Versatile Injections


Biohacker


3 people marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber

The 8th level theorum Versatile Injections allows your injections that normally only affect living creatures to instead affect any creature. At first glance, this seems very useful, as the biohacker's offensive injection options against some common types of enemies, especially undead and constructs are limited to the (admittedly quite useful) basic counteragent.

However, looking at the Field of Study specific counteragents, none of them seem to actually derive much benefit from removing the restriction that causes them to only affect living creatures. The special injections gained through Theorum selections also don't seem to gain from this theorum.

FIELD OF STUDY INJECTIONS

Endocrinology:
Counteragent - Fatigue, does not affect construct or undead

Genetics:
Counteragent - Poison effect - Does not affect construct, undead, elemental

Immunology:
Counteragent - lowers fortitude saves. This works on everything, but constructs and undead are immune to most effects that require a fortitude save

Neurochemistry:
Counteragent - Poison effect - Does not affect construct, undead, elemental

Pharmacology:
Counteragent - Mind-affecting - Does not work on undead or constructs

Toxicology:
Counteragent - Poison effect - Does not affect construct, undead, elemental

THEORUM INJECTIONS

Tranq Dart - Causes sleep, which does not affect construct, elemental or undead

Heart Stopper - Fortitude save based effect that does not affect undead or constructs

Stunning Agent - Does not affect undead or constructs, both as a fort-save based effect and as a stun effect

Synaptic Deadening - Does not have a "living creature" requirement to begin with

Is there a major category of nonliving creatures that I am not considering. If not, versatile injections seems to serve little purpose, as the biohacker's injections don't really become applicable to the targets that were able to ignore them before.

Dark Archive

I am also wondering this, as I plan on playtesting a level 10 biohacker. Should it be ran as ignoring the immunities, or should it be ran as is(not actually doing anything).


I suppose it does at least allow you to grant injections to nonliving allies? Even then, though, the only races which come to mind off the bat are borais and SROs.

Oh, and a mechanic drone.


Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber

Borais and SROs are both counted as living creatures for determining what effects them. I did look at that.

Injecting drones is a minor gain, I suppose. Hopefully it isn't intended to be the sole function of the theorum.


Perhaps there could be a sentence included about removing the undead's/construct's immunity to whatever effect the biohacker is trying to impose on them, replacing it with a +4 on the save. The biohacker is said to use specialized nanytes in their injections so it should make sense, at least as far as constructs are concerned.

Liberty's Edge

So, basically, you "only" can hinder them with:
–2 AC ; -5 DR ; -5 to 1 energy resistance


1 person marked this as a favorite.
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber

I did say in the initial post that the default counteragent provides good options. Those options do not require Versatile Injections.

The question here is not "how can a biohacker fight a zombie?"

The question is "What can a biohacker do with Versatile Injections that they cannot do without Versatile Injections?"


Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Superscriber; Pathfinder Starfinder Adventure Path, Starfinder Roleplaying Game, Starfinder Society Subscriber

While, as far as I can tell, mechanic drones are the only unliving allies you would expect to see in a party permanently, it is possible that you may occasionally have friendly undead or construct NPCs around to inject with a restorative. So I suppose there is one other niche benefit to this theorum.

Community / Forums / Archive / Starfinder / Character Operations Manual Playtest / Biohacker / Versatile Injections All Messageboards