Pirate Familiars

I am hurt and crushed at the exclusion of the beloved albatross.

Yea, much better as an animal companion. Otherwise, you have gnome wizards casting reduce person and flying on their familiars.

Hellz yeah, a Parrot. I was always toying with the idea of turning the Raven into a Parrot.

"Polly want a cantrip"

ciretose wrote:

Hello power creep...

When you make exotic better than standard for the same cost, you might as well just make the exotic the standard.

Since you're probably referring to the +4 initiative, UM has a "standard" familiar that also gives that bonus.

Interestingly, I just realized that almost every familiar gives what's essentially a bonus feat that doesn't scale. Most give Skill Focus, some give Iron Will / Great Fort / Lightning Reflexes. And I guess some give Improved Init.

I should have said "core".

I wasn't happy about it in UM, I'm not happy about it here.

The "doesn't scale" part is the problem. If a familiar is functionally a bonus feat, either they should scale like the bonus feat. If it is less than a feat, make it the same.

+4 init is particularly troubling to me since it stacks with improved init.

"This is my pet lobster, Polly. Raised him from a fingerling I did, a finer crustaceon you won't find," Long John.

"I thought pirates had talking parrots?" Gonzo.

"Talking Parrot?" Long John

Tim Curry's finest role

What? No albatross?

Coleridge weeps.

What? No albatross?

Coleridge weeps.

This was discussed on Page 1. :D

If you really want an albatross familiar, you could use the stats for an eagle. Keep in mind that an eagle (or an albatross) is a Small animal, rather than the normal Tiny size of most familiars. That's the main reason albatross wasn't included - we don't yet have a Small flying familiar in the game.

We have, but they fall under Improved Familiar feat - Small Air Elemental and various Mephits.

EDIT: If druids can have pygmy versions of animals as animal companions (i.e. animals that are smaller as a companions that the wild ones), we could have smaller exemplars of familiar species and use have a tiny albatross using hawk stats.

Rob McCreary wrote:

If you really want an albatross familiar, you could use the stats for an eagle. Keep in mind that an eagle (or an albatross) is a Small animal, rather than the normal Tiny size of most familiars. That's the main reason albatross wasn't included - we don't yet have a Small flying familiar in the game.

We have, but they fall under Improved Familiar feat - Small Air Elemental and various Mephits.

EDIT: If druids can have pygmy versions of animals as animal companions (i.e. animals that are smaller as a companions that the wild ones), we could have smaller exemplars of familiar species and use have a tiny albatross using hawk stats.

I was referring to "normal" Small flying familiars. We can use the stats for a raven to represent a parrot, but there is no Small flying animal familiar that we can use for an albatross. I don't think an air elemental or a mephit stat block would be a good representation of an albatross. :)

It IS a design philosophy that the bonus a familiar grants is more or less equal to a feat, like Iron Will or Skill Focus or, in some cases, Improved Initiative.

Initiative is pretty important, but it's also not nearly as important as some folks expect—it can get you in trouble easy, in fact, if you end up going before everyone else.

If you think that allowing the initiative bonus is too much, change it for your game. I don't think it's that big of a deal, personally.

I was referring to "normal" Small flying familiars. We can use the stats for a raven to represent a parrot, but there is no Small flying animal familiar that we can use for an albatross. I don't think an air elemental or a mephit stat block would be a good representation of an albatross. :)

Uh, it's kind of a intelligent, skilled albatross with sort of, uh, fiery temper! Yeah!

But generally it is why added *but* in my comment. Still, I think that individual GMs can consider using stats of some tiny creatures to represent smaller than usual specimens of normally small creatures.

Or we can have Improved Familiar celestial/fiendish/entropic/resolute eagle playing the role of improved albatross. An elemental template equivalent of alignment templates would be useful too (storm albatross).

I love the pirate familiars, especially the dodo. Having said that, is the dodo supposed to have a Strength of 3 or 6? The penalty to its bite damage is -2 but the stat block says it has a Str of 3. Also, it looks like you guys forgot to give the seal a Feat.

This is a very cool list and thanks for sharing it, but what is an isopod?

This is a giant isopod.

This is a giant isopod.

I asked my sister if she'd ever heard of a giant isopod last weekend over dinner. She hadn't so she looked it up on her phone and got freaked out.

I mean who wouldn't freak out at an ocean-dwelling potato-bug the size of a house cat?

She was fascinated though so spent the next 10 minutes looking at pictures of them.

This is a very cool list and thanks for sharing it, but what is an isopod?

It's a coward.

From "iso", meaning cold, and "pod", meaning foot.
Hence, literally, one with cold feet; by extension, a coward.

Oh, all right. It's woodlice, pill bugs, etc.
Things with lots of segments, and feet on each segment.
Genuine etymology - "iso" means "same", so it describes
creatures with lots and lots of legs/feet, all alike.

This is a very cool list and thanks for sharing it, but what is an isopod?

Think Pilot from Farscape.

No wonder Dodo's are exstinct, they're sitting ducks. Imagine trying to keep that thing alive!

So...no Feat for the seal or...?

The seal should have Weapon Finesse as its feat (the bonus is already included in its attack line).

The seal should have Weapon Finesse as its feat (the bonus is already included in its attack line).

Thanks!

A Seagull would be the same as an Osprey I'm assuming?

A Seagull would be the same as an Osprey I'm assuming?

Actually Brambleman suggested using a Raven since a seagull is not a bird-of-prey.

Eric Hinkle wrote:

This is a very cool list and thanks for sharing it, but what is an isopod?

It's a coward.

From "iso", meaning cold, and "pod", meaning foot.
Hence, literally, one with cold feet; by extension, a coward.

Oh, all right. It's woodlice, pill bugs, etc.
Things with lots of segments, and feet on each segment.
Genuine etymology - "iso" means "same", so it describes
creatures with lots and lots of legs/feet, all alike.

Even better, many isopods are parasites. One isopod parasite goes so far as to replace it's host's tongue after devouring said tongue. Perfect for a witch.

Either attached to the witch herself, or a higher level NPC witch could attach her familiar to a charmed host.

This is a giant isopod.

looks cloverfieldish.... yummy !