New psionic power- Astral Servant

[Someone]

Ah, but you´re thinking quadruped. Imagine four huge constructs shaped as muscular slaves, carrying a palanquin of unusual size and running at 100 mph. That´s going to make you a famous guy, if you survive the biodramine overdose.

 

[Rystil Arden]

Ah, but you´re thinking quadruped. Imagine four huge constructs shaped as muscular slaves, carrying a palanquin of unusual size and running at 100 mph. That´s going to make you a famous guy, if you survive the biodramine overdose.

Palanquins Of Unusual Size? I don't believe they exist

(Shameless Princess Bride reference)

 

[Knight Otu]

So, the current proposal is the one in the first post? Or are there any changes still to make?

 

[Someone]

The updated proposal is the one in the first post. I´ll continue changing it as long anyone has something to contirbute, it´s definitely voted yes or no, or I give up.

 

[Knight Otu]

After reviewing it, I'll vote yes.

 

[Erekose13]

I think this looks quite good. I remember back in the 3e days, the Mind's Eye had something similar - Astral Taskers. I do like the idea, postulated above, that allowed you use Boost Construct on the Astral Servants with a quick wording change - or even just a quick note at the bottom of the power indicating that the feat applies to this power too.

 

[Bront]

I´ve edited this first post to include only the latest proposal:

Astral Servant
Metacreativity (Creation)
Level: Shaper 1
Display: Visual; see text
Manifesting Time: 1 round
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Effect: One created astral servant
Duration: 1 hour/level (D)
Saving Throw: None
Power Resistance: No
Power Points: 1

This power creates one 2nd level astral servant of solidified ectoplasm. It appears where you designate and acts immediately, on your turn. It performs any single task you command it to do at the best of it´s ability (follow me, clean the room, carry this, etc); if you cease to give them instructions, they continue performing their last task. Directing the astral servant is a mental free action, but you need line of sight with the servant to give him new instructions.

Astral servants can also be directed to obey the verbal commands of a particular character, and if used as mounts when the Four Legged option is chosen they´ll obey his rider as if it were a normal animal trained for war.

Astral servants are not summoned; they are created on the plane you inhabit (using ectoplasm drawn from the Astral Plane). Thus, they are not subject to effects that hedge out or otherwise affect outsiders; they are constructs, not outsiders.

Astral servants have the same stats as a astral construct of the same level, except that they have no attack modes and can´t attack except by indirect ways, have half their natural armor bonus, rounding down, and their total hit points is 5 + your manifester level. Astral servants don´t have the same menu options as astral constructs and have instead their own list.

Augments:

For every 2 additional power points you spend, the level of the astral servant increases by one.

For every 6 additional power points you spend, you can trade one menu option for one choice in a menu one letter higher.


Astral servant menu options:
Chosing menu option for astral servants follow the same rules as for astral constructs.

Menu A:

Extra speed: The servant gains +10 to one land, swim or flying existing speed mode. This choice stacks with itself.

Four legged: The servant becomes a quadruped. This increases carrying capacity accordingly and makes it be usable as a mount.

Run: The servant gains the Run feat.

Tool limb: The servant comes with a limb shaped in the form of one tool: axe (1d6 damage), hammer (1d4 damage), shovel, or saw (for wood). The servant is still unable to attack creatures. The same Servant can´t have both Tool limb and Four Legged options.

Swim: The servant gains a swim speed of 30.

Menu B:

Tunneling: The servant gains a Burrow speed of 10. It leaves a usable tunnel behind.

Muscle: The construct´s Strenght increases by 6.

Skilled: The servant has a number of skill ranks in a Craft skill equal to your own, to a maximum of 6. The servant can spend your craft points when crafting.

Watcher: The servant has a number of skill points in Spot and Listen equal to it´s level plus three, and emits a high-pitched scream (Listen DC: -5) when he perceives any creature of Small size or bigger. You can direct the construct to not react to any number of individual creatures o races. The construct can be fooled normally by illusions or shape-altering spells.

Menu C:

Very Skilled: The servant has a number of skill ranks in a Craft skill equal to your own, to a maximum of 12. The servant can spend your craft points when crafting.

Flight: The servant has wings and a Fly speed of 40 (average). Choosing this option reduces the power´s duration to 10 minutes/level.

Let's compair this to something similar on the Arcane side.

