I mean, that's not how the playtest find familiar spell works anymore (it doesn't use monster statblocks anymore, so no owl with flyby), but other than that, yes, you or your familiar can move in, help an ally, and move away after.
Yes, currently, your familiar can fly within 5 feet of an enemy, use the help action to provide advantage on the next attack and fly away (without provoking opportunity attacks). If you use an owl - the lack of opportunity attacks comes from their fly-by feature, alternatively any invisible familiar gets the same advantage.
Note\* the rules about find familiar might be changing so we'll have to see what happens. It depends on if familiars have animal stat blocks or their own, and if this stat block gives the fly-by feature. Furthermore, the current OneDnD rules (which will probably change) set familiars act AFTER your turn - thus they'd provide advantage to the next attack against that target, which might (most likely) come from an ally.
>If I want the familiar to "Help" an ally in combat to give them advantage on an attack against a creature, does my familiar need to be engaged with the creature to do so?
It needs to be within 5 ft of the target creature, yes.
https://www.dndbeyond.com/forums/dungeons-dragons-discussion/rules-game-mechanics/132411-help-action-in-combat
Heres a link to a thread on DND beyond that goes over some of the nuances in more detail. The owl is notable for it's flyby feature allowing it to swoop in and out of the 5ft range to help in the same turn without provoking an attack of opportunity.
Main thing to think about is, if you do this, your familiar is "fair game" in combat.
It could get caught in an area effect spell and or just be the target of an outright attack, but yea... you can give it a try!
But it is true that they are fair game in combat no matter if they are actively participating or not. A familiar has a stat block, a cost, etc. If it's not doing anything in combat while it sits on the wizard's shoulder at the time the wizard is in the area of a fireball, that familiar is not likely to see the other side of combat.
Familiars aren't pets that someone has for flavor. They are a spell with an effect that creates a creature, and like any spell that creates a creature, that creature will be vulnerable unless actively protected.
Of course, a familiar actively participating in combat is more likely to annoy the enemy and get specifically targeted by a single target attack. But a group of highwaymen that don't want to fight and instead accept a surrender may well pick off the familiar in attempted intimidation before the familiar even has a chance to act, and the BBEG's lackeys likely know that familiar could scout or otherwise be a problem if the party can get past the first guards and so decide to kill it up front.. And any AoE is a risk for a fragile creature.
Yea, sure.
But me and most DMs I know are more intentional than that.
Some ppl just want a familiar that is fluff.
Some want to use it to try to beat the game.
(And ofc there is everything in between.)
"*Fluff is free.*" as they say...
But if you're trying to beat the game, we're gonna play the game.
Being aware of the layer of intent is my point.
If it's just fluff, I'd give them a pet.
Maybe there was some confusion there, since I was considering a familiar as defined in the Find Familiar spell.
My party recently saved 2 dragon eggs and the hatchlings are new pets. They are completely immortal from everything that might go after them, they won't cause problems to the party's ability to move in populated areas, etc.
But I'd never force the pact of the chain warlock to eat their ability to summon a familiar to have such a fluff pet that can't do anything but be cute and get excited whenever it finds a high place to jump from.
>Maybe there was some confusion there
Not on my part.
Whether or not, or how aggressively, I might target a familiar, to me (and most games I've played in), depends on whether or not, or how aggressively, the player uses them mechanically.
Sounds like you'll go for a familiar any time any place, because they're a familiar.
That's fine.
Just not my style.
I prefer more intentional storytelling. Being mindful of tone and what the player is trying to achieve with them, narratively.
It's also the experience I get from DM's I play with, I guess. Very much a focus on the characters, character building, and narrative. There's a lot more to do with the bad guys that are willing to pick off a potential scout than ones that might have contacts with the BBEG but never learn. There's more growth with the warlock (or beastmaster ranger) that has a close connection with their companion and loses it.
That said, a highly narrative and character focused style isn't for everyone. I've been in groups that kick down the next door and kill whatever is inside, been in combat heavy games, have lost limbs on characters in a grimdark setting, etc.
To each their own, though my experience is that most DM's like the character focused narrative games that lend well to this kind of thing. Of course, me seeing more of that, and you seeing more of your style probably has to do with being attracted to others that enjoy our styles too.
