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

[Minigiant]

Indeed. There is no difference between Magic in Warcraft and Psionics in Starcraft. Everything you can do with one you can do with the other.

You might be inclined to call Starcraft Science Fantasy rather than Science Fiction, but then so would D&D be unless you reskin everything.

Incorrect. I clearly said that this was only due to Blizzard using the same engine for all their RTSes.

In their RPs like WOW and Diablo 3 (as reminded by @Aldarc ), classes use different systems to more accurately display differences in their abilities.

 

[Mind of tempest]

But, you're not really countering my point, @Scars Unseen. None of what you're talking about can't be done with the existing magic system. What you've just listed is pretty much a warlock with the ability to upcast spells over and above the usual limit by level.

IOW, why do I need a, for example, proficiency based casting system like 2e, in order to achieve what you're talking about? Why can't simply "Spells Known" and a daily/short rest limit cover things?

I guess my question is, what is your new system? You've talked about effects, but, not mechanics.

I have seen the full caster with a warlock frame it was more complex to get to work than a wizard, some simplicity will be needed

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Incorrect. I clearly said that this was only due to Blizzard using the same engine for all their RTSes.

What's incorrect? Bizzard reskinned their fantasy game into a science fiction game - pretty much exactly what is being asked about in the OP.

And the result was massively successful, and IMO rather fun, although I only every played the single player campaigns.

In their RPs like WOW and Diablo 3 (as reminded by @Aldarc ), classes use different systems to more accurately display differences in their abilities.

Just because you can do something differently doesn't mean you have to do it differently. WoW has never been reskinned into a successful science fiction game.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Stress-based resource management

This reminds me of the berserker. I think you are loosing track of the "must be fun" requirement.

 

[Minigiant]

What's incorrect? Bizzard reskinned their fantasy game into a science fiction game - pretty much exactly what is being asked about in the OP.

And the result was massively successful, and IMO rather fun, although I only every played the single player campaigns.

Blizzard reskinned its fantasy RTS into a scifi RTS.
But when it did an RPG, classes got different mechanics to match their lore.

That's the point. All RTS (fantasy, historical, modern, scifi) games use cooldown and mana because you manage too many units.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

But when it did an RPG, classes got different mechanics to match their lore.

Blizzard have never reskinned WoW to science fiction.

And D&D 5e manages to have a bunch of spell casting classes that use minor variations of the same mechanics. I see no reason why changing to science fiction should change that design ethos.

 

[Mind of tempest]

Blizzard have never reskinned WoW to science fiction.

And D&D 5e manages to have a bunch of spell casting classes that use minor variations of the same mechanics. I see no reason why changing to science fiction should change that design ethos.

would you still agree it would need some mechanical difference that changes it so it is not just a clone of the wizard?

 

[Minigiant]

And D&D 5e manages to have a bunch of spell casting classes that use minor variations of the same mechanics. I see no reason why changing to science fiction should change that design ethos.

It doesn't

My point and the point of many others is that Reskinned 5e Spell system would not resemble any scifi setting with psionics in existence and would be hard to explain via science.

There are so many design assumptions in the D&D spell system that it would be look ugly to even attempt soft sci-fi.You would have a tough time even doing Science Fantasy.

D&D only gets the effects right. The magic system assumptions are so wired to fantasy that you could only do space fantasy or future fantasy with it. The amount of work to get the fake science to work would be harder then making a new system.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

would you still agree it would need some mechanical difference that changes it so it is not just a clone of the wizard?

If wizard actually existed in the setting, sure. There is no point in adding a new class that is the same as an existing class. But really, there is very little mechanical difference between, say, a wizard and a cleric.

If the setting doesn't have any magic apart from psionics, I would probably base something around a reskinned sorcerer with wisdom as the casting stat. But a lot depends upon the setting.

I would probably have a technologist class as a reskinned artificer as well.

 

[Crimson Longinus]

It doesn't

My point and the point of many others is that Reskinned 5e Spell system would not resemble any scifi setting with psionics in existence and would be hard to explain via science.

There are so many design assumptions in the D&D spell system that it would be look ugly to even attempt soft sci-fi.You would have a tough time even doing Science Fantasy.

D&D only gets the effects right. The magic system assumptions are so wired to fantasy that you could only do space fantasy or future fantasy with it. The amount of work to get the fake science to work would be harder then making a new system.

D&D magic doesn't resemble most fictional magic either. And no, it is not any more difficult to explain the spell system with pseudoscientific made-up nonsense than it is with mystical made-up nonsense.