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Prince Charon · 02-01-2021, 10:29 AM

Biopsionics: Psi drugs

Psi drugs (Psi-Tech pp33-35; also Concoctions, GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 14: Psi, pp24-25, which won't be covered in this document beyond the suggestion that Taurus Blue and Taurus Red might have been developed and codenamed by DARPA) can have different effects, or no significant effect, depending on species - most drugs have the same or a very similar effect on Humans as on Coeb'lds, due to their genetic relationship, and Gormelites (also being hominins) are more likely to be affected in the same way as humans and Coeb'lds than Irari are; as noted, the Irari seem not to have had psi drugs before encountering Coeb', though some of their historians and archaeologists suspect than some plants and fungi that are now extinct on Irar may have had biopsionic properties.

* Blocker (p33) is a common drug, with variants for all races. Humans and Coeb'lds use the same variants and dosage, while Gormelites need a higher dosage to get the same effect. Hominins are not effected by the chemical which has this effect on Irari, though they will become nauseous at higher dosages. Irari taking the hominin form of Blocker take -2 to DX and -1 to Move and Dodge, but also apply -2 to attempts to sense them with ESP.

* Blue Fire (p33), which is native to Coeb', requires a larger dose to be lethal to Gormelites and a much larger dose to be lethal to Irari, but also does not enhance their abilities as it does for humans and Coeb'lds; Neurovine serves as an antidote to nerve toxins for all four, though it also gets Irari slightly drunk.

* Brainstorm (p33) is found as an herbal preparation on Coeb', and was also manufactured in the labs of Gormel before the Final War. While it requires a noticeably larger dose for Gormelites than it does for humans or Coeb'lds, it has basically the same effects. In Irari, however, it tends to cause sneezing and other 'cold and mild flu' symptoms, without improving the ability to use Extra Effort. It is generally not addictive to Irari.

* Catalyst Drugs (pp33-34) are fairly rare. One that was available and expensive on Gormel, and is still sometimes made, is derived from the venom of the Vampire Chameleon. Similar drugs are made on Coeb', though they use less rare (and thus costly) ingredients. Apart from dosage levels, the drug seems to have the same effects on each known sophont species.

* Mind Hype (p34) is fairly common on Coeb', and affects all hominins in about the way the book describes it; in Irari, it simply grants +2 to psi skills and abstract thinking.

* Monobloc (p34) exists in nature on Coeb' (refined from the defensive spray of a small relative of the skunk, which is hunted by certain telepathic predators), and is a synthetic drug on Gormel. While it affects hominins and other mammals generally as written, it seems not to do much to Irari beyond temporarily changing how things taste, and in a very small number of cases, temporarily granting Telepathy Talent +1.

* Muffler (p34) is the first psi drug developed by the Irari, and works for them as shown in the book (though it is so new that it is uncertain if there are any long-term effects). The effects on other races are somewhat different: In doses that would affect Irari as written, humans and Coeb'lds become more excitable, and any psi abilities they have gain the Uncontrollable limitation (abilities that are already Uncontrollable activate immediately, with no roll needed). Gormelites at those dosage levels become mildly impaired (-1 to DX & IQ rolls, but not to psi skills no matter the attribute they are based on), but quite cheerful, to the point that self-control rolls for Bad Temper (and Berserk if they have it) only fail on a critical failure; in higher doses, they get more impaired and become more overconfident (treat anything other than a critical success on the self-control roll for Overconfidence as a failure), and their psi abilities are affected as in humans and Coeb'lds.

* Psi Boosters (p34) are found in many, many varieties on the Coeb'ld homeworld (see also Spice and the Boosters text box, both on DF 14 p25, though the list does not include all such drugs); oddly, they seem to produce temporary psi abilities in all species, though not always the same ability, with the same enhancements, limitations, and side-effects, if any (this seems to be partly a matter of quality control, and partly varies by genetics).

* Shatter (p34) is a synthetic drug made historically on Gormel; it seems to have no significant effect on the Irari, but works on hominins as in the book. As Universal Latency is the case in this setting, it is not useful in detecting psis.

* Shiver (p35) is a synthetic drug made on Irar, and affecting the natives as written; in hominins it causes reduced self-control rolls on any mental disadvantages, though it does also boost psi skills.

* Trance (p35) was a chemical weapon used in Gormel's Final War, generally paired with telepathic weapons or powerful, boosted telepaths. A similar, fungus-based drug exists on Coeb', and both affect hominins as per the book. It does not seem to affect the Irari without doses large enough to do toxic damage.

* Window (p35) works similarly in telepaths of all four species, though it requires a larger dose for Gormelites than for humans and Coeb'lds, and Irari who use it frequently become Absent-Minded or suffer penalties on self-control rolls.

* Reminder (not from the book) is a Gormel-native drug often used on prisoners, which in hominins grants Eidetic Memory for the duration of effect, and a +1 bonus to IQ skills that do not involve abstract thinking, but also gives a -2 penalty to skills that do involve abstract thinking, and a -4 penalty to all psi skills; in Gormelites specifically, it also gives a -2 penalty to attempts to lie or otherwise deceive (this was a -3 penalty in Gormellians). In Irari, it causes mild hallucinations, and impairs IQ rolls (and all psi skills even if not based on IQ) by -2, but weirdly gives a +1 to all non-psi DX rolls.

Thoughts?

