(D&D 3.X) First time Psion (Shaper) Advice, Especially WBL Expenditure & Psicrystal

[Coidzor]

So I'm working on making a 5th level Strong Heart Halfling Shaper and this will be my first psionic character, and I believe I've got an acceptable selection of feats and powers so far. This will be for a one-shot that may get picked up later again for Skype/Roll20 game.

Having more trouble with what to spend my 5th level WBL on though, so in addition to any feedback on what I have so far, I'd like some suggestions for items I can actually afford, because I've only found mundane stuff or stuff that's way above 5th level WBL so far through my searching.

This is what I've got so far. (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1opG07Rx_SQV2soKA7jOIlEfV7IiE-XjJCMXuDP2Mjsk/edit?usp=sharing) No Comp Psi Stealth Errata Nerfs in effect.

Questions, Comments, Concerns? I'm thinking so far that as my standard go-to strategy I'd be opening up with a summon and energy wall to break up enemies with some AoE damage and get an extended, swift action summoned astral construct in amongst them, setting things up for a THF ranger & their druid-strength Animal Companion, a Nerullian Cleric that may or may not grab some undead, and a bard of unknown focus. Not sure if that'll just drain my batteries too quickly though.

Edit: I just realized I completely forgot to mention that I have no idea really what feats to give my Psicrystal.

[JeminiZero]

Take a look at Shax's haversack (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?148101-3-x-Shax-s-Indispensible-Haversack-(Equipment-Handbook)&p=8235865#post8235865) for a few ideas.

A few additional ideas:
-Anklets of Translocaton: I love these things. Get out of grapple/AoO range 2/day.

-Belt of Healing: Uses are obvious

-Psionics has no ASF. You *can* wear armor and shields, but without proficiency, you take your ACP as a penalty to a bunch of stuff, so wear 0 ACP armor/shield. Since you are already taking inertial armour, perhaps spending some on a Durable [Dungeonscape] Mithral Heavy Shield +1 might work. +3 AC for 2,500 gp (that won't be eaten by rust monsters) is far better value than amulet of natural armor.

[Coidzor]

Take a look at Shax's haversack (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?148101-3-x-Shax-s-Indispensible-Haversack-(Equipment-Handbook)&p=8235865#post8235865) for a few ideas.

A few additional ideas:
-Anklets of Translocaton: I love these things. Get out of grapple/AoO range 2/day.

-Belt of Healing: Uses are obvious

-Psionics has no ASF. You *can* wear armor and shields, but without proficiency, you take your ACP as a penalty to a bunch of stuff, so wear 0 ACP armor/shield. Since you are already taking inertial armour, perhaps spending some on a Durable [Dungeonscape] Mithral Heavy Shield +1 might work. +3 AC for 2,500 gp (that won't be eaten by rust monsters) is far better value than amulet of natural armor.

Point. Especially about Durable. I'd thought I'd grab either a Mithral Heavy Shield or a Darkwood Heavy Shield, but I forgot about Durable/Blueshine/Blueshine's direct equivalent.

I mean, I know I'm going to grab a +2 Int item and that's 4K right there out of the 9K I have to work with, IIRC. A Durable Mithral Heavy Shield would be 2.5K on top of that for 6.5/9 accounted for. If I threw Light Fortification on top of that, I'd end up going 500 gp over budget it seems, so that's out XD.

A belt of healing would come in handy, even with the share pain + vigor + psicrystal trick and wands of lesser vigor for healing. So that'd bring me up to 7.25 K out of 9 K, I guess.

I know that wizards and sorcerers like to have scrolls and the odd wand around, but the conversation around psionic characters always seems to indicate that their psionic equivalents have much less... emphasis/demand.

[Coidzor]

So I just realized I completely forgot about the fact that I have no idea what feats to really give my Psicrystal. Any suggestions there?

[JeminiZero]

Well you don't appear to have a light source (or darkvision), so maybe an everburning ring? (Like everburning torch, but where continual flame is cast on a wearable unslotted ring which can be quickly hidden underneath a glove when not needed, instead of large easily dropped block of wood).

Look through Shax's Haversack for alchemical/utility items. You don't have Sustenance, so maybe everlasting rations and everful mug?

Or maybe you can pool the money with the rest of the party for shared items like a survival pouch?

