GuardianLurker
Adventurer
Re: Re: Re: Hmmmmm. . . .
However, if we remove the psionic buffer, and give the Wild Talent Mind Blank as a free defense mode, I believe his maximum bonus would be +4, he'd drain his few precious PPs, and take ability damage.
It would keep the distinction between psionic and non-psionic a little clearer cut; in my mind, the big distinction between the two is the amount of training they possess, not their sensitivity to psionics.
The "door" doesn't slowly creak open, but bursts open aften extended tugging.
Another benefit to the "weak defense" method is that it preserves as much of the original system as possible, and requires as little modification as possible. It's also greatly in keeping with a lot of the "psionic" literature, esp. Kurtz's Deryni series, where a character with a surprise "shield" is almost inevitably an untrained/unknown Deryni (or Haldane).
Actually, thinking about it, I'll change my version of "Talented" to allow a character two powers and one defense mode (from a limited list), and make it clear that a wild talent does _not_ possess the psionic buffer at all. This means that almost all psionic characters (or at least the ones that want to live) have two "Wild Talent" feats before they pick up the first normal psionic feat.
Of course, this also means that almost every Wild Talent is going to end up seeking training, because they'll be too vulnerable otherwise. But this is not a bad thing in my mind. Again, the literature is pretty unanimous in its opinion - an untrained psionic character is pretty much the whipping boy of any trained character.
Hmm, maybe.Tome said:
I agree that a negative 2 penalty is pretty high, but without such a barrier you would have uber characters with 4+ psionic feats and perhaps even more power than a low level psychic character.
<snip>
4 Feats = No Buffer, Takes ability damage instead of stun
Evil, yes . . . .But it prevents abuse of the system.
However, if we remove the psionic buffer, and give the Wild Talent Mind Blank as a free defense mode, I believe his maximum bonus would be +4, he'd drain his few precious PPs, and take ability damage.
It would keep the distinction between psionic and non-psionic a little clearer cut; in my mind, the big distinction between the two is the amount of training they possess, not their sensitivity to psionics.
The "door" doesn't slowly creak open, but bursts open aften extended tugging.
Another benefit to the "weak defense" method is that it preserves as much of the original system as possible, and requires as little modification as possible. It's also greatly in keeping with a lot of the "psionic" literature, esp. Kurtz's Deryni series, where a character with a surprise "shield" is almost inevitably an untrained/unknown Deryni (or Haldane).
Actually, thinking about it, I'll change my version of "Talented" to allow a character two powers and one defense mode (from a limited list), and make it clear that a wild talent does _not_ possess the psionic buffer at all. This means that almost all psionic characters (or at least the ones that want to live) have two "Wild Talent" feats before they pick up the first normal psionic feat.
Of course, this also means that almost every Wild Talent is going to end up seeking training, because they'll be too vulnerable otherwise. But this is not a bad thing in my mind. Again, the literature is pretty unanimous in its opinion - an untrained psionic character is pretty much the whipping boy of any trained character.