[3.P]Psionics! Looking for villians and NPCs!

[KeterSoul]

Hello! I am currently planning to run a game in the fall for a group of players new to psionics. I am thus looking to leave a good impression on them, and to work with the psionic rules fairly extensively. In that vein, I'm looking to create a roster of interesting characters to interact with, fight with, and scheme against!

And thus I turn to the playground. I'm not terribly experienced at DMing, and I'd like help creating some interesting villians, NPC's, and flesh out the area and world a bit.

Note that this is not set in Golarion. This world is one openly ruled by dragons, who brutally suppress study of the divine arts, and arcane magic is vanishingly rare and difficult. However, about 200 years ago, psionic powers have begun to widely manifest in the mortal races. Seemingly impossible to suppress, the social order of the world is slowly starting to buckle, as the once invincible draconic overlords now must step more carefully, lest their true power be tested and found wanting. Strange signs abound, stars have been falling, and the world is changing. Who knows what tomorrow will bring?

The players will be level 7. The only player who has finalized his choices has decided to play as an unbodied vitalist 5 (without the hit dice or telepath manifester levels, but with everything else.) He is playing as an unbodied who thinks he is the spirit of a local saint, who has spent the last 100 years in a fairly isolated library.

I may have a cryptic player, and possibly, though not likely, a psychic warrior seeking to emulate the ways of the jedi.

[Psyren]

There aren't too many purely psionic settings out there. What you describe sounds a lot like Dark Sun so you may get good ideas there. DSP's Third Dawn setting is also a good source of ideas simply because it's one of (if not the largest) purely psionic setting out there. The rest tend to be isolated enclaves within established settings (like Sarlona), or else barely fleshed out/made special at all (Faerun/Greyhawk.)

Anyway, a really easy way to make psionic monsters is to take a regular monster and slap the Phrenic template onto it. It would even fit with the fluff of your setting, where creatures are randomly becoming psionic. Those would tend to be more on the random monster than mastermind end of things though.

[Novawurmson]

For organized enemies: Tacticians, Vitalists, and other collective-y abilities (there's a Thoughtsinger (http://dreamscarredpress.com/dragonfly/ForumsPro/viewtopic/t=2702.html) in playtesting). Your players will learn to tread carefully when they can end up drawing in a lot more enemies than they bargained for in the beginning.

Edit: Spelling, link.

[chronomatophobe]

An ineffective but impressive NPC build I've always wanted to use: a vampire Wilder/Reaping Mauler that uses Telekinetic Maneuver to drain blood. Add in Solicit Psicrystal and cripple two squishies.
Yeah, you take a manifester level hit of three-to-five, but it's almost worth it to be able to choke someone out/kill them with your brain. The whole blood thing is just the sanguine icing on the cake.

I can almost guarantee your PCs will not expect it. Suffers from relatively one-trick-pony-ism.

[KeterSoul]

Thank you for the speedy replies! I've been reading the setting guide to Athas on your recommendation, and there's interesting stuff in there. One thing that is missing, I think, is the methodology of psionics in warfare—countries are going to try to organize and utilize psionics in the most efficient ways, and one thing I'd like to do is catch my PCs in a war zone or two. I've been thinking of astral constructs as sort of semi drones, and the possibility of mass produced dream stained items created by a remorseless war machine bent on conquest. The idea being that the dragon overlords encouraged frequent wars among their vassals to control populations and encourage mortality, but with the introduction of widespread psionic use, wars are faster and bloodier.

The idea of tacticians and vitalist enemies is interesting, but I'm not really sure how to create and use them! What are good things for a tactician to do, especially against a party that has a permanently incorporeal member with telekinetic thrust at will (So minions...may need to be, ah, heavy. I suppose he will recruit the big boned.). What are interesting group tactics psionic characters can pull? How would you organize a unit of soldiers, to take advantage of a level 9 character leading them?

[Chained Birds]

The Commander (https://sites.google.com/site/pathfinderogc/psionics-unleashed/classes/tactician/archetypes/Dreamscarred-Press/commander) archetype for Tactician can deal with incorporeal foes and turn them against their own allies.

A Vitalist can use Pulses and share the healing properties of certain characters (Ones with Fast Healing). Though it can combo the Sadist (https://sites.google.com/site/pathfinderogc/psionics-unleashed/classes/vitalist/archetypes/dreamscarred-press/sadist) and Life-Leech (https://sites.google.com/site/pathfinderogc/psionics-unleashed/classes/vitalist/archetypes/dreamscarred-press/life-leech) to make a pretty evil controller capable of transferring Status Ailments onto the enemy, just so long as one of your collective is suffering from it. So a Vitalist with these Archetypes can carry around a paralyzed small animal so as to transfer the Paralysis onto an enemy leader.

