For a campaign I hope to run soon. CSp is the abbreviation I've used for
Codices of Spellshaping. I've not posted it there, mostly because it breaks one of the most fundamental rules of the system (shaper level advancement). I needed a partial shaper, and the damage output on this is potentially rather high, so it's been... altered for this class.
Magitek Knight“Run! Run! Or you'll be well done!”—Kefka Palazzo, Magitek Knight
Arguments on the proper use of magical power are among the most common debates in the multiverse. Virtually every school of thought and every organization has its own position on what is the “right” goal to seek through the phenomenal power that magic can bring to bear. Some believe that violence is to be abhorred, and magic is to be used to heal the ills of the world. Others see magic as the key to innovation and progress, allowing its wielders to project their thoughts directly into reality. And so it goes, through infinite variations on infinite philosophies. But there is one ideal that always recurs in every discussion on every plane – magic as a weapon, another tool in the warrior's arsenal for conquering those less talented at the art of battle.
A magitek knight is, first and foremost, a soldier of this mindset. Though they lack the dedication to magic as an art form that other spellshapers, even those of a martial bent, possess, they are no less dedicated to their pursuit of
war as art. To them, spellshaping provides one tool among many others that any competent artist should possess some talent for.
Making a Magitek KnightThe magitek knight is most at home in a melee. While her spellshaping attacks might allow her to pick off targets at range, she cannot exercise the bulk of her special abilities at range, and she lags behind other classes in pure spellshaping ability, making her less effective in such situations. The magitek knight is a good choice for a player familiar with spellshaping, who wants a different spin on melee combat than the spellshape champion can provide, or who is interested in a powerful mount.
Abilities: Your Strength and Intelligence scores should be as high as possible, since they're critical to melee combat and your spellshaping, respectively. Constitution will help you survive damage, and Dexterity will help you make the crucial first strikes in combat.
Races: The combination of martial prowess and intellect that makes for an effective magitek knight is rare, but humans are fairly common members of the class, as are members of any race that grants a Strength or Intelligence bonus (especially if it does not penalize the other).
Elves make terrible magitek knights, because they're too busy causing cancer to learn how to take an axe to the face. Fuck elves. Alignment: Magitek knights can be of any alignment, but they are typically aggressive in their beliefs and seek glory in battle. While a good magitek knight might be renowned for honor and mercy, she is first and foremost known for her righteous stands against evil. Likewise, evil magitek knights are known to slaughter even helpless civilians for sport, lawful magitek knights serve to enforce the will of the law, and chaotic magitek knights may attack an ally just to see how entertaining the fight is. Naturally, these aren't hard-and-fast rules, but they are a good way to get an idea of what positions such characters might occupy in your campaign.
Starting Gold: 6d4x10 gp (150 gp).
Starting Age: As paladin.
Hit Die: d10
| Level | Base Attack Bonus | Fort | Ref | Will | Special | Formulae Known | Formulae Prepared |
| 1st | +1 | +2 | +0 | +2 | Mounted Combat | 4 | 2 |
| 2nd | +2 | +3 | +0 | +3 | Spellstrike Blade | 5 | 2 |
| 3rd | +3 | +3 | +1 | +3 | Bonus Feat, Practiced Shaper | 5 | 2 |
| 4th | +4 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Extra Circle | 8 | 3 |
| 5th | +5 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Favored Carrier | 9 | 3 |
| 6th | +6/+1 | +5 | +2 | +5 | Machine Mastery | 9 | 3 |
| 7th | +7/+2 | +5 | +2 | +5 | Magitek Trigger, Practiced Shaper | 11 | 4 |
| 8th | +8/+3 | +6 | +2 | +6 | Bonus Feat | 12 | 4 |
| 9th | +9/+4 | +6 | +3 | +6 | Tek Beam | 12 | 4 |
| 10th | +10/+5 | +7 | +3 | +7 | Extra Circle | 15 | 5 |
| 11th | +11/+6/+1 | +7 | +3 | +7 | Practiced Shaper | 16 | 5 |
| 12th | +12/+7/+2 | +8 | +4 | +8 | | 17 | 5 |
| 13th | +13/+8/+3 | +8 | +4 | +8 | Bonus Feat | 18 | 6 |
| 14th | +14/+9/+4 | +9 | +4 | +9 | One With The Machine | 19 | 6 |
| 15th | +15/+10/+5 | +9 | +5 | +9 | Extra Circle, Practiced Shaper | 21 | 6 |
| 16th | +16/+11/+6/+1 | +10 | +5 | +10 | Tek Blast | 22 | 7 |
| 17th | +17/+12/+7/+2 | +10 | +5 | +10 | | 23 | 7 |
| 18th | +18/+13/+8/+3 | +11 | +6 | +11 | Bonus Feat | 24 | 7 |
| 19th | +19/+14/+9/+4 | +11 | +6 | +11 | Practiced Shaper | 25 | 8 |
| 20th | +20/+15/+10/+5 | +12 | +6 | +12 | Perfect Synergy | 26 | 8 |
Class Skills (2 + Int modifier per level, x4 at 1st level): Concentration (Con), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Disable Device (Int), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (history) (Int), Knowledge (nobility and royalty) (Int), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Spellcraft (Int), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), Use Magic Device (Cha)
Class FeaturesAll the following are class features of the magitek knight.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: As a magitek knight, you are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, as well as light and medium armor, and shields (except tower shields).
