Synad Race?

[Coy]

I just came across this race in Complete Psi - how would other people rate this race?

Personally, it seems pretty strong for a Psi Manifester. With a free (well, one PP) quasi-quickened power per day, +2 to will, +2 at will bonus to a check per day, and for some occasions the +2 for psicraft and knowledge checks (A StP erudite who wants to garentee he captures a spell/power?). Darkvision too!

Basically im looking for someone to point out its not that great and burst my bubble.

[Sinfire Titan]

It's OK. If it's type is Aberration, it should be just about on-par with the Elan (slightly better due to the mini-Quicken). Otherwise it's nothing special.

[Thalnawr]

Synads are awesome, for all the reasons you mentioned. All that, and no LA. The racial PP reserve is always nice to have at low levels, as well.

EDIT: Yes, they're aberrations.

[Ichneumon]

What's their fluff?

[Thalnawr]

Freaks whose homeworld was destroyed, and they escaped by passing through the Plane of Shadow to whatever Prime you're playing on. They also have 2 ghostly heads that manifest when they run their PP reserve out.

[Sinfire Titan]

Freaks whose homeworld was destroyed, and they escaped by passing through the Plane of Shadow to whatever Prime you're playing on. They also have 2 ghostly heads that manifest when they run their PP reserve out.

...No, they have three minds in one body. The artwork is misleading.

[Thalnawr]

...No, they have three minds in one body. The artwork is misleading.

The fluff does actually state that the other 2 minds manifest when they burn all of their PP, however.

[Optimystik]

...No, they have three minds in one body. The artwork is misleading.

Thalnawr is actually right:

Physical Description: In the bright light of day, a synad passes for a tall, slim human. In dim light, however, out of the corner of an observer's eye, a synad sometimes appears as a humanoid with three heads. The normal head appears bracketed by two ghostly heads completely "devoid of hair, eyes, ears, mouth, or nose. This happens only if the synad has exhausted all its power points for the day. For this reason, most synads avoid draining their power point reserve, lest their true nature be revealed.

The artwork is merely depicting a Synad with no power points.

[hamishspence]

Dragon 314 was the one that first introduced them- in that source:

Personality:
While synads have wildly varying personalities, their three-fold minds function in a particular way that gives the race recognizable personality traits. A synad's three-fold mind is composed of parts that are often referred to as the overmind, the collective, and the oracle. Most of the time, the overmind controls the synad's actions. However, sometimes the collective or the oracle rises to the surface, either bypassing the overmind or mentally advising the overmind on topics either is most suited to understand.

Alignment:
Synads tend toward no alignment, not even neutrality. The best and the worst are to be found among them.
An overmind's alignment is usually determined by the components of its subminds- lawful, evil, good, or chaotic. Rarely, the two subminds might be diametrically opposed. For instance, the collective might be good, while the oracle is evil. When this happens, the synad seems erratic, willful, and essentially chaotic.

Synad lands:
Synads hail from a parallel world reachable through the Plane of Shadow. The few that have colonized the Material Plane prefer to forget their world of origin, claiming that monstrosities of the mind roam there unhindered.

EDIT: I checked and apparently this is in Complete Psionic, too.

[Thalnawr]

Ok, maybe not quite from a destroyed homeworld, but close enough. I was just going off what I rememeber since I'm AFB.

[hamishspence]

I managed to not spot the fluff on my first look at the Synad in Complete Psionic, so I went back and dug it out of Dragon.

Then I took another look and realized it was all in the book as well.

[Thurbane]

I miss the old 1E Snyads.

Snyads (also called pesties) live in small passages adjoining dungeon corridors. The entrances to these tunnels are small and usually well concealed behind piles of loose stone, making them very difficult to detect.
The snyad is a cousin of the mite (q.v.) and often cooperate with them to trap prey. The trap making skills of the mite combined with the speed of the pestie make for quite a formidable team.
Snyads appear as small 2-foot tall humanoids, brown in color. They have long pointed ears and large bulbous noses. Their arms are long and spindly.
Snyads do not speak, but seem to be able to understand each other through use of body language.

[Optimystik]

I miss the old 1E Snyads.

How on earth could you like a mute, midget, goblin-wannabe more than a badass, psionic, creepy aberration with a tri-sectioned brain that can blend in perfectly with humanity?

