Tech Creation

If you have chosen to use Blue Magic, skip this chapter.

The Tech Creation System is used to create the set of special attacks and abilities, called Techs, that your character will learn over the course of his career. Characters receive Tech Points at every level-up that are used to learn new Techs or upgrade old ones into a more powerful form. When you gain a level, you gain a certain number of Tech Points as shown on the following table. You gain the listed bonus every time your level increases within a given range. For example, when you reach level 2, add 2 Tech Points to your total. Reaching level 28 would add 6 Tech Points to your total.

Experience Level Achieved Tech Points Gained
1 (New Character) 12
2-10 2
11-20 4
21-30 6
31-40 10
41-50 20
51-60 30
61+ 10

In addition to the Tech Points that you gain when your experience level increases, you also gain bonus points for increasing your Magic stat. Each time you increase your Magic by one point, you gain a number of Tech Points based on what your new Magic stat is, as shown below. For example, if your Magic stat increases from 8 to 9, you gain 1 Tech Point; if it increases from 9 to 10, you get two Tech Points. Increasing it to 11 would net you another two Tech Points. These are one-time bonuses that are added to your total Tech Points as soon as your Magic increases. A new character begins the game with all the Tech Points he would normally have earned by increasing his Magic to the value he starts with; a beginning character with 11 Magic would have 13 extra Tech Points in addition to the ten he started with (see the level-based table above).

Magic Stat Achieved Tech Points Gained
1-10 +1
11-20 +2
21-30 +3
31-40 +4
41+ +6

As an example, a 3rd-level character with a Magic stat of 8 would have a grand total of 24 Tech Points (12 at first level, +2 at 2nd and 3rd level, and +1 for each of his eight points of Magic). For reference, tables listing the total number of Tech Points at each experience level and Magic level can be found in Appendix IV.

Using Techs

Each Tech has an MP cost required to activate it; if you cannot pay the cost, you cannot use the power. All Techs have a Power Level associated with them, which is different than Tech Level. Power Level determines the MP cost of the Tech. Some Techs, such as Magical Attack, have variable Power Levels, allowing you to use more powerful attacks in exchange for a higher MP cost. All Magic Point costs are given in the table below.

Tech Level MP Cost (Weak) MP Cost (Medium) MP Cost (Strong)
1 2 3 4
2 4 6 8
3 10 12 14
4 17 19 21
5 23 26 29
6 33 37 41
71 45 49 53
82 58 63 68

Learning Techs

To learn a new Tech, you must first decide what Tech Level you want the new power to be. Tech Level determines how powerful the new Tech will be, as well as the MP cost to activate it. In order to learn the Tech, you must spend some of the Tech Points you have earned. Each Tech has a Tech Point Cost, which must be paid in order to learn the Tech. A character may spend Tech Points to learn a Tech at any time. Learning a Tech is permanent - it cannot be unlearned. A character can have a maximum number of Tech Levels equal to 5 + (MAG / 2). A character may begin play with no more than 3 Techs, all of which must be Tech Level 1.

Tech Level Tech Point Cost
1 8
2 15
3 30
4 60
5 125
6 250

Creating the Tech

When creating a Tech, you choose one Primary Effect and up to two Secondary Effects from the lists below. Refer to the appropriate section for more information on Primary and Secondary Effects.

Upgrading a Tech

If you wish, you can upgrade an older Tech to make it more powerful, which is cheaper than learning a whole new Tech. To do so, simply pay the difference in Tech Points between the power’s current Tech Level and the level you wish to upgrade to. The upgraded Tech is identical to the old Tech, but the strength of its Primary Effect is
increased appropriately.

Example: Amos the Valiant already knows Cure, a first-level Medium Healing Tech, and he wants to upgrade it to a level 2 Healing Tech. According to the Tech Point Cost chart, Amos needs to spend 7 TP to upgrade the power. He does so, and Cure becomes a second-level Medium Healing Tech. It’s now a full level stronger than before, but its MP cost also increases from 3 to 6.

Cloned Powers

Cloned Powers are a way to improve your character’s flexibility without spending a large number of Tech Points. A Cloned Power is a Tech that has exactly the same Tech Level and Primary and Secondary Effects as the original, except ONE of the following:

  1. The clone has a different Elemental attached, OR
  2. The clone deals damage of a different type (Physical or Magical).

