Steve Jackson Games - Site Navigation
Home General Info Follow Us Search Illuminator Store Forums What's New Other Games Ogre GURPS Munchkin Our Games: Home

Go Back   Steve Jackson Games Forums > Roleplaying > GURPS

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 12-02-2015, 08:39 PM   #1
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

A setting I might run a game in, if I find players in my area, and that I'm wondering if anyone else might want to use. I'll mostly work on this when I'm unable to focus on the Five Earths setting in my .sig, or the things I hope to make money from.

In 1921, the Society for Psychical Research had a breakthrough, with the help of a skilled hypnotist, and thus was able to prove the existance of at least some psychic phenomena. Since then, methods have been refined, and have spread to many universities and societies (the Stella Matutina, the Freemasons, and similar mystical groups show special interest) the world over, though few of the general public have studied these techniques.

In 1923, Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (National Socialist German Workers' Party) leader Adolph Hitler was killed in Munich during the failed Beer Hall Putsch. In the USA, stage magician and debunker Harry Houdini encountered one genuine psychic - who made use of photokinesis to help fake the spirits of his marks' dead loved ones.

In 1924, the SPR was granted a royal charter, becoming the Royal Society for Psychical Research. The Society of Jesus began investigating hypnotically-induced psychics not long thereafter. In August of that year, Oxford student and newly-empowered psychic Kamidake Yoshiro returned to Japan to take his late father's place in the family business: oyabun of a minor 'chivalrous organization' (yakuza group).

In 1925, fourteen-year-old silent film actress Lucille Ricksen recovered from a several month illness with the help of a group of empowered psychology students from the University of California Southern Branch. In October, Aleister Crowley published a monograph on a method of 'binding spirits' to objects, thus empowering them with related abilities.

In 1927, the thirteen members of a secret society called the Brotherhood of the Dragon vanished while on a pilgrimage to the tomb of Prince Vlad Tepes. Rumour has it that they brought a significant quantity of blood with them, some of it human, but there is little evidence of this. In November, William Edward Hickman is killed by a psychic named Michael Sutton, who claims that Hickman would otherwise have murdered a child. Sutton is sentenced to a mental hospital.

In 1929, the Thule Society bought their way back into favor with the NSDAP. In Romania, a charismatic man using the name Vlad Bassarab becomes an advisor to both the young King Michael, and the Romanian Prime Minister, Vintila Bratianu. In North Carolina, Dr. J. B. Rhine publishes A Survey on Methods of Psychical Attunement, in which he attempts to distinguish between trigger items (which have no power in themselves, but are used to activate a psychic's abilities), fetishes (to which astral entities have been bound or anchored by human efforts), haunts (to which an astral entity or entities have attached themselves without human action), and psychographs (which have been attuned to one or more psi abilities without the apparent involvement of any astral being).

In 1930, Pope Pius XI promulgated a papal bull on the subject of psi powers, declaring that they are neither miraculous nor diabolical, but natural abilities of humanity. Sir Oliver Lodge and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle publish a paper entitled 'On Elementals,' describing spirits that seem to embody particular concepts: not only the traditional Western elements, but Eastern elements like Wood and Metal, alternative elements like Shadow, Lightning, or Sound, and more abstract concepts are mentioned - demons are described in the paper as 'creatures of elemental Evil,' and angels as 'beings of elemental Good.'

It is now 1932. In Germany, the NSDAP is rising to power, and many prognosticators see doom in the eyes of their Vorsitzender (chairman), a Bavarian named Himmler. In Asia, the Empire of Japan expands its influence, to China's detriment. In the US, Senator Franklin Delano Roosevelt (D-N.Y.) is the favorite to win the Democratic nomination for President. All over the world, the new psychics, both private individuals and public servants, are becoming more and more common, and beginning to reshape the destiny of the world.



Quote:
Lodge-3, 1932

Current Affairs
While the Nazi Party claws it's way into power in Weimar Germany, psychics, both private individuals and public servants, are becoming more and more common, and beginning to reshape the destiny of the world.

Divergeance Point
1921: The Society for Psychical Research had a breakthrough, with the help of a skilled hypnotist, and thus was able to prove the existance of at least some psychic phenomena.

Major Civilizations
Western (multipolar), Orthodox (empire), Japanese (empire), Chinese (fragmenting empire).

