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<blockquote data-quote="airwalkrr" data-source="post: 3347349" data-attributes="member: 12460">In my campaigns, I often have commoners refer to psions as &quot;mind mages,&quot; a term that offends any decent wizard, who thinks he uses his mind just as much as any pansy psion. But the difference is that when people see wizards casting spells, they see them intoning verbal components and moving their hands to somatic components. With psionics, there is rarely any of that, which makes psionics largely distrusted (the same goes for mages who are known for casting stilled, silenced spells. The best people can tell if there is a psion around is if they hear ringing in their ears, and even then, only if they are close by, and even then, what if their ears are just ringing? Psions IMC tend to be reclusive and very guarded about their ability because of this. In a technological world, even the most unlearned person can use a grenade launcher to inspire terror. One need not know how to actually make a grenade launcher to use one. In some settings, there are also devices that can be used to probe your mind or even dominate. So in sci-fi settings, there is not as much of a reason to distrust those with psionic ability over others. In a medieval fantasy where psionics is not theoretically within the reach of everyone, it becomes something to be feared both for its power AND its subtlety.Anyway, that is my take on it. I think it adds a nice touch to a fantasy world. It has the added benefit of allowing you to drop it in at any point. It might simply be SO subtle that no one your PCs have met has ever encountered it before.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="airwalkrr, post: 3347349, member: 12460"] In my campaigns, I often have commoners refer to psions as "mind mages," a term that offends any decent wizard, who thinks he uses his mind just as much as any pansy psion. But the difference is that when people see wizards casting spells, they see them intoning verbal components and moving their hands to somatic components. With psionics, there is rarely any of that, which makes psionics largely distrusted (the same goes for mages who are known for casting stilled, silenced spells. The best people can tell if there is a psion around is if they hear ringing in their ears, and even then, only if they are close by, and even then, what if their ears are just ringing? Psions IMC tend to be reclusive and very guarded about their ability because of this. In a technological world, even the most unlearned person can use a grenade launcher to inspire terror. One need not know how to actually make a grenade launcher to use one. In some settings, there are also devices that can be used to probe your mind or even dominate. So in sci-fi settings, there is not as much of a reason to distrust those with psionic ability over others. In a medieval fantasy where psionics is not theoretically within the reach of everyone, it becomes something to be feared both for its power AND its subtlety. Anyway, that is my take on it. I think it adds a nice touch to a fantasy world. It has the added benefit of allowing you to drop it in at any point. It might simply be SO subtle that no one your PCs have met has ever encountered it before. [/QUOTE]

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