As a magitek knight, you can shape formulae while wearing light or medium armor or using a shield without incurring the normal arcane spell failure chance. However, like any other arcane spellcaster, you incur a chance of arcane spell failure when wearing heavy armor. This only applies to the formulae you know as a magitek knight, and you might incur arcane spell failure chance for formulae received from other spellshaper classes.
Formulae: You begin your career with knowledge of three arcane formulae. You have access to three circles of your choice from the following list: Blustering Gale, Crushing Stone, Deteriorating Corrosion, Perfect Freeze, Roaring Tide, Searing Flame, Shocking Current, and Surging Spirit.
Once you know a formula, you must prepare it before you can use it (see Formulae Prepared, below). A formula usable by a magitek knight is considered a spell-like ability unless otherwise noted in its description. Unlike most other spell-like abilities, arcane formulae are subject to arcane spell failure chance, as described in Weapon and Armor Proficiency above. The save DC for a formula that allows a save is 10 + formula level + your Intelligence modifier.
You learn additional formulae at higher levels, as shown on the table above. To learn or shape a formula, you must have an Intelligence score equal to at least 10 + the formula, as well as meeting the formula's prerequisite. While your knowledge of the art is broad, it is shallow compared to that of other spellshapers. You count only ½ of your class level toward determining your magitek knight shaper level, as if it were any other class. However, see the Practiced Shaper class feature, below. Remember that, for other purposes, such as qualifying for feats, magitek knight is still a spellshaping class.
You also gain access to additional circles as you gain levels. At 4th level, you gain access to an additional circle from the above list. At 10th level, and again at 15th level, you gain access to another circle, but your studies have shown you more subtle techniques for manipulating magical power. You can make these choices from any circle.
Upon reaching 4th level, and at every even-numbered magitek knight level after that (6th, 8th, 10th, and so on), you can choose to learn a new formula in place of one you already know. In effect, you lose the old formula in exchange for the new one. You can choose a new formula of any level you like, as long as you observe your restriction on the highest-level formulae you know; you need not replace the old formula with a formula of the same level. For example, upon reaching 10th level, you could trade in a single 1st-, 2nd-, or 3rd-level formula for a formula of 4th level or lower, as long as you meet the prerequisite of the new formula. You can only swap a single formula at any given level.
Formulae Prepared: You can prepare only two of your known formulae at 1st level, forcing you to choose between them. You ready your formulae by meditating and exercising for 5 minutes. If every formula you have prepared is expended, you can also ready a new set of formulae by spending a move action to steady your nerves and harness the residual magical energy that has passed through your body. When you ready formulae in this way, you cannot choose a formula that is currently expended. Thus, you ready a different set of formulae from those you have just used. The formulae you choose, regardless of the method used to do so, remain prepared until you decide to meditate again and change them. You need not sleep or rest for any long period of time to prepare your formulae.
If you don't have enough unexpended formulae to prepare as many as your maximum formulae prepared suggests, you simply prepare all those that you can and the remaining prepared formulae slots are wasted. This can happen if, for instance, you know fewer than twice the number of formulae you can prepare. For instance, if you know 5 formulae but can prepare 3, then you'll only have 2 formulae to prepare once you've expended the 3 you started the combat with. Thus, you simply ready both. You cannot simply choose to prepare fewer formulae than your normal maximum; you must prepare as many as possible. Only when you don't have enough legal formulae to prepare can you have fewer prepared than your maximum.
