So, I've been thinking about alternatives to the classical arcane bonds. There are 4 "official" bonds (I'm counting certain archetypes) which I allow indiscriminately in my own games:
Familiar bond; (normal)
Item Bond; (normal)
Spell Bond; (Spellbinder)
Shadow Bond: (shadowcaster)
So I've been trying to cook up an alternative that would allow 2 players to "bond" and get extra powers for it.
Companion Bond: (inspired by the “witchguard” archetype)
The basic idea is to have an “arcane bond” which allows a caster (mainly a wizard or a sorcerer) to be bonded with a guardian (generally a martial class). The individuals would be bonded through a ritual (exchanging blood or something like that).
So there are a few ideas:
1) Sworn defender (ex): Whoever is bonded would obtain this ability, as defined in the witchguard archetype description. I think this would be a useful defensive ability, though it’s so situational that I don’t see it being used much.
2) Share spells (ex): This would basically act like a normal share spells, allowing a lot of polymorphing spells (like monstrous physique) to see more use.
3) Arcane pool (Su): the basic idea here is that the caster would gain an “arcane pool” (very similar to the magus’s) that they could use to enhance their protectors attacks, give them simple boosts (like AC, speed, etc.). However, this could be done through spells instead.
4) “ranged” share spells: It might be an interesting idea (at higher level) that would allow you to buff your companion from a distance, using otherwise “touch” spells.
5) Telepathy: the bonded individuals would be able to communicate telepathically.
So, does anyone have any other ideas? I would like to create something more reasonable.
So this Companion Bond, is it meant for fellow PC's? Which is cool, and all, but it really needs some help. Look at various archetypes, they all modify or remove class features when granting new abilities to a class. So, if you want this to grant new abilities to a martial class, you need to say that that class gives up some features. Now, since you are not specifying the class beyond it has to be martial, maybe they need to give up a bonus feat for each of the abilities that Companion Bond grants. To make it fair, it should be level-dependent bonus feats, not class-dependent bonus feats.
If I were to use this, I would modify it to grant an animal companion, with levels progressing as a Druid's, and modify the progression a bit to include these things. Getting a cohort NPC or granting these abilities to a PC just seems like way too much. I would also probably remove the Arcane pool, because that feels like you're encroaching onto Eidolon territory with evolutions, and it can be accomplished by casting spells to buff anyway.
On another note, you could have some sort of Elemental Bond, allowing you to get an elemental as a companion. Make sure that it isn't too powerful, and scales like a familiar or animal companion. This seems especially fun for wizards from Osirion or Qadira, who are all about them genies.
The goal here is really to have something meant for fellow PCs, with only the wizard losing their regular arcane bond. Basically, it's a "teamwork" archetype for the wizard, along the lines of the witchguard or cavalier.
I dont want to give a companion directly controlable by the wizard; that does encroach too much onto eidolon territory (and the wizard is strong enought as it is). What I want is the wizard sacrificing a bit of individual power (here, the familiar (very loved) or the bonded item) instead of just spells so as to aid the group.
I like the idea but I think Arcane Pool and Sworn Defender are unnecessary. Being able to share powerful self targeted spells and touch spells at a distance seem quite useful by themselves but not so powerful that they are clearly better than a familiar.
Alternatively if you want more powers then probably make at a archetype set that both characters would need to take.
Keep in mind that the telepathic connection between an arcane caster and a familiar is a much higher level manifestation than the earlier bond, which is empathic.
But I like the idea!
And what is the consequence to: 1) the mage if his guardian dies? And 2) to the guardian if his mage dies? There ought to be inherent risks to accompany (and offset) the benefits of such a bond.
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Consequences could be concentration checks made whenever the guardian takes damage greater than their Con score, equal to the damage taken in excess?
To otherwhere: 1 & 2) Not 100% sure. Maybe a Negative level for each?
Excellent idea. I approve whole-heartedly and would like to see it fleshed out more as an idea. A few things to keep in mind: 1) make sure that the types of bonuses you are giving can't be stack-abused. (ie: only one spellcaster may be bonded to a specific target at one time)
2) make sure that the bond levels up smoothly without major power-leaps. (ie: don't give it all away at first level, build up the bonuses as the bond increases)
3) you may wish to give generic benefits in exchange for a spell slot rather than changing the targeting of learned spells. I think that would be easier to track for the player and less prone to abuse.
Good luck!