Psion

A class by KibblesTasty | version 1.2.1 Archetypes: Awakened | Unleashed | Transcended | Shaper

Disciplines: Enhancement | Projection | Telekinesis | Telepathy | Transposition | Psychokinetics

A large orc is flung
across the room, smashing through tables and chairs before hitting the wall with a thunderous crash, collapsing dazed. A human, her eyes still glowing with unearthly power, tosses a few extra coins on the bar. "Sorry for the mess. If he wakes up, tell him to try picking on someone his own size next time".

The prisoner's expression turns from defiant to puzzled as the interrogator asks no questions, merely stares at them silently. His puzzled expression turns worried as he finds himself, unbidden, recalling where he stashed the loot. "Under the stables behind the Rusty Hook Inn" the interrogator finally speaks, as the thief's expression becomes terrified.

"Ain't you... cold or somethin'?" the dwarf asks the elf as they trudge through the snow, eying her simple robe and bare feet. "I just think 'warm'" the elf replies with a distracted air. The dwarf snorts, a puff of chilled air. Typical elf nonsense. Except... they haven't frozen to death yet. "Say... could you think some 'warm' this way?" the dwarf asks hopefully. To the dwarfs surprise, the chill of the snow fades away completely "that's downright creepy... hey don't stop now! Was jus' sayin' it was creepy."

Psions are those who have tapped into a special otherworldy force, with the ability to actualize the power of their mind to accomplish impossible feats. Reading minds, lifting vast weights, and transcending physical limitations, they tend to inspire awe and terror in equal weight.

Powerful Minds
Since a psion's weapon is their mind, they are always a careless thought away from harming those around them. For a psion, the line between thinking and doing can be very thin, forcing them to keep their thoughts and emotions in check, lest their powers run amok. This leads to many of them developing odd behaviors or mannerisms to help them control their state of mind, frequently seeming quite eccentric to an outside observer.

Consider how your psion keeps their powers in check, and how much their power bleeds into their everyday life. How reading minds may effect their body language or habits. Do they add wood to the campfire from the comfort of their bedroll, or do they restrain themselves from using their power for trivial matters lest they slip up?

Misunderstood Power
In a world of widespread magic, many will assume a Psion to be a type of Sorcerer or Wizard, mistaking their powers for the common applications of magic. The common villager keeps only one mental category for the supernatural and creepy people that bend reality their will. But even among magic users, a Psion's powers will frequently be found unnerving.

It is often those who do understand magic that find a Psion’s abilities the most aberrant. A force that intersects the magical weave rather than obeys it, the nature of the power that the psion wields one can only contemplate with unease.

Creating a Psion
When creating a Psion, consider your character's background.How did you become a Psion? Were you born with latent powers? Or did something happen to you granting your powers? Or did you intentionally train yourself through rigorous mental exercise to leverage them? Consider how developing a rare and mysterious power would have affected your interactions with people.

Consider what your purpose is with your newfound powers, or how you plan to use your powers. Do you intend to be taken for a Wizard casting magic, or are you freely open about being of a... different nature?

Quick Build
You can make a Psion quickly by following these suggestions. First, make Intelligence your highest ability score, followed by Dexterity or Constitution. Second, choose the Acolyte, Far Traveler or Hermit background.

Hit Points

 * Hit Dice: 1d6 per Psion level
 * Hit Points at 1st Level: 6 + your Constitution modifier
 * Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d6 (or 4) + your Constitution modifier per psion level after 1st

Proficiencies

 * Armor: Light armor
 * Weapons: Simple weapons
 * Saving Throws: Wisdom, Intelligence
 * Skills: Choose two from Deception, History, Insight, Intimidation, Investigation, Medicine, Perception, or Religion.

Equipment
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
 * (a) a quarterstaff or (b) a dagger
 * (a) leather armor
 * (a) a scholar's pack or (b) an explorer's pack

Psionic Archetype
At 1st level, you pick the archetype of Psion you embody, choosing from Awakened, Unleashed, Transcended, or Shaper, each of which are are detailed at the end of the class description. Your choice grants you features at 1st level, and again at 3rd, 6th, 10th, and 14th level.

