The Mundane Mage

Magic is cool and impressive, right? You know what else is cool and impressive? An Ares Alpha. Seriously, this does half the things magic does, and you don't need to be The Chosen One to use it!
Combat spells are obvious: normal rounds, gel rounds, taser rounds, incendiary rounds, and the corresponding grenades for the version with an area of effect. But it can also do Mind Manipulation: point it at someone and ask him to do something, and he'll do it right away. You can control emotions as well, such as fear or relief. Sure it doesn't do all the spells by itself, but you know any mage who does?

The Ares Alpha isn't the only piece of equipment that can turn you into a mage. Invisbility? Chameleon coating does that just fine. Illusion? A speaker can do audio illusions, a holographic projector can do visual and an ORA can affect all senses.

You expect to fool people with an holographic projector?
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If they don't observe in detail (and most people won't unless their suspicious of something) they won't notice it. It's especially true in the middle of a fight.
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Healing is pretty obvious, and with the right nanites, you could probably even do it by just touching the wound, if you're so inclined. Sure you can't levitate, but just wait for functional jetpacks to get here.

Tell me about it. I'm still waiting.
>> Fastjack

Reading someone's mind? I'm pretty sure you can do it with the right gear and software, but getting into someone's commlink can already tell you a lot. And if you want to make him talk, gamma-scopolamine or other similar substances work just as well as a mind probe spell.

What about all these spells that boost some of your abilities or reduce the opponent's? Well, you know all these stories that end with “there was no spell, the magic was in you all along!”? Well, turns out you can do pretty much the same thing. Get yourself some implanted horns and/or nanites that change your skin color and/or cybereyes (or contact lenses) with customizable looks. Use them to change your face for a second or so, while looking concentrated and you've got yourself a shamanic mask. Bonus points if you mumble or move your hands in the air. Then you can say to your ally that you've made him better, and BAM! Confidence boost leading to a really better action. Or use that to scare your enemies, do that in front of the guy you're interrogating and then tell him: “I'll know when you lie to me”.

Except you still don't
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Just start by asking questions you know the answer to. If he lies, say with a deep, unhuman voice (a voice modulator helps) “LIE!”. Normally, after that any time he lies, he'll be afraid of what you're going to say. Any good lie detector will be able to detect that angst, or the relief if a lie gets through unnoticed, or the look of surprise when hearing you say he lied when he didn't.
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Can you tell the difference between a hologram and a spirit? Me neither. Both have something unnatural about them, both seem to ignore bullets as they just go through them, and if you add a drone in the middle of the hologram, both can be as deadly. Congratulations, you are now a summoner as well!

Just a word of caution, when trying to pass off as a mage: ever heard about geking the mage first?
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