[8-bit]

So, I had an idea to focus on a Magician who focuses on touch spells. I'm not 100% accurate on how those spells work, and it's probably not an original idea (in fact, I know it's not). Just to give it a little twist, I decided to add in the possession tradition of Qabbalism from Street Grimoire. This allows me to expand it into a Hebrew themed character, which I'm really liking. I'm not sure if I'm missing anything, and maybe I've misinterpreted the rules. I'll post the character below and my ideas for his roleplaying and strategies.

Name: Shachar Serlin
Alias: Malachi

-- Priorities --
Metatype C (Human)
Attributes B
Magic A (Magician - 6 Magic, 10 Spells)
Skills D
Resources E

-- Karma Expenditure --
50 Total
-24 in Qualities
-10 for 20,000 nuyen
-12 for Contacts

4 Left

-- Attributes --
Body 3
Agility 3
Reaction 3
Strength 1
Willpower 5
Logic 5
Intuition 5
Charisma 3
Edge 7
Essence 6

Initiative - 8 + 1d6
Astral Initiative - 10 + 2d6
Physical Condition Monitor - 10
Stun Condition Monitor - 11
Physical Limit - 3
Mental Limit - 7
Social Limit - 6
Astral Limit - 7

-- Qualities --
Focused Concentration 6 (-24 Karma)
Gremlins 4 (+16 Karma)
Addiction - Deepweed, Moderate (+9 Karma)

-- Skills --
Assensing 6 (+2 Aura Reading) - dice pool 11 (13)
Counterspelling 5 - dice pool of 11
Perception 6 (+2 Visual) - dice pool of 11 (13)
Spellcasting 6 - dice pool of 12
Summoning 6 (+2 Spirits of Air) - dice pool of 12 (14)

-- Knowledge/Language Skills --
Hebrew N
English 6 (+2 Speak) - dice pool of 11 (13)
Arabic 6 (+2 Speak) - dice pool of 11 (13)
Torah/Hebrew Literature and Culture 6 - Academic - dice pool of 11 (Don't know if this is too broad or the wrong stuff, anybody know?)

-- Gear --
Armor Jacket w/ Nonconductivity 6 - 2,500 nuyen
10 Deepweed - 4,000 nuyen
1 Rating 6 Medkit - 1,500 nuyen
3 Meta Link Commlinks - 300 nuyen
40 Drams of Reagents - 800 nuyen
Capacity 4 Glasses w/ Flare Compensation, Low-Light Vision, Vision Magnification, Vision Enhancement 1 - 1,900 nuyen
Rating 4 Fake SIN (Noah Adams) - 10,000 nuyen
1 month of Middle Lifestyle - 5,000 nuyen

Remaining Money - 0 + (4d6 x 100) nuyen

-- Magic --
Combat Spells
Corrode (Guns)
Death Touch
Punch

Detection Spells
Clairvoyance

Health Spells
Decrease Reflexes
Heal
Increase Reflexes

Illusion Spells
Improved Invisibility
Sound Barrier

Manipulation Spells
Deflection

-- Contacts --
Chaim Matzarah - Talismonger
Connection 4, Loyalty 3
A friend that Malachi grew up with, they never really knew each other that well. However, being within a small community of Hebrew, they were forced to at least recognize each other. Chaim always had a fascination for magical artifacts, and he quickly learned the trade of being a Talismonger. Malachi was in need of reagents, so he went to someone he could trust. He and Chaim have been good business partners over the years, and they know they can trust each other because of their past. They also know that if push really came to shove, they would sell each other out.

Abrahim Aram - Fixer
Connection 5, Loyalty 2
Abrahim is a talented lawyer who has many connections within the state. He only does business with Malachi since Malachi has proven he is Hebrew with his knowledge of the Torah. Over the years, Abrahim has gotten somewhat more agreeable, but Malachi still knows it's only business. Malachi doesn't complain, since Abrahim has shown he can get him jobs with his connections. Not to mention the deepweed that Malachi wants to converse with the spirits.

Solomon Brie - Bartender
Connection 3, Loyalty 4
Solomon and Malachi have been friends most of their life. Although they've gone their separate ways, Malachi still has drinks with Solomon quite often. They joke around quite often, and Solomon even shares the lastest news and gossip that he's heard. It's kind of incredible how much bartenders overhear. Malachi considers him one of his only true friends.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

All right, so that's all the stat stuff out of the way. Now, for how I was thinking of using this character. I would usually have a Force 6 Increased Reflexes spell sustained with Focused Concentration, or switch it out for a Force 6 Deflection spell. The goal of this guy is to get close enough to lay the smackdown with some touch spells. I would assume it's just Spellcasting + Magic, because if it requires Unarmed Combat that would be really bad. I figure between Death Touch and Punch, I have damage covered, and I added in Decrease Reflexes just to make things interesting. Sure, it's probably not the most effective combat mage ever, but the thematic stuff is interesting and I figure he could still be useful.

