Something I recently slapped together for anyone reluctant to include full bore psionics in their game, but wanting to duplicate those types of mental disciplines via a sorcerer bloodline.
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At some point in your family's history, one of your relatives manifested psionic abilities. Though you failed to inherit these innate powers yourself, some spark of mental mastery fuels your arcane talent as well.
Class Skill: Sense Motive
Bonus Spells: hypnotism (3rd), detect thoughts (5th), clairaudience/clairvoyance (7th), phantasmal killer (9th), telepathic bond (11th), mass suggestion (13th), vision (15th), mind blank (17th), dominate monster (19th)
Bonus Feats: Alertness, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Persuasive, Quicken Spell, Silent Spell, Still Spell
Bloodline Arcana: Whenever you cast a spell of the compulsion subschool, increase the spell's DC by +2
Bloodline Powers: Your magic benefits from the latent psionic energy of your mind, growing more potent as you gain levels.
Hand of the Psion (Su) - At 1st level, you can cause a melee weapon to fly from your grasp and strike a foe before instantly returning. As a standard action, you can make a single attack using a melee weapon at a range of 30 feet. This attack is treated as a ranged attack with a thrown weapon, except that you add your Charisma modifier to the attack roll instead of your Dexterity modifier (damage still relies on Strength). This ability cannot be used to perform a combat maneuver. You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier.
Mental Resistance (Ex) - At 3rd level, you gain a +2 bonus on saving throws against enchantments and illusions. At 9th level, your bonus on saving throws against enchantments and illusions increases to +4.
Psionic Blast (Sp) - At 9th level, you can unleash a psionic blast of mental energy once per day. This 30-foot cone-shaped burst does 1d6 points of nonlethal damage for every 2 sorcerer levels (maximum 10d6) and stuns creatures in its path for 1 round. Those caught in the area of your blast receive a Will save. A successful save negates the stunned effect and reduces the damage by half. The DC of this save is equal to 10 + 1/2 your sorcerer level + your Charisma modifier. At 9th level, you can use this ability once per day. At 17th level, you can use this ability twice per day. At 20th level, you can use this ability three times per day.
Willful Magic (Ex) - At 15th level, you can increase the potency of your spells through sheer force of will, allowing you to reroll any caster level check to overcome spell resistance. You must decide to use this ability before the results are revealed by the GM. You must take the second result even if it is worse. You can use this ability at will.
Transcendant Mind (Su) - At 20th level, you gain immunity to all mind-affecting effects and the ability to communicate telepathically with any creature within 100 feet that has a language. Once per day, you can cast astral projection as a spell-like ability using your sorcerer level as your caster level.
Or someone in the family could have suffered some kind of major psionic trauma or effect. Or maybe an alien off-worlder from a different planet than Golarion intermingled with your bloodline? Multiple explanations exist, I think.
Sir, I will be deeply offended if you do not post this on the Pathfinder Database as well.
Just a quick suggestion, instead of Hand of the Psion what about a power that lets them send quick telepathic messages the same number of times they could use Hand of the Psion? Just a thought.
Sir, I will be deeply offended if you do not post this on the Pathfinder Database as well.
The who to the what now? I was thinking this might be fodder for Wayfinder #2, if and when that fanzine publication starts cranking up again. Mostly, I'm just posting it here for feedback...and maybe playtesting, if anyone wants to give it a run. If you want to widen its exposure by putting it in the Pathfinder Database, I'm cool with that, too, I guess. I posted it here for community use.
Just a quick suggestion, instead of Hand of the Psion what about a power that lets them send quick telepathic messages the same number of times they could use Hand of the Psion? Just a thought.
I had some thoughts along those lines. But, I added telepathic bond as a bonus spell. And later, at 20th level the Trascendent Mind ability gives a sorcerer with the psionic bloodline the ability to use telepathy straight-up. So, mostly I just wanted the 1st level bloodline power to duplicate the 1st level powers of Hand of the Acolyte and Hand of the Apprentice. Anything more than that would overbalance it, I think.
Also, just as a suggestion, if you want to pull off "telepathic messages" at 1st level, just make sure your sorcerer takes message as a 1st level cantrip. He should be able to cast it at-will from that point on.
Very cool, I like the idea. Great for those who would like the concept and psionic character archetypes without having a whole other system dedicated to supporting them!
That's the purpose I had in mind for introducing the bloodline. In a recent PbP game, we had a player wanting to run a psion (wilder). While the GM considered it, everyone chimed in with other possibilities of handling a "psionic" character rather than converting the 3.5 psion over to PFRPG. I just thought a Psionic Bloodline made the most sense to duplicate the general theme of a psionic character. I'm glad you guys like it. Let me know if you play it and have any further feedback. I could still refine it some.
Thanks,
--Neil
Posted: Sorcerer Bloodline: Psionic
I believe I like this allot. I am converting Eberron to PF & I really don't use regular psionics. This is right along with what I started to do myself. This makes for a good Kalashtar bloodline. I was also thinking about a Dream Bloodline for them. Which leads to a need for a Lycan Bloodline for Shifters.
yah know, if you wanted to get more detailed, you could make a psionics bloodline variant for each of the psion disciplines, tailoring them to specific types of psions.
