Psion (Dungeons & Dragons)
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| Base classes from Player's Handbook |
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Barbarian |
| Additional/Alternative base classes |
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Archivist |
| NPC Classes |
| Unearthed Arcana generic classes |
| Prestige classes |
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, psion (3E) or psionicist (2E) is one of the optional character classes. A psion is a versatile class, capable of combat and of using psionic powers. The Psionics Handbook covers the game mechanics of psions.
Contents |
[edit] First Edition
Psionic abilities were first introduced to the game in the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons First Edition Dungeon Master's Guide, which presented them as an optional ability available to many monsters and to players who could get lucky rolls for psionic "wild talents". Psionics were removed from the game's core rulebooks in AD&D Second Edition, but were reintroduced as an entirely optional system in the Complete Psionics Handbook. In addition to psionic monsters and wild talents, the psionicist was introduced, as were numerous new and revised psionic powers.
[edit] Second Edition
The Complete Psionics Handbook presented the class as "the masters of body and mind". This class combined a slightly physically stronger character than a wizard with a variety of powers that were chiefly non-direct damage-dealing powers. This class used power points (PP) to manifest powers. This class also used a "power roll" upon manifesting powers, with a certain roll required to manifest a power and specific rolls having alternate effects, i.e. rolling exactly the power score resulted in an increased effect, while rolling a natural 20 resulted in an unusual effect, often detrimental in nature to the psionicist. The power selection for this class was later expanded by the card-based Deck of Psionic Might supplement. The Dark Sun campaign setting used psionics as a core part of its setting's rules; in the world of Athas (home to the Dark Sun setting), every character and most monsters possessed some psionic wild talent. