Sudden increase is Psionic awakenings

cptbutton · 12-02-2013, 12:48 AM

Part of that anime psis in high school game I have been idly fiddling with for years.

Setting – Our world, to external appearances.

Psi powers have always existed, but are extremely rare. About 1 in 1 million teenagers develops psionic powers in adolescence. It does not run in families in any obvious way.

So there are very few psis around. In the whole world, hundreds, rising to maybe 5000 by the end of the 20th century. So most psis live and die thinking they are the only one.

Some psis manage to find others, and several secret societies have developed. The different groups are theoretically hostile to each other, but in practice this doesn't mean much, because the world is so big and they are so few. The only thing close to a rule or law they have is a general consensus that the existence of psionic powers should stay secret, and that when necessary any breaches should be covered up somehow.

So that was the situation, until this year. This year the frequency has jumped to about 1 in 1,000. Meaning that 100,000 teenagers have developed psi powers this year. Twenty new psis for every existing one. The secret societies are trying to cope, but obviously are having a very hard time dealing with the deluge.

The new psis are lost, and unless they are very lucky (or unlucky) will have to figure out everything out for themselves. Someone from the societies will only show up if they've caused a major breach, and will not be pleased. Probably someone cleans things up, calls the PCs a bunch of fools, and then disappears without actually telling them very much that is useful.

I am putting it up here for comments/brainstorming. In particular I am wondering if I should change the frequencies of psi powers. Should I make it 50,000 old psis instead of 5000? 5 to 1 new psis instead of 20 to 1?

I want a game where there aren't old psis under every rock, and no vast hordes who can move in to clamp down on things. But I do want there to be some history, and an excuse for GM deus ex machina to clean up a breach if I don't want the game going that way.

Approximate numbers based on this census site, which says there are around 125 million 15 year-olds.

12-02-2013, 12:48 AM	#1
cptbutton Join Date: Jul 2007	Sudden increase is Psionic awakenings Part of that anime psis in high school game I have been idly fiddling with for years. Setting – Our world, to external appearances. Psi powers have always existed, but are extremely rare. About 1 in 1 million teenagers develops psionic powers in adolescence. It does not run in families in any obvious way. So there are very few psis around. In the whole world, hundreds, rising to maybe 5000 by the end of the 20th century. So most psis live and die thinking they are the only one. Some psis manage to find others, and several secret societies have developed. The different groups are theoretically hostile to each other, but in practice this doesn't mean much, because the world is so big and they are so few. The only thing close to a rule or law they have is a general consensus that the existence of psionic powers should stay secret, and that when necessary any breaches should be covered up somehow. So that was the situation, until this year. This year the frequency has jumped to about 1 in 1,000. Meaning that 100,000 teenagers have developed psi powers this year. Twenty new psis for every existing one. The secret societies are trying to cope, but obviously are having a very hard time dealing with the deluge. The new psis are lost, and unless they are very lucky (or unlucky) will have to figure out everything out for themselves. Someone from the societies will only show up if they've caused a major breach, and will not be pleased. Probably someone cleans things up, calls the PCs a bunch of fools, and then disappears without actually telling them very much that is useful. I am putting it up here for comments/brainstorming. In particular I am wondering if I should change the frequencies of psi powers. Should I make it 50,000 old psis instead of 5000? 5 to 1 new psis instead of 20 to 1? I want a game where there aren't old psis under every rock, and no vast hordes who can move in to clamp down on things. But I do want there to be some history, and an excuse for GM deus ex machina to clean up a breach if I don't want the game going that way. Approximate numbers based on this census site, which says there are around 125 million 15 year-olds.