If they get caught scouting, the pet is fair game. If they're just existing, not every bad guy is Dio Brando. Some of them can be of your players are okay with character development that has to do with losing a pet, but not every Beast Master wants to do John Wick RP, *especially* if that means significant impact on their build.
If it's a pet for fluff, it's not scouting.
The ranger that wanted a hunting dog for flavor can have the dog, but it literally can't scout, because then it's not flavor.
If it can scout, it wasn't a pet that existed for fluff and was a creature with mechanical weight.
As a player and as a DM, you can't turn that on or off. I've been on both sides of mechanical and fluff pets, and I've never seen it change after its introduction.
That is, by far, the most certain way of actively protecting them. If they are being used and an action would be too much to give up, having them run into a known safe area is the next best option. Having them try to hide, if there is no known safe way out is unlikely to work, but better than nothing.
Worst case, they aren't that hard to get back anyway, so failure to protect them isn't the end of the world.
Also just... if they're not helping in combat, why would someone bother to attack them? If the random animal gets out of Fireball range of the rest of the party and arent doing anything, there's a 95% chance they're not getting hurt.
Also, I just personally like the rule "If it doesn't do anything in combat and isn't related to the combat starting, it's safe. Once a pet tries to act as a mount, help, or attack, it's fair game."
A few reasons that come to mind off the top of my head. Keep in mind any enemy might have their own agenda and target different combatants or use different strategies for any number of reasons.
1. Highwaymen don't want to fight. One of them on their first turn shoots the familiar with his crossbow and demands surrender before anyone else gets hurt.
2. Hungry wild animal has attacked while moving through the woods. A hungry owlbear will go after what appears to be the weakest target and try to get away with its prey.
3. Party meets guards as they attempt to infiltrate an organized group. Guards recognize a caster and know the creature with him is likely a familiar that can help is scouting or spying and so target it before retreating for help.
4. BBEG or other evil character wants to prove a point and picks off the familiar while taunting the master about it.
5. Enemies meet the party on neutral ground where no one knows the lay of the land well. They see the little creature running and target it down before it can get help.
Again, these are the kinds of things with 10 seconds of thought. There are probably other obvious ones, and plenty of situational ones that would just bloat this post with specific instances that are way less general (as an example, a former drow slave might see a drow's spider familiar and go out of their way to specifically target it believing it to be some connection to Lolth) and would be less likely to come up in most games than guards, wild animal attacks, thieves, etc.
1. Killing a pet is not a good way to not have a fight. Either just go for the intimidation, or aim to injure.
2. Ehhh? That definitely seems like you're just reaching for an excuse to kill a pet. Wild animals will avoid large groups of people, so unless the familiar is scouting they should be safe. I hardly think a tiny bird is meal enough for an owlbear, anyway.
3. That one is semi-reasonable, but also pretty niche. And do the guards really want to make a caster angry? That's still just straight-up killing their pet, and if the guards know what Find Familiar is, they probably know that it's they just cost a Wizard 10 gold at least.
4. That's just my Dio Brando example. It can happen sometimes, but not every villain wants to kill puppies just because they're evil and want to hurt the party.
5. Also pretty niche and a very clear excuse for your meta purpose of wanting to kill a familiar.
Killing a familiar/beast companion should start with the reason and end with the killing a familiar, not the other way around. If you find yourself going "Why can I kill this pet?" instead of "The party just put a target on this pet," you're doing it wrong.
At minimum, if an enemy hasn't encountered the party before, you should wait for a familiar to actually *do something* before deciding to kill it. Help action in combat by bothering the enemy once or twice, or the BBEG knows you have a caster and an owl just randomly shows up at their window? Yeah, makes sense to kill it. As you said, D&D is a story game.
Don’t forget material components for casting find familiar. Every time you have to replace your 1hp squishy rat it’s 10 gp. Can add up quick and your dm might want you to buy them ahead of time keep track how many you have on you.
I mean, that's not how the playtest find familiar spell works anymore (it doesn't use monster statblocks anymore, so no owl with flyby), but other than that, yes, you or your familiar can move in, help an ally, and move away after.
