Psychic: The Power By Urza243457@aol.com Introduction "Hello. Listen kid, we gotta talk. About what? Well, about you, and the things you do. Why are you looking so surprised? You thought you were the only one who could to this? And this? How about this? I see. Well, your not. Far from it; there is a whole society of us. We are the next to inherit the Earth, psychics, evolved we are. We are the next step in human evolution, Homo Sapiens Sapiens Sapiens. Wise, Wise, Wise man. Don't ask who came up with that, or what they were smoking, cuz I dunno. If you meet any of those stuffy guys who are ultra PC, they call themselves Astrals. Well, actually, they refer to the whole psychic community as Astrals. That's our proper name. How did we find you? Simple. Every Astral gives off resonance, a feeling that any psychic can sense. In fact, in one that's pretty new to being an Astral, it's realatively easy to find you without even trying. Most undergo their transistion at about your age, their early teens, maybe a little later. We have no fancy name for induction into our society. I told you, we're relatively new to this world. How come you can't move stuff around with your mind you ask? Good question. From the looks of you, you look like a Telepath. You specialize in Telepathy; you're better at working someone's mind than physical matter. I'm a Telepath as well, that's how I was able to find you so easily. Anyhoo, we got power. A lot of it in fact. We have so much that our bodies have to struggle to contain it all. Each Psychic has two conflicting sides to him: Control, that's how much control you have over your power, and Power, how much control your power has over you. It's never a good idea to be short of one. But, this is tough. Whenever someone's power increases, his control over his power slips. Whenever someone gets firm control over his power, he barely has any to speak of. Psychic society is split up into five Collectives. They all have a different view of what we should do. More on those guys later. There's also some bad guys. Doesn't there always have to be? Mostly they come in the form of Psilias. These guys have lost all control of their power forever. Their will is no longer their own. They just go on giant rampages, or the smarter ones will be seeped in evil, manipulating stuff. Either ones are incredibly dangerous, and they love to make others lose control. I'm gonna teach you the Ways. This is so you don't end up dead. Then, maybe I'll introduce you to my collective; you'll have new contacts. Trust me kid, this is all for the best." Starting Astrals can be anyone, any sort of concept. Many of them are either softspoken and quiet or loud and ecstatic. They almost never have a middle ground, and those who do are greatly prized as leaders. Your character must first decide what kind of psychic they are. The kinds are as follows: Telepaths: Specializing in all forms of telapathy, they are often the leaders of Psychic society. Many walk softly and carry really, really big sticks. Telekinetics: Specializing in telekinesis, they can move stuff around and are often the movers and shakers of Psychic society. They're the true partiers. Pyros: They specialize in Pyrokinesis, the art of controlling fire, heat, and the lack thereof (ice and cold). Some are dangerously unstable; almost all look over their shoulders every five seconds, but many are original and artistic. They are often the ones who ferret out traitors and Psilias from the ranks of psychic society. Introvertives: They specialize in Introveresis, the art of healing, enhancing one's self, and using one's self as a destructive weapon. Most keep to themselves, and are quiet, but if anything should threaten what they care about thheir rage knows no bounds. They are primarily the healers, caregivers and expert mediators of Psychic society. Collectives Next, the player must choose a Collective: Embracers of Madness Now, there's a funny Collective. Actually, a better word would be psychotic. They believe that the only way to actually get any results with their power is to not hold back and throw Control in the wastebasket. Some are dangerously insane and all are terminally quirky, like a fasciniation with left ears, or something like that. They often use their power in flagrent and showy ways and have little control over it. Some go mad entirely and go on giant psychotic killing sprees before they are stopped by the other Embracers. Organization: Embracers have almost no organization or so they enjoy having other Collectives believe. They seem disorganized and rag-tag, but are really quite a force when pushed. They usually meet in large nightclubs to discuss matters of grave concern for the Collective. The only thing is that it's not what it looks like. It looks more like good natured partying and drinking than anything else (a drunk Embracer: "I'd like to discuss the... Recent rise in Psilias.....). they often make their meetings in places where nobody would notice them: In open sight. They often shout across the room, and nobody quite understands what they are talking about, or to whom. This makes secrecy abound. Crystal Gazers Whether they are that new-agey friend you've always had or that creepy fortune teller down the street, Crystal Gazers shroud themselves in secrecey. They are often fortune tellers and Psychic healers. Many are manipulative and seductive while they tell all too true prophesies for about $50.00. They believe they should use their power to turn a profit and to reinforce belief of their power. This flagrent use of their power with no secrecy has caused many other Collectives to not trust them. Crystal Glazers are often