You begin an encounter with all of your prepared formulae unexpended, regardless of how many times you might have already used them since you chose them. When you shape a formula, you expend it for the current encounter, so each of your prepared formulae can be used once per encounter (unless you recover them, as described below).
You can recover a single expended formula by taking a standard action to focus on it. Doing this does not provoke attacks of opportunity. If you complete your meditation, you recover that one expended formula, but not any others you have expended. Note that a formula that is not prepared cannot be considered expended, so if you prepare a new set of formulae as described above, none of them are expended, even if you prepare a formula you've already used during the same encounter. They ceased to be expended as soon as they were no longer prepared.
Spellshape Attacks (Sp): Among the first abilities that you learn as a magitek knight are your spellshape attacks. You start play with access to the spellshape attacks associated with the circles to which you have access. Whenever you gain access to a new circle, you also learn its spellshape attack.
Mounted Combat: At 1st level, you gain Mounted Combat as a bonus feat.
Spellstrike Blade (Su): At 2nd level, you master the technique of channeling magical energy through mundane weaponry. By using your weapon as a conduit for magical energies, you can allow any minor formulae you shape to affect your melee attacks as though they were the spellshape attack associated with that formula's circle. Such a formula's extra damage, if any, is of the same kind as its circle's spellshape attack, rather than your weapon's normal damage. For instance, if you had shaped the scorching blast formula and applied this ability, your melee attacks would deal an extra 1d6 points of fire damage, plus 1 point of fire damage per shaper level, until the end of your turn.
Despite the name, this ability can apply to any kind of melee attack, including an unarmed strike, or even a simple melee touch attack. This ability does not alter the base weapon damage, nor does it add the damage of the associated spellshape attack to the effects of a successful attack. It cannot be used with major formulae.
Bonus Feat: At 3rd level, and every 5th level thereafter, you can select a free feat from the following list: Armored ShaperCSp, Cavalry ChargerCW, Combat Expertise, Extra Prepared FormulaCSp, Formula StudyCSp, Fortifying RecoveryCSp, Greater Spellshape FocusCSp, Improved Bull Rush, Improved Disarm, Improved Feint, Improved Trip, Martial StanceToB, Martial StudyToB, Nonlethal SpellshapingCSp, Power Attack, Precise ShaperCSp, Project NumenCSp, Reshape FormulaCSp, Spellshape FocusCSp, Ride-by Attack, Spellshape IncanterCSp, Spirited Charge, Trample, Weapon Focus, or any metashaping feat.
Practiced Shaper: Although you lack the deep knowledge of most other spellshapers, you are still more advanced in the art of manipulating raw magical energy than most. At 3rd level, and every 4th level thereafter, your magitek knight shaper level increases by 1. This is not a bonus. It allows you to qualify for feats and prestige classes with a shaper level requirement, select higher level formulae, and so on.
Preferred Carrier: At 5th level, you can reliably requisition, or else construct from parts available in any market, a set of magitek armor. Furthermore, you customize your armor to better suit your own talents and preferences, and regularly install upgraded mechanical parts that allow for strictly better functioning when guided by your practiced and familiar hand. This armor is always sized appropriately for you. See below for details on the special rules for this set of armor.
Should your preferred set of armor be destroyed or lost, you can craft or requisition another, at the cost of 1500 gp. If used by anybody but you, the armor has the statistics of a normal set of armor of its kind; the special upgrades and unusual parts require your detailed familiarity with the machine to be able to use effectively. You can take 10 on Craft (Mechanics) checks made to repair or alter your carrier, even in combat or other stressful situations. You can also work on your own set of armor at extreme speed; measure the time taken to make any such check in rounds, rather than minutes, minutes, rather than hours, and hours, rather than days. For durations measured in units longer than days, convert the duration to be measured in days; that's how many hours the check takes.
Machine Mastery (Ex): At 6th level, you master the art of controlling vehicles. Provided your mount is mindless, and you have spent at least 10 minutes riding it to familiarize yourself with it, you gain the following benefits. You need never make a Ride check to guide the mount with your knees, stay in the saddle, stay on the mount if it leaps, spur the mount, or mount or dismount it quickly. If your mount has natural attacks, you need not make a Ride check to cause it to use them. You don't need to make a Concentration check to perform an action that requires concentration, such as casting a spell, if that check would have been caused by riding your mount while it moves. Other situations, including riding a running mount, still require such checks. Remember, because such a mount is mindless, it never requires you to make checks to control a frightened mount or otherwise control its behavior.
