Advice: Dog-themed Sorcerer for One-Shot

[Weirdlet]

Hey, all- I've got a oneshot game coming up, a reunion of my old highschool group as we have every semester break, in our GM's homebrew world (kind of a mix of Song of Ice and Fire and Dying Earth). I've got an idea in my head for my character but am not entirely sure how to implement it, and I was looking for any advice to be had.

House rules/game specific themes: 3.5, 10th level, Evil, Half wealth, two-magic item-limit per character. We're allowed to use stuff from prettymuch any book so long as we understand it well enough to use it without hogging up ten minutes with page-turning or online searches. Human, with the added caveat that wizards are regarded as weird but necessary, and sorcerery is a dissecting, not a hanging, offense. We're allowed to be sorcerers, but it's a secret to be kept.

For my particular sorcerer, I was thinking of borrowing a little from Robin Hobb's "Assassin's Apprentice," and have him be kind of a spooky boy who has an affinity for dogs, including a dog familiar. I figure he wanders and is mostly taken for a farmboy or a youngish ranger, summons monstrous packs when needed, and otherwise mostly enchants things, like casting Rage on his dogs or fiendish dire wolves, or Slumber on his enemies.

My questions are- how do I make his summoned packs effective, but more, how do I make his familiar effective? I figure he mostly stays in the background himself, but sends his dogs in to do his dirty work, and occasionally would send his favorite off to deliver touch attack spells and maulings. Also, recommendations for the two permitted magic items would be nice.

[Rhiannon87]

First: Oh my god I love those books.

Okay, onto the actual problem. There's a metamagic feat called Augment Summon in the PHB which gives a +4 bonus to your summons' STR and CON. If you do this, you probably ought to have pre-made stats for your summons with these changes listed, so you're not sitting there trying to calculate your new hitpoints and damage every combat. That'll help with the summons.

And unfortunately I have to leave now before I can finish researching feats that would help with the familiar. But Augment Summon is the way to go for making your packs of vicious wolves effective!

[Adumbration]

One option would be - and personally, having read Robin Hobb's work, I feel it to be one of the more appropriate ones - is the Arcane Hierophant prestige class from Races of the Wild. You would have to be Druid 4/Sorcerer 4/Arcane Hierophant 2, so it is not the most optimal option, but it does net you 6th level arcane and druid casting, and your animal companion gains many abilities of a familiar, including greater intelligence. The class also gives Wildshape, so you can melee a bit as well.

And, for sake of effectiveness, take Nighteyes. A dog just doesn't cut it in combat.

[Weirdlet]

Arcane Heirophant, what's that from? I recall the second word from the DMG...

[Adumbration]

Like it says there, the book Races of the Wild. Unfortunately the Arcane Hierophant isn't excerpted anywhere.

[Weirdlet]

Ack- teach me to read more carefully. Thank you- and actually, since it's only two levels I need to know the specifics of, Crystalkeep serves very well. I rather like that idea, actually- sounds like I'd have a good combination that would get me what I wanted. Thank you both very much.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

If you're going AH, might I recommend taking the Sorcerer variant that gives you an Animal Companion at 50% progression(as a Ranger) and the Obtain Familiar feat? Then snag the Natural Bond feat to give you an AC at your level+1 and a Familiar as, depending on DM interpretation, either a 6th level or 8th level(with AH progressing it at 2x speed) caster.

[Random NPC]

However, joking aside, check out this for more information regarding the Arcane Hierophant