I’m only coming into this with pop culture knowledge and what I’ve picked up here on Enworld for psions so just hear me out
Telekinesis, Telepathy/Psychic/Mind Altering Effects and Energy Blasts are the three big core ideas of psionics, though I’ve gathered that bio-manipulation seemed to be a big thing in previous editions? Focus the class on these rather than ‘everything magic can do but it’s psychic powers doing it instead’
Yeah, the Telekinete, Telepath, Prescient ("psychic"), and the Shifter ("bio-shifter") are the themes that define Psion class.
The "flashy" spells of the "fire starter" are somewhat controversial. They tend to make the class feel a bit more like a Wizard or Sorcerer. In 3e, this overlap was intentional.
I actually intend to make the "flashy" elemental spells available as options. But these spells will use the "primal" tag and lack the "psionic" tag. Their flavor is the manifestations of nature, rather than the manifestation of an individuals mind. The primal flavor will help distinguish the character from arcane classes.
For a psionic character that can manifest primal spells, compare how an arcane Sorcerer can manifest psionic spells (or even be entirely divine). For the Psion class, the primal elemental energy spells will be specific to a subclass discipline, and not part of the base class.
Anyway, for now, I want to focus on the first four subclass disciplines: telekinesis, telepathy, psychic prescience, and bio shifting. These are the bedrock of the Psion class concept, and need to be solid, even if other disciplines come online as subclass options later.
PSI points to ‘cast’, because I do think it’s important to keep psionics away from just being another type of spell, you shouldn’t be able to use a spell slot to cast a psionic power because they’re just not the same thing, the 1:1 ‘spell’ level=number of psi points to cast i saw upthread sounds good though.
Actually, I am now leaning toward spell points.
Initially, I didnt want them because it is so important for this Psion to have "normal" D&D mechanics.
But, as long as the other spellcaster classes can use spell points to as a variant option, a spell point Psion is "normal" enough.
The DMG spell point is unworkable, mostly because its precision is clunky and fiddly, and nonconducive to a playable "system". But its math is nonaccurate anyway. The ballpark is correct but too many individual spells dont match up to it, so its fiddliness is pointless.
It appears the super-simple spellpoint system balances solidly! Point cost = slot level. It is that easy. A slot-1 spell like Magic Missile costs 1 point. A slot-3 spell like Fly costs 3 points.
Other spell casters like Wizard and Druid, can convert their slots into spell points too. A slot at spell level 3 is worth 3 points, and so on. These other classes need to use the same rules too. The spell point system only works up to slot 5. Spells of slots 6 to 9, cannot be cast by means of spell points. These highest spells retain the slots that are dedicated for them. Also, their spell points only refresh per long rest. Only the Warlock and Psion refresh per short rest.
I am confident spell points can be used for the highest spells. But the Warlock chassis doesnt go there, there are good reasons to avoid it because it is difficult to balance, and for now there is no need to worry about it.
Anyway, I am warming up to the Psion using the spell points system as the default. Players who want the spell slots from the Warlock class can do so as a variant.
Recharge action, spend a turn focusing to restore psi points in battle if needed.
I dont think a mini refresh is necessary. The short hour rest should be sufficient to refresh the
But both LaserLlama and KibblesTasty have some form of mini-refresh, ... so maybe it is needed?
In any case, when the Psion in this thread shapes up, we can see how it plays.
Psionics are Not Magic, they are not affected by things like non-magic zones or dispel or detect or identify magic or counterspell or any magics that are designed to manipulate other magic, you can however affect psionics with magic indirectly, shield would still help protect against a psi-blast for example.
Way back in 1e (Players Handbook) and 2e (Psionicist) psionics was "not magic".
But in 3e, 4e, and officially in 5e, psionics is magic.
The need to make it magic is gaming-engine mechanical balance. Otherwise it becomes a gotcha death trap of a "battle of tigers against sharks".
That said, 5e officially has three different "power sources" where magic can come from: psionic, divine, and arcane. Plus martial counts as a nonmagic source. And the primal power source is already familiar for many players for classes like Druid, Ranger, and Barbarian. Personally I feel necromancy is yet an other power source, a kind of anti-power source, that relates to undead, fiends, and aberrations and their respective planes of being, shadow, infernal, and farrealms.
So, even now, 5e has dejure three sources and defacto six sources.
So far, mechanical rules for the power sources are either minor. The differences between the sources are flavor. For example, there is no rule saying the martial power source CANT cast a Fireball − it just doesnt happen because of flavor reasons.