Great Powers
United States (representative democracy, CR3, CR5 for blacks), British Empire (representative democracies, CR3), Soviet Union (dictatorship, CR6), Japanese Empire (military-corporate oligarchy, CR4), Fascist Italy (dictatorship, CR4), French Third Republic (representative democracy, CR4), Weimar Republic (representative democracy, CR4), Republic of China (oligarchy, CR5).

Worldline Data
TL: (6+1)^
Mana Level: no mana
Quantum: 6
Infinity Class: Z4
Centrum Zone: Red


The frequency of (active) psis is currently around 1 per 100,000 people and gradually climbing, although the ratio of people with Talents and Psi Perks seems to be closer to 1 per 3,000 people. Everyone else is a 'latent', as per 'Universal Latency' (Psionic Campaigns, p8) and 'Weak Latency (Psi) [0]' (Psionic Powers, p19), having the potential for power, but no usable abilities. Prior to 1921, the proportion of active psis per capita was significantly less, believed to be on the order of one per ten million people. The percentage of people with Psi Talents and Perks, but no abilities above Perk level, was about the same as it is now, though.

In terms of public awareness of psi (Psionic Campaigns, p16), by the 1930s this is a world transitioning between Suspected and Acknowledged: There are a lot of people who know for certain that psi powers exist, but these powers are still rare (and often subtle) enough that a lot of people still don't believe it - and many of those that do are eccentrics who believe they're doing magic, which doesn't help.

What little 'psychotronic' equipment exists is experimental, but may sometimes have the sizes of emergent or mature psi-tech. While you can buy some in theory, it would more often be something you (or your ally, contact, or patron) commissioned, if you don't make it yourself. Devices created by mystics tend to be smaller, but quirkier, often with strange limitations. Psi drugs are likewise rare, and are mostly the result of examining old books on Herb-Lore, Alchemy, and so forth, and experimenting to separate the useful items from the myths and filler.

'Monsters' of various types do exist, but are far from common, and mostly consist of astral entities - adventurers in the Astral Plane, particularly the Inner Plane, might encounter practically anything. Corporeal monsters are generally manufactured by human psychics, though not always on purpose, or created by other 'monsters.' Some Cryptids are more likely to be animals, with normal animal abilities and motivations, rather than empowered monsters. (Search through books like Monster Hunters, Horror, and Creatures of the Night for anything that fits your game, adjust powers to be psionic, and add a Spirit meta-trait to anything too fantastic (e.g. all but the most limited shapeshifters) that you still want to use, or confine it to the Inner Astral Plane. You could also tone down some creatures to make more mundane cryptids. If you want to take the time to convert them, 3e GURPS had a few Bestiary books, as well.)

Thoughts?
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.

Last edited by Prince Charon; 07-28-2018 at 03:31 PM.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-03-2015, 04:19 PM   #2
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

No replies? Oh, well. Have a bit more, which is also in the New Reality Seeds thread:

Quote:
Other Lodges

There are several worldlines in which the SPR was involved in the development of reliable psi abilities in the late 19th or early 20th centuries:

Lodge-1 (Q5, current year 1957) diverged in 1909, when Sir Oliver Lodge made a trip to Tugunska. He returned with a Russian medium named Sergei Sergevich Ivanov, who had witnesst the blast the previous year, and was able to use his mesmeristic abilities (Suggestion, Emotion Control, and a sort of Catalyst power that seems to be based on both) to awaken the psychical abilities of others - including those same mesmeristic powers. This had relatively little effect on the Western Front of the Great War, which quickly became bogged down in the trenches, but was of some benefit on other fronts, as well as allowing the escape of Grand Duchess (and later Tsaritsa-in-exile) Anastasia Romanova to the United Kingdom. Sadly, the French government ignored the warnings of British and even French seers as to the dangers of te Treaty of Versailles. The effect on the Second World War was notably greater, as all belligerants and many neutrals had their own reliable and semi-reliable psychics, some of whom wore colourful costumes and adopted strange codenames; many psychics still do this today, during the Cold War, though they're less common or powerful than on many other 'super' parallels. This is a no mana world, like the other Lodges, with TL7 consumer tech, and up to TL (6+2)^ and (7+1)^ (depending on the mad scientist) cutting edge psychotronics. The first man to walk on the Moon was Sir Geoffrey Huntington, FRS, KBE, on May 15, 1956.

