Psi (Action Powers Form)
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| Heroic Action Role-Play |
Psi is a power origin that manipulates reality trough mental power alone. This might be based on the mind's status as observer of quantum events, manifestation in astral space, or otherwise. Psychics leverage their personalities and powers of concentration against the inertia of the universe, and win.
Emotions are contagious to psychics, who often need to focus to avoid being swept away by the moods of people around them. Giving in to such urges can give great power but robs the psychic of control.
- Alternate Names: Quantum Manipulation, Psionics, The Force.
Associations
- Creature : Folk
- Skill : Maneuver
- Attribute : Mind
- Sense : Holistic awareness
- Mood : Joyful, outgoing, self-disciplined
- Blast: Psychic
Psi Cantrips
Basic Action
A psychic can sense masses of minds and the emotions they undergo. This can be used to sense places of habitation or population concentrations over long distances. A psychic can also tell the general mood and feelings of a group of people this way. Creatures with developed psychic powers (those using the Psi origin) potentially register much more strongly, but also learn to shield themselves. You can sense them when they actually use psychic powers or if they are closely linked to you by friendship or blood.
Charm Psi
Communal Power
Limit Break
Select one or more powers that are currently in use by someone in a Psychic Network you are also a part of. These powers become a natural part of the world, undetectable by powers that detect other powers. As long as a member of a Psychic Network you are part of visits the area at least once per day, the powers last. Powers that require active control will be dormant until activated by one of the Psychic Network.
This is a meta-power that affects other powers. In some campaign worlds there is a strong Origin Divide among different origins. Check with your GM regarding your campaign. Origins that are opposed cannot cannot be modified by meta-powers; it is as if powers from the opposing origin was actually a schtick rather than a power.
Friend Bonding
Basic Action
You can include a willing close friend, blood relative, or loved one in a Psychic Network. There is no range limit.
Power Bank
Basic Action
Select one power known by a willing friend you are touching who will lend a power and one other person you are touching who will borrow the power. Either of these can be you. The borrower can use that power until the end of the scene - the lender loses the power for the same time. Either can end the Power Bank with a Basic Action.
Psychic Insinuation
Basic Action
You are supernaturally enchanting to certain creatures. You master whatever form of communication they use, even if you are normally unable to communicate with them at all.
Enchanting someone requires an opposed Charm roll. On an Outcome equal to the target's Mind, the target falls for your enchantment. On a lesser success you gain an advantage. A failed check interrupts the process, forcing you to look for a new opportunity at a later time.
Once someone has been enchanted, they will willingly follow and help you out. They seek to avoid conflict with their old allies, but if push comes to shove you cannot guarantee how they will react; they will try to avoid seeing you harmed, but they might make you a captive to save you later or even to have you at their mercy, or they might decide to throw in their lot with you and abandon their former allies. Someone who you have enchanted expects trust and help from you, but the enchantment breaks automatically only in the most blatant cases of maltreatment. If you are callous and disregard their interests they can make opposed Charm rolls against you to see through the enchantment. The same applies if a friend points out they have been charmed, but in this case it is an opposed roll against the friend's Charm skill and takes a Limit Break to do.
Enchantment normally wears off in about a weeks time, but can be maintained through continuous use of the power; it will last indefinitely if reapplied once per day. Even after the power ends you leave your targets with fond memories of you unless you mistreated them. Someone who realizes they have been enchanted and used can become vindictive or even downright hostile, but this is not the normal result.
You can use this on any creature you touch.
Psychic Network
Basic Action
You maintain a psychic connection with others. To establish a psychic network, you must touch a willing person or use other powers that specifically establish a psychic network. Once established, the network exists until a member creature uses a Basic Action to end its membership in the network. Normally you are assumed to leave networks at the end of a story, but in psionic societies they might well be permanent.
All creatures in a psychic network are connected to each other and gain the following benefits:
- Can communicate with each other as if by speech as well as send empathic and sensory impressions.
Those who know this power gain additional benefits.
- Are Considered to be touching all members of the network for the purpose of using psychic powers, allowing the use of many powers over range that normally only work on touch.
- Can avoid attacking other members of the network when using area effects.
Create Psi
Psychic Key
Limit Break
You can fashion a psychic key, an object that can be used to link to other individuals. Each psychic key is linked to one specific individual. You touch the person whose key you are making. A psychic key allows the holder to establish a Psychic Network as if physically touching.
Dodge Psi
Mental Bastion
Stance
You create an immobile defensive sphere with a diameter equal to your Mind in meters. In this area, you and allies can use your Dodge skill instead of the normal Charm, Dodge, Impress, and Maneuver skills for defense. Whenever the difficulty of an opponent's stunt depends on one of these skills, you can use your Dodge skill as the difficulty if that would be higher. You also ward the area against teleportation. Any attempt to Teleport into or out of the area has a minimum difficulty equal to your Dodge; if the Outcome was less than your Mind the teleport succeeded, but made an awful noise and dazed the teleporter(s), giving you a surprise round if combat has not started or costing them three shots if it has. You can allow friends to teleport normally.