Magitek Trigger (Ex): Beginning at 7th level, your reflexes and skill over the magic you command allow you to channel your spellshape attacks through your favored carrier. By beginning the flow of energy yourself, you set your mount up to discharge the power you have already gathered. If you successfully strike a target with a melee attack affected by a minor formula, such as through your spellshape blade ability, and you are riding your favored carrier, it can shape a major formula on your behalf. The major formula it shapes must be of the same circle as the minor formula you used with the melee attack.
Your mount must spend the same action as you would to shape the formula in question, but it otherwise functions exactly as if you had shaped it yourself, except as noted here. For instance, you use your own ability scores and base attack bonus to determine the attack roll. You must have the formula it shapes prepared, and it cannot be expended; it is expended by this ability, just as if you had shaped it yourself. Your mount may also make an ordinary spellshape attack instead of shaping a major formula. Your mount does not provoke an attack of opportunity for shaping a formula, or for making a ranged touch attack, in this way.
While this ability is extraordinary, the formulae and spellshaping involved are not, so you may still be prevented from doing so by an antimagic field or similar effect.
Tek Beam (Su): At 9th level, you learn how to augment power passed through your preferred set of armor. Whenever you use your Magitek Trigger ability to allow your mount to use a spellshape attack on your behalf, you can decide to change the attack from a ranged touch attack to a beam of energy. It becomes a line with a length equal to the range of the spellshape attack. While you need not make an attack roll for it, any creature within the area can make a Reflex save to halve the damage. Any consequences of the attack other than damage can affect only the creature closest to you along the line, and are negated if that creature succeeds on its Reflex saving throw. Even if the creature fails its Reflex saving throw, it is still allowed any other saving throws that the attack might allow.
One with the Machine (Ex): At 14th level, you are so closely attuned to your vehicle's controls that it might as well be an extension of your body. Provided your mount is mindless, and you have spent at least 1 hour riding it to familiarize yourself with the control scheme, then it gains the benefits of being considered a part of your equipment for the purposes of making saving throws and being targeted by attacks. For instance, it doesn't need to make a separate saving throw against an effect that would affect both of you unless it were specifically targeted.
If it does need to make a saving throw, it uses your saving throw modifier if it's higher than its own. If your Dexterity score is higher than your mount's, it uses your score to calculate its AC instead of its own.
Tek Blast (Su): At 16th level, you can push the limits of energy passed through your set of armor to an even higher degree. Whenever you could use your Tek Beam ability, you can decide to change the attack from a ranged touch attack to a blast of magical power. It becomes a cone with a length equal to ½ the range of the spellshape attack. While you need not make an attack roll for it, any creature within the area can make a Reflex save to halve the damage. Any consequences of the attack other than damage can affect only the creature closest to you within the area, and are negated if that creature succeeds on its Reflex saving throw. Even if the creature fails its Reflex saving throw, it is still allowed any other saving throws that the attack might allow.
Perfect Synergy (Ex): At 20th level, you complete your mastery of your combat style. As long as you ride a mindless mount and have spent at least 8 hours familiarizing yourself with it, you can use its abilities to maximum effect. You can position it to intercept blows, allowing you to use its natural armor bonus (if it's higher than yours) and damage reduction (if any) in place of your own. You can control it with extreme precision, allowing you to make Tumble checks on its behalf to avoid attacks of opportunity, using your own skill modifier. You can also put its weight and momentum behind your blows, so that if you deal damage as a creature of a size category smaller than your mount, you can instead deal damage as if you were a creature of your mount's size category, increasing the size of the damage dice you roll.
A magitek knight's favored carrier is superior to a normal set of armor of its kind, and gains special powers as described below, through tinkering and improvement performed by the knight.
The standard carrier for a magitek knight is ordinary magitek armor. This carrier is one size category larger than the magitek knight when it's first obtained, and its size can be adjusted with 1 week of work per change in size category. Do not apply any ability score modifiers, natural armor modifiers, and so on for changing size; only the size category itself changes.
A magitek knight may select more advanced types of armor at higher levels. Subtract the indicated number of levels from the magitek knight's actual class level to determine her effective class level for the purposes of determining the benefits that type of armor gets from this class feature. For instance, a magitek knight with a Heavy Armor favored carrier would be treated as 4 levels lower than she actually is for determining the benefits that set of armor gets. If this adjustment would reduce her level below 5, she cannot select that option.
