Considering an Eldritch Guardian. Want to see how wierd and yet still useful I can get the familier.
Obviously, if I'm going to use it in combat, I would want the mauler archetype. Which one of the normal familiars would be the best for that? Can you combine mauler and improved familiar? Which of the improved familiars would be best?
If I go for a skills familiar, I would probably want the sage archetype since I am a fighter with not to many skills and not the ones my familiar could use. Can you combine sage with other archetypes and/or improved familiar? What would you choose for a scout familiar? What about a buffing familiar with some wands?
Decisions decisions...
No, an improved familiar (usually) cannot be a mauler familiar. One of the replaced abilities is the ability to speak with animals of its kind, which most improved familiars don't get.
The only improved familiars that could be maulers would be those who simply add a template (celestial/fiendish/etc.) to a normal familiar.
The best mauler familiars are either the Fox, Flying Fox, Ioun Wyrd, and Compsognathus if you are looking for just stats. They have the highest Str (Fox and Compsognathus), highest str for a flying familiar (Flying Fox), or are immune to most things thanks to being a construct (Ioun Wyrd).
The Eldritch Guardian gives all his combat feats to his familiar. You can grab a normal one with 2-3 feats depending on stats. If you want a skill monkey familiar, go the normal fighter and grab a familiar through feats.
I have a couple of builds that make use of eldritch guardian. But to be honest they use a 2 level dip to bring the familiar online and then multiclass into a "traditional martial" build (archery, mounted, etc). I think the thing to keep in mind is that you'll want to make sure that your familiar can make effective use out of all of your combat feats. The easiest solution is to pick something that can easily grip and manipulate objects without stretching the imagination, making things like a monkey or raccoon obvious choices.
a skill based familiar is possible, but you're not taking advantage of it getting your feats. You could be a normal fighter and just grab one of several feats to get a familiar outside of your class. But also consider what skills will it be using? Unless you're going for knowledge skills it will have to be something that can physically do the skill. Which for most skills means it has to be able to grip and manipulate objects using fine motor skills.
A familiar can scout sure, but to be a useful scout it probably has to be a sage. After all, it would need
stealth
perception
survival
and several knowledge skills at minimum.
So that it see things without being seen, track them if needed and recognize what the heck its seeing before coming back to report. Assuming that your character isn't built to be a scout themselves thereby making the familiar somewhat redundant.
A wand buffing familiar is pretty common, but it needs use magic device to pull it off. Also, if its just sitting back and buffing you there's little reason for it to gain all of your combat feats. You could have a familiar for less investment then the eldritch guardian archetype that's capable of doing this.
Mauler is only useful if you want to go strength-based. An improved familiar with an exotic-weapon and dexterity build can do really well.
The wackiest build is a mounted build where the familiar rides the character. Then you can benefit from feats like mounted combat and ride by attack. I’ve been toying with this build for a while now but haven’t gotten to play it yet.
No, an improved familiar (usually) cannot be a mauler familiar. One of the replaced abilities is the ability to speak with animals of its kind, which most improved familiars don't get.
The only improved familiars that could be maulers would be those who simply add a template (celestial/fiendish/etc.) to a normal familiar.
Even those lack that ability, and therefore can't take most archetypes (including mauler). Though it's worth asking your GM about waiving that bit if this isn't for PFS.
Improved familiars otherwise use the rules for regular familiars, with two exceptions: if the creature's type is something other than animal, its type does not change; and improved familiars do not gain the ability to speak with other creatures of their kind (although many of them already have the ability to communicate).
I believe the archetypes that can be improved familiars RAW are ambassador, egoist, emissary, occult messenger, prankster, and sage.
I think the thing to keep in mind is that you'll want to make sure that your familiar can make effective use out of all of your combat feats. The easiest solution is to pick something that can easily grip and manipulate objects without stretching the imagination, making things like a monkey or raccoon obvious choices.
Sadly the raccoon is officially in an animal category that lacks "can grasps objects" according to Ultimate Wilderness, so if this is PFS I'd avoid that. If it's not PFS your GM will probably be fine with giving raccoons that ability, 'cause, y'know, raccoons!
Sadly the raccoon is officially in an animal category that lacks "can grasps objects" according to Ultimate Wilderness, so if this is PFS I'd avoid that. If it's not PFS your GM will probably be fine with giving raccoons that ability, 'cause, y'know, raccoons!
looking at the other animals it's grouped with it seems to be in good company. Apparently, you have to be a bird or biped in order to "grasp/carry" things.
Other animals that "can't" grasp and carry things.
Arctic fox, arctic hare, armadillo, cat, donkey rat, ermine, flying fox, flying squirrel, fox, hedgehog, jerboa, koala, lemming, margay, meerkat, mole, mongoose, otter, platypus, rat, red panda, sloth, skunk, squirrel, weasel.
Given some of these animals are even "tool users" IRL to say this is disappointing is an understatement. But yeah, I agree. Unless they make a ruling stating otherwise PFS characters will have to abide by this designation.
penguins on the other hand are allowed to grasp/carry things.....
Ok, been playing around with this in Herolabs for a few minutes.
Yeah the compy and fox seem to get the highest attack/damage. But even then it isn't all that great. Might still be worthwhile if I can figure out the best way to use a few combat/teamwork feats.
Actually the giant flea is almost as good as the other 2. I might use that just because the image is absolutely hilarious. Plus the 120' leaping charge.
Would some improved familiar be a better combatant even without the mauler archetype? It would still get the combat feats.
I do like the idea of a fiendish monkey familiar riding on my shoulders using a lance while I charge.
Would some improved familiar be a better combatant even without the mauler archetype? It would still get the combat feats.