For Psicrystal feats, see if you can have it take: Bind Vestige + Improved Bind Vestige + Practiced Binder. Then it can bind Malphas and use Bird's Eye Viewing to scout. :smallamused:

[sleepyphoenixx]

A Darklight (SoS, 500gp) and Ring of the Darkhidden (MIC, 2000gp) are always useful. Add Darkvision or Touchsight to that and you have a potent defense for relatively little investment.
Third Eye:Clarity (MIC, 3000gp) is also pretty much universally useful.
For psicrystal feats consider getting the Feat Leech power and giving your psicrystal metapsionic feats.

[Coidzor]

I don't really see how I could shift things around to get Feat Leech, exactly? None of the metapsionic feats beyond extend really stood out to me either, I must admit. Some of the regular old psionic feats would be nice though, I suppose, such as the power point conserving combos that give infinite power points if one doesn't use powers at one's full levels. But that'd also probably be a little bit much for this game, seeing as how overchanneling was enough to scare the DM the last time he had a psion(kineticist blaster, IIRC). Though I think there might have been some errors about how much a power can be augmented based upon manifester level as well there, which have since been cleared up.

Actually, just to double check, if I have ML 5, I can spend 5 powerpoints on the power and the spend whatever extra cost a metapsionic feat has(such as Extend Power with its 2 pp cost) on top of that, right? Or would I only be able to use metapsionic feats on my lower level powers?


Well you don't appear to have a light source (or darkvision), so maybe an everburning ring? (Like everburning torch, but where continual flame is cast on a wearable unslotted ring which can be quickly hidden underneath a glove when not needed, instead of large easily dropped block of wood).

Look through Shax's Haversack for alchemical/utility items. You don't have Sustenance, so maybe everlasting rations and everful mug?

Or maybe you can pool the money with the rest of the party for shared items like a survival pouch?

For Psicrystal feats, see if you can have it take: Bind Vestige + Improved Bind Vestige + Practiced Binder. Then it can bind Malphas and use Bird's Eye Viewing to scout. :smallamused:

Unless it's really a plot point we don't tend to sweat the logistics of food and non-magical, non-rare-material ammunition, but good point about the light source, thank you. :smallsmile:

Ahh, infinite crows that one can see through the eyes of, right? One feat short of those three feats, I think, since it's got 5 HD and so has its 1st HD and 3rd HD feats to go on.

[Summerstorm]

Now... i know there is/was some debate. But Psicrystals don't get feats/skills.

At least in my and some others opinion. (It never gains any HD or levels up. It just HAS HD based on your Class levels)

But yeah, if you can get feats on it: Take either "Shape Soulmeld" or "Binding" or "Martial Study" - All three of those systems work fine with being partially bought by feats and can make a scout/skirmisher or debuffer out of your companion.

[Coidzor]

Now... i know there is/was some debate. But Psicrystals don't get feats/skills.

At least in my and some others opinion. (It never gains any HD or levels up. It just HAS HD based on your Class levels)

I don't really care what you think about a previously established parameter of the thread as long as you don't derail this thread that already doesn't have much interest.


But yeah, if you can get feats on it: Take either "Shape Soulmeld" or "Binding" or "Martial Study" - All three of those systems work fine with being partially bought by feats and can make a scout/skirmisher or debuffer out of your companion.

No Constitution score and both meldshaping and the feat require a constitution score without the undead meldshaper feat. Otherwise I'd give it Dissolving Spittle and call it a day, since I don't even need it to have another feat if it's got that.

And Martial Study isn't kosher because there is no access to maneuvers.

[Phelix-Mu]

Hmm. So, for purchases, I like tree tokens. Kind of pricey for one use items at this level, but there are about a billion ways to use them. Also, bag of tricks is nice, though I think that might soak up what little you have left. Psions don't need a lot of gear, and you can use psionic unseen servant (if available) to help carry stuff. Otherwise, I'd always advise a small character to invest in magical storage early, for convenience if nothing else.

As for dorje's and power stones, they can be useful in a tight spot, but otherwise see little use as levels progress. There are a couple low-level ones that might be worth picking up for boss fights if you don't have the powers already. The vigor/share pain combo with a psicrystal is very effective, and there are a couple other utility powers that probably don't justify the full purchase of the power (like the aforementioned psionic unseen servant).

