Simple Psionics

Simple Psionics

Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything Compatible Psionics

Psionics in 5e D&D has been a very controversial topic. When first released as part of UA, WOTC’s attempts were generally considered overcomplicated to such an extent that it received very negative backlash. With the release of TCOE, Psionics has been reduced to a very limited set of powers used by the Soul Knife Rogue and the Psi-Warrior Fighter. Dissatisfied with the end result, I decided to try and make a dedicated psion which integrates as smoothly as possible with the existing mechanics. The following contains the Psion class and 3 subclasses, as well as a Discipline system that all functions off of one resource: the psionic energy dice (or psi-dice for short).

by Peter Lathamhurst

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon ampersand, Player’s Handbook, Monster Manual, Dungeon Master’s Guide, D&D Adventurers League, all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast in the USA and other countries. All characters and their distinctive likenesses are property of Wizards of the Coast.Sample This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork containedfile herein is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast.

©2016 Wizards of the Coast LLC, PO Box 707, Renton, WA 98057-0707, USA. Manufactured by Hasbro SA, Rue Emile-Boéchat 31, 2800 Delémont, CH. Represented by Hasbro Europe, 4 The Square, Stockley Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB11 1ET, UK.

Psion

Proficiency Bonus Features Disciplines Psi-Dice Psi-Dice Known size

+2 Psionics, Psionic Disciplines, 1 5 1d6 Psionic Order +2 Psionic Recovery, Telepathy 1 5 1d6 +2 Psionic Order Feature 2 5 1d6

+2 Ability Score Improvement 2 5 1d6

+3 - 3 8 1d8 +3 Psionic Order Feature 3 8 1d8 +3 - 4 8 1d8 +3 ASI 4 8 1d8 +4 - 5 11 1d8 +4 - 5 11 1d8 +4 - 6 11 1d10 +4 ASI 6 11 1d10 +5 - 7 14 1d10 +5 Psi-Shield, Psionic Order 7 14 1d10 +5 Feature 8 14 1d10 +5 - 8 14 1d10 +6 - 8 17 1d12 +6 - 9 17 1d12 +6 ASI 9 17 1d12 +6 Mind Mastery 10 17 1d12 Hit Points Hit Dice: 1d6 Hit Points at 1st Level: 6 + your Constitution modifier Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per Psion level after 1st

Proficiencies Armor: light armor Weapons: simple weapons Tools: None Saving Throws: Intelligence, Wisdom Skills: Choose 2 from Arcana, History, Insight, Medicine, Nature, Perception, and Religion.

Starting Equipment You start with the following items, plus anything provided by your background.

(a) a spear or (b) a mace (a) leather armor or (b) studded leather armor (a) a light crossbow and 20 bolts or (b) any simple weapon (a) a scholar's pack or (b) an explorer's pack Alternatively, you may start with 5d4 × 10 gp to buy your own equipment.

