Familiars are the traversal companions in DragonSword: Awakening, and they open up shortly after you join Johnny’s Mercenaries. They let you glide through the air, dash underwater, and climb across Orbis, so grabbing the right ones early makes exploring the open world far less of a chore.
Quick answer: There are 29 familiars total. Most are claimed from the Familiar Codex after you meet a specific requirement, a few unlock automatically, 11 are DLC-exclusive, and the Brave Baby Dragon comes only with the Deluxe Pack.
How familiar unlocks work in DragonSword: Awakening
The 29 familiars split into eight types: Insect, Squirrel, Cat, Bird, Sky Wolf, Direwolf, Gryphon, and Dragon. Each type carries its own traversal skill, so the type you pick decides how you move through the world.
Aside from a handful that arrive automatically, you claim familiars through the Familiar Codex once you finish the requirement tied to each one. Some ask for currency, others want you to grind an activity such as mining or opening chests, and several are handed out as you climb the Mercenary Corps ranks.
Note: Familiars have no combat stats. Their value is purely traversal and the type passives they share.
Every familiar and its unlock requirement
Here is the full roster, the type each one belongs to, and exactly what you need to do to add it to your collection.
| Familiar | Type | How to unlock |
|---|---|---|
| Robust Stag Beetle | Insect | Automatically unlocked during Chapter 01 |
| Fierce Rhinoceros Beetle | Insect | 100 Adventure’s Emblems at the Familiar Codex |
| Cowardly Firefly | Insect | Mine 300 times |
| Red Ladybug | Insect | Clear 40 Puzzles |
| Cotton Flying Squirrel | Squirrel | DLC-exclusive |
| Acorn Flying Squirrel | Squirrel | Defeat 100 squirrels |
| Viola Flying Squirrel | Squirrel | DLC-exclusive |
| Marple Flying Squirrel | Squirrel | Reach Intermediate Mercenary Corps |
| Orchid Wing Cat | Cat | DLC-exclusive |
| Mist Wing Cat | Cat | Craft 100 equipment pieces |
| Shadow Wing Cat | Cat | Open 300 Treasure Chests |
| Dawn Wing Cat | Cat | Reach Advanced Mercenary Corps |
| Refreshing Canary | Bird | Complete 20 Mini-Games |
| Timid Hummingbird | Bird | DLC-exclusive |
| Diligent Sparrow | Bird | Collect 150 Bird Eggs |
| Bright Crowtit | Bird | Reach Novice Mercenary Corps |
| Frosty Sky Wolf | Sky Wolf | DLC-exclusive |
| Sandstorm Sky Wolf | Sky Wolf | 300K Gold at the Familiar Codex |
| Gale Sky Wolf | Sky Wolf | DLC-exclusive |
| Snowstorm Sky Wolf | Sky Wolf | Complete The Captain’s Scheme quest |
| Stormy Direwolf | Direwolf | Reach Veteran Mercenary Corps |
| Abyssal Direwolf | Direwolf | DLC-exclusive |
| Flame Spirit Fox | Direwolf | DLC-exclusive |
| War Direwolf | Direwolf | DLC-exclusive |
| Guardian Gryphon | Gryphon | Defeat World Bosses 30 times |
| Holy Knightage Griffon | Gryphon | DLC-exclusive |
| Exploration Squad Griffon | Gryphon | DLC-exclusive |
| Knightage Griffon | Gryphon | Reach Elite Mercenary Corps |
| Brave Baby Dragon | Dragon | Deluxe Pack-exclusive |
Traversal skill for each familiar type
The traversal skill is fixed to the type, not the individual familiar, so any Cat gives the same movement as any other Cat. Insect familiars are the exception and carry no skill at all. The Brave Baby Dragon is the only Dragon-type and has the strongest movement option.
| Type | Traversal skill |
|---|---|
| Insect | None |
| Squirrel | Climbing Jump |
| Cat | Swim Dash |
| Bird | Air Dash |
| Sky Wolf | Underwater Dash |
| Direwolf | Boost Jump |
| Gryphon | Charged Jump |
| Dragon | Air Free Dash |
How type passives work
Beyond their own skill, familiars share type passives that unlock once you own more than one familiar of the same type. When two of a type are in your collection, keeping a single one of that type in your party grants its movement skill to every familiar in the party.
For example, once you have two Direwolves, a single Direwolf in your party lets all of your equipped familiars use Boost Jump. This is why chasing duplicates within a type pays off, even though each familiar only shows one skill on its own. The Brave Baby Dragon does not follow this rule and does not provide a type passive.
DLC and Deluxe Pack familiars
Not everything on the list can be earned through play. Eleven familiars are DLC-exclusive, spread across the Squirrel, Cat, Bird, Sky Wolf, Direwolf, and Gryphon types. They cover several traversal skills you can already reach through free unlocks, so they mainly add variety and help you hit the two-of-a-type threshold for passives.
The Brave Baby Dragon sits apart from the rest. It is the sole Dragon-type familiar, it comes only with the Deluxe Pack, and it grants Air Free Dash, the game’s freest aerial movement.
If you are working toward the full set of 29, focus first on the ones tied to Mercenary Corps ranks and everyday activities like mining, chest-opening, and puzzle-clearing, since those come naturally as you play. The Familiar Codex is where you confirm each unlock, so check it whenever you finish a requirement to claim what you have earned.
