Mascot (Familiar Archetype)
Affinity for My Team (Su): A mascot is the heart and
soul of its team, which at first consists of only the familiar
and its master. At 1st level and every 3 levels thereafter,
a mascot can add an additional member to its team. A
mascot’s empathic link extends to all members of its team.
A mascot can add or remove one team member over the
course of a day. If a team member dies, the mascot gains
1 permanent negative level. This ability replaces alertness
and alters empathic link.
Q: In PFS, can it be assumed that I spent time traveling with the other players before the start of the mission, to have the maximum number of the party linked? Could the empathic link be used to "relay" emotion to the group?
Lucky Mascot (Su): Whenever a mascot uses the aid
another action to aid a team member’s attack roll or AC, that
team member also gains a +1 luck bonus on all attack rolls
or to AC for 1 round. This ability replaces improved evasion.
Q: I'm not sure how the aid works in combat, I've only seen this used as a skill buffing. Is it a normal standard action, and I'm assuming that you must be adjacent to them.
Share Spells: At 3rd level, spells targeting a mascot via
its share spells ability function at its level – 2. The mascot
can benefit from the spells of any team member when
using share spells.
Q: So, if a CL 5 spell was used, the result is as if a CL 3 was used correct?
Also, there seems to be two different types of share spells, the more restrictive druid, and the wizard. I'm assuming since it is a familiar, not a companion, that it would be only bound by the wizards restrictions.
CRB Druid wrote: Share Spells (Ex): The druid may cast a spell with a target
of “You” on her animal companion (as a spell with a range
of touch) instead of on herself. A druid may cast spells on
her animal companion even if the spells normally do not
affect creatures of the companion’s type (animal). Spells
cast in this way must come from a class that grants an
animal companion. This ability does not allow the animal
to share abilities that are not spells, even if they function
like spells.
CRB Wizard wrote: Share Spells: The wizard may cast a spell with a target
of “You” on his familiar (as a touch spell) instead of on
himself. A wizard may cast spells on his familiar even if
the spells do not normally affect creatures of the familiar’s
type (magical beast).
Meaning, that any class with "you" spells, could use them on my familiar. Not just wizards.
Is the (This ability does not allow the animal to share abilities that are not spells, even if they function
like spells.) implied on the wizard side as well, or it only restricting the druids?
Deliver Touch Spells (Su): At 5th level, spells delivered
by a mascot’s deliver touch spells ability function at its
level – 2. The mascot can deliver the touch spells of any
team member. This ability alters deliver touch spells.
Q: From what I understand, is for the deliver touch spells, the familiar had to be in contact with you, then the familiar has to then move/deliver the touch spell on its turn. You can't just spontaneously cast it threw them at range, correct?
With being able to deliver touch spells threw multiple people, can it be loaded with multiple spells, meaning 1 spell from each person, or would the spells overwrite each other as if from the same person?
Jinotad wrote: Q: In PFS, can it be assumed that I spent time traveling with the other players before the start of the mission, to have the maximum number of the party linked? Could the empathic link be used to "relay" emotion to the group? Depends on the amount of time given in the mission. Some missions give you a few weeks of travel time after receiving the mission, some start you immediately. The former would let you include everyone, the latter would let you include one person as you can add them that same day.
Jinotad wrote: Q: I'm not sure how the aid works in combat, I've only seen this used as a skill buffing. Is it a normal standard action, and I'm assuming that you must be adjacent to them. Per the rules, "In melee combat, you can help a friend attack or defend by distracting or interfering with an opponent. If you're in position to make a melee attack on an opponent that is engaging a friend in melee combat, you can attempt to aid your friend as a standard action. You make an attack roll against AC 10. If you succeed, your friend gains either a +2 bonus on his next attack roll against that opponent or a +2 bonus to AC against that opponent's next attack (your choice), as long as that attack comes before the beginning of your next turn. Multiple characters can aid the same friend, and similar bonuses stack."
Jinotad wrote: Q: So, if a CL 5 spell was used, the result is as if a CL 3 was used correct? Correct.
Jinotad wrote: Q: Is the (This ability does not allow the animal to share abilities that are not spells, even if they function
like spells.) implied on the wizard side as well, or it only restricting the druids?
You can only use spells and the druid verbiage just further elaborates. They are essentially the same text and won't let you use SU or SLA abilities to buff your mascot.
