"Technological" Android Bladebound Kensai

[Krinn]

Hi all.
One of my players wants to play an Android Bladebound Kensai Magus.

Since he's from Numeria and his magical abilities would thematically stem from technological effects (handled the same way as magic, but the character would call his scorching rays with the name of laser beams and all that stuff).
His black blade is an advanced technological numerian weapon (vibroblade?) scavenged from the "ship" the Android was born in, with "runes" (strange circuitry) that glow when its arcane pool isn't empty. Stats are the same of a wakizashi.

I like the character concept very much, but I only have one thing I'm not comfortable with: the spellbook.
It doesn't fit with the concept at all, so I devised this houserule.

To keep the "technological" flavor, he wouldn't have a spellbook. Instead, he would "write" his spells on his body... Those strange circuitry on an Android's flesh? Those are his known spells, they glow when "prepared" and are extinguished when cast (as nanites previously gathered in the circuits are expended). He'll open two new circuits (new spells) at each level following the normal rules, but he won't be able to copy spells from scrolls or other books (in fact, the character wouldn't even take the spellcraft skill). Instead, if he wishes for new spells known, he'd have to research them, using the rules to research a spell, with a few Knowledge (Arcana) checks, a week of time and 1000 gp per spell level in special materials.

Do you think this spellbook alternative is balanced?
He can't be deprived of his spellbook, but can't easily learn new spells either.

[Paladin of Baha-who?]

Not being able to learn new spells is a major nerf, not worth the gain of a spellbook you can't lose. I would perhaps increase the cost and the time required to add a new spell to his 'circuitry' but still allow him to convert spells into circuitry, like an alchemist can convert spells into formulae.

[Krinn]

Well, he can learn new spells, it just costs him more - 1000 gp per level of the spell.
As a kensai, he already has few precious spell slots (4 plus those gained from high int per spell level), and he'll know at least 6 spells per level.

[LoneKnave]

Have the spellbook be an external HDD case. He scans spells to add them to the "spellbook", and has to plug it into his head every morning when he's doing system restore.

[SeeleyOne]

He would literally learn and unlearn spells as they are stored in memory. Also, he could use his spell-checker to read spell books.

[Thanael]

Love the concept btw. Care to post a few more details about the build?

[MrSin]

Krinn wrote:

Do you think this spellbook alternative is balanced?

He can't be deprived of his spellbook, but can't easily learn new spells either.

Its only a good thing that he can't be deprived of his spellbook if you were planning to take it in the first place, which can put you on some people's list of 'gms I won't play (a wizard/witch/magus) with. Making it extremely expensive to learn new spells is very painful, though magus is hurt far less by this than a wizard would be, and you might want to reconsider the price(1000 per spell level!? Hope he doesn't want any new spells). Is not taking spellcraft enforced or his choise? because not taking points in spellcraft could hurt, its useful for many things, and including recognizing other people's spells and detect magic.

[Journ-O-LST-3]

But magic is technology in Pathfinder.

Otherwise, I'd leave him with a spell book as per normal but written in strange code or binary or instead a book of schematics/katas for the proper movements to alter the universe in small ways.

[Krinn]

Thanks for the replies!

I don't think he'll actually ever *need* to learn any new spells, since (at least) 6 spells per level (more at 1st and 6th) are plenty for a magus with diminished spellcasting, imho.

As for taking his spellbook, it's not a priority usually, but let's say the party is taken prisoner, everyone is then basically naked and a normal magus/wizard would lose his spellbook that way. This character doesn't need to spend *any* resource in order to have countermeasures to that, not even for a backup spellbook to keep at home or at the local wizardly guild, which is more than enough to protect it but still costs money. This also makes the Spell Mastery feat pointless for him to ever consider.

With spell research he could learn any level appropriate arcane spell, including mage armor and make whole, which are not normally in a magus's spell list, as long as they are arcane and he can refluff them with technology in mind (force screen?, nanites repair?). He just can't take these "extraneous" spells for free at levelup.

Him not taking spellcraft was just a lighthearted suggestion, which he likes. I'm actually thinking of changing Spellcraft with Disable Device as a class skill for him, due to the technological theme. He might take ranks in spellcraft in the future, as he learns the skill from the party wizard.

I'd avoid to have his spellbook be as simple as a HDD Case... as much as this would make sense in real-life technology, it would just be too "strange" to simply translate a magical spell found on, say, a scroll, into technology. They should be different sources imho, even if they work the same. That's why he can't learn new spells like a normal magus, but is not limited to magus spells when he performs "technological research". It's just that there's not much lore about technology and the technic league is far away, secretive and evil.

The build itself is as simple as one would expect... a kensai bladebound who uses weapon finesse and a black blade "wakizashi" as his bound weapon (it's refluffed as a monoatomic edge carbon katana, crafted with superior technology, light and deadly, with strange powers that need to be unlocked and/or awakened and glowing circuitry). He intends to take the Mythic abilities to turn it into a truly legendary item in his hands.
He also wears a "silken ceremonial armor", refluffed as some kind of powered uniform that will be "enchanted" later to awaken its technological powers.

[Krinn]

At the end, I reduced the research cost and time thusly:
200 gp per spell level if the spell being researched is in the Magus's spell list. The Knowledge (Arcana) DC to develop the spell is 15 + spell level.
500 gp per spell level if the spell being researched is in the Wizard's spell list. The Knowledge (Arcana) DC to develop the spell is 20 + spell level.
Failure to meet the DC ruins the material components and the character takes 1d6 points of damage per spell level from short circuit. The time to research a spell is 8 hours and it can be done once per day.
As an added requirement, the player has to refluff the spell with a technological theme.

The material component is some sort of rare metals that are required to craft new nanites and develop the necessary new circuitry.
The body automatically produces enough nanites to learn two new spells at each magus level for free, that's why the character doesn't have to pay for the free two magus spells at each level. Extra spells require extra nanites though!