View Full Version : Need Sci-Fi Gadgets
Sparky McDibben
2021-04-29, 11:46 AM
Hey y'all,
I'm going to be starting an Esper Genesis game soon. This is a science fantasy RPG compatible with 5e D&D. One of my players has chosen a rogue archetype that gets the opportunity to use an object as a bonus action. So I want her to get the opportunity to acquire lots of fun little gadgets.
Here's what I've got so far:
Smoke bombs
Whistling Birds (from the Mandalorian)
Nerve toxins that induce paralysis
Sleeping gas
Anti-personnel mines
Homing beacons / trackers
Distractors (like a little robot that walks off and makes noise to cause a diversion)
I'd like some more ideas, if you have them! I'm going for more Batman than James Bond, but all ideas are welcome!
Anonymouswizard
2021-04-29, 12:04 PM
Cryo-arithmatic engines: computers which use a loophole in physics to get colder as they do calculations (from Absolution Gap). Fairly useless as a grenade, surprisingly good at quickly turning water into ice.
Nanobot swarms. Although each is going to be specialised being able to command a swarm of nanobots as a bonus action (probably from a central 'hive') is great.
Interacting with a computer as a BA is just great on it's own, especially if patched into local environment regulators or security systems.
Jetpacks. In a verisimilitude sense these should probably take quite a bit of effort to use with any finesse, so being able to jet to an advantageous position or being stable ienough to fire in midair could very well be a Use an Object interaction.
Imbalance
2021-04-29, 12:30 PM
Sentry turret - works like a glyph of warding, though you may want to restrict effects, and it's totally visible. Toss it on a surface, program a trigger, roll to see how many turns the batteries will last.
Predator vision goggles - like the movies, action to activate or change spectrum, scans local area for specific enemy types that aren't visible to the naked eye, maybe even records sound.
Anti-gravity caltrops - scale area of effect as you see fit for balance, 5' or so high from floor surface causes creatures and objects to float, lose momentum maybe. A creature that moves into or begins turn there can move in any direction at half speed but if they leave the effect they fall prone.
Wand of hacking - works like the charm spell but only on constructs
Berenger
2021-04-29, 12:39 PM
I once gave a space rogue some disposable mini-drones that generated holo duplicates of the wielder, so attackers had to guess which one to attack and pursuers had to guess which one to follow. Basically a potion of Mirror Image (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/mirrorImage.htm), but fluffed as technology.
Martin Greywolf
2021-04-29, 12:52 PM
Hollywood scope - takes care of all the pesky things such as atmospheric conditions, coriolis force and spinning reference frames. Aim at a thing directly to hit it. Advantage to shots at long range?
Goalkeeper - stolen from Schlock Mercenary, a simple drone that hovers around you and is there to take a hit, and probably be destroyed as a result. Negate one attack per round, limited charges.
Mind/Machine interface - no need for keyboards or touchscreens, plug that USB to a port and use UI with brain power alone. Mid-battle hacking possible.
Neural gunlink - use goggles or cyber eyes to be able to see where the bullets will go, no matter how you hold the gun. Dual pistols are now reasonable.
Steel Foam grenades - detonate on impact, create instant cover. Do not ingest.
Grappling hook - because your life just isn't complete without one. Possibly useable once per battle on account of having to rewind it.
Hologram decoy - if it is cool enough for Duke Nukem, it is cool enough for you.
Steroid injection - a variety of effects is just an irresponsible use of chemicals away.
Thermal camo sheet - because if you don't program your bots with sensors other than thermal, you deserve what you get.
Thermite breaching charge - for when the only way out is through the hull.
Homing ammunition beacon - stick on a thing to mess up that one thing in particular, from very far away, behind cover and seventy corners.
Goober grenade - cover a patch of ground in a super adhesive, for that old school Looney Tunes fun.
Sparky McDibben
2021-04-29, 07:06 PM
Jetpacks. In a verisimilitude sense these should probably take quite a bit of effort to use with any finesse, so being able to jet to an advantageous position or being stable ienough to fire in midair could very well be a Use an Object interaction.
God, how did I miss jetpacks?!
Sentry turret - works like a glyph of warding, though you may want to restrict effects, and it's totally visible. Toss it on a surface, program a trigger, roll to see how many turns the batteries will last.
Anti-gravity caltrops - scale area of effect as you see fit for balance, 5' or so high from floor surface causes creatures and objects to float, lose momentum maybe. A creature that moves into or begins turn there can move in any direction at half speed but if they leave the effect they fall prone.
Wand of hacking - works like the charm spell but only on constructs
Love the anti-gravity caltrops! And I'll definitely need to create a "data spike" that can be jammed into a construct.