Psionic Disciplines
You are granted access to a psionic discipline (such as Telepathy or Telekinesis) by your chosen archetype. A psionic discipline comes with a passive feature that expands your characters capabilities and an active psionic power that can be modified and empowered with Psi Points. Additionally you can use your discipline in more detailed applications to recreate the effect of certain spells, listed at the end of the discipline description. At 3rd level you can select a second discipline, and 18th level you can select a 3rd discipline.

Psionic powers are suppressed by anti-magic field and can be dispelled with dispel magic, but are only affected by counterspell if recreating the effect of a spell. Any check required to dispel magic, counterspell or identify a spell being cast with Psionics is made at disadvantage unless the caster also has the Psionics feature. The spell detect magic will detect the usage of psionics, but not their nature - it will show up as a mysterious untyped power, even if being used to generate the effect of a spell.

When recreating a spell through a Psionic effect (using a Psionic discipline to cast the spell) the spell has no Material or Verbal components, but always requires Somatic components and causes the Psion to vibrantly glow with the otherworldly psionic energies they are controlling.

Psi Points
Starting at 1st level, you gain access to Psi Points used to fuel psionic discipline powers and effects. You have a number of Psi Points equal to your Psion level, and regain all spent points after completing a short or long rest. You can spend a number of Psi Points equal to half your Psion level (rounded up) at a time (for example, at level 5, you can spend 3 psi points on psionic power or cast a spell with cost of 3 psi points).

Psionic Discipline
Psionic Power save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier

Psionic Power attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier

Psionic Talents
Starting at 2nd level, you gain access to a Psionic Talent allowing you to further specialize. Pick two talents from the list of Psionic talents presented at the end of the class description. You can pick a new Psionic talent at 5th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, and 18th level. When you level up, you can replace a Psionic talent you have previously selected with a different option.

Second Discipline
When you reach 3rd level, you can select a second Psionic Discipline from the list of Psionic Disciplines. You cannot select a Discipline you already know. You gain all features of a Psionic Discipline when selecting it.

Ability Score Improvement
When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.

Psionic Mastery
When you reach 5th level, you gain mastery of your psionic powers. At the start of your turn you get 1 free Psi Point. This can be spent to empower Psionic Disciplines, but not to recreate spells or fuel Psionic Talents. If you have any unspent free Psi Points left at the end of your turn, then they are lost.

At 11th level, this is increased to 2 free Psi points, and at 17th level, this is increased to 3. Points can be split between different abilities.

Innate Psionics
At 11th level, you gain the ability to exert great feats of psionic power. Choose one 6th-level spell from the Psion spell list as an innate ability. You can use this innate ability once. You must finish a long rest before you can do so again. At higher level, you gain more innate abilities of your choice that can be used in this way: one 7th level spell at 13th level, one 8th level spell at 15th level, and one 9th-level spell at 17th level. You regain all uses of your Innate Psionics when you finish a long rest.

Innate Psionics are well beyond the normal scope of your powers and are not restricted by what disciplines you have. Unlike psionic disciplines, they require any component the spell requires.

Third Discipline
When you reach 18th level, you can select a third Psionic Discipline from the list of Psionic Disciplines. You cannot select a Discipline you already know. You gain all features of a Psionic Discipline when selecting it.

Ascension
Starting at 20th level, if you die you can choose to become a incorporeal entity on the ethereal plane at the spot you died in the material plane at the start of your next turn. This entity has the physical ability scores (Strength, Dexterity, Constitution) and abilities of a Ghost, but has your mental ability scores (Intelligence, Wisdom, Charimsa) and your Psion class abilities.

When you take this form your current and maximum hit points becomes that of the ghost while you are in the form, if you have less than 10 psi points, have 10 psi points. While in this form you cannot rest to regain spent abilities. If you exhaust all Psi Points or the ghost is destroyed, you die as a normal creature would.