[Thalnawr]

Oh, and lest we forget, they're obsessed with fancy headwear. Not sure why, but maybe they're self-conscious about the whole hairlessness and fitting into human society?

[Thurbane]

How on earth could you like a mute, midget, goblin-wannabe more than a badass, psionic, creepy aberration with a tri-sectioned brain that can blend in perfectly with humanity?

I know, it's weird, right?

[Sydonai]

Dragon 314 was the one that first introduced them- in that source:

Personality:
While synads have wildly varying personalities, their three-fold minds function in a particular way that gives the race recognizable personality traits. A synad's three-fold mind is composed of parts that are often referred to as the overmind, the collective, and the oracle. Most of the time, the overmind controls the synad's actions. However, sometimes the collective or the oracle rises to the surface, either bypassing the overmind or mentally advising the overmind on topics either is most suited to understand.

Alignment:
Synads tend toward no alignment, not even neutrality. The best and the worst are to be found among them.
An overmind's alignment is usually determined by the components of its subminds- lawful, evil, good, or chaotic. Rarely, the two subminds might be diametrically opposed. For instance, the collective might be good, while the oracle is evil. When this happens, the synad seems erratic, willful, and essentially chaotic.

Synad lands:
Synads hail from a parallel world reachable through the Plane of Shadow. The few that have colonized the Material Plane prefer to forget their world of origin, claiming that monstrosities of the mind roam there unhindered.

EDIT: I checked and apparently this is in Complete Psionic, too.

Is it just me, or does that sound alot like the Kalashtar? The origin at least.

[Yuki Akuma]

Is it just me, or does that sound alot like the Kalashtar? The origin at least.

Vecna worshiped(and still does despite being a god) The Serpent, well guess what. Asmodeus is The Serpent, or at least it's personification/avatar.

Hello. You must be new.

[Thurbane]

I hardly think a topic less than a month old warrants that tired old pic, do you?

[Greenish]

Oh, and lest we forget, they're obsessed with fancy headwear. Not sure why, but maybe they're self-conscious about the whole hairlessness and fitting into human society?

A racial love for Nice Hats? Awesome, puts them on par with ze Jägermonsters.

[Optimystik]

Ah, this old gem.

Is it just me, or does that sound alot like the Kalashtar? The origin at least.

Eh, sort of. In some alternate world where the Quori trounce the Kalashtar and send them fleeing scattered across the multiverse, maybe.

The Kalashtar are fighters though - most believe their whole reason for existing is fighting evil in general, and the Quori in particular.

The Synad are the opposite - doing everything they can to forget whatever catastrophe befell them, and integrate as seamlessly into society as they can, to the point of hiding whatever makes them different.

[magic9mushroom]

I just came across this race in Complete Psi - how would other people rate this race?

Personally, it seems pretty strong for a Psi Manifester. With a free (well, one PP) quasi-quickened power per day, +2 to will, +2 at will bonus to a check per day, and for some occasions the +2 for psicraft and knowledge checks (A StP erudite who wants to garentee he captures a spell/power?). Darkvision too!

Basically im looking for someone to point out its not that great and burst my bubble.

Elans get similarly awesome stuff, and Synads don't get any yummy ability bonuses.

[Optimystik]

Elans get similarly awesome stuff, and Synads don't get any yummy ability bonuses.

Elans don't get any either - just a Cha penalty.

I personally think Elans and Synads are about equal. I love the Elan Retainment feat in CPsi. Enhanced Resilience is also worth it if it stops effects like contact poison/disease (and of course you're in a campaign where those dangers exist), making resilience almost as efficient as Vigor.

There is a feat for Synads that lets them do their pseudo-quicken twice per day instead of once; this can be a handy one to take also.

[Darrin]

There is a feat for Synads that lets them do their pseudo-quicken twice per day instead of once; this can be a handy one to take also.

Synad is the only way I know of to get an extra swift action in a round other than RKV/Divine Impetus abuse. So there are some action-economy gamebreakers that would probably work very well with a Synad.

[Lycanthromancer]

Unless the synad in question isn't a manifester, his extra swift action is pretty useless, as you can't manifest a power with it if you've manifested a power that round...and there's not a whole lot else a psionicist can do with a swift action.

