Familiar
Draw your own pixel pet for Claude Code
A pixel companion above the prompt that reacts to your session and keeps its XP across sessions. Pick one of six built-in sprites, such as Clawd, or draw your own.
What this mod can do
- Reviewed at commit 7793006
- Sends its own requests to Claude, which uses your tokens
- Sends the conversation to Claude with its own requests, which uses your tokens
- Sees each tool call before it runs and can block or change it
3 more things it can do
- Remembers data between sessions
- Adds the /familiar command
- Runs on a timer
Good to know (3)
- Needs function hooks. Set CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_FUNCTION_HOOKS to 1 under env in ~/.claude/settings.json.
- Only /familiar ask and quips use the model. Quips are off by default.
- The compact size can show thin seams between rows in Apple Terminal and VS Code.
Preview
Terminal
[-]
▄ hm.
clawd · worried · lvl 2
Claude Desktop
What it does
In the author's words
A pixel-art companion above the prompt that reacts to your session, levels up, and can be redrawn by hand
- What you see
- A pixel sprite above the prompt with its mood and level
- Works in
- Terminal and Claude Desktop
- Slash commands
- /familiar
- Uses your tokens
- Answers /familiar ask, and quips if you turn them on
- Changes files
- Nothing
- Network access
- None
- Reviewed commit
- 7793006
- Preview recorded with
- Claude Code 2.1.309
How it works
- It sits above the prompt and shows thinking dots while Claude works
- A run of failed commands brings a sweat drop, and tests that pass again make it hop
- Turns over two minutes earn sparkles, and ten quiet minutes put it to sleep
- Finished turns and fixed tests earn XP, with a sparkle at levels 5 and 10
Common questions
Does this bring back Claude Code's /buddy?
No. Familiar is a separate community mod with its own sprites, so a buddy you had before, and its stats, don't carry over. Its default sprite is a recreation of Clawd, Claude Code's mascot.
How do I draw my own Claude Code pet?
Run /familiar draw to open a 16x12 pixel editor, one click per pixel. /familiar export prints the sprite as JSON, and /familiar import <json> loads one someone shared.
Does Familiar use my tokens?
Only for /familiar ask and quips. Quips are off by default. Turned on, they react to a finished turn with one short Haiku line, at most once every quipMinutes. Everything else runs locally.
What do I need to turn on before installing Familiar?
Familiar runs on function hooks, which the README calls an early-access part of Claude Code. Set CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_FUNCTION_HOOKS to 1 in the env block of ~/.claude/settings.json, then install it and start a new session.
Badge for your README
Own this listing? Add it to your README. The badge shows the install count as it grows.
[](https://staging.statuslin.es/mods/familiar?utm_source=readme-badge)
Or show the preview card:
[](https://staging.statuslin.es/mods/familiar?utm_source=readme-badge)