Customer Reviews

Psionics Handbook (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.0 Fantasy Roleplaying)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Remember Psionics? In the original AD&D, it was supposed to be a new frontier: Mental powers, dueling minds, and a truly fabulous mystique. Then came Attack points, Defense points, Psi Strength points, Major & Minor Disciplines, combat resolved in segments, and a never-ending flood of supplemental rules.

Most people tried, and tried hard to like psionics, but the old system just drove people crazy. Try as they might, the system was a clumsy add-on, and sooner or later DMs and players would tire of patching the holes.

Well not anymore...

The new Psionics Handbook blows the doors off the old system, turning a great concept into a great set of rules. Players no longer have to get extremely lucky on a percentile roll to get psionics ("Honest! I rolled a 98...really!") WoTC has codified the house rule that most people used "If the DM allows you to have it, you can have it." In so doing they have eliminated the second most lied about roll in D&D (right after exceptional strength *grin*). Players can now get psionics as a member of one of two classes. The two psionic classes are the Psion (which is then subdivided into disciplines much like schools in magic) and the Psychic Warrior. The Psion is a full-blown mentalist, weak in physical combat while having the greatest range of powers. The Psychic Warrior is more capable in the physical world, with greater access to feats and less to psionic powers. Psionic prestige classes are also included for more variety.

Characters now have one pool of power points, which they use for mental combat as well as to fuel their mental powers. Players will be surprised with how few points that characters will start with (3 if you're lucky), but since the 0-level disciplines can be used up to three times a day for free-the 1st level psionic character is on par with a starting spellcaster. Characters can get bonus power points with higher abilities and the bonus for these high scores increases as you gain levels, which is nice. At first level, your 18 gives you a measly 1 extra power point, but at third level, you get the 1 + 3 more points for a total of 4 bonus points. This scaling of bonuses keeps the low levels from being dominated by stat-mongers, and provides continuing benefits on a kind of "installment plan." Very balanced, and nicely done, (although more than one player is going to be confused by the table that spells out the bonuses).

Mental combat will seem familiar to veterans, but only for a moment. The same attack and defense modes are back, but now each attack mode targets a different attribute. You no longer burn off the other guy's power points - you lower their abilities when you penetrate their defenses. For example, Ego Whip now does temporary strength damage, making your target weaker and weaker (this could have interesting side effects if your target was say, wearing heavy armor while standing on a ledge). The attacker's roll determines the saving throw DC of the defender, with some defense modes granting mental "hardness" which can partially absorb damage that gets through. Non-psionic targets are thankfully made less vulnerable to mental attack, and all damage to non-psionics is converted to rounds of stun (which can be plenty dangerous).

New psionic feats offer a psionic character bewildering options, from ways to beef up your mental attacks to the ability to run up walls (players with visions of Shu Lien or Li Mu Bai should rest assured - the building blocks of Wudan mountain are in this book *grin*). It will be hard for low-level characters to balance their needs for feats from the Player's Handbook with the new psionic feats since many of the really desirable new feats have multiple prerequisites.

The psionic powers section mirrors the spell descriptions in the PH. The power levels run from zero to nine, and the powers of a given discipline like telepathy range from things as mundane as Missive's one-way telepathic messages at level 0, to the jaw-dropping power of Thrall (PERMANENT mental domination of the target) at level 9. A possible criticism of many of these powers is that many look very much like psionic copies of spells from the PH. This is very true in some cases, but it is easy to see that these duplications are need-based. Plus, there are plenty of psionic-only powers to dazzle your players.

The psionic items add a very nice flavor to the game as well. Power stones, crystal capacitors (think of them as mental batteries), and my personal favorite: psychic tattoos. Sure the stones and tattoos are essentially scrolls for the mentalist, but they give a palpable feeling of "other-ness" to a character (and let's face it, if you're using psionics-you want to be different). Rules are included for the creation, upkeep and use of each of the items - so that they can become part of the world, not merely a character's inventory.

Statistics for new psionic monsters are provided, with some old favorites like the Githyanki and Githzerai making their return. Particularly irksome is the absence of some Mind Flayer psionic statistics. Given how frequently the ilithids are mentioned in the book, some NPC versions of the new classes using mind flayers would be very useful.

Perhaps the best thing that WoTC has done with these rules was to integrate them with the games core rules. Rules are given for using psionics on non-psionic creatures, the effect of magic resistance on psionics, spells vs. psionics and a host of other issues that used to drive DMs bananas. Guidelines are even given for making psionics entirely separate from the magic rules (which is how many will want to play, although it has startling effects on gameplay).

