would.

Pretty tough to surprise a pack of goblins, no matter how sneaky you are, if you're the only thing in the dungeon carrying a flashlight.

[ImproperJustice]

I had a scenario recently where my mage was teleported by a trap to another room.
My familiar was still with the party, but I was close enough to communicate with her, and with the help of another gnome PC, I could communicate simple messages to the party.

I was then able to use our sense of proximity to begin navigating back towards the party, while they worked their way towards me.

Depending on your spell choices, remember that familiars can deliver touch spells.
It really helps divine characters the most IMO, but the occasional shocking grasp at familiar range can really help a trapped ally by robbing an enemy of their reaction and thereby allowing for an easy escape.

Without a doubt, the aerial scouting a familiar can do is so helpful.

[sflame56]

Also remember your familiar doesn't have to help you. Have it help the rouge to get sneak attack off. Its also considered an ally so rouges might want you to have it annoy an enemy for their sneak attacks. Most people don't kill familiars unless their super annoying or can provoke opportunity attacks or only thing in range. Finally they still look like normal animals. I once had a crab with me when we heading to an underwater temple and when me and my group were being lead to a room I left him behind and he blended in with the other crabs that lived there. All I had to do was look through his vision and bam I had a way to look through a whole underwater area without anyone being the wiser. People won't usual question an owl in a barn since their known for hiding in barns and living in them.

[LeonBH]

When you see through the familiar's eyes, you can Misty Step to any place it can see, even if you personally don't have line of sight to that location, if that spot is 30ft away from your current location. It's a very good tactic to prevent the DM from splitting the party.

You can also use it to bypass traps and doors. You can cause the familiar to reappear in any unoccupied space within 30ft of you, which means you can conjure it behind a wall, over a trap, and through an area warded by Alarm or the like.

You can deliver touch spells through it. Your touch spells now have a 100ft range.

And if you like RAW and don't care about RAI, you can see through your familiar's eyes to an unlimited range. But you can only telepathically communicate with it within 100ft of you. But, you can dismiss it from any range as well.

[JackPhoenix]

Step 1: Find Familiar, any bird or something inconspicuous
Step 2: Dragon's Breath. It's not attack. Aimed straight down, it hits 15'x15' area at 15', so you don't even need flyby. It can last for whole minute, if you can keep concentration
Step 3: ???
Step 4: Profit! Or dead familiar, because this WILL turn it into a threat.

[sflame56]

Step 1: Find Familiar, any bird or something inconspicuous
Step 2: Dragon's Breath. It's not attack. Aimed straight down, it hits 15'x15' area at 15', so you don't even need flyby. It can last for whole minute, if you can keep concentration
Step 3: ???
Step 4: Profit! Or dead familiar, because this WILL turn it into a threat.

I was just about to be like "no that doesn't work" but I looked it up and it does wtf. You twin cast dragon's breath on you and your familiar and you can both use your action to breath fire.....OMG. You put that little guy on your shoulder and now your dealing 6d6 fire dmg a turn for only a single concentration. Throw in a higher slot and dear god save us all. Then you just quicken out other spells..... this is where the paladin starts saving the enemy from you. Also if you got a flyby creature it can breath fire then fly away without opportunity attacks. Your familiar can't "attack" but it says nothing about casting spells or using an action to use a spell. You still get all normal actions with it.

[Matrix_Walker]

You can't twin Dragon Breath, as it creates an area effect with multiple targets involved.

https://twitter.com/JeremyECrawford/status/944272988983062528

[Malifice]

Also remember your familiar doesn't have to help you. Have it help the rouge to get sneak attack off.

Just hovering next to the monster is enough for your Rogue to get sneak attack.

[LeonBH]

You can't twin Dragon Breath, as it creates an area effect with multiple targets involved.

https://twitter.com/JeremyECrawford/status/944272988983062528

I never really intended to pull off that particular combo. But that tweet doesn't make sense. :smallannoyed:

[Asmotherion]

A neat trick I used with an owl familiar and a human wizard was to navigate through a pitch-dark dungeon through the familiar's eyes. Then, when we found enemies the party was going to fight, the owl flew ahead and the wizard would cast light on a rock or something in the room. The spell lit up the area we were attacking into so we could see to cast spells or fire missiles, but didn't reveal the party's position the way carrying torches or lanterns would, or the way casting light on something in the wizard's reach would.

Pretty tough to surprise a pack of goblins, no matter how sneaky you are, if you're the only thing in the dungeon carrying a flashlight.

And, as The Xanathar puts it, Humans are pretty much the only species of humanoids who can't see in the dark, so this trick is only relevant if you have Humans in the Party. :P

[sflame56]

I never really intended to pull off that particular combo. But that tweet doesn't make sense. :smallannoyed:

I think what he is trying to say in simple terms is even though the spell only effects one person at initial cast its affect makes into an aoe spell which breaks the "only one target" rule of the spell. So really its considered like casting fireball. You can't twin fire ball so you can't twin this.

[Quoz]

A few thoughts:

Eldritch Knights and Arcane Tricksters should never learn find familiar. Since it is on their spell list, just buy a scroll (and maybe a few backups). Even in low magic settings most towns (or maybe even your own party) will have a low level wizard who can scribe a level 1 scroll. 1/3 casters get too few spells to dedicate one to a familiar. Same for anyone who takes magic initiate as a wizard; you count as a wizard so you can cast a wizard scroll.