On Lodge-2 (Q6, current year 1925), the Society for Psychical Research was still formed in 1882, but as a result of a hypnotist named MacNichol demonstrating to several luminaries (some of whom were founding members of the SPR on Homeline, and some who were not) how certain students of his possessed practical psychical abilities, including Mind Over Matter (psychokinesis). Early examples of psychotronics and psi-drugs were produced in the late 1880s, and have progressed a fair bit since then, being in most cases more advanced than on Lodge-3. The Great War was delayed by three years, due to various precognitives defusing flashpoints, and was cut short in 1920, by the Spanish Flu pandemic. Eugenics research is fairly common on this worldline, but little in the way of positive results have been found. Currently on this TL(5+1)^-(5+2)^ worldline, France is leaning toward communism, Imperial Russia has a relatively liberal, almost British-style Parliamentary system (albeit with a politically strong Tsar), and the US continues to try to stay out of Old World affairs, having avoided participation in WWI. Space travel is functionally non-existent, but there are a number of researchers trying to change that.

Lodge-4 (Q4, current year 2016) diverged in late 1940, shortly after Sir Oliver Lodge's death, when his ghost contacted several British mediums affiliated with the SPR, teaching them how to enhance their mediumistic and other psychic abilities, and how to train others thusly. Unfortunately, he was not the only spirit to do this, resulting in a World War II that was far weirder, but just as bloody as that on Homeline, even if it was a few months shorter (Japanese psychics arranged the assassination of a few key figures in the Koiso government, including Koiso himself, allowing a surrender on relatively lenient terms, and without the use of the atomic bomb; it helped that Japan's declaration of war reached President Roosevelt before the planes of the Kido Butai reached Pearl Harbor, even if only by fifteen minutes). The US did make military use of one atomic weapon later, when MacArthur ordered the destruction of a division of Chinese troops who had entered North Korea, ending the Korean War, but prompting other powers to increase their atomic research budgets. The UK demonstrated an atomic bomb on a barge towed into the mid-Atlantic in 1952, the Soviet Union in Siberia in 1953, and so forth. Like Lodge-1, many of the more powerful psychics in this worldline act like comic book superheroes and supervillains; this has been going on so long that it's considered normal (if uncommon), and laws have been adjusted to account for it. The most common Psi Talent on Lodge-4 is Probability Alteration, followed closely by ESP, but the most common individual ability is Spirit Communication, and ersatz 'magic' based on getting astral entities to do things is relatively commonplace. Spirit Communicators are loosely divided into 'shamans,' who commune and negotiate with nature spirits and a range of others, 'mediums,' who mostly speak to ghosts, 'thaumaturges' or 'wizards,' who tend to use thoughtforms and other 'mechanistic' spirits (that they can mostly just order around), 'theurges,' who call upon gods and angels, and 'diabolists,' who make deals with demons; similar terminology is developing on the other Lodges. Technology has diverged somewhat from Homeline, being TL(7+2)^ at the cutting edge, with better power production and storage, but mostly less advanced computers. The first man to walk on the Moon was Gus Grissom, in 1964. By 2016, space travel is relatively cheap, with orbital stations around Earth, the Moon, Mars, Venus, and Mercury, and manned surface bases on the Moon, Mars, Phobos, Deimos, and some Near-Earth Asteroids. (Unknown to Infinity, governments and some independents on Lodge-4 have developed what they call 'dimensional incursion' sensors, due to a number of individuals with Jumper powers or (usually one-off) psychotronic sub-quantum conveyors who have caused trouble in the past. Intelligence services are being careful about observing them, but the mad scientists and mystics, heroic or otherwise, are often less discrete.)
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.

Last edited by Prince Charon; 12-04-2015 at 06:37 AM.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-04-2015, 11:32 PM   #3
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

I know people are looking at this, I can see the Views rating, but some comments either way would be nice, please.



