| 3 people marked this as FAQ candidate. 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Tumor familiar reads
- Tumor Familiar (Ex): The alchemist creates a Diminutive or Tiny tumor on his body, usually on his back or stomach. As a standard action, the alchemist can have the tumor detach itself from his body as a separate creature vaguely resembling a kind of animal suitable for a familiar (bat, cat, and so on) and move about as if it were an independent creature.-
Improved familiar reads
-Improved Familiar ...FamiliarThis feat allows you to acquire a powerful familiar, but only when you could normally acquire a new familiar. ... Prerequisites: Ability to acquire a new familiar, compatible alignment, sufficiently high level (see below). Benefit: When choosing a familiar, the creatures listed below are also available to you. You may choose a familiar with an alignment up to one step away-
my BBG needs a higher level of creepy
RAW no Home game go for it especially if it adds to the cool factor.
I was wondering about the raw and hpw it would not ( I am going to do it any way. Rule one for the win)
I like the idea as well, and can't see why you shouldn't be able to other than size. You can get past the size with rule 1, but also some of them are tiny anyways, such as http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/outsiders/inevitable/inev itable-arbiter
Say your tumor dies, and you're level 7 and you go through that ritual where the tumor grows back (paying 1400 gp for replacing the old one) and you have the feat I don't see anything RAW saying you shouldn't be able to. - Personally I'd even let you take the bigger ones... though the tumor will be harder to fit under armor or such.
Very cool idea! :)
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
i dont really see a reason why you couldnt... your tumor could mutate one day into the improved form!!
|
RAW no Home game go for it especially if it adds to the cool factor.
Actually as stated in my Tumor Primer, it's quite legal. It's not explicitly called out in the rules sadly, but the developer intention here is quite clear.
Level? Check.
Compatible alignment? Varies.
Ability to acquire new Familiar? Check: "If a tumor familiar is lost or dies, it can be replaced 1 week later through a specialized procedure that costs 200 gp per alchemist level. The ritual takes 8 hours to complete."
Looks like you're good to go.
|
Actually, problem.
Arcane Caster Level.
Alchemists are are not arcane casters.
It has been explicitly stated that alchemist levels do not count as arcane caster levels for things like crafting feats and etc.
Unfortunately, I think this is the RAW answer. However, in a home game, I don't think it would break anything for a GM to let an Alchemist take the feat.
|
|
Unfortunately, I think this is the RAW answer. However, in a home game, I don't think it would break anything for a GM to let an Alchemist take the feat.Actually, problem.
Arcane Caster Level.
Alchemists are are not arcane casters.
It has been explicitly stated that alchemist levels do not count as arcane caster levels for things like crafting feats and etc.
Even though it's RAI (as shown in the link I presented) if you really want to argue over an Arcane Caster level, any racial SLA or scaling SLA should fulfill the requirements just as easily.
If it's an arcane spell(let's say daze) then why wouldn't your caster level for the SLA be arcane?
|
Because it is your arcane class level, not your caster level.
So, for example, if I take Wizard 6, Bloat Mage 6, my caster level for arcane spells is 12, (BM gives +1 CL per level) but my Wizard (Arcane Caster Class) level for my familiar is 6.
Likewise, my level six barbarian has CL 6 (from his arcane SLA) but only has Arcane Class Level 5 (1 level dip + boon companion.)
Like I said, I would love to have it be the other way, since it would save me a feat on a very feat starved character.
I'm going to think about the alchemist thing further, because people are right that Alchemist class levels are supposed to count as wizard levels for tumor familiar. But I'm used to the developers also saying that alchemists can't take feats that depend on having an arcane caster status because they are not arcane casters. (Mike was explicitly answering the question of can Alchemists take Evolve familiar, but I can see an arguement for extrapolating it to improved familiar. It is just that ImpFam uses a very odd grammer for it's requirement, and I can't tell if that is akward writing, or an actual extra restriction.)
|
|
So since I assume the link I put up wasn't followed...
SKR on if a familiar counts as a familiar for familiar related reasons.
James Jacobs explaining that Alchemist have a caster level
So yeah, advanced Tumor Familiars are a thing.
|
|
Yes I read the links. I came to different conclusions than you did. (And for some reason I mentally converted SKR to Mike Brock, that I have no idea.)
SKR was refering specifically to Evolve Familiar, which I don't believe requires a caster level prereq.
JJ has said over and over that his posts are not rules calls, they are just his home game rules. As such I respect him and don't use his rules calls in discussions outside home rules.
I am using: Alchemist are not spellcasters for purposes of feats.
imp tumor familiar... yum!
we need someone to do some cool artwork for this!!
I like JJ's home game rules. :) - And I'm considering making some improved tumor familiar art... what do you want to see Grollub?
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Give it the advanced template? "It's not a tumor!"
I don't think an imp tumor familiar would work - devils are all lawful and orderly, so their forms are strictly fixed. Something demonic on the other hand would work quite well. A quasit is formed from a shard of the soul of the master anyway, so growing directly out of his flesh would be awesome. Would need a little rejiggering of the stats, as the wings are useless and the tail awkward. Maybe a tongue attack to replace the tail?