Only one degree of difference may be chosen for the clone. Cloned Powers are learned in the same way as normal Techs, but the Tech Point cost of the power is halved. The same goes for upgrading a Cloned Power, as long as the original power is of a higher Tech Level than the clone. If upgrading the clone would make it a higher Tech Level than the original, the upgrade costs full price. The reverse is also true - the original power may be upgraded for half cost if the clone is of a higher Tech Level. A single Tech may have multiple clones, but a Cloned Power may not be cloned. Finally, all Cloned Powers are considered one Tech Level lower for purposes of the character’s maximum learnable number of Tech Levels. Note that Cloned Powers are supposed to be modifications of existing powers, so they should be similar in some way to the original. The Master may rule against a nonsensical clone - for example, cloning Bazooka to create Sword Dance.

Example: Merlin the Mage needs a new Ice-elemental spell, so he decides to clone his Fireball attack. It’s a fourth-level, medium-strength Magical Attack, with Area Effect and Fire Elemental attached. It has a Tech Point cost of 60, but since Merlin is cloning it, the new power only costs 30 Tech Points. Merlin pays the cost, and learns the new power immediately. It’s a fourth-level, medium-strength, Area Effect Magical Attack with an Ice Elemental. Merlin calls the new spell Ice Storm. Later, Merlin upgrades Ice Storm to a level 5 power. It’s a clone, but the original is still the same Tech Level, so he pays full price - 65 Tech Points. He later decides to upgrade Fireball as well. Because its clone, Ice Storm, is a higher Tech Level than Fireball is, Merlin pays only 33 Tech
Points to upgrade it.

Primary Effects

Primary Effects are the various powers and special effects that define the Tech’s main function. Each Tech has one, and only one, Primary Effect. The Tech Level of the power determines how strong the Primary Effect is. Different Tech Levels have different effects on different powers; the description of each Primary Effect details its exact function at a particular Tech Level. Primary Effects that list a percentage chance of success have a total chance of success of (Base Chance + Magic Accuracy) – (Target’s Resist). Others, such as Power Attacks, will always succeed. After choosing a Primary Effect for your new Tech, you may enhance it with Secondary Effects (see below).

Attack Magic

Power Level: Variable
Attack Magic is the magical complement of Power Attack. Rather than elaborate blade dances or crushing axe blows, you use the power of magic to burn, freeze, disintegrate, or otherwise destroy your foes in spectacular ways. Attack Magic functions exactly the same way as Power Attack - the only difference is that you use your Magic Dice and Magic Attack Power to determine the damage dealt, rather than Strength Dice and Attack Power. Also, Attack Magic always deals magical damage, rather than physical damage. See the description of Power Attack, below, for more information.

Break Arts

Power Level: Medium
Similar to Status Effects, Break Arts damage an opponent's stats in battle. Multiple Break Arts of the same type are not cumulative.

  • Power Break reduces Strength-based damage dealt by the target.
  • Magic Break reduces Magic-based damage dealt by the target.
  • Speed Break reduces the Speed, for purposes of combat speed, of the target.
  • Armor Break increases the physical damage taken by the target.
  • Spirit Break increases the magical damage taken by the target.

All Break Arts have a Tech Level of 2, 4, or 6. Level 2 Break Arts have an effect of 25%, Level 4 Break Arts have an effect of 33%, and Level 6 Break Arts have an effect 50%. Thus, a Level 4 Armor Break would increase all physical damage done to the victim by 33%, or one third. Break Arts may not be cloned.

Demi Attack

Power Level: Medium
Attacks a single opponent with an attack that reduces the enemy's HP by either 33% (Tech Level 2) or 50% (Tech Level 5) of its current value.

Fatal Blow

Power Level: Strong
The attack is an attempt to destroy the target in a single blow. Fatal Blow has a minimum Tech Level of 2. Make a magical attack roll; Fatal Blow has a base modifier of -60, with a +15 bonus for each additional Tech Level beyond 2. For example, a third-level power would have a modifier of -45. If the attack fails, nothing happens.

Healing

Power Level: Variable
The skill is used to heal yourself or an ally. The Tech heals a total amount of HP equal to the Tech’s base healing value plus a bonus dependent on your Magic stat.

