Shadowrun 4th edition mage

[baojin]

Hiya guys,

First time i play a mage in this wonderful game (didn't try the 5th edition yet). I'm going to do a char that doesn't break the game (they ain't too optimized i think) while still carrying the group if needed.

500 bp to start with, cool beans

Gonna do an Elf (that charisma man, that Charisma !)
Path of the wheel (warrior) - oh nice drains
Mentor spirit : wise warrior

Very honorable guy.

Stats are the usual, nothing maxed out at the beginning, like :

Body : 3-4
AGI : 3
INT : 4
Cha : 7
Log : 3
Will : 5
STR : 2 probably
MAG : 6 (ofc)
REA : 4 (maybe 5 ?)

For skills :
Spellcasting at 5
Summoning at 5
Binding at 4 (or mabye i'll lvl it later)
Counterspelling 4
Assening at 4
Influence (group) at 2 or so to not be a wimp on the streets
Perception 4 (gotta have it)
Driving something at 3 i'd say
Maybe throw some athletics and stealth somewhere.

After that it's a matter of having a gun at 3/5 or not. A manabolt is once every pass but it drops a dude for sure, while an ares predator, well, doesn't.
I wonder if the Ares Black Knight exists in the 4th ? That was an awesome beast in 3rd, probably best handgun possible.

I'll take a sustaining focus lvl 3 for the reflexes, might get power focus lvl 1, never hurts either.

For spells (that's the tricky part), i've got 10 so far (SC 5) :
- Manabolt
- Levitate
- Lightning bolt (for those pesky drones)
- Mana window (it's like clairvoyance but better no ?)
- Detect Life, extended (gotta know who's where and why)
- Mind probe (seems better than compel truth to me and i can do whatever i want with the info ^^)
- Heal
- Increased reflexes
- Physical camouflage (i find it quite good for fighting non "elite" guys but it's not really optimized and needs to be sustained). Improved invis could be better but i dunno, it feels like cheating...
- Sterilize (gotta have it)

Now i got no magic defense thingie, no mana barrier :( Ah yeah i don't take any manipulation spell either cuz they are totally imba. As are possession traditions... Guardian spirit possessing a heavy armed security guard wipes out their group while u just need to eat pop corn and watch.

Also, i see a lot of people taking light spells against drones and all and i'm wondering why going light instead of lightning ? Lightning can shut down drones and other things ? Now nothing has specific "light" resistance tho.

I'm wondering about having a weapon focus for the 'style' but they are pricey and i'd need to have melee weapons + it'd mean go into the fray and my char ain't a troll mage at all. They are good against spirits but so are my spirits & elementals.

Sustaining focus lvl 3 for the reflexes might get one for camouflage but it'd mean only -3D to shoot at me so kinda not worth it.

We can buy one thing about avail 12 so i'm going for that SWAT armor + helmet (Tir Na Nog ghost style) as it has all the widgets u wanna for vision and all, a smartlink and i boost it with eletric resistance for those shock pads.


Tell me if i missed anything please, wise warriors.

Thx !

[DeltaEmil]

Change lightning bolt with energy bolt. Energy bolt has lower drain, and works against everything (it can be your emergency door crowbar). Mana bolt can also be substituted by stun bolt (less drain), and allows you to take prisoners.

The really only use for indirect combat spells like lightning bolt is that you technically can throw it around the corner. The high drain however sucks (the area versions suck even more), and many things are shielded against elemental attacks.

[Andrewmoreton]

For Reflex boost spells you want a rtg 4 sustaining focus
Rtg 3 gets you +2 passes, rtg 4 gets you +3 passes.

I would tend to take 1 stun spell of some sort , Stunball or Stunbolt for those times you do not want to kill anyone

[baojin]

Thanks for the comments.

I've put summoning to 4 and spellcasting to 6 it allows for 2 more spells.

I've removed the camouflage as i don't think it's too good, took manaball, replaced lightning with light ray and too improved invis as well as the memory wipe thingie.

For the reflexes yeah i was thinking of the focus 4 but i don't think anyone will have 4 passes so i'd be a lil bit too op i fear...

Now i'll have to do my contacts, i'll have to look at books for that i think.. Need a tir na nog hierarchy contact and maybe a talismonger. A fixer wouldn't hurt tho...

Ah yeah also i got a question about the energy bolt : where do u see it has lower drain ? On chummer and in the books it's the same ?

Also, last question, because even tho i read it i'm unsure, stunbolt is not resisted by willpower like manabolt no ? It doesn't say anything in the spell desc. So it's just body + armor against the spell ? That would be weak...
Or armor is not counted and it's just body ?

Thanks !

[DeltaEmil]

The spell I meant to be energy bolt is named Powerbolt (I forgot that the English name for it was different).
Stunbolt (and Knockout and Stunball) are Mana combat spells (like the Manabolt and Manaball and Death Touch spells), and therefore are resisted by Willpower.