To really do some damage, he would summon a spirit to possess his body. Now, I'm not sure exactly how that works, since I read that it requires a test, but what if the subject is willing? I would allow the spirit to give me some extra stats and to start doing some damage. I'm not sure if I'm in control of the spirit, but I do believe I can give it suggestions to start blasting my enemies away.

So, there we go, that's my strange idea of a mage. I was thinking of making him a mystic adept, but magician just fits better. Any criticism or ideas are welcome.

[ZeldaBravo]

I might be wrong,  but doesn't your physical limit of 3 effectively prevent you from touching unwilling people? I mean that dodging 3 hits is not that hard. Your edge will help but "edging every roll" is not that much of a plan imo...

[8-bit]

I might be wrong,  but doesn't your physical limit of 3 effectively prevent you from touching unwilling people? I mean that dodging 3 hits is not that hard. Your edge will help but "edging every roll" is not that much of a plan imo...

I'm not exactly sure how touch spells work, do I need to make an unarmed touch attack to get it to work? If so, I'll need to rearrange some things ...

[Shrazkil]

I am working on finalizing a similar concept (mysad), less all touch, but utilizing a combination of nerve strike, and normal spellcasting (nervestriking while invis seems pretty cool way to handicap someone. I am going with a massive dodge/block build, so those who follow the "geek the mage first" are going to be in for a surprise. I use focused concentration 5, and keep my intuition at 10, while i have improved reflexes 2 (7 total reflex) and 6 combat sense, as well as kicking in plague cloud to give a further -3 to range attacks.

Focus concentration can have some great uses, i can go from nerve striking with 5 strength (would have been much lower but need it decent for physical limit), to regular unarmed with 10 strength and +6 DV radiation elemental aura (if its considered elemental, otherwise lightning).

[subgenius]

Sorry 8-bit, but on page 282 under spell characteristics: range, it clearly says that "some spells require you to Touch (T) the target - if the target is unwilling, you'll need to make an unarmed attack against the target".

In this case, your physical limit and total lack of unarmed skill (not to mention the weak agility) will make it a daunting task. I was pondering a character like this myself, and it seems like the most effective way to do it is with a mystic adept who neglects summoning in favor of spellcasting and unarmed combat. It makes for a cool character type, and with the adept side you can get a lot more mileage out of the necesary physical attributes and unarmed skill.

[Herohades]

You may want to add in a Sneak skill so that you don't always have to face your enemies head on, and therefore make your life that much easier.

[8-bit]

Well damn. Back to the drawing board with this. I still like the concept, but now I'm thinking touch spells are out, can't stretch my Priorities that thin. I'll revise this and edit it when I'm done.

@Shrazkil

An interesting build for sure. I would like to point out that Radiation strike (or as an element) is available to toxic adepts only. So, stick with lightning.

@subgenius

Thanks for clarifying, I couldn't find the right passage for it.

@Herohades

I've found that if someone is rocking a physical limit of less than 5, Sneaking is nearly useless unless you Edge the roll. Considering that certain priorities mean you have to drop certain skills, my physical limit of 3 isn't really going to get me sneaking past many people.

[Herohades]

I see. I'm still getting used to all the changes that have been made since third edition.

[Kincaid]

Dim Mak mages are awesome--I think your best bets are Decrease Strength and Decrease Charisma, since people (and certainly NPCs) dump those stats pretty often.  Decrease Reflexes just isn't worth it.  Everyone has a reasonably decent Reaction and you're just chipping away at someone's initiative with that spell--your best case scenario is you force someone to lose an initiative pass.  Reduce the sam's Charisma to 0 and he's in a coma.

I don't know if you need all that much FC.  You can just use a spirit to sustain a spell if you really need it.  Typically, reducing an opponent to a catatonic state shortens combat quite a bit, so you don't find yourself sustaining those things for very long.  Use the freed up points to buy your Strength to 2 and pick up a level of Indomitable.  That takes your Physical Limit to 5.  You win ties, so that's fairly decent.  Even rolling 12 defense dice--which is very good--you'll only get 6+ hits roughly 18% of the time.

[Marcus]

Your concept interesting but your going to many places.
I'd suggest going Magic Adept, getting some power points, i'd drop out of edge 7.
Grab shark as a mentor, do some attribute redistribution, maybe swap to Attribute A?
And then you will be boss of magical melee combat.   