MulticlassingSample file Ability Score Minimum: Intelligence 13

Psionics are incapacitated or until you use another bonus action As a student of psionics, you can master and use psionic to choose a different focus benefit. disciplines, the rules for which appear at the end of this document. Psionics is a special form of magic use, You can have only one psychic focus benefit at a time distinct from spellcasting. and using the psychic focus of one discipline doesn't limit your ability to use other disciplines. Concentration Psionic Disciplines on a discipline follows the same rules as concentrating A psionic discipline is a rigid set of mental exercises that on a spell, including being able to concentrate on either allows a mystic to manifest psionic power. A mystic a focus or a spell, but not two simultaneously. For the masters only a few disciplines at a time. purpose of the Barbarian Rage feature, whilst raging you cannot use your focus. Reactivating a focus if you lose At 1st level, you know 1 psionic discipline of your choice. concentration takes a bonus action as usual. The Disciplines Known column of the Psion table shows the total number of disciplines you know at each level; Psionic Ability when that number goes up for you, choose a new Intelligence is your psionic ability for your psionic discipline. disciplines. You use your Intelligence modifier when In addition, whenever you gain a level in this class, you setting the saving throw DC for a psionic discipline or can replace one discipline you know with a different one when making an attack roll with one. of your choice. Psi save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Each Discipline contains a number of Psionic Powers Intelligence modifier that you use to manifest your psionic power. Discipline attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier Psionic Power You harbor a wellspring of psionic energy within Psionic Order yourself. This energy is represented by your Psionic At 1st level, you choose a Psionic Order from the list of Energy dice, which are each a d6. You have a number of available orders. Each order specializes in a specific these dice equal to twice your proficiency bonus + 1 approach to psionics. additional Psionic Energy die whenever your proficiency bonus increases (for example, at 1st level you have 5 Your order gives you features when you choose it at 1st psionic energy dice, 8 at 5th level and 11 at 9th). They level and additional features at 3rd, 6th, and 14th level. fuel various psionic powers you have, which are detailed below. Psionic Recovery At 2nd level, you learn to recover your mental energies Some of your powers expend the Psionic Energy die they in a shorter time span. Whenever you take a short rest, use, as specified in a power's description, and you can't you can regain a number of psi-dice equal to 1/4th your use a power if it requires you to use a die when your character level rounded up. dice are all expended. You regain all your expended Psionic Energy dice when you finish a long rest. In Telepathy addition, as a bonus action, you can regain one At 2nd level, your mind awakens to the ability to expended Psionic Energy die, but you can't do so again communicate via telepathy. You can telepathically speak until you finish a short or long rest. to any creature you can see within 90ft of you in this manner. You don’t need to share a language with the When you reach certain levels in this class, the size of creature for it to understand your telepathic messages your Psionic Energy dice increases: at 5th level (d8), but the creature must be able to understand at least 11th level (d10), and 17th level (d12). one language or be telepathic itself. A creature can communicate simple concepts and emotions in Psychic Focus response. If you already have a feature which grants you You can focus psionic energy on one of your psionic Telepathy, your range increases by 30ft. disciplinesSample to draw ongoing benefits from it. As a bonus file action, you can choose one of your psionic disciplines Ability Score Improvement and gain its psychic focus benefit, which is detailed in When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, that discipline's description. The benefit lasts until you and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of Unbearable: your psi-dice is treated as one size lower your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability to a minimum of a d4, but you may add an additional score above 20 using this feature psi-dice to a damage roll.

Psi-Shield Maelstrom At 14th level, your mind and body are more inseparable At 14th level, you have become a psionic storm. Those than ever. Whenever you take damage, you can use a with psionic disciplines see you as a mental maelstrom reaction and roll one psi-dice. For the rest of the turn, all that can be terrifying to behold. Your Psi-Dice size damage you take is reduced by the number rolled. maximum is now a d20 and you can concentrate on an additional discipline focus. Mind Mastery At 20th level, your mind has transcended the limitations Subclass: The Erudite order of your body. You stop ageing and can concentrate on 2 discipline focuses at the same time. Psions of the Erudite order are driven to plunge the depths of psionic powers. The most studious of the Psion orders, Erudites learn to harness their powers to increase Subclass: The Wilder Order their options, a fact that has necessitated developing a technique of drawing on a deeper pool of psionic power. Psions of the Wilder Order embrace the power of their Perhaps the most disciplined of the Psionic Orders, they raw, unfiltered emotions to devastating effect. A Wilder often draw the ire of local communities for their Psion represents a less controlled approach to Psionics, involvement with Aberrant powers who are all too being more vulnerable to burning out than other psions willing to teach psionic secrets. in exchange for sheer damage potential. The destructive elements are a common resource of the Wilder, and Diversification although Wilder orders do exist, the class generally At 1st level, Erudites learn to build a greater wellspring represents those who have not been trained in the use of of psionic disciplines. At the end of a long rest, you may Psionics. swap 1 or more of your known disciplines for an equal number of other disciplines. Outburst At 1st level, the uncontrolled powers of the Wilder are Excellence already flowing. On any damage roll made from a At 3rd level, your ability to focus allows you to adapt to psionic power, you may roll one additional psi-dice and changing circumstances like no other. Once per long add it to the total. rest, as a reaction when you would lose concentration on a discipline, you may spend 1 psionic energy dice to Mental Strain maintain concentration. At 3rd level, you learn master level Psionics without the mental safeguards. As a bonus action, you may spend Preparation one Psi-Dice to maintain concentration on an additional At 6th level your foresight enables you to save power for discipline focus until your next turn. You may do this when most needed. As a bonus action, you may roll your only once per long rest, and you take 1 psi-dice of psi-dice. Until your next turn, you may add the number psychic damage when you activate this effect. When this rolled to any one roll you make. effect ends, you decide which of your two focuses you lose concentration on. Omnichronal At 14th level, your sense of time becomes more fluid, Overwhelm with others noting your behaviour as if you know what At 6th level, the sheer strength of your emotions is is going to happen on an instinctual level. You gain enough to wear down their defences. As a bonus action, another use of a reaction per round, although this you can activate one of the following powers which last reaction must use a reaction listed in a psionic discipline. until the start of your next turn. UnstoppableSample: your psi-dice is treated as one size higher file to a maximum of a d12.

