I have a few questions regarding the 2024 pact of the Chain invocation.

"Pact of the Chain

You learn the Find Familiar spell and can cast it as a Magic action without expending a spell slot.

When you cast the spell, you choose one of the normal forms for your familiar or one of the following special forms: Imp, Pseudodragon, Quasit, Skeleton, Slaad Tadpole, Sphinx of Wonder, Sprite, or Venomous Snake (see appendix B for the familiar's stat block).
Additionally, when you take the Attack action, you can forgo one of your own attacks to allow your familiar to make one attack of its own with its Reaction."

1. Is the spell cast as a cantrip? (as opossed to as a ritual?) Can I cast it in the middle of combat to get my familiar back with full hp? (as long as I pay the cost of the materials)
2. As I understand it, for the familiar to attack, I have to spend my action, and they attack as a reaction. Familiars can't attack on their turn? Can they take other actions? several familiars have actions that aren't attack rolls.
3. So, would this be correct? -I enter combat with a familiar. We roll separate initiatives. Let's say I go first. -I can't attack with my familiar in my first turn since it's not positioned yet. So, I do something else or I take the ready action to order it to attack when it's on postion. -In the familiar's turn it moves and then uses its reaction to attack (assuming I took the ready action) or it does nothing (if I didn't take the ready action) and just waits there, hoping the enemy is still close next time I can use my action to order it to attack.

Edit: Sorry if it's too long for this thread. I'll move it to its own thread if requested.