Jinotad wrote: Q: From what I understand, is for the deliver touch spells, the familiar had to be in contact with you, then the familiar has to then move/deliver the touch spell on its turn. You can't just spontaneously cast it threw them at range, correct? As the rules aren't changed by this ability, the familiar must be touching the person who intends to channel their touch spell into the Mascot. The Mascot can then move to use that spell on their turn.
Jinotad wrote: Q: With being able to deliver touch spells threw multiple people, can it be loaded with multiple spells, meaning 1 spell from each person, or would the spells overwrite each other as if from the same person? A normal creature can only hold one touch spell at a time as they are the caster and touch spells are normally non-transferable. In this situation, the rules seem murky (at least as far as I can tell), but I would err on the side of the creature being able to hold one touch spell at a time with any other spells being cast being overwritten.
Also, as an after thought, since a familiar has to be in contact with the caster, it might fall under accidental discharge of the touch spell when it touches another caster to gain the additional spell.
Either way, I would rule that it can only hold a single spell at a time.
Is there a difference between, you touching, and something touching you? For example, you an an enemy are trying to attack each-other. You miss with a touch spell, your enemy then hits you. Does the touch dispel, since something touched you?
(If the master and the familiar are in contact at the time the
master casts a touch spell, he can designate his familiar
as the “toucher.”)
What I'm imagining, is the spell is stored in your hand, once "loaded" as soon as your hand comes into contact with something, the energy is transferred from hand to thing.
Personally, I do not think that allowing this, would be that breaking, as it is still taking up the spell slot from each person. The only difference is the "on hit" coming from 1 roll, rather than separate to-hit rolls.
This would be broken. Your interpretation is overpowered as you can just preload the familiar with touch spells before a fight.
For example, with four level 10 magi, you could preload the familiar with four Intensified Shocking Grasps to be delivered by the familiar on a single roll. This is 40d6 of damage for the use of a familiar's turn. The magi are still able to do their turns this round. Sure, you can only do it once per combat this way, but it is still vastly broken.
Your quite right, if everything went well, then this situation could occur.
However; if the familiar fails to land the attack, then those same Magi would either have to wait a round to cast spells, or fizzle the held spell.
I'm assuming the 40d6, is 10d6 from each spell. Each spell would be effected by saving throws, damage reductions and so on. So its not a single package of 40d6, but four packages of 10d6. Still a hefty amount of damage once all the reductions are taken into account. But not as potent as if it was all a single package.
For most uses of this tactic, the familiar is likely to be rather fragile, and easily killed. Simply to the nature of familiars in combat. In my particular case, as a Eldritch Guardian, I hope my familiar will be able to survive close encounters, and fight with me on the front line. At the cost of not having spells to impart to my familiar.
There is also, in PFS, no guarantee what the other players in the party will be, or what "you" and touch spells they will possess.
If everything went well... I think this "everything going well" would happen more often then not.
I don't think there is any argument that you are going to like with regards to not getting multiple touch spells delivered at once, so I wish you luck trying to get a GM to agree with you. A person trying that at my table would definitely get a "Nope. Not gonna happen."
Either way, I hope my answers to your other questions helped.
It did, and I appreciate your input.
I am not going to hold my breath about stacking the touch spells. I had a friend state on Facebook, "The last line of the Deliver Touch Spells ability says that if another touch spell is loaded into the familiar, the first one dissipates." But I haven't hear back from him about where he is getting that from as I haven't found that anywhere.
The main benefits that I am seeing with using the Mascot with my guardian, is the potential for the odd buff to my familiar. An alternate path I have been looking at is the Valet (Familiar Archetype) from the Animal Archive.
Primarily for the Teammate (Ex): A valet is considered to have all the teamwork feats its master has. Mixing this with the Eldritch which already shares all the combat feats, could allow for some interesting combinations for my fighter.
I still have two levels worth of adventures to figure out, and make a final decisions for my Psuedodragon.
To note: You cannot take Valet or Mascot with a Pseudodragon improved familiar.
Valet and Mascot both replace "speak with others of its kind." The Feat Improved Familiar does as well.
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As a side note, you don't really need Valet with the Eldritch Fighter. Most of the valuable teamwork feats are already combat feats unless you are doing some weird combination.
One of the benefits of the familiar having the Valet was the feat
Escape Route.. Allowing the familiar to move into an opponents square without provoking multiple attacks of opportunity. Something my friend pointed out, is that the Pseudodragon does have a 5ft range with its tail attack, so that will not be as big of a problem I was expecting it to be.
As for not being able to use most archtypes with the Improved Familiars, the conflict never crossed my mind. Thanks for pointing it out.
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