Sphere-specific drawbacks must be chosen when a practitioner first gains the associated sphere, and grant the practitioner an extra combat talent in the prerequisite sphere. Drawbacks may be removed in place of gaining a new talent through your class progression or by taking the Extra Combat Talent feat.
Wiki Note: If a Base Sphere grants an additional talent (such as via a package selection or drawback) the additional talents do not count as talents spent for abilities that count the number of talents spent in a sphere. (This most often applies to gaining skill points or improving unarmed damage.)
Utility Starts
The [utility start] tag is described in Spheres of Guile. It is only possible to take advantage of a combat sphere as a [utility] talent if your game includes a way to gain combat talents restricted to those with the [utility] tag, such as using one of the variants in Chapter 1.
Piecemeal Utility Starts: If you have a progression or optional replacement that grants a [utility] combat talent or a [utility] magic talent, you can use it to gain a base sphere if you apply a drawback or combination of drawbacks that removes all of that base sphere’s benefits other than skill ranks and [utility] talents (and actions necessary to use such talents).
Alternative-Craft
Whenever this sphere uses or grants ranks in Craft (mechanical) or calls for a Craft (mechanical) check, you instead gain ranks in a Craft or Profession or attempt a Craft or Profession check. It is also substituted for all checks made to craft the items in question. The particular skill used is determined by the GM when you first gain this drawback. You use your ranks in the chosen skill instead of Craft (mechanical) when determining saving throws and Tech sphere effects. This drawback does not grant a bonus talent; removing this drawback does not require spending a talent, but requires GM permission. You use ranks in the chosen skill in place of Craft (mechanical) for prerequisites for feats and talents that require the Tech sphere.
Environmental Fuel Source
You cannot create charges without some outside source determined by the GM, such as requiring a moving river to push a wheel, or tapping into a magical leyline.
Expensive Fuel Source
You cannot create charges from nothing and require specific material as determined by the GM (such as miniature batteries or refined oil). Whatever the exact nature of the fuel source it should cost 1 silver piece per charge at a minimum. While this means you could carry around more of your fuel source at once, it still must be processed into charges using the normal recharge time.
Expensive Gadgets
The materials gathered over the day and the engineering kit are not enough to produce your inventions. Each gadget you make requires a cost of 1 sp per rank in Craft (mechanical) used to produce it, and if a gadget requires the gathering of expensive material components (such as drones) you do not have the option to spend time to gather the materials and must spend the cost in full to create them.
Explosive Gadgets
Your creations use an explosive fuel source as their source of energy. Gain the Self Destructive Device talent with this drawback. Whenever any of your gadgets are damaged they must attempt a check using your Craft (mechanical) modifier with a DC equal to the damage taken.
On a failure the gadget explodes as if instructed to self destruct. A gadget will automatically fail this check if it is destroyed.
Extended Charge
Adding charges to your charge pool requires 2 hours of work, or 1 hour if you have access to an engineering kit. Incompatible: Generated Power
Generated Power
Gain the Generator legendary talent from this drawback. You lose the ability to innately add charges to your charge pool and can only charge gadgets using generators. Incompatible: Extended Charge
Imbued Gadgets
With this drawback you gain the Vigorous Gadgets legendary talent. Your drones and gadgets are harmed by the energy type you did not select.
Incomplete Knowledge
You do not automatically succeed on activation checks for gadgets you create and must succeed on a Craft (mechanical) check as normal.
Mana Engineering
Your gadgets use magical elements as part of their designs. This makes the effects your gadgets create magical in nature and subject to spell resistance. In addition their effects may be dispelled by dispel magic and other such similar effects and your gadgets and drones are treated as magic items for the purposes of dispelling effects (drones with their magical properties suppressed are stunned, ignoring any immunities).
Obvious Activation
Your gadgets generate a tell-tale sign when activated; for example, they make a loud noise, spew smoke, or generate loud singing noises. An activated gadget automatically breaks stealth, and whenever you activate a gadget all creatures within 60 feet who are observing you know which gadget you used, and qualities it possesses.
Specific Drone
When you first gain the Tech sphere, you must choose the Drone talent as your starting gadget. You gain the Alchemical Drone, Clockwork Drone, Robot Drone or Steampowered Drone legendary talent with this drawback. All the drones you create must be of that type.
Uninsulated
Your creations are vulnerable to certain environments. Choose one of the following conditions or speak with your GM about finding another appropriate one: being doused in water, being exposed to magnets, being exposed to sand particles. Whenever your gadgets are exposed to such an environment they must succeed at a Fortitude save against your Tech sphere DC or become nonfunctional and immediately deactivate. A gadget can be made functional after 30 minutes of cleaning up the exposed part (15 minutes with an engineering kit).
Unsecured
Your creations are sloppily designed making them vulnerable to being controlled. You must select the Remote Control talent as your first (gadget) talent. Your gadgets (including drones) receive a -2 penalty to all saves to oppose any effects that explicitly control or effect technology (such as Technomancy sphere sprites). In place of a bonus talent, you gain the Remote Hacking feat as a bonus feat. You cannot gain the Improved User Interface talent while you possess this drawback.
Wired Gadgets
Gain the Signal Cable talent with this drawback. Your gadgets lose their innate signal and require a signal cable to connect to one another.