[8-bit]

All right guys, I've been away on vacation for a while, but I finally updated this guy. I'm not 100% sure how it will work out, but I like it at the moment. Any criticism is welcomed.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Name: Shachar Serlin
Alias: Malachi

-- Priorities --
Metatype C (Human)
Attributes B
Magic A (Magician - 6 Magic, 10 Spells)
Skills D
Resources E

-- Karma Expenditure --
50 Total
-24 in Qualities
-10 for 20,000 nuyen
-15 for Contacts

1 Left

-- Attributes --
Body 3
Agility 3
Reaction 3
Strength 1
Willpower 5
Logic 6
Intuition 5
Charisma 2
Edge 7
Essence 6

Initiative - 8 + 1d6
Astral Initiative - 10 + 2d6
Physical Condition Monitor - 10
Stun Condition Monitor - 11
Physical Limit - 3
Mental Limit - 8
Social Limit - 5
Astral Limit - 8

-- Qualities --
Focused Concentration 6 (-24 Karma)
Gremlins 4 (+16 Karma)
Addiction - Psyche, Moderate (+9 Karma)

-- Skills --
Assensing 6 (+2 Aura Reading) - dice pool 11 (13)
Counterspelling 5 - dice pool of 11
Perception 6 (+2 Visual) - dice pool of 11 (13)
Spellcasting 6 - dice pool of 12
Summoning 6 (+2 Spirits of Air) - dice pool of 12 (14)

-- Knowledge/Language Skills --
Hebrew N
English 6 (+2 Speak) - dice pool of 11 (13)
Arabic 6 (+2 Speak) - dice pool of 11 (13)
Torah/Hebrew Literature and Culture 6 - Academic - dice pool of 12 (Don't know if this is too broad or the wrong stuff, anybody know?)
Magical Theory 2 - Academic - dice pool of 8

-- Gear --
Armor Jacket w/ Nonconductivity 6 - 2,500 nuyen
13 Psyche - 2,600 nuyen
1 Rating 6 Medkit - 1,500 nuyen
1 Meta Link Commlink - 100 nuyen
80 Drams of Reagents - 1,600 nuyen
Capacity 4 Monocle w/ Image Link, Low Light Vision, Vision Enhancement 1, Vision Magnification - 1,755 nuyen
Rating 4 Fake SIN (Noah Adams) - 10,000 nuyen
Rating 4 Fake License (Registered Magician) - 800 nuyen
1 month of Middle Lifestyle - 5,000 nuyen

Remaining Money - 145 + (4d6 x 100) nuyen

-- Magic --
Combat Spells
Sludge (Guns)
Clout
Napalm

Health Spells
Heal
Increase Reflexes
Increase Logic
Increase Willpower

Illusion Spells
Improved Invisibility
Sound Barrier

Manipulation Spells
Deflection

-- Contacts --
Chaim Matzarah - Talismonger
Connection 4, Loyalty 3
A friend that Malachi grew up with, they never really knew each other that well. However, being within a small community of Hebrew, they were forced to at least recognize each other. Chaim always had a fascination for magical artifacts, and he quickly learned the trade of being a Talismonger. Malachi was in need of reagents, so he went to someone he could trust. He and Chaim have been good business partners over the years, and they know they can trust each other because of their past. They also know that if push really came to shove, they would sell each other out.

Abrahim Aram - Fixer
Connection 5, Loyalty 2
Abrahim is a talented lawyer who has many connections within the state. He only does business with Malachi since Malachi has proven he is Hebrew with his knowledge of the Torah. Over the years, Abrahim has gotten somewhat more agreeable, but Malachi still knows it's only business. Malachi doesn't complain, since Abrahim has shown he can get him jobs with his connections.

Solomon Brie - Bartender
Connection 3, Loyalty 4
Solomon and Malachi have been friends most of their life. Although they've gone their separate ways, Malachi still has drinks with Solomon quite often. They joke around quite often, and Solomon even shares the lastest news and gossip that he's heard. It's kind of incredible how much bartenders overhear. Malachi considers him one of his only true friends.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Strategy: Keep Increased Logic Sustained with Focused Concentration. Increase Reflexes for fights, and some control with being able to get rid of enemy guns. If I have to, I can unleash with Napalm, but the main thing in combat is to summon a Force 6+ Air spirit to possess me and give me combat powers. Overall, really simplistic, but I kind of like it better this way. Plus, Logic skills are always useful, so if I get my 4 hits on the test, I can have Logic 10 which is pretty powerful.

