Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="woodelf" data-source="post: 2259059" data-attributes="member: 10201">You talking the specific sorts of psionics described in D&D3E? Or psychic powers in general? Because the latter actually has a plausible scientific explanation, involving the interactions of the brain and quantum pairs. But only for ESP/clairsentience, mind-control, and *maybe* firestarter type powers. Biology can possibly account for mind-over-body type powers. Even precognition could possibly be explained by quantum theory.Of the most common psychic powers claimed, the only ones that are pretty much impossible to explain with current science, even fringe science, are spoonbending and astral travel. And, while literally sending a psychic body places can't be explained, most of the measurable results claimed by psychic travelers could be explained by the same sorts of things that explain farviewing and so on.Now, if you simply define that way--which is pretty much what XPH psionics do--then, yes, it's just another type of magic. Which is my primary objection to D&D3E psionics. If i were going to actually have psionics in my game [i'm running AU, so i'm just sticking with the mind witches and other such things, which definitely fall into the "different style of magic" category], i'd insist on making them different in capability, not just style. Any power that directly affected the non-sentient outside world would be increased by 3 or more levels.So, the entire metacreative discipline would be gone, for starters--that's exactly the sort of stuff i don't want psychic powers doing. All mind-control/-reading powers would be reduced by about 3 levels, and mind-over-body stuff would be reduced by a level or so. Powers like astral travel and teleportation would be unable to affect anyone but the user. Probably some other changes,  but those're what come immediately to mind.Not to mention SkyRealms of Jorune (distinctly scifi, but with mystical powers) and Tekumel (distinctly fantasy, with an important scifi background).</blockquote>

Verification