Advanced Carriers-4 levels: Heavy Armor, Proto-Armor
-8 levels: Mega Armor, Duelist's Armor
-12 levels: Guardian, Prometheus
Magitek Knight
Level | Bonus HD | Natural Armor
Adjustment | Strength
Adjustment | Special |
| 5th-6th | +2 | +2 | +2 | Share saving throws |
| 7th-8th | +4 | +2 | +2 | Evasion |
| 9th-10th | +6 | +4 | +4 | Upgrade 1 |
| 11th-12th | +8 | +4 | +6 | Improved evasion |
| 13th-14th | +10 | +6 | +8 | Upgrade 2 |
| 15th-16th | +12 | +6 | +10 | Lockdown |
| 17th-18th | +14 | +8 | +12 | Upgrade 3 |
| 19th-20th | +16 | +8 | +14 | Upgrade 4 |
Favored Carrier BasicsUse the base statistics for the knight's choice of armor, modified as described here.
Bonus HD: Extra Construct Hit Dice. Extra Hit Dice improve the carrier’s base attack and base save bonuses. For reference, these 10-sided hit dice provide medium base attack bonus (as a cleric's), and all of its saves are poor. Because a favored carrier usually doesn't have an Intelligence score, it usually doesn't gain skill points or feats as its hit dice advance.
Natural Armor Adj.: The number on the table is an improvement to the carrier’s existing natural armor bonus.
Str Adj.: Add this figure to the carrier’s Strength score.
Share Saving Throws: For each of its saving throws, the carrier uses its own base save bonus or the magitek knight’s, whichever is higher. The carrier applies its own ability modifiers to saves, and it doesn’t share any other bonuses on saves that its owner might have.
Evasion (Ex): When subjected to an effect that allows a Reflex saving throw for half damage, the favored carrier takes no damage on a successful saving throw, provided that it is mounted by its owner.
Improved evasion (Ex): When subjected to an effect that allows a Reflex saving throw for half damage, the favored carrier takes half damage even on a failed saving throw, provided that it is mounted by its owner.
Lockdown (Ex): The favored carrier does not respond to attempts to use it made by anybody but its owner, unless the owner speaks a command word that unlocks the controls, a swift action.
Upgrades: Whenever the favored carrier gains one of these abilities, choose an option from below.
The first upgrade must be one of the following:
Energy Resistance: The carrier gains resistance 5 to any 3 energy types. If this option is chosen multiple times, its effects stack. If this option would increase the carrier's energy resistance to 50 or more, it instead gains immunity to that type of energy.
Improved Resilience: The carrier's damage reduction increases by 5. If this option is chosen multiple times, its effects stack. If this option would increase the carrier's damage reduction to 30 or more, it can no longer be overcome, and this option can no longer be chosen.
Improved Speed: The carrier's base land speed increases by 10 ft. If the carrier has already selected this option, it gains one of a climb, burrow, or swim speed of 10 feet. If it already has each of these, it gains a fly speed of 10 feet with average maneuverability. If it already has a fly speed, it may increase any speed it possesses by 10 ft., or increase its maneuverability by 1 step.
Natural Attack: The carrier gains a primary claw attack, which deals 1d6 points of damage (for a Large carrier), plus the carrier's Strength modifier. If this option has already been chosen, it gains a second primary claw attack. This option cannot be chosen if it would cause the carrier to have more than 2 claw attacks.
The second upgrade may be any two choices from the previous list, or one of the following:
Bonus Feat: The carrier gains a bonus feat from those available to a Fighter. It need not meet any Intelligence prerequisites for this bonus feat, but must meet all others. The carrier may also choose from Warforged racial feats as though it were a 1st level Warforged character.
Built-In Weapon: The carrier gains a built-in manufactured weapon of its owner's choice. The carrier makes attacks with it just as with any manufactured weapon (including extra attacks for a high base attack bonus), but cannot be disarmed of it. This weapon occupies a custom-built limb, so it doesn't interfere with any natural attacks. This option cannot be selected more than once. The weapon cannot be a two-handed weapon.
Spell Deflector: The carrier gains spell resistance equal to 5 plus its owner's class level. If this option is chosen multiple times, increase this spell resistance by 2 for each time it is chosen.
Trample: The carrier can deal damage equal to that of its slam attack whenever it successfully overruns or bull rushes an opponent. This option cannot be selected more than once.
The third upgrade may be any two choices from the previous list. Selecting two options from the first upgrade list counts as only one such choice.