Simply put, psionics is back in a big way. Make it a rarity or the basis of your campaign, the rules will finally hold their own.

The Psionics Handbook is excellent. It introduces two new classes: the Psion and Psychic Warrior, which are well thought out and mesh with the rest of the Dungeons and Dragons d20 system. The Psionics Handbooks also includes new feats, new skills, psionic monster and a whole host of psionic powers. Third edition psionics seamlessly mesh with the core rules. Also, psionicists are now balanced with the other classes, so a character with psionic abilities will no longer lord it over the rest of the party. I know this will be a disappointment to power gamers everywhere, but Wizards has really worked hard to ensure that the d20 system is a zero sum game. It is nearly impossible to unbalance, unless your DM lets you! In 3rd Ed., psionics is similar to the magic system, so you do not have to learn a whole new sub-system of rules to get psionics up and running in your campaign.

The artwork in the book is great, but sparse, and the graphic design is second to none in the role-playing industry. There are a few typographical errors in the book. Also, WoTC did away with the underlines on each page. I thought this feature made the books look more like ancient tomes, but I think WoTC must have recieved some strong feedback against the underlines. Aside from a few niggling details that I did not like, I think the Psionics Handbook is a welcome addition to any D&D gamer's library.

This book introduces a new class, the psionic warrior, as well as reviving a fun one from 2nd edition. The psions from 3rd edition are very different from the ones from 2nd. PSPs, now power points, are seriously reduced in number, and powers are divided into levels like spells. Each discipline has a stat linked to it, and the requirements for using a power besides power points to spare are that you have 10 + the level of the power in the linked stat. This book contains new feats for both of the psionic classes and the non-psionics, and some feats that are available only to characters with psionic powers. Also, there are several cool prestige classes, including one that can create a psychic weapon at will. Some powers make a comeback from 2nd, but there are many new powers, psionic items, artifacts, and creatures that have never been seen. This book rocks.

Upon first hearing that WOTC was redoing the Psionics system for 3rd edition - before near anything else - I was extremely disappointed. Many players fooled around with Psionics in 2nd edition and it was just a headache.

Not this time. The book is very straightforward and easy to read. Psionic powers use "PSPs" - psionic points - to work and a character gets x many points per day. Powers, of course, have a point cost and are organized by level (just like spells). The addition of psionics is painless to any campaign, and doesn't cause a power shift as it oft did in 2nd.

The books not too big, but all the information is useful. It's not like "The Complete X Handbook" where a player only really cares about a quarter of the information. Everything here is a useful addition. It includes the psionics rules, prestiege classes, a magical item section, and a "monstrous manual" section as well. A good purchase if you want to add yet another type of magic to your campaign.

The 2nd Edition `Complete Book of Psionics' almost ruined mental abilities in general for me. It was one of the most poorly thought-out supplements for the AD&D system, supplanted only by the `Complete Book of Elves'. It was unbalanced and mechanically inept, and prone to abuse by munchkins and bad DMs everywhere. I ran a heavily modified 2nd Edition psionic system in a Dark Sun campaign, and I still thought it was awful. Suffice it to say that anything would have been an improvement. At the same time I have always been of two minds about psionics in a fantasy setting- Deryni books notwithstanding, the realm of psi has always seemed better suited to science fiction than swords and sorcery, but for better or for worse, here it is. And it's hard cover, too.

The 160-page `Psionics Handbook' is a PH for mentalists. It is laid out almost exactly like the new Player's Handbook, so you will find it familiar almost instantly. Starting first with classes, of which there are only two- the Psion and the Psychic Warrior. The former is a sort of generalist psi, and one who specializes in one of the six Disciplines, but may choose from any so long as they give priority to their chosen discipline. Like mages and sorcerers, they have distributed powers from first to ninth level, and they maintain the `Power Point' system as a carry over from the 2nd Edition version, only this time they handled it right. One of the biggest mitigating elements of the Psion character class is the d4 for Hit Points, again, much like a wizard.

The Psychic Warrior on the other hand is a more combat oriented character, who while possessing numerous psychic powers up to 6th level, still can't hold a candle to a standard warrior in raw combat potential. Unfortunately, the other carry over from 2nd Edition is that these characters do not have to learn or be taught their next level powers- i.e. once they obtain a level where new abilities are gained- 3rd, 5th, 7th, and so on, the player simply selects the psionic powers they want their character to have and voila, they do. No time is spent learning them, acquiring arcane psionic lore or otherwise. Wise DMs will nuke this instantly and make their psionic characters learn new powers in a similar fashion that a magic user must undergo in order to obtain a new spell(s).

