CT Only: searching for Psionics Institute -- how many times per "term"?

[Brandon C]

A River Tam character should come with psychosis and behavioral trigger points a-plenty. Everything has a price.

"Magic comes with a price"

 

[nightlamp]

A River Tam character should come with psychosis and behavioral trigger points a-plenty. Everything has a price.

:rofl:
Good point!

 

[nightlamp]

Very wise. In your shoes, I'd be proactive and tell anyone interested in psionics that whatever talents they're able to roll for will not be enough. They will need at least a few skills and a single term in certain careers can easily provide those skills.

If anyone still isn't convinced, go over the relevant sections of LBB:3 with them. First, remind them that they won't get every psionic talent and most likely won't be able to use each skill in the talent(s) they do possess thanks to strength limits.

Next, go over the costs to use each talent, the duration of the each use, and - most importantly - the recovery time associated with each use. For example, simply reading the surface thoughts of someone next to you for 60 seconds requires psi points which take two hours to recover.

Hopefully they'll get the point after reviewing LBB:3. Psionics in Traveller are fun, but they're not all powerful. Your players won't be teleporting around reading minds and juggling knives 24/7.

I'm going to go the extra-cautious route and try to not mention psionics at all during the chargen process. If someone persists, I'll definitely follow this advice -- very helpful.

I'm very certain you have the most sincere condolences of everyone on this forum.

Haha, I love it! I wonder how frequently this sort of request is made by new Traveller players (especially when pitched a Firefly-esque game?)

 

[Axe]

Player: My PC has Yoda blood! The PC can feel the power within.

Ref: You want to have psionics? You bet you can!


TTB page 115:

Penalties for Psionics: If an individual with psionic power and training is discovered by the public or the authorities, throw 2D for possible penalties. Throw 12+ for lobotomy, 10+ for lynching, 8+ for tarring and feathering, 6+ for imprisonment, and 4+ for deportation.

Don't worry about Psionics. I've used it since day one and have never had a problem with it tipping the balance. Psionics seems very "Spacey" to me. Psionics overpowering a game is very rare when you consider the following:

1) Average psionic strength is 6 (1st 4 year term), 5 (2nd 4 year term), 4...
2) A PC is not guaranteed to have any talents
3) A psionic insitute has to be found
4) Psionic ability improvement is not guaranteed (quickly, at least)
5) Some talents have drawbacks
6) Traveller is deadly. A psion may not live long, anyway
7) If in the Official Traveller Universe, the 3rd Imperium hunts unapproved psions.

The average PSIONIC STRENGTH is 6 (If a PC only serves a single term/age block (2D6-1), and gets worse with each term served). Not many players want to serve only one term in an attempt to maximize psionic strength, but some will take the chance. I have. A psion with average strength and telekinesis will max out at level 5 = move 1kg for 60 seconds and costs 5+Range points, then, they're done for a while. The highest psionic strength is 15 (with known drugs, anyway).


TTB:

These blocks correspond to the aging cycles. For example, a character who takes the examination at age 23 is in his second 4-year block, and has a DM of -2.

A Psion is not guaranteed to have any talents, even if they have a high psionic strength. Also, a PC may have all talents, but very low strength. Low psionic strength = low psionic level.

The player can chose one talent each throw. Each talent can only be rolled for once. 2D6-(1 per throw).

Percentage chance (roughly) to gain a picked talent by throw:

Throw​	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th
Telepathy	72	58	41	27	16	8
Clairvoyance	58	41	27	16	8	2
Telekinesis	58	41	27	16	8	2
Awareness	41	27	16	8	2	0
Teleportation	16	8	2	0	0	0
Special	16	8	2	0	0	0

 

[nightlamp]

Thanks for the advice everyone. As a quick follow-up, I'm happy to report that no River Tam wannabes showed up at our first session the other night!

 

[Whipsnade]

As a quick follow-up, I'm happy to report that no River Tam wannabes showed up at our first session the other night!

That's a bullet dodged!

That being said, please don't close the door on one of your players wanting to explore psionics. The search an institute alone is a wonderful "hook" and can lead to all sorts of wonderful role-playing opportunities. When they do finally find an institute, as Axe's nifty tables show, the chance that a PC will get campaign wrecking talent(s) is rather small.

My players never showed any interest in psionics sadly. I think they looked at the percentages, looked at the 3, 4, or 5 term PCs they preferred to play, and decided it wasn't worth the effort. As a referee I used psionic NPCs and my players often suspected, sometimes incorrectly, that psionics was in the picture. They never explored that aspect of the game sadly.

I am firmly convinced that our various campaigns missed out the chance of exciting play because of that lack of PC psionics so don't close that door unless you have to.

 

[nightlamp]

That's a bullet dodged!

That being said, please don't close the door on one of your players wanting to explore psionics. The search an institute alone is a wonderful "hook" and can lead to all sorts of wonderful role-playing opportunities. When they do finally find an institute, as Axe's nifty tables show, the chance that a PC will get campaign wrecking talent(s) is rather small.

My players never showed any interest in psionics sadly. I think they looked at the percentages, looked at the 3, 4, or 5 term PCs they preferred to play, and decided it wasn't worth the effort. As a referee I used psionic NPCs and my players often suspected, sometimes incorrectly, that psionics was in the picture. They never explored that aspect of the game sadly.

I am firmly convinced that our various campaigns missed out the chance of exciting play because of that lack of PC psionics so don't close that door unless you have to.

Yes, definitely! I did tell them that psionics are part of the setting, I just conveniently waited to do so until the characters had been made and the adventure had begun.

One player is interested in questing for a Psionics Institute, so it will be interesting to see how that develops.

 

[Brandon C]

Yes, definitely! I did tell them that psionics are part of the setting, I just conveniently waited to do so until the characters had been made and the adventure had begun.

One player is interested in questing for a Psionics Institute, so it will be interesting to see how that develops.

Just keep in mind that psionics are balanced only by being rare and stigmatized. A psi with bad intentions can do just about anything he wants as long as he's not the obvious cause. In D&D, a warrior has at least a small chance of resisting a wizard's spell with a saving throw. In traveller, unless a non-psi is wearing an artificial psi-shield, he gets no chance at all to resist a psi.