Improving existing familiars

[incog64]

I am looking to improve to get a better familiar as I progress levels but the penalty for dismissing a familiar is pretty painful. How do manage this? It seems kind of silly to allow for upgrading familiars but at such a steep cost.

Thanks in advance.

[Gruftzwerg]

Changeling Wizard has an ACF that solves the problem.

Alternatively druids can get an Urban Companion which is basically a familiar with 3/4 hp of the master and without the downside of losing XP on death. You can get a new one within 24h.

[MaxiDuRaritry]

Cast (or pay for a casting of) polymorph any object to turn the familiar into the kind you want? Alternatively, if you've got a lot of money, purchase a psychoactive skin of proteus to give to your familiar, so it's whatever kind of creature (or object) it wants to be or you want it to be.

[Thurbane]

If you take 2 levels in Diabolist, you get an Imp familiar that comes along, eats your existing familiar, and replaces it.

Demonologist does similar with a Quasit, but has it's own casting progression rather than improving existing casting.

[Bullet06320]

https://web.archive.org/web/20161101150926/http://archive.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/sb/sb20011020a
theres always the planar familar option

[FactualArcher]

You could take Arcane Hierophant to combine an animal companion with your familiar

[incog64]

Changeling Wizard has an ACF that solves the problem.

Alternatively druids can get an Urban Companion which is basically a familiar with 3/4 hp of the master and without the downside of losing XP on death. You can get a new one within 24h.

Thanks. This is very helpful.

[Metastachydium]

If you take 2 levels in Diabolist, you get an Imp familiar that comes along, eats your existing familiar, and replaces it.

I never thought I'd ever find anything that'd convince me to take a stupid cat as a familiar, so, like, thank you!

[Troacctid]

Improved Familiar also has the ability to improve the ability granted to you by your existing familiar. Dragon #331, page 93.

[ShurikVch]

Some other ideas:

Fleshwarper PrC 4 - Aberrant Familiar: +1 size...

Inherent bonuses (from Wish/Miracle, Tomes, or fruits from Mottlegrasp's Orchard)

Grafts - most of Familiars are living creatures

Green Rapture (Dragon #358) - Pseudonatural template (non-[epic] version)

Awaken Magical Beast (Dragon #304) - most of Familiars are Magical Beasts; combine with Ray of Stupidity for repeated uses (quasi-infinite loop - but have XP cost)

[Thurbane]

In a similar vein to Fleshwarper, Fiend Blooded applies the Fiendish (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/fiendishCreature.htm) template to your familiar.

[Jay R]

The proper cost for a better familiar than a 1st level wizard gets isn't the penalty for losing the old familiar. It's not taking a familiar at all until you can get the one you want.

[Bonzai]

Some fun things I have done is spell stitched a stitched flesh familiar. As a fleshwarper I have given my familiar aberrant grafts. Both added some fun utility to them.

[Bronk]

https://web.archive.org/web/20161101150926/http://archive.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/sb/sb20011020a
theres always the planar familar option

Also the elemental familiar...

https://web.archive.org/web/20161101150805/http://archive.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/sb/sb20011109a