Animated Projections
Prerequisite: 10th level Psion, Projection Discipline"As an action, you can project a swarm of ethereal objects. You can cast expend 5 psi points to cast animate objects but it creates new ethereal objects rather than animating existing ones."

Astal Swap
Prerequisite: Projection and Transposition Disciplines"As an action, you can expend 1 psi point to swap places with your Astral Construct. You can expend 3 psi points to cause the effect of Exploding Phase Rift where you or your Astral Construct arrive."

Aura Sight
"You gain the ability to psionically see a creature's aura. By spending 1 psi point you can determine if a creature is under the influence of magic and what school it is, or if a creature is under the influence of psionics. A shape shifter or disguised creature makes a Charisma (Decepction) check against your Psionics save, on failure you can see their true nature in their aura."

Awaken Mind
Prerequisite: 9th level Psion"You gain the ability to cast awaken without expending a spell slot. Once you cast this spell in this way, you cannot cast it again until you complete a long or short rest."

Body Control
Prerequisite: Enhancement Discipline"You gain the ability to use your alter self ability at-will without expending psi points. Additionally, you can cast enlarge/reduce on yourself for half the psi point cost it would normally cost."

Controlled Power
"You gain the ability to suppress the glow and somatic component of a Psionic Power. You can expend 2 psi points to use a power without a visual sign or somatic component. Each time you do this, the cost of doing so doubles until you complete a short or long rest."

Divided Mind
Prerequisite: Divide Self Spell Known"You can sustain your divide self spell by one additional round by expending 2 psi points at the start of your turn."

Empathy
"You can psionically link yourself to other creatures. As a reaction to a creature taking psychic, necrotic, or radiant damage you can grant them resistance to the damage taken, but take damage equal to the damage they take (after resistance). If the damage would inflict any further negative status effect on the target, you can choose for that effect to affect you instead."

Elemental Aegis
Prerequisite: Psychokinetics Discipline"As an action, you surround yourself with a swirling shield of fire, ice, or lightning. You gain temporary hit points equal to your Psion level. Creatures that strike you while you have these temporary hitpoints take 1d4 damage of the shield type chosen.""Once you use this talent, you cannot use it again until you complete a short or long rest."

Elemental Weapon
Prerequisite: Psychokinetics Discipline"As part of taking the attack action, you can empower a melee weapon you are holding with elemental energy. The next time before the end of your turn you deal damage to a creature with that weapon, you can treat the attack as an Elemental Blast, adding the Elemental Blast modifiers to that attack as if using the power (you can use Psionic Mastery on this). This does not deal the base damage of Elemental Blast, but any added damage causes the additional effects of Elemental Blast damage effects to occur."

Hallucination
Prerequisite: Telepathy Discipline"If a target fails a saving throw against Telepathic Intrusion, you can use your bonus action to implant an false sensory input in their mind that lasts until the start of the next turn, with the effect of having cast minor illusion and creating an illusion of your choice that affects only that creature."

Kinetic Slam
Prerequisite: Telekinesis Discipline"When you take the Telekinetic Force action, you can unleash it as a blast of psionic power. You make an attack roll using your psionic power attack modifier, and if it hits, the target automatically fails their saving throw against the power. You can only select the Hammering modifier when you use it in this way."

Matter Made Real
Prerequisite: Projection Discipline"You gain the ability to turn your mental projections into real objects. You can cast fabricate and wall of stone expending psi points equal to the spell level."

Mental Image
Prerequisite: Telepathy Discipline"You gain the ability to use your Telepathy to project images into the minds of creatures with perfect clarity, interposing it over their reality. The spells silent image, major image, hallucinatory terrain and seeming are added to your Telepathic mastery alternate effects list."

