Gearforged

Originally created as powerful soldiers, gearforged must now find their own paths to navigate the second life they’ve been given. Many devote themselves to civil service, others to their gods. Some dedicate their extraordinarily long lives to the pursuit of knowledge. A few, naturally, seek out lives of adventure. The gearforged are an artificial race. More importantly, its members are created one at a time and come from a vast array of backgrounds. Nevertheless, they maintain rich traditions of history, culture, and spirituality all their own.

GEARFORGED TRAITS

Your gearforged character has certain characteristics in common with all other gearforged.

• Ability Score Increase. Two different ability scores of your choice increase by 1.

• Age. The soul inhabiting a gearforged can be any age. As long as its new body is kept in good repair, there is no known limit to how long it can function.

• Alignment. No single alignment typifies gearforged.
• Size. Your size is determined by your chassis. 

• Speed. Your base walking speed is determined by your chassis.
• Type. You are of the construct type.
• Constructed Body. Your consciousness and soul reside within a soul gem to animate your mechanical body. As such, you are a living creature with some of the benefits and drawbacks of a construct.

1. You cannot eat, drink, or breathe. You can’t drink potions or gain benefits that come from drinking, eating, or inhaling vapors.
2. You cannot swim and instead sink.
3. You do not naturally sleep.
4. During a rest, you must perform maintenance on your gears, springs, and joints, following the normal rules governing rest and activity. While performing this maintenance, you are aware of your surroundings but you have disadvantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks. If you go longer than 24 hours without performing maintenance (you don’t take a long rest), you gain one level of exhaustion. All exhaustion gained this way disappears after your next long rest.
5. You can’t be stabilized when dying with a Wisdom (Medicine) check or spare the dying. Instead, a successful DC 10 Intelligence check or a mending cantrip is needed.
6. If a spell or ability other than your own would cause you to gain Hit Points, you gain those hit points as if you were a humanoid. However you can be targeted by spells that target constructs such as Shatter. Spells that target humanoids can also target you.

• Flesh of Steel. You are immune to disease, poison damage, and the poisoned condition.

• Solid Construction. If you are killed but your soul gem and memory gears are still intact, you can be restored to life if your body is repaired and soulforging is cast on it again. Because the body already exists, the cost of the ritual is just 500 gp, plus the cost of repairing the body (GM’s discretion, typically 1d4 x 50 gp). If your body was destroyed but your soul gem and memory tapes are intact, they can be implanted into a new body at the standard cost (10,000 gp). The only other magic capable of bringing you back from the dead is a wish spell, which restores you fully.
• Upgrades. Your body has been upgraded with new parts. You choose one upgrade now and one at 5th level. You can not choose an upgrade that adds movement if your chassis is size large. 

1. Always Armed. Choose a weapon you are proficient with that does not have the two handed property. You integrate this weapon in one of your arms. The weapon is hidden in your arm and can be drawn and stowed as per normal, you cannot be disarmed or drop this weapon. While the weapon is drawn this way your hands remain free. You can remove this weapon and replace it during a short or long rest. Your offhand may have a weapon integrated as well if the weapon has the light property. You have advantage on Slight of Hand checks to conceal this weapon.
2. Quick Fix. As a bonus action you can roll one hit die and gain that many temporary hitpoints plus your Constitution modifier.
3. Water Jets. You gain a swimming speed equal to your walking speed. You no longer sink while in water.
4. Climbing Claws. You gain a climbing speed equal to your walking speed.
5. Claw Arm. You gain a third arm with a claw at the end. You can grasp things with your claw arm. It has a reach of 5 feet, and it can lift a number of pounds equal to five times your Strength score. You can use it to do the following simple tasks: lift, drop, hold, push, or pull an object or a creature; open or close a door or a container; grapple someone; or make an unarmed strike. Your DM might allow other simple tasks to be added to that list of options. It can't wield weapons without the light property or shields. 
6. Enhanced Optics. You gain a darkvision of 120 ft. 
7. Integrated Armor. You may spend a long rest integrating a suit of armor into your construct body. It cannot be removed unless you spend a long rest removing it or replacing it.
8. Jet Pack (5th Level). Once per long rest you may power your jet pack as a bonus action. For the next minute you gain a flying speed equal to your walking speed.
9. Reinforced Chassis (5th Level). Your chassis in places is covered by a thick armor. You gain a +1 to your AC when not wearing heavy armor.
10. Claw Arm Laser (5th Level and Claw Arm). As an action, you can shoot a laser from your claw arm, targeting one creature or object you can see within 30 feet of you. The target must make a Dexterity saving throw against a DC of 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier. The target takes 2d10 radiant damage if they fail. The damage increases to 3d10 at 11th level and 4d10 at 17th level. You can use this up to your Constitution modifier's worth of times per long rest.
11. Fortified Memory Tapes (5th Level). Choose Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma. You have advantage on saving throws made with that ability score against magic.

• Languages. You can speak, read, and write Machine Speech and Common.
• Chassis. Choose one chassis.

Small Chassis

• Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score is increased by 1.
• Size. Your size is small.
• Speed. Your speed is 25 ft.

Medium Chassis

• Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score is increased by 1.
• Size. Your size is medium.
• Speed. Your speed is 30 ft. 

Large Chassis

• Ability Score Increase. Your Strength score is increased by 1.
• Size. Your size is large. Being the size large grants you a few benefits. Your carrying capacity is now 30 times your Strength score and your Push, Drag, and Lift is now 60 times your Strength score. Your unarmed melee attacks now deal 1d4 damage. Weapons sized for medium creatures remove the heavy property. Weapons sized for medium creatures with the two handed property instead can be wielded in one or two hands. Weapons sized for medium creatures with the versatile property can deal their versatile damage when wielded in one hand. One-handed weapons sized for medium creatures without the versatile property are small enough for use when fighting with two weapons. You have disadvantage on attacks with weapons sized for medium creatures with the light or ranged property. Weapons sized for large creatures have the value of their damage die increased by one (Ex: 1d10 becomes 1d12 and 2d6 becomes 2d8).
• Speed. You are so heavy that you are unable to move very quickly. Your speed is 25 ft.

Form and Function

All gearforged were once other creatures with flesh-and-blood bodies, but their conscious minds were transplanted into articulated bodies of iron, steel, brass, and wood, driven by pistons and springs. Each is as distinctive in appearance as other people are. Some entities spend a fortune on these new bodies, while others scrape together anything that will work—especially if the subject is aging or ill. All gearforged are made in humanoid shape. The vast majority fall into one of two styles: those that are roughly human-sized, with articulated joints, hands, feet, and crystal lens eyes; and a version made by dwarves that mirrors their shorter, stouter body shape. Dwarflike gearforged are more common in the cantons of the Ironcrags than in the Free City of Zobeck, but they’re universally accepted as receptacles for dwarf souls.