All psi abilities are learnable advantages (Basic Set p294), even for those who have not the slightest trace of power to start with. Generally, they are learned either through a teacher using Hypnotism, or through self-study, with the latent psi using Autohypnosis or Meditation, often with the help of a book. (Specific abilities may be chosen, but the GM is free to add or remove modifiers as appropriate - it's not an exact science, after all.) A few rare individuals who are the target of psionic effects may gain similar or opposing abilities, especially if the event is particularly traumatic, occurs often, or both. (Earned character points, as well as points from disadvantages gained due to exposure to psi abilities, may be spent on new psi abilities, so long as the GM agrees that they fit the experience. For example, a hostile telepath reads Dr. Peter Willoughby's darkest fears, and uses them to craft a horrifying illusion. He might develop Mind Shield to protect himself, Telepathy Sense or Psi Sense to warn him, Telerecieve and either Sensory Control or Reshape Dream to 'return the favor,' and/or Mental Blow, to lash out at future attackers!)

Most psi abilities are activated by some form of post-hypnotic trigger, generally called mnemonic triggers by psychical researchers ('parapsychologist' as a term does not yet exist), and spells, incantations, arias, and so forth, by mystics. These may be chants, songs, movements (gestures, dance, martial arts), or artistic or intellectual processes, such as drawing, playing an instrument, meditation, mathematics, or alchemy (appropriate skills should be treated as Complementary), and might take anywhere from a second or two to several hours. (Represented by limitations like Nuisance Effect, Takes Extra Time, Preparation Required, or Immediate Preparation Required. Abilities that already have one of these limitations might have a more restrictive version, or simply have altered fluff - 'you sit there concentrating' is replaced by things like 'you lay out the tarot cards and study the result,' or 'you sing the Charm of Making,' but the time required remains the same; this may mean the addition of a -5% Nuisanse Effect, if that isn't the limitation you already have.)

Some triggers are instead objects, like Dumbo's feather; these are called trigger items by scientists, while mystics call them talimans, amulets, foci (plural of focus), gris-gris, and a wide range of other names. It should be noted that just like Dumbo's feather, these items have no real power if their own, though a psi with Signature Sniffer or Retrocognition could eventually learn to use another psi's trigger item to perform the same effects, with the same modifiers. A tattoo, scar, or other special mark on the body may also serve as a trigger item. (Build as Gadgets with Can Be Stolen (Will not immediately work for thief); tattoos and similar fall under 'Must be forcefully removed.' Few are Unique, though many (especially if Unique) are Signature Gear. Some Gadgets of this type are single-use, adding the Preparation Required limitation to the ability. For items with real power, see Psychography and Astral Binding, below.)

A few triggers, particularly among mystics, simply require the presense of an animal (Granted By Familiar limitation). These animals are not catalyst creatures, and have no powers of their own... usually. Some psychics, particularly animal telepaths (who are the ones most likely to have trigger animals, anyway), claim that at least a few of these creatures do have power. This remains to be seen. (As with trigger items, a psi with Signature Sniffer or Retrocognition could eventually learn to use another psi's 'familiar,' if they can get along with the creature. Likewise, a creature used as a trigger animal for long periods might eventually learn to use their owner's ability or abilities...)

Psi abilities without a trigger condition are rare, and usually the result of long study and practice with that same ability (buying down the limitations, and then buying them off). It is possible to start with abilities that have no trigger conditions, but GMs may wish to require an Unusual Background for it.

Available psi abilities include any of those in GURPS Psionic Powers that the GM or the setting does not forbid (see 'New, Modified, or Unavailable Abilities,' below), and any others that the player(s) and GM can agree on.



On Talents

Talents not only affect skills, they reduce the time required to learn abilities in that power (though not the point cost, unless the GM really wants to). Generally, time required for Improvement Through Study (Basic Set p292) should be reduced by 10% per level of Talent. Alternatively, Level 1 reduces the time by 20%, and subsequent levels divide the time by the bonus (id est, Telepathy Talent 2 would divide the time to learn Telepathy abilities in half, level 3 would reduce it to one third the normal time, and so forth). If you wish to have Talent levels reduce the point cost of abilities, I suggect a discount of 5% per level of Talent.

You may buy an ability that you have no Talent for, it will just take longer (at least when not being bought with character points earned adventuring, as opposed to downtime spent learning).

Untrained individuals with one or more levels of a Psi Talent (or multiple Talents) often have a Perk or two, sometimes more, from each Power or Powers they are Talented in.