Teleporter: The carrier can, once per day, teleport up to 10 feet in a direction of its choice, along with its rider, as a swift action. It needs line of sight, but not line of effect, to its destination. This is a supernatural ability. Each time this ability is chosen, it can be used once more in a day.
Juggernaut: The carrier can, once per day, render itself immune to damage and transmutation effects for 1 round, as a swift action. It gains no special protection from other effects, and this ability does not reverse any damage or transmutation already affecting it. This is a supernatural ability. Each time this ability is chosen, it can be used once more in a day.
The fourth upgrade must be any two choices from the previous list. Selecting two options from the second upgrade list counts as only one such choice, while selecting four options from the first is also only a single choice.You are a warrior before anything else. You strive to perfect your martial talents, enhancing them with magic and the highest technology of your age. This combination makes you a superb front line fighter, and allows you to survive rigors others might not. However, you are less useful in areas where a mount is impractical. If this is a regular occurrence for you, you should invest in a Blast Amplifier.
You are willing to adventure solely for the love of battle, and to advance whatever causes you put your significant zeal behind. You are unlikely to take a mission that can likely be resolved peacefully, viewing it as something between a waste of your talents and better suited to another, depending on your particular degree of hubris. If you aren't putting your skill at warfare to the test against a worthy opponent, you've wasted the training and effort that went into making you who you are today. You might not actually fight the battle yourself, but you'll ensure that whoever does is doing the best they can.
ReligionReligion is unlikely to play a large role in your life, but if it does, you almost certainly worship a deity of warfare and combat, such as Erythnul, Heironeous, Hextor, or St. Cuthbert. Should you choose to follow a god, you view your skills as an expression of your devotion, and do your best to mold your combat style to follow your deity's expectations.
Other ClassesBecause of your focus on warfare, you particularly respect members of other classes devoted to the same ideals. Martial adepts, fighters, and paladins are close friends to you, and you have a special affinity for spellshape champions and duskblades. Many more traditional spellcasters, particularly those who value peace and quiet, earn your disdain, but you respect their mastery of magical energies and rarely go out of your way to insult them. You enjoy the company of Warmages most among spellcasters, even if their contributions on the battlefield are lacking. You are ambivalent about members of stealthy classes; you respect stealth as a viable tactic and an effective tool, but a part of you is likely to instinctively reject them as the tools of a coward.
CombatAs soon as you can, charge to the front lines. Attack as rapidly as you can, discharging as many formulae as you are able – you can recover them quickly, and even adapt to new situations on the fly. You are not built for long, drawn out conflicts in which your opponents can slowly build up an advantage. Take advantage of your mount's offensive capabilities, and focus fire on a single target.
You gain access to more circles as you gain levels, allowing you access to a wider variety of effects, but you should always ensure that you have a focus on damaging abilities. Even so, since you change your prepared formulae so often compared to other spellshapers, it can be worth it to pick up a few unusual formulae, even if you don't expect to use them often. Try to keep a balance of minor and major formulae available, so that you run out of both at the same time and do not have to waste a round on just one or the other.
AdvancementYou likely were inducted into a larger force of soldiers who teach these techniques, but it's far from impossible that you developed the necessary technical, magical, and martial skills to forge the path for yourself. Either way, you're a member of this class because you seek glory through valorous action on the battlefield. Whether you're following orders or striking out on your own, you're aiming to be the best you can. Even if you're not personally fighting the war, you'll be devising strategies and tactics to ensure it's won.
As a magitek knight, your advancement is fairly straightforward. Choose bonus feats for yourself, and upgrades for your favored carrier, that reflect your personal style of combat. If you decide to multiclass, you could do worse than to take some levels of Artificer to enhance your favored carrier more efficiently. A spellshape champion's spellshape channeling ability can function well with this class, and can allow some devastating attacks involving multiple major formulae in a single round. Remember that a prestige class counts fully toward your shaper level, and so will advance it faster than staying in this class if you are a more magically-minded soldier.
Magitek Knights in the World“I heard she fried 50 of our best soldiers in under 3 minutes!”—Biggs, Imperial Lieutenant
Magitek knights inspire, if nothing else, fear. Primarily, their opponents fear standing toe-to-toe with a sword-swinging knight astride a huge robot that blasts apart swathes of the battlefield with lasers that are somehow made of acid. Besides this, though, their talents, along with those of artificers, inspire fear in the well-entrenched powers of the world that change might be on the horizon, and change is the last thing that anybody wants who is comfortable, safe, and powerful. The ability to create machines that use and manipulate magical power will fundamentally change the world, and here these lunatics endeavor to find the most efficient way of using that ability to kill things. This is far from a justified stereotype - there are many members of the class who do not meet this description, and who use their power to defend those who cannot and put an end to needless destruction, but even so, they are defined by their opposition to these things.
