Is now up on the web site, at;
http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/home/detail.php?qsID=1627
http://www.mongoosepublishing.com/home/detail.php?qsID=1627
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- Thread starter MongooseMatt
- Start date
Rikki Tikki Traveller
Cosmic Mongoose
Cool. I don't particularly like the layout of the career though. The tables are jumbled a bit and it makes it hard to move around. Also, the Survival and Advancement rolls are REALLY hard for this career. Remind me NOT to play a Psion Drifter...
The PIC sounds very interesting, I see Zhodani ships having this kind of thing. It will be fun designing a Zho patrol cruiser or destroyer using these Psionic Interfaces.
COOL STUFF.
The PIC sounds very interesting, I see Zhodani ships having this kind of thing. It will be fun designing a Zho patrol cruiser or destroyer using these Psionic Interfaces.
COOL STUFF.
Has there been playtesting of these new powers?
The text indicates that it would take 15 PSI points to completely paralyze an individual.
The Mind Blast power does 3d6+Effect per 2 points of PSI to an individual.
The Mind Blast Area-Effect Power does 2d6+Effect per 1 point of PSI.
So it would take me 15 points to immobilize and silence a security guard but I can create mini-nukes out of mid-air for about 8 points?
Let’s say 8 points… 12d6+4(Effect)= Damage to an individual. Or I can do 16d6+8(Effect) to every living thing in a radius of 8 meters.
Am I missing something?
The text indicates that it would take 15 PSI points to completely paralyze an individual.
The Mind Blast power does 3d6+Effect per 2 points of PSI to an individual.
The Mind Blast Area-Effect Power does 2d6+Effect per 1 point of PSI.
So it would take me 15 points to immobilize and silence a security guard but I can create mini-nukes out of mid-air for about 8 points?
Let’s say 8 points… 12d6+4(Effect)= Damage to an individual. Or I can do 16d6+8(Effect) to every living thing in a radius of 8 meters.
Am I missing something?
What's the deal with the pricing? Psion apparently has 98 pages and costs £15... the same price as Fighting Ships (126 pg), Prison Planet (128 pg), Scout (112 pg), the Pocket Book (192 pg)... and Beltstrike has less pages (96 pg) and still costs £15. Seems that we're getting less value for money there.
Loz
Mongoose
No, it wouldn't have to cost that much. The Psi strength of 15 is for disabling every single part of the guard; in reality you can disable neck/head for a fraction of the cost; for a couple of points more you can stop his legs working too. Or his gun arm.
The points cost reflects the mental effort of the psion affecting every area of the body the nervous system reaches.
OTOH, launching a mental mini-nuke is just a question of the psion unleashing raw, mental energy in a single burst. No subtlety; no control. Lots of noise and lots of blood and guts, though.
towerwarlock
Mongoose
Lots of Blood and Guts! I am so not cleaning up that mess,
Loz said:
I think we disagree greatly on the role/use of psionics. And the effort behind the creation/transformation of large amounts of energy from thin air with brainwaves.
How does immobilizing the head/neck paralyze someone? Paralysis is a motor function and the brain does not have motor functions. If we assume that shutting down the head includes shutting down the brain then why would I do anything other than shut down the brain (one body part)?
If Loz is right, why use an example of "15points to immobilize the entire body" when all you really have to do to immobilize the entire body is shut down the head/neck?
Speaking completely from my rear-end, I think the mental effort behind exciting atoms into a mini-nuclear explosion should be a bit greater than shutting down one sophont's nervous system.
I have a horrible deja vu feeling... jedi powers...West End...alter reality. The pain!
Kilgs said:
I would agree. There's no way you need to lock down every nerve ending in the body to paralyse someone - you just knock out the relevant part of the target's spinal cord or brain and his own signals won't be going anywhere.
And I'd also agree that mentally creating a big explosion would also be much more draining than paralysing someone.
captainjack23
Cosmic Mongoose
Kilgs said:
Well, two ways. One could effect the actual motor control areas of the brain that control the parts you want to paralyze; they are fairly well defined. Not sure how, but since we're postulating Psionics, thats less of an issue. The spinal approach would be less useful for stealth, since a spinal block will simply cause the person to collapse - it isn't hollywood mannequin paralysis. Plus, it's actually less specific than the brain, as spinal tracks often carry information too multiple areas, and the design is a bit idiosyncratic. Finally, shutting down the brain, or blocking the spine will have a nasty tendency to kill people thru (at the very least) resperatory failure.
Alternately, you aren't effecting the nerves, you are physically immobilizing the body part; it doesn;t matter what the nerves say if you are being help in a 1000Kg death grip.
However, here's the easiest way to make it work: make them believe they can't move. No nerve blocks or cortex maps required.
I agree. There are a number of ways to make paralysis possible with very fine, subtle abilities. But the rules say otherwise...
No shutting down head/neck for complete immobilization. Doing that just makes it hard to talk and... your head probably falls forward.
The other issue is "locked in position." That's not paralysis. That's petrification/muscle freeze.
Arrgh. I'm just irritating myself now.
Psion Rules said:
No shutting down head/neck for complete immobilization. Doing that just makes it hard to talk and... your head probably falls forward.
The other issue is "locked in position." That's not paralysis. That's petrification/muscle freeze.
Arrgh. I'm just irritating myself now.
captainjack23
Cosmic Mongoose
Kilgs said:
Yeah, you are..
Seems like either physical restraint (one could also be causing some kind of muscle tetany), or the belief trick: catatonics can be paralyzed in ways that nerve damage cannot possibly account for.
captainjack23
Cosmic Mongoose
EDG said:
Exactly my point; although, having several ways of doing it can be good in game terms too -by which I mean via ESP, TK or even some kind of antihealing biometry. If one can lift a car, one can hold someone against a wall -the extra cost may be to keep from crushing them, and/or to use the power for gross control (arms pinned) and well as fine controll (jaw/lips).
captainjack23 said:
I would have thought that other ways wouldn't matter if they required more exertion/effort. Why fiddle around with moving molecules remotely with THE POWER OF THE MIND! when you can just telepathise your way into the target's brain and flick some mental switches?
But then I'm more accepting of "realistic" psionics - more "internal" stuff like remote viewing (psionic jump may be related) and telepathic communication are one thing (and possibly vaguely believable, in a fringe sense), but "external" stuff like teleportation and telekentically flicking coins at the speed of bullets, starting fires, and throwing cars around by force of will etc seem more like Superpowers than psionics to me. In the terms of another game (Mage), the latter are way too "vulgar" for my tastes.
captainjack23
Cosmic Mongoose
EDG said:
Because you don't have the neural switchflicking power (ESP/Telepathy) and you need to paralyze someone ?
captainjack23
Cosmic Mongoose
EDG said:
My position is that realistic psionics is inherently an oxymoron*. But, we'll have to wait and see just how likely those super psipowers are as opposed to the more run of the mill ones.
remember Bab 5 ? Quite a range of power there, but very limited as to who had the upper limit.
* edit: okay, I'm exaggerating here -it's just that even the subtle psi powers are pretty realism bending, too. Dealing with reading someones thoughts is amazingly complicated - and how even minor TK deals with inertia and /or conservation of momentum without popping the brain is a stretch.
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