The thought occurred to me, but this was just something fast and dirty I slapped together. Devising the bloodline powers (as opposed to selecting the bonus class skill and spells) would take far longer and require a careful eye towards balancing them against one another. Plus, this really wasn't an exercise in duplicating each and every psionic discipline with a bloodline. It was just meant to give a nod to how one can design a credible "mentalist" type of sorcerer.
Illithids don't reproduce sexually. It's impossible to be related to one :)
Ilithid reproduction is called Ceremorphosis.
The tadpole form invades a body as a parasite and transforms it into an Illithid. Not all transformations are perfect though, some may be partial, some may not consume the host's mind and some may be cured before complete transformation.
Also, some are purposly inhibided creating infiltraitors, spys and thralls.
So it is very possible for a bloodline to contaminated by an Illithid.
Huh, thats wierd. I did the same for an eberron conversion, though I added some psionic powers as new bloodline spells, called it the quor bloodline, because its for Kalashtar/Inspired and had a feat that let Kalashtar use their Wis as thier casting stat because it's their +2, in my conversion that is. Works out pretty nice!
Huh, thats wierd. I did the same for an eberron conversion, though I added some psionic powers as new bloodline spells, called it the quor bloodline, because its for Kalashtar/Inspired and had a feat that let Kalashtar use their Wis as thier casting stat because it's their +2, in my conversion that is. Works out pretty nice!
Thought of giving kalashtar a +2 to any one mental stat as part of my conversion.
Erm...doesn't psionic heritage kinda seem a little silly when it grants arcane spells? That's also partly why I didn't like the Abberation Bloodline (since the only abilties based on abberation heritage in 3.5 was a set of feats granting psionic abilities).
The mechanics don't look bad, but to me it kinda feels like you're trying to do somthing too much in a round-a-bout way. To me, it feels the same as a fighter thats been taken, given the two-weapon fighting and archery feats, taking homebrewin' feats that grant him favoured enemy-esc abilities and calling himself a ranger without actually being one. If someone wants to play a psionic, is there really any reason for them to take this over actually being psionic?
If someone wants to play a psionic, is there really any reason for them to take this over actually being psionic?
Sure: The DM says that the EPH isn't allowed.
Edited to add: It's a lot simpler to balance a single bloodline with the rest of Pathfinder than it is to balance the entire psionic system with all of Pathfinder.
Huh, thats wierd. I did the same for an eberron conversion, though I added some psionic powers as new bloodline spells, called it the quor bloodline, because its for Kalashtar/Inspired and had a feat that let Kalashtar use their Wis as thier casting stat because it's their +2, in my conversion that is. Works out pretty nice!Thought of giving kalashtar a +2 to any one mental stat as part of my conversion.
So did I, but I decided Wis suited better. Its less complicated, and its suits the idea I like of kalashtar monks, and soulknifes are a serious of feats, feats kalashtaer can take as monk feats.
So did I, but I decided Wis suited better. Its less complicated, and its suits the idea I like of kalashtar monks, and soulknifes are a serious of feats, feats kalashtaer can take as monk feats.Huh, thats wierd. I did the same for an eberron conversion, though I added some psionic powers as new bloodline spells, called it the quor bloodline, because its for Kalashtar/Inspired and had a feat that let Kalashtar use their Wis as thier casting stat because it's their +2, in my conversion that is. Works out pretty nice!Thought of giving kalashtar a +2 to any one mental stat as part of my conversion.
I can see your reasoning. The way I am running the campaign, my idea might be better for me. You could psot the soul blade feats sometime. They might be a neat extension of the ki pool.
As a side note to what has been commented on, I am one of the GMs not using the EPH. I like the idea of Psions being mainly telepathic, so a psionic bloodline works just fine for me. My reasoning for not using it is simple. The fewer books somebody has to buy the better. If somebody wanted to play a Psion, I would have to buy the book, as well as the player. Then I would have to learn the system, which I already know, but don't really like all that much. The other thing, I have read a few books that basically linked Psionics & Magic as just accessing the same energy. Makes sense to me, since 3.5e considered them totally interactive, that it would be simpler just to apply existing rules to it. PFRPG has the mechanic for it, thru the Sorcerer Bloodlines. Given the fact that psionics is always considered an innate ability, then a for of sorcerer it is.
I would add eschew material to the feat list. But really good idea!
Maybe an option to burn higher level slots for lower level spells? Kind of a free metamagic feat with no effects, but giving you the option to cast that spell you need another time by wasting any higher level slot?
Would keep that "point burning" feel of psions...
I would add eschew material to the feat list. But really good idea!
I would add eschew material to the feat list. But really good idea!
Maybe an option to burn higher level slots for lower level spells? Kind of a free metamagic feat with no effects, but giving you the option to cast that spell you need another time by wasting any higher level slot?
Would keep that "point burning" feel of psions...
They already have the ability to burn higher spell slots for lower spells.
Ooops. Guess who never played a sorcerer and never had a sorcerer player? ;-)
Very very good. I had the same idea when converting a wild-elf psion from the Chondalwood in my FR campaign.
That also finally ceases the "psionics are too powerful" debate. The cool thing that makes everything fit nicely, is that we adopt the Psionic as Magic variant as suggested in the FRCS. Therefore it makes even more sense this way than it did when it was just a different class.
I'm glad you like it, Beek. I'm submitting a slightly different version (no huge differences, just a couple of bonus spell changes) to Wayfinder #2 for Lilith to publish.