Consensus is that Owl is the best familiar due to flyby. I would put bat as a close second. With blindsight they can spot even through magic darkness, which will let you function with your party's devil sight warlock. It won't bypass the disadvantage, but you at least know which square to attack. If you have 2 or more bats in the party you should be able to use them as silent communication as they are intelligent and can talk to each other outside of hearing range. Viper is also an interesting option if you can get proficiency with poisoners kit and harvest venom.

Small lightweight casters with a stronger flying familiar may be able to use enlarge/reduce to either shrink themselves or grow familiar enough that the familiar can carry them. A sorcerer who manages to have a familiar can twin to do both and use the familiar as a mount.

[LeonBH]

I think what he is trying to say in simple terms is even though the spell only effects one person at initial cast its affect makes into an aoe spell which breaks the "only one target" rule of the spell. So really its considered like casting fireball. You can't twin fire ball so you can't twin this.

Nope, that doesnt make sense. If I Twin Polymorph, the two targets gain abilities that are not the attack action. That is the Multiattack action.

Now, since the Polymorph spell grants the target the ability to use Multiattack to target different creatures, does that mean it can't be Twinned?

[BobZan]

Dragon's Breath and Find Steed would work for self + steed?

[JackPhoenix]

I was just about to be like "no that doesn't work" but I looked it up and it does wtf. You twin cast dragon's breath on you and your familiar and you can both use your action to breath fire.....OMG. You put that little guy on your shoulder and now your dealing 6d6 fire dmg a turn for only a single concentration. Throw in a higher slot and dear god save us all. Then you just quicken out other spells..... this is where the paladin starts saving the enemy from you. Also if you got a flyby creature it can breath fire then fly away without opportunity attacks. Your familiar can't "attack" but it says nothing about casting spells or using an action to use a spell. You still get all normal actions with it.

In the first battle I've used this trick in, the familiar has proved itself the most dangerous member of our group. In the second battle, it got targetted and killed by an archer after 2 breaths. In the third, it destroyed a small army by itself... I'm talking about 20+ skeletons... while I was casually shooting Firebolts into the horde.

[Throne12]

And, as The Xanathar puts it, Humans are pretty much the only species of humanoids who can't see in the dark, so this trick is only relevant if you have Humans in the Party. :P

Halflings and dragonborn don't have darkvision

[sflame56]

Nope, that doesnt make sense. If I Twin Polymorph, the two targets gain abilities that are not the attack action. That is the Multiattack action.

Now, since the Polymorph spell grants the target the ability to use Multiattack to target different creatures, does that mean it can't be Twinned?

Multi attack only effects one target at a time which makes it not an aoe. I can punch 100 people but all that means is me targeting one person at a time with a punch. I am not punching in the air and killing everyone with one punch. By your logic since haste gives another action you can’t twin it. You can and everyone does.

[LeonBH]

Multi attack only effects one target at a time which makes it not an aoe. I can punch 100 people but all that means is me targeting one person at a time with a punch. I am not punching in the air and killing everyone with one punch. By your logic since haste gives another action you can’t twin it. You can and everyone does.

Exactly. Haste and Polymorph can be twinned. Even though they give you an action that can affect other people aside from the target of the spell, it can be twinned because they are buff spells.

And Dragon's Breath gives you a buff that grants an action that can target other people, too. Just like Haste and Polymorph. It can be twinned.

Twin doesn't care if the spell is an AoE or not. You can't twin Scorching Ray and that's not an AoE spell. Twin just cares if your spell can target only one creature.

[Crgaston]

Then you just quicken out other spells..... this is where the paladin starts saving the enemy from you.

I just loled in a restaurant over this. Thanks!

[strangebloke]

Exactly. Haste and Polymorph can be twinned. Even though they give you an action that can affect other people aside from the target of the spell, it can be twinned because they are buff spells.

And Dragon's Breath gives you a buff that grants an action that can target other people, too. Just like Haste and Polymorph. It can be twinned.

Twin doesn't care if the spell is an AoE or not. You can't twin Scorching Ray and that's not an AoE spell. Twin just cares if your spell can target only one creature.

If there's one thing I'll criticize JC for, it's his ever-more-reductionistic reading of sorcerer metamagic.

I see no problem whatsoever with twinning GFB, either.

EDIT: that said, I can see his justification incoming already. Multiattack and Haste are granted weapon attacks. The dragonbreath is a granted spell offensive ability. Which will only further muddy the waters on weapon/spell attack definitions.

[Asmotherion]

Halflings and dragonborn don't have darkvision

Memory played me.

The only times I play Dragonborn are Shape-shifted ones through Alter Self (Though I do that quite often, because my characters like looking like Dragons for RP reasons/are often Dragonic Origin Sorcerers and take pride in doing so). I've never had the oportunity to DM for a Dragonborn so far.

It still strikes me as strange that they would lack Darkvision, especially wile almost all the other races get it. After all, true Dragons have Darkvision AND truesight, and the word "Dragon" originates from Ancient Greek, and means "To see Clearly".

I never had any interest in playing Halfings (and haven't DMed for one since last summer) but my memory played tricks on me. I always thought of them like "small faytouched humans" who live longer and get some innate connection to nature, so I always thought darkvision would make sence on them. That said, the lucky trait makes up for it, so nothing strange there.