Mage

Mages are masters of magic. Unlike other classes that beat people with heavy objects, mages beat people with arcane knowledge

Overview
Hit Die: D4

Skill Point: 4 + Intelligence Modifier

Class Skills: Awareness, Concentration, Craft, Knowledge (all skills, taken individually), and Use Magic Item

Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Mages are proficient with all simple weapons.

Mages are not proficient with any armor, or shields.

Class Abilitys
Spellcasting Mages wield a mysterious and powerful force called “magic” to set things on fire, set things not on fire, and set plenty of things that have nothing to do with fire. At 1st level, a Mage gains the ability to use magic to cast Spells, and selects a specialization. This specialization represents the Mage’s special training in a particular variety of  magic called a “school”. (For more on schools, see Chapter 8: Spells). Mages gain two benefits from this specialization. First, they gain a special ability based on their specialty, as explained in the individual school’s description. Additionally, Mages also gain all spells in their specialized school to which they have access. At 1st level, this means a Mage can cast any spell of their specialty in the first or second Tier. At 4th level, the Mage gains access to 3rd Tier spells in their specialty, and 4th Tier spells become available at 6th level. In addition, Mages can cast a limited roster of spells outside their specialty. 1st Tier spells are available at 1st level, 2nd Tier is available at 3rd level, and 3rd Tier at 5th level. The number of spells the Mage may know at a given time is given in the table.

Casting Mechanics Standard casting times for spells are 1 Standard Action unless otherwise noted. When a spell is cast, it must cool down for a number of rounds equal to the tier level of the spell minus 1. Ex. first tier spells are available the next round, while fourth tier spells are available after 3 rounds have passed. Check specific spells' entries for exceptions. To cast a spell, the caster must pass a Knowledge Magic check against the DC of the spell (DC10 for Tier 1, DC15 for Tier 2, DC20 for Tier 3, DC25 for Tier 4). Failing the Knowledge Magic check does not force the spell to cool down unless the caster fails by more than 5. Failure by 5 or more extends the attempted spell’s cooldown to 1d4 rounds for tier 1, 1d6 rounds for tier 2, 1d8 rounds for tier 3, 1d10 rounds for tier 4. For spells with longer than standard cooldowns, this time is in addition to the normal cooldown time. Spells with durations longer than instantaneous will either go on cooldown when the spell is cast or when the spell is finished; specific entries will indicate which applies.

Detect Magic From intense study and practice, the mage has learned how to recognize manifestations of magic. Beginning at 1st level, the Mage can take a Standard Action to focus their eyes to detect the presence of magical auras. Any magic present or being cast within a 12 square cone in front of the Mage is instantly recognized. The Mage can instantly identify the school of the spell but must focus on the source for 3 rounds to identify the spell if its effects are not self-evident. In the case of spells actively being cast, the Mage may make a Knowledge (Magic) check with a DC of 15 + the caster’s level to identify the spell. If the spell being cast is within his specialized school he gains a +2 to this check.

Spell PDA The overcrowded public transportation that the working Mage is subjected to doesn’t facilitate the regular transport of dozens of dusty tomes. The modern Mage employs a modern solution. At 2nd level, the Mage gains access to a PDA that they can use to log into the Mage’s Guild Online Resource Database (MGORD). The Mage can use the spell PDA to change the spells they have access to outside of their specialization. This process takes 1 hour,  regardless of the number of spells being swapped out. Additionally, the Mage can choose to cast spells directly  from the PDA. This use of the PDA requires 2 rounds per Tier of the spell and a network connection.

Online Rental Due to the extensive research and investment needed to develop a 3rd Tier spell, Mages are required to rent any  3rd Tier spells from MGORD which they do not have memorized. Because the Mage is paying for this service, they  are able to store rented spells in the PDA’s internal memory. Rented spells remain in memory for 72 hours and are then automatically deleted from the PDA. Stored spells can be accessed and cast as a full round action or  as the normal casting time of the spell, whichever is longer. The mage does not need a network connection to  access downloaded spells. While the spells are stored in internal memory, the Mage has the option to either cast  the spell an unlimited number of times directly from the PDA (normal cooldowns apply) or to transfer the spell into  the PDA’s memory. If the Mage wishes to transfer, but does not have any available slots, they must earmark one of  their currently stored spells for deletion when the transferred spell’s rental would have ended.