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<blockquote data-quote="Andor" data-source="post: 6181078" data-attributes="member: 1879">Psionics, as a concept, only goes back to the 1950s and the early attempts to scientifically analyze &quot;Psychic&quot; abilities and to see if they have any validity. (Long story short, maybe but not reliably.)So, for my money, they don't really have a place in a fantasy game based on earlier models and genres. That having been said psionic powers are limited subset of magical powers. Is a Gypsy fortune teller using magic or psionics when she reads the future in a crystal ball? How about Tarot Cards? Goat Entrails? Denethor and Faramir demonstrated considerable mental powers, apparently a family trait. Is that a sorcerous bloodline or is it psionic gene? What's the difference? Provide proof of your agrument.I'm on a lot of cough meds right now so if this isn't clear allow me to sum up my position.1) Psionics are not distinct enough from magic in terms of available abilities to merit a mechanical distinction.2) Psionics as a pool of natural abilities distinct from the supernatural is a modern concept that post-dates the inspiriational literature of D&amp;D.3) Therefore Psionics do not deserve a seperate place at the table ala the Arcane/Divine split. (Which has it's own issues but that's another thread.)4) All that having been said I would not mind if there was a school of mind mages with their own jargon any more than I would mind any other specialist school. They can even hold the pretense of not using magic if they plese but it won't save them in an anti-magic zone.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Andor, post: 6181078, member: 1879"] Psionics, as a [i]concept[/i], only goes back to the 1950s and the early attempts to scientifically analyze "Psychic" abilities and to see if they have any validity. (Long story short, maybe but not reliably.) So, for my money, they don't really have a place in a fantasy game based on earlier models and genres. That having been said psionic powers are limited subset of magical powers. Is a Gypsy fortune teller using magic or psionics when she reads the future in a crystal ball? How about Tarot Cards? Goat Entrails? Denethor and Faramir demonstrated considerable mental powers, apparently a family trait. Is that a sorcerous bloodline or is it psionic gene? What's the difference? Provide proof of your agrument. I'm on a lot of cough meds right now so if this isn't clear allow me to sum up my position. 1) Psionics are not distinct enough from magic in terms of available abilities to merit a mechanical distinction. 2) Psionics as a pool of natural abilities distinct from the supernatural is a modern concept that post-dates the inspiriational literature of D&D. 3) Therefore Psionics do not deserve a seperate place at the table ala the Arcane/Divine split. (Which has it's own issues but that's another thread.) 4) All that having been said I would not mind if there was a school of mind mages with their own jargon any more than I would mind any other specialist school. They can even hold the pretense of not using magic if they plese but it won't save them in an anti-magic zone. [/QUOTE]

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