D&D 4E Help me out with some 4e Magitech!

[greyscale1]

Okay, so I'm going to be running a campaign in 4e with a real classic high fantasy feel to it. However, the main 'evil empire' in the campaign, is a user of magi technology of a sort (though in a relatively subtle way, though they rule the continent, only their capitol [which most people they rule over will never see] has overt magitech things like ahem, lightning rails).

However, the PCs will eventually start running into these 'Desonnens' wielding powerful magitech arms and armor. I want this tech to confuse amaze and astound the characters (who are really country bumpkins by comparison).

I wont get really into it much more than that, suffice it to say that one of their first BBEGs will surprise them with some power armor (think more subtle Warhammer 40k space marines - helmet).

Heres one little example which the players will run into relatively early on tough imperial infantry.

Desonnen Bolt Driver

Fires specially prepared mithril bolts, Exotic(or 4e equivalent)
2d10+dex damage
at-will: damage done is radiant damage and attacks reflex instead of AC
Load minor

If used with normal bolts the Bolt Driver only does 1d10 damage. Rolls under 10 the bolt breaks when exiting the Driver, requiring a minor action to remove. Rolls under 5 cause the Driver to catch on radiant fire and quickly go out causing 1d10 radiant damage to the user. On a roll of 1 the Driver breaks permanently (along with the 1d10 damage). These effects are only if the user is untrained and using improper bolts.


Well, thats just one of the items.

All of them have a strong radiant energy theme, but really. Sky is the limit.

So enworld! BE MY MUUUUSE!

 

[Oompa]

Im not really and creative type of guy in the meaning of fleshing out stats for items, but i have some idea's you could use..

- Bolt Driver that shoots 4 bolts with an net attached to them?
- Metal Armor that has an magical/technilogical defense system? Something like when someone tries and touch attack it shocks the caster?
- Helmets that have somekind of heat vision / true seeing (in the magical sense)?
- Two rods that could be placed apart and when activated it creates an barrier or the likes?
- An spear that if thrown in the ground somewhere near pc's can create an electric shock?

Ill hope you got something you could use..

 

[Fallen Seraph]

I too am bad with crunch, I can do it but... It would take like 2 weeks and be unbalanced

Ideas though:

-Dimensional Shielding: Using the magic behind "Bags of Holding" these Shields can cause magic and ranged attacks to be swallowed by a pocket dimension. They generally come in the form of floating disks around a person.

-Distorting Grenade: This Grenade sends out pulses of magical energy that can distort or eradicate magical effects.

-Power Armour: Clockwork Power Armour that has a series of magical runes that collect ambient magic to power it.

-Constructs: Similar to Power Armour but it is autonomous and much larger.

-Basic Firearms: These firearms use a system similar to Power Armour, the firearm has a rune near the hammer that sends a surge of magic into the cartridge to fire out the bullet. This bullet also has a rune upon it and along the route to the target collects magical energy that detonates upon hitting the target.

 

[divinenathanica]

I think that if I were part of a very advanced magical empire, I'd develop weapons systems that would scare/confuse opponents due to their own superstitions. Maybe it's more fluff than crunch, but dragonheaded flamethrowers definitely comes to mind as something worth doing. I wouldn't know how you'd go about implementing it at this stage; maybe use some of the monsters that have been leaked as examples of powers to take, especially if this technology is 'hardwired' somehow into the enemy.

Now you have me thinking, why not make some machine out of unobtanium, using 'magic' as it's power source, which duplicates the stats of the Young Black Dragon. The only thing that might be a bit hard to handwave is the darkness attack. But this is Advanced Magic Empire. They have the resources to get things done. I can't think of anything more confounding than, when this 'dragon' goes down, a little man jumps out from it's head area, ready to press another attack.

On second thought, I don't do subtle particularly well.

The Ironskin Belt, with a change in fluff, would make a great 'use activated' shielding array, and something the party could pick up and use themselves..

