GURPS (4th ed.)-Dungeon Fantasy 14-Psi.pdf

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C ONTENTS

I NTRODUCTION

Even the GM who doesn’t permit the heroes to wield psi can

surely use a few freaky threats and monsters that magic can’t

dismiss with ease!

Psi and magic can achieve many of the same effects . . .

However, they are different.

– GURPS Basic Set

GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 3: The Next Level brought with

it psionics, powersofthemind.Mostly,thesearen’tthescience-

fictionabilitiesofbald-headedfuture-folk,butthecheesybolts

of mental force found in “kitchen-sink fantasy” that shame-

lessly rips off the trope. Mostly.

As Dungeon Fantasy 2: Dungeons strongly insinuated

with the mindwarper, there’s some manner of connection

between psionics and Things from Beyond Time and Space.

These creatures, customarily dubbed “Elder Things,” are def-

initely bald-headed and may hail from some (horrid!) future

somewhere. Where there’s psi, the Elder Things aren’t far

behind–nottomentionAstralThings,whichmayormaynot

be the same Things.

The GM decides where psi stands in his campaign. Psi isn’t

magic, so it’s hard for spells to cope with, which might upset

theproverbialapplecart.Thenagain,spellscan’tinterferewith

Chi Mastery, Druidic Arts, or Holy Might, as Dungeon

Fantasy 1: Adventurers takes pains to point out – and this is

equally true of Ninja Training, from Dungeon Fantasy 12:

Ninja. Eventhepowersthat Dungeon Fantasy 9: Summoners

describes for spellcasters aren’t entirely susceptible to magic.

If all that is fine, then psi shouldn’t present a problem.

And this seems like a good place to mention that psi comes

withauniquebalancingfactor:Itsabilitiesbringtrouble,cour-

tesy of the aforementioned Things. Not every time, but fre-

quently enough to encourage mentalists to be circumspect.

P UBLICATION H ISTORY

ThePsionicspowerfrom GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 3: The

Next Level – about half a page of material – is repeated here in

greatlyexpandedform.Afewabilitiesarelooselycribbedfrom

GURPS Psionic Powers, too. And of course psi powers are

builtfromtraitsdescribedin GURPS Powers. However,thisis

aself-containedwork;youdon’t need anyofthosesupplements

to use this one!

A BOUT THE A UTHOR

Sean “Dr. Kromm” Punch set out to become a particle

physicist in 1985, ended up the GURPS Line Editor in 1995,

and has engineered rules for almost every GURPS product

since. He developed, edited, or wrote dozens of GURPS Third

Edition projects between 1995 and 2002. In 2004, he produced

the GURPS Basic Set, Fourth Edition withDavidPulver.Since

then, he has created GURPS Powers (with Phil Masters),

GURPS Martial Arts (with Peter Dell’Orto), and the GURPS

Action, GURPS Dungeon Fantasy, and GURPS Power-Ups

series . . . and the list keeps growing. Sean has been a gamer

since 1979. His non-gaming interestsinclude cinema, cooking,

and wine. He lives in Montréal, Québec with his wife, Bonnie,

and their two cats, Banshee and Zephyra.

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web page for GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 14: Psi is located

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withBrefertothatbook,notthisone.

I NTRODUCTION

C HAPTER O NE

P SIS

A psi (or psionic ) is somebody who exerts power over his

environment not via beefy arms, memorized mumbo-jumbo,

or callused hands that can shatter harmless wooden planks,

but through sheer force of mind over matter. This gift is usu-

ally inborn – you have it or you don’t – but heroes who spend

a lot of time in the dungeon sometimes become psis by virtue

of exposure to weird energies (or repeated head blows . . . one

of those). Weak psis are actually worse off than non-psis; their

abilitiesdrawElderThingstothembutaren’tuptofightingoff

said Things. Powerful psis, like all high-powered delvers, are a

force to be reckoned with!

Freak of nature, born with a

certain form of ESP; derangement

of the synapses which we call

telepathy.

– Dr. Paul Ruth, in Scanners

Psi Glossary

Beyond Time and Space: Where the Elder Things are.

Elder Thing: Any of the hostile extradimensional crea-

turesthataredisturbinglyinterestedinchaos,madness,

and psi (all senses).

Elsewhere: Same as Beyond Time and Space.

mentalist: Adelverdevotedtodevelopingandunderstand-

ing Psionics.

