I have a character in my SD game who wishes to join the Cyphermages. I haven't found anything about cost to join, hurdles to clear before joining, dues, responsibilities, benefits. I'm planning on making these up, as it would be interesting for her to join and could also allow for some good side story later on. There are many minds here better than mine so i figured i would throw it out to everyone and see if we could come up with something together.

This character is first level. This doesn't necessarily have to be immediately attainable (she hasn't even scraped together the 20gp to get in the library yet ;) But it should be a realistic goal. I am not opposed to the responsibilities creating a conflict with her employment situation at the GG

Thanks in advance for your ideas

Arnold

I have a character in my SD game who wishes to join the Cyphermages. I haven't found anything about cost to join, hurdles to clear before joining, dues, responsibilities, benefits. I'm planning on making these up, as it would be interesting for her to join and could also allow for some good side story later on. There are many minds here better than mine so i figured i would throw it out to everyone and see if we could come up with something together.

This character is first level. This doesn't necessarily have to be immediately attainable (she hasn't even scraped together the 20gp to get in the library yet ;) But it should be a realistic goal. I am not opposed to the responsibilities creating a conflict with her employment situation at the GG

Thanks in advance for your ideas

Arnold

While I have no evidence to support this, I don't think it would be inherintly hard as

Course after the second book I would think it would be easy enough to say some spaces open up.

Course after the second book I would think it would be easy enough to say some spaces open up.

** spoiler omitted **

Very true....

Totally understand it will be a short term thing, the character does not of course.

I'm thinking that the hurdle is deciphering a scroll with a DC just beyond her. (i.e. "Come back when you can tell me what this says, and i may have use of you" or some such arrogant condescending thing) She'll level up to 2nd soon and presuming she adds 1 to spellcraft she will then be able to comprehend the spell.

Once she is apprenticed, the Cyphermage will keep her busy with annoying petty errands and scribing scrolls with cantrips on them. In exchange she will learn a bit more about local politics and the current situation.

This lets me eventually throw the player a bone and let her transcribe a 1st/2nd level spell or two that she doesn't know, giving her the option of adding it to her own repertoire.

When entry requirements are not specified, my usual approach is to decide whether the PC impresses the NPC, based on role playing.

If the player is just saying "I would like to be a Cyphermage so I can get a +3 bonus to fighting Grickeldoodles and use their cool Cypherwands which totally rule", I'd say "You actually have to come up with some role-playing reasons why they'd want to bring you into their organization, other than just that you would rock."

(Example is totally hypothetical, but based on conversations I've had with players about why they want to join PrCs and which PrCs are worth joining.)

But if the PC shows interest in what the Cyphermages are doing and what their goals are, and provide material assistance to the Cyphermages, then it probably wouldn't be too hard to get in. Deciphering a DC 20-some scroll sounds like a reasonable test.

I kind of took a different approach. I preemptively asked if my player wanted to join the cyphermages because I felt such membership would "cut to the chase" for me, and I'm curious how the interaction with Samaritha will go. I even gave the player an extra cyphermage spell as my thanks for giving it a shot. At least with my player, this has encouraged excitement.

On another level, I never followed the traditional master-apprentice options for characters. Once they become a character class, their training has been completed, and experience becomes their new "mentor." I'm too old, and my gaming time too limited to bother with roleplaying out training.

In any of the SD books do they outline the Cyphermage prestige class, if not, do you think Loremaster would work? What changes to Loremaster would you make?

I've disallowed the DMG PrCs in my game. If the players want a prestige class, they must join an organization. I've been slowly adapting and changing my PrCs to have organizational tilts.

I'm offering apprentice-membership to one of my player's who would like to work with the 3.5 Player's Handbook II feat "Apprentice", and therefore start out with some relation to the city.