Help with Psionics

[Methos of Aundair]

Unfortunately, every DM I have every played with either doesn’t like psionics or doesn’t own the book, so they haven’t allowed it in their game. As a DM I have always allowed psionics in my campaigns but no one has every played one, until now. I recently started up another campaign based out of Eberron and finally someone decided to play a psion. The problem is, I have no experience with psionics or psionic characters. I’ve read the book and have a basic understanding of the rules, but it is my belief that actual experience is better than just book knowledge. So I have come here and am asking for any advice or suggestions from those of you who have had a good dealing with psionics.

Is psionics that much different to run compared to arcane/divine magic?
Is there any certain thing I should become very familiar with, i.e. psionic focus?
Are there certain abilities/powers that are overpowered/underpowered/broken?
The player is playing a shaper, anything I should know?

If you think of any other questions I should be asking please state them, and your opinions/advice/suggestions, anything would be appreciated. Like I said, actual experience is much better than book knowledge IMO, and when it comes to psionics I have no experience at all. Thanks.

 

[Staffan]

Is psionics that much different to run compared to arcane/divine magic?

Not really, no. Psions are a bit more flexible since they use a spell-point system rather than a spell-slot system, but nothing big.

Is there any certain thing I should become very familiar with, i.e. psionic focus?

Psionic focus is easy. DC 20 Concentration check and a full round to achieve (there's a feat that makes it a move-equivalent action instead). Some feats require that you have it, some that you expend it.

Are there certain abilities/powers that are overpowered/underpowered/broken?

Psionic blaster-types can outdamage a wizard or sorcerer in the short run, since they can do up to (level)d6+(level) instead of just (level)d6 damage. If they do that a lot, they'll run out of PPs pretty damn quick, though. There are some powers (Energy Missile and Energy Stun come to mind) that say they get +1 save DC per PP spent augmenting them, that should be per 2 PP. Dispel Psionics is just wrong. Mind Thrust does immense damage (d10/level), but is negated by a successful Will save so that's OK. There's some debate on how the Metamorphic Transfer feat works (it does smell a bit of cheddar).

The player is playing a shaper, anything I should know?

Haven't seen one in action, but I imagine that they can take up a lot more time than other PCs due to managing astral constructs and the like.

 

[Someone]

Is psionics that much different to run compared to arcane/divine magic?

Not quite. Mechanics are similar in many ways, but power point systes have their own weirdness. If there´s only one encounter/day, psions will do very well. What psions suck at is buffing others and blowing things all day.

Is there any certain thing I should become very familiar with, i.e. psionic focus?

Psionic focus is a matter of having/not having, and making a DC 20 concentration roll, so it´s not complicated. I can´t think on anything special other than knowing well what the character can do -that is, read carefully power descriptions and augmentations-

Are there certain abilities/powers that are overpowered/underpowered/broken?

You should house rule Dispel Psionics augmentation (maybe replace it with pay 6 extra pp and the cap on caster level becomes +20), and Energy missile and, IIRC, energy stun augmentations (replace +1 DC for each extra damage dice for +1 DC for each two extra damage die). Maybe ban or nerf the feat metamorphic transfer, as it allows using supernatural abilities and that can be a bad thing in the wrong hands. Nothing more that I can think right now.

The player is playing a shaper, anything I should know?

Then be familiar with astral constructs; print or photocopy them and have them handy.

If you think of any other questions I should be asking please state them.

Get the errata at WotC

 

[Spatula]

You shouldn't have too much trouble with a shaper, depending on what feats he selects (many of the more problematic powers are restricted to other disciplines, although those powers are available through the Expanded Knowledge feat).

The errata for the XPH has recently become available, BUT it doesn't address a lot of acknowledged problems. The augmentation for dispel psionics has already been mentioned (it should raise the cap and not the bonus to the dispel check, IMO), along with the DC augmentations for the energy missile and energy stun powers (which should match the other energy powers).

I believe that the attack bonuses for the astral constructs printed in the book are incorrect.

Remember that using most every psionic or metapsionic feat requires the expenditure of the character's psionic focus, and the feat can't be used again until the focus is regained. Also remember that regaining psionic focus provokes an AoO. And you can't be psionically focused if you're out of power points.

Also, a character can NEVER spend more than his/her manifester level on a power.

 

[gtJormungand]

Also, a character can NEVER spend more than his/her manifester level on a power.

Actually, the Overchannel feat does indead allow someone to spend more than the manifester level on a power, but the catch is that you take damage while doing so.

 

[Scion]

overchannel does 'not' allow you to spend more points than your manifestor level, it raises your manifestor level Then you can spend more points.

Also, energy missile is fine as written except that it shouldnt be able to target attended objects. (this is a long debated subject however)

Overall, psionics is fine in either version. In total it has had less problems than arcane and divine magic. There are issues here and there with any part of the system, getting them to work properly in ones game is the same for any of them.

 

[Thanee]

Sorcerers become pretty much obsolete with Psions available, since they are pretty much better at everything they can do.

Psions can burn through their power point reserve quickly, so you should challenge them with multiple tough encounters per day, so they have to divide their power expenditure and cannot just use it up to full degree all the time (every now and then is cool and fun, of course). That's similar to magic, where the same is true as well. If you only have one or two encounters per day, every spellcaster is much more powerful than he or she should be, especially at moderate to high levels. Psionic characters are even more extreme there, because of the added flexibility, which allows them to manifest tons of high level powers each day, if they can just waste their power points like crazy.

Dispel Psionics and the powers which increase save DC by +1 per PP spent (instead of 2 PP) should be changed as noted (every power should have the DC based on +1 DC / 2 PP spent on Augmentation, as that is a fundamental mechanic within the whole system, magic or psionic).