I hope I didn't hijack the feel you were going for.

 

[Fallen Seraph]

Couple other ones:

-Land-Ships: Have the empire develop the means of crafting essentially tanks. These tanks would use the mechanics of Power Armour with runes gathering magic for power and large-calibre firearms for offensive. It would be protected by various magical shielding and normal metal and be carried aloft by floating disks.

-Massive Teleporters: Have the empire be able to build huge magitech generators that have enough energy to generate large-scale teleporters to teleport large masses of troops far distances.

Also, I am making one particular world that takes the idea of magitech but goes in a different direction. Instead of normal magic it is Necromancy:

-Firearms: Firearms are about level with WW2 issue rifles, this is done by having a tongue that is triggered using the firing mechanism to quickly move a bullet from the magazine into the chamber, where gases generated by the body-parts within the rifle fires the bullet (in some cases it is hardened teeth that are grown within the rifle). This is inspired by a piece of art I cannot find.

-Sentries: When a soldier dies, his body is reassembled and a machine gun is placed within his chest cavity with a eye placed upon the sights. It is programmed to attack any enemy that comes within its sights.

-Tanks: These tanks are similar to WW1 era tanks, except for one major difference. Its mode of locomotion, it moves across the ground on a 4 legs made up of hundreds of legs fused together.

-Phones: Phones look like normal phones, however the mechanics inside are quite different. The ear piece has within it a working tongue and mouth and the mouth piece a ear, the wire holds within it nervous system that connects to a central network.

-Movies: Movies are made by projecting the images gathered from dead eyes onto a screen.

-Prosthetic Limbs: Most limbs come from fusing a dead limb onto a person and using Necromancy to reanimate it.

Just a couple things from my world

 

[That One Guy]

Just to throw this questioning in... are you thinking FF6 magitech? Because that's what it sounds a lot like.

Are you looking more for things that will astound the players or the players' characters?

Would Eberron type of things be a good reference for the main magitech city? That said, could they employ Warforged? I mean, what's more crazy than metal men? They could always be metal man suits if you wanted, but I like the idea of robots with soul-like personas.

Or, are you thinking more steampunk magitech? Not that FF6 nor Eberron are too far removed from that idea. I'm just trying to see what sort of 'feel' and 'flavour' you're going for.

 

[UngainlyTitan]

I would suggest that the bolter mentioned in the original post is too complicated, stick with something that works like a heavy crossbow with better special effects and maybe a higher rate of fire.

As for source suggestion, well what about the Gou'ald from Stargate. They had tech that they were trying to pass off as magic but the ideas are sound just rejig the fluff to suit your campaing.

That would give quarterstaffs that fire fireballs, pistols that uncoil like snakes and spit lightening, magic boxes that raise the dead. Teleportation devices, personal force shields that are vunerable to slow moving projectiles and can double as weapons and torture devices.

 

[watson50]

i've recently read in a magazine about some magic items. It help a magician to show the magic and all secrets behind a magic is hidden into it. I saw in a magic shop there were lots of magic item but i don't know the actual name and function of them.

 

[Tuft]

Mechs.

Honest-to-god actual anime-style mechs. The bulky, very obvious humanoid armor common in anime does not make much sense on a modern military battlefield, but makes much more sense on a fantasy one, especially if you want to go one-on-one with a dragon or giant.

Think about the historical superiority of the knight's armor, and multiply it a couple of factors, and you have rich, spoiled nobles in expensive, magic-reinforced, twenty-foot high suits suitable to their egos, striding the battlefield, whacking at each other with twelve-foot swords...

For reference, see a few episodes of The Vision of Escaflowne, where you have ancient battlesuits made form legendary metals, powered by steam from the heat of a magic jewel extracted from a dragon's heart, and the evil empire shrouds their mechs in giant invisibility capes.

 

[Plane Sailing]

Moved to house rules.

Cheers