captainjack23 said:
True, but...
While each of our brains, and the OS it runs may be unique, for humans, at least, they are all derived from the same Open Source code, if you will. I don't see it so much as an issue of encryoption, but more of internal communications protocol - and cracking a protocol is a bit different than cracking a true encryption because you can test specific inputs and look at the results.
Like computers, each of our brains has specific "ports" - where a computer may have a serial, parallel or USB port, our brain has ports for visual, audio, muscle control, etc. Everyone's ears may use a different resolution, and a different "protocol" to transmit that information back to the brain, and the "port" may be located in a slightly different position in the brain, we do know what type of information we're looking for - audio. If you know the audio input going into a brain, then cracking how the brain breaks that down into internal information becomes a lot easier.
I do agree it's a tough job - but in the case of psi, a brain "wired" as a psi receptor may just have the tools needed to hack the "protocols" - particularly if they're based on the same "OS" - IE, human. I'm of the opinion that empathy would be easier than telepathy, because the protocols of emotions are much simpler that of telepathy. For that matter, a form of clairaudience/clairavoyance where you tap into someone else's ears and/or eyes would be simpler than telepathy. Telepathy between two trained Psion's shouldn't be that hard at all - as long as each were trained to "transmit" the same protocol/language.
However, while humans may have originated with the same "source code", large deviations are likely to be caused by different cultures. A Brit should have an easier time "reading" a Brit than an American, but an American would be easier than reading an Iraqi, and anyone on Earth would be easier than reading a Vilani or Zhodani. Since Vargr are also from Earth, they would be easier than an Aslan, Hiver or Kkree, but still far more difficult than a human.
To put all that in game terms, Telepathy should be automtatic with other psions, and get more difficult as the subject you're attempting to mind read gets further away in cultural and/or biological terms. Frankly, I don't think humans should be able to read Aslan, Hiver, Kkree or any other alien minds at all and vice versa.
I'm actually not all that happy with the definition of teleportation in Traveller. I understand the whole conservation of momentum thing being there, but it doesn't seem to tie well with other things for me.
FREX, the only way psionic teleportation makes sense to me is that it's a form of internal j-drive - that is, when the psion activates it, a little "bubble" forms around their person, and they "jump" though an unknown dimension to another location.
But if that's the case, shouldn't psionic teleportation be more consistent with the way j-drive works? In which case, it should barely be useful at all - a week to jump, doesn't operate well within a gravity well, etc. Either that, or J-drive needs some tweaking to bring the two closer together.
I'm not annoyed enough to bother going through and houseruling anything about it - frankly, I deal with Psionics by really playing up the OTUs 3d Imperium's distaste for Psionics, making it risky to obtain and use for PCs. But I do feel it would have been nice if someone had considered that in the design stages of the rules, and made the two things a bit more consistent.