Telepaths. Organization: Crystal Gazers are not as scattered as many would think. Their base of operations are in fact a dense network where all can know what's going on. They often don't meet in large numbers, but small groups will get together to discuss matters of concern. If something dire happens, a psychic wave is sent to All Crystal Gazers where they know something is amiss and they often receive instructiuons on where to meet. Hedonistic Order These guys are those people who say "If I had psychic powers, I would have a great time." They use their power for all sorts of fun, which include parties, trips, and other favorable expenses. They spend much of their time having fun, using the good old tenets of "Sex, Drugs, and Rock 'n Roll!" Many sponsor musicians, or are musicians themselves. They host great parties, rivaling the greatest of supernaturals in complication. This reputation however has led to a negative reputation of irresponsibility and hedonism. The fact that these assumptions are usually quite accurate don't help matters either. Hedonistics are usually Telekenetics. Organization: Hedonistics never elect leaders, nor do they have mass meetings. If something absolutely requires their attention, they often break off into smaller meetings, composing of no more than nine people and vote and discuss matters as quickly (but effeciently) as possible. Once matters are decided on, each committee compares votes and suggestions and soon the entire Collective knows what to do. The Secret Order Shrouded in mystery, very little is known about the Secret Order to outsiders. What is known is that it is defenitely the oldest of the Collectives and the most respected. They are the unofficial leaders of the Psychic community. Bizarre practices and incredibly powerful Astrals are both the norm in this Collective. Like steel, they are unwavering in their goals, impossible to break through and impossible to see through. Also like steel, they are rigid, inflexible, and archaic. Time has started to catch up with this Collective however as younger members' demands for change grow more and more insistent, while older members like the things just the way things are. The fact that nobody trusts them either helps nothing. The Secret order are often Telepaths. Organization: The Secret Order is extremely organized and tightly hierarchical. There is a small council of three Order members preceding over each city, one order member preceding over a single country and 12 order members preceding over the world in their base in Paris. The Tortured Souls The Souls are like the Embracers of Madness in many ways. They both have very little control over their power, some are truly insane, and they all are loosely organized. However, unlike the Embracers, the Souls hate being psychic. They can't control what they do and often hurt people accidentally. They have little control over their power. To them, the world is a dark, depressing place. Every day, they go through a tortuous spiral downword for which there is no escape. It is true that some are crazey, but unlike the Embracer's manic insanity, the Souls go through torturous, depressing mad fits. They often get headaches, are sluggish and are reluctant to use their powers. They try to retain control of their power, but many simply fail and turn into Psilias and many more just kill themselves. Tortured Souls are often Introvertives. Organization: The Souls have almost no organization. They meet when they can, go their separate ways when they can't. They often frequent large places like coffie houses, poetry readings, ect. Many of them congregate there at once, and a request from another Soul is almost never turned down. If pressed, they can be quite a force, but their generally too apathetic Character Creation After a collective and a Type is chosen, you create your character in the standard 7/5/3 and 13/9/5 format in WoD games. They receive 7 points of backgrounds. New Backgrounds Sanity Whenever the Astral is about to lose control of his power, he can roll his sanity against Diff. 6. If sucessful, he gets to keep control. This will only work if your temporary control is 0. This trait comes with a +1 cumulative Diff. Modifier until the character loeses control again. After choosing that, they must decide what powers they possess. They get Five points to spread around. In the initial stage, they cannot buy Dots in anything but the type of Psychic ability they chose. Telepathy: All Telepathy roll difficulties are the subject's Willpower. Mind Mind allows you to read and communicate among minds. * Emotional Scan: This allows a Psychic to transmit emotions to another person. These must be rather weak emotions (ie Boredom, Apathy). This also allows a Psychic to read someone else's emotions. ** Back Eyes: This allows a Psychic to immediately sense the space around him for sentient mind patterns. He can scan to see if anyone's there, he can get a vague sense of who it is he would be seeing or talking to if contact is made and he can sense the general nature of the person. *** Collage: This allows a Psychic to read a person's mind directly, but the mind will be a confusing set of images that don't make sense (unless a Perception+Enigmas roll is made [diff. 6]). **** Psychic Walkie-Talkie: This allows two-way communiaction between two persons. No words have to be spoken, only thought. ***** Open Book: This allows a psychic to invade a person's mind and to discover anything which that person can remember. He can find aything in his head. Attack Attack allows the psychic to hostilly attack a person's mind. * NEE!: This lets the psychic allow the target to be "convinced" to go away through sheer