Explaining Psionics

[Thealtruistorc]

Over the summer, me and my buddies have been taking turns DMing short campaigns until our group can become consistent again. In my run, I played a rather psionics-heavy adventure involving the quori, which left several of my players rather confused. Our party fighter (let's call him Dwayne) has been playing the game for years, and knows it inside and out for the most part (hence, he can create a very viable fighter). However, he has always been confused and rather frustrated by the psionics system, saying that he can't wrap his head around it after becoming so accustomed to the vancian magic system. I, being a fellow who enjoys psionics, have tried to explain the system to Dwayne before, but to little avail. Do you guys have any advice on introducing players to the way psionics works (both flavorwise and mechanically) that could help me here?

[JusticeZero]

"It's a mana point system, just like most computer RPGs. And focus is like tapping a card in a ccg. Other than that, it's exactly the same as magic."
Try running an adventure where the only magic allowed in chargen is psionics. I did, it feels like normal sword and sorcery, but you can play with religion more.

[Red Fel]

"It's a mana point system, just like most computer RPGs. And focus is like tapping a card in a ccg. Other than that, it's exactly the same as magic."
Try running an adventure where the only magic allowed in chargen is psionics. I did, it feels like normal sword and sorcery, but you can play with religion more.

Pretty much this. Alternatively, compare it to running a Sorcerer. Like Sorcerers, Psionic characters are spontaneous casters. Like a Sorcerer, a Psionic character has a list of non-specific resources, as opposed to having to prepare specific spells. Sorcerers have "slots," Psionic characters have "points." Like most other casters, Psionic characters have to cast defensively while in combat. In terms of fluff, too; like Sorcerers, Psionic characters are producing spell-type effects from within themselves. Unlike Sorcerers (or most other casters), however, Psionic spellcasting is treated as enjoying the benefits of Still Spell, Silent Spell, and Eschew Materials feats.
Then you cover the key points, which are basically what JusticeZero described. You spend points to cast abilities, you focus/expend focus to boost them. You have X points per day that you can spend on powers. Some powers can be augmented by spending extra points on them. That's fine, because powers don't automatically scale the way that spells do. You have an ML, just like your Vancian CL. You can never spend more points on a power than your ML.
After that, it's fairly straightforward stuff.

[Gavinfoxx]

This is SO IMPORTANT.

The single most important rule of psionics is that you cannot spend more power points on a power than you have manifester levels in the class the power belongs to.

I'll repeat it.

The single most important rule of psionics is that you cannot spend more power points on a power than you have manifester levels in the class the power belongs to.

[Tulya]

The power point/augmentation system is not all that different in essence from Vancian metamagic. Instead, the gradations are finer (1 pp = 1/2 a spell level), and most powers have their own pseudo-metamagic built-in to the power itself.

For example, Energy Ball is basically Fireball that lost its free damage scaling for a built-in hybrid Heighten + Intensify metamagic with the text:
Increase the spell DC by 1/2 and the damage dice by 1d6. You can apply this metamagic multiple times, increasing the spell slot required to cast the spell by 1/2 for each time.


You could run a Vancian-style Sorcerer using psionic powers by:
Allowing them to reallocate their spell slots at-will based on the PP conversion rate. Alternately, a simplified conversion rate of Combined Spell Level = New Spell Level. (Two Level 2 slots = one Level 4 slot)
Scaling their maximum level spell slot allowed based on their caster level. (Maximum spell level remains based on class progression. Treat similarly to having spell slots of a level higher than your key spellcasting ability.)
Scaling the augments up to whole number spell level adjustments. (Thus, Energy Ball's is +1 DC, +2d6 damage, +1 spell slot level adjustment.)
Setting the base spell slot cost of each power equal to its power level.

Which is not something I'd seriously recommend, but the mental leap from that concept to playing a Psion or Wilder should be much smaller.