A Subtalent is a specialization of a Psi Power Talent. All abilities covered by the Subtalent are also enhanced by the Power Talent it's based on (so, if you have Telepathy Talent 3, and two levels of Animal Telepathy Talent, your effective bonus to Animal Telepathy is +5). If a Subtalent can be based on two Talents (e.g. Dream Control), choose which Talent it is based on when you buy the Subtalent. You may buy a Subtalent without buying the main Talent or Talents.

Subtalents generally cost 3 points per level, though a Subtalent that is a large or essential part of the main Talent may cost 4 points, instead. Some Subtalents are more common than their base Talent. The power limitation is always that of the main Talent.

Psi Talents and Subtalents (marked with *), in descending order of commonality:

Requires no Unusual Background cost:
ESP
*Divination (Subtalent of ESP)
Astral Projection
*Dream Control (Subtalent of Astral Projection or Telepathy)
Telepathy
*Animal Telepathy (Subtalent of Telepathy)
Probablility Alteration
*Electrokinesis (Subtalent of Ergokinesis)
*Photokinesis (Subtalent of Ergokinesis)
Ergokinesis

Requires a 5 point UB:
Meta-Psi
*Anti-Psi (Subtalent of Meta-Psi)
*Sonokinesis (Subtalent of Psychokinesis)
Psychic Vampirism
Psychic Healing
*Biokinesis (Subtalent of Psychic Healing)
*Psychometabolism (Subtalent of Psychic Healing)

Requires a 10 point UB:
Psychokinesis
Teleportation

Due to the current level of development of electronics, Cyberpsi abilities do not yet exist.

The Biokinesis and Psychometabolism Subtalents only cover the abilities listed for them (Psionic Powers pp72-73 and pp75-76, respectively) that are not also listed for the main Psychic Healing Talent (Psionic Powers pp46-49).

Many believe that psychokinesis and teleportation are entirely fictional, or at best, exaggerated.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-12-2015, 02:27 PM   #4
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

New, Modified, or Unavailable Abilities

Anti-Psi (pp23-26) is a Subtalent of Meta-Psi, and all Anti-Psi abilities will have a limitation of 'Meta-Psi, -10%.' Meta-Psi is the power to modify other psi abilities, whether weakening or nullifying them, enhancing them, redirecting them, and so forth. Affliction (Advantage), sometimes with Modular Abilities (generally with something like 'Psi Abilities Only, -20%' or 'Existing Psi Abilities Only, -40%'), is a key ability.


Adjustment (Psionic Powers p44) is a common advantage for martial artists, though it generally takes time and effort to bring it to a useful level. The usual variant lacks the 'Visualization (Blessing Only, +0%)' half of the ability, and has the limitation 'Cinematic Martial Arts Only, +0%.' Rather than giving a bonus, it simply allows some cinematic skills and techniques to work normally, that otherwise would only work by accident, if at all. The tenth level reduces time to effectively zero, and is only available in martial arts-heavy games (or other games where the GM considers it appropriate), if at all.
5/7/9/11/13/15/17/19/21/23 points for up to ten levels.


Astral Hearing (under Astral Sight, p27) requires a small modification: as all spirits in this setting are astral entities, the limitation on Medium should be changed from 'Specialized, Astral, -50%' to 'Specialized, Human, -50%,' covering ghosts and Astral Travelers.


Astral Travel works mostly as in Psionic Powers pp27-29, although the difficulty of entering and leaving the Outer and Inner Planes is somewhat variable. Mystics and psychical researchers acknowledge two 'barriers' or 'borders' in relation to astral projection: the Outer Barrier, which determines the difficulty of interaction between the physical world and the Outer Astral Plane, and the usually much 'harder' Inner Barrier, which limits travel between the Outer and Inner Astral Planes. In both cases, the average resistance is as per Psionic Powers, with fairly few locations varying by a noticeable amount. Spiritually significant places (crossroads, borders, holy sites, battlefiels, et cetra) and times (sunrise, sunset, the period from Midnight to just before First Light, astrological events, et cetra) might have 'stronger' or 'weaker' barriers than normal, though the strength of the Inner and Outer Barriers in the same location need not match. Outer Barrier strength varies between +10 and -10 (though the further you get from zero, the more rare it is), applied to the Astral Travel skill, and the techniques Barrier Breaking, Cross-World Communication, and Piggyback; in the particular case of Barrier Breaking, divide the given penalty by 3, before applying it to other abilities enabled by Barrier Breaking. Some places, called 'portals,' 'gateways,' or similar terms, allow travel or communication with no roll, although the psi must still have Astral Travel. Not all portals are open at all times.