Wherever they are found, members of this class constantly redefine conflict. Ultimately, they claim, everything comes down to it, and their solution is to end it in the most brutally efficient way available. Even if physical combat turns out to be less applicable to the situation, a magitek knight remains a clever opponent, and will try to devise less direct solutions to her problems.
Daily LifeA magitek knight typically has a strict training regimen of exercises that keep her in peak physical condition. When not maintaining her body, she is likely to spend time maintaining her machines or her mind, tinkering with her favored carrier or studying new magical techniques or battle strategies. It's rare for her to have an idle moment – the most relaxing time of day for her is when she prepares her formulae for the day, taking a few minutes to calm herself and bring forth the knowledge she needs.
NotablesMagitek knights' love of battle ensures that many find places of recognition among militaries the world over. General Celes Chere is known for her honesty and straightforward actions when it comes to dealing with enemies, but rumors are beginning to fly among the officers that she's starting to have misgivings about following orders when so many of late have led to pointless deaths. On the other hand, Kefka Palazzo is universally reviled among the common soldiers for his senseless fits of anger and his tendency to order warriors to their deaths. It's a matter of opinion whether he's just incompetent, or weakening his position on the battlefield so that his later victory seems all the more miraculous in the Imperial Court. The truth is that he just likes to watch people bleed.
OrganizationsMagitek knights as a whole do not always have united organizations. Rather, they tend to pledge their allegiances to wider military organizations, serving on the front line or in command positions. In any case, they typically enjoy a higher status than the common soldier, whether they have noble blood or not. In some settings, magitek knights may be essentially unique to a single nation, but even in this case they owe their allegiance to that nation, rather than to some order dedicated to warriors like themselves.
NPC ReactionsIn a world that contains magitek knights, they tend to be one of the most obvious classes when encountered. A man on a shining horse might be a paladin, or just take very good care of his animal, but when somebody rides into town on a giant, steam-powered machine, it's undeniable that somebody unusual has arrived. When somebody without levels in this class purchases a set of magitek armor, other characters are likely to assume that that person actually is a magitek knight, likely in service to the local rulers.
Magitek Knight LoreCharacters with ranks in Knowledge (arcana) can research magitek knights to learn more about them. When a character makes a skill check, read or paraphrase the following, including the information from lower DCs.
DC 10: Magitek knights are warriors who augment their attacks with magic, and ride powerful mechanical mounts.
DC 15: Magitek knights practice magic in the form of spellshaping. However, their studies in the area are shallow compared to other spellshapers.
DC 20: A magitek knight can use their mounts as a source for their spellshape attacks, saving them actions.
Magitek Knights in the GameMagitek knights are best suited to heroic games in which acts of bravery and valor are reliable solutions to the problems the characters face. Their defining class feature makes them extremely ineffective at stealth, and they have no particular ability to deal with social situations. They work well in a party, and will often work hard to earn the approval of their fellow adventurers. Alternatively, they may even request the party's aid in winning some battle that they feel is beyond their ability alone.
AdaptationMagitek knights are an unusually focused class as currently written. They could benefit from an adaptation that allows a wider selection of mounts, such as undead, oozes, or vermin. A more extensive adaptation could allow virtually any kind of mount, or even shift the focus onto a more nimble, self-reliant type of magical warrior.
Magitek ArmorA set of Magitek Armor is a construct powered by steam and magical energy. Despite the name, a set functions as something closer to a mount than a suit of armor – the term refers to its role on the battlefield as a type of armored cavalry. While each set is a powerful tool in its own right, when piloted by a character trained in their use, they serve as powerful amplifiers for their riders' own magical energy. Because Magitek Armor is entirely mechanical, Handle Animal and Animal Affinity provide no bonuses to Ride checks involving it.
