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Right so get to level eight with say a psuedo-dragon familiar (or imp... or faerie dragon... or silvanshee -- whatever) and get the familiar form... what shapes can you change into?
I'd say that this archetype won't work with improved familiars.
A beast-bonded witch's Familiar Form can still work with an Improved Familiar. However, the restrictions on beast shape II mean the witch's Improved Familiar has to be of the animal type to take its form: celestial/fiendish familiar, dire rat, or other animal at the GM's discretion (IMO, the starting stats for almost any of the Small size Animal Companions*--badger, bear, boar, small cat, crocodile, dinosaur, dog, viper snake, etc.--would work pretty well; other animals like poison frogs should also be considered).
*-Note that the Improved Familiar is still treated as a familiar and not as an Animal Companion.
I think the lack of an 'OutsiderForm' line of spells makes me a sad person :(
Seems like it'd be a shoe in for fixing these sorts of issues.
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Well a silvanshee I could see allowing cat forms... and imps do have shape change themselves so going for one of their shape change forms would make sense to me there too... however for most of the other improved familiars (that aren't simply animal redux) I'm in a bit more of a questioning mood.
Perhaps this is something that could use FAQ or clarification from a developer on what they think?
Normally I'm not one to jump on the FAQ button quickly but this is somewhat of an odd case.
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Well a silvanshee I could see allowing cat forms... and imps do have shape change themselves so going for one of their shape change forms would make sense to me there too... however for most of the other improved familiars (that aren't simply animal redux) I'm in a bit more of a questioning mood.
Perhaps this is something that could use FAQ or clarification from a developer on what they think?
Normally I'm not one to jump on the FAQ button quickly but this is somewhat of an odd case.
If I were going to attempt to houserule it...
I'd give the player every ability the familiar had that was on the list of beast shape abilities they could gain, as if it were a valid choice.
So your Silvanshee has what, Darkvision, Flight, Pounce, etc?
Wing it as near as possible.
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Sorry to necro, but this applies to a character I'm currently running.
I don't see why it wouldn't work with an improved familiar. I thought pathfinder had a clause that "Specific trumps general" when it came to rules. The general rule for "Beast Shape #" is: "When you cast this spell, you can assume the form of any Small or Medium creature of the animal type"
The witch's Familiar Form is a specific, that allows her to take the form of her familiar as if using beast shape II.
As in, this specific rule allows the familiar to be a qualifying shape, trumping the general rule.
So, it seems reasonable that even if her familiar doesn't fit the "animal" type, that it would be fine. There might not be various sizes of the forms, as Edgar quickly pointed out, but it should still work.
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I think it could stand a FAQ. Even without touching on improved familiars, there's an issue of vermin familiars, like the greensting scorpion. But I wouldn't be surprised if it was intended to be limited to animals. It is called the BEAST bonded witch, afterall.
Totally necro-ing this for a second time (*waves at Arden Oakwald*). Has this ever gotten official clarification?
It would seem a little weird to me that investing in familiar-enhancing feats (like Improved Familiar) on a familiar-focused archetype of a familiar-centric class would nullify huge sections of the archetype in question.
My gut feeling is that these things should be compatible - perhaps with some limitations - but still synergistic. If I were house-ruling this, I'd probably agree with Edgar Lamoureux's original response, and say you don't get different sizes/forms of the familiar in question if you have Improved Familiar. I don't really see any problem with regular vermin familiars working as per standard. I'd think the archetype would override and allow it as a modification even if the Beast Shape II spell alone does not allow vermin.
Thoughts? Redirect to where Paizo has already answered this? :)