[Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

Hi, I am trying to figure out how to correctly use TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + Compartmentalized Mind 1 (CM1) during a melee combat. Please let me know if anything I describe below is incorrect from a RAW perspective.

Here are the assumptions :
- PC has TK Grab, Levitation, CM1, no melee weapons skills at all
- PC is levitating 1 yard above ground (PC succeeded Levitation skill roll 2 rounds ago)
- PC is using TK Grab to wield 2 quarterstaffs in his square thanks to CM1 (PC succeeded 2 TK Grab skill rolls during previous round to grab the staffs)

On his turn, PC is allowed to do ALL the following :
1- Use 2 mental maneuvers to continue using the staffs with TK Grab; 2 TK Grab skill rolls are required to maintain the grasp on the staffs
2- Strike a single attack with each staff at 1,2 reach by rolling again vs IQ based TK Grab skill
3- Maintain Levitation as a free action
4- Move 1 yard in any direction while levitating

When defending during the same round, the PC can do ALL the following :
5- Retreat 1 Yard while levitating
6- Parry against 2 attacks using the staffs at (IQ based TK Grab skill/2+3 +2 for staff +1 for retreat vs foe from which PC is retreating)
7- Use Power Defense twice at (TK Grab skill/2+3) to reduce any incoming physical damage (as per Psionics Powers p8 rules) of any not parried attack (possibly the same attacks that the staffs attempted to parry)

If PC is injured, he has to roll vs Will-3 twice to avoid losing grasp on the staffs.

Your help and advices will be very much appreciated !

Phil

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

Can anyone help ?

I am struggling with several rules concepts and that is why I need confirmation that the actions sequence described in my original post is truly valid.

If you prefer, I can instead describe the rules I am unsure about :

- once Levitation has been activated, maintaining is a normally a free action although a Concentrate maneuver will be required once per minute

- once levitating, all normal movement rules apply (step, retreat, move during combat, ...) but as an air movement and without concentration

- Levitation can not be disrupted by damage or other mental or physical maneuvers

- using TK Grab requires a mental maneuver and a TK Grab skill roll per round and with CM1 it is possible to use 2 mental maneuvers with TK Grab

- a mental maneuver with TK Grab for the purpose of using a melee weapon can be any of the combat maneuvers authorized with a melee weapon, such as : grabbing a weapon (with weight below BL) with TK Grab + moving the weapon by (TK Grab ability level) yards, striking once with a weapon wielded through TK Grab + moving the weapon by 1 Step, moving a weapon wielded through TK Grab by (TK Grab ability level) yards, All-Out-Attacking with a weapon wielded through TK Grab + moving the weapon by half (TK Grab ability level) yards + All-Out-Defending to parry with a weapon wielded through TK Grab + moving the weapon by 1 Step

- a weapon wielded through TK Grab can also parry to protect the PC if the weapon is in the same hex as the PC and if the weapon has not been used for an All-Out-Attack during this round

- using a weapon wielded through TK Grab to strike and/or parry requires a regular skill roll using IQ based TK Grab skill instead of DX based melee weapon skill (these skill rolls to attack and/or defend are in addition to the roll made every round to maintain the TK Grab)

- regardless of how TK Grab skill has been used during the round, the PC can always use Power Defenses based on TK Grab skill once per round, or twice with CM1

- in case the PC is injured, he has to roll vs Will-3 for each weapon wielded through TK Grab (even with CM1) in order to avoid dropping them

Thanks for your help !

Phil

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

Levitation is based on Flight from Basic. It's just another kind of movement. So, you can take it out of the picture. The "fluff" may be that it's TK lifting, but just follow the normal movement rules. You don't really "maintain" Levitation each turn. Speaking purely mechanically, you activate Flight, and then for one minute you can fly around. A minute later, you have to Concentrate to activate Flight again.

Most Maneuvers allow you to take a 1-yard "step", including Concentrate (which is what both CMs are doing to keep the TK Grab going). Regular movement (a Move Maneuver, etc) would requiring freeing up one of the minds to control your body, whether running or flying.