Example: Susan Foxe, the Grey Lady, has the abilities Astral Travel 3 (Nuisance Effect, Must burn special herbs, -5%) and Instill Fear (Only in Astral Form, -##%) 3, the skills Astral Travel 14 and Instill Fear 12, and the techniques Barrier Breaking 11 and Cross-World Communication 14. At 1:47am, late in the hour at which her husband Martin's prognostications determined the thief was most likely to strike, she is in the Outer Astral Plane, patrolling the chapel of Galston Manor, an old building with a comfortably weak barrier (especially so late at night), giving her a +4 to Astral Travel. Though her time is running down, she witnesses a man in black enter through a hidden passageway, and make his way to the valuable silver chalice on the altar. As the man places the chalice in a padded box, Susan moves in front of the passageway, activating Barrier Breaking as she drifts. A roll of 12 isn't great, but with the bonus, is successful. As the man approaches the passageway, she first uses Cross-World Communication (rolling another 12) becoming visible and audible, and then gives an angry scream, activating Instill Fear. She rolls a 9, just below her effective skill of 10 (+4 divided by 3, rounding down, is +1, reducing the penalty to use non-Astral powers to -2). The thief rolls a 15, failing his Fright Check, and runs toward the only other exit, the door where Martin and her brother George are waiting, already alerted by her scream.

EDIT: Note that at the GM's option, intent can affect the barrier's strength. As the Grey Lady's intent in the example above was to the benefit of the old chapel, she might get a higher bonus, whereas an Astral Projector helping the thief for whatever reason would be penalized by around -4. Be sure to tell your players whether this optional rule is in effect in your campaigne.

Inner Barrier strength varies from +2 to -18 (the default still being -8), applied to the Astral Crossing technique; portals between the Outer Plane and the Inner Plane do exist, but are even less common than Outer portals. It is especially rare for a portal to the Outer Plane to occupy the same place (or nearly the same place), as a portal to the Inner Plane, and for both to be open at the same time. When it does occur, it is often called an 'astral bridge.' There are probably no more than a dozen astral bridges in the entire world, and only three are all that well-known: one at Stonehenge, one between the paws of the Great Sphinx, and one in a location convenient for the GM.

Another important house rule for Astral Travel is that travelers will not die from repeated failures of the Astral Crossing technique. Instead, when time runs out they snap back to their bodies with 0 FP, and must make a roll on HT+Astral Projection Talent. On a failure, they take 1d/2 toxic damage, or 1d+1 tox on a critical failure; on a success, they take no damage, while on a critical success, they take no damage, and regain 1d FP.


Aura Reading (p46) may also be purchased as an ESP ability. Some psis use Aura Reading as a Complementary Skill for other psi-sensory abilities; this is a zero-point Feature.


The Cure (p46) and Cure Injury (p47) powers are unavailable, being replaced by various types of Affliction (Rapid Healing, Regeneration, and/or Negate Slow Healing), which may use the techniques listed for Cure Injury, and tend to have some level of Extended Duration (100x duration (+80%) gives 1 hour, 40 minutes; 300x (+100%) gives 5 hours; and 1,000x (+120%) gives 16 hours, 40 minutes), at least at lower levels of Regeneration. Physical beings cannot recover hit points faster than one per minute (Fast Regeneration), but can regain fatigue at up to one per second (Very Fast Regeneration). Astral entities (including the astral bodies of psychics with Astral Travel) may have - or be Afflicted with - up to Extreme Regeneration for HP, FP, or both.

Cure Disease (p47) is available, and works normally.


Still hating the character limit.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.

Last edited by Prince Charon; 12-17-2015 at 07:03 AM.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-12-2015, 02:30 PM   #5
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

The Cryokinesis (p55) and Pyrokinesis (p56) abilities are sometimes purchased as a single ability, called Thermokinesis, at 29 points per level (based on buying one level each of Cryokinesis and Pyrokinesis, both with 'Link, +10%' added). It is, literally, the movement of heat from one location to another. The Chill Factor and Ignition perks are occasioally part of this ability, making the cost instead '31 points for level 1, plus 29 points for each additional level.'

