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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Messageboard Golem" data-source="post: 2011233" data-attributes="member: 18387">By John Grigsby, Staff Reviewer d20 Magazine RackInitiative RoundThe Psychic’s Handbook is a Dungeons & Dragons supplement from Green Ronin. The latest addition to the Master Class line is an 80-page black-and-white softcover by Steve Kenson. The cover by Todd Lockwood shows a black-robed psychic in a classic pose. Drew Baker, Jonathon Kirtz, Kent Burles, and James Smith III provide the interior illustrations. The Psychic’s Handbook retails for $16.95.Okay, I know that you’ve all heard me say this before, but I’ll say it again here for emphasis: I don’t like psionics in my fantasy! Katherine Kurtz’s work (which in all fairness, I’ve not read) not withstanding, I just don’t feel that mental powers belong in a world of wizards and warriors. That said, if you absolutely must play a mind warrior, then this book is probably the best way to go. In fact, it’s so well done as to make the concept almost tolerable.In the Psychic’s Handbook, psionics are treated as feats and skills, much in the same manner as they are in WotC’s Star Wars d20 game. The manifestation of psychic power itself is handled through a feat, Psychic Ability. The base class, as presented here, is a blending of cleric and wizard, with no proficiency in armor nor any beyond simple weapons (armor does not interfere with psychic abilities, however), and the Psychic Ability feat for free at first level (along with a second psychic feat of the character’s choice). Thereafter, psychic feats are gained at different level plateaus, though there seems to be no rhyme or reason behind them.Following a brief dissertation on multi-class psychics, there is mention of the wild talent (yes, you can have psychic abilities without being a psychic), and then a very interesting comparison of psychics and psionics. They are not the same thing, both work differently and use different mechanics, and it is possible to include both in a game. Three sample psychics, fully-statted (except for magical items), are provided for the DM for use as quick NPCs, one each of 4th level, 8th level, and 12th level. However, each of them has five different psychic skill/feat packages, so in effect, there are 15 different NPCs provided!The Psychic’s Handbook also introduces some new prestige classes. The beastmaster is, as the name implies, a psychic whose abilities are centered on animals. The fire-starter is a pyrokinetic, the ghost stalker uses his powers to commune with and even battle incorporeal spirits, the mind hunter hunts and combats psychic beings and creatures, the psychic adept seeks to master control of her own body, while the psychic healer masters a more focused control of the bodies of others. There is also a psychic advanced class provided, for d20 Modern.I mentioned earlier that psychic abilities, unlike psionics, were based on feats and skills. This system necessitates not only some brand new skills and feats, but also some minor alterations to existing skills. For example, a psychic might use Bluff to trick a target into consciously thinking about some piece of information, lowering the DC of a Mind Reading check to obtain the information. The big difference between psionics and psychics, however, is illustrated through the use of strain. The use of psychic powers is extremely taxing. Each use of a psychic skill inflicts a particular amount of nonlethal damage on the user, called strain. If a psychic’s total nonlethal damage exceeds the character’s current hit points, the character goes unconscious.The strain of some psychic skill use is determined by the circumstances, but can also be affected by factors such as familiarity, mass (the weight of an object), and certain psychic feats. The skills themselves are quite varied, ranging from the somewhat familiar Psychic Blast to Drain Emotion. Some skills offer a variety of different effects, like Psychic Sense, which allows the user to sense psychic power use, sense mental contact, sense a psychic signature, or trace the origin or target of a psychic skill. Every skill has the prerequisite of a particular psychic feat that suits the skill (Dream Walking, for example, requires the Telepathy feat). Some very few skills may be used untrained, provided the character possesses the appropriate feat.Psychic feats come in three flavors; psychic, psychic talent, or metapsychic. Psychic feats are available only to those with the Psychic Ability feat. Psychic talents are “enablers” for various psychic skills. Some offer access to many psychic skills, while others offer access to only one skill (albeit a less common one). Metapsychic feats, similar to metamagic feats, modify psychic skills in various ways, usually expanding the capabilities at the cost of greater strain. Three new general feats are also included; Mental Fortitude, which girds against psychic attack, Psychic Ability, the feat that must be taken to gain any other psychic skills or feats, and Wild Talent, which permits the use of a single psychic skill (not feat).There’s more to adding psychic powers to a campaign than just opening a floodgate of feats and skill and letting the players leap in feet first, though, and the Psychic’s Handbook addresses those issues as well. Here may be found thoughts on defeating and extending psychic shields, mental conditioning, and drones. Psychics may aid others, even non-psychics, in certain tasks or in defeating any effect requiring a Will save. Concise rules for psychic gestalts (a series of minds linked into a single powerful entity) are provided, and rules covering psychic grappling (meeting minds on the mental battlefield) can be perused. Self-imposed memory alteration, wielding weapons through telekinesis, telepathic eavesdropping, and using teleportation to aid a sneak attack are all here as well. You’ll also find some equipment that most any psychic will find beneficial.It’s just possible that some people enjoy the complexity afforded by the current psionics system. If you’re one of those people, fear not, there are plenty of variant systems offer here. Psychic energy points emulate the current system by tracking the use of psychic talents through additional points available to psychic characters, but there are also rules for ability damage, fatigue saving throws, hit point damage, XP cost for using psychic powers, and even ignoring the rules for strain entirely, letting characters use their formidable mental abilities without penalty or limitation.Last, but not least, the role of psychic powers in the campaign is discussed. How did psychics originate? Should they be overt or secretive? How do non-psychics feel about psychics? There are even some new kinds of diseases that effect psychics.Critical HitThe psionics system the D&D uses has been in dire need of an overhaul since day one, and even though psionics and psychics are two different systems, this one appeals to me a lot more than trying to track aspects and power points. In addition, it works very well with the Wounds and Vitality option presented in Unearthed Arcana, which I’m currently using in my campaign. One of the things that attracted me to Star Wars d20 was the way that Force powers were handled, and seeing that system adapted to D&D is a welcome change of pace.Critical FumbleThe biggest hit to the Psychic’s Handbook is in originality. The system, as nice as it is, simply isn’t all that original. That doesn’t mean that it doesn’t work. It does, and quite well, but it still isn’t exactly a new idea.If there is a downside to the book, it’s that psychics and psychic powers are weaker than psionics, and that’s going to be irksome to some players. Still, I think that the tradeoff is worthwhile. Psychics are simpler and more realistic, and they’re the choice for my campaign.Coup de GraceWell, I’m in. If someone wants to play a psychic in my campaign, this is the book they will use. While it hasn’t convinced me that psionics belong in a fantasy campaign, it has persuaded me to permit them. That’s a big step over my previous opinion of such (fodder for my monsters) and probably the most impressive words for the support of this book that I can offer. When WotC redoes the Psionic Handbook, I can only hope that it takes a route similar to this one.Basically, the whole of the book is Open Game Content. Technically, it cites chapters 1-4 as being OGC, but since there are only four chapters and the remainder of the book is reference tables that are taken directly from the text, I don’t see why they just didn’t declare the whole thing except graphics as OGC and be done with it. Unlike previous Green Ronin efforts, I’m very pleased to report that this one does not end abruptly and includes both a table of contents and an index.To see the graded evaluation of this product and to leave comments that the reviewer will respond to, go to The Critic's Corner at <a href="http://www.d20zines.com/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=978&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0" target="_blank">www.d20zines.com.</a></blockquote>

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