Outside Time and Space: Sameas Beyond Time and Space.

psi: 1. Any being with abilities from or similar to the

Psionics power; pl. psis. 2. A catchall term for the phe-

nomena surrounding these beings, the power of Psion-

ics, and the weird artifacts, creatures, and energies

that inevitably crop up when such people and abilities

are around.

psionic: 1. Same as psi (sense 1); pl. psionics. 2. Of or per-

taining to psi (sense 2). 3. Oh, you get the idea! It’s a

noun, an adjective, and even a prepositional phrase . . .

a word as versatile as the mind itself!

Psionics: A supernatural power that springs not from gods,

spirits,ormana,butfromwithintheuser–abitlikeChi

Mastery, but mental rather than physical. When includ-

ing the power’s incidental gifts, side effects, and associ-

ated skills, it’s usually written lowercase ( psionics ).

psychic: Aconmanintownwhogetsrichdiviningmissing

items or people that he probably stole or abducted in

the first place. Don’t use this term for a real psi unless

you want your head to explode (even though he calls

many of his own abilities “psychic” something).

Thing: Short for Elder Thing.

Thing Man Was Not Meant To Know: A godlike Elder

Thing, the mere sight of which can induce madness in

beings that respect time and space.

P SIONICS

The Psionics power enables its wielder to affect the real

world with his mind alone. Its abilities are subject to the

Psionics power modifier, while all success rolls to use those

gifts enjoy a bonus equal to the wielder’s Psi Talent level.

Thus,Psionicsisstructuredmuchlikethepowersonpp.21-22

of Adventurers, with one additional twist: all of the traits

(advantages, perks, skills, etc.) associated with it have Unusual

Background (Psionic) as a prerequisite; see p. 14.

For many more options, see GURPS Powers, GURPS

Psionic Powers, andpp.B254-257.Beawarethatthosesources

describe multiple psionicpowersusingthefullmightof GURPS,

while Psi describes a single, simplified power. Psionics is a big

enough deal in Dungeon Fantasy to merit its own supplement,

butmakingseparatepowersoutofESP,Telepathy,etc.wouldbe

slicing things too finely in a genre where hacking and slashing

are the norm!

Psi Talent

5 points/level

Psi Talent gives +1 per level to all rolls (most often against

IQ, Will, or Perception) to activate Psionics abilities, analyze

feedback from them, target psi attacks, and so on. The usual

upper limit is Psi Talent 6, but some Elder Things clearly have

higher levels, while the GM may wish to limit starting delvers

to Psi Talent 4.

P SIS

Power Modifier: Psionics

Alternative Abilities

Psis who want to buy many capabilities cheaply may

specify sets of Psionics abilities ( not Unusual Background,

Psi Talent, perks, or power-ups) that don’t work simultane-

ously. Consulting the Psionic Abilities Table (pp. 11-13):

1.Pickasetofmutuallyexclusiveabilitiesforwhichyou

have all necessary prerequisites. No ability can belong to a

set with its own prerequisite (e.g., the set can’t include Bat-

tlesense and Mind Reading, or Fear and Telesend).

2. Buy the most expensive ability at full price – “Cost

(Full)” on the table.

3. Buy the other abilities at “Cost (Alt.)” on the table.

4. Note the abilities as exclusive. If you have multiple

sets, group them visually on your character sheet.

In play, only one ability per set can produce effects at a

time! You need a full Ready maneuver to change settings –

althoughafteryou’veswitchedtoanattack(anyofDispelPsi,

Fear, Madness, Mind Blast, Mind Stab, Psychokinetic Lash,

or Pyrokinetic Bolt), selecting another attack is a free action

onceperturn.IfyouuseSecondNature(pp.21-22)formul-

tiple psionic feats, you must keep the same setting for them

all. Andyoucan’tactivateErgokineticShield,MindShield,or

PsychicArmor,orparryusingPsychokineticLashorPyroki-

netic Bolt, unless that’s your current setting.

It’s impossible for multiple abilities in a set to have any

simultaneous effects. If you switch partway through the

minutethat1FPbuysinmostcases,allongoingeffectsend

immediately and ungracefully; e.g., a portal neutralized by

DispelPsireactivates,Levitationdumpsyouontheground,

or someone dominated with Mind Control regains his wits.

Resuming ended effects demands a new use with its own

FP cost and risk of psionic threats.

