RPG Superstar 2010 Top 16
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Hello, zauriel.
The guiding premise in Pathfinder Society is that things don't automatically disguise themselves.
Let's say you wanted to invent a new polearm that used the stats of a glaive. Then you could call it whatever you liked, but other characters would recognize it as a glaive unless it had some ability to disguise itself. In particular, you could call it a "Chelaxian spear", but no other characters, PC or NPC, would think it to be an actual spear.
Let's say you wanted a mount that used the stats of a horse. Then you could call it whatever you liked, but other characters would recognize it as a horse unless it had some ability to disguise itself. In particular, you could call it a "golden lion", but no other characters, PC or NPC, would think it to be an actual lion.
(You could certainly claim that your character was deranged and actually thought her horse was a lion. That's cool. Or you could claim that it was a lion, reincarnated into a horse's body. Or whatever. And if it *did* have some sort of ability to polymorph itself into looking like a lion, then you might be able to fool people with a Bluff or Disguise check.)
What familiar's stats are you looking at, to use as the dove?
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I don't think the lion example is best because it can't mimic an actual game mechanic such as the lion shaman animal companion but the premise of what is suggested is correct.
Basically as long as it can be recognized for what it actually is and it doesn't mimic the name/appearance of another game mechanic it is acceptable.
There aren't any dove familiars as far as I'm aware. I would say a thrush or other bird familiars would be fine to appear to be doves.
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Hello, zauriel.
The guiding premise in Pathfinder Society is that things don't automatically disguise themselves.
Let's say you wanted to invent a new polearm that used the stats of a glaive. Then you could call it whatever you liked, but other characters would recognize it as a glaive unless it had some ability to disguise itself. In particular, you could call it a "Chelaxian spear", but no other characters, PC or NPC, would think it to be an actual spear.
Let's say you wanted a mount that used the stats of a horse. Then you could call it whatever you liked, but other characters would recognize it as a horse unless it had some ability to disguise itself. In particular, you could call it a "golden lion", but no other characters, PC or NPC, would think it to be an actual lion.
(You could certainly claim that your character was deranged and actually thought her horse was a lion. That's cool. Or you could claim that it was a lion, reincarnated into a horse's body. Or whatever. And if it *did* have some sort of ability to polymorph itself into looking like a lion, then you might be able to fool people with a Bluff or Disguise check.)
What familiar's stats are you looking at, to use as the dove?
To elaborate, you can reskin similar to similar. There are no bobcat or ocelot stats, so you could use small cat leopard for either.
For a dove, a crow or thrush would seem appropriate.
Edit: and it would actually be a dove. The PFS FAQ covers this.
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As a follow up:
Can I reskin or reflavor an animal companion or item?
You may choose a specific type of animal companion from any of the base forms listed on pages 53-54 of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook or a legal Additional Resource but may not use stats for one base form with the flavor of another type of animal. Thus, a small cat could be a cheetah or leopard, as suggested, as well as a lynx, bobcat, puma, or other similar animal; it could not, however, be "re-skinned" to be a giant hairless swamp rat or a differently-statted wolf. If a GM feels that a re-skinning is inappropriate or could have mechanical implications in the specific adventure being played, she may require that the creature simply be considered its generic base form for the duration of the adventure. A player may not re-skin items to be something for which there are no specific rules, and any item a character uses for which there are no stats is considered an improvised weapon (see page 144 of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook).