Can the Familiars/Companions get some Love?

[Bones Mist and Moons]

Once upon a time, for a little while, there was a rework for familiars and animal companions that came out with the summoned creatures overhaul. One of the greatest parts about it was the variety of creatures that could be chosen from.

Now we're back to the standard NWN familiars and they're seriously outdated and unbalanced for the persistent world in which we live. I mean most wizards are happy with their pocket lockpickers, but otherwise you almost never see familiars/companions get used.

I was always hopeful the -a command would encourage more familiar RP, but it doesn't seem so.

I recommend a rebalance of skills and abilities to make them still somewhat viable for use past level 10, cooldowns for the special abilities, and add new uses and functions to the ones that aren't lockpickers so there will be some variety of choice among players.

Personally I find it skeptical for every evil necromancer and drow wizard to keep a nature-loving pixie in their company...

Ideally I figure at higher levels a proud owner of their familiar/companion could use them as guards against weaker creatures during casual travel, and as support tools in harder areas.

I also recommend dusting off the old models and adding some new familiar/companion options. I recall the gnomes loving the mini-golem.

As an idea I'd offer an option IG, maybe through a command, that allows wizards with the fire mephit to pick from a list of all the known mephit types and pick one that suits their RP, adding imp, quasit, and homonculus to the list.

As an example a goblin might like an ooze mephit, or a scholar wanting a dust mephit.

Psuedodragon could be extended too to alternate between faerie dragon, wyrmling dragon types.

Add tiny elementals for druids who want to RP non-totem?

[Irongron]

Approved for giant familar project, though not for the original suggestions. I'm not sure it will happen though, as getting it right will ikely be too painful and time consuming.

[The GrumpyCat]

We've now new skins for familiars. More changes forthcoming perhaps.