So Occult Adventures has been out for a while and I enjoy most of it. My son was able to build a John Constantine-inspired character via the Occultist and has really enjoyed the class. I've also sprinkled some additional Occult Adventures content here and there and most of it fits seamlessly in my campaign.
One of my players was looking for a change and wants to play a mysticism-styled warrior and has made a Monk/Psychic multiclass.
I haven't had to deal with psychic duels yet. Perusing the boards here, opinions vary but now that the rules have been around for a while, I'm seeking some actual play feedback & advice.
Concern #1: No one's home; dog-pile time!
Many of Pathfinders battles involve a single villain/combatant vs. the party. Psychic duels seem like that could be problematic if the villain is pulled into the psychic duel and can't defend his/her physical body. This concern is mitigated by the fact that Hold Person is still in the game along with other Save-or-Die spells.
Concern #2: Time isn't slowed, but it feels like it
The psychic combat exists separately from physical combat yet time passes the same. So psychic duel rounds coexist with normal rounds. I'm not going to stop a normal combat to run a psychic combat or the reverse. Once the rules are understood by all, does psychic combat run slower than normal combat or is it business as usual?
I like the concept of psychic combat and it certainly evokes the astral combat depicted in the Doctor Strange movie, but I don't want it to dominate every combat. Psychic characters aren't the only ones that can initiate psychic combat, of course, but this player wants to use the Psychic Duelist archetype so this will certainly be an element he wants to use frequently.
I'm torn because while this player is incredibly enthusiastic about the game, he still sometimes drifts towards "spotlight hog" mode on occasion. I'm worried that if I allow him to go forward with Psychic & Psychic Duelist that I'm enabling that behavior and it will detrimentally affect my campaign.
Any actual-play experiences to share?
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Concern 1: apply the rules for allies shaking you to provide a new save (look it up, there may be a penalty or bonus) so that you also get one if you take damage. This way you incentivize one on one duels while the party fights others, or at worst the party gets a bit of set up time around the BBEG while he’s otherwise occupied before they start smashing him.