Skill: Thermokinesis (IQ/Hard).

A cheaper (but less plausible in classical physics) variant treats Cryokinesis as an Alternative Ability of Pyrokinesis, giving a cost of 17 points per level, if the perks are left out, or 19 for the first level, and 17 from then on, if the perks are part of the ability. Many psychical researchers fail to properly distinguish these abilities, using Thermokinesis for both, as well as for Cryokinesis, Pyrokinesis, and all related Perks. For accounting purposes, the cheaper variant should be called 'Thermokinesis (Alternating),' and should use the normal skills.


Domination, 18 points

The psychic ability to impose a meta-trait on another. Based on Dominance (Basic Set p50).

Statistics: Dominance (Meta-Psi, -10%) [18]. Some variants are based on Psychic Healing, Biokinesis, or Psychic Vampirism. A few require skill rolls to take effect.


The Gadgeteer advantage (Basic Set p56) has four variants in this setting:

Intuitive Engineer, 20 points
A precognitive ability to 'see what will work.'
Statistics: Gadgeteer (ESP, -10%; No superscience, -10%) [20]

Lucky Inventor, 20 points
You tend to accidentally stumble on the right ideas for your problem.
Statistics: Gadgeteer (Probability Alteration, -10%; No superscience, -10%) [20]
Neither of these allow Quick Gadgeteering, and both are limited to mundane technology no more than two TLs ahead of the user - no superscience tech. Outside of this, they are mechanically identical to normal Gadgeteering.

Psychography, 14/28

Also called 'attunement,' this is the ability to create (what appears to be) superscience psi tech. Mechanically similar to standard Gadgeteering, save for the production phase. As all such items are psychically attuned, rather than creating or imitating psi effects through advanced circuitry (which would require TL12 in this setting), they cannot truly be mass-produced. Instead, treat 'production models' as prototypes, save that they are faster to produce, and have no bugs. Appropriate skills include Weird Science/TL6^, Ritual Magic, Symbol Drawing, Herb Lore/TL4^, or Alchemy/TL5^. Pharmacy (Psi)/TL6^ is slowly being developed from the latter two.

Statistics: Gadgeteer (Meta-Psi, -10%; Focused, Psi-Tech, -20%; Limited mass-production, -15%) [14/level]

Astral Binding, 5/10

Skill: Astral Binding (Will/Hard).

This is the ability to create a charm or fetish, temporarily or permanently binding an astral entity to an item, and granting the item power as a result. The Concept roll would be based on Occultism (with double the penalty), Hidden Lore (generally Spirits but Faeries, Demons, Angels, or Ultraterrestrials may also be appropriate), or a similar skill to find an appropriate spirit, or Expert Skill (Psionics) and either Autohypnosis or Meditation, to create a thought-form (The Tulpa; Horror p81) for the purpose. If summoning the spirit, use Spirit Communication to call (or go find one, either through Astral Travel or physical travel while using Astral Sight), and social skills to negotiate. The construction skill is Astral Binding. There are no 'production models,' just similar prototypes. In general, charms, being temporary, are much faster to produce than fetishes (divide time by 1d+3), both because negotiations with the spirits (if you aren't simply creating a thought-form) are easier, and because the bindings need not be 'built' to last.

A spirit may be forcibly imprisoned in a charm or fetish, which often leads to great resentment. Roll a Contest of the target's Will against Astral Binding, with the normal Construction penalty.

Statistics: Gadgeteer (Astral Projection, -10%; Based on Will, +20%; Only for Astral Entity containment devices, -60%; Requires Will Roll, -5%; No mass-production, -30%) [5/level]

(If you have a copy of Monster Hunters 2: The Mission, the Gadgeteering rules on pp24-25 will be useful for anyone with the second level of Psychography or Astral Binding. Just be sure to add a -1 penalty on the Gadgeteering Table on p24, if you don't have Versatile - see text on that page for details.)