Tech Level Weak Medium Strong Bonus
1 20 30 40 MAG / 2
2 50 60 70 MAG / 2
3 80 90 100 MAG
4 120 130 140 MAG
5 140 160 180 MAG * 1.5
6 200 220 250 MAG * 2

Near-Fatal Attack

Power Level: Medium
Similar to, but less powerful than, a Fatal Blow, a Near-Fatal Attack attempts to reduce the target to 1 HP in a single blow. Make a magic attack roll; if successful, the target's Hit Points drop to 1. Near-Fatal Attack has a base modifier of -60 to your attack roll. For each Tech Level of the power beyond the first, the modifier is increased by +15. For example, a third-level power would have a modifier of -30. If the attack fails, no damage
is done.

Power Attack

Power Level: Variable
The Tech is designed to inflict heavy damage on the target, using your equipped weapon. Power Attacks always deal physical damage, and use your Strength Dice and Attack Power to determine how much damage is dealt. The type of dice rolled is determined by your equipped weapon- if your sword uses d10s for physical attacks, your Power Attacks use d10s as well. You can modify the die type by choosing a Power Level for the Tech. A Medium Power Attack rolls damage as normal, a Weak Power Attack uses one die class lower, and a Strong Power Attack uses one die class higher- thus, you can get a stronger attack for a little more MP, or reduce the price in exchange for lower damage. Die classes are ranked, from lowest to highest: d4, d6, d8, d10, d12. In addition, Power Attacks modify your Strength Dice and Attack Power as shown below:

Tech Level Bonus Dice Multiply AP by…
1 +1 die x1
2 +1 die x1.5
3 +2 dice x1.5
4 +2 dice x2
5 +3 dice x2
6 +3 dice x2.5

The complete formula is (Die Roll * 10) + (Modified AP).

Example: Diff the Biffer uses his powerful Biff attack, which is a level 6 Strong Tech, giving it an MP cost of 41. Diff has 2 Strength Dice, a base Attack Power of 170, and a tenth-level, d10 weapon with a +230 to Attack Power, giving him a total AP of 400. Diff's Biff gives him +3 dice of damage, and an AP multiplier of x2.5. Diff rolls 5d12 (his d10 is upped by one class, since it's a Strong Tech) and scores a 38. The Biff deals 1380 points of damage (38 * 10 is 380, and 400 * 2.5 is 1000).

It may be helpful to calculate your modified AP before the game and write it down on your character sheet - that way, you'll save some time while you're playing.

Quadra Slam

Power Level: Variable
The Quadra Slam attack allows you to strike randomly four times, with each strike dealing half damage. May not be combined with Area Effect or Backfire. May be combined with the -2 Tech Level version of Random Target, but not the -1 Tech Level version. Quadra Slam has a Tech Level of 3. The Power Level is based on Physical die type (d6 = Weak, d8 = Medium, d10 = Strong).

Revenge

Power Level: Strong
A Revenge attack deals greater damage as your health declines. At Tech Level 2, it deals an amount of damage equal to half the difference between your max HP and your current HP - i.e., half the amount of damage you have taken so far. At Tech Level 4, the damage dealt is equal to the total damage you have taken.

Revive

Power Level: Strong
This Tech revives a character whose Hit Points have been depleted, returning him to consciousness and restoring a portion of his HP. A Tech Level 3 Revive restores 10% of the character’s max HP; Tech Level 5 restores 50%, and Tech Level 6 restores the target to full health.

Stat Booster

Power Level: Medium
Stat Boosters are Techs that augment the subject’s normal abilities, making him stronger, faster, and more powerful. Multiple Stat Boosters of the same type are not cumulative.

  • A Strength Boost increases all Strength-based damage dealt by the subject.
  • A Magic Boost increases all Magic-based damage dealt by the subject.
  • A Speed Boost increases the Speed of the subject

Level 2 Stat Boosters have an effect of 25%, Level 4 Stat Booster have an effect of 33%, and Level 6 Stat Boosters have an effect of 50%. Thus, a Level 4 Strength Boost would increase the power of the subject’s weapon attacks by 33%, or one third. May not be combined with Backfire. Stat Boosters may not be Cloned for different stats.

