D&D 5E Psionics in a sci-fi D&D

[Yaarel]

Monty Python and The Holy Grail is pretty much the most referenced source, despite it having been made before most of my players where born!

The other problem with Dune is it's brand of space magic is closely tied to the setting and very distinctive. Same is true of Star Wars. That's great for world building, but for something like Level Up something more generic (e.g. Traveller) is called for. Generic is boring, but it has the best chance of appealing to the broadest target audience.

Yeah, vanilla is a nice flavor too.

For core rules, I want vanilla. High quality vanilla, with real vanilla beans. None of that artificial imitation vanilla that tastes weird. Maybe with an egg for French vanilla. Wholesome icecream goodness.

For psionics, this means, clean normal mechanics with personal power-of-mind flavor.

Let each setting add its own special toppings on the vanilla icecream, or neapolitan, or maybe even a whole pie.

Let experimental mechanics be something that can be added, not something that players get stuck with.

 

[Yaarel]

Well, they can make a new progenitor race if they want, or more likely you could deliberately keep it vague. Also, the Far Realm has a very specific flavor that not everyone can get behind.

In scifi, humans can be psionic, because ones parents augmented their kids during pregnancy.

Telepathy is the easiest to explain, and the tech for it already exists in reallife, by implanting "wetware" into the brain that can interface with computers as well as devices that can interpret brain activity. In the future, these technologies are more accurate and more portable. Likely, computers wont even be made out of metal and wires and silicon anymore. Perhaps, the computers themselves are organic.

And so on. Technology can duplicate pretty much magical phenomena − and make that technology innate by modifying humanity to evolve intentionally.

 

[Aldarc]

Well, they can make a new progenitor race if they want, or more likely you could deliberately keep it vague. Also, the Far Realm has a very specific flavor that not everyone can get behind.

Wasn't that kinda the direction WotC was going by tying psionics to the Far Realms? I'm a bit fuzzy on the details, but, I seem to recall that. I thought it was a decent enough idea, but, it did seem to generate a fair bit of push back.

So, if we're going down the "inherited powers" road, I think it likely needs some sort of new "progenitor" race without baggage to avoid that. Otherwise, no matter what progenitor they choose, someone's going to get their nose out of joint.

4e also tied its psionics to the Far Realms, but it did not receive anywhere nearly as much backlash as it did in 5e. But I suspect that it also had to do with a difference in emphasis. 5e tied psionics directly to the Far Realms: i.e., "these are crazy tentacle powers." From what I recall: 4e, on the other hand, depicted Psionics as the Universe's anti-bodies that are a natural reaction incursions from the Far Realms.

 

[Minigiant]

In scifi, humans can be psionic, because ones parents augmented their kids during pregnancy.

Telepathy is the easiest to explain, and the tech for it already exists in reallife, by implanting "wetware" into the brain that can interface with computers as well as devices that can interpret brain activity. In the future, these technologies are more accurate and more portable. Likely, computers wont even be made out of metal and wires and silicon anymore. Perhaps, the computers themselves are organic.

And so on. Technology can duplicate pretty much magical phenomena − and make that technology innate by modifying humanity to evolve intentionally.

In modern Scifi, the Greens are naturally Psionic.

Humans and the Proud Space Warrior Race use wetwear to copy the Green's natural psionics. This is often invented by the Greys, Earth military, or a Megacorp..

The Banker and Android race either shun or can't use psionics.

 

[Yaarel]

In modern Scifi, the Greens are naturally Psionic.

Humans and the Proud Space Warrior Race use wetwear to copy the Green's natural psionics. This is often invented by the Greys, Earth military, or a Megacorp..

The Banker and Android race either shun or can't use psionics.

Heh, I cant tell if your being tongue-in-cheek, or not.

But that is an interesting setting. I would play it!

For me, I am a near-future fan. (For me, years 2025, 2040, 2050, and 2100 are interesting.) I would probably make all of these − Greens, Humans (luddites), Proud Space Warrior, Greys, and Megacorp − different species of transhuman voluntary evolution.

 

[Marandahir]

Middle Ground. Reskin spells, use the Psionic Dice feature from recent subclasses, and use the Spell Points feature in the DMG.

Honestly, easiest way to make a Psion is to take Aberrant Mind Sorcerer, swap Cha for Int, use Spell Points, and let them freely swap Spell Points and Sorcery Points (make it one big pool of Psi Points).

 

[Mind of tempest]

Middle Ground. Reskin spells, use the Psionic Dice feature from recent subclasses, and use the Spell Points feature in the DMG.

Honestly, easiest way to make a Psion is to take Aberrant Mind Sorcerer, swap Cha for Int, use Spell Points, and let them freely swap Spell Points and Sorcery Points (make it one big pool of Psi Points).

what would the dice be used for?

 

[Faolyn]

what would the dice be used for?

Burnout die? Perhaps using mechanics similar to that in the Level Up artificer--a very few spells, but they can be cast as many times as you want, unless you roll poorly on the burnout die.

 

[Mind of tempest]

Burnout die? Perhaps using mechanics similar to that in the Level Up artificer--a very few spells, but they can be cast as many times as you want, unless you roll poorly on the burnout die.

seems like it would be damning it to niche play, maybe something more spectacular, like a caster rage which lasts the additional turn you roll?

 

[Faolyn]

seems like it would be damning it to niche play, maybe something more spectacular, like a caster rage which lasts the additional turn you roll?

I honestly don't know, although I'm not sure how niche it would be, or how (or why) a psion would rage (or "rage," if you're just using that as an example).

I personally am of the idea that they should have fewer "spells" than wizards or clerics, and don't mind if they had sort of a warlock chasis. But I realize that some people want each psion to be as varied as a wizard or cleric can be--not just a lot of psion "spells," but the ability to know lots of different powers at once.