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Got an idea for a Witch or Carnivalist Rogue. Basically, I was thinking of taking Evolved Familiar feat, Skilled Evolution:Use Magical Device, and giving my familiar a wand have them sitting in the bushes or wherever. The mental image I have is a squirrel clutching its body around a wand shooting a lighting bolt.
I want to do this. I was thinking of doing it for pfs or saving it for a home game.
Wondering what people think.
All the best,
Kerney
sadly won't work in PFS, they have a very specific list of familiars that can wield wands
Your familiar still need hands and a voice, or possibly the shape of a dragon, to use UMD.
Hazrond, were is that list of PFS familiar that can use wands?
As for the rest, I looked up the rules for wands and UMD and found out that the only requirement to use a wand is to be able to point it (and it specifically talks about non humanoids using a wand), so it looks like it might work.
Here is the FAQ for PFS that has the information you are looking for. There is also This post by Mike Brock that further clarifies which familiars can use wands in PFS.
While you are correct that the normal rules don't prohibit regular familiars from using wands, PFS does. I think this is an awesome idea for a home game though.
Edit: also for your last point about only needing to point it, using a wand rules say this
Activation: Wands use the spell trigger activation method, so casting a spell from a wand is usually a standard action that doesn't provoke attacks of opportunity. (If the spell being cast has a longer casting time than 1 action, however, it takes that long to cast the spell from a wand.) To activate a wand, a character must hold it in hand (or whatever passes for a hand, for nonhumanoid creatures) and point it in the general direction of the target or area.
Spell Trigger: Spell trigger activation is similar to spell completion, but it's even simpler. No gestures or spell finishing is needed, just a special knowledge of spellcasting that an appropriate character would know, and a single word that must be spoken.
So in short, to activate a wand, you hold it, point it in general direction, and say the command word. You must be able to speak to use the command word, which is why in non pfs games many GMs allow Raven familiars to use wands as they can talk.
Most PCs can't afford a wand until level 2. At level 3 Wizards get a 2nd level divination spell called Elemental Speech; they can talk to elementals. Follow me here:
1. Put the spell on a scroll
2. Cast the spell before heading into a battle
3. Using the Share Spells feature put the personal spell on your familiar
4. Your familiar can now speak the command word... in elemental.
The rules say you have to speak the wand's command word, but not what language to use. This may work in a home game (check w/your GM) but probably not in PFS.
Frankly I'm all for familiars wielding wands. Any familiar in my game is a viable candidate. The way I figure it, if you take a vanilla familiar w/no archetype and are willing to spend a feat on it so it can use UMD skill, why would I nullify those choices? For that matter even some of the familiar archetypes aren't all that useful long-term so why have the character choose an option (familiar) that is just dead weight on their character?
I wholeheartedly encourage PCs in my games to use their familiars. If they're small and dexterous enough to hold things in their paws I give characters some extra move-equivalent options: "my squirrel draws a dagger for me so I can full attack with 2 weapons." Aid Another, UMD, extra hands or eyes; these are the cornerstone of having a familiar IMO.