So as I am planning to one day run an Urban Arcana game, there are a few things I would like to convert. Some may be useful even outside of the Urban Arcana setting.
Tattoos:
Tattoos are basically spell scrolls, except for being tattooed on your skin. They have obvious limitations (you need to have a proficient tattoo artist ink them, you need to be present for their creation, and you can't pass them to other people), but only severely (most likely deliberately) damaging your skin or a targeted dispel magic (the caster level for that purpose is your current character level) can destroy it, and there are no restrictions to use spell tattoos. The spell tattoo disappears from your skin once used or destroyed. Since you need a tattoo artist with enough proficiency (Proficiency bonus with tattoos +2 for common, +3 for uncommon, +4 for rare, +5 for very rare, +6 for legendary) to properly ink the tattoo, you have to pay their fees (in money and/or favors) in addition to the normal spell scroll expenses.
Decals:
In worlds where technology has advanced enough that decals become common, it is easy to make a decal tattoo inscribed with a cantrip, or with a small (+1) bonus to one of the following proficiencies (often looking like stylized animals): athletics (bull), acrobatics (monkey), stealth (cat), Investigation (any animal known for being surprisingly smart, usually crows or octopi) and perception (any animal known for being incredibly alert). To use them, wet them and apply to the skin, and they will apply the cantrip or buff too the target for up to one minute. While easily damaged, the fact they can be made for cheap (Purchase DC 2 or 2 SP) makes them incredibly widespread.
Incantations:
Incantations are powerful magical effects. From curing grievous injuries or sicknesses, summoning extraplanar entities, control the weather and myriad other effects, their main draw is that you need not be a spellcaster to cast them, you merely need to be proficient in Arcana. DCs range from 25 to 30, and may need expensive (purchase DC 25 or more, or 20000+ GP) foci, components (Purchase DC 25 or 35, or 20000+ OR 50000 GP), may require sacrifices (that may require death or merely severely but temporarily weaken the sacrifice (the sacrifice has disadvantage on every check for a number of months equal to the incantations equivalent spell level (which is the spell level of the spell cast as an incantation, or the spell level of the closest spell, a 0th level spell is considered as a 1/2th level spell), and using them again before they have recovered kills them, but only qualifies as a weakening sacrifice), may or may not require a sentient being, and may require the sacrifice to willingly offer themselves (and then it has to be sentient)), or few (up to 10), many (10 to 25) or a massive number (up to 100) of witnesses (participants that need no skill, but willingly contribute to the ritual). For each step that the incantation does not require but that you provide (expensive focus, expensive component, very expensive component, (extra) witnesses, sacrifice, sentient sacrifice, willing sacrifice, and lethal sacrifice), the DC is lowered by 1. Casting an incantation requires six hours, and successfully doing six Arcana skill checks, or five Arcana and one skill check relevant to a specific incantation (Medicine for healing, Nature for affecting natural phenomena such as the weather, Religion for summoning extraplanar entities.) as long as the caster doesn't fail two checks in a row. If an incantation requires a skill other than Arcana, an assistant can make such roll instead of the caster.
Homunculi:
Homunculi are some entities created by spellcasters in the modern world, small constructs that support their creators in any way they are able. They do not have true sentience, are destroyed when their creators die, their creator suffers a 3D10 maximum HP reduction (that goes away at the rate of 1 HP per long rest) when they are destroyed (and dies if it reduces them to less than 0 HP), and do not recover HP on their own, they need to be repaired with an appropriate tool proficiency to recover HP (it takes 1 hour, requires a Purchase DC 10 worth of supplies, and a check against DC 15, and restores 2D6 HP). They require supplies (Purchase DC 15), a work week, and a DC 20 check to craft. They all have a Tiny size.
Biochemical: A biochemical homunculus requires the Pharmaceutical Equipment tool proficiency to craft, and takes the form of a cloud of inhaled medication, and have the following abilities:
Incorporeal
Creature Meld: With a melee attack, it can catch a ride in a Tiny or larger creature. Only effects that detect magic can detect it then, and only magic against possession can harm it. It can then see through the eyes of the creature it posses, has no way to influence it or read it's thoughts, or otherwise harm it.
CR 1
HD: 2D10
Speed: 20 ft, fly 50 feet
Skills: Stealth +10
attacks: Bite 1D2+2 (Dex)
STR: 1 DEX: 15 Con: 10 Int: 12 Wis: 10 Cha 7
Digital: A Digital Homunculus takes Proficiency: Electronics builder tools to craft, and looks like a winged cockroach made of electronic parts, and has the following abilities:
Electronic Interface: A digital homunculus has built-in wifi, and can link itself to any electronic device it is in physical contact with. It's creator can then use any of their proficiencies related to electronics on the device in question to operate it as if they were sitting in front of it or even hack it through a magical brain-computer interface. Routine tasks, or hacking poorly secure devices, is done with an advantage.
CR 1
HD: 2D10
Speed: 20 ft, fly 50 feet
Skills: Stealth +10
attacks: Bite 1D4+2 (Dex)
STR: 9 DEX: 15 CON: 10 Int: 10 Wis: 12 CHA: 7
(I will do conversions for flesh and mechanical homunculi later)
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Hello everyone!
