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Okay, quick background, I'm starting a new Wizard character, and plan on building a blaster. So, aiming for a juicy initiative bonus to always start off with a bang, I picked the Greensting Scorpion familiar. However, in the efforts of converting the little guy into a proper magical beast, worthy of accompanying my fearsome blaster, I've hit a speedbump. Now, for familiars, it says to use the skill points of the original creature. However, as a mindless vermin, the scorpion has none. Fine, but now it's a magical beast, with INT 6, losing the mindless trait. It should have a skill point now, as it's no longer mindless. So, to brass tacks.
Where does the skill point go, when a mindless creature is converted into a magical beast, for the purposes of serving as a familiar? Does the Master of the familiar choose? Is it lost to the ether? Randomly assigned to a skill that familiar would find most useful? GM Discretion?
Furthermore, when my Wizard reaches 13th level (some time away yet, though the hopeful goal), my faithful scorpion's INT should increase to 12. At that point, he should receive +1 skill point, based on his INT bonus. Is that correct? Once again, how is it assigned?
From what I've been able to find, search wise, familiars gain no new skill points, feats, HD, increases in ability DC's, save progression, or anything at all really, outside of that little chart in the familiar section, but I didn't see anything in reference to the above. I welcome any help on the matter.
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From the SRD for Familiars:
Skills: For each skill in which either the master or the familiar has ranks, use either the normal skill ranks for an animal of that type or the master's skill ranks, whichever is better. In either case, the familiar uses its own ability modifiers. Regardless of a familiar's total skill modifiers, some skills may remain beyond the familiar's ability to use. Familiars treat Acrobatics, Climb, Fly, Perception, Stealth, and Swim as class skills.
Basically, that means the skills you pick for your wizard determine the skills of the familiar. Familiars usually have a single rank in one or two of their skills when they are first acquired but from there it's all up to your wizard because the familiar doesn't gain levels or HD of its own.
A stingy scorpion has the following skills when first gained:
Skills Climb +7, Perception +4, Stealth +15; Racial Modifiers +4 Climb, +4 Perception, +4 Stealth
When you break that down you'll see he doesn't have a single skill point because he starts as vermin. His skill modifiers all come from ability scores, size and racial bonuses (remember familiars use DEX instead of STR for climb and swim skills.)
Say your 1st level wizard spends one rank in Disable Device, Fly, Knowledge Arcana, Spellcraft and Stealth. Your scorpy's skills would then become:
Skills Climb +7, Disable Device +4, Fly +4, Knowledge Arcana -1, Perception +4, Spellcraft -1, Stealth +19; Racial Modifiers +4 Climb, +4 Perception, +4 Stealth
He uses his own ability scores to determine the final modifier on his skills (his INT is 6 now so he takes a -2 on INT-based skills.) Any skill your wizard takes that is a class skill for a familiar gives the scorpion a +3 in that skill (i.e. Stealth went up by +4 even though the wizard only put one rank into it.) As written, the +1 INT modifier he gains when his INT reaches 12 doesn't change anything but the modifier he has on INT-based skills. You just keep using the wizard's skill ranks which isn't all bad since, presumably, your wizard's INT is also increasing as he gains ability bonuses.
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Thank you, VZ, even if that is not quite what I was hoping to hear. So, despite going from Mindless (Int -) to a Magical Beast (Int 6), you do not think that poor little scorpy would get a skill point to spend? Alas, poor sting, your Stealth may be ridiculous now, but shall soon drop off.
I do note, however, a crux in my curiosity, in that you assigned my little friend his class skill bonus for skills I had put a skill point in. I was curious what was the point of giving the familiars class skills if they had no points to assign, and that would explain it. Most assuredly a boon, so thank you for that.
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It'll come up as long as the caster realizes how useful his familiar is when he invests in skills that allow aid another checks. Also, a few ranks in UMD and a familiar capable of holding a wand can be pretty useful. Check out the familiar archetypes for other ways your critter can help you.
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It will never come up in a game.
The little scorpion will spend his entire career with the Wizard poking his head out of the bag to give Alertness and the Initiative boost.
Nooooo! Not poor scorpy! He has so much to live for! T.T
In fairness though, you're probably right. I mean, no feats, no skills, no save progression, 1/2 the HP of a Wizard, Wizard's BAB, anything more than hiding in the Wizard's pocket is a death sentence. Oh well.
It'll come up as long as the caster realizes how useful his familiar is when he invests in skills that allow aid another checks. Also, a few ranks in UMD and a familiar capable of holding a wand can be pretty useful. Check out the familiar archetypes for other ways your critter can help you.
Hmmm.... Interesting options. Not a big fan of Infiltrator (no real boosts to survivability, skills, such like) or Valet (no crafting in this game), but Pilferer may increase Stealth nicely. Something to think about, for sure. Thanks. :)
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Where does the skill point go, when a mindless creature is converted into a magical beast, for the purposes of serving as a familiar? Does the Master of the familiar choose? Is it lost to the ether? Randomly assigned to a skill that familiar would find most useful? GM Discretion?
It's kind of odd, since the half-orc favored class bonus is an extra skill rank / level added to the witches familiar...
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Where does the skill point go, when a mindless creature is converted into a magical beast, for the purposes of serving as a familiar? Does the Master of the familiar choose? Is it lost to the ether? Randomly assigned to a skill that familiar would find most useful? GM Discretion?It's kind of odd, since the half-orc favored class bonus is an extra skill rank / level added to the witches familiar...
Really? Extra per level makes it sound like they should be getting them by default as well, why else would it be extra? Right?
The following options are available to all half-orcs who have the listed favored class, and unless otherwise stated, the bonus applies each time you select the class reward.
[snip]
Witch: Add +1 skill rank to the witch's familiar. If the half-orc ever replaces her familiar, the new familiar gains these bonus skill ranks.
So, not exactly. It's "add +1 skill rank", not one extra skill rank, or one skill rank per level. A shame too. You got my hopes up, Set! :P Thanks for letting me know about that though, makes a case for possible Half-Orcish-ness.