Mental Might
Prerequisite: 10th level Psion, Telekinesis Discipline"You learn to focus your mental grip. You can make an Intelligence (Athletics) check when you make an Athletics check. Additionally, when you initiate a grapple in this method, you can attempt to grapple a creature within 30 feet. Maintaining a grapple like this requires Concentration, as if concentrating on a spell, and the grapple ends if concentration is lost."

Mind Devourer
Prerequisite: 5th level Psion"You gain the ability to cast psychic drain for 2 psi points. Additionally, whenever a creature within 10 feet of you that had an Intelligence score of 6 or higher dies, you can expend your reaction to draw in its psionic power, regaining 1d4 hit points and 1 expended psi point."

Mind Rider
"As an action, you can touch a willing creature to see through its eyes and hear what it hears for the next hour, gaining the benefits of any Special Senses that the creature has. During this time, you are deaf and blind with regard to your own Senses. You can end this effect at any time. While this is active, the creature has advantage against being charmed or frightened."

Perfect Focus
Prerequisite: 10th level Psion You can enter a state of extreme focus. Your concentration is no longer interrupted by using a second ability that requires concentration, but your movement speed is reduced to zero while concentrating on more than one effect and you make any concentration check with disadvantage. If you move or fail a concentration check, one of your concentration effects ends. If both dice of the concentration check would fail, you lose both concentration effects.

Phase Slash
Prerequisite: Transposition Discipline"When you use your Phase Rift power, you can make one melee weapon attack as a bonus action against a target you pass through with your Phase Rift."

Phase Shot
Prerequisite: Transposition Discipline"You can use your Phase Rift power on an object. The effects are the same, but you remain in place and the object you use the ability on is transported."

Physical Surge
Prerequisite: Enhancement Discipline"When you are under the effect of Enhancing Surge, you can choose to make your Strength or Dexterity ability score equal to your Intelligence modifier ability score until the effect ends."

Potent Psionics
"When a target passes the saving throw against a damaging Psionic Power (granted by a Psionic Discipline), they still take half the damage, but suffer no other effects."

Projected Nightmares
Prerequisite: Shaper Subclass"You gain an additional option for Boundless Imagination to apply to your Astral Construct: Horrifying Nightmare: Creatures that start their turn within 5 feet of your Astral Construct must make a Wisdom saving throw against your Psionics DC or become frightened of your Astral Construct until the start of their next turn.""Once they have saved against this, they are immune to the effect for the next 24 hours or until you summon a new Astral Construct."

Psi Crystal
"You gain the ability to impart part of your mind into crystal. You can expend 2 psi points to cast the find familiar spell but your familiar takes on the statics of a psi crystal (below) and the material component required is a crystal worth 10 gp instead of the normal material components. The Psi Crystal gains your mental stats. If the psi crystal is destroyed, you gain its memories as your own. While you have a Psi Crystal active, as a bonus action, you can deactivate it to regain 2 expended psi points." {| class="article-table"
 * colspan="6" |