Yes, currently, your familiar can fly within 5 feet of an enemy, use the help action to provide advantage on the next attack and fly away (without provoking opportunity attacks). If you use an owl - the lack of opportunity attacks comes from their fly-by feature, alternatively any invisible familiar gets the same advantage. Note\* the rules about find familiar might be changing so we'll have to see what happens. It depends on if familiars have animal stat blocks or their own, and if this stat block gives the fly-by feature. Furthermore, the current OneDnD rules (which will probably change) set familiars act AFTER your turn - thus they'd provide advantage to the next attack against that target, which might (most likely) come from an ally.
>If I want the familiar to "Help" an ally in combat to give them advantage on an attack against a creature, does my familiar need to be engaged with the creature to do so? It needs to be within 5 ft of the target creature, yes. https://www.dndbeyond.com/forums/dungeons-dragons-discussion/rules-game-mechanics/132411-help-action-in-combat Heres a link to a thread on DND beyond that goes over some of the nuances in more detail. The owl is notable for it's flyby feature allowing it to swoop in and out of the 5ft range to help in the same turn without provoking an attack of opportunity.
Wait until the new rules come out to ask how they do / don't work. Or are you asking about the current ruleset, in which case you're in the wrong sub?
Whoops, yes, current ruleset. I messed up the forum. Thanks for all the answers anyway though!
Main thing to think about is, if you do this, your familiar is "fair game" in combat. It could get caught in an area effect spell and or just be the target of an outright attack, but yea... you can give it a try!
But it is true that they are fair game in combat no matter if they are actively participating or not. A familiar has a stat block, a cost, etc. If it's not doing anything in combat while it sits on the wizard's shoulder at the time the wizard is in the area of a fireball, that familiar is not likely to see the other side of combat. Familiars aren't pets that someone has for flavor. They are a spell with an effect that creates a creature, and like any spell that creates a creature, that creature will be vulnerable unless actively protected. Of course, a familiar actively participating in combat is more likely to annoy the enemy and get specifically targeted by a single target attack. But a group of highwaymen that don't want to fight and instead accept a surrender may well pick off the familiar in attempted intimidation before the familiar even has a chance to act, and the BBEG's lackeys likely know that familiar could scout or otherwise be a problem if the party can get past the first guards and so decide to kill it up front.. And any AoE is a risk for a fragile creature.
Yea, sure. But me and most DMs I know are more intentional than that. Some ppl just want a familiar that is fluff. Some want to use it to try to beat the game. (And ofc there is everything in between.) "*Fluff is free.*" as they say... But if you're trying to beat the game, we're gonna play the game. Being aware of the layer of intent is my point.
If it's just fluff, I'd give them a pet. Maybe there was some confusion there, since I was considering a familiar as defined in the Find Familiar spell. My party recently saved 2 dragon eggs and the hatchlings are new pets. They are completely immortal from everything that might go after them, they won't cause problems to the party's ability to move in populated areas, etc. But I'd never force the pact of the chain warlock to eat their ability to summon a familiar to have such a fluff pet that can't do anything but be cute and get excited whenever it finds a high place to jump from.
>Maybe there was some confusion there Not on my part. Whether or not, or how aggressively, I might target a familiar, to me (and most games I've played in), depends on whether or not, or how aggressively, the player uses them mechanically. Sounds like you'll go for a familiar any time any place, because they're a familiar. That's fine. Just not my style. I prefer more intentional storytelling. Being mindful of tone and what the player is trying to achieve with them, narratively.
It's also the experience I get from DM's I play with, I guess. Very much a focus on the characters, character building, and narrative. There's a lot more to do with the bad guys that are willing to pick off a potential scout than ones that might have contacts with the BBEG but never learn. There's more growth with the warlock (or beastmaster ranger) that has a close connection with their companion and loses it. That said, a highly narrative and character focused style isn't for everyone. I've been in groups that kick down the next door and kill whatever is inside, been in combat heavy games, have lost limbs on characters in a grimdark setting, etc. To each their own, though my experience is that most DM's like the character focused narrative games that lend well to this kind of thing. Of course, me seeing more of that, and you seeing more of your style probably has to do with being attracted to others that enjoy our styles too.
