Hit Dice: For the purpose of effects related to number of Hit Dice, use the master's character level or the familiar's normal HD total, whichever is higher.
Does this mean for everything related to HD? My Wizard level is 7 [typo - not 6], so does my Lyrakien count as having 6HD for the purposes of calculating saves, skill points, etc (in essence, everything except HP, which is always 1/2 my total HP)?
Or when it says "effects" does it mean only for things like spells that check for HD?
The second.
Familiar combat stats (for lack of a better term) are a function of the character. A familiar usually has a single hit die and gains hp as the character levels up. The familiar itself never gains HD beyond what it starts with but is treated as if it had HD equal to the casters level. For effects like Sleep or Color Spray HD of the creature targeted determing the result and could leave a 1 HD familiar with 40 hp very vulnerable to things it shouldn't be at the appropriate level.
For skills and saves, you take the familiar's base as stated in the bestiary, or the master's base, wichever is higher. The familiar uses his own abilities for modifiers. However you can't have a lyrakien with a 6th lvl wizard unless you have some bonus, you need caster level 7.
The second. It doesn't gain extra feats, but it gets protected from Color Spray.
I'm unsure about abilities of familiars that rely on hit dice - for example poison DCs - but I _think_ they improve as well.
Remember, familiars don't get their own ranks in skills or feats. They just have the feats they start out with, and they use your base saves and base skill ranks. (Or theirs, if theirs are already higher.)
I'm unsure about abilities of familiars that rely on hit dice - for example poison DCs - but I _think_ they improve as well.
There was specifically an errata in the case of the Silvanshee Agathion that its Lay on Hands ability doesn't scale, which implies that famililars' abilities that typically scale with HD do scale with caster level. (ETA: Or, I suppose, it gives precedent that none of them should, depending on your POV.)
Remember, familiars don't get their own ranks in skills or feats. They just have the feats they start out with, and they use your base saves and base skill ranks. (Or theirs, if theirs are already higher.)
I'm unsure about abilities of familiars that rely on hit dice - for example poison DCs - but I _think_ they improve as well.There was specifically an errata in the case of the Silvanshee Agathion that its Lay on Hands ability doesn't scale, which implies that famililars' abilities that typically scale with HD do scale with caster level. (ETA: Or, I suppose, it gives precedent that none of them should, depending on your POV.)
Has that errata actually happened yet?
Has that errata actually happened yet?
If you look at the stat block on the prd on this site, it's "lay on hands (1d6, 1/day, always as a 2nd-level paladin)." Always.
I checked, because the original discussion from a while back was somebody (I want to say Jason Buhlman but may be wrong) saying that the standard formation for the Lay on Hands ability of an Agathion of N hit die ends up being too powerful for an Improved familiar, and that it'd probably be ruled to be that the number of dice in the lay on hands built up, but the number of uses per day would remain static at 1. So I wanted to see whether that had been incorporated yet... now there's that "always" line. Although, it still doesn't get the Cha-bonus use per day like the other Agathions or indeed, "as a 2nd-level paladin" would.
Pretty sad. I like the idea of a flying angelic kitty with a star on its chest. But I can't think of why you'd want a Silvanshee now. A CLW wand used by a lyrakien or a faerie dragon would be better, and they could use it more than once a day, use other wands... I suspect even a mephit or elemental would be more useful.
Maybe a beastmorph witch whose DM considers it cat enough?
Boo! That's lame. It's the only agathion to have that "always" limitation. Granted, it's the only familiar option but that's just disheartening as I always wanted that flying cat for a familiar one day for an appropriate character idea.
Edit: Bah, I should learn to read creature types before making posts.
Edit2: Now that I have read the agathion type, I think the errata is pretty lame, but not because of any effect it might have on the creature's usefulness as a familiar. For that reason, I find the errata completely unnecessary, as I happen to think the pseudo-HD from being a familiar wouldn't affect the lay on hands ability in the first place. Rather, it's a lame errata because it affects the lay on hands ability of a HD-advanced silvanshee.