Magitek Armor
Large Construct
Hit Dice: 4d10+30 (52 hp)
Initiative: -
Speed: Speed 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 17 (-1 size, +8 armor), touch 9, flat-footed 17
Base Attack/Grapple: +3/+12
Attack: Slam +7 melee (1d8+5)
+2d6 on a charge
Full Attack: Slam +7 melee (1d8+5)
+2d6 on a charge
Space/Reach: 10 ft/5ft
Special Attacks: Tek laser
Special Qualities: Armored body, construct traits, DR 5/adamantine, inanimate
Saves: Fort +1, Ref +1, Will +1
Abilities: Str 18, Dex 10, Con -, Int -, Wis 10*, Cha 10*
Skills: –
Feats: Powerful Charge (B)
Alignment: –
Challenge Rating: 4**
*These are effective ability scores that enable it to serve as a creature. See the Inanimate ability.
**Magitek Armor cannot serve as an encounter without a rider. This value is useful only for calculating the combined EL of an encounter with opponents riding the armor.
This is the most basic type of magitek armor, so relatively common that it's simply referred to by the generic name. It has few special abilities, but it is tough, reliable, and effective against infantry.
A set of magitek armor typically stands about 8 feet tall without its rider, and weighs about 2000 pounds.
Combat
Magitek armor is typically ridden into melee combat, where its durability and bulk serves its rider well. Typically, its riders will have as many ranks in Ride as possible, so that they can take cover from incoming attacks reliably, encouraging foes to attack the armor instead. Massed charges are a particularly effective strategy, when a military has the funding to field enough of these expensive tools. When melee combat is impractical, tek lasers are a reliable fallback.
Armored Body (Ex): The heavy wood and thick steel plates that make up the bulk of a set of magitek armor's exterior provide it with a +8 armor bonus. This plating is not natural armor and does not stack with other
effects that give an armor bonus. This composite plating occupies the same space on the body as a suit of armor or a robe, and thus magitek armor cannot wear barding or magic items occupying the body slot. Magitek armor can be enchanted just as armor can be, allowing its armored body to provide exactly the same benefits. It must be present for the entire enchanting process.
Should a set of magitek armor ever be imbued with the intelligence to cast spells, it would find that its body inhibits its movements just as armor does. It provides the armor with a 35% arcane spell failure chance, similar to the penalty for wearing full plate armor. Similarly, should a set of armor ever gain class levels, any class ability that allows a it to ignore the arcane spell failure chance for heavy armor lets it ignore this penalty as well. For other purposes, such as whether or not the armor could benefit from the evasion special ability, this plating is considered heavy armor.
Inanimate (Ex:) A set of magitek armor is wholly inanimate without a rider – it is only through its controls being manipulated that it achieves even the barest semblance of life that it does. Its riders never need to make Ride checks to keep it from panicking or to otherwise make it obey its rider. When no creature has mounted it, it is considered an object, and cannot take actions of any kind. It does not gain hardness, and energy damage is dealt to it normally (instead of being divided as it usually is for objects).
It does not truly possess any mental ability scores, but while piloted instead possesses effective ability scores that allow it to function as if it were a creature. Even with a pilot, it cannot make skill checks dependent on Wisdom or Charisma, it automatically fails ability checks dependent on those ability scores, and those ability scores never increase, decrease, gain a bonus, or suffer a penalty. It never makes an initiative check; it always acts on the same turn as its pilot, or (if it lacks a pilot) not at all.
If it ever gains an Intelligence score, it loses this ability.
Tek Laser (Sp): A set of magitek armor can use magic missile as a 5th level caster, at will. However, it must target a single target with all of the missiles. All of them.
The blend of magic and technology has far wider implications than just hulking weapons of war. Some of the most common items are listed below.
Blast Amplifier: A blast amplifier resembles a harness made of wires and strips of leather, with a bright green crystal mounted in the center. It allows magitek knights to focus their magical energy, even in the absence of their favored carrier. It comes in several varieties, depending on its capabilities.
The least variety allows a magitek knight to use their Magitek Trigger class feature with the harness as if it were a mount. Because the amplifier does not have actions to take, it instead holds onto the magical charge for an instant, allowing the magitek knight to trigger the formula or spellshape attack with an immediate action just after her turn ends. If the magitek knight doesn't take this action immediately, the energy dissipates harmlessly and is wasted.
The lesser variety allows a magitek knight with the Tek Beam class feature to use that feature in conjunction with the ability supplied by the least amplifier.
The greater variety allows a magitek knight with the Tek Blast class feature to use that feature in conjunction with the ability supplied by the least amplifier.
Cost: 4,000 gp (least), 6,000 gp (lesser), or 8,000 gp (greater)
