Zhodani Psionics

[Tom B]

I'm starting this thread on the basis that Aliens of Charted Space 1 is going to be re-examined.

There are several things I think are problems with the Zhodani psionic talent. I'm listing these below and what I think can be done to fix them.

Problems:​

1) The talent is virtually impossible to learn as it is -3 and if learning after attempted after the five main talents then it is at least -8.

2) It contains a variety of different powers that have no relationship to each other.

3) Some of the individual powers have specific issues.

What I would do:​

Split it into at least four different talents as specified below.

a) Take out the powers Control, Interact and Interrogate and put them in a new talent, add in a few more related powers.

b) Create a new telepathy talent, it could be called Advanced Telepathy or Zhodani Telepathy, put in the powers Blocking, Mimic and Psychic Transfer. You can only learn this talent if you already know telepathy. Not sure of the learning difficulty but it should be around zero. Other telepathic powers should be added in to flesh it out.

c) Teleprojection. This should be put in its own talent that can only be learnt once you know teleportation. At the moment it is an easy-kill power, far easier to use this to kill someone than any other powers.

Currently the range is the same as teleport which is Personal - which makes no sense. The range should be Short or Touch.

Also, it should either only be possible to use it on willing individuals or the unwilling get the opportunity to resist.

d) A new talent that can only be learnt if the psion knows Awareness. This would include Awareness of Others and Empathic Healing. Both these powers can heal other people though their effects are different. Therefore I would rationalise them.

Personally, I like the idea of a talent that would allow the psion to transfer damage, diseases etc, onto themself and then heal them using Awareness. Perhaps each of these could be the basis of new talents.

There is also an argument for Psychic Transfer not being a telepathic power but be part of the new Awareness ones. Perhaps it could be in more than one talent.

Also​

I'd also revisit every power to make sure that there are no unresolved questions. For instance, there is no stat block for mimic, does that mean it's always on and the cost is zero?

When are these new talents available? For non-Zhodani, only in-game when a specific individual that is willing to teach them is met. For Zhodani, at character creation? Not sure.

These talents should be hard to learn but not impossible.

 

[Sigtrygg]

The biggest problem is the cut and paste from GT Aliens.

It also gets the ranks available to proles wrong when compared with the original CT Alien module.

 

[WHULorigan]

It also gets the ranks available to proles wrong when compared with the original CT Alien module.

But do you think this was a genuine error, or did editions after CT moving forward correct an unintentional oversight in the CT Zhodani CharGen system? In other words, was it really the intention that Proles could achieve any Rank in a Prior Service, or is it more reasonable to suppose that certain senior ranks would at least be restricted to Intendants if not Nobles (or would there be a difference in availability, for example, between Senior Staff vs. Senior Command Ranks)?

 

[mavikfelna]

I agree Zhodani talents should be added into other talents. I've been working on a total reworking of psionics for games. But keeping withing the current rules, this is what I do.
Technopathy, or if you use the excellent TAS supplement Freefall and Other Delights, electrokinesis, is a new talent for machine interaction and should include Control, Interact and Interrogate. There are a lot of powers you can add to this.

I put Mimic in Changling or Counterpsionics from Core Adventure 3.

Blocking goes into Counterpsionics

Psychic Transfer, Awareness of Others and Empathic Healing go into Awareness, though Psychic Transfer could easily fit into Telepathy.

Teleprojection goes into Teleportation and becomes a difficult opposed check and is blocked by PSI shields.

 

[Tom B]

I agree Zhodani talents should be added into other talents. I've been working on a total reworking of psionics for games. But keeping withing the current rules, this is what I do.
Technopathy, or if you use the excellent TAS supplement Freefall and Other Delights, electrokinesis, is a new talent for machine interaction and should include Control, Interact and Interrogate. There are a lot of powers you can add to this.

I put Mimic in Changling or Counterpsionics from Core Adventure 3.

Blocking goes into Counterpsionics

Psychic Transfer, Awareness of Others and Empathic Healing go into Awareness, though Psychic Transfer could easily fit into Telepathy.

Teleprojection goes into Teleportation and becomes a difficult opposed check and is blocked by PSI shields.

Yeh - but you can't assume that if people have AoCS1, they have the other book(s) with the other additional talents. Therefore they have to be self-contained.

 

[Sigtrygg]

But do you think this was a genuine error, or did editions after CT moving forward correct an unintentional oversight in the CT Zhodani CharGen system? In other words, was it really the intention that Proles could achieve any Rank in a Prior Service, or is it more reasonable to suppose that certain senior ranks would at least be restricted to Intendants if not Nobles (or would there be a difference in availability, for example, between Senior Staff vs. Senior Command Ranks)?

I think it is later authors applying their headcanon bias which was very much Zhodani bad evil wrong rather than using what the original authors very clearly spelled out, proles can be managers, admirals, generals, they can not rise above world manager rank however. The Zhodani recognise talent, and if you have a brilliant military mind in a prole with a spi score of 6 you still promote them to general/admiral as that is where the are most effective.

 

[MasterGwydion]

Yeh - but you can't assume that if people have AoCS1, they have the other book(s) with the other additional talents. Therefore they have to be self-contained.

Or just put out a Psionics book and include all Psionic Powers in that one book. The same way High Guard was supposed to be for ship construction.

 

[Tom B]

Or just put out a Psionics book and include all Psionic Powers in that one book. The same way High Guard was supposed to be for ship construction.

Oh yeh - but I wrote the above on the basis that they are updating AoCS1 to come out next year. A psionics book would be out long before that.

I wanted whatever was put in was useable, made sense, did not have questions like what's the range of Teleprojection that should be in the description.

i.e. not just a rehash of what's there.

Edit I meant to say 'A psionic would be out long after that.'

 

[MasterGwydion]

Oh yeh - but I wrote the above on the basis that they are updating AoCS1 to come out next year. A psionics book would be out long before that.

I wanted whatever was put in was useable, made sense, did not have questions like what's the range of Teleprojection that should be in the description.

i.e. not just a rehash of what's there.

I am loving what you are working on. I don't use psionics much in my games, but I do still enjoy what you are working on.

 

[WHULorigan]

I think it is later authors applying their headcanon bias which was very much Zhodani bad evil wrong rather than using what the original authors very clearly spelled out, proles can be managers, admirals, generals, they can not rise above world manager rank however. The Zhodani recognise talent, and if you have a brilliant military mind in a prole with a spi score of 6 you still promote them to general/admiral as that is where the are most effective.

That would then go toward my comment of Intendants and/or Nobles having a monopoly on certain positions as Staff Officers (i.e. "Political Officers" or "Morale/Medical Officers aboard"), whereas anyone with talent in a given area or field (leadership or otherwise; Prole, Intendant, or Noble) will be steered toward that track and can serve there to the extent of their talent. They will just be overseen by the Staff Officers who may have special authority.

 

[Sigtrygg]

A general tells staff officers what to do...

"Any character may be promoted to the highest available ranks regardless of Social Standing, except: Proles and Intendants in Government may not be promoted above rank 3."

Note is is very difficult for a prole to achieve position/commission, but with good characteristics and luck they can do so.

 

[MasterGwydion]

Political Officers?

 

[Condottiere]

Mental Sanitation.