Unseen Servant
Conjuration (Creation)
Level: Brd 1, Sor/Wiz 1
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Effect: One invisible, mindless, shapeless servant
Duration: 1 hour/level
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No

An unseen servant is an invisible, mindless, shapeless force that performs simple tasks at your command. It can run and fetch things, open unstuck doors, and hold chairs, as well as clean and mend. The servant can perform only one activity at a time, but it repeats the same activity over and over again if told to do so as long as you remain within range. It can open only normal doors, drawers, lids, and the like. It has an effective Strength score of 2 (so it can lift 20 pounds or drag 100 pounds). It can trigger traps and such, but it can exert only 20 pounds of force, which is not enough to activate certain pressure plates and other devices. It can’t perform any task that requires a skill check with a DC higher than 10 or that requires a check using a skill that can’t be used untrained. Its speed is 15 feet.

The servant cannot attack in any way; it is never allowed an attack roll. It cannot be killed, but it dissipates if it takes 6 points of damage from area attacks. (It gets no saves against attacks.) If you attempt to send it beyond the spell’s range (measured from your current position), the servant ceases to exist.

Material Component
A piece of string and a bit of wood.

So, Unseen Servant can take 6 HP before it disipates, can not attack, and has a strength of 2.

Not even discussing the augments, this is significantly stronger at 1st level than Unseen Servant, but quite a bit. In addition, Phantom Steed is a 3rd level spell, and less flexable than this.

As far as the augments go, some of the effects last longer or can do more than eqivilent higher level spells (Tunneling).

Now, if this were A) a higher level power, B) Had a shorter duration, and/or C) wasn't substantialy more powerful than current abilities at similar levels, I'd be willing to reconsider, but I currently vote No

Ways to fix:
A) Make it at least 2nd Level.
B) Reduce the Duration (You can allow it to increase with PPs, like some other abilities)
which will take care of C as a result.

FYI: I voted no because of the Yes vote. I'd love to see this actualy make it in as a power, but it needs tweeking.

 

[Someone]

We agree that the power, as written, rolls several utility spells into one, namely Unseen Servant, Floating Disk, and Phantom Steed, with some other bonus tricks added. I´d argue that those spells are rather underpowered, and seldom used; a power that can mimic some of their capabilities isn´t neccesarily overpowered, specially when a wizard doesn´t need to prepare them, but to have a cheap scroll ready. Psions would need to be Shapers to be able to use power stones of Astral Servant.

I agree that the power is, manifested with 1 power point, as good as Unseen servant, but is weaker than Floating disk and specially Phantom steed. To rival the Steed´s speed you need to augment the power to the equivalent of a high-level slot, where Teleport and Wind Walk spells rule.

I however see Tunneling moved to the C menu (having in mind that, unless specified, burrowing critters can only dig through dirt and soil, not rock).

As alternatives to the long duration:

- Reduce duration to 10 minutes level and have an augment (+2 PP?) that increases it to 1 hour level
- Same as before, but the augment reads: +1 PP: duration is increased by 1 hour. Several powers use a similar mechanic
- Having a B menu option to increase duration to 1 hour/level. That way, you´d have to spend at least 5 power points to have a long-lasting servant.

 

[Bront]

Unseen Servant's Strength of 2 and HP of 6 vs This Construct's Str of 17 and HP of 31 (or 15 if you were halving it) makes a huge difference in several utilitarian factors. Heck, the strength of 17 is stronger than the mount summoned in Phantom Steed (or would be if it had a driect strenght instead of caster weight + 10 lbs per level)

- 10 minutes per level -> 1 hour for 4 PP seems good to me
- Making it 1 hour, +1 hour per PP spent on duration (seperate from other augmentations) isn't a bad compromise either.
- Should be a Level 2 power. It is imensely overpowered compaired to Unseen Servant, and I agree it should be (Unseen Servant isn't the greatest spell, though it has uses)

 

[Someone]

I´m changing duration, then. Also made a minor change to hit points.

Edit: Notice that the change to duration and the new augmentation makes the power a higher level one if you want to emulate Unseen Servant;

- A 1st level psion can have a construct for 10 minutes; a 1st level wizard can have a US for 1 hour.

- A 3rd level psion can augment the power to have a construct for 2 and a half hours, paying the equivalent of a 2nd level power; a wizard pays a 1st level slot for a US that lasts 3 hours.