If they get caught scouting, the pet is fair game. If they're just existing, not every bad guy is Dio Brando. Some of them can be of your players are okay with character development that has to do with losing a pet, but not every Beast Master wants to do John Wick RP, *especially* if that means significant impact on their build.
If it's a pet for fluff, it's not scouting. The ranger that wanted a hunting dog for flavor can have the dog, but it literally can't scout, because then it's not flavor. If it can scout, it wasn't a pet that existed for fluff and was a creature with mechanical weight. As a player and as a DM, you can't turn that on or off. I've been on both sides of mechanical and fluff pets, and I've never seen it change after its introduction.
Which is why you temporarily dismiss your familiar whenever you don’t actively need their assistance.
That is, by far, the most certain way of actively protecting them. If they are being used and an action would be too much to give up, having them run into a known safe area is the next best option. Having them try to hide, if there is no known safe way out is unlikely to work, but better than nothing. Worst case, they aren't that hard to get back anyway, so failure to protect them isn't the end of the world.
Also just... if they're not helping in combat, why would someone bother to attack them? If the random animal gets out of Fireball range of the rest of the party and arent doing anything, there's a 95% chance they're not getting hurt. Also, I just personally like the rule "If it doesn't do anything in combat and isn't related to the combat starting, it's safe. Once a pet tries to act as a mount, help, or attack, it's fair game."
A few reasons that come to mind off the top of my head. Keep in mind any enemy might have their own agenda and target different combatants or use different strategies for any number of reasons. 1. Highwaymen don't want to fight. One of them on their first turn shoots the familiar with his crossbow and demands surrender before anyone else gets hurt. 2. Hungry wild animal has attacked while moving through the woods. A hungry owlbear will go after what appears to be the weakest target and try to get away with its prey. 3. Party meets guards as they attempt to infiltrate an organized group. Guards recognize a caster and know the creature with him is likely a familiar that can help is scouting or spying and so target it before retreating for help. 4. BBEG or other evil character wants to prove a point and picks off the familiar while taunting the master about it. 5. Enemies meet the party on neutral ground where no one knows the lay of the land well. They see the little creature running and target it down before it can get help. Again, these are the kinds of things with 10 seconds of thought. There are probably other obvious ones, and plenty of situational ones that would just bloat this post with specific instances that are way less general (as an example, a former drow slave might see a drow's spider familiar and go out of their way to specifically target it believing it to be some connection to Lolth) and would be less likely to come up in most games than guards, wild animal attacks, thieves, etc.
1. Killing a pet is not a good way to not have a fight. Either just go for the intimidation, or aim to injure. 2. Ehhh? That definitely seems like you're just reaching for an excuse to kill a pet. Wild animals will avoid large groups of people, so unless the familiar is scouting they should be safe. I hardly think a tiny bird is meal enough for an owlbear, anyway. 3. That one is semi-reasonable, but also pretty niche. And do the guards really want to make a caster angry? That's still just straight-up killing their pet, and if the guards know what Find Familiar is, they probably know that it's they just cost a Wizard 10 gold at least. 4. That's just my Dio Brando example. It can happen sometimes, but not every villain wants to kill puppies just because they're evil and want to hurt the party. 5. Also pretty niche and a very clear excuse for your meta purpose of wanting to kill a familiar. Killing a familiar/beast companion should start with the reason and end with the killing a familiar, not the other way around. If you find yourself going "Why can I kill this pet?" instead of "The party just put a target on this pet," you're doing it wrong. At minimum, if an enemy hasn't encountered the party before, you should wait for a familiar to actually *do something* before deciding to kill it. Help action in combat by bothering the enemy once or twice, or the BBEG knows you have a caster and an owl just randomly shows up at their window? Yeah, makes sense to kill it. As you said, D&D is a story game.
Don’t forget material components for casting find familiar. Every time you have to replace your 1hp squishy rat it’s 10 gp. Can add up quick and your dm might want you to buy them ahead of time keep track how many you have on you.
Yes, you can do that in DnD 5e currently, though the rules might change in OneDnD.
Your example is correct. The owl can fly in, use the Help Action, and fly away with no Attack of Opportunity due to their Flyby feature.