Psi Crystal
"When you summon a Psi crystal, you can store a fragment of your personality, that you can then release by shattering the crystal. Select one of the following when summoning a psi crystal."
 * colspan="6" |Tiny construct, unaligned
 * colspan="6" |
 * colspan="6" |Armor Class 20
 * colspan="6" |Hit Points 2 (1d4)
 * colspan="6" |Speed fly (hover) 20 ft
 * colspan="6" |
 * STR
 * DEX
 * CON
 * INT
 * WIS
 * CHA
 * 1 (-5)
 * 10 (0)
 * 10 (0)
 * 10 (0)
 * 10 (0)
 * 10 (0)
 * colspan="6" |
 * colspan="6" |Skills Perception +4
 * colspan="6" |Damage Vulnerabilities bludgeoning
 * colspan="6" |Damage Resistances piercing, slashing
 * colspan="6" |Condition Immunities blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, stunned
 * colspan="6" |Senses blindsight 60 ft. (blind beyond this radius), passive Perception 14
 * colspan="6" |Languages understands the languages of its creator but can't speak
 * }
 * colspan="6" |
 * colspan="6" |Skills Perception +4
 * colspan="6" |Damage Vulnerabilities bludgeoning
 * colspan="6" |Damage Resistances piercing, slashing
 * colspan="6" |Condition Immunities blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, stunned
 * colspan="6" |Senses blindsight 60 ft. (blind beyond this radius), passive Perception 14
 * colspan="6" |Languages understands the languages of its creator but can't speak
 * }
 * colspan="6" |Condition Immunities blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, stunned
 * colspan="6" |Senses blindsight 60 ft. (blind beyond this radius), passive Perception 14
 * colspan="6" |Languages understands the languages of its creator but can't speak
 * }
 * colspan="6" |Languages understands the languages of its creator but can't speak
 * }
 * }
 * Courage. When you make a saving throw against the Frieghtend condition, you can use your reaction to shatter the crystal to gain advantage on the save.
 * Cowardice. When your Psi Crystal is within 30 of you and a creature comes within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to shatter the crystal releasing that emotion and immediately move your movement speed away from the creature without taking an attack of opportunity.
 * Cruelty. When your Psi Crystal is within 30 feet of a creature that takes damage, you can use your reaction to shatter the crystal releasing that emotion and causing the creature take additional damage equal to your Psion level.
 * Sympathy. When your Psi crystal is within 30 feet of you and another creature, if that creature takes damage, you can use your reaction shatter the crystal relasing that emotion and granting the creature resistance to that damage and take an equal amount of damage to the damage it takes.

Psionic Defenses
"You gain a way to defend yourself using your psionic powers. This can be done via Telepathy (affecting creatures that would try to attack you), Telekinetics (redirecting attacks that would hit you), or Enhancement (increasing your durability and agility). While you are not wearing any armor, your Armor Class equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Intelligence modifier."

Psionic Weapon
"As a bonus action, you can expend 2 psi points to imbue a weapon you are holding with psionic energy. For the next minute, once per turn when you deal damage with that weapon, you can deal an additional 1d6 psychic damage.""The damage increases by 1d6 when you reach 5th level in Psion (2d6), 11th level in Psion (3d6), and 17th level in Psion (4d6)."

Schism
Prerequisite: 5th level Psion"You can spend a psi point to temporarily subdivide your mind to do two things at once until the end of your turn. While are dividing your mind, if you use your action on a psionic power or spell granted by a psionic discipline, you can use your bonus action to use a psionic power. The two powers share your per use psi point limit between them."

Surging Power
Prerequisite: Enhancement Discipline"Your power is at your finger-tips. When you target only yourself with Enhancing Surge, you can use the power as a bonus action instead of an action."

Telepathic Link
Preqrequisite: Telepathy Discipline"Your telepathic communication gains an unlimited range as long as you have communicated with the creature within the last day, and the target willingly maintains the link. However, it takes an action to focus to communicate over distance if you cannot see the target (or for the target to communicate with you if they cannot see you)."

Telekinetic Weapons
Prerequisite: Telekinesis Discipline"You gain the ability to levitate and fling weapons with you mind. You can mentally fling a nearby weapon that isn't being held, or a weapon you are holding or carrying or controlling with telekinetic hands. Make a ranged spell attack, on hit, deal the weapon's damage plus your Intelligence modifier. The range is 30 feet, and reduced to 15 feet if the weapon has the Heavy property or increased to 60 feet if the weapon has the Light property.""When you take this action, you can expend a psi point to fling an additional weapon in this manner."

Transcendent Focus
Prerequisite: Perfect Focus (Talent)"While in a state of perfect focus (concentrating on two spells), you gain a magical flying speed of 10 feet instead of a movement speed of 0 feet. Moving with this speed does not interrupt Perfect Focus."

Unseen Sight
"You no longer need to see targets of Psionic powers, so long as they are within range and you know where they are."

Quickened Mind
Prerequisite: Schism (Talent)"You can expend an additional psi point when using Schism to quicken your thoughts. When you do so, the action and the bonus action no longer share a per use psi point limit."