macksting wrote:Arguable. They still channel and cast spells otherwise as a mage does, regardless of focus, unless they're using TW equipment to cast the spells. Certainly a powered armor suit is a focus for Mystic Fulcrum, Lightning Bolt, Armor of Ithan, Armor Bizarre, and a suit with jump jets could easily be a focus for a wind or flight spell, but you'll have a harder time with Invisibility, World Bizarre, Illusory Terrain (or whatever it's called), etc. The optics could be foci for See Through Magical Darkness and Sense Magic, but Telekinesis should probably use stuff the suit won't have. Silence and Darkness spells, likewise, might be hard to pull off with a suit's equipment alone.
What I'm getting at is that there are a great many spells you might want to build into a suit or at least create foci for. Best not to stack penalties on top of penalties, eh?
So a suit made of primarily natural materials (fire beetle armor, MDC wood) plus natural caulk and some seals here and there of a technological variety augmented by a Sustain or Breathe Without Air spell to be put up only when you think it's needed, turning a natural armor suit into a natural magical EBA. Throw in a Mystic Fulcrum device and a few TW tricks like an illusion projector, invisibility field and a Mystic Portal generator, plus maybe a fully fleshed out TW weapon with a few tricks up its sleeve and the occasional Wall of Wind blast from a shoulder-mounted TW device, and you'll be set for battles other wizards would have trouble with. That's my theory on the matter.
I suppose what I'm getting at is that armor should impede mages unless explicitly stated otherwise. The fact that you've got a focus doesn't necessarily mean it won't also be a liability. If your focus is EBA, that's just doubly problematic.
However, there are armor options for the dedicated technowizard, even if you want optional EBA (something TWs should be quite effective at creating), so do consider the options.
i am not saying that all spells can use whats on a PA for a focus i am just saying that a PA has multiple things that can be used as such. The right PA can have something for most spells making it a fair bet that a TW should be able to use it without penalty most of the time. As far as EBA that is a whole different subject as it does not have nearly as many systems as a PA that a TW can use. Though it may have a limited few that could work examples would be that some EBA's have optic systems built in which could be used as a focus for some detection spells (see invisible, etc) or is an EBA has a built in force field system i would say that could be used for defensive spells (armor of ithian, etc). Other than that an EBA would not have much to use as a focus unless you have the naruni armor with the variable stealth system it might be used for a few illusion spells such as invisibility. Or to be real exotic some of the forearm weapon systems from juicer uprising ca be built into EBA in which case they could be used as a focus for offensive spells. IMO the techno-wizard should be (under certain conditions) be the exception to the modern armor rule due to the way that their magic works. A ley line walker can't cast well in EBA/PA because they have problems channeling magic energy though the high tech man made materials used in making EBA/PA right? But this is what a TW MUST do, Channel magic energy though a high tech man made device (C-18, optics band, portable scanner, whatever the TW needs to use as a focus for that particular spell) to even get his magic to work at full power right? So if this particular item is built into an EBA/pa a TW now gets a penalty for doing what he has always done and HAS to do to make his magic work right, channel magic through a high tech man made device? Ummmm no i don't think so lol
edited do complaints about a lack of periods even though it was only the first third that was missing them due to haste and interruptions (did this at work) the rest was just fine. Sorry didn't realize this was for a grade in english lit