Harmony with the Way, 36 points

An optional ability, for GMs that wish to have all Cinematic Martial Arts skills and techniques under a single enabling advantage (or a smaller number of them). This ability works by being in tune with the spirits (thoughtforms) of your martial arts style.

Statistics: Trained by a Master (Astral Projection, -10%) [36]. Often has the Pact limitation, for -5% [34], -10% [32], -15%, [30], or -20% [28]. Trained by a Master may be replaced by Weapon Master, or a variant thereof, including Gunslinger or Heroic Archer; modify pricing accordingly.


Pressure Point Manipulation, 10 points for level 1, plus 4 points for each additional level

A suggested ability to allow the use of Pressure Points, Pressure Secrets, and the Pressure Point Strike technique (which should be treated as a normal technique, not an additional ability requiring FP to use). An alternative is to maintain a catalogue of Afflictions, with most being Alternative Attacks of the most expensive Affliction.

Statistics: Modular Abilities (Slotted Cosmic Power; Physical, +50%; Only Afflictions with a biological effect, Melee Attack, C, and Contact Agent, -50%; Psychic Healing, -10%; Requires IQ Roll, -10%) [5.6 base] + [4/level].


Spirit Communication (p43) may also be purchased as an Astral Projection ability.


Thoughts?
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.

Last edited by Prince Charon; 04-13-2016 at 04:02 PM.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-16-2015, 12:48 PM   #6
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

Paranormal disadvantages are psi-based in this setting (effectively being abilities that are harmful to the user, or permanent effects of abilities used against the user), and should usually have a limitation to reflect this, like 'Weirdness Magnet (Probability Alteration, -10%) [-14].' Lower point-cost disadvantages, like Infectious Attack, Supernatural Features, or Unnatural Features, may ignore this.

Any disadvantages I need to specifically write up will be posted here. Hopefully they won't exceed the character limit.


So, any thoughts on this?
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-16-2015, 01:20 PM   #7
David Johnston2
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Default Re: [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

Quote:
Originally Posted by Prince Charon View Post
It is now 1932. In Germany, the NSDAP is rising to power, and many prognosticators see doom in the eyes of their Vorsitzender (chairman), a Bavarian named Himmler.
I think they're going to need a more dynamic front man than Himmler. Maybe Göring.
David Johnston2 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-16-2015, 04:26 PM   #8
LoneWolf23k
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Default Re: [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

This setting sounds like it would go great with "Igor-1", the world of Mad Science from Pyramid Vol 3 issue 63. Maybe Ubercognitives represent the flipside of great mental power. You either become a Genius Scientist, or a Psychic prodigy.
LoneWolf23k is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-17-2015, 06:59 AM   #9
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

Quote:
Originally Posted by David Johnston2 View Post
I think they're going to need a more dynamic front man than Himmler. Maybe Göring.
How big on occultism was Goering? I've been thinking that Himmler got in with the Thule Society earlier, and has been lifted up at least partly by their efforts.

EDIT: Of course, Himmler as the Power Behind the Throne would also fit.

Quote:
Originally Posted by LoneWolf23k View Post
This setting sounds like it would go great with "Igor-1", the world of Mad Science from Pyramid Vol 3 issue 63. Maybe Ubercognitives represent the flipside of great mental power. You either become a Genius Scientist, or a Psychic prodigy.
That crossover could work, certainly.

On another note, edited in something that should have been in the Abilities section (under the example in Astral Travel), but wasn't:

Note that at the GM's option, intent can affect the barrier's strength. As the Grey Lady's intent in the example above was to the benefit of the old chapel, she might get a higher bonus, whereas an Astral Projector helping the thief for whatever reason would be penalized by around -4. Be sure to tell your players whether this optional rule is in effect in your campaigne.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.

Last edited by Prince Charon; 12-17-2015 at 07:02 AM.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-17-2015, 04:00 PM   #10
johndallman
Night Watchman
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Cambridge, UK
Default Re: [Psionics] Pulp Psi-Phi

Quote:
Originally Posted by Prince Charon View Post
How big on occultism was Goering?
Historically, not at all. He was far more into high society, art, aeroplanes and uniforms; secret gatherings with weird people were really not his thing.

However, if the occult will get him power or wealth, he'll be all over it.
johndallman is online now   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
psionics, pulp campaign, worldbuilding

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Fnords are Off
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 04:42 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.