Status Effect

Power Level: Medium
The Tech bestows one or more positive or negative status effects on the target. The minimum Tech Level of the power is equal to the sum of the levels of all the chosen effects. Positive effects will always work, but negative effects require a successful magic attack roll. Each negative status effect has a base modifier to the attack roll, as listed below. For each Tech Level of the power, you have 10 additional points to divide between the attack modifiers of all the chosen effects. For example, a fourth-level power might have Stun at -20 and Seal at -35. All temporary effects, such as Slow and MBarrier, last for 1d4+1 ticks. See Chapter VI: Combat for more information on Status Effects.

Status Effect Tech Level Base Attack Modifier
Stun, Poison 1 -40
Berserk, Curse, Dsentence 1 -45
Blind, Slow, Sleep, Seal 2 -55
Frog, Mini, Confuse, Zombie 3 -65
Stop, Stone, Charm, Venom 4 -70
Haste, Barrier, Mbarrier 3 -
Regen, Reraise 4 -
Wall 5 -

Secondary Effects

Secondary Effects are modifiers to the primary function of the power. Most Secondary Effects raise or lower the MP cost of the Tech in exchange for extra functionality or some sort of deficiency. The total Tech Level modifier is applied to the Tech Level of the power for purposes of figuring MP cost ONLY - the Tech Point cost of the power is not affected. Unless otherwise noted, any Primary Effect may be combined with any Secondary Effect. No Tech can have more than two Secondary Effects. If a Tech has enough Secondary Effects to reduce its effective Tech Level to 0 or lower, the power costs 1 MP.

Accurate

MP Adjustment: +1 Tech Level
This Secondary gives a flat +10 bonus to any Primary Effect that requires an Accuracy or Magical Accuracy roll. For example, a 2nd Level Poison Tech with Accurate would roll [1d100 + Mag Acc -10] instead of [1d100 + Mag Acc -20].

Area Effect

MP Adjustment: +1 Tech Level
The special ability affects either all enemies or all allies. Tech Levels 1-2 have half their normal effect (numerical values or chance of success, whichever is appropriate), while Tech Levels 3-6 have full effect. May not be used in conjunction with Self-Only.

Backfire

MP Adjustment: -1 Tech Level
The Tech is dangerous to its user as well as to his enemies, for every time the power is used, there is a 15% chance that it backfires, affecting the user instead of its intended target. May not be combined with beneficial Primary Effects such as Healing, and may not be used in conjunction with Random Target.

Dedicated

MP Adjustment: Varies
Similar to the Dedicated special weapon ability, this causes damage dealt to a creature of a specific type to take double the damage from a damaging tech (Though it does not stack with a weapon already affected by the same dedication). Further, if the tech is a status effect, or has a lesser status attack, the base miss chance is reduced by half. Any single tech may only have one instance of Dedicated. Dedicated techs can only target enemies.

The MP adjustment for the standard Dedicated Secondary is +1 MP, however, you may choose at Tech creation to make it so that the Tech ONLY affects monsters of the chosen Type. This variant of Dedicated grants the Tech a -2 MP adjustment.

Drain Attack

MP Adjustment: Special
The Tech, which must deal damage of some type to the opponent, drains a portion of the damage dealt back to the user, restoring his HP. For +1 Tech Level of MP, the power drains 25% of the damage dealt; for +2 Tech Levels, the drain is 50%. If combined with MP Attack, the Tech damages and drains MP instead of HP. If combined with Area Effect, choose one of two effects when the Tech is created:

  1. Damage all enemies, and drain ONLY from the target that took the most damage.
  2. Damage a single enemy, and divide the drained HP or MP between all allies.

HP Drain may NOT be combined with Sacrifice or Healing.

Elemental

MP Adjustment: None
The attack carries a certain element with it- Fire, Ice, etc. If the Tech is used with a
weapon that has an elemental property, the element of the Tech overrides the element of
the weapon. Elemental does not count towards the limit of two Secondary Effects per
Tech; any Tech may carry an Elemental regardless of how many other Secondary Effects
it has. May only be combined with damage-dealing Techs.

Inaccurate

MP Adjustment: -1 Tech Level
The Tech is less accurate than most, and requires an attack roll. May only be combined with Techs that do not normally require attack rolls, such as Weapon Techs, Magical Attacks, and Break Arts. If combined with Quadra Slam, each of the four attacks makes its own attack roll. Inaccurate Techs cannot score critical hits.