The psionic powers section in many ways mirrors spells out of the players handbook, and often powers not covered by spells are mishandled. Danger Sense, for example, protects you from traps-like spikes or pits, but does nothing to warn you about a potential ambush. Combat Sense grants you a +2 bonus to strike a foe, but no insight into what that foe plans to do-the traditional working of a combat sense power. Other spells imitate spells like Grease, Spider Climb, Charm Person, and Shape Change, etc. On the other hand they have cleaned up and simplified the psionic combat section until it both works and makes sense.

In monster section we have a cast of old favorites like the brain mole, intellect devourer and the githyanki, plus the addition of a Dark Sun monster, the Caller in Darkness, and the completely ridicules `Temporal Filcher' which players should laugh at until the DM who introduces it takes it away and apologizes for using such an insipid monster.

As will all things D&D, application of judicious common sense is required so that non-psionic characters are not overshadowed by those that have psionics. Powers, Skills and Feats all need to be examined by players and DMs alike to make sure that they will only enhance the game, not unbalance it in favor of psionics. D&D is a magical setting and thusly magic should be more common and better understood than psi, and even ultimately perhaps more powerful. That does not mean that there is no place for one or two psionic characters in a well-run, well-balanced campaign. This book is quite good.

Ever since 1st edition D&D people have been trying to add psionics to the game. In first edition 1 in every 100 characters would have psionics and would become a power character. In 2nd edition they made it harder to have psionics but toned them down so they weren't as ridiculously overpowered. However, the "addition" of psionic powers has always felt like just that; an addition that is tacked on and exists outside the normal rules rather than within it. In 3rd edition that has all been solved by this wonderful book as WoTC adds psionics almost seamlessly to the world of D&D. First off, the addition of psionic character classes takes out the randomness of psionics from previous editions. Now anyone can be a psionicist. This is also somewhat problematic, as there are no drawbacks to be a psionic character other than susceptibility to psionic attacks. The powers are interesting however most are knock offs of mage spells but some unique ones are really neat. Psionic combat is no longer an irritating spectacle and is quite simple to work out. Also nonpsionic characters no longer have to fear being burned by even a 1st level character with a psionic attack form. How psionics are integrated into the D&D setting is wonderful. They are in some ways like another form of magic as both magic and psionics can affect one another. This adds character and makes keeping track of rules easier for the DM. Not to mention the endless roleplaying possibilities for exploring how the two interact. The addition of psionic items is a nice touch. While I feel they went a bit overboard as most of these items are rather powerful, they can easily be altered and toned down to fit nicely in any campaign. The prestige classes are mostly really obvious and not well planned. The Slayer is interesting and so is the Metamind, but the others are tacky or really overplayed. The psionic creatures section is somewhat confusing as while they include a bunch of old favorites, they don't ever update the Mind Flayer they always talk about throughout the book. Overall the book is excellent with a few minor points detracting from it. The lack of updated Mind Flayers, the shallow prestige classes and the copied feel of the powers keep this book from being excellent but it a great buy. Although WoTC needs to fire the people in charge of pricing their books as this book is half the size of the core books but about 7 dollars more.

In first edition, Psionics were practically not there. Nobody I know played them. In second edition, a somewhat workable Psionics Handbook came out, but the Characters were either too weak or too powerful, depending on how they were made. Very few seemed to be balanced. Then Skill and Powers came out, with a new Psionics system, and most people just scratched their heads and continued playing with the original 2ed Psionics Book. Now we have a Psionics book that seems to be able to create characters that are on par with any other character and a system that works within the confines of the existing system.

That said, if you play with the "default" rules, you end up with "just" another type of magic using class. By default, Psionics and Magic work on each other now (Dispel Magic will work on Psionic, Negate Psionics will also work on Magic). This balances the game a little better. Psionic combat is simplified, that's a good thing. All this just makes the impression on me that Wizards of the Coast has just implemented the third magic using variation. You have the traditional Memorize Spells (Wizard), the often used No Memorization Required (Sorcerer), and now the most frequent alternative to memorizing, Spell Points (Psion).