The stunbolt and co. spells are generally superior to the manabolts and co. because of said mentioned lesser drain, unless the target is immune to stun damage or has a pain editor.

[Andrewmoreton]

Also, last question, because even tho i read it i'm unsure, stunbolt is not resisted by willpower like manabolt no ? It doesn't say anything in the spell desc. So it's just body + armor against the spell ? That would be weak...
Or armor is not counted and it's just body ?

!
Stunbolt is a direct combat spell and a mana spell therefore it is resisted with will power just like Manabolt it just does stun damage.
Power bolt is a direct combat Physical spell and is resisted with body. Armour does not effect Direct combat spells ever.

It is very clear on P203(Last 2 lines) and P204

Lightning bolt which is an indirect attack works just like shooting someone , they get to dodge and then body + half armour (+none conductivity armour upgrades) arguablly lightning bolt does stun as well (the spell implies physical but the electrical elemental effect it invokes is stun only in its description) so arguably does nothing to drones. I think the RAI is Lightning bolt does physical but a very good case for RAW being Stun

[Raimun]

I do not recommend attacking with spells. Sure, a spell might be better for dropping a mook but pistols do the same with no chance of you getting drained of your stamina. If you absolutely want attack spells, take an area effect that attacks will.

Perhaps something for drones as well but I don't know what. When I played a mage, I were more of a stealth specialist who focused on human targets and mental manipulation. Remember, you can't do everything and you don't need to. Convince the other runners to take care of the drones.

I'd recommend a colt manhunter with stick and shock rounds (and some regular rounds just in case). Two hits from stick and shot (semi-auto fire) will drop normal people.

One spell I like is Improved Invisibility. I don't think I need to tell you why.

It's too bad you don't like manipulation spells. Control Thoughts solves many problems. :smallamused:

[baojin]

Thanks a lot for the explanations :) Now i got a nice set of spells.

Yeah i'm afraid of control thoughts and control body as well, most GMs say "the NPCs will use the same tools than you against ur party",that would make short lived shadowrun campaigns.

Ah, also, i think i'll do MAG 5 to save some points and get foci (power and potentially another sustain one for improved invis).

[TheOOB]

I don't see edge, you have 500 BP, there is no reason not to put edge at 5, as it's second in importance only to magic.

Also, I'd suggest a 6 in binding, bound spirits are where the real power of magicians are, sorcerery is kind meh in comparison.

[hiryuu]

Thanks a lot for the explanations :) Now i got a nice set of spells.

Yeah i'm afraid of control thoughts and control body as well, most GMs say "the NPCs will use the same tools than you against ur party",that would make short lived shadowrun campaigns.

Ah, also, i think i'll do MAG 5 to save some points and get foci (power and potentially another sustain one for improved invis).

It does.

My players hate Turn to Goo.

It's Shadowrun, aim less for "how do I end a fight" and more for "how do I not get into a fight to begin with."

Also remember that nearly every building you're going to try to break into is also going to have manawalls and watchers crawling all over it, so try to find something to deal with this.

[TheCountAlucard]

My players hate Turn to Goo.They're not the only ones. :yuk:

[DeltaEmil]

Turn to goo is a worthless spell, as is petrify. You're always better off simply zapping the target unconscious with a stunbolt spell if you need to deal with a target.

[hiryuu]

Turn to goo is a worthless spell, as is petrify. You're always better off simply zapping the target unconscious with a stunbolt spell if you need to deal with a target.

This is true, but the psychological effect of melting someone out of their cyberware from a half a mile away cannot be understated.

[DeltaEmil]

The cyberware remains stuck in the goo. And in fact, it's now even harder to get the cyberware out of the goo, because the spell adds body to the target.

Many thought they could cheaply remove cyberware from a target without having to cut the subject apart with a chainsaw. Turn to goo does not turn you really to goo, but to some kind of ultra-dense super-resilient glue-like blob person who simply can't move away (like some kind of Jabba the Hutt). The cyberware remains firmly stuck, and in fact, your chainsaw needs to be even stronger now, because the goo-person is in fact more resistant to weapons.

[hiryuu]

The cyberware remains stuck in the goo. And in fact, it's now even harder to get the cyberware out of the goo, because the spell adds body to the target.

Many thought they could cheaply remove cyberware from a target without having to cut the subject apart with a chainsaw. Turn to goo does not turn you really to goo, but to some kind of ultra-dense super-resilient glue-like blob person who simply can't move away (like some kind of Jabba the Hutt). The cyberware remains firmly stuck, and in fact, your chainsaw needs to be even stronger now, because the goo-person is in fact more resistant to weapons.

It's not about getting the cyberware. It's about turning them into that guy at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark for a few seconds. Which has a lot more psychological impact than simply knocking the guy out.