Elan Psion Build questions

[TimeWizard]

Howdy. I haven't played 3.5 in a while, and I want to roll up an Elan Psion. What are, generally speaking, the best things to grab for feats, skills, powers, magic/psychic items etc?

[Essence_of_War]

I'd start with this:

http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=10238.0

It has a good outline of all the basics, and a number of nice options highlighted.

[Keld Denar]

Go for a diversity of powers that do a diverse number of things. Metacreativity is one of the stronger schools for that reason. It is very diverse in what it can do. You only need 1-2 powers that say "Xd6 damage to the FACE". Take some that give you problem solving abilities or the ability to solve problems in different ways. Especially look for powers that are augmentable. Charm and Dominate Person/Monster are each one power with the augment adding a broader diversity of targets.

Then there are some powers that are just boss. Schism. Time Hop. Entangling Ectoplasm. Psionic Minor Creation.

[Vaz]

What do you want to do with it? A Psion with Minor Creation is awesome utility.

"What do you mean you forgot your rope? Oh well, here we go again, just let me make this 144ft of rope out of thin air for free."

"What do you mean you forgot to bring the poison? Oh well, here we go again, just let me make 996 doses of the deadliest poison in the game out of thin air for free."

"What do you mean you forgot the key? I thought we were going in for coffee? This has been a waste of a night."
"Never fear, hunny, I'm a psion." *Manifests Time Hop*

"What do you mean there's a horseman charging at me? *Manifests Time Hop on the horse, watches man go sailing through the air as his ride gets sucked into the future*

[Crake]

"What do you mean you forgot to bring the poison? Oh well, here we go again, just let me make 996 doses of the deadliest poison in the game out of thin air for free."

to be fair, the deadliest poisons in the game require craft checks to make, so you'd need to be able to pass the equivalent craft check to make them with minor creation. People always tend to forget that.

[Essence_of_War]

Astral Construct is pretty insane also.

Especially if your group doesn't use Comp Psi :smalltongue:

[ZamielVanWeber]

Especially especially if you use the Mind's Eye feat that lets you summon multiple constructs. Tip: every discipline but psychokinesis is pretty good. I do enjoy Clairsentience and Psychoportation the most.

[Vaz]

to be fair, the deadliest poisons in the game require craft checks to make, so you'd need to be able to pass the equivalent craft check to make them with minor creation. People always tend to forget that.


You create a nonmagical, unattended object of nonliving, vegetable matter.

Look at the definition of "Extract";


extract - a solution obtained by steeping or soaking a substance (usually in water)

So, wet leaves, essentially. You can create the extract immediately.

Of course, there is Linked Power Minor Creation, using plant based Neutrons making 1 Cu/ft of Neutronium and antineutronium to be present next to each other within a round. 1.7billion tons of TNT (around 8.5billion Megajoules of energy; about 2/3rds that of the Hiroshima Bombs). Sure, you're dead, but hey ho.

Do it at 20th for something nearer around the energy output of the Sun for 3 years solid, or soemthing stupid like that.

[Keld Denar]

Psychokinesis has some good powers. TK Maneuver for grapple is good, especially if you can crank your ML. Energy Missiles is very efficient multiple target damage, and Energy Stun (pre Comp Psi) can get pretty stunning DCs (pun intended). You don't need 13 ways to say Xd6 damage like Psychokinesis often gives you, but having one or two of the better ones is a useful tool. Sometimes the best tool for the job IS a hammer.

[ZamielVanWeber]

The raw damage you can get from generic powers and you can use a feat to grab another. If there are two or more you want then I would recommend it.

[TimeWizard]

The Elan racial abilities look tasty, especially spending 1 power point to stop 4 damage.I had no idea Minor Creation was so useful.

[Andreaz]

The Elan racial abilities look tasty, especially spending 1 power point to stop 4 damage.I had no idea Minor Creation was so useful.Elan substitution levels are wonderfully spiced too. Points spent manifesting a power can be used again to reduce damage through elan resilience.

[TimeWizard]

I'm unfamiliar with Racial Substituion* Levels. How do they work and what book are they in?











*-ary Locomotion. I'm done.

[WhatBigTeeth]

I'm unfamiliar with Racial Substituion* Levels. How do they work and what book are they in?

Sub levels are levels of various classes that completely override the normal features at certain levels. They're scattered all over, but most are in the Races of X series and Champions of Valor.

The Elan Psion sub levels (http://dsp-d20-srd.wikidot.com/elan-psion) are 3rd party though, by Dreamscarred Press, so not always as readily accepted as WotC materials. DSP's one of the most reputable 3rd party publishers in optimization terms (in no small part because it developed out of the charop community over on the old 339 boards), and they generally nail a pretty reasonable power level.

[Malroth]

I always max craft poison have a masterwork tool, and have a couple astral constructs aid another me pretty easy +12 to the check avalible from lv 1




Of course, there is Linked Power Minor Creation, using plant based Neutrons making 1 Cu/ft of Neutronium and antineutronium to be present next to each other within a round. 1.7billion tons of TNT (around 8.5billion Megajoules of energy; about 2/3rds that of the Hiroshima Bombs). Sure, you're dead, but hey ho.


You're off by a factor of over 10 septillion. 1 cu ft of mixed neutronium and antineutronium would have total convertible mass of 1.585x10^19 g available to convert directly to energy the Hiroshima bomb's output converted approximately 0.7 g to energy. so it would take 1 Hiroshima bomb going off per second in the same spot since the earth was formed to equal the 1 second energy output of what 1ft^3 neutronium/antinetronium would do. This spell would actually provide 1 billion times the energy it would take to accelerate every single atom on earth to above earths escape velocity. In short if for some bizzare reason the DM allows the magical/psionic creation of antineutronium (or even regular neutronium) There's no way the world is surviving the first casting of it.

[otakumick]

I'm unfamiliar with Racial Substituion* Levels. How do they work and what book are they in?

*-ary Locomotion. I'm done.

Treguna Mekoides Trikorum Sates Dee

[MirddinEmris]

Well, Elan already have been a Bard, Wizard and Cleric, he could be a Psion, why not?)

[Spuddles]

Especially especially if you use the Mind's Eye feat that lets you summon multiple constructs. Tip: every discipline but psychokinesis is pretty good. I do enjoy Clairsentience and Psychoportation the most.


Psychokinesis has some good powers. TK Maneuver for grapple is good, especially if you can crank your ML. Energy Missiles is very efficient multiple target damage, and Energy Stun (pre Comp Psi) can get pretty stunning DCs (pun intended). You don't need 13 ways to say Xd6 damage like Psychokinesis often gives you, but having one or two of the better ones is a useful tool. Sometimes the best tool for the job IS a hammer.

Psychokinesis also has control body, control fire, control air, control light, and control sound, I believe. Firey Discorporation isn't bad at all, either.