Making the Wizard a Cyborg

[deathbymanga]

How would you mechanicalize getting cybernetic upgrades? My Wizard wants to become a Cyber-God and I'd like to start this process by slowly mutilating him and giving him cybernetic upgrades

[noob]

1: Start by reading some pathfinder rules about technological items and ask the gm if you can have similar things(there is a lot of implants in PF)
but in this case it is items rather than class features
2: Ask if you can port some stuff from 3.5 like star-metal adept(a wizard turning into a statue) or the half golem template.
3: Ask if you can have a capstone for wizard replacing the normal high level capstone and giving you the construct type or sub type.
Else could you please give me a progressing table for a regular wizard?(I could not find the regular progression of a wizard)

[DracoKnight]

How would you mechanicalize getting cybernetic upgrades? My Wizard wants to become a Cyber-God and I'd like to start this process by slowly mutilating him and giving him cybernetic upgrades

This is how I do it. Automail Limbs (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B66RprYE6_HHanhVcVpKUjJEVWM/view?usp=sharing)

[Submortimer]

Unless you want a dramatically different FEEL for the character, making him a cyborg is all about flavor. Give him a magic item or two, thremed as robotic implants: instead of gauntlets of Ogre Power, he gets robot arms; instead of gem of true seeing, he gets a cybernetic eye.

[Nifft]

How would you mechanicalize getting cybernetic upgrades? My Wizard wants to become a Cyber-God and I'd like to start this process by slowly mutilating him and giving him cybernetic upgrades

5e lacks a lot of the mechanical resources of previous editions -- there's no more exponential wealth-by-level inflation, nor magic item treadmill (a la 3.x / PF / 4e) -- but that means you can't use wealth-by-level to pay for exponential inherent powers.

The three resources in 5e seem to be:
- Magic items
- Levels (e.g. make the cyborgization into a Prestige Class)
- Feats (if you're using that variant, which many people do seem to use)


You could also hybridize these somewhat:
- A single Feat to allow access to the Cyborgization mechanic.
- After you take the Technomagic Feat, you can destroy permanent magic items to enhance yourself.


The other obvious hybridization would be:
- A single Feat to allow access to the Cyborgization class.
- A 4-level class which does NOT give an ASI equivalent, so you've paid 2 ASIs for the Cyborg benefits overall.


The latter would probably be easier to balance, and would also allow you to be a vhuman Cyborg right from character creation.

[Amechra]

Have it replace their Arcane School?

[deathbymanga]

5e lacks a lot of the mechanical resources of previous editions -- there's no more exponential wealth-by-level inflation, nor magic item treadmill (a la 3.x / PF / 4e) -- but that means you can't use wealth-by-level to pay for exponential inherent powers.

The three resources in 5e seem to be:
- Magic items
- Levels (e.g. make the cyborgization into a Prestige Class)
- Feats (if you're using that variant, which many people do seem to use)


You could also hybridize these somewhat:
- A single Feat to allow access to the Cyborgization mechanic.
- After you take the Technomagic Feat, you can destroy permanent magic items to enhance yourself.


The other obvious hybridization would be:
- A single Feat to allow access to the Cyborgization class.
- A 4-level class which does NOT give an ASI equivalent, so you've paid 2 ASIs for the Cyborg benefits overall.


The latter would probably be easier to balance, and would also allow you to be a vhuman Cyborg right from character creation.

what features work for a cyborg PrC?

Also, it's not me, it's one of my players who's a wizard "My Wizard", sorry, that was confusing.

The only mechanic I can see being a cyborg give is increased strength, AC, maybe the ability to be immune to disarm attempts, maybe a quick-draw feature or a hidden blade feature, but all those feel like Martial features. Nothing that syngergizes well with being a caster.

The Player is currently using the Technomancer Wizard Archetype from the Modern Magic stuff.

One power I was thinking of giving is the ability to manually hack into constructs via a Jack or something and they can use their spell slots to increase the CR of the construct they can hack into. but I dunno what else that can't just be an existing spell the guy has access to, without entering Warlock territory with at-will spell Upgrades.

[Nifft]

what features work for a cyborg PrC?

Also, it's not me, it's one of my players who's a wizard "My Wizard", sorry, that was confusing.

The only mechanic I can see being a cyborg give is increased strength, AC, maybe the ability to be immune to disarm attempts, maybe a quick-draw feature or a hidden blade feature, but all those feel like Martial features. Nothing that syngergizes well with being a caster.

The Player is currently using the Technomancer Wizard Archetype from the Modern Magic stuff.

One power I was thinking of giving is the ability to manually hack into constructs via a Jack or something and they can use their spell slots to increase the CR of the construct they can hack into. but I dunno what else that can't just be an existing spell the guy has access to, without entering Warlock territory with at-will spell Upgrades. Hmm.