force of will. He will step back three feet for every success. Five success will cause the victim to run away screaming. ** Psi-Blast: This lets a psychic deal one Auric level of damage per success. *** Drain Will: This lets a psychic to destroy a person's Willpower. Each success takes away one Willpower. If the psychic manages to completely drain away Willpower, the victim is in a coma-like state for a scene and wakes up with one less permanent Willpower. **** Lose Control: This allows a psychic to cause another psychic to lose temporary control points. Subtract one per success. This causes a psychic to lose one extra temporary control point. ***** Stupidify: This lets a psychic leave the victim a hollow shell of a man. Each success takes away one Willpower. Once all Willpower is drained, the psychic must spend one point of Permanent Willpower to complete the effect. This leaves the victim a dolt, an utter moron, capable of doing nothing but breathing, eating, sleeping and drinking. Control Control is the skill of controling a person's actions. * Head-Hop: This allows a psychic to enter another person's head, see through her eyes and hear through her ears. While head-hopping is in effect. the psychic may say things to that person, and they will manifest as thoughts. A Manipulation+Telepathy roll is required to make the person seriously consider what that person is saying. While head-hopping, the body of the psychic is on auto-pilot, and may walk into the street or something. ** Freudian Slide: This allows a psychic to implant a thought or suggestion into a victim's mind. The victim is not inclined or compelled to follow this command, but on a successful manpulation+telepathy roll, the victim will take the suggestion seriously. This can also be used to place emotions in a person's mind or make them think about things she'd rather not. *** Pavlov's Chant: This allows a psychic to convey simple one-word commands. Examples: Sit, stay, heel, up, fall, vomit. **** Puppet Show: This allows a psychic to control a person's body, but not their mind. With enough successes, the psychic can make a person do almost anything, but these movements will be stiff and marionet-like. The person is fully aware of what is happening, but his body just won't listen to his mind. ***** Command: This allows a psychic to convey complex commands to a subject. Stuff like "Climb that ladder" or "Pretend your a dog" or to make them believe certain things like "You never saw me, you don't know me, you're an alien" or make them behave a certain way like "You love me, you hate that guy." With enough successes, you can make a subject do anything. Shield Shield allows a psychic to protect himself from other psychic attacks. For every point of shield the psychic has, the difficulty for telepthic attacks is +1. For everry 2 points the psychic has, the difficulty for telekinetic attacks is +1. For every three dots the psychic has,the difficulty for pyrokinetic attacks is +2. Telekinesis All telekinesis rolls have a difficulty of 9-telekinesis. Moving Moving is moving objects with your mind. * Small Stuff: The psychic can manipulate objects up to the size of a roll of quarters rather clumsily. ** Kinda small stuff: The psychic can manipulate objects up to the size of a cat rather clumsily. He can manipulate things of Small Stuff pretty well on a good day. *** Medium stuff: The psychic can manipulate objects up to the size of a TV rather clumsily. Kinda Small Stuff he can manipulate pretty well on a good day, small stuff pretty good most of the time. **** Big stuff: This psychic can manipulate objects up to the size of an average person. Medium Stuff he can manipulate pretty well on a good day. Kinda small stuff he can manipulate well most of the time. Small stuff, manipulation is almost masterful. ***** Jumbo Size: This lets a psychic manipulate objects up to the size of a Ford Explorer. Big stuff can be manipulated pretty well on a good day. Medium stuff can be manipulated well most of the time. Kinda big stuff can be manipulated almost masterfully. Small stuff, there is no limit to what you can do. Blast Blast allows a psychic to fire bolts of psychic energy and hurt things. * Ouch!: 1 Health level of damage every 3 successes. Can destroy things like hollow chocolate bunnies. ** OOF!!: 1 Health level of damage every 2 successes. Can destroy things like glass bottles. *** Ow!!: 1 Health level of damage every success. Can destroy things like six-inch thick 2x4s. **** AUUGG!!: 2 health levels of damage every success. Can destroy things like steel drums. ***** He's dead, Jim: 3 Health levels of damage every success. Can destroy things like compact cars. Field Field allows a psychic to create force fields and manipulate them. * Flimsy Shield: Can absorb 1 Potential level of damage. Covers a 4x6 area. ** Balloon Animals: Can rearrange shield matter into nearly any shape possible. The more complicated things are, the more successes it takes. *** Big Shield: Can absorb 3 potential health levels of damage. Covers entire front of psychic. **** Really big shield: Can absorb 4 potential health levels of damage. Covers entire psychic and anyone who wants to be in the shield as well. ***** Ultra Shield: Can absorb 5 potential health levels of damage. Covers up to one city block (if it covers this must be prepared to need tons of successes. Pyrokinesis All Pyrokinesis rolls have difficulty 9-pyrokinesis. Heat Heat allows a psychic to generate heat. * Hot flash: This allows a psychic to create small amounts of heat. This can warm up a room by about thirty degrees. This does no real damage except perhaps by dehydration. Each success lasts for three