02-01-2021, 10:29 AM	#22
Prince Charon Join Date: Dec 2012	Re: [Psi/Space] Irar, the Jewel in the British Crown Biopsionics: Psi drugs Psi drugs (*Psi-Tech* pp33-35; also Concoctions, GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 14: Psi, pp24-25, which won't be covered in this document beyond the suggestion that Taurus Blue and Taurus Red might have been developed and codenamed by DARPA) can have different effects, or no significant effect, depending on species - most drugs have the same or a very similar effect on Humans as on Coeb'lds, due to their genetic relationship, and Gormelites (also being hominins) are more likely to be affected in the same way as humans and Coeb'lds than Irari are; as noted, the Irari seem not to have had psi drugs before encountering Coeb', though some of their historians and archaeologists suspect than some plants and fungi that are now extinct on Irar may have had biopsionic properties. * Blocker (p33) is a common drug, with variants for all races. Humans and Coeb'lds use the same variants and dosage, while Gormelites need a higher dosage to get the same effect. Hominins are not effected by the chemical which has this effect on Irari, though they will become nauseous at higher dosages. Irari taking the hominin form of Blocker take -2 to DX and -1 to Move and Dodge, but also apply -2 to attempts to sense them with ESP. * Blue Fire (p33), which is native to Coeb', requires a larger dose to be lethal to Gormelites and a much larger dose to be lethal to Irari, but also does not enhance their abilities as it does for humans and Coeb'lds; Neurovine serves as an antidote to nerve toxins for all four, though it also gets Irari slightly drunk. * Brainstorm (p33) is found as an herbal preparation on Coeb', and was also manufactured in the labs of Gormel before the Final War. While it requires a noticeably larger dose for Gormelites than it does for humans or Coeb'lds, it has basically the same effects. In Irari, however, it tends to cause sneezing and other 'cold and mild flu' symptoms, without improving the ability to use Extra Effort. It is generally not addictive to Irari. * Catalyst Drugs (pp33-34) are fairly rare. One that was available and expensive on Gormel, and is still sometimes made, is derived from the venom of the Vampire Chameleon. Similar drugs are made on Coeb', though they use less rare (and thus costly) ingredients. Apart from dosage levels, the drug seems to have the same effects on each known sophont species. * Mind Hype (p34) is fairly common on Coeb', and affects all hominins in about the way the book describes it; in Irari, it simply grants +2 to psi skills and abstract thinking. * Monobloc (p34) exists in nature on Coeb' (refined from the defensive spray of a small relative of the skunk, which is hunted by certain telepathic predators), and is a synthetic drug on Gormel. While it affects hominins and other mammals generally as written, it seems not to do much to Irari beyond temporarily changing how things taste, and in a very small number of cases, temporarily granting Telepathy Talent +1. * Muffler (p34) is the first psi drug developed by the Irari, and works for them as shown in the book (though it is so new that it is uncertain if there are any long-term effects). The effects on other races are somewhat different: In doses that would affect Irari as written, humans and Coeb'lds become more excitable, and any psi abilities they have gain the Uncontrollable limitation (abilities that are already Uncontrollable activate immediately, with no roll needed). Gormelites at those dosage levels become mildly impaired (-1 to DX & IQ rolls, but not to psi skills no matter the attribute they are based on), but quite cheerful, to the point that self-control rolls for Bad Temper (and Berserk if they have it) only fail on a critical failure; in higher doses, they get more impaired and become more overconfident (treat anything other than a critical success on the self-control roll for Overconfidence as a failure), and their psi abilities are affected as in humans and Coeb'lds. * Psi Boosters (p34) are found in many, many varieties on the Coeb'ld homeworld (see also Spice and the Boosters text box, both on *DF 14* p25, though the list does not include all such drugs); oddly, they seem to produce temporary psi abilities in all species, though not always the same ability, with the same enhancements, limitations, and side-effects, if any (this seems to be partly a matter of quality control, and partly varies by genetics). * Shatter (p34) is a synthetic drug made historically on Gormel; it seems to have no significant effect on the Irari, but works on hominins as in the book. As Universal Latency is the case in this setting, it is not useful in detecting psis. * Shiver (p35) is a synthetic drug made on Irar, and affecting the natives as written; in hominins it causes reduced self-control rolls on any mental disadvantages, though it does also boost psi skills. * Trance (p35) was a chemical weapon used in Gormel's Final War, generally paired with telepathic weapons or powerful, boosted telepaths. A similar, fungus-based drug exists on Coeb', and both affect hominins as per the book. It does not seem to affect the Irari without doses large enough to do toxic damage. * Window (p35) works similarly in telepaths of all four species, though it requires a larger dose for Gormelites than for humans and Coeb'lds, and Irari who use it frequently become Absent-Minded or suffer penalties on self-control rolls. * Reminder (not from the book) is a Gormel-native drug often used on prisoners, which in hominins grants Eidetic Memory for the duration of effect, and a +1 bonus to IQ skills that do not involve abstract thinking, but also gives a -2 penalty to skills that do involve abstract thinking, and a -4 penalty to all psi skills; in Gormelites specifically, it also gives a -2 penalty to attempts to lie or otherwise deceive (this was a -3 penalty in Gormellians). In Irari, it causes mild hallucinations, and impairs IQ rolls (and all psi skills even if not based on IQ) by -2, but weirdly gives a +1 to all non-psi DX rolls. 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.