[Shrazkil]

All right guys, I've been away on vacation for a while, but I finally updated this guy. I'm not 100% sure how it will work out, but I like it at the moment. Any criticism is welcomed.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Name: Shachar Serlin
Alias: Malachi

-- Priorities --
Metatype C (Human)
Attributes B
Magic A (Magician - 6 Magic, 10 Spells)
Skills D
Resources E

-- Karma Expenditure --
50 Total
-24 in Qualities
-10 for 20,000 nuyen
-15 for Contacts

1 Left

-- Attributes --
Body 3
Agility 3
Reaction 3
Strength 1
Willpower 5
Logic 6
Intuition 5
Charisma 2
Edge 7
Essence 6

Initiative - 8 + 1d6
Astral Initiative - 10 + 2d6
Physical Condition Monitor - 10
Stun Condition Monitor - 11
Physical Limit - 3
Mental Limit - 8
Social Limit - 5
Astral Limit - 8

-- Qualities --
Focused Concentration 6 (-24 Karma)
Gremlins 4 (+16 Karma)
Addiction - Psyche, Moderate (+9 Karma)

-- Skills --
Assensing 6 (+2 Aura Reading) - dice pool 11 (13)
Counterspelling 5 - dice pool of 11
Perception 6 (+2 Visual) - dice pool of 11 (13)
Spellcasting 6 - dice pool of 12
Summoning 6 (+2 Spirits of Air) - dice pool of 12 (14)

-- Knowledge/Language Skills --
Hebrew N
English 6 (+2 Speak) - dice pool of 11 (13)
Arabic 6 (+2 Speak) - dice pool of 11 (13)
Torah/Hebrew Literature and Culture 6 - Academic - dice pool of 12 (Don't know if this is too broad or the wrong stuff, anybody know?)
Magical Theory 2 - Academic - dice pool of 8

-- Gear --
Armor Jacket w/ Nonconductivity 6 - 2,500 nuyen
13 Psyche - 2,600 nuyen
1 Rating 6 Medkit - 1,500 nuyen
1 Meta Link Commlink - 100 nuyen
80 Drams of Reagents - 1,600 nuyen
Capacity 4 Monocle w/ Image Link, Low Light Vision, Vision Enhancement 1, Vision Magnification - 1,755 nuyen
Rating 4 Fake SIN (Noah Adams) - 10,000 nuyen
Rating 4 Fake License (Registered Magician) - 800 nuyen
1 month of Middle Lifestyle - 5,000 nuyen

Remaining Money - 145 + (4d6 x 100) nuyen

-- Magic --
Combat Spells
Sludge (Guns)
Clout
Napalm

Health Spells
Heal
Increase Reflexes
Increase Logic
Increase Willpower

Illusion Spells
Improved Invisibility
Sound Barrier

Manipulation Spells
Deflection

-- Contacts --
Chaim Matzarah - Talismonger
Connection 4, Loyalty 3
A friend that Malachi grew up with, they never really knew each other that well. However, being within a small community of Hebrew, they were forced to at least recognize each other. Chaim always had a fascination for magical artifacts, and he quickly learned the trade of being a Talismonger. Malachi was in need of reagents, so he went to someone he could trust. He and Chaim have been good business partners over the years, and they know they can trust each other because of their past. They also know that if push really came to shove, they would sell each other out.

Abrahim Aram - Fixer
Connection 5, Loyalty 2
Abrahim is a talented lawyer who has many connections within the state. He only does business with Malachi since Malachi has proven he is Hebrew with his knowledge of the Torah. Over the years, Abrahim has gotten somewhat more agreeable, but Malachi still knows it's only business. Malachi doesn't complain, since Abrahim has shown he can get him jobs with his connections.

Solomon Brie - Bartender
Connection 3, Loyalty 4
Solomon and Malachi have been friends most of their life. Although they've gone their separate ways, Malachi still has drinks with Solomon quite often. They joke around quite often, and Solomon even shares the lastest news and gossip that he's heard. It's kind of incredible how much bartenders overhear. Malachi considers him one of his only true friends.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Strategy: Keep Increased Logic Sustained with Focused Concentration. Increase Reflexes for fights, and some control with being able to get rid of enemy guns. If I have to, I can unleash with Napalm, but the main thing in combat is to summon a Force 6+ Air spirit to possess me and give me combat powers. Overall, really simplistic, but I kind of like it better this way. Plus, Logic skills are always useful, so if I get my 4 hits on the test, I can have Logic 10 which is pretty powerful.

Im not well read on possesion, but looks pretty good.