In my opinion, cautious carefully thought out mechanics are appropriate for each power source.
For psionics, the fact that it is the innate magic of ones own mind, it is super-important to me that it cannot come from any external source, neither an other creature nor a material component. In other words, the flavor requires mechanics. A psionic character does not use any spell component when casting a spell.
The situation for a psionic Artificer subclass might be tricky, if using crystals to do psionic effects. But to do so implies that the crystals themselves are conscious minds, either an artificial consciousness or creatures consciousness transferring into the crystal.
For arcane, the flavor of "protoscience" is important to me. Its mechanical implication is that the arcane power source must use a material component, whether a magical potion ingredient or some other technological device like a wand.
In the case of the Sorcerer and Warlock, their own physical body is magical. Their body is the arcane material component − they are like living wands. This flavor implies mechanics. When spellcasting, they should do the verbal and somatic spell components, but then be able to substitute their own body for the material component. Again, like a living wand.
For divine, the flavor of the astral plane is definitive. This is a realm of thoughts, symbols, dreams, and archetypes. So divine flavor is entirely about symbolism, culture, and languages. Mechanically, divine already uses a holy symbol to cast spells, which is probably better described as a linguistic symbol rather than an arcane "material component". Moreover the connection to cultural groups and sacred communities probably deserves group-oriented mechanics as well, plus a more normalized connection to the astral plane.
For primal, the flavor is nature beings, where the features of nature like sun and mountain are conscious in some sense. It relates with psionic consciousness but is more physical, sensory, and local. Primal is elemental being made out of earth, water, fire, plant, but is definitively part of the material plane.
I am not sure what the mechanics of the primal power source should be, but it will become relevant if certain Psion subclass disciplines are primal, like the Pyro. Maybe primal magic requires the caster to physically become the element, to manifest an elemental effect, like the Pyro turning into fire before being able to cast Fireball? Anyway, any primal disciplines will come later, after the definitive four psionic disciplines are solid.
Psions are weak against psychic, necrotic and poison damage types, (because these types more directly affect the brain and body and the psion’s power comes from themselves)
In the sense that necrotic and poison damage the brain, it potentially interferes with human consciousness. For this reason, it would equally interfere with any other spellcasting class, but doesnt seem too, except in the sense that damage might interfere with spells that require ongoing concentration (a flavor given for the sake of game engine balance).
I could see how there might be one of the specific kinds of poisons in the DMG might have symptoms that interfere with concentration, but this would normally impede any spellcaster. Only a caster immune to poison would ignore such a poison.
The bio Shifter discipline might gain features that cause immunity to poison or so on.
Regarding psychic damage, I view all psionic classes as especially resistant because of their expertise and training in such matters. At least with regard to flavor.
Psions can concentrate on multiple effects at once but the concentration check for all of them scales according.
The reason "concentration" exists as a mechanic is because of game engine balance. Its purpose is to prevent the 3e spellcaster abuse that layered ten or so spell effects simultaneously thus entering into combat invincibly.
It is impossible for 5e to mess around with concentration without breaking the game.
That said. Some spells dont deserve concentration. For example, Fly has concentration but too many classes, races, and creatures can fly without concentration. Flying is extremely powerful, but the 5e game doesnt seem to be broken yet because of it. Designers seem to want to make flying normal at the lowest tier, even level 1.
In any case, there are spells that dont deserve concentration because there is no risk of imbalance if stacking with an other effect. I hope the 2024 edition vets the entire D&D spell list. This spell list is already good at removing spells that are brokenly powerful, but there are too many subpar spells that need to move to a lower spell level or else get a rewrite to beef it up. Rethinking whether a spell actually needs concentration is part of this combing thru the spell list. The only spell that is on my radar as potentially broken in the sense of too powerful is Forcecage. The main problem is the spell is "unfair". A Fighter that gets trapped by its single save-or-suck is essentially removed from the game, and for a reallife player of a Fighter, that experience can be unfun, to the point of being a turnoff to the game. The spell needs rethinking and maybe requiring concentration might help.
In the case of the Psion class, perhaps a Talent can remove the concentration from a specific spell in a specific circumstance, so as to control the balance when combining it with an other spell effect?
Now here’s something that might be controversial: the psion is functionally a half caster, their abilities only go up to 5th level BUT they get to throw those abilities around ALOT, much more than the other half casters can.
This Psion is a fullcaster. That said. The ability to augment a certain cantrip with spell points with an enduring effect, can play more like a damage-dealing Fighter. I wonder if the bio Shifter is especially pertinent to these kinds of always on spells once they take a form.
