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So... If I use merciful spell to make my psychic crush spells deal nonlethal damage, and the opponent falls unconscious. So far, I'm all clear.
But now I cast marionette possession on the opponent. The opponent is unconscious, and as such considered 'willing'. (Not to be confused with 'consent', guys ;))
I am then in the opponent's body... Would I still have its damage / nonlethal damage? I wouldn't say I've hurt that body one bit... I've merely subdued its spirit/soul.
I can't really find anything in the rules for this... What do you guys think?
I don't think Merciful works with Psychic Crush, assuming they fail the save. The targets HP are reduced to -1, it doesn't say they suffer enough damage to take them there, so no intermediate damage you can convert to no lethal. But it would be a reasonable house rule.
The possession rules in Occult Adventures make it clear you'd have the target's ho and damage, you'd be unconscious and possibly bleeding out.
The body is still unconscious. You could try to possess it, but you would be possessing an unconscious body.
Non-lethal damage makes you unconscious, just like lethal damage does. The difference is that it's harder to accidentally kill someone with non-lethal. The idea being you aren't cutting them open or breaking their bones.
Whether or not you can make physic crush merciful, I don't know. But it doesn't matter what the source of non-lethal damage is. The body is just an unconscious as if he had been punched into unconsciousness.
So... If I use merciful spell to make my psychic crush spells deal nonlethal damage, and the opponent falls unconscious. So far, I'm all clear.
But now I cast marionette possession on the opponent. The opponent is unconscious, and as such considered 'willing'. (Not to be confused with 'consent', guys ;))
I am then in the opponent's body... Would I still have its damage / nonlethal damage? I wouldn't say I've hurt that body one bit... I've merely subdued its spirit/soul.
I can't really find anything in the rules for this... What do you guys think?
Psychic Crush says it deals damage. Not "mental damage" or "psychic damage", but "damage". On a fail, the target ends up with -1hp, unconscious and dying, and on a success save the target still receives XD6 damage. If the target ends up with negative HP, doesn't stabilize and dies, the body functions would cease.
I'd say, even if the attack seems to be mental, the body itself, while not receiving "physical damage" would suffer from "system shock" damage (neural connections are torn, mental activity is severed,.... you get the idea).
So yes, I'd say that even if you are allowed to convert Psychic Crush damage to nonlethal and then cast Marionette you'll end inside a -1 hp (nonlethal damage) wounded body. And the main issue will be... you'll transfer your mind to an unconscious (helpless, thus "willing") target.
A saving throw would probably be in order for your mind not to lose consciousness due to that body's "system shock". Even in the case of success your mind would be trapped until the body heals to positive HP; you might be able to take pure mental actions but you would not have any kind of sensorial information or body control until the body heals.
EDIT: About mind thrust, it still says it deals XD10 damage. Id's stick with "system shock damage".
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Mind overload, of course, could be viewed as damage to the body, too :)
I get that.
The problem is, I think, where to draw that line between conventional science and pathfinder magic. At least three different viewpoints could be had, I think:
1. Science: the brain is fried, you're unconscious if you overtake it. Problem with the science viewpoint: people's personalities are made up of brain memories, brain connections, hormones, and cellular memory. If one were able to magically superimpose one's own personality on another body, it would be a logical conclusion to say the brain and its connections have been healed. As such, not all mental damage, or maybe not even any mental damage should carry.
2. Magical: The mind/soul is targeted and damaged. A new mind overtakes the body. This new mind clearly overtakes an unharmed body.
3. Mix: The mind thrust spells damage the mind, and as such the brain is wounded. Taking over the body includes taking over a wounded brain. Clearly, the posessor is still unconscious. Problem with this viewpoint: it is highly arbitrary to include science only so far as to disallow one thing, but not far enough to allow another.
About being 'awake' in an unconscious body:
Of course, several psychic builds have options to heal themselves with purely mental actions. However, considering my 3 examples above, I would consider this the weirdest outcome...
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Well... RAW, there's this: "The body retains its Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, hit points, natural abilities, and automatic abilities."
It's not a long shot to include nonlethal damage to hitpoints. So that's probably what needs to be done... But, quod erat demonstrantum, I think it is illogical and weird when purely mind affecting damage is concerned. Oh well... Not everything makes sense :D
It's not purely mind affecting damage. It's actually not mental damage at all.
Mental damage would be damaging your int, wis, or cha. The spell does none of those.
It does only hp damage, which is physical.
Mind thrust physically screws up your brain.