For (1), I don't believe that you need a separate roll for TK Grab to keep holding a staff. You roll to pick it up; you roll to use it in an attack.

(7) is incorrect. You could use your TK power as a Active Defense (a Power Defense, in this case) to try to stop blows. But you don't get two Active Defenses against a single attack while you're taking a Concentrate Maneuver. (You could with All-out Defense, but then you're not Concentrating on the TK Grab.)

The description for TK Grab specifically notes using that for weapons. Your use isn't incorrect per RAW. But personally, I wouldn't allow skilled use of objects all to fall under TK Grab. I'll allow Staff skill to float to IQ. But it's overpowered, IMO, to allow the one TK Grab skill to substitute for "using" any object. Pick up a staff, and "use" it for fighting, with TK Grab skill. Pick up a lockpick, and "use" it with TK Grab for free Lockpicking skill. Grab the wheel of the car for Driving. Pick up a paintbrush, and get Artist skill. Pick up a pen and "use" it for Writing skill. Nope. I'd let TK Grab perform basic, untrained, manipulation of objects, but not give away every skill that uses an implement as part of the package. TK Staff-masters or Artists can buy such skills to represent training themselves to use their TK power with such precision or reflexive drill.

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

1) As Anaraxes pointed out, there's no need to reroll TK grab every turn unless the grabbed object is being moved or attacked/defended with.

6 and 7) The PC only gets one Active Defense against a given attack. For the staffs, there's nothing about CM that permits two defenses against a single attack (compare ATR, same deal). That said, CM does make the PC effectively a four-handed creature, so he/she could Parry an attack with one staff, and parry a second attack with the other staff at no penalty.

For the Power Defense, reading Psionic Powers pp.8-9, it appears to me that the Psionic Powers abilities are designed to use power Defenses as alternate Active Defenses, not as the supplemental defenses in GURPS Powers p.167. So here too, just one Active Defense per incoming attack; the PC will have to choose between a staff parry and a TK Grab-based damage reduction attempt via Power Defense.

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

All, thanks for your very clear answers.

Sorry, I have a few more questions / points to clarify.

Based on Dustin response, if I use the staff to strike with TK Grab then I do need to roll once with TK Grab to maintain the grasp (as the object is "is being moved or attacked/defended with") and one more time to actually attack. Is this the correct understanding ?

Also, based on Anaraxes explanation, if I was to grapple with someone with TK Grab, I would actually need to also purchase a grappling skill ? If yes, then in which circumstances is the TK Grab skill actually rolled beside initially grabbing an object and then moving it around ? Is there any other authorized specific use of this skill (as physical attacks, defenses and specialized physical actions do not seem to use this skill at all) ?

Is Power Defense considered as alternate Active Defense such as Dodge (unlimited times per round) or Parry (only once per round, or more with penalty) ?

Finally, was I right to assume that if the PC is injured then he has to roll vs Will-3 for each weapon wielded through TK Grab to avoid dropping them (even if the second weapon is wielded thanks to CM1) ?

Thanks again !

Phil

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

You typically only need to roll TK Grab once per turn, whether as a control test to move the object, or as an attack roll to strike with it.

It's not clearly stated, but I would treat TK Grab skill as equivalent to DX for remote unarmed grappling, weapon defaults, etc., so TK Grab-5 to use a Staff, straight TK Grab for unskilled grappling, etc.

From those 2 books, it's pretty clear that Power Defense is never like Dodge with unlimited uses. You either only get it once per turn, or subsequent uses are -4 per attempt. I prefer the latter.

I'm not sure about the Will-3 check to hold onto TK'd objects when injured -- I don't see anything that suggests there's even a roll. Is there a reference you're seeing that I'm not?

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, using telekinesis to grapple is covered in the recent GURPS martial arts: technical grappling.

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

Dustin, thanks for your answer.

According to Concentrate Maneuver description in Campaigns p366, if any activity requires concentration during multiple seconds, a roll vs Will-3 is required to avoid breaking the concentration in case of HP loss. Moreover, according to Psionics Powers p54, TK Grab requires constant concentration. That is why I thought that the use of TK Grab over a period of time (such as during a combat) could also be disrupted by injury.

