Baldur's Gate : The Sword Coast Chronicles : NWN2 Persistent World

I've been using a faerie dragon as a familiar for a while, and I am surprised at how much a part of my character she has become. (Some characters seem to like her more than Rein!) However, there are a few suggestions that I'd like to pose for communicating with and through a familiar.

Firstly, currently familiars can't whisper. They can only speak out loud. Even possessing the familiar and trying to /w gives a message that says something along the lines of "Party chat cannot be accessed while possessing your familiar".

Secondly, currently familiars can only speak common. Now, this is not a huge issue, as it's no stretch for my faerie dragon to speak common. They natively speak draconic, elven, and sylvan. So once one would become a familiar, I have no issue thinking that they could learn common. But allowing them to speak other languages would make for more immersive RP.

But, the familiar will speak common when using the method of having the language box open and the familiar selected. It also speaks common when actually possessing the familiar and trying to speak with a language box.

Thirdly, when possessing a familiar, you cannot understand any language but common. Even if it is something that your character could understand, you don't understand it. I tested this by having someone speak in sylvan when I was controlling my faerie dragon. Rein speaks sylvan, and the faerie dragon is supposed to. But when possessed, I couldn't understand it.

Now, this last suggestion I don't expect will (or possibly can) be implemented. But I figured I'd post it anyway. Worst case it's ignored, lol. But as a familiar and the master can have a mind link, it would be nice if you could see the chat from both the familiar location and the master location.

For instance, if my familiar stays outside the FAI walls, but my toon goes into the walls, it would be nice to know if someone is talking around my familiar. Again, I don't know if that's even possible. But you never know until you ask.

Thank you for reading my suggestions!

From RP flavour POV I like this article!

And Jema is awesome.

Sapper Woody wrote:I've been using a faerie dragon as a familiar for a while, and I am surprised at how much a part of my character she has become. (Some characters seem to like her more than Rein!) However, there are a few suggestions that I'd like to pose for communicating with and through a familiar.

Firstly, currently familiars can't whisper. They can only speak out loud. Even possessing the familiar and trying to /w gives a message that says something along the lines of "Party chat cannot be accessed while possessing your familiar".

Secondly, currently familiars can only speak common. Now, this is not a huge issue, as it's no stretch for my faerie dragon to speak common. They natively speak draconic, elven, and sylvan. So once one would become a familiar, I have no issue thinking that they could learn common. But allowing them to speak other languages would make for more immersive RP.

But, the familiar will speak common when using the method of having the language box open and the familiar selected. It also speaks common when actually possessing the familiar and trying to speak with a language box.

Thirdly, when possessing a familiar, you cannot understand any language but common. Even if it is something that your character could understand, you don't understand it. I tested this by having someone speak in sylvan when I was controlling my faerie dragon. Rein speaks sylvan, and the faerie dragon is supposed to. But when possessed, I couldn't understand it.

Now, this last suggestion I don't expect will (or possibly can) be implemented. But I figured I'd post it anyway. Worst case it's ignored, lol. But as a familiar and the master can have a mind link, it would be nice if you could see the chat from both the familiar location and the master location.

For instance, if my familiar stays outside the FAI walls, but my toon goes into the walls, it would be nice to know if someone is talking around my familiar. Again, I don't know if that's even possible. But you never know until you ask.

Thank you for reading my suggestions!

I believe if you target your familiar without possessing it (while using language window) you'll be able to speak any language your character knows as your familiar. It is the same same thing like making summons talk, pretty much.

How do you even make your companion talk?

NegInfinity wrote:I believe if you target your familiar without possessing it (while using language window) you'll be able to speak any language your character knows as your familiar. It is the same same thing like making summons talk, pretty much.

Apparently it used to be that way, because people have told me that a lot. But it doesn't work now. From what I understand, after a change to the languages, it stopped working last summer.

Sapper Woody wrote:Apparently it used to be that way, because people have told me that a lot. But it doesn't work now. From what I understand, after a change to the languages, it stopped working last summer.

Very correct. Aeili's rabbit used to speak Sylvan but after the 'Big Update' a few years back it has never worked since.

Sapper Woody wrote:...it would be nice if you could see the chat from both the familiar location and the master location.

This would greatly enhance scrying RP as well, given that, like a familiar, one cannot move their scrying sensor beyond the current map they're on.

I'd like to second these suggestions!

Also, i think it'd be great if animal familiars could speak/understand the animal language by default.

It would be cool for foresty-types to be able to speak with animal familiars, and for familiars to speak with each other (in their own language)

I'm not totally on top of using all the different tools yet, but it doesn't seem like the flavor text functionality works with familiars either...which makes it difficult to describe any actions they are taking.

adobongmanok wrote:How do you even make your companion talk?

Same way as I described. Target companion with F key or a Right click, then type stuff in language entry window (and not chat window).

They'll "speak" what you said. You can also send animation commands there, like >a crossarms or >a sitground and they'll play those if they're humanoid and have such animation.

Sapper Woody wrote:...
Thank you for reading my suggestions!