As long as you go a dexterity-based route, a non-mauler familiar should do really well. You will want to go with an exotic weapon though, because the familiar only gets proficiencies you used a feat to gain. Whip is kind of great for this, because of its long reach for tiny creatures, but there are lots of other good possibilities like an archery build with a horse bow. The lyrakien improved familiar probably has the best combo of dexterity at 19 and being able to wield weapons.
I do like the idea of a fiendish monkey familiar riding on my shoulders using a lance while I charge.
Yeah, it's simultaneously hilarious and devastating.
Another piece of advice, you can combine mutation master with eldritch guardian to give your "mount" wings.
In general, the best way to use the familiar is to go for weird maneuver and feat combo builds.
A well optimized dirty trick build with two creatures doing the tricks can shut down opponents in a single turn (nauseated is a heck of a condition for dirty tricks- it effectively removes the main weakness of the maneuver where enemies can spend an action to remove the dirty trick).
Other things you can do is abuse the heck out of teamwork feats, much like a hunter. Outflank, improved outflank and paired opportunist with a crit focused fighter can make you a blender that gets AoOs off of your own crits. And coordinated charge can be a fine replacement for pounce- just send your pet out on a charge, and spend an immediate action to follow (movement outside of your turn is great).
Honestly... I don't feel like I lose too much being limited to a natural attack pet. I think my GM would hate me if I had two blenders going on.
Outsiders are proficient with martial weapons by type. I assume that applies to outsider improved familiars as well, but could be wrong.
That's a good catch. I had forgotten about that. It should apply, but more specific cases can take the proficiency away, like being an elemental.
Outsiders are proficient with martial weapons by type. I assume that applies to outsider improved familiars as well, but could be wrong.That's a good catch. I had forgotten about that. It should apply, but more specific cases can take the proficiency away, like being an elemental.
Elementals can get the proficiency through the rules of their archetype- it is based upon having a "shape" that is humanoid... which is one of those really vague things that don't really get defined because it is usually far outside of the realm of player content.
But pretty much every picture of I can find of generic earth elementals seem humanish, so I doubt it would be too much of an issue.
CN calistrian eldritch guardian fighter.
Wasp Familiar feat + mauler archetype. Now you basically have a mauler Imp.
Are there any spells that can be used to further enlarge the familiar?
It would be great if a spell could be used to make a Mauler go from Medium to Large...
Are there any spells that can be used to further enlarge the familiar?
It would be great if a spell could be used to make a Mauler go from Medium to Large...
Size changes don’t stack, but you could get it polymorphed into an even larger creature, without using the mauler size change at all. An improved familiar could do this even easier with the use magic device skill and some wands or scrolls. Those items could get expensive fast though and you may not want to rely on them.
Size changes don’t stack, but you could get it polymorphed into an even larger creature, without using the mauler size change at all. An improved familiar could do this even easier with the use magic device skill and some wands or scrolls. Those items could get expensive fast though and you may not want to rely on them.Are there any spells that can be used to further enlarge the familiar?
It would be great if a spell could be used to make a Mauler go from Medium to Large...
And I just found the spell Polymorph Familiar... which behaves like Beast Shape 1 to 4... which can turn a familiar into a Large Magical Beast if desired.
It's a 3rd-level spell, so... make it into a wand and make it 7th level to get up to Beast Shape 2 with the option for a Large animal, or 11th level to get Beast Shape 4 with the option for a Large magical beast.
The wording on that spell is weird. You should ask your GM.
Size changes don’t stack, but you could get it polymorphed into an even larger creature, without using the mauler size change at all. An improved familiar could do this even easier with the use magic device skill and some wands or scrolls. Those items could get expensive fast though and you may not want to rely on them.Are there any spells that can be used to further enlarge the familiar?
It would be great if a spell could be used to make a Mauler go from Medium to Large...
And I just found the spell Polymorph Familiar... which behaves like Beast Shape 1 to 4... which can turn a familiar into a Large Magical Beast if desired.
It's a 3rd-level spell, so... make it into a wand and make it 7th level to get up to Beast Shape 2 with the option for a Large animal, or 11th level to get Beast Shape 4 with the option for a Large magical beast.
polymorph familiar works like beast shape i-iv except it turns into a small animal. Which is problematic if the goal is making your familiar big.
You can just do Beast Shape, or better, Monstrous Physique.
Yeah, regular Beast Shape can work just fine. Beast Shape 2 can be turned into a wand, or an amulet with 3 uses per day to turn your cat into a tiger :P
Monstrous Physique would work too, for any familiar I might add. Since your familiar is smarter than the base animal, it would not be dumb to "operate" a bipedal body :D You... couldn't ride it though :P
...
I do like the idea of a fiendish monkey familiar riding on my shoulders using a lance while I charge.Yeah, it's simultaneously hilarious and devastating.
Another piece of advice, you can combine mutation master with eldritch guardian to give your "mount" wings.
Well, so far I can't get a familiar riding me that does even close to as much damage as the mauler familiar. Except that it would get multiple weapon attacks instead of the one natural attack. The smaller size weapon and lower strength are too much for the double lance damage to overcome.
Well hmm... I suppose if I also paid for a magic lance for the familiar, that could eventually start adding up along with the multiple attacks. Would get expensive though.
I think I will probably stick with the giant flea. I'm not sure whether to go for the coordinated charge or dirty trick.
Believe it or not, I was already planning on the mutation master for wings.
The mounted build was more for getting perks like the mounted combat feat.
made a half orc with monkey familiar. used amplified rage and sympathetic rage (and a few levels of barbarian) to grant it rage and have it rage because im raging and me rage because it's raging. basically rage without wasting rage rounds. both of us used bows (i took the exotic orc bow feat so it could also gain it). also got planner heritage(aasimar) to give it celestial template (celestial servant feat). we took out droves of enemies at range.