Reading more into TK Grab skill description (Psionics Powers p54), it seems that DX based skills could also be used through TK Grab using IQ based rolls instead of DX. This would still require to know those specific skills (such as melee weapon or grappling skills).

DouglasCole, thanks for the tip. I suppose that I'll have to buy that book as well !

Phil

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

In fairness to your checkbook, what you're looking at is on p. 28, and is a fairly short text box. While I'm all for people buying my book, and I think it's ripe with possibilities, etc., you should be aware that this is a very small part of the book.

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

OK, yep, that would seem to apply here.

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

I agree. An injury could cause the character to drop what he's TKing.

Again, I agree. A strict GM might consider these to be separate IQ-based skills, "TK Staff" instead of "Staff" (perhaps with a default between them). A more lenient one might just allow the regular DX-based skill to float to IQ when you're using TK.

I'd use TK Grab for the "routine" uses of the ability that aren't covered by other, task-specific skills. You need to roll TK Grab just to pick something up, or to successfully move an object to a precise position. Note that those rolls aren't necessary with unmodified TK as described in Basic. Psi Powers uses the "Skills For Everyone" option on Powers 162. The "Requires IQ Roll -10%" bit in the descripton of how TK Grab is built represents this extra limitation over the baseline TK. I'd use TK Grab skill to cover all these rolls for simple actions that normally need no roll at all when you perform them with your ordinary two hands.

For example, most of the uses listed in the box on Psi Powers 55 would need a TK Grab roll, even though most wouldn't require a roll to do with your own normal hands. For "open a locked car door", I'd point out that this means pulling the handle/knob on the inside of the car designed to open the door despite the lock. Actually picking the lock would require Lockpicking skill. "Trigger a trap" assumes you know the trap is there and the means to trigger it is obvious (the prop under the deadfall, the tripwire, etc). Otherwise you'd need Traps. "Tie an enemy's shoelaces together" assumes you know how to tie simple knots, but if you want to fix the ship's rigging without climbing the mast, or make a noose to float over someone's head, you'd need Knot-Tying. (Knot-Tying is Easy, so tying shoelaces probably just falls under default use.)

"Drive a car from the backseat" requires Driving skill. Harsh GMs will make this difficult without CM because you need to Concentrate on the TK, but you also need to pay attention to your driving just to drive. (Note that it's illegal in California for your extra CM to text on a cell phone while your TK mind is driving.)

And for "shift it into reverse" on a manual, I might require a Driving check just to make sure you know where reverse is on this model, and how to get the stick there. (All the way left and up? All the way right and down? Button to depress? Ring to pull up? Just push? They're not all the same, and someone with a familiarity penalty for the model is likely to fumble around a bit at first.)

And if you're far enough away from the car, so that you can't see into it, you'd need a sense like Clairsentience just to "see" that lock knob or shift level. Otherwise, your invisible TK hands are effectively groping around the inside of the car in the dark until you find the right lever. This is just descriptive detail unless time is of the essence, but you could get dramatic mileage out of describing how the teke is feeling around the inside of the car door as it rolls toward the cliff, trying to open the door so he can yank out the unconscious passenger inside. Maybe that's when Clair steps up to form a gestalt so TK can see what he's doing. Hooray, teamwork!

I'd avoid rolls per turn that just keep the power going. For instance, the staff can follow you down the hall once you've grabbed it without a bunch of "move" rolls every five yards; the positioning isn't all that precise, and consequences of a failure aren't interesting. This would be a handwave just to avoid unnecessary clutter in the game.

Re: [Psionics] melee with TK Grab + Levitation + Power Defenses + CM1
 

I'm pretty sure that's what is intended.
I was thinking about this, and decided that I personally would allow two kinds of "not moving" (no skill roll required). Not moving relative to the ground, and not moving relative to the psi. In either case, no skill roll is required to keep it there, but I would require a roll to switch between the 2 modes.