rounds. ** Sizzle: This allows a psychic to create a burst of intense heat concentrated in one very small area. It feels like burning your hand on the stove. Skin contact is mandatory. Does one health level of damage for every three successes. *** Fireman Bob: This allows a psychic to put out any fire by absorbing it into his being. If the roll succeeds, he takes one health level (or more depending on the size of the fire) of damage. A botch could be deadly. **** Spontaneous Combustion: This allows a psychic to make a certain object just catch on fire for no reason. Organic matter cannot be affected (but clothes could). If the victim is wet, this automatically raises the difficulty to nine (unless he's wet with oil or gasoline). ***** Firestorm: This makes multiple objects in a room spontaneously combust. The objects that catch on fire are totally random and more than one Pyro has met death by accidentally having his clothes catch on fire. One object combusts for each success. Cool Cool allows control over the lack of heat. * Cold flash: This allows a psychic to make the temperature in the room drop up to thirty degrees. ** Feet of Ice: This allows the psychic to simply touch someone and make that area extremely cold. This causes one health level every three successes. If done via touching their feet to someone in bed, the difficulty is -1. *** Frostbite: This allows a psychic to cause direct harm with cold. Touch is necessary to use this effect. This does one health level of damage for every round contact is sustained. **** Freezing Blast: This allows a psychic to drain heat from any source and cause it to become extremely cold. Metal will become brittle and break and one health level is taken away for every success. ***** Global Cooling: This allows a psychic to drain heat anywhere in his immediate area. With enough successes, he can make everything frost over with ice and turn it into a miniature ice-skating rink. The more successes, the more the room is affected. The cold originates from the user and radiates outward. Every success extends the area of effect by two meters. Affected people lose one health level per success. From the intense cold, the user loses one health level as well. Introveresis All difficulties for introveresis is 8-Introveresis. Bio-Feedback Bio-Feedback is the art of healing manipulating a person's own defense and healing systems in order to speed recovery. * Staunch Blood: This stimulates platelet cells in the blood to prevent blood from flowing from a wound. This effect lasts for one round per success. The flow cannot be stopped forever unless the wound is bound. ** Clean Wound: This allows white blood cells to be on ultra high strung mode. This often reduces the chance for infection. For every success, the difficulty for infection is +1 (this includes Magickal diseases and the Leper Bloodline's Pestilence discilpine). *** Heal Self: This allows a psychic to heal himself from almost any wound. Minor things like closing cuts, mending bones require about two successes while things like internal hemorrhaging, punctured lungs, severe burns, etc. require at least five. **** Heal Others: This allows the psychic to heal others like he can heal himself. ***** Un-do healing: This allows a psychic to turn a person's own body against him. He can stimulate his defense systems to attack his body and otherwise harm him in a very direct way. This damage is not aggravated. It deals one health level for every two successes. Enhancement Enhancement allows a psychic to stimulate his own bodily systems to perform different tasks. For each point possessed, he has that many extra points to spread around for his physical attributs. He may use these points on a successful Introveresis roll. These changes last for one round per success. Sensechal Senschal is enhancing one's own senses beyond what a person normally has. * General Stuff: This gives a psychic one extra dice in sensory rolls (perception, alertness, ect) for every point in senschal. ** Voicing: This allows the psychic to hear better than most people can. He can hear better to whatever he wants to hear in his general viscinity. *** Olfactory: This lets the psychic have an extremely acute sense of smell. He can pick up a trail like a bloodhound, smell a sweater and know who it belongs to, etc. **** True Sight: This lets the psychic see almost anything, even if blind. He can see in the dark (In green night-vision) see invisible/obfuscated things and can usually find Waldo in less than five seconds. ***** Everything Else: This lets the psychic to use any of the below effects simultaneously. However, at the risk of sensory overload, the psychic must make a control roll every 5-anmount of effects active rounds. If he fails, he cannot act for the scene, trying to collect himself. Fort Fort is the ability to lock out other psychics who enjoy tailgating in their heads. * Sense Possession: This allows the psychic to instinctively know when someone's in her head. Nothing may be done about it at this level. ** Stun: This allows the psychic to prevent the invading mind from doing anything. This lasts one round per success. *** Get Out!!: This allows the psychic to kick out the invading psychic. To prevent this from happening, the invading psychic must make a Willpower roll (diff. 6) and score more successes than the host did. **** Prisons: This lets the psychic trap another's mind within his head. The psychic that is trapped may not escape and all difficulties for affecting the host are automatically 9. ***** Feedback: This lets the psychic not only kick another out of his head, but harm her severely in the process. This effect will deal an Auric