Limited Uses

MP Adjustment: -1 Tech Levels
The Tech may only be used once per Tech Level per battle. Even if the user is knocked unconscious after expending all its uses, and is later revived, the Tech may not be used anymore during that battle.

Lesser Status Attack

MP Adjustment: +1 Tech Level
Causes a negative status effect in addition to the primary effect of the Tech. The effect requires a magic attack roll, and has a base modifier to the attack roll as listed. The modifier is increased by +5 per Tech Level of the power, to a maximum of -30. Temporary effects such as Slow last for 1d3 ticks. Only one Status Effect may be chosen, but Lesser Status Attack can be chosen twice on one Tech, adding two possible status effects. May not be combined with Healing.

Status Effect Base Attack Modifier
Stun, Poison, Curse -60
Berserk, Blind, Sleep, Slow, DSentence -65
Frog, Mini, Seal, Confuse, Zombie -75
Stop, Stone, Charm, Venom -80

MP Attack

MP Adjustment: +1 Tech Level
Rather than damaging the target’s Hit Points, the Tech is designed to destroy magical strength. The Tech deals no damage, but reduces the target’s Magic Points by 1 / 10 of its damage roll; if the Tech normally deals no damage (for example, a Magic Break), make a damage roll as per a normal attack. Alternately, you may deal half damage to the target’s HP and 1 / 20 to its MP. If combined with Revenge, the damage dealt to the target’s MP is instead based on your own MP. At Tech Level 2, the damage is half the amount of MP you have lost; at Tech Level 4, the damage is equal to that amount. This damage is calculated prior to deducting the MP cost of the Tech.

Random Target

MP Adjustment: Special
The Tech is chaotic in nature and cannot be completely controlled. For –1 Tech Level, the Tech targets a random enemy (or ally, if the Tech is beneficial). For –2 Tech Levels, the target is completely random, and may be either an enemy or a friend.

Self-Only

MP Adjustment: -1 Tech Level
The Tech, which must be beneficial in nature, works in such a way so that it can only affect its user - no other ally may be targeted. May not be used in conjunction with Area Effect.

Short Range

MP Adjustment: -1 Tech Level
Normally, all Techs are considered long-ranged, meaning they can target flying creatures without penalty. However, with this Secondary Effect, the Tech is restricted to melee range, suffering penalties to hit at long range.

Single Use

MP Adjustment: -2 Tech Levels
The Tech may only be used once per battle. Even if the user is knocked unconscious after expending all its uses, and is later revived, the Tech may not be used anymore during that battle.

Steal As Well

MP Adjustment: +1 Tech Level
In addition to the normal effects of the Tech, the user makes an additional attack roll at –60, with a +5 bonus for every level of the base tech. If successful, he steals one of the target’s items, as per the Steal Minor Ability. If used in conjunction with Area Effect, the attack receives an additional penalty of -20. May not be combined with Healing or other beneficial Techs.

Alternate Cost Methods

These "secondaries" take up no Secondary slots, they merely change how the player pays to use their techs. These costs are meant to emulate the Archer's "Aim" or the Dark Knights "Darkside" abilities.

Charge Power

Instead of consuming MP, the user of the Tech must focus his energy for a certain amount of time before unleashing the Tech. Normally a Tech requires 8 Speed Points to use, just like any other action, but a Charge Power requires a higher expenditure of Speed Points. If a character does not have sufficient Speed Points, he may wait, taking no actions and expending no Speed Points, until he has enough points to execute the Tech. If combined with Secondary Effects, the amount of SP required increases or decreases in the same way as MP cost normally would. A Charge Power consumes SP according to its effective Tech Level and its Power Level as follows:

Tech Level Weak Medium Strong
0 9 9 10
1 9 10 11
2 11 12 13
3 13 14 15
4 15 16 17
5 17 18 19
6 19 20 21
7 21 22 23
8 23 24 25

Sacrifice

Sacrifice allows a character to partially or completely convert the MP cost of a power into lost Hit Points. There are two variants, chosen at creation.

  1. The power uses no MP, and instead drains (Original MP Cost * 5) HP from the user.
  2. The power requires half the normal amount of MP, and drains (Original MP Cost * 3) HP from the user.

If used for Healing, the Tech CANNOT affect the user, even if Area Effect is chosen. This also means that a Healing Tech may not be payed with both Sacrifice if it has Self-Only.