I once gave a space rogue some disposable mini-drones that generated holo duplicates of the wielder, so attackers had to guess which one to attack and pursuers had to guess which one to follow. Basically a potion of Mirror Image (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/mirrorImage.htm), but fluffed as technology.
Outstanding! Thanks!
Mind/Machine interface - no need for keyboards or touchscreens, plug that USB to a port and use UI with brain power alone. Mid-battle hacking possible.
Neural gunlink - use goggles or cyber eyes to be able to see where the bullets will go, no matter how you hold the gun. Dual pistols are now reasonable.
Steel Foam grenades - detonate on impact, create instant cover. Do not ingest.
Grappling hook - because your life just isn't complete without one. Possibly useable once per battle on account of having to rewind it.
Hologram decoy - if it is cool enough for Duke Nukem, it is cool enough for you.
Steroid injection - a variety of effects is just an irresponsible use of chemicals away.
Thermal camo sheet - because if you don't program your bots with sensors other than thermal, you deserve what you get.
Thermite breaching charge - for when the only way out is through the hull.
Homing ammunition beacon - stick on a thing to mess up that one thing in particular, from very far away, behind cover and seventy corners.
Goober grenade - cover a patch of ground in a super adhesive, for that old school Looney Tunes fun.
I admit: I lol'ed. These are great ideas!
Thanks a bunch everyone! Any other ideas floating around out there?
Randel
2021-04-29, 09:50 PM
Thermal Cutter - A tool used to quickly cut through metal doors or barriers using intense heat. Resembles a sword handle or a tool and uses special canisters as fuel. Each canister has enough fuel to cut through a reinforced door or barrier, or can be used in combat to deliver intense fire damage to a single target.
Basically a TEC Torch breaching tool (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhTiv5JGtD0).
Lightsaber - A reflavored sunblade (https://www.dndbeyond.com/magic-items/sun-blade).
Rocket boots - Boots of flying with an experimental set of booster rockets built in. Cannot support more than two people at a time, though it can provide a feather fall effect while carrying three. The booster rockets have a risk of launching the user at an uncontrollable velocity (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSD6IiQS_1g).
Food and Drink Synthesizer - Produces delicious meals or beverages. Each meal/item must be programmed in.
Companion Container - A floating chest that can carry up to 500 lbs of material and follows you around. Mechanically it would be like a permanent Tenser's Floating Disk but a floating chest. Comes with a smaller device the user carries around to have it follow them or command it to stay still. Can be uses as a flotation device or provide a feather fall effect if it drops from a high space.
Sonic Screwdriver - A multitool that can be used for various repairs or for unlocking doors. Has trouble working on wood.
Sonic Scrubber - A wand like device to to clean your clothes or dirty objects. Based on sonic shower technology.
Hoverboard (floating land mine (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgCi-a6PyBA))- A fun personal travel device that lets you hover a few inches above the surface. Note that they have a history of violently exploding when used to travel over water... of if you put too much weight on them, or if you ride them too long, or they get left on the charger, or if you had two hoverboards sitting next to eachother and their magnetic fields started interfering with one another. Okay, the first hoverboards on the market were severly limited by battery technology and were notorious for going up in flames seemingly at random, but we're sure someone of your technological prowess can make it work with no problem.
Mercurias
2021-04-29, 11:38 PM
Hey y'all,
I'm going to be starting an Esper Genesis game soon. This is a science fantasy RPG compatible with 5e D&D. One of my players has chosen a rogue archetype that gets the opportunity to use an object as a bonus action. So I want her to get the opportunity to acquire lots of fun little gadgets.
[clip]
I'd like some more ideas, if you have them! I'm going for more Batman than James Bond, but all ideas are welcome!
Pepper Balls, like throwable mace.
Med spray, an aerosol health potion usable on bonus action, but at high cost.
Stim darts
Strobe light blinker
Electromagnetic Grappling Claw (Think a Hookshot or the grappling gun from Batman: The animated series.
Shark Repellant
Chemical Fire Extinguisher
Bolas
Also I would really just heck out the list of what Batman has (https://batman.fandom.com/wiki/Utility_Belt) used (https://batman60stv.fandom.com/wiki/Batman%27s_utility_belt).
Anonymouswizard
2021-04-30, 12:22 AM
Sonic Screwdriver - A multitool that can be used for various repairs or for unlocking doors. Has trouble working on wood.
I thought that was just a screwdriver that used sound waves? Eh, it was also a power source for a couple of other devices like the concrete burner, but it's actual fiction was to be a screwdriver.