level of damage per success and then kick the psychic out. New Advantages Players divide 10 points between Power and Control. The sum of your Power and Control can never exceed 10. Control This is the measure of how much control the psychic has over his power. Those with little control may start using their power with no control over it and may very well accidentally hurt somebody. Control is rated 1-10. A player may spend a point of control for a point of power. Power This is the measure of how powerful the psychic really is. Those with little power may realize they cannot work psychic effects very well and may become prey for other World of Darkness denezians. Power is rated 1-10. A player may roll his control score against difficulty: Current Power Rating to try to get rid of a point in Power and gain a point of Control. The most important aspect of Power is that Power is your dice pool for all psychic rolls. Auric Levels These are a second set of Health Levels. This represents your psyche, your Aura. Different ways to attack the Aura will drain it. If a character ever runs out of Aura, he will become a Dolt, a babbling vegetable who, unless on life support, will die. Follow the dice restrictions on the health level chart. The dice are restrictions on psychic abilities. Characters recover 3 Aura levels a scene. You can spend an Aura point to gain an automatic success in a psychic roll. Power and Control Psychics must walk a tightrope every day of their lives. They can choose either a life of tight control over power but have little power to speak of and be shredded by other supernaturals. Or they can choose a life of little control and awesome power. But soon they find out they are no longer in control of themselves and the Power has become their master. Or they can find the tenuous middle ground. But this is the hardest to maintain. Power and Control can never have a sum or more than 10 and can never be less than 10. Loss of Control When a psychic loses all Control, the psychic just loses it. He goes on a rampage, destroying things, using his power wantonly. He is no longer in the driver's seat. The psychic may roll Willpower (difficulty 6) and receives dice equal to his successes to roll in order to regain some control (since the control is 10, it is difficulty 10). When no Willpower points are left, then it is assumed the psychic has Lost It for good and is considered a Psilia. Make a new character. Don't screw up this time. Loss of Power When a psychic loses all Power to control, he loses all psychic ability. He cannot work psychic ability even if he tried. There is almost no way to regain power. If the psychic wishes to regain his power, he may try meditating, getting in touch with his inner psyche and give a part of his own being for it back. In game terms, he must spend x temporary Willpower and receive x dice to roll against difficulty 8. If success is scored, he must spend a permanent point of Willpower and he is psychic again. If he chooses not to become psychic again or has no more Willpower to spend, he is normal and an NPC. Make a new character. Don't screw up this time. The Tragic Line Whether or not psychics want to lose control, many times it is inevitable. Whenever a psychic performs an effect, he rolls his Control against the difficulty of the level of the effect +4. If the roll fails, he loses a point of control and gains a point of Power. Psychics and the World of Darkness Vampires: Vampires really don't like Psychics as all. They hunt them down whenever they can and attempt to kill them. They see them as a threat to their structure and don't like the fact at all that their prey is evolving to better defend against them. Psychics don't like vampires as well. They're always killing innocent psychics and this is inexcusable. Werewolves and other bete: They generally don't trust each other. However, after paranoia is lifted, they have much in common and can become great allies. Mages: Mages and Psychics generally get along. In fact, they're more willing to work with a mage than any other supernatual. Psychics however can provide up to ten Tass and this makes psychics a little bit wary around mages. Mages see them as an oddity in human nature and are fascinated by them, escpeially the Sons of Ether. The Technocracy hates them, as any evolving the human race does they want to be in charge of it, not random like it's been. Wraiths: Wraiths and psychics generally don't know much about each other. They keep away when they can and run away when they can't. Changelings: Psychics are confused by Changelings. They cannot usually find them and never can understand this thing about Glamour. Changelings see Psychics as uproariously funny and are amused by their attempts to put together their shattered psyches. Psychics generally have Banality of about 7, give or take a few points. Immortals: Psychics rarely ever meet immortals, but if they do sparks fly as either one or the other start saying "What the hell are you!!??" After the first bout, they are generally more flexible and many immortal-psychic teams have been formed. Scanners: Psychics and Scanners have a tenuous truce. Each one can pass for the other, but they generally believe the other one to be copycats with no life. It is uncertain just who exactly is the next step on human evolution, but some have suggested that eventually they'll merge into one super-race. These people often get laughed out of the bar by drunks or are drunk themselves. Demons: Demons and Psychics rarely know about each other. When they do meet, you'll find one of two things: A psychic's entrails or a tiny little charcoal mark on the ground where a Demon used to be.