I don't really have a full plan for a PrC but here are some mechanics that I'd probably use:


- Unsleeping (ribbon): You no longer sleep. When you take a long rest, you spend time repairing yourself and upgrading your components.

- Repair Construct: You learn the spell Repair Construct (which works exactly like Cure Wounds except it can only target Constructs).

- More Than Human: You are no longer merely flesh. You are something more. You gain Advantage on all saving throws against effects that can't target objects or constructs (e.g. Charm Person). Also, beneficial effects which target Constructs can also target you (e.g. Repair Construct).

- Spell Circuits (ribbon): Some part of your body is imbued with rune-carved metallic tracery, and you are a living Arcane Focus.

- Living Lightning: Your spell circuits grant you resistance to Lightning damage. When you cast a spell that deals Lighting damage (including Shocking Grasp) you deal extra damage equal to your Constitution bonus.

- Circuit Breaker: You can expend a spell slot to explosively adapt your body to any particular adversity. As an action, expend a spell slot. All enemies within 10 ft. of you must make a Dexterity save or suffer 3d6 Lightning damage + 2d6 per spell level, and you may remove one condition or hostile spell effect. You may use this ability a number of times equal to your Intelligence bonus (minimum once). You regain all expended uses when you complete a Long rest.

- Improved Circuit Breaker: When you use Circuit Breaker, you may also remove one condition or hostile spell effect from an ally within 10 feet of you.

- Cybernetic Weaponry: You can install one wand, hand crossbow, or pistol in each of your arms. These always count as wielded and attuned (if applicable) but do not take up a hand slot or attunement slot.

- Cybernetic Armor: Your inorganic exterior protects you. You gain a +1 bonus to Armor Class, and resistance to both Poison and Necrotic damage. You are immune to the Poisoned condition.

- Technomagic Awareness (ribbon): If you spend at least 1 minute observing or interacting with another creature outside combat, including chatting on the phone or internet, you can learn certain information about its capabilities compared to your own. The DM tells you if the creature is your equal, superior, or inferior in regard to two of the following characteristics of your choice:
Intelligence Score
Wisdom Score
Total Class Levels (if any)
Highest Level Spell Slot
Highest Level Spell Known
Number of Magic Items Attuned and/or Worn


- Cyberlife Affinity (ribbon): Whenever you meet a new construct or machine intelligence, you have Advantage on your first social skill check or initiative roll.

[Flashy]

Prestige classing seems like a messy way to try to handle this. I run a magitech campaign that offers augments, and in general I favor presenting them as expensive/hard to find magic items, usually with both upsides and downsides.

If you don't want to try to deal with that then I suspect feats are really going to be the way to go. Something along the lines of...

Feats presented largely without fluff
Cyberarm

Increase your Constitution score by 1, up to a maximum of 22
Add half your proficiency bonus (round up) to any Strength check that doesn't already use your proficiency bonus.
Your unarmed strike uses a d4 for damage. When you select this feat you must choose whether your strike deals bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage. This arm is considered a magic weapon for the purposes of overcoming damage resistance.


Cerebral Transmitter

Increase your Wisdom or Intelligence score by 1, up to a maximum of 22
You gain the ability to cast Remote Access at will.
You gain proficiency with Hacking Tools. You may always add your proficiency bonus to any hacking check made using Remote Access, with or without a set of Hacking tools.


Cerebral Transmitter (Black Market)

This implant allows you to cast Invisibility to Cameras at will, targeting only yourself. You can also cast Arcane Hacking and Digital Phantom once with this ability, regaining the ability to cast these spells when you finish a long rest.


Subdermal Arsenal

You mount an internal flamethrower. As an action you may spray fire in a 15' cone. Creatures in range must make a Dexterity saving throw equal to 8 + your Constitution modifier + your proficiency bonus. A creature takes 4d6 fire damage on a failed saving throw, or half as much on a success. You regain the ability to use this flamethrower when you finish a short rest.
An elemental cannon has been installed under the skin of one of your forearms, which you can extend as a bonus action. This cannon can be used to make ranged weapon attacks with a range of 90/180, inflicting 1d8 + your Dexterity modifer damage on a successful hit. When you select this feat you must select whether the cannon deals Lightning, Fire, Cold or Acid damage, after which the damage type cannot be changed.


Personally I favor allowing player selected augments to get them over the ability cap. I treat the unaugmented maximum as 20, or the augmented maximum as 22. If you feel uncomfortable slightly breaking bounded accuracy (players selecting from just this set of feats couldn't actually get a score past 21 anyway, so it doesn't really matter), just change the maximums to 20. If you want Subdermal Arsenal to be a more generally appealing feat consider letting the player choose the stat that the elemental cannon uses themselves, probably from int, cha, or dex. I felt it muddied the waters, but I don't think it'd be the worst idea in the world.