Mechanist (4e Class)

Mechanist

“

There are those who tinker and spend their time crafting baubles of magic power, or imbuing it into armors and blades. There are those who lift sword and strike against those who would stand against them, or their friends. I ask you, why can't I do both?

”

Class Traits

Role: Defender.

Power Source: Arcane. While the sources of power for the machines that abound from the rooted body of the Mechanist are indeed Arcane in origin, you will be hard pressed to find one who claimed it to be their true power source, beyond their own mind.

Key Abilities: Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom

Armor Proficiencies: Cloth, Leather, Hide, Chainmail, Scale, Plate; Light Shield, Heavy Shield

Weapon Proficiencies: Simple Melee, Military Melee, Simple Ranged

Implements: Orb

Bonus to Defense: +1 AC, +1 Will

Hit Points at 1st Level: 16 + Constitution score

Hit Points per Level Gained: 7

Healing Surges per Day: 10 + Intelligence Modifier

Trained Skills: Arcana.  From the class skills list below, choose 2 more trained skills at 1st level. Class Skills: Athletics(Str), Endurance(Con), Insight(Wis), Intimidate(Cha), Perception(Wis)

Build Options: Scorpion mech, Mobile mech

Class Features: Mechanist's Engine, Mechanist's Apparatus, Improved Apparatus, Mechanized Support, Potential Self-Forged, Intelligent Design

Mechanists are the other side of the coin from the Artificer, instead of using their magic to create alchemical items and soldiers to aid their allies, they instead harness it as a power source to convert themselves into magic mechanical warriors, fighting at the frontlines, instead of behind them. You see magic as a science, and channel it through a focus, typically an orb, to power magnificent contraptions bound to your person, or perhaps just your armor.

The formulas of the arcane, the essence of magic is known to you, and manipulated in a less than traditional way, your mind is sharp and your senses keen, as would be typical of a mage or similar, but because the catalyst of your abilities is your own body, you've gone through rigorous training, and modifications so that you may be a suitable channel, a nexus of energy.

Mechanist Overview

Characteristics: You are very tough, out of necessity to use your machines, utilizing your body as a base to build a foundation upon. Channeling arcane energy into metal constructs, you are able to defend your allies, by impeding the paths of those who wish to cross you, or by placing yourself deftly in the way of the strikes against your friends. Those who ignore your mechanations soon find themselves at the receiving end of a cold claw strike. While not particularly built to excel at a range, you can manage to move yourself around well enough and close the melee gap as necessary.

Religion: Mechanists naturally favor deities of knowledge, creation, and civilization, favoring Moradin, Ioun, and Erathis. Evil Mechanists tend to favor either Vecna or Asmodeus.

Races: Warforged are the ideal race for a Mechanist. Their bodies are already made of metal, and take well to the apparatuses that are attached to them. The fleshier races that find themselves among the Mechanists are the Dwarves, strong and sturdy, and the humans, bold and brass. Further are the Genasi, already a nexus of energy, building unto themselves a greater focus for the power they wield is not beyond them.

Creating a Mechanist

Mechanists rely on Constitution and Intelligence for most of their key abilities, with some minor importance placed on Wisdom for other abilities. Strength or Dexterity may be useful at times, although the ability to naturally function may be subverted out as the mechanations toil about you more and more. Mechanists start with two common builds, Scorpion Mech and Mobile Mech.

Scorpion Mech

You rely on increasing your stature to behemothian, striking with many heavy weapons. Scorpion Mechs are so named for their reliance upon the Crane Arm, which some fondly call their 'Stinger', and preference for the Clockwork Bracer, their 'Claw'. Choose Constitution as your highest score, allowing your body to withstand more, and sustain more apparatuses, with Intelligence as your second highest to boost your damage output. Your third highest score should be Wisdom. Consider wielding a heavy shield, a two handed weapon, and a hand crossbow.

Suggested Apparatuses: Crane Arm, Clockwork Bracer

Suggested Feat: Master at Arms (Human Feat:Weapon Focus)

Suggested Skills: Arcana, Athletics, Endurance

Suggested At-Will Powers: <!-suggested two at will powers->

Suggested Encounter Power: <!-suggested encounter power->

Suggested Daily Power: <!-suggested daily power->

Mobile Mech

Agility is more important to you than being a bulky wall, favoring the ability to dart around the battlefield offering secondary aid to your allies, even taking attacks for yourself from them. You do not focus on damage others, instead placing your eye on letting your friends escape from any encounter unharmed. Your primary score is Constitution, making you durable to withstand such blows, followed by Wisdom to help with locking down the field of battle with effects. You place third priority on Intelligence. Consider ways to maximize your defenses without slowing your speed, and perhaps invest in a ranged weapon.