Unique Powers

Unique Powers are unusual abilities that do not fit into any other category. Unless otherwise stated, Unique Powers may not be combined with any Secondary Effects except Limited Uses and Single Use.

Absorbency

Tech Level: 6
Power Level: Strong
Grants one target Absorbency to one element for 1 rounds. All damage dealt by that element is reversed, restoring HP instead of reducing it. The element must be chosen when the ability is learned. May be combined with Self-Only.

Debilitate

Tech Level: Variable
Power Level: Medium
Debilitate infuses the enemy with a random elemental weakness. Roll 1d8 and consult the following table to determine which one. If cast a second time, the new weakness will replace the first. The caster also has a base 30% chance to force an element of his choice. Debilitate has a base Tech Level of 3, and the chance to force an element may be increased at a rate of +10 per extra Tech Level. Lasts until the battle ends or the weakness is overridden by a new attempt to Debilitate. If the target already posesses a Weakness, Resistance, Immunity or Absorbency to the resultant element, roll again.

Die Roll (1d8) Inflicted Weakness
1 Fire
2 Ice
3 Water
4 Lightning
5 Earth
6 Wind
7 Holy
8 Shadow

Dispel

Tech Level: Variable
Power Level: Weak
The Dispel power removes the effects of negative status conditions from the target. The power may remove up to 2 status effects per Tech Level. However, more severe conditions require a more powerful Dispel. The Tech may remove any Dispellable Effects of a level equal to or lower than the power’s Tech Level. May be combined with
Self-Only or Area Effect.

Tech Level of Dispel Dispellable Effects
1 Poison, Sleep, Curse
2 Berserk, Blind, Slow
3 Frog, Mini, Seal, Confuse, Charm, Zombie
4+ Stop, Stone, Venom, DSentence

Esuna

Tech Level: 6
Power Level: Medium
A more powerful version of Dispel, Esuna removes ALL negative status conditions from the target. May be combined with Self-Only.

Immunity

Tech Level: 4
Power Level: Medium
Grants one target Immunity to one element for 1 round reducing damage from that element to zero. The element must be chosen when the ability is learned. May be combined with Area Effect or Self-Only.

Invulnerability

Tech Level: Variable
Power Level: Strong
The subject of this spell becomes completely invulnerable to either Physical or Magical damage for a limited amount of time. For Tech Level 4, the subject is protected for one round; at Tech Level 6, the protection lasts two rounds. A character may not be under the effects of both types of Invulnerability at once. May be combined with Self-Only, and the Level 4 version may be combined with Area Effect.

MP Steal

Tech Level: 3
Power Level: Special
MP Steal drains an amount of MP from the target equal to 5 + (MAG / 10) and bestows it upon the caster. MP Steal has an MP cost of 1, and may not be combined with ANY Secondary Effects.

Neutralize

Tech Level: 2
Power Level: Strong
Neutralize removes all Weaknesses and Resistances from the target, and reduces all Immunities to Resistances.

Resistance

Tech Level: 2
Power Level: Medium
Grants one target Resistance to one element for 3 ticks, reducing damage from that element by half. The element must be chosen when the ability is learned. May be combined with Area Effect or Self-Only.

Scan

Tech Level: 1
Power Level: Weak
This Tech allows the user to discern the following information about the target monster: Current / Max HP, Current / Max MP, Weaknesses, Resistances, Immunities, and Absorbencies. You can also spot any items the monster may be carrying. At the Master’s option, Scan may also be used to find traps, secret doors, and other hidden things.

Steal Gold

Tech Level: Variable
Power Level: Weak
The character attempts to steal money from the target. To do so, you must make an attack roll at -40. For every Tech Level of the power beyond the first, your attack modifier is increased by +10. The amount of gold stolen is 100% of the target’s GP value (see Appendix I: Monster Creation). Once a particular target has been stolen from, additional attempts provide only 1 / 10 the normal amount of gold. The monster still yields the same amount of money when it is defeated. If combined with Area Effect, the attack modifier recieves an additional penalty of -25.

True Neutralize

Tech Level: 5
Power Level: Strong
True Neutralize removes all Weaknesses, Resistances, Immunities, Absorbencies, and Greater Absorbencies from the target.