Find Familiar says the familiar is not an actual owl, rat, etc., but rather a spirit that takes that form. That is further reinforced by the ability to re-cast the spell to make the familiar take on a different form.
On the other hand, there are many references to actual creatures becoming familiars. The Basic Rules say that "Mages often seek out pseudodragons" as familiars. I believe there is a published adventure that offers some creature as a familiar. Volo's Guide to Monsters has the Gazer Familiar, which it does not present as an option for a form your familiar can take, but rather an actual Gazer that bonds with another creature and serves it as a familiar.
So which is it? Are they simply two different rules? One for the Find Familiar spell, which gives you a "spirit" familiar that can take on different forms, and one for other creature types (Pseudodragon, Gazer Familiar, etc.), which through other game mechanics (i.e. not requiring Find Familiar) become familiars, possibly even familiars to creatures unable to cast Find Familiar? That is, maybe not all familiars are "spirits which take on different forms", only those obtained via Find Familiar, while others enter the creature's service voluntarily, or through other means?
Somewhere in Sage Advice this was talked about. I can’t find it right now but the short version is they are two different things and you can have a familiar from Find Familiar and one that you befriend through roleplaying. The befriended one follows the rules in the MM not the rules under the Find Familiar spell.
So which is it? Are they simply two different rules?
Yes. The text of Find Familiar pertains only to Find Familiar. The text of any Variant: Familiar rules in the Monster Manual or Volo's Guide to Monsters also only pertains to that particular rule. They have nothing to do with each other. There are no general rules for familiars.
Somewhere in Sage Advice this was talked about. I can’t find it right now but the short version is they are two different things and you can have a familiar from Find Familiar and one that you befriend through roleplaying. The befriended one follows the rules in the MM not the rules under the Find Familiar spell.
Thanks! When you say it was talked about in Sage Advice, do you mean the official errata posted on the WotC site, the sageadvice.eu site which compiles Tweets, or the YouTube series? I'd love to read/watch more on that.
So which is it? Are they simply two different rules?
Yes. The text of Find Familiar pertains only to Find Familiar. The text of any Variant: Familiar rules in the Monster Manual or Volo's Guide to Monsters also only pertains to that particular rule. They have nothing to do with each other. There are no general rules for familiars.
I believe Trirhabda and InquisitiveCoder have already explained the Rules as Intended quite well, so I'll just contribute with some of the sources you asked for:
Here are some tweets from Jeremy Crawford on the subject. (As one the main developers, all his tweets are to be considered official clarifications of the rules, though he is also a strong supporter of homebrewing what works best for each particular group of players).
"Want a magical familiar in D&D? There are 2 ways: 1. Cast the find familiar spell. It summons a spirit that takes on a form. The list of possible forms is larger if you're a warlock with Pact of the Chain. 2. Befriend a monster that has variant rules for being a familiar." Link
"If a monster has a variant rule for being a spellcaster's familiar, that variant is in the monster book that contains the critter. For examples, check out the pseudodragon and the quasit in the "Monster Manual." Those variants have no bearing on the find familiar spell." Link
"The familiar variants in the Monster Manual are for monster and NPC spellcasters. PC spellcasters use the PH." Link
Or, 3. if you have a DM that allows it, buy a find familiar spell scroll/ find one.
That would still fall into 1. Cast the Find Familiar spell, since casting a spell through a scroll is still spell casting. Also of note is the fact that a spell scrolls only work if the spell is in your class list, meaning you still have to be a Wizard. (Warlock Pact of the tome Book of ancient secrets being the only RAW exception).
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Find Familiar says the familiar is not an actual owl, rat, etc., but rather a spirit that takes that form. That is further reinforced by the ability to re-cast the spell to make the familiar take on a different form.
On the other hand, there are many references to actual creatures becoming familiars. The Basic Rules say that "Mages often seek out pseudodragons" as familiars. I believe there is a published adventure that offers some creature as a familiar. Volo's Guide to Monsters has the Gazer Familiar, which it does not present as an option for a form your familiar can take, but rather an actual Gazer that bonds with another creature and serves it as a familiar.
So which is it? Are they simply two different rules? One for the Find Familiar spell, which gives you a "spirit" familiar that can take on different forms, and one for other creature types (Pseudodragon, Gazer Familiar, etc.), which through other game mechanics (i.e. not requiring Find Familiar) become familiars, possibly even familiars to creatures unable to cast Find Familiar? That is, maybe not all familiars are "spirits which take on different forms", only those obtained via Find Familiar, while others enter the creature's service voluntarily, or through other means?
Somewhere in Sage Advice this was talked about. I can’t find it right now but the short version is they are two different things and you can have a familiar from Find Familiar and one that you befriend through roleplaying. The befriended one follows the rules in the MM not the rules under the Find Familiar spell.
Yes. The text of Find Familiar pertains only to Find Familiar. The text of any Variant: Familiar rules in the Monster Manual or Volo's Guide to Monsters also only pertains to that particular rule. They have nothing to do with each other. There are no general rules for familiars.
Thanks! When you say it was talked about in Sage Advice, do you mean the official errata posted on the WotC site, the sageadvice.eu site which compiles Tweets, or the YouTube series? I'd love to read/watch more on that.
Thanks!
I remember reading it as a question to JC and answer. I can’t find it so I might have the details a little mixed up.
"Want a magical familiar in D&D? There are 2 ways: 1. Cast the find familiar spell. It summons a spirit that takes on a form. The list of possible forms is larger if you're a warlock with Pact of the Chain. 2. Befriend a monster that has variant rules for being a familiar." Link
"If a monster has a variant rule for being a spellcaster's familiar, that variant is in the monster book that contains the critter. For examples, check out the pseudodragon and the quasit in the "Monster Manual." Those variants have no bearing on the find familiar spell." Link
"The familiar variants in the Monster Manual are for monster and NPC spellcasters. PC spellcasters use the PH." Link
"The variant familiar rules in the MM and Volo's Guide are meant for NPCs, but a DM might allow PCs to use them." Link (This one was also published on sageadvice.eu)
Or, 3. if you have a DM that allows it, buy a find familiar spell scroll/ find one.
That would still fall into 1. Cast the Find Familiar spell, since casting a spell through a scroll is still spell casting. Also of note is the fact that a spell scrolls only work if the spell is in your class list, meaning you still have to be a Wizard. (Warlock Pact of the tome Book of ancient secrets being the only RAW exception).