[Novawurmson]

For at least a level 9 vitalist, one combo of feats I like is Fast Aid (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/psionics-unleashed/feats/fast-aid-psionic) and Efficient Aid (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/psionics-unleashed/feats/efficient-aid-psionic). If you have a vitalist supporting three creatures, and each of them petitions for aid as a swift action on their turn, that's 3x4x9=108 HP restored for 27 PP. You can't keep up that kind of PP expenditure forever (and you can only use it 3+Wis times a day), but it's still a huge burst healing.

For Tacticians, play them like you would a crowd-control/tactical psion/wilder, but with increased action efficiently with swift-action strategies.

For both, always consider picking up Expanded Knowledge. An offensive power can be extremely useful for a Vitalist (something like Astral Construct or even one of the "Energy ____" powers), and not shabby on the Tactician.

[Nettlekid]

Do 3.5 psionicy things count? Because I love the Body Leech (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20040925a). It traps foes in ectoplasmic cocoons and can inflict ability drain on its prisoners to refuel your PP. But the coolest thing is that 1/day, if you're killed, you can make a Will save to swap places with one of your cocooned prisoners, so your mind goes into their body and their mind dies. Imagine fighting a cult of powerful Psions, you keep killing the higher ups, but there are always more. And then you learn...it's just one guy who won't stay dead!

Or you kill the Psion and rescue the Princess he had in his cocoon...except she starts acting funny...

[subject42]

I'll be running a Telepath/Thrallherd enemy this week, with an Aberrant Aegis Thrall. The party will be infiltrating an insane asylum where the inmates are all psionically linked to the head of the Asylum.

The end fight involves the Thrallherd using share pain on followers he has caged up in the room while his gigantic, obese patient wades into the fight. If the players hit the Thrallherd, they'll be inadvertently harming the inmates as well.

[KeterSoul]

One of my own ideas I've had so far is an elan vitalist, with the feat that lets him address members of his collective for powers not on his list, and various servants he has changed the memories of, leaving them as empty receptacles for metaconcert.

[Psyren]

Do 3.5 psionicy things count? Because I love the Body Leech (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20040925a). It traps foes in ectoplasmic cocoons and can inflict ability drain on its prisoners to refuel your PP. But the coolest thing is that 1/day, if you're killed, you can make a Will save to swap places with one of your cocooned prisoners, so your mind goes into their body and their mind dies. Imagine fighting a cult of powerful Psions, you keep killing the higher ups, but there are always more. And then you learn...it's just one guy who won't stay dead!

Or you kill the Psion and rescue the Princess he had in his cocoon...except she starts acting funny...

I love that class but it's pretty evil - great for a BBEG but I'd look askance at a PC wanting to be one. :smalltongue:


I'll be running a Telepath/Thrallherd enemy this week, with an Aberrant Aegis Thrall. The party will be infiltrating an insane asylum where the inmates are all psionically linked to the head of the Asylum.

The end fight involves the Thrallherd using share pain on followers he has caged up in the room while his gigantic, obese patient wades into the fight. If the players hit the Thrallherd, they'll be inadvertently harming the inmates as well.

I take it back, this is even more evil.


One thing that is missing, I think, is the methodology of psionics in warfare—countries are going to try to organize and utilize psionics in the most efficient ways, and one thing I'd like to do is catch my PCs in a war zone or two. I've been thinking of astral constructs as sort of semi drones, and the possibility of mass produced dream stained items created by a remorseless war machine bent on conquest. The idea being that the dragon overlords encouraged frequent wars among their vassals to control populations and encourage mortality, but with the introduction of widespread psionic use, wars are faster and bloodier.

The idea of tacticians and vitalist enemies is interesting, but I'm not really sure how to create and use them! What are good things for a tactician to do, especially against a party that has a permanently incorporeal member with telekinetic thrust at will (So minions...may need to be, ah, heavy. I suppose he will recruit the big boned.). What are interesting group tactics psionic characters can pull? How would you organize a unit of soldiers, to take advantage of a level 9 character leading them?

Psioncs isn't that much different than magic in a warfare sense. There's too many combatants for buffs to go around, so AoE assaults and single powerful soldiers/champions in key locations are going to be more efficient uses of power - that's going to be true for both systems. So you can simply start by checking out some of the magical warfare books (e.g. Heroes of Battle, Five Nations and Forge of War) and simply apply the rules to fit psionics. For example, Forge of War has a volley method of casting called Spell Onslaught that lets multiple weaker casters cut through a more powerful foe's defenses - you could easily make a Power Onslaught that does the same.

[Novawurmson]

I'm making a ton of NPCs for an Eberron campaign that includes Psionics. I'll try to post a few. Here's one I came up with today:

Kivuli Gnoll Shroud (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/psionics-unleashed/classes/marksman/archetypes/dreamscarred-press/shroud) Marksman (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/psionics-unleashed/classes/marksman) - NE

Roleplay
Kivuli is a skulking, dark-hided gnoll with dull red eyes and an unsettling grin. He nervously chews on an arrow while bored. His fur is scratched out in some places, but his hair and "beard" are kept neatly braided.

Kivuli is somewhat of a gnoll hero, famous for taking fortified positions alone against Brellish defenders (Sergeant York-style (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_C._York)), and taking down a horse and rider in one shot one a separate occasion.

Kivuli enjoys sniping and the thrill of the hunt. He strongly approves of gnoll policy of maintaining neutrality and working for anyone who will have them. When away from the front, he enjoys the attention he's built for himself.

He's not particularly well known in Breland because he tends not to leave survivors.

Quote: "Not hard to be sniper. Just be patient: Patient as death."

Crunch
I haven't 100% decided on his crunch, but he's definitely going to be a Shroud Marksman with the Sniper style. From level 8 onwards, snipers can use Vital Strike to great advantage; Unseen from Shroud will allow him to Vital Strike, turn invisible, and reposition or regain psionic focus as a move action (assuming Psionic Meditation (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/psionics-unleashed/feats/psionic-meditation-psionic)). At level 8, this will do 4d8+Str/other modifiers on a Vital Strike.

[Maginomicon]

Psionics is coincidently excellent at concealing themselves as psionic against anything but a detect psionics effect (which doesn't actually give rules for detecting a psionic creature, oops, so draw inspiration for how evil creatures are detected in a detect evil effect).

That is, they have no verbal or somatic components, and it's a simple DC 15 Concentration check to manifest while dispensing with the display. Even assuming they don't have ranks in Concentration, expending Psionic Focus to do so means an automatic success at dispensing with displays. The rules for dispensing with displays are so vague that you could infer that it essentially produces an "Invisible Spell"-like effect.

Point is, they're excellent at hiding the fact that they're psionic.

Personally, I wrote the following house rule to combat this:
The following new terms categorize certain kinds of effects:

“Grenade-like”: Some kind of object is hurled or fired at a destination (which is usually a square), auto-hits the destination, and then has an area-of-effect centered there (i.e. Fireball, Hail of Crystals, etc.). This category includes cones centered at the user (colloquially called a “shotgun-like” effect).
“Ray-like”: Some kind of object (usually a visual ray) is hurled or fired at a destination (which could be a square) as a ranged touch attack. (i.e. Scorching Ray, Crystal Shard, etc.)
“Bullet-like”: Some kind of object is hurled or fired at a destination (which could be a square) as a ranged attack (not a ranged touch attack). (i.e. Giant’s Wrath, Invisible Needle, etc.)


<TRUNCATED FOR CLARITY>

Realize that a lot of psionic powers do not mention any sort of need for a true line-of-effect. Additionally, the psionic character could “dispense with displays” (and generally will always attempt to anyway since there’s no negative cost for failure) to completely remove that display. However, if the power’s description directly describes a grenade-like, bullet-like, or ray-like effect as a means for the power to get from the manifester to the destination, then the dispense with display option will not dispense with that aspect of the display.

[Psyren]

Psionics is coincidently excellent at concealing themselves as psionic against anything but a detect psionics effect (which doesn't actually give rules for detecting a psionic creature, oops, so draw inspiration for how evil creatures are detected in a detect evil effect).

It does actually - the key is in the text rather than the table, which states "DC 15 + one-half manifester level for an effect that is not created by a power, such as that of a psionic item." In other words, you would use the "psionic item" part of the table even though a character's manifesting ability is not an item.

[Maginomicon]

It does actually - the key is in the text rather than the table, which states "DC 15 + one-half manifester level for an effect that is not created by a power, such as that of a psionic item." In other words, you would use the "psionic item" part of the table even though a character's manifesting ability is not an item.That's quite a stretch since that section is talking about the DC to determine the discipline of a power's aura, but I can see where you're going with it.

When comparing those two methods, they're nearly the same.


{table=head] | Faint | Moderate | Strong | Overwhelming
Evil creature (HD) | 10 or lower | 11-25 | 26-50 | 51 or higher[/table]

{table=head] | Faint | Moderate | Strong | Overwhelming
Psionic item (manifester level) | 5th or lower | 6th-11th | 12th-20th | 21st+ (artifact)[/table]
...so really there's no reason to not just base it on detect evil.