Blackman D wrote:familiars have the supernatural abilities speak with kind and speak with master

they can only communicate with other animals that are the same as them and only with their own master, the master grants the familiar any one language that they can speak

the master also gains (in pnp) 1 mile empathy with familiar, can tell when they are in danger etc when they are within range, very handy given the price of your familiars death is rather high in pnp to the point that a lot of casters never call one

Blackman D wrote:should also be noted that for familiars they are not initial abilities, they gain them based on their masters level (sorc/wiz level)

master class level
1-2: alertness, improved evasion, share spells, emphatic link (this also allows the master to teleport to places their familiar has seen)

3-4: deliver touch spells

5-6: speak with master

7-8: speak with animals of its kind

9-10: nothing

11-12: spell resistance

13-14: scry on familiar

15-20: nothing

pg 53 of the PBH

emphatic link only lets you know how your familiar feels up to one mile away (happy/normal/threatened/hurt from being in trouble etc), it wouldnt let you know what they hear, it also doesnt let you see what they see but the ability specifically allows you to use them for teleportation

anyway if your base caster level (sorc/wiz) is not 5th level or higher then your familiar cant speak at all, and if its not 7th or higher then it cant even talk to other animals of its type

familiars speaking is not an instant given, emphatic link is though

and animals that cant naturally talk and even most of those that can are likely not going to whisper or even be able to; an imp might whisper sure but a raven isnt, dragons? no

Blackman D wrote:

Blackman D wrote:familiars have the supernatural abilities speak with kind and speak with master

they can only communicate with other animals that are the same as them and only with their own master, the master grants the familiar any one language that they can speak

the master also gains (in pnp) 1 mile empathy with familiar, can tell when they are in danger etc when they are within range, very handy given the price of your familiars death is rather high in pnp to the point that a lot of casters never call one

Blackman D wrote:should also be noted that for familiars they are not initial abilities, they gain them based on their masters level (sorc/wiz level)

master class level
1-2: alertness, improved evasion, share spells, emphatic link (this also allows the master to teleport to places their familiar has seen)

3-4: deliver touch spells

5-6: speak with master

7-8: speak with animals of its kind

9-10: nothing

11-12: spell resistance

13-14: scry on familiar

15-20: nothing

pg 53 of the PBH

emphatic link only lets you know how your familiar feels up to one mile away (happy/normal/threatened/hurt from being in trouble etc), it wouldnt let you know what they hear, it also doesnt let you see what they see but the ability specifically allows you to use them for teleportation

anyway if your base caster level (sorc/wiz) is not 5th level or higher then your familiar cant speak at all, and if its not 7th or higher then it cant even talk to other animals of its type

familiars speaking is not an instant given, emphatic link is though

and animals that cant naturally talk and even most of those that can are likely not going to whisper or even be able to; an imp might whisper sure but a raven isnt, dragons? no

I think you misunderstand my intention. What I want is to be able to RP my familiar and my character in different locations, not necessarily have my familiar report back to me what others are saying.

An example: I was at the Eastern Farmlands fire. I sent my familiar to another location within the eastern farmlands, out of the range of character. So now, I could either hear what people were saying around my familiar, and return the RP, or I could hear what people were saying around my character and return the RP.

For me, the familiar is a big part of my RP (as many people can attest to; as I said earlier, some people like her more than they like my character!). So I'd like to have that option where I could RP her apart from my character, yet not lose the RP where my character is.

Blackman D wrote:

Sapper Woody wrote:...
Thank you for reading my suggestions!

Blackman D wrote:familiars have the supernatural abilities speak with kind and speak with master

they can only communicate with other animals that are the same as them and only with their own master, the master grants the familiar any one language that they can speak

the master also gains (in pnp) 1 mile empathy with familiar, can tell when they are in danger etc when they are within range, very handy given the price of your familiars death is rather high in pnp to the point that a lot of casters never call one

Blackman D wrote:should also be noted that for familiars they are not initial abilities, they gain them based on their masters level (sorc/wiz level)

master class level
1-2: alertness, improved evasion, share spells, emphatic link (this also allows the master to teleport to places their familiar has seen)

3-4: deliver touch spells

5-6: speak with master

7-8: speak with animals of its kind

9-10: nothing

11-12: spell resistance

13-14: scry on familiar

15-20: nothing

pg 53 of the PBH

emphatic link only lets you know how your familiar feels up to one mile away (happy/normal/threatened/hurt from being in trouble etc), it wouldnt let you know what they hear, it also doesnt let you see what they see but the ability specifically allows you to use them for teleportation

anyway if your base caster level (sorc/wiz) is not 5th level or higher then your familiar cant speak at all, and if its not 7th or higher then it cant even talk to other animals of its type

familiars speaking is not an instant given, emphatic link is though

and animals that cant naturally talk and even most of those that can are likely not going to whisper or even be able to; an imp might whisper sure but a raven isnt, dragons? no

Why wouldn't a faerie dragon or pseudo dragon be able to whisper?

pseudodragons cant even talk so they cant whisper... they are telepathic and can make animal noises

a faerie dragon might

Sapper Woody wrote:An example: I was at the Eastern Farmlands fire. I sent my familiar to another location within the eastern farmlands, out of the range of character. So now, I could either hear what people were saying around my familiar, and return the RP, or I could hear what people were saying around my character and return the RP.

still restricted by what languages the familiar knows naturally, the language the master gives them is only for those two

Blackman D wrote: still restricted by what languages the familiar knows naturally, the language the master gives them is only for those two

I agree with that completely. But right now I can't even get that.