Suggested Apparatuses: Pneumatic Greaves, Pulse Injector

Suggested Feat: Swift Recovery (Human Feat:Defensive Mobility)

Suggested Skills: Arcana, Insight, Perception

Suggested At-Will Powers: <!-suggested two at will powers->

Suggested Encounter Power: <!-suggested encounter power->

Suggested Daily Power: <!-suggested daily power->

Mechanist Class Features

All Mechanists share these class features (REQUIRE TO HAVE A MECH OF SOME KIND).

Mechanist's Engine: Whether imbued into your flesh, or built into your already metallic frame, you have a slot in your body, of cold metal, where the focus of your energy drain, typically an orb, is placed into. The slot allows you to freely hold onto the orb and channel it, without having to physically hold it as normal. Implements larger than an orb are unable to fit into the slot and must be held as normal for usage. Implements that are not the orb, and are the orb's size or smaller may be placed into the slot with only the most minor of alterations.

Mechanist's Apparatus: Mechanists enjoy the labors of metal, and alterations onto the simple arcane engine embedded within them. They extend from such simple machines and devices from that point to aid and abet them in a variety of ways. At level 1, a Mechanist may choose two of the following apparatuses to have, powered on their body. None of these apparatuses count towards your carried load. At level 5, choose a third apparatus. At level 7, choose a fourth apparatus.

Crane Arm: The Crane Arm extends from the back of the Mechanist, over their head, and hangs a claw down in front of them. This apparatus is capable of holding small items, one handed implements, light shields, or an offhand weapon. The apparatus has an extended reach, able to interact with objects two squares from you, opposed to just one. It may not pick up items more than 15 pounds in weight. It may drag up to 75 pounds worth in weight. This apparatus comes with an armor penalty of -2 to all associated skills.

Servo Shoulders: The Servo Shoulders are tiny arms built upon your shoulders, each weak, and unable to wield much weight, they however serve well at replacing your items. You may draw or sheath a one handed weapon as a free action, instead of a minor one, and may retrieve or stow a small item ( less than 6 pounds ) as a free action as well.

Clockwork Bracer: The Clockwork Bracer extends from the forearm and offers a second hand, held just beneath your first, linked to the same impulses that control your natural one. With both hands working in unison, you may on one side wield a melee two-handed weapon, functionally one-handed, with a -3 penalty to attack rolls made with said two-handed weapon.

Pneumatic Greaves: The Pneumatic Greaves are attachments to the Mechanist's legs, channeling arcane energy to increase the move speed of its wearer. They further give a small bonus to athletics checks dealing with jumping. Gain a +5 to Athletics Checks when jumping, and a +1 to move speed.

Focal Eye: The Focal Eye is used as a replacement for a character's natural eye, giving the character a shade 'darker' vision out to a certain breadth. Characters with only normal vision gain low-light vision up to 4 squares away. Characters with low-light vision gain darkvision up to 2 squares away. Characters with darkvision gain blindsight up to 1 square away. When you make a ranged basic attack, the enemy is marked until the end of your next turn.

Pulse Injector: The Pulse Injector is built like a collar around half of the character's neck, that enable the character to recover faster during combat than otherwise possible. The character may use their second wind as a minor action. For dwarves, this instead gives them an additional 5HP gained when using their second wind.

Improved Apparatus: One of your apparatuses have become favored by you in your endeavors, and as such you've put concerted effort into improving it into a far more useful extension of your body. At level 6, choose one of your three current apparatuses to improve. You may not at a later time, change to improve a different apparatus instead.

Improved Crane Arm: Your Crane Arm no longer penalizes any skill checks, and may now wield a versatile one-handed weapon, instead of only an offhand weapon. It may now also wield a heavy shield, instead of a light one.

Improved Servo Shoulders: Your Servo Shoulders may draw and sheath any weapon of yours as a minor action now, instead of just one-handed weapons. Your Servo Shoulders may stow or retrieve items up to 15 pounds as well, as a free action. You gain Speed Loader as a free feat.

Improved Clockwork Bracer: Your Clockwork Bracer no longer takes a -3 penalty to attack rolls made when using a melee two-handed weapon as a one-handed weapon.

Improved Pneumatic Greaves: Your Pneumatic Greaves give you a +2 bonus to speed, instead of a +1. You also gain a +2 bonus to initiative rolls.

Improved Focal Eye: Your Focal Eye's viewing range is doubled. You gain a +5 to all perception checks.

Improved Pulse Injector: Your Pulse Injector grants an additional +2 bonus to all defenses when you use your second wind, and another 5HP.

Mechanized Support: You have become adept at using your apparatuses to aid your allies. Depending on which apparatus you have, you gain their respective power. You may use up to two of these per turn.

