Wondrous Orb (construct companion)

[rferries]

WONDROUS ORB

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TINY CONSTRUCT (Incorporeal, Magic Item)
Hit Dice: 6d10+18 (51 hp)
Initiative: +3
Speed: Fly 60 ft. (perfect) (12 squares)
Armor Class: 19 (+3 Dex, +3 deflection, +3 natural), touch 16, flat-footed 16
Base Attack/Grapple: +4/-1
Attack: Positive energy ray +9 ranged (1d6 positive)
Full Attack: Positive energy ray +9 ranged (1d6 positive)
Space/Reach: 2½ ft./0 ft.
Special Attacks: Positive energy ray, spell-like abilities
Special Qualities: Comprehend languages, construct traits, darkvision 60 ft., hardness 20, incorporeal traits, light, lore
Saves: Fort +10, Ref +10, Will +10
Abilities: Str 1, Dex 16, Con 16, Int 16, Wis 16, Cha 16
Skills: Disable Device +12, Heal +12, Knowledge (all skills) +6, Search +12, Sense Motive +12, Spellcraft +6, Spot +12
Feats: Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes
Environment: With masters
Organization: Solitary
Challenge Rating: -
Treasure: None
Alignment: As masters
Advancement: As Improved Familiar

After adventuring with the orb for even a little while, you're amazed your party ever functioned without it.

A wondrous orb is a sentient magic item, designed to help adventurers where their own talents fall short. These bejewelled orbs are gifted with incorporeality, appearing as spheres of prismatic light on the Material Plane. They are utterly obedient to their owners and serve as talented scouts and healers, but are also useful when navigating physical and social traps.

A wondrous orb speaks Common and understands all other languages through its comprehend languages ability.

Spoiler: Notes

Show

This construct has a Constitution score. It heals naturally, heals 1 hit point from mending, and heals 10 hit points per caster level (maximum 50) from make whole.

Magic Item (Ex): A construct with this subtype has good Fort, Ref, and Will saves.

Combat
A wondrous orb is of little use in combat, save to heal its masters with positive energy rays.

Comprehend Languages (Su)
A wondrous orb benefits from a constant comprehend languages effect (caster level 6th).

Hardness (Ex)
A wondrous orb is as hard as adamantine. Halve all damage from ranged attacks and quarter all damage from energy attacks before applying this hardness.

Light (Su)
A wondrous orb radiates light, as the spell (caster level 6th). It may suppress or reactivate this ability as a free action.

Lore (Ex)
A wondrous orb possesses knowledge of both breadth and depth. It may use Spellcraft and any Knowledge check untrained, and adds one-half its character level as a bonus on such checks.

Positive Energy Ray (Su)
A wondrous orb can fire a ray of positive energy to a range of 30 feet. Each ray allows the wondrous orb to treat a creature with the Heal skill as though the orb were not incorporeal (even allowing it to provide long-term care). The rays deal 1d6 points of damage to undead creatures.

Spell-Like Abilities (Sp)
At will - detect magic, mage hand, mending, open/close, prestidigitation. Caster level 6th.

Crafting a Wondrous Orb
A wondrous orb is forged from adamantine and various precious gems. Crafting the orb requires a DC 20 (blacksmithing) or DC 20 (jewellry) check.

Craft Construct, comprehend languages, detect magic, disrupt undead, light, mage hand, mending, open/close, prestidigitation, caster must be at least 6th level; Price 6,000 gp.

Greater Wondrous Orbs
More powerful versions of these items exist, imbued with the power of true seeing, ranks in Open Lock, and a rogue's trapfinding ability (allowing them to disable the deadlier kinds of traps).

Wondrous Orb Familiars
Wondrous orbs can serve as familiars via the Improved Familiar feat. At the DM's option, even non-casters can select that feat to gain the service of a wondrous orb familiar.

[aimlessPolymath]

I like everything about this except for the positive energy ray- continuous at-will healing forever is something characters don't have access to normally(there's some level of resource expenditure), while its other capabilities are in-line with ordinary character abilities. On the other hand, it's something most characters really want...

I'd also like to see it have an improved ability to Aid Another, a la Navi. While it technically can do so in the ordinary fashion, its attack bonus isn't great.

[rferries]

I like everything about this except for the positive energy ray- continuous at-will healing forever is something characters don't have access to normally(there's some level of resource expenditure), while its other capabilities are in-line with ordinary character abilities. On the other hand, it's something most characters really want...

I'd also like to see it have an improved ability to Aid Another, a la Navi. While it technically can do so in the ordinary fashion, its attack bonus isn't great.

Yes that's certainly the tricky ability (plus the Disable Device part almost makes a rogue obsolete at low levels). I'd definitely leave that to a DM to excise or retain as they see fit.

[rferries]

Edited it to remove the magical healing. Kept the positive energy damage though, to deal with those pesky TPK shadows and allips.

[Grayhoss]

Yet another wonderful creation! i had a notion: Pathfinder has a 'Reach Spell' feat that turns touch spells to rays, familiars can deliver spells for their master, and as I recall, the little 'eyeball' beholders in Forgotten Realms 3.5 could use their natural 'eye rays' to deliver spells for their spellcaster. Would it be reasonable to allow an orb-familiar to similarly deliver its mage's spells? It would give the creature some combat viability, as it is an improved familiar, after all.

[rferries]

Yet another wonderful creation! i had a notion: Pathfinder has a 'Reach Spell' feat that turns touch spells to rays, familiars can deliver spells for their master, and as I recall, the little 'eyeball' beholders in Forgotten Realms 3.5 could use their natural 'eye rays' to deliver spells for their spellcaster. Would it be reasonable to allow an orb-familiar to similarly deliver its mage's spells? It would give the creature some combat viability, as it is an improved familiar, after all.

I'd certainly allow it as a DM, however it should probably be on a case-by-case basis. Reach Spell requires that you invest in a feat (with a +1 metamagic adjustment thereafter), and the only similar core ability I can think of is an archmage's Arcane Reach high arcana (which requires that you sacrifice a 7th-level spell slot).