May sentient familiars learn magic and skills?

[pblackcrow]

Can a sentient familiar learn magic and skills and still retain the familiar link? Why and why not? My GM wants to know.

Something odd happened to my familiar in the last game, it got blessed by an old elven high priest of Dragon Wright. So now that I have rerolled Drake's first three stats using 3d8's and talker to her about a occ for him...Then this has came up. And for the record, she did it so that I will have another character in the game, because things are going to get serious very fast when we resume playing these characters in the game.

Drake's my gm's version of a bookwyrm dragon (from Rifter 21)...it's more like the little fire lizards from Pern.

Me, I am okay either way. I will have about 3 years game time before I resume playing him. I can get another animal familiar easy enough. And since it didn't die, I don't go through the shock or any of that stuff.

[eliakon]

Can a sentient familiar learn magic and skills and still retain the familiar link? Why and why not? My GM wants to know.

Something odd happened to my familiar in the last game, it got blessed by an old elven high priest of Dragon Wright. So now that I have rerolled Drake's first three stats using 3d8's and talker to her about a occ for him...Then this has came up. And for the record, she did it so that I will have another character in the game, because things are going to get serious very fast when we resume playing these characters in the game.

Drake's my gm's version of a bookwyrm dragon (from Rifter 21)...it's more like the little fire lizards from Pern.

Me, I am okay either way. I will have about 3 years game time before I resume playing him. I can get another animal familiar easy enough. And since it didn't die, I don't go through the shock or any of that stuff.

I would say that IF the familiar, is fully sentient, and there is no reason that its race couldn't learn magic, then there is no reason that it couldn't choose to study. That said remember the familiar is an NPC, so the GM would make the call and determine stuff like skills, spells, class, and the like. I would ALSO say that the newly sentient familiar would have a chance to automatically break the link if it chooses (one time only). If it chooses to remain the familiar then so be it, but the magic was not (usually) designed with binding sentient beings in mind and might break.

[The Dark Elf]

havent got MoM with me but can you have a sentient familiar that isnt greater?

[Library Ogre]

I can't remember if it got included in the final version of MoM, but I based those familiar rules off the ones "Through the Glass Darkly", which allows you to spend permanent PPE to "improve" your familiar.

I'd let them learn skills, or use their master's skills, depending on how the wording was done.

[pblackcrow]

Thanks guys.

[drewkitty ~..~]

The only Familiar 'additions' that let them cast magic are only found in the Rifter issue with said additions in them.

[Tor]

As TTGD lets you have intelligent familiars like Night Gnomes and Beautiful People, so long as they fulfilled the OCC requirements I don't see why they couldn't spend the 3 experience levels worth fo XP to learn a magic OCC, unless explicitly forbidden. I think I recall the Vfrawk said they couldn't learn magic.

[pblackcrow]

GM said that this one can...But wasn't sure about it remaining my familiar.

[Rimmerdal]

I can agree with most posters. provided the Familiar is able to learn it..it should. I would say it could not surpass the master its tied to though.

[Tor]

Also worth noting that even though TTGD explicitly said beings like Snake Birds were too intelligent to be made into familiars, that Dark Conversions allows them to be (lesser, not Demon) Familiars for lesser pacts made with Nightlords.

[Nekira Sudacne]

I can't remember if it got included in the final version of MoM, but I based those familiar rules off the ones "Through the Glass Darkly", which allows you to spend permanent PPE to "improve" your familiar.

I'd let them learn skills, or use their master's skills, depending on how the wording was done.

I think the question is also in regards to things from through the glass darkly, where fully sentient races like beautiful people and night gnomes can be made familiars. and night gnomes are alchemists!

[Library Ogre]

I can't remember if it got included in the final version of MoM, but I based those familiar rules off the ones "Through the Glass Darkly", which allows you to spend permanent PPE to "improve" your familiar.

I'd let them learn skills, or use their master's skills, depending on how the wording was done.

I think the question is also in regards to things from through the glass darkly, where fully sentient races like beautiful people and night gnomes can be made familiars. and night gnomes are alchemists!

Bear in mind that Kevin Hassal might not have used "alchemists" in the Palladium Fantasy sense, which is a rather idiosyncratic one. I certainly wouldn't let someone claim their Night Gnome was an alchemist in that sense.

[Tor]

True, there's a different usage of 'alchemist' in Mystic China, after all. One could give them that instead. But they should get SOME kind of 'alchemy' apart from mere chemistry.

I wouldn't PREVENT the familiar from being taught Circle/Ward/Wizard magic either. =/ Night Gnomes should be more proficient than Beautiful People though.

Unclear on Snake Birds since they are more Mystic-like already.

There's nothing explicitly preventing intuitive magic OCCs from switching to learned magic OCCs. Psi-Mystics in PF can't multiclass at all, but a Rifts Mystic or Nightbane Mystic could become a Ley Line Walker or Sorcerer. Even if roleplaying-wise it completely clashes with the concept.

[drewkitty ~..~]

The only Familiar 'additions' that let them cast magic are only found in the Rifter issue with said additions in them.

I have made a familler that was sentient from these rules and had it be able to cast some magic. But most of that was by fiat that I did that. And gave the same a ....the Eye of Combat(collar)--+200 ppe, cast spells as normal H2H attacks. (note: this was just after the Siege of Tolkeen1 came out so the collar has a X gem in it.) I created it and gave it to that familler of a DG by player fiat.
*shrugs* I only played it in GT's pick up games so no real harm done.

[Tor]

If a familiar is of a race that can learn OCCs then we don't need special rules for them to do that

Heck... nothing really stopping a familiar from also being a Witch. =/

[pblackcrow]

No, it's a bookwyrm dragon. Who got blessed by a VERY HIGH LEVEL priest of dragon wright. Drake now has a character sheet as a wizard. So, I now have 4 characters in play in her game. So, I hope one of them survives. From how she put it, it this will be very action oriented set of scenario, so she is going to let me play all 4 characters and possibly another one; depending on how I play the 1st part of the game, which is today. She is bringing miniatures, and mentioned something about using the Hero Quest board.

We both thank you for your time.