Crane Arm: Gain the Crane Smasher At-Will power.

Crane Smasher	Mechanist Class Feature
Arcane energy wells up within you, charging your crane arm to smash into an enemy just as they're about to strike an ally of yours
4e Power Usage::At-Will  Arcane, Weapon
4e Power Action Type::Free Action	Melee 2
Trigger: An enemy within 2 squares of you makes an attack that doesn't include you as a target
Requirement: Crane Arm apparatus
Target: The triggering enemy
Attack: Intelligence Vs. AC
Hit: 1[W] + Intelligence Modifier damage. If the Crane Arm is not wielding a melee weapon, treat it as if it is wielding an improvised weapon. Increase to 2[W] + Intelligence Modifier damage at 21st level.
Effect: The target takes a -2 to their attack roll.
Special: You may only use this and one other Class Feature Free Action Power per combatant's turn.

Servo Shoulders: Gain the Servo Blast At-Will power.

Servo Blast	Mechanist Class Feature
With an ally about to take a hit, your shoulder arms work quickly to ready a shot against the attacker.
4e Power Usage::At-Will  Arcane, Weapon
4e Power Action Type::Free Action	Ranged 10
Trigger: An enemy within 10 squares makes an attack that does not include you as a target
Requirement: Servo Shoulders apparatus, must be wielding a ranged weapon
Target: The triggering enemy
Attack: Intelligence Vs. AC
Hit: 1[W] + Intelligence Modifier damage. Increase to 2[W] + Intelligence Modifier damage at 21st level.
Effect: The target takes a -1 to their attack roll.
Special: You may only use this and one other Class Feature Free Action Power per combatant's turn.

Clockwork Bracer: Gain the Clockwork Strike At-Will power.

Clockwork Strike	Mechanist Class Feature
With a hairpin trigger, your Clockwork Bracer lashes out nearly immediately as an enemy does all but attack you.
4e Power Usage::At-Will  Arcane, Weapon
4e Power Action Type::Free Action	Melee Weapon
Trigger: An enemy within 1 square either shifts, or makes an attack that does not include you as a target
Requirement: Clockwork Bracer apparatus
Target: The triggering enemy
Attack: Intelligence Vs. AC
Hit: 1[W] + Intelligence Modifier damage. Push the target 1 square. Increase to 2[W] + Intelligence Modifier damage at 21st level.
Effect: The target takes a -1 to their attack roll.
Special: You may only use this and one other Class Feature Free Action Power per combatant's turn.

Pneumatic Greaves: Gain the Pneumatic Defense At-Will power.

Pneumatic Defense	Mechanist Class Feature
With an ally about to take a hit, you push them out of the way, sliding in to take the hit instead.
4e Power Usage::At-Will  Arcane
4e Power Action Type::Free Action	Ranged 2
Trigger: An ally within 2 squares is about to be hit by an attack that does not include you as a target
Requirement: Pneumatic Greaves
Target: The triggering ally
Effect: Shift the target 1 square. You shift up to 2 squares to enter the space your ally was in before. Reroll the attack against your defense, instead of your ally's.
Special: You may only use this and one other Class Feature Free Action Power per combatant's turn.

Focal Eye: Gain the Targeting Optics At-Will power.

Targeting Optics	Mechanist Class Feature
Your eye locks onto an enemy, temporarily preparing you to assault them mercilessly
4e Power Usage::At-Will  Arcane
4e Power Action Type::Free Action	Ranged 10
Trigger: An enemy within 10 squares makes an attack that does not include you as a target
Requirement: Focal Eye apparatus
Target: The triggering enemy
Effect: Until the end of your next turn, the target grants you combat advantage, and cannot gain the benefits of concealment, or become invisible to you
Special: You may only use this and one other Class Feature Free Action Power per combatant's turn.

Pulse Injector: Gain the Friendly Injection At-Will power.

Friendly Injection	Mechanist Class Feature
Your machines begin immediately readying a pulse injection for an ally as soon as they take damage.
4e Power Usage::At-Will  Arcane, Healing
4e Power Action Type::Free Action	Melee Touch
Trigger: An ally up to 5 squares away from you takes damage from an attack that doesn't include you as a target
Requirement: Pulse Injector apparatus. Has at least one healing surge.
Target: The triggering ally
Effect: Until the end of your next turn, if at any point you and the target are adjacent, you spend a healing surge but gain no hit points. Instead, the target regains hit points equal to your healing surge value.
Special: You may only use this and one other Class Feature Free Action Power per combatant's turn.

Powers

A Mechanists' powers are called spells and are channeled through the Orb, used as the power source for your machines, to force change upon the world. A list can be found Mechanist Powers (4e Power List).

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