Dear all,

My groups Tech-Priest just hit the 5000 XP mark and began thinking about which career path he wants to follow from rank 6 onwards. So, he asked me what I think would fit best into the group. Then again I realized, that I always wondered what real difference fundamentally lies beneath these two career paths. In about all other careers it is more or less clear what the dividing paths stand for, but in regard to the Tech Priest it is a little mysterious (at least to me).

I know that backgroundwise a Magos Errant is more a jack of all trades while a Magos is more an expert in a certain field (e.g. Biologis, Physics etc.) and perhaps a little more conservative, but I do not really see this in regard to the selection of skills and talents. At first glance the Errant-path seems a little more militant with all these Heavy Weapon and Dual-wield talents, while the Magos-path has more Lore-skills. But on second glance it stroke my eye that the Magos-path gets Lightning Attack easier for example and seems to have more of the sort of useful talents (at least Technomancer compared to Mech-Deacon in my view).

How is your interpretation of the differences between these two paths? Did I oversee some striking feature? What path would you prefer personally and why? What shall I tell my player or how shall I advise him? Questions upon questions…

Thanks in advance!

IIRC the Errant gets access to various Peers and Interaction Skills and so forth for wandering about the galaxy preaching the Omnissiah.

That's pretty much what I thought, bogi. The Magos Errant is somewhat passaby social (can be enhanced with that one alternative rank from the IH) while the pure Magos focuses on AdMech typical fields of study and is rewarded with the Rite of Pure Thought at the end.

The primary difference between the two seems to be skills and talents as previously mentioned. The Magos has a more cerebral theme concentrating on the various Lore skills and mental/willpower-type talents, while the Magos-Errant concentrates on the physical application of knowledge (more Trade skills) and the skills necessary to recover lost knowledge in the dangerous universe of W40K to include more interaction skills.

Don't forget that there is essentially a third path, Mechanicus Secutor, introduced in The Inquisitor's Handbook as well. Obviously themed as the combat oriented Tech-priest and available as early as Rank 4, but still available at Rank 6 as long as the character meets the prerequisites.