Subclass: The Synergist Order

Psions of the Synergist Order have been profoundly changed by their use of Psionics. The ability to share the mind on such an intimate level begins to challenge concepts such as individuality or the distinction between where one mind ends and another begins. Perhaps the most alien of the orders, Synergists are as terrifying as they are loyal, sometimes embodying behavior closer to a hive organism than a normal adventurer would.

Gestalt mind At 1st level, the Synergist begins to establish a link with another friendly creature. At the end of a long rest you may choose one willing creature with which to link, referred to as your link. Whilst linked, that friendly creature may use your psi-dice once a round for the following powers; Soul Repair: when you would receive healing, you may roll the psi-dice and add the result to the total health points recovered. Bolstered Soul: when you would roll for damage, you may roll a psi-dice and add it to the damage total after calculation.

Telepathic Teamwork At 3rd level your expanded sense of self has allowed you to communicate on a much deeper level. Whilst linked and within 60 feet of your link, as a bonus action you may see through them and cast disciplines from their space. Using this feature takes up your concentration.

Hive Tactics At 6th level, your extension of self enables you to better utilise your allies in combat. When you cast a psionic power that affects an allied creature, that creature may use their reaction to attack. If multiple creatures are targeted, you choose which one may take the attack.

Union At 14th level, you have truly become a collective entity. You may establish a link with 2 willing creatures who are simultaneously affected by Telepathic Teamwork. Also, you gain the power to become the link; as an action you enter the minds of up to 2 links as your body seemingly disappears. Whilst in this state, you cannot be harmed or receive status effects of any kind, but return to normal if one of your links is reduced to 0 hp, at which time you re-emerge within 60 feet of the link and lose half your hit points. Whilst in this state, you do not need to useSample concentration for the purposes of Telepathic file

Teamwork.

Disciplines and Manifesting

Psionic Disciplines are the psionic equivalent of spellcasting. An individual Discipline is comprised of Powers (class feature like abilities that use your psionic energy dice), Energy (a way to modify the Discipline by increasing/decreasing Psionic Energy Dice size) and a Focus (which behaves exactly like focusing on a spell).

Powers Powers behave as they do for the Psi-Warrior and Soul- Knife respective class features with few exceptions. When you learn a Discipline, you interact with that Discipline’s powers as if you had them as class features. Using a power is known as “manifesting”.

Energy When you use a Power, you can choose to increase or decrease your psi-dice size to modify the effect. For example, you may be able to increase the save DC of a power by lowering your psionic energy dice whilst lowering the DC would increase your psionic energy dice size. You cannot increase your psionic energy dice above a d12 or decrease it below a d4. Your psionic energy dice change in size uniformly with the exception of multiclassing (the rules for which are at the end of this document).

Focus Focus represents concentrating on a specific discipline and behaves as if you were concentrating on a spell. You do not need to concentrate on a Focus to use its discipline powers. Unlike spells, a Focus is usually indefinite in length unless otherwise stated. You can lose concentration on a focus in all the same circumstances that you could lose concentration on a spell.

Spending Psionic Energy Dice

Some Disciplines give you the option to spend Psionic

Energy Dice as described in the Discipline. If you are given the option to spend additional dice to the default effect, you can only spend additional dice equal to 1/3 your character level (rounded up).

Sample file