When you think of psionics what sources do you think of?
For me it started with Escape to Witch Mountain. (ugh, showing my age)
Later, there were other movies; Scanners, Firestarter, and Dune.
Comic books offered many sources, notably the X-men.
More recently there have been movies returning to earlier sources, Race to Witch Mountain and the 3 X-men movies.
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Star Trek. Spock was the first person with a psychic power I ever saw.
After that...
X-Men, Anne McCaffery's To Ride Pegasus, Dune, James Schmidt's Telzey Amberdon stories, the ESP McGee mysteries, and Asimov's Foundation novels.
Most recently, White Wolf's excellent Trinity RPG.
The one thing that these all have in common? They're pretty solidly sci fi, with few or no "fantasy" elements. This is why it's always been hard for me to integrate psionics into D&D - I could very much go for the idea of the Green Planet/Red Planet type stuff that Eric Mona has suggested for Golarion, but sword and sorcery doesn't mesh well with psionics in my head.
Technically my first thought: "Oh great another $30+ book I won't be allowed to use."
But after that...
Professor Xavier, Psylocke, Sylvia Brown, John Edward "the biggest douche in the universe"(via South Park)
"Firestarter" and "Scanners" are good ones, don't forget "Stir of Echoes" and "What Women Want", also "Heroes". I had another movie one, but I blanked... *sigh*
"City of Heroes"(MMO, video game - Arachnos Widows & Psionic Blasters)
The one thing that these all have in common? They're pretty solidly sci fi, with few or no "fantasy" elements. This is why it's always been hard for me to integrate psionics into D&D - I could very much go for the idea of the Green Planet/Red Planet type stuff that Eric Mona has suggested for Golarion, but sword and sorcery doesn't mesh well with psionics in my head.
Yea, my current DM is avidly against Technology in his D&D world aka Warforged and Technomancers, I tend to agree with him. This is pretty much how Psionics have also been viewed since I've started playing D&D in the mid-80's. Wrong Place and/or Time, the mechanics leave alot to be desired as well. Remember what the strongest monsters in D&D 1E were other than Deities, Devils and Demons? Yep, the ones you couldn't fight against... psionic ones.
I think of esoteric branches of mainstream thought: Kabbalah, Sufism, Tantra, Gnosticism, and Monty Python's Flying Circus. In the fantasy, wizardry and clerical powers grasp the concrete, the literal. Psionics grasp the abstract and internal.
How one defines fantasy can influence one's regard towards psionics, but psionics could be made more flexible if the definition of fantasy could likewise be made more flexible. To some, adding psionics might as well bring in ray guns and space ships filled with Klingons. To others, that wanderer is not a "psionicist" but a wise woman, or maybe a fakir. Gandalf never carried around a spell book, used material components for every spell, and could use a sword rather dashingly, but he remains the iconic rallying cry against psionics. Does fantasy, then, mean the Dark Ages Europe, where witches were burned, and monks shaved the center of their heads? They recall that Conan was strong but forget that he was wise and intermingled in a very high-magic world?
Semantics/ diction, and re-defining "fantasy" could help make psionics more reasonable.
People perhaps think of "Spock" or "Charles Xavier" with hover chairs and body suits, but those using the mind to redefine reality through philosophy and practice have been around since before the Dark Ages Europe. If "monks" can be seeded into acceptability, then so can "psionics" with the right amount of creativity and open minds.
Star Trek. Spock was the first person with a psychic power I ever saw.
After that...
X-Men, Anne McCaffery's To Ride Pegasus, Dune, James Schmidt's Telzey Amberdon stories, the ESP McGee mysteries, and Asimov's Foundation novels.
Most recently, White Wolf's excellent Trinity RPG.
The one thing that these all have in common? They're pretty solidly sci fi, with few or no "fantasy" elements. This is why it's always been hard for me to integrate psionics into D&D - I could very much go for the idea of the Green Planet/Red Planet type stuff that Eric Mona has suggested for Golarion, but sword and sorcery doesn't mesh well with psionics in my head.
Try the Deryni Chronicles by Katherine Kurtz. Also, the Darkover novels by Marion Zimmer Bradley. Andre Norton has some stuff also, but I can't think of any particular titles off the top of my head. All are definitely fantasy, although the background of Darkover is sci-fi in that it was a planet colonized from earth, by the time of the main stories, it is definitely fantasy/sword and sorcery.
What I think? I think whatever I want - and reality accomodates me. :D
There are a number of psionicicsts or pseudo-psionicists outside of D&D I like:
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Try the Deryni Chronicles by Katherine Kurtz. Also, the Darkover novels by Marion Zimmer Bradley. Andre Norton has some stuff also, but I can't think of any particular titles off the top of my head. All are definitely fantasy, although the background of Darkover is sci-fi in that it was a planet colonized from earth, by the time of the main stories, it is definitely fantasy/sword and sorcery.
I'm not saying that fantasy with psionics isn't out there - in addition to what you listed, there's also the Valdemar books by Mercedes Lackey, arguably the single largest influence behind the Blue Rose RPG. All I'm saying is that I don't think of that stuff, because for me psionics was always a sci fi thing, and as a rule, when I encountered those stories, the psionics in them bugged me. YMMV, of course; I'm not trying to make this into a debate about whether psionics should be in D&D or fantasy in general, just answering the OP's question.
Personally, I see Psionics as being part of the Enchantment/Charm class of spells. Charm person, suggestion, hold person, command, etc. these all seem like psionic powers/spells to me. In other words, the mind-effecting spells cover the same or similar ground.
RPG Superstar 2013 Top 4, RPG Superstar 2011 Top 16
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I with DarkArt in that eastern mysticism = psionics to me. Dark Sun also artfully mixed the Invisible Art with Wizardry.
And specifically Sword and Sworcery quite often included mental powers in the old pulps. Traditional Fanatsy ala Tolkein and C.S. Lewis eschewed the mental arts. But Sword And Sorcerey is totally the realm of alien invaders like the githyanki, the illithid, etc. Psionics could easily be ported into the worlds of Hyborea or Nehwon and I wouldn't bat an eye.
FR's attempt to layer a psionic empire in Jhaamdath I think was a good way to introduce psionics where it didn't seem fit before. I think portals to other worlds where the mental arts originated works fine for Golarion.
--Brain Vrock!
Jedi. Seriously. They meditate on these powers they just manifest? Sounds like they'd get their own book in D&D.
Firefly. Two by two, hands are blue. I can kill you with my brain.
Babylon 5. Telepaths (as well as the occasional Telekinetic and at least one Empath) play a big role there. They also explain why humans just happened to have telepaths all of a sudden somewhere in the 22nd century.
^This.
For me, I also think of certain aspects from Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time. When adding this new "power" to fantasy, I think of Perrin and Matt's abilities. All the "casters" are sure that it's magic, but they can never nail it down.