Bohandas
2021-04-30, 12:23 AM
Freeze ray
Shrink ray
That poison needle drone thing from Dune
Additional robotic arms that attach with a harness
Google glasses
A segway
A mechanical musicbox, because the sound quality is superior to digital and vinyl
Duplicator ray gun
Rocket boots
Smartphone pinky ring
Smartphone shoes
A car that folds up and fits in your pocket
Hover shoes
Portal gun
Telekinesis gun
A laser/plasma flail
Thermite
Chlorine trifluoride
Transforming liquid metal robot dog
A multitool that's just one tool that transforms
A robot that turns into a bicycle
Laser switchblade
X-ray eyes
X-ray flashlight
Chainsaw hands
Biffoniacus_Furiou
2021-04-30, 12:47 AM
Gravity Gun (Half-Life 2)
Various types of grenades (flashbang, napalm, cryo, singularity, etc.)
Personal forcefield that automatically blocks the next attack or instance of damage.
Personal cloaking field (partial invisibility, like Predator, shuts off on taking damage)
Zorg ZF-1 Pod Weapon
Something that deals electric damage to melee attackers?
Anything the Kobold Inventor from Volo's does.
Bohandas
2021-04-30, 11:43 AM
Thermal imaging camera
portable electron microscope
soft AI speech writer
that super long range taser thing that always hits from Syphon Filter
cybernetic x-ray eye
x-ray glasses
fan-powered blowgun
the Uber Spy Car app
holographic disguise
x-ray glowsticks
electric shock gloves
EDIT:
Spam blocking sunglasses that black out advertisements
those instant monster capsules from Marvin Martian cartoons
metal dissolving acid spray
time reversal device
password cracking computer
gun whose laser sight doubles as a laser gun
wristwatch teleporter
the "Buddy Nugget" from the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode of the same name
The laser gun orthodontic braces from the same aforementioned ATHF episode
the exploding paper from Inspector Gadget
EDIT:
Subdermal faraday cage
Sonic Screwdriver - A multitool that can be used for various repairs or for unlocking doors. Has trouble working on wood.
Sonic Scrubber - A wand like device to to clean your clothes or dirty objects. Based on sonic shower technology.
Somic Screwdriver- Orange juice and vodka mixed using an ultrasonic homogenizer
Sparky McDibben
2021-05-08, 11:18 AM
These are awesome! Thank you all so much!!!
Bohandas
2021-05-09, 11:22 PM
Neural Implant hard drive. Access data without any external hardware
Neural implant wi-fi. Access the internet telepathically like Neo in that one Matrix sequel
Pocket computer/smart device with significantly more ram/hertz/drive space than modern desktop computers
Device that burns fat by turning it into electricity that you can charge your gadgets with
Muscle stimulators that let your body go on autopilot when you're asleep
self-hammering nails
interplanetary communicator
personal energy shields
rocket skates
telekinesis gloves
implanted backup heart pump
A pump device that connects the gallbladder to the outside of the body and allows the user to spray bile on people
Troldepuss
2021-05-11, 07:06 AM
Hand-held resin 3D scanner and printer.
Copy and/or print whatever small non-mechanical, non-electronic shape you desire.
Neural Network Torque.
Device that adjust the weights and balances of an AI so that one oneput is percieved as another. Dog switches with Cat. Friend switches with Foe. Vodka switches with Mustard.
Kishigane
2021-05-12, 03:27 PM
I think the Eberron campaign would be up the OP's alley personally.
Argis13
2021-05-12, 07:59 PM
Throwable Forcefield generator.
1-use Personal Time anchor (resets your physical state to where you were 1 round ago, minus the time anchor)
Anti-grav belt
Super-drill (tunneling is fun, but may be a little OP for 5e)
EMP grenades/bombs.
Memory erasers.
Skill chips. (Chips that are inserted to your head to give you skills)
Microwave cannons.
Nanobots.
Automatic Tea machine.
Cloning Vats.
Helicarrier, regular-sized or miniature.
Captian America's shield and other physics defying weapons.
Robotic Exoskeletons/Power Armor
If biotech fits the ascetic, then there's all sorts of sadistic encounters fun pets to give the Players. Like tracker jackers from Hunger Games!
Don't forget psychic powers, which have somehow wormed their way into the popular consciousness as Science Fiction.
Chlorine trifluoride
Do not give your PCs Chlorine trifluoride.
Bohandas
2021-05-12, 08:18 PM
Portable heart-lung machine
Those injection ports from The Matrix
Instant/powdered water
night vision glasses
Do not give your PCs Chlorine trifluoride.
Platinum hexafluuoride then
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