I enjoyed playing a mage. My first character was a half-elf with the Lady's Man trait, focused on charisma and magic skills. I could talk my way through almost anything, and when I that failed, I had a small army of schmucks willing to wade into combat for me while I kept my distance.
While there is nothing wrong with playing a mage, a Technologist gives you a lot more to do. The things that you pick up can all be used for different schematics and items, you create one item to use in the creation of another. It blends perfectly and everything you pick up can be used, you can also sell these things so just by scavenging trash cans in Tarant you can equip your party with awesome gear, or sell the gear to get a ton of money. You're able to pick up unique schematics outside in the world, some are really powerful and others are fun and entertaining. You need to put points into specific technology branches to get different things, no branch is useless, you also need to mix them to gain the most powerful items.
10 in explosives, 20 in smith -> Pyrotechnic axe. (which will be able to carry you through the entire game, you can get it 40 minutes into the game if you want to).
You can buy tomes from a trader in Tarant, to help increase some of these these technology branches (when you hold them in your inventory, you get a bonus equal to your intellect). So if you don't feel like getting 10 in explosives for the axe, you can buy a tome and if you have 10 intelligence, you're able to make it anyway.
The technology followers are also some of the best and most interesting, because you can have them craft items for you. So if you're after a certain thing, you might be able to have your followers craft parts of it, so you don't have to put points into that branch.
You're only touching 60% of the game when you play as a mage, they made crafting in Arcanum into something amazing.
TB squad tactic/RP game.
I'd say more but this thread has made me want to reinstall.