Finally, anything that disables any of the abilities takes

down the whole set. IfEmpathy,MindReading,andTelesend

areboughtasaset,andanElderThingpotionsilencesMind

Reading, then all three are inoperative for the duration.

Example: Ulli Greer has Psi Talent 3. The abilities he

wants,andtheirfullcosts,areErgokineticShield6[21],Lev-

itation 2 [18], Psychokinetic Lash 3 [15], and Telekinesis 13

[46]. He buys them as a set. Telekinesis is most expensive,

andcostsitsfull46points.Theothersuse“Cost(Alt.)”onthe

table: Ergokinetic Shield is 5 points, Levitation is 4 points,

and Psychokinetic Lash is 3 points. Total cost is 46 + 5 + 4 +

3=58points–inreachofastartingmentalist.However,Ulli

can’tlevitate,resistfire, and graborlashpeople;hemustpick

one.IfhesmacksawizardwithPsychokineticLashandgets

a Fireball in return, tough; he’d need a Ready maneuver to

switch on Ergokinetic Shield, and that won’t help him now!

If you tire of the drawbacks of alternative abilities, you

can pay points to convert them into standalone gifts; see

Adding and Improving Psi Abilities (p. 20).

-10%

Psi abilities require 1 FP to activate for a minute and 1

FP/minute to maintain – or 1 FP per attack, for offensive

capabilities such as Fear and Mind Stab. Using them

attracts psionic dangers. The GM will secretly roll 3d each

time a psi activates one of his gifts out of combat (at most

onceperminute),andonceafteranybattleinwhichpsiwas

used at all (regardless of what abilities, by whom, or how

often). On 6 or less, some psionic threat appears; the GM

can roll on the Psionic Encounters Table (pp. 37-41) or pick

out something nasty. The odds rise to 9 or less in a locale

where such dangers are present already! See Perilous

Encounters (p. 36) and What’s the Use? (p. 36) for qualifica-

tions and thoughts, and Chapter 4 for gory details.

P SIONICS A BILITIES

Psis seem to develop their abilities almost at random –

which is to say, when they have sufficient points to afford

what they want. However, the most powerful gifts have pre-

requisites: lesser abilities and/or a minimum level of Psi

Talent (p. 4). The Psionic Abilities Table (pp. 11-13) summa-

rizes these and other details. All Psionics abilities have the

Psionics power modifier, abbreviated “PM” here.

Battlesense

24 points/level

Prerequisites: Mind Reading, plus Psi Talent 2+ for level

1, Psi Talent 4+ for level 2, or Psi Talent 6 for level 3.

While this ability is switched on, you can read the com-

bat intentions of sentient (IQ 1+) foes well enough to get +1

per level, maximum three levels, to active defense rolls

against their attacks. This costs the usual 1 FP per minute,

not per defense. You must turn on Battlesense consciously;

you cannot trigger it in response to an attack. However, if

you activate it in combat (a Ready maneuver), you’ll enjoy

its bonus from that point on – and while it won’t warn you

ofambushes,youcanwalkaroundwithitpowereduptoaid

any defense rolls allowed if you’re waylaid. It’s of no value

against IQ 0 opponents (e.g., erupting slimes) or mindless

traps(asopposedtothosesetoffbysentientbeings,likeevil

teddy bears pulling a rope to roll logs onto you), even if the

threat is in plain sight!

Advantages: Enhanced Block (Accessibility, Not against

mindless, -10%; PM, -10%) [4/level] + Enhanced Dodge

(Accessibility, Not against mindless, -10%; PM, -10%)

[12/level] + Enhanced Parry (All; Accessibility, Not

against mindless, -10%; PM, -10%) [8/level].

Dispel Psi

20 points/level

Prerequisites: Unusual Background (Psionic), plus Psi

Talent 2+ for level 1 or Psi Talent 4+ for level 2.

This ability lets you negate one instance of psionic activity

peruse.TakeanAttackmaneuver,pickaknownorsuspectedpsi

effect (“Stun caused by that mentalist’s Mind Blast on Darryl,”

“Whatever is levitating that sword, which might be Telekinesis,”

“The force field around the disembodied brain,” etc.), and roll a

Quick Contest of Will against the individual who initiated it.

EachofyoumayaddPsiTalent.Ifyou win, andifyourtargetis

indeed a consequence of psi, you dispel the effect immediately.

P SIS

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