[Psi-Tech] On Psi Crystals

[Prince Charon]

An alternative to psychotronics, for low-tech or some divergent-tech settings, in which you take certain crystals, cut and/or polish them, and arrange them together, to modify, disrupt, or even create psionic effects. In high-tech or ultra-tech (or otherwise sci-fi themed) settings, the crystals might officially be called things like 'psionic resonance crystals' or 'crystalline psycho-reactive metamaterials.' More mystical settings would likely use terms like 'cosmic gems' or 'spirit stones' (and the mechanics would work fine for chi-based technology or magic-based technology). What components are involved other than the crystals themselves would depend on the setting, and likely on what culture within the setting, or perhaps what the device does. Daniel Dover has some interesting examples in his Lithian Psychotronics page, which was one of the inspirations for this thread.

The design skill should be 'Engineer (Psi Crystals).' 'Physics (Paraphysics)' and 'Expert Skill (Psionics)' work well as complementary skills.

Obtaining the raw crystals probably falls under Geology or Prospector, though I'd also allow Naturalist and possibly Survival, but at worse penalties; psi abilities or psi crystal devices might also be used. Alternatively, perhaps you need to grow the crystals, in which case 'Chemistry (Psi Crystals)' as an optional specialty fits.

Preparing the crystals and making, modifying, and repairing the devices could fall under a few skills: Jeweler (Psi Crystals) would at least be useful to cut or polish the crystals (so being sort of equivalent to Machinist); in some settings, Jeweler might be used to arrange them in the device, and could be the primary or only Repair skill for psi crystal tech; 'Professional Skill (Psi Crystal Technician)' basically replaces Electronics Repair (Psychotronics). For some devices, narrower skills like specializations of Armory or Mechanic might fit best.

There would likely be a variety of operating skills, including Professional Skill (Psi Crystal Technician) at some penalty (not necessarily -5, depending on the device). In many settings, something like Professional Skill (Psi Crystal Operator) might exist, though not necessarily under that name. Other options include Autohypnosis or Meditation for general use of most such devices, Mental Strength (or just a Will role) for very simple uses (e.g. charging psychic batteries, or pulling the 'trigger' of a weapon without aiming), or device-appropriate skills like Beam Weapons (Headgear) or Piloting (Contragravity).


Examples:
(Note that I am not using GURPS Meta-Tech to determine costs, instead basing the costs on possible market values at TL8^.)

* Rings of Pest Repulsion are small, quite limited Animal Telepathy generators, emitting a field which encourages animal life, especially small or low-IQ beasts, to leave or avoid a radius around the wearer; the area of effect tends to be twice or more the radius that the creatures are made to stay away from (commonly, a ring creating a pest-free radius of two yards would affect all bugs and other such animals within four yards). More expensive models can command animals to do a few other things, or stun them for short periods if they become aggressive despite the ring.
(Mechanically, this is Beast Control with Area Effect, limited to One Command ('avoid this area'), and no skill rolls by the user, as it's Always On; a few can give more than one command, or provide Mental Blow limited to animals, but these do require an operating skill, usually 'Professional Skill (Psi Crystal Operator),' or 'Beam Weapons (Ring)' for just the Mental Blow effect.)
Weight: 4 oz.; Bulk: +2; Cost: $180 ($250 or higher for more sophisticated variants); LC: 4

* Venomous Tiaras are fairly rare custom weapons, generally disguised as a harmless piece of jewelry (hence the name) or other headgear; though they have been used for assassination, most are (allegedly) intended as self-defence devices, and are less lethal than a firearm.
(Crunchwise, this is a Biokinetic weapon of negligible weight, operated using Beam Weapons (Headgear), or at very close range, just Will or Mental Strength. The less lethal forms often do something like 1d-3 tox linked to HT-5 aff, rapidly causing nausea, dizziness, or unconsciousness. Assassin's tiaras are far more variable, but most often imitate the effects of poisons that show few or no symptoms for some time, before rapidly killing the target.)
Weight: +/- 6 oz.; Bulk: 0; Cost: $1,000 ($5,000 and up for assassination variants); LC: 3 (0 for assassination variants)

* Flying Carpets are vehicles of durable cloth with psi crystals woven into them, creating a psychokinetic effect similar to Levitation. Most such carpets provide a TK Grab-like effect to keep the pilot and passengers from falling off, and some also provide a PK Shield, or at least something like the Umbrella perk to protect from the weather.
(Stats vary by quite a lot, though it's rare to find one that cannot hold two standing adults comfortably, and many can carry six sitting adults and some equipment; Piloting (Contragravity) is in all but the oddest cases the right operating skill. Air Move is generally 20 or higher; flight ceiling depends on the design, but few go much above 1,000 ft., and many don't go much past treetop height.)
Weight: about 7 lbs per sq. ft.; Bulk: varies; Cost: $5,000 and up; LC: 3

* Tyche's Machine was discovered in a Greek temple associated with the aforesaid goddess, that had been buried in an earthquake, with the skeleton of the last operator nearby. It appears to be a mechanical computer similar to the Antikythera mechanism, though specialized for probability instead of astronomy, contained in an alabaster case, and with a number of crystalline components. The device appears to predate the temple by a significant margin, as some symbols on it are in Linear A and a form of Aegean numerals, painted over in Classical Greek of about the 7th century BCE (consistent with the rest of the temple). It is currently missing, believed to have been stolen by parties unknown.
(This is a partly-mechanical device with a crystal-based, non-volitional psionic intelligence of about IQ 6 and Telereceive (Shallow) 2, which allows it a limited understanding of what the operator wants. The active function of the device is equivalent to Coincidence 3 (three wishes per day), with an effective skill of 17; the operator needs Classical Greek (Written) at Accented or better to understand the controls, Mathematics (Statistics)/TL1^ and Computer Operation/TL1^ to calculate how improbable their desire is, and most users would benefit from having Single-Minded, or using Autohypnosis or Meditation to focus on the desired outcome. Quite bad things can happen if your probability calculation is too much more likely than it should be (e.g. you want something that has a 1-in-12 chance, and you estimate that it has a 1-in-7 chance); if your calculation is significantly worse than it should be, the results may also be better than expected, but in many cases will be pretty weird. Even if you get it exactly right, though, the intelligence may be confused by complex wishes, or those too far removed from its previous experiences, or try to grant the wrong one because the user got distracted.)
Weight: 16 lbs.; Bulk: -4; Cost: Not available for sale; LC: ?


Thoughts?