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I have to say, I'm 100% totally and completely against them stealth-errating things the complete opposite of what they've said the rule would be on the boards.
Its not that the Silvanshee isn't totally awesome without LOH scaling (it is, and I chose it before knowing it scaled) but it totally borks folks who are trying to run by the rules when they say first X and then later sneak in Y instead.
Not cool at all.
-S
Boo! That's lame. It's the only agathion to have that "always" limitation. Granted, it's the only familiar option but that's just disheartening as I always wanted that flying cat for a familiar one day for an appropriate character idea.
Given that it doesn't even start out with the Lay On Hands as it should, or as the other agathions do, I expect it's specifically because it's a familiar option, and arcanists "should" have a really, really hard time accessing healing.
Its not that the Silvanshee isn't totally awesome without LOH scaling (it is, and I chose it before knowing it scaled)
Hey, can you sell me on this? I'm serious; I really like the fluff, and I'd love to be missing something. But it doesn't have hands, telepathy, fast healing, the ability to go invisible or change shape, can't help flank or deliver touch spells without provoking... or did you mean it's awesome because it's a cat angel? If so I totally agree. >^^<
I did consider whether it could be fun to buff in combination with its Tiny size and Heroic Strength (15 Str is almost as good as small earth elemental's 16 ), but that depends on whether your DM considers "Heroic Strength" to be dependent on its original form.
It's a talking, flying, occasionally teleporting cat. It looks just like a regular cat and has awesome stealth modifier; such a combination makes it sound like an excellent scout. With the mist-form ability (not sure on the actual name), it's pretty survivable too!
It has truespeech and speak with animals, the thing is basically a universal translator lol
I was thinking of picking up for my lore oracle with the Eldritch Heritage feat. Woulda been cool to have a sub-healer helping out and it woulda been awesome to RP the cat as being a research aide.
Boo! That's lame. It's the only agathion to have that "always" limitation. Granted, it's the only familiar option but that's just disheartening as I always wanted that flying cat for a familiar one day for an appropriate character idea.Given that it doesn't even start out with the Lay On Hands as it should, or as the other agathions do, I expect it's specifically because it's a familiar option, and arcanists "should" have a really, really hard time accessing healing. ** spoiler omitted **
Its not that the Silvanshee isn't totally awesome without LOH scaling (it is, and I chose it before knowing it scaled)Hey, can you sell me on this? I'm serious; I really like the fluff, and I'd love to be missing something. But it doesn't have hands, telepathy, fast healing, the ability to go invisible or change shape, can't help flank or deliver touch spells without provoking... or did you mean it's awesome because it's a cat angel? If so I totally agree. >^^<
I did consider whether it could be fun to buff in combination with its Tiny size and Heroic Strength (15 Str is almost as good as small earth elemental's 16 ), but that depends on whether your DM considers "Heroic Strength" to be dependent on its original form.
Its all about what you intend to use it for, really.
For my witch? he wants a self-defending spellbook that is extremely difficult to kill.The silvanshee is that in a pretty black fuzzy suit.
it can DD, it can gaseous form, it gets obscene stealth bonuses which- combined with my Int based witch tossing a few points into Stealth becomes effective invisibility. It can speak any language and it can fly.
Its the absolute perfect familiar for the walking-talking spellbook on the go.
Add that to the fact that it has elemental immunities, resistances and both alignment and substance DR and you have a pretty nice familiar. For a witch.
Now if I was a wizard? not so much- even with LoH I'd have gone with something that had hands. But the penalty for a wizard getting his familiar nuked isn't nearly as severe as the penalty the witch gets, either.
For me, the witch, the LoH thing hasn't been a big deal. Now sure, I've used it- but Now i'll just snag a wand, shrug, and keep on going without a big deal. (actually what I'll do is discuss it with the group and decide if the change is a change or not. and if it is- then I'll snag a wand.)
-S