Mind Over Matter
Trigger Action (Defense)
Use this when attacked. Increase your Dodge by +3 for the current shot, and you are immune to any additional effects the attack may have, such as Burn or the loss of shots.
Psychic Sacrifice
Trigger Action (Defense)
When a willing ally who you touch or who is within Dodge meters takes one or more Hits, you can use this power to take one Hit of that damage for them.
Basic Action
Select one Damage Type a willing person you are touching is resistant to. For the rest of the scene, add your Mind to your soak attribute against this type of damage. You can only become resistant to one type of damage this way.
Impress Psi
Hive Mind
Limit Break
You must already be in a Psychic Network to activate Hive Mind. When Hive Mind is used, the network turns coercive; members of the network pool their desires and motivations, overriding individual concerns. This is a very subtle and powerful kind of mind control where the collective will of the network controls the actions of each member. What the collective will wants is usually related to the plot, but can be influenced with Impress rolls.
Escaping the psychic network also escapes the hive mind. If the network as a whole breaks up, the Hive mind ends. It might be possible to end the Hive Mind in other ways without breaking up the psychic network, but for more subtle interactions it is considered a Curse.
Invasive Power
Trigger Action (Combo)
When you use a power that requires a willing target or participant, and the target is unwilling, you can use Invasive Power to force them to accept. Make an opposed Impress roll; on a success the target is considered willing.
This is a meta-power that affects other powers. In some campaign worlds there is a strong Origin Divide among different origins. Check with your GM regarding your campaign. Origins that are opposed cannot cannot be modified by meta-powers; it is as if powers from the opposing origin was actually a schtick rather than a power.
Psychic Bonds
Trigger Action
When someone is trying to leave a Psychic Network they share with you, you can use this action to try and force them to remain. Make an opposed Impress roll; on a success they cannot quit the network and cannot try again for the remainder of the scene.
Know Psi
Absolute Concentration
Inherent or Limit break
You have advanced your powers of concentration to the point where you can use any one stance (schtick or power) without expending any shots to do so. Such a stance will continue to function even if you are unconscious or otherwise unable to take any actions. Changing winch stance you are using this for is a Limit Break and normally done out of action.
Analyze Psi
Basic Action
You can analyze the properties of any power within reach, even if it is inside a container or otherwise separated from you. You learn what power it is, who used it, when, to what effect, and an approximate power level. Even powers that have ended leave a signature that can be analyzed, though the impressions fade; after the end of the scene, it is no longer possible to determine who used the power and its exact effect. The signature fades completely in a matter of days or weeks, stronger and more dramatic used leaving stronger impressions.
This is a meta-power that affects other powers. In some campaign worlds there is a strong Origin Divide among different origins. Check with your GM regarding your campaign. Origins that are opposed cannot cannot be modified by meta-powers; it is as if powers from the opposing origin was actually a schtick rather than a power.
Disrupt Psi
Limit Break
| Age of Effect |
Minimum Difficulty |
| Three days | 12 |
| One Month | 14 |
| One year | 16 |
| A decade | 18 |
| A century | 20 |
| A millennium | 22 |
| Ten millennia | 24 |
You can end the effects of other powers. You can only dispel powers you know of (though a vague description, such as "whatever is making Bert turn green" is ok). You can try to dispel a single Finisher, Limit Break, or any power that has been in effect for a week or more, or you can try to dispel all powers except those mentioned above on one creature or in an area with a diameter equal to your Mind. When dispelling several powers at once, you can choose to ignore some of them as long as you know of each power you want to make an exception for.
A power that has been dispelled cannot be used again by that creature in this scene, and another creature that tries to use the same power in the same general area must match your Know with the stunt the power is used with, or it fails.
This will not negate a Curse, but will tell you how to defeat the curse if the roll is successful.
Inherent powers cannot be dispelled.
The difficulty is the skill of the most skilled creature involved in making the effect. Effects that have been around a long time are harder to dispel: see the table. Use the highest relevant difficulty.
This is a meta-power that affects other powers. In some campaign worlds there is a strong Origin Divide among different origins. Check with your GM regarding your campaign. Origins that are opposed cannot cannot be modified by meta-powers; it is as if powers from the opposing origin was actually a schtick rather than a power.
Psi Shield
Stance
You create a sphere with a diameter equal to your power skill that inhibits powers. The sphere moves with you. Using powers against anyone inside this area has a minimum difficulty equal to your Know; if the normal difficulty would be lower, increase it to that value.
