Familiar Death Timer Request

[Pankoki]

[orange]This is a simple request. Right now when a familiar dies you have to wait 1 hour to be able to recall it.  I totally understand why this is done and support it fully. However my request is for a simple shortening of the time you have to wait to regain it.  The reason I ask for this is simple. Familiars are considered summons as far as the NWN engine goes. Which means they are succeptible to Critical Hits, unlike PCs. In battle you can kinda tell how much damage on average a creature is taking and you can sorta guesstimate your odds and when to unsummon if it gets too frisky.  But throughout the last few days I've experienced an awful amount of crits from monsters that simply are too high to predict and really devastating for the normal low HP of familiars at low levels.  Now I totally understand this and I know its the sporadic and chaotic condition of battles, but then because of this you have to wait 1 hour to get your familiar back over something you had little control over.   My suggestion and request is this time to be reduced to 30. Giving ample time for RPing but also a good time to get back into action.  Thanks for considering this!

[blonde]

Im not saying that the timer shouldnt be set to 30 min. But you are saying that you have little control over your familiar getting killed, and that is plain wrong. You send your familiar into battle, knowing perfectly well that it could easily mean the death of it. That is a choice a wizard has to make. Frankly i dont particular like the idea of a familiar being used as a combat summon, but i guess that depends on the personality of the wizard.

Anyway, whether its 30 min or 60 min doesnt matter to me. I would rather see some harder penalties on the wizard if his familiar dies...

[Leanthar]

This will definetly not be changing, sorry.

[Pankoki]

[orange]Er... I never said that you never had control over the familiar. Reread my post carefully. I said that there are conditions that simply are out of line with how combat works, that being things like a familiar getting hit for 32 points of damage from a critical hit when not even the mage has half that HP, let alone its familiar. (in a low level area mind you).  You can most definitely control your familiar and remove it from harm when these conditions don't present themselves, but when all of a sudden you have a full and healthy companion that gets whacked in one hit, something seems off.  Some familiars are naturally adept at combat and provide a healthy addition to a party, some are more specialized, framing a mage under one category because it doesn't fit your idea of a mage isn't the way to go about it. Instead consider the fact that familiars like the panther and the mephits are actually quite the nice addition to a party if used properly.  No idea what the reason is for the time to be so long, an explanation would be nice however.

[ZeroVega]

Pankoki - 12/9/2005 11:09 AM [orange]Er... I never said that you never had control over the familiar. Reread my post carefully. I said that there are conditions that simply are out of line with how combat works, that being things like a familiar getting hit for 32 points of damage from a critical hit when not even the mage has half that HP, let alone its familiar. (in a low level area mind you).  You can most definitely control your familiar and remove it from harm when these conditions don't present themselves, but when all of a sudden you have a full and healthy companion that gets whacked in one hit, something seems off.  Some familiars are naturally adept at combat and provide a healthy addition to a party, some are more specialized, framing a mage under one category because it doesn't fit your idea of a mage isn't the way to go about it. Instead consider the fact that familiars like the panther and the mephits are actually quite the nice addition to a party if used properly.  No idea what the reason is for the time to be so long, an explanation would be nice however.

  Hmm... I feel like commenting on this as it affects me aswell. I always look at Critical Hits, as a combat variable for familiars. I think we all know that they're not supposed to be used as major summons (highly doubt you were doing that anyhow) but I do understand how they can be useful at lower levels... still it's all about checks and balances... and one balance is a critical hit. (Sounded like you already got that though so we continue...)
  As for the 60 minute thing... it did seem a bit harsh, but look at the death penalties. They can be really really harsh for PCs who die. Now I don't know the magical specifics of what happens to a summon when it "dies" or whatever, but it kinda makes sense that it would have a fairly signifigant penalty.
  I really don't know where I stand on lowering the time indefinatly to 30 minutes, but it would be interestsing to have an incramence of the time penalty. eg: 30 minutes until level 8 then +5 minutes per level for every level thereafter. Kinda make it like a real spell. Either way I don't have a problem with it as it is now.
  (Incase that made no sense, just nod and smile) ZV-

[Leanthar]

We changed because it was being abused--it no longer is.  Familiars are not supposed to be used as pets to guard/attack *shrugs* something I believe in strongly.  In PnP you could not get another familiar for 1 year (if I recall correctly) if it died and you took a permanent -1 to con--while clearly not pnp here I do believe in the concept of familiars not being summons for guarding or attacking etc.

[blonde]

*nods and smiles*

Im not saying familiars shouldnt be used in combat at all. I said it depends on the personality of the wizard, and of course the type of the familiar. What i meant was that there is a strong bond between a mage and his familiar, something that isnt a factor with "normal" summons. I can see how one mage might see his familiar as a combat ally, while another see it as a pet, or study partner, or whatever...

An important difference between summoning your familiar and casting a summoning spell, is that the familiar is always the same creature, the spells summon is not. As i understand it, when a creature is summoned by a mage (to his plane), it cannot die. If it is killed, it will return to its own plane, alive, but certainly drained/hurt. This obviously has no effect on a summon spell, but it does for the familiar.

Of course you already know all this, but im just saying it to emphasize my point that a wizard would be more careful not get his familiar killed. And about the time being so long...that reflects the time it takes for your familiar to heal and rest. It all comes down to what the powers that be finds to be a resonable down time.