If you continue the analogy, you gain in level flexibility (You can use a lot of low level, or a few high level powers or a mix), but lose overall number of powers (Less than a wizard AND sorcerer) and lose number oftimes a day you can use your powers ( Less than Sorcerer), except if you are relatively high level, you can just become the "Concusion Machine Gun". What this means is that unlike Spells, Powers generally don't have a level variable for damage. A Power may do 5d6 of Damage where as an equivalent Spell may do 1d6 per level up to a certain number of dice. That was a good call on the designer's part I think.

I have two problems with the book. Bonus power points from ability scores aren't really explained well, and the sample NPCs (a la the DMG) don't seem to have their Power Points calculated the same way across the 6 sub classes of Psion (one subclass for each ability score). According to what I can tell, all of the subclasses should have 3 Power Points at 1st level. My second problem is that its HARDCOVER. HARDCOVER is bad when you are a DM who already has too many books to carry around. And to be honest, WotC bindings dont seem to be any better on hardcover books than softcover. My Psionics Handbook weighs more than the 3d edition Shadowrun book that I own, but is only about 1/2 the length. These are both minor quiblings tho.

Overall, if you want to have extraordinary abilites, but don't want to be a Wizard or Sorcerer, Psionics is now a good alternative. And if you don't want to be a Fighter/Wizard, Psychic Warrior is a good balance between physical prowess and special powers. This system should integrate into any campaign without disrupting it on a pure mechanics basis.

As a long-time Dungeons and Dragons player, I've long been of the belief that D&D needed psionics as much as many people needed another hole in their head. In general, while it was a good idea, the mechanics usually made you want to throw your dice through a wall.

However, the entire Dungeons and Dragons line has been fixed... no, better than fixed. Torn down and almost rewritten from scratch, and the Psionics Handbook is no exception. The rules that used to make me cringe and whimper and throw lots of d20's unnecessarily has been streamlined to actually WORK. And boy, does it ever.

I _highly_ recommend this supplement - my only gripe about it is that this book is much thinner than the Players Handbook and the DM's Guide, yet more expensive. In terms of content, though... top notch.

Though, frankly, the last few systems have been, well, crap. "Why do I have to roll to activate my powers when wizards and clerics don't?" How on Earth did they come up with a "Mental THAC0"?

This book takes the approach that psionics is another form of magic, and so you can use spell resistance to save yourself. This is a rather nice treatment, and fairly balanced.

There are several sections. There are the base character classes, the psion and the psychic warrior; the psion concentrates on psionic abilities, while the psychic warrior is a fighter who has some small abilities. We get rules for using psionics (every attribute is important), a nifty power list that looks amazingly like a spell list (because it is...pretty much), psionic items (Green Destiny, from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, would be a psionic weapon), new prestige classes (like illithid-hunters), and creepy-crawlies to kill. The githyanki and githzerai make it into D&D3, though, sadly, the thought eater is no longer a platypus. Pity.

What's good? Almost everything. Unlike a lot of people, I like the presentation of the 3rd ed. books, and this is no exception. It's a very good treatment of psionics, there are neat abilities, and it's just such a good gestalt it's not funny. I absolutely love the psychic warrior class.

Bad things? Well, for one thing, it really should be only... For another, well, some of the higher-level psion abilities I'm told are overpowered, but I'm not that convinced of it. The psychic warrior's abilities tend to be, um, oddly placed; most tend to be strength-based, but I'd like a greater blend of wisdom-, dex-, and con-based powers, for that Jedi feel.

All in all, this is a great book. Try and get it someplace you have a discount, though.

Well, before reading this book I had decided to run my campaign without psionics. I didn't bother to buy this book because of many of the reviews but now I've finally got it..And I'm surprised by how well done it is. A few parts of the classes are confusing, along with some of the psionic abilities named the same as their wizardly counterpart -.- But other then this it is extremely well done, with a few very interesting monsters, 4 interesting prestige classes, and ideas of Illithid being presented with Psion as their favored class (from now on I will make 1 out of 3 Illithid with at least 1 Psion level) The point system is nice, but looks like it could be a little confusing.
And something else I was worried about was the manifestations of the powers. They are now accompanied by some sort of sign.. They are all well done, and make it so you can easily tell this isn't some Wizard spell with flashy lights. Some of the 'signs' are a loud, screeching noise, eyes glowing and my least favorite, a bunch of ectoplasmic goo covering everyone (lol).
All in all, a good book that could have been presented a little better, but the Psionic system is A+.