This is a meta-power that affects other powers. In some campaign worlds there is a strong Origin Divide among different origins. Check with your GM regarding your campaign. Origins that are opposed cannot cannot be modified by meta-powers; it is as if powers from the opposing origin was actually a schtick rather than a power.
Psychic Burnout
Finisher
The target suffers Power Loss. This is a Curse.
This is a meta-power that affects other powers. In some campaign worlds there is a strong Origin Divide among different origins. Check with your GM regarding your campaign. Origins that are opposed cannot cannot be modified by meta-powers; it is as if powers from the opposing origin was actually a schtick rather than a power.
Maneuver Psi
Adaptive Psionics
Limit Break
When you use this power pick one Power of a Form you know; you can use this power until the end of the scene.
Body Shift
Limit Break
Your mind changes bodies with another willing creature you touch. You each assume each others' physical location, Body, bodily shape, and any schticks or powers dependent on race or physical form, losing those attributes your partner gets. You both get Reflexes equal to the lower of your normal scores. Damage remains with the body, while Fortune points belong to the mind. The GM is the final arbiter on which powers belong in the body and which belong in the mind.
Body Shift normally lasts a scene but can last longer as the plot requires. At the end of a round you can choose to switch back and end the power.
Alter Reality
Limit Break
Rather than pit your will directly against the inertia of the universe, you subtly alter the perception of the universe, making your effect a natural thing.
Choose one power when you use Alter Reality. For the rest of the scene, you can use this power with Charm instead of whatever skill it is normally based on.
This is a meta-power that affects other powers. In some campaign worlds there is a strong Origin Divide among different origins. Check with your GM regarding your campaign. Origins that are opposed cannot cannot be modified by meta-powers; it is as if powers from the opposing origin was actually a schtick rather than a power.
Melee Psi
Psychic Coordination
Trigger Action
When an ally you touch or are adjacent to makes a Melee attack and misses, you can make a Melee attack on the same opponent if you could otherwise do so (you have to be in range and able to attack).
Psychic Sword
Basic Action
You create a blade of psychic energy that you can wield as a Melee weapon that does Mind +4 Psychic damage. This is soaked with Mind instead of Toughness.
Recon Psi
Presence
Inherent
You can sense the presence of minds within Mind meters. This has the effects of a Scan stunt, and you automatically spot creatures in this area who are not Sneaking, even if they would be impossible to sense with your normal senses. You can extend this sense to an area at a distance, with normal range penalties.
Sense Psi
Inherent
You have developed an awareness for the use of powers. Your area of awareness extends to a range of your Mind times your Recon in meters. You sense any use of powers in the area and if you know the user you can identify who used it. You must make an opposed Recon check to sense a creature that is Sneaking or an object in such a creature's possession.
This is a meta-power that affects other powers. In some campaign worlds there is a strong Origin Divide among different origins. Check with your GM regarding your campaign. Origins that are opposed cannot cannot be modified by meta-powers; it is as if powers from the opposing origin was actually a schtick rather than a power.
Ride Psi
Psychic Channeling
Trigger Action (Combo)
Use this when you use another power. The power does not originate from you, but from a willing ally you touch or can see. You must perceive the target of the power. (Psyhcic Network and other perception powers are sufficient for this), but line of effect, range and other such factors are calculated from your ally and not from you.
This is a meta-power that affects other powers. In some campaign worlds there is a strong Origin Divide among different origins. Check with your GM regarding your campaign. Origins that are opposed cannot cannot be modified by meta-powers; it is as if powers from the opposing origin was actually a schtick rather than a power.
Shoot Psi
Enforced Bonding
Finisher
You force someone into your Psychic Network, and they cannot try to quit the network. This is a Curse. They take no damage setback from the triggering attack.
Psychic Blast
Inherent
You can make a Ranged Attack - either the basic stunt or using some other stunt, schtick, or power. Damage is Mind +2, or more if you are using an Implement to improve damage. Psychic Blast does Mind Blast damage soaked by Mind.
Psychic Burst
Limit Break
You can blast all enemies in a globe with a diameter equal to your Mind; you must be somewhere in this area. Your control of this attack is so precise that you can avoid any friends in the area. Damage is Mind +2, or more if you are using an Implement to improve damage. Make a separate attack roll against each target.
Psychic Burst does Mind Blast damage soaked by Mind.
Psychic Shockwave
Limit Break
You blast everyone in a cone; a triangle with you at one corner. You can control the exact dimensions of the cone when you create it, with some limitations. The base of the triangle can be as wide as your Mind and both the other sides have the same length and can be as long as your Shoot. All measurements are in meters. Damage is Mind +2, or more if you are using an Implement. Make a separate attack roll against each target, including friends and bystanders. Psychic Cone does Mind Blast damage soaked by Mind.