So as I am planning to one day run an Urban Arcana game, there are a few things I would like to convert. Some may be useful even outside of the Urban Arcana setting.
Tattoos:
Tattoos are basically spell scrolls, except for being tattooed on your skin. They have obvious limitations (you need to have a proficient tattoo artist ink them, you need to be present for their creation, and you can't pass them to other people), but only severely (most likely deliberately) damaging your skin or a targeted dispel magic (the caster level for that purpose is your current character level) can destroy it, and there are no restrictions to use spell tattoos. The spell tattoo disappears from your skin once used or destroyed. Since you need a tattoo artist with enough proficiency (Proficiency bonus with tattoos +2 for common, +3 for uncommon, +4 for rare, +5 for very rare, +6 for legendary) to properly ink the tattoo, you have to pay their fees (in money and/or favors) in addition to the normal spell scroll expenses.
Decals:
In worlds where technology has advanced enough that decals become common, it is easy to make a decal tattoo inscribed with a cantrip, or with a small (+1) bonus to one of the following proficiencies (often looking like stylized animals): athletics (bull), acrobatics (monkey), stealth (cat), Investigation (any animal known for being surprisingly smart, usually crows or octopi) and perception (any animal known for being incredibly alert). To use them, wet them and apply to the skin, and they will apply the cantrip or buff too the target for up to one minute. While easily damaged, the fact they can be made for cheap (Purchase DC 2 or 2 SP) makes them incredibly widespread.
Incantations:
Incantations are powerful magical effects. From curing grievous injuries or sicknesses, summoning extraplanar entities, control the weather and myriad other effects, their main draw is that you need not be a spellcaster to cast them, you merely need to be proficient in Arcana. DCs range from 25 to 30, and may need expensive (purchase DC 25 or more, or 20000+ GP) foci, components (Purchase DC 25 or 35, or 20000+ OR 50000 GP), may require sacrifices (that may require death or merely severely but temporarily weaken the sacrifice (the sacrifice has disadvantage on every check for a number of months equal to the incantations equivalent spell level (which is the spell level of the spell cast as an incantation, or the spell level of the closest spell, a 0th level spell is considered as a 1/2th level spell), and using them again before they have recovered kills them, but only qualifies as a weakening sacrifice), may or may not require a sentient being, and may require the sacrifice to willingly offer themselves (and then it has to be sentient)), or few (up to 10), many (10 to 25) or a massive number (up to 100) of witnesses (participants that need no skill, but willingly contribute to the ritual). For each step that the incantation does not require but that you provide (expensive focus, expensive component, very expensive component, (extra) witnesses, sacrifice, sentient sacrifice, willing sacrifice, and lethal sacrifice), the DC is lowered by 1. Casting an incantation requires six hours, and successfully doing six Arcana skill checks, or five Arcana and one skill check relevant to a specific incantation (Medicine for healing, Nature for affecting natural phenomena such as the weather, Religion for summoning extraplanar entities.) as long as the caster doesn't fail two checks in a row. If an incantation requires a skill other than Arcana, an assistant can make such roll instead of the caster.
Homunculi:
Homunculi are some entities created by spellcasters in the modern world, small constructs that support their creators in any way they are able. They do not have true sentience, are destroyed when their creators die, their creator suffers a 3D10 maximum HP reduction (that goes away at the rate of 1 HP per long rest) when they are destroyed (and dies if it reduces them to less than 0 HP), and do not recover HP on their own, they need to be repaired with an appropriate tool proficiency to recover HP (it takes 1 hour, requires a Purchase DC 10 worth of supplies, and a check against DC 15, and restores 2D6 HP). They require supplies (Purchase DC 15), a work week, and a DC 20 check to craft. They all have a Tiny size.
Biochemical: A biochemical homunculus requires the Pharmaceutical Equipment tool proficiency to craft, and takes the form of a cloud of inhaled medication, and have the following abilities:
Incorporeal
Creature Meld: With a melee attack, it can catch a ride in a Tiny or larger creature. Only effects that detect magic can detect it then, and only magic against possession can harm it. It can then see through the eyes of the creature it posses, has no way to influence it or read it's thoughts, or otherwise harm it.
CR 1
HD: 2D10
Speed: 20 ft, fly 50 feet
Skills: Stealth +10
attacks: Bite 1D2+2 (Dex)
STR: 1 DEX: 15 Con: 10 Int: 12 Wis: 10 Cha 7
Digital: A Digital Homunculus takes Proficiency: Electronics builder tools to craft, and looks like a winged cockroach made of electronic parts, and has the following abilities:
Electronic Interface: A digital homunculus has built-in wifi, and can link itself to any electronic device it is in physical contact with. It's creator can then use any of their proficiencies related to electronics on the device in question to operate it as if they were sitting in front of it or even hack it through a magical brain-computer interface. Routine tasks, or hacking poorly secure devices, is done with an advantage.
CR 1
HD: 2D10
Speed: 20 ft, fly 50 feet
Skills: Stealth +10
attacks: Bite 1D4+2 (Dex)
STR: 9 DEX: 15 CON: 10 Int: 10 Wis: 12 CHA: 7
(I will do conversions for flesh and mechanical homunculi later)