An easily overlooked table in the beginning of the items section of EPH also suggests uses for DMG items that have different effects for psions. A couple of them can be useful, but in general might be worth remembering for when random loot pops one of them and you are looking for something your psion can use.

P.S.: I, too, was originally skeptical that psicrystals got feats of their own, assuming they worked like familiars. But the language to the contrary is pretty clear; psicrystals have actual HD, and any creature with HD gets one feat plus one per three HD. A DM may rule to the contrary for balance reasons, but it really is hardly the most objectionable bit of RAW out there.

[Rubik]

According to CPsi, you can use your own power points when you manifest from a power stone to manifest the power at your ML (though you still flush the stone), so you can do what I do -- buy a bunch of 1st level power stones of utility and long-duration buff powers (like Inertial Armor) and use those to expand your number of effective "powers known" significantly. Not usually worth it for higher level power stones, except for things like Psychoportive Shelter and other utility things. Consider the cost of a +5 full plate, and then compare that to a few 25 gp power stones at mid levels.

P.S. Rules as written, psicrystals do gain feats, and there's absolutely no room to argue to the contrary. You can houserule, but that's not RAW. How about Darkstalker, Mindsight, and Life Sense for your psicrystal's feats?

[Coidzor]

According to CPsi, you can use your own power points when you manifest from a power stone to manifest the power at your ML (though you still flush the stone), so you can do what I do -- buy a bunch of 1st level power stones of utility and long-duration buff powers (like Inertial Armor) and use those to expand your number of effective "powers known" significantly. Not usually worth it for higher level power stones, except for things like Psychoportive Shelter and other utility things. Consider the cost of a +5 full plate, and then compare that to a few 25 gp power stones at mid levels.

P.S. Rules as written, psicrystals do gain feats, and there's absolutely no room to argue to the contrary. You can houserule, but that's not RAW. How about Darkstalker, Mindsight, and Life Sense for your psicrystal's feats?

Other than items or brute-forcing it with the +1 from every 4 HD, any suggestions for getting it the 13 charisma for Life Sense? Not that it really needs Life Sense if it has mindsight, though it would cover everything except for mindless undead with the two of them, I suppose.

I suppose the natural +14 from being Diminutive and having 15 Dex would be a good starting point for Hide for Darkstalker, come to think of it, and I have ended up using it as a scout so far...

[Rubik]

Other than items or brute-forcing it with the +1 from every 4 HD, any suggestions for getting it the 13 charisma for Life Sense? Not that it really needs Life Sense if it has mindsight, though it would cover everything except for mindless undead with the two of them, I suppose.

I suppose the natural +14 from being Diminutive and having 15 Dex would be a good starting point for Hide for Darkstalker, come to think of it, and I have ended up using it as a scout so far...Well, you have a +1 coming from HD, and it COULD use an item of +Wis, though that's a bit expensive at the moment. Or it could take Vow of Poverty, but that'd eat up two feats, which kinda destroys the idea.

Saaaay... What alignment are you? Making it a VoPsicrystal might not be a terrible idea.

[Coidzor]

Well, you have a +1 coming from HD, and it COULD use an item of +Wis, though that's a bit expensive at the moment. Or it could take Vow of Poverty, but that'd eat up two feats, which kinda destroys the idea.

Saaaay... What alignment are you? Making it a VoPsicrystal might not be a terrible idea.

I completely forgot that they could take Vow of Poverty. Thank you for that reminder. Sacred Vow and VoP would eat all of its feats from leveling so far, but it'd have whatever a 5 HD VoPer would have...

Brilliant!

[Rubik]

I completely forgot that they could take Vow of Poverty. Thank you for that reminder. Sacred Vow and VoP would eat all of its feats from leveling so far, but it'd have whatever a 5 HD VoPer would have...

Brilliant!Just remember that your psicrystal won't be able to use dorjes or doorknobs or dwarven urgroshes (in case you use Metamorphosis on it for melee purposes in the future).

[Coidzor]

Just remember that your psicrystal won't be able to use dorjes or doorknobs or dwarven urgroshes (in case you use Metamorphosis on it for melee purposes in the future).

Can they even manually open doors using doorknobs anyway? I'd thought about having one apply contact poison to surfaces, but even without the low strength and size, it didn't seem capable of interacting with objects, just moving itself.

[Captnq]

My Sig. Get EVD. Check out the subfile called Psionomicon. I got a file on psi crystals in there.