I'd change Dispel Psionics like this, which seems the most true to the general system:

For 5 PP you get a +5 check, which does not increase with your manifester level (like pretty much every other power in the book).

Augmentation: +1 PP for a +1 to the check. No upper limit as usual (thus it will be better than Greater Dispel eventually, but then again, there is Mordenkainen's Disjunction, which Psions do not have, so that seems fair enough).

I'd not allow Metamorphic Transfer as written (just use Assume Supernatural Ability from Savage Species instead, which is a lot more balanced). It's just plain broken that way, unless you put extreme limits on what forms are available with Metamorphosis (and similar polymorphing magic).

I think Schism and Quicken Power are too much, compared to the spellcasting rules, where this stuff has been removed in 3.5, or was never available (spontaneous casting (manifesting) and quicken). So I'd be a bit wary of that stuff. You can also go the other way, of course, by allowing Quicken Spell to be used spontaneously without any limits and adding a new 4th level (personal) arcane spell, with a duration of 1 round per level, which gives one extra standard action per round.

Hustle is not really a big problem, but it can cause some, since it is a key element to some combos, especially for Psychic Warriors, which basically circumvent the cost of many psionics feats (psionic focus), which have this cost, since they are otherwise simply better than general feats. I believe it's better to move Hustle to 1st level and change it to add 30 ft. base move instead of an extra move action. But as I said, this is not really that important.

Overchannel/Talented is a problem as well, because it not only allows you to raise your manifester level, which is fine by itself, but since psionics have no fixed power level, it also indirectly allows you to manifest powers of a level higher than you have available. Kinda like if a wizard could cast 9th level spells at 14th character level already. Sure, you do not have any 9th level powers yet, but many of the lower level powers have augmentation, which effectively makes them 9th level (or higher than their actual level) powers. Dominate is one example. Dominate Monster is a 9th level spell (would be 8th level for a Telepath then, I think) and would be available when you only have 6th - 7th level powers still, which is way too early, of course. Now, this example is pretty dumb, since Psionic Dominate is a 4th level power and thus cannot be used with Overchannel/Talented (only up to 3rd level), but the general idea is there. Take Astral Construct for example, that should work fine here, or any of those "modular" powers, which include the greater versions and are 1st to 3rd level at the base.

There's a lot more than that, but this is the most obvious stuff, I think.



In general, if your player is cool with that, I'd just look for any problems which arise during play and find a solution afterwards. If a problem exists, but does not apply to your campaign, there is no real need to think about it. Just tell him, that you are not that experienced with the psionic rules and therefore will maybe have to make some judgement calls or retroactive changes during the game. If that is not a problem for him, it should work fine, I guess.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Yair]

I have a wilder with Expanded Knowledge (Astral Construct) and Augument Construct, and I have to tell you - his astral constructs are amazingly powerful. I'm not at all sure the power is balanced... when the guy's constructs are about the power of the main fighters, and he can pop out 1 per round, it gets scary....

 

[Thanee]

Might that come from the same source I have written above under Overchannel/Talented, that you are using a power level above that you have available, effectively (because of the Wild Surge ability)?

Bye
Thanee

 

[Staffan]

I'd change Dispel Psionics like this, which seems the most true to the general system:

For 5 PP you get a +5 check, which does not increase with your manifester level (like pretty much every other power in the book).

Augmentation: +1 PP for a +1 to the check. No upper limit as usual (thus it will be better than Greater Dispel eventually, but then again, there is Mordenkainen's Disjunction, which Psions do not have, so that seems fair enough).

An alternative is to make it a free +level to the dispel check, with a cap of +10 just like the Dispel Magic spell. The augmentation would then be 6 PP to raise this cap by 10, or possibly 3 PP to raise it by 5 (augmentable multiple times).

You can also go the other way, of course, by allowing Quicken Spell to be used spontaneously without any limits and adding a new 4th level (personal) arcane spell, with a duration of 1 round per level, which gives one extra standard action per round.

Note that schism is a lot weaker than 3.0 Haste. It (a) only allows purely mental actions, and (b) only allows those as if you were 6 levels lower. A more fitting arcane substitute would be a spell that allowed you to cast one more spell per round, but it couldn't be of the three highest spell levels available to you, and you'd be treated as 6 levels lower for determining its effects. So, if at 7th level you'd be able to cast an additional 1d4+1 magic missile per round, or an additional 10d6 fireball even at 16th level, that's OK with me.

As for Quicken, I do allow spontaneous casters to use it, and note that the psionic version is more limited than the magic version due to the way psionics work with PPs. First, the power in question isn't only limited in level like with the magic version. You also get a weaker effect, since the 6 PP you spend to Quicken count toward the maximum PP allowed for the power. The 9th level wizard might be able to use Quicken to cast an extra Magic Missile, but that Magic Missile will have the full effect of 9 caster levels behind it. The 9th level psion uses Quicken to get an extra Energy Missile, but that Energy Missile is as if cast by a 3rd level caster. Second, it basically requires a second feat in order to use it more than once per fight. Taking a full-round action during combat in order to be able to later manifest a relatively weak power as a free action isn't exactly effective.

Hustle is not really a big problem, but it can cause some, since it is a key element to some combos, especially for Psychic Warriors, which basically circumvent the cost of many psionics feats (psionic focus), which have this cost, since they are otherwise simply better than general feats.

Note that it doesn't so much circumvent the cost as change it - it does cost 3 PP to activate Hustle, after all (5 PP for an egoist, but those aren't the ones where it's problematic really).