[Optimystik]

Unless the synad in question isn't a manifester, his extra swift action is pretty useless, as you can't manifest a power with it if you've manifested a power that round...and there's not a whole lot else a psionicist can do with a swift action.

Synad gishes can easily use it:
Manifest + Full Attack
Move + Manifest + Total Defense
Move + Manifest + Aid Another

And all while keeping your psionic focus for something, instead of blowing it on Quicken Power.

[Lycanthromancer]

Synad gishes can easily use it:
Manifest + Full Attack
Move + Manifest + Total Defense
Move + Manifest + Aid Another

And all while keeping your psionic focus for something, instead of blowing it on Quicken Power.

It's a swift action you can use for anything that requires a swift action to use, but you can't use it when you've already manifested for the round.

It doesn't let you use a swift action for something that requires something other than a swift action.

This means you get two swift actions for the round, but not if you've manifested anything.

It's good for, say, ToB/psionic hybrids (one swift action to buff, another for something else), and maybe for immediate action stuff (since immediate actions eat up your next swift, and don't count as being on your turn), but that's it.

If you plan on using it to buff for, say, a pure psychic warrior, you're better off just using a single swift action power and Linked Power to do so, as that extra swift will avail you not unless you've got other things to do with swifts beyond manifesting.

...which isn't at all out of the realm of possibility.

[Optimystik]

It's a swift action you can use for anything that requires a swift action to use, but you can't use it when you've already manifested for the round.

Not exactly. You can't manifest with it only if you've already manifested during the round. As there aren't many other useful purely mental actions you can take, it's best to use Multitask to manifest, and use your move+standard to do something else (examples as per my post.)

You can also use it for knowledge checks, Supernaturals and SLAs, which are all also purely mental actions.

It doesn't let you use a swift action for something that requires something other than a swift action.

This means you get two swift actions for the round, but not if you've manifested anything.

You still get the action, you just can't manifest with it in that instance. But as above - SLAs, PLAs, Su and Knowledge checks are all fair game, as is directing something mentally.

[Sinfire Titan]

Unless the synad in question isn't a manifester, his extra swift action is pretty useless, as you can't manifest a power with it if you've manifested a power that round...and there's not a whole lot else a psionicist can do with a swift action.

It is useful for a Meldshaper, but only those two class types can use that ability (and even then, I wouldn't want to pick a race just to get an extra action to shift Essentia around when I could pick an Elan and still get Alter Self awesomeness).

[Blackfang108]

It is useful for a Meldshaper, but only those two class types can use that ability (and even then, I wouldn't want to pick a race just to get an extra action to shift Essentia around when I could pick an Elan and still get Alter Self awesomeness).

What's the Elan's Alter self Awesomeness?

Is it based on them being Abberations? (Because Synads are Crimes against Nature, too.)

[Lycanthromancer]

Not exactly. You can't manifest with it only if you've already manifested during the round. As there aren't many other useful purely mental actions you can take, it's best to use Multitask to manifest, and use your move+standard to do something else (examples as per my post.)

I'm not arguing that using your swift actions to buff, rather than move and standard (which should be used for things other than buffing unless you've got a round or two to spare) is a bad thing (just the opposite, in fact); what I'm saying is that it's rare to have anything you can use swift actions for EXCEPT manifesting. And as such, having two swift actions in a round isn't that useful if only one of them can be used to manifest a power (since there isn't much else to be done with swift actions, though I'd imagine ToB and incarnum would be the primary exceptions).

If the 'cannot manifest if you've already manifested in the round' part was taken out, this would be considerably better.

You can also use it for knowledge checks, Supernaturals and SLAs, which are all also purely mental actions.

Knowledge checks are generally free actions, and (Su) and (Sp) abilities are usually standards (which synads don't really have access to anyway).

You still get the action, you just can't manifest with it in that instance. But as above - SLAs, PLAs, Su and Knowledge checks are all fair game, as is directing something mentally.

Most of those are free or standard actions.

What I'm saying is that non-manifesting swift actions are rare, and the ability just isn't very useful if you can't spend it on manifesting (because powers are some of the most prevalent uses of swift actions in the game).

You can make a build that makes it useful, but 1 or 2/day rather severely limits your ability to rely on it.