Psionics Coming Soon To D&D?

WotC's Mike Mearls has hinted that we may be able to expect some psionics content soon, possibly in the Unearthed Arcana column. He was asked by Ethan Clow on the Twitterweb "any chance we might see a Psionic class for 5e soon? Perhaps in unearthed arcana?" to which he replied "wouldn't be surprised. I *might* have had a couple prior edition psionics books on my desk last week..." (Thanks to Wolf Hunter for the scoop).

 

[Parmandur]

Ummm.... so, you want pulp fiction and not sword and sorcery flavor, then?

And wouldn't that be more of a setting thing than a class design thing?

Class design to support setting: John Carter of Mars, Dark Sun sort of stuff.

 

[variant]

Well, most of the nostalgia that seems to be extant is for the 2E version, which was slightly more developed.

Which was basically reflavored spellcasting with a spell point system. Also, completely overpowered and mostly used to try and roll on the random psionic ability chart. There is already an optional spell point system if the DM wishes to use it.

 

[Jefe Bergenstein]

Which was basically reflavored spellcasting with a spell point system. Also, completely overpowered and mostly used to try and roll on the random psionic ability chart. There is already an optional spell point system if the DM wishes to use it.

Aside from a few powers (mostly the time ones), it was as about balanced as anything else in 2nd edition. Yes, you could disintegrate once a day at low levels. With at least 5% chance of killing yourself.

Too many classes use spells as it stands, and I think its lazy design to always keep going back to that well. People complaint that 4th edition classes felt too samey, but I feel making everyone a 9 level wizard/cleric clone falls into the same trap.

A group of at-will powers which grant a suite of abilities, augmented by short rest more free form stunts would be neat.

 

[bogmad]

Which was basically reflavored spellcasting with a spell point system. Also, completely overpowered and mostly used to try and roll on the random psionic ability chart. There is already an optional spell point system if the DM wishes to use it.

Mechanically, yes it is very close to a reflavored spellcasting. At least as has been implemented previously.
BUT the fluff is different. At least it is when I do psionics, which is why I want a mechanical system that ISN'T the reflavored spellcasting that everyone is using as the reason to not include it at all... it's a vicious circle.

If when you boil it down it turns into nothing more than a spell point system... then yes why include it at all?

 

[steeldragons]

How about slots and points...? Like a "watered down"/simplified 1e-ish...is how it looks in my head, anyway.

A breakdown of psionic powers between the more common "mental energy/psionic combat" stuff (ye olde "offense/defense modes") and the more specific thematic powers: disciplines, schools, sciences, whatever they get called. Your telepathy, telekinesis, clairsentience, etc... Powers are broken up by discipline and you get to choose from that [single] discipline's list (maybe acquiring others as you advance in level).

You advance, gaining new psionic combat modes and new thematic powers, at different rates, according to a chart/table...so you have "slots" of powers you know. Maybe the modes are/can be "at will" or a few of the less powerful things are at will, and you have "points" to use the rest.

Points, obviously, would increase with your level and/or mental ability modifiers.

So, like, just throwing this together:
Psychic Level. . . . Modes Known. . . . . Discipline Powers Known
1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 1
3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

I don't know...probably been done somewhere already...

EDIT: Oh! My point! Something like this doesn't just feel like copying the sorcery points mechanic or just refluffing "psionics is just a different magic", to me. ...since you're not following a "tiered" progression like spellcasters follow.

 

[Morlock]

Anybody seen an attempt to give casters in spell point systems control over the "more spells known/usable" vs. "more spell points" dynamic? Seems like the balance is always hard-coded into the classes, but it needn't be. Instead, I could see a mechanic where a caster gets a certain number of "build points" per level, and then spends those on spells/powers or spell points/power points however he wishes. More to keep track of, but a lot more flexibility. (Or, if you want to write the same thing up in more traditional terms, spell-point-using classes get to trade a given number of spell points for another spell known, or vice-versa. 'Course that might get silly, since the number of spell points granted changes substantially on a level-by level basis.)

 

[Mephista]

Class design to support setting: John Carter of Mars, Dark Sun sort of stuff.

Isn't that a bit odd? Psionics is not Dark Sun. It exists in Faerun and Eberron at least. I imagine others as well.

 

[Mouseferatu]

Thinking about this, I think the reason that there's never going to be a consensus on psionics is that some people want it for what it is, while others want it for how it's done.

Looking at "traditional" psionics in fiction--old pulps, X-men, whatever--there's nothing psionicists do that can't be done via spells. Telepathy, mind-reading, telekinesis, mind-control... There are spells for all of that. You could--not saying "should," but "could"--just take a whole bunch of spells from the PHB, say "These no longer require V/S/M components," and call it psionics. And you'd be able to do everything you need to do to call a character a psionicist.

And if that's how it had been done over past editions, I think people would be fine with it.

The problem is, past editions chose to come up with brand new systems for psionicists. And because they did, it's become necessary in the minds of many players. (I say that as neither support nor condemnation. I'm not saying you're right or wrong for feeling this way.)

It's basically a self-feeding cycle. Taken in a vacuum, psionics don't have to be dramatically different in terms of system/mechanics. But because they have been, people want them to continue to be.

Thus, bringing us back around to my initial point. If you want psionics purely for what they do, a largely flavor-based UA article should probably do it for you. If you want them for how they're done, it almost certainly won't--but I don't know that you're likely to get what you're looking for until a 3PP license becomes available.

 

[Umbran]

Heh. I'm just hoping that "soon" is basically "after Kevin Kulp is done with Timewatch, so he can work on the new version of Of Sound Mind"...

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Heh. I'm just hoping that "soon" is basically "after Kevin Kulp is done with Timewatch, so he can work on the new version of Of Sound Mind"...

I don't know as a backer of timewatch I am starting to think he has his plate full... but I would love for him to work on D&D too