[PF] Psionics- Fluff and Crunch Questions

[Elricaltovilla]

So I've been trying to read up on psionic classes (particularly in Pathfinder) because they seem like a good alternative to spellcasting. But I have some questions about how/why they work.

1. What's with all the crystals? This may be a pointless question to ask, but so much psionic stuff is tied to either crystals or ectoplasmic goo. I'm just wondering if that was a purely aesthetic choice or if it has some other basis/justification.

2. Psionic Focus- I don't get it. What does it do? What are the benefits to maintaining it, how do I maintain it, how do I expend it, and why would I do that?

3. The Psion specialists: They can choose powers from their own list or the general psion/wilder list correct? Because the wording on the PFSRD is confusing.

4. Is there an official Psionics only setting? No magic, just psionics is what I'm looking for.

5. Which is better/which do you prefer: Psionics are different from magic, or Psionics are the same as magic?

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Thanks for all the help! :smallsmile:

[Psyren]

1. What's with all the crystals? This may be a pointless question to ask, but so much psionic stuff is tied to either crystals or ectoplasmic goo. I'm just wondering if that was a purely aesthetic choice or if it has some other basis/justification.

Purely aesthetic, you can do away with them if you want. There is even a sidebar in Psionics Unleashed that gives advice on doing that.



2. Psionic Focus- I don't get it. What does it do? What are the benefits to maintaining it, how do I maintain it, how do I expend it, and why would I do that?

Psionic Focus is basically an additional resource available to a psionic character. It's a switch you can flip on in your mind - either you're focused, or you're not. You obtain it by spending a full-round action focusing your thoughts (this provokes AoO); there are various feats and racial/class abilities can reduce this time. Once focused, it can be used to treat any concentration check as though you rolled a 15 (i.e. "take 15.") It also interacts with various psionic feats, such as Psionic Weapon or the various Metapsionics.

Normally, you can only store one focus in your mind at a time; therefore, psionic focus imposes a limit on how many things you can activate with it on each round. Again, there are ways to obtain two or even three foci, though the latter is very hard to do.



3. The Psion specialists: They can choose powers from their own list or the general psion/wilder list correct? Because the wording on the PFSRD is confusing.

That's correct - psions of any discipline can choose powers from the general list, and then each discipline has its own discipline list to choose from as well.

The Expanded Knowledge feat lets you learn additional powers from other lists, including those of other disciplines and even other classes, but the highest power level you can learn that way is always a level behind your maximum.



4. Is there an official Psionics only setting? No magic, just psionics is what I'm looking for.

Official, as in WotC? No, all their settings contain magic in some form.

However, the Third Dawn setting by DSP (the folks behind PF Psionics) is psionics only if you wanted to try it out. They're updating it to Pathfinder officially but you can snag their 3.5 material and convert it yourself pretty easily.



5. Which is better/which do you prefer: Psionics are different from magic, or Psionics are the same as magic?

Transparency is highly, highly recommended for reasons of balance and simplicity. It's just a headache for everyone when detect psionics can't tell if an item is magic or not, or dispel magic can't be used to bring a flying psion back to earth etc. Note that the two systems are still not totally identical even when you allow transparency, so they can still have a different feel from one another.

[Elricaltovilla]

Thanks for the info, this has been very helpful.

[Prime32]

1. What's with all the crystals? This may be a pointless question to ask, but so much psionic stuff is tied to either crystals or ectoplasmic goo. I'm just wondering if that was a purely aesthetic choice or if it has some other basis/justification.Crystals are a common New Age thing, basically. It's not like magic staves topped with rubies or emeralds are that rare though.


4. Is there an official Psionics only setting? No magic, just psionics is what I'm looking for.You could run an Eberron game set in Riedra, where the 1984-esque government stamps out all power sources other than psionics.

Or just rename psions to wizards and wilders to sorcerers.

[JusticeZero]

Crystal was a common feature of the new age religious fiction of the day, and there is a lot of art of fantasy mysterious places full of widgets that are mostly crystals. It is all aesthetic.
There is a setting that is all psi, as noted. It needs an update, which I think is in some stage of in progress.
My campaign is psionic only and it works fine, it's listed in my signature. I need to add to it, just nobody went anywhere lately.
It opened up some interesting things to do that are ordinarily dictated by the class design;I can tinker with the religion of the area without hamstringing the party's healing source. As such, I have theological debates and factions that can't be solved by "duh, I'll just go ask". I've ended up rearranging the class roles a bit as a result. The lack of spellcasting dynamics tweaks a few other things. By and large, there are no alignment calls, so no need to track alignment. Because of a setting quirk, the undead that populate most settings are replaced by plant creatures - it is the necro-divine casters who are meant to interact with those, and in a psionic setting, those are absent. Plants take their place because of the history in my campaign, or you could use something else.

[Elricaltovilla]

Hmmmmm...

How difficult do you think it would be to drum up interest in an all psionics game here on the forum? I want to try my hand at this, but my friends who play are all too busy to get involved in another RL game and don't like psionics for... reasons.

[JusticeZero]

Dunno. I have space in mine, and the one person that i've identified as an actual luddite froze up at doing Pathfinder.

[Novawurmson]

1. What's with all the crystals? This may be a pointless question to ask, but so much psionic stuff is tied to either crystals or ectoplasmic goo. I'm just wondering if that was a purely aesthetic choice or if it has some other basis/justification.

You might want to check out this thread (http://dreamscarredpress.com/dragonfly/ForumsPro/viewtopic/t=2837.html) on the Dreamscarred Press forum, which talks a little about refluffing psionics. Ultimate Psionics will include a section on the topic, but we could spitball ideas here, too. A simple idea: Use psionics for a Star Wars-like "Force" that unites all living beings. PP represent a creature's ability to tap into that life force.


Hmmmmm...

How difficult do you think it would be to drum up interest in an all psionics game here on the forum? I want to try my hand at this, but my friends who play are all too busy to get involved in another RL game and don't like psionics for... reasons.

I'd be moderately interested, but most groups on the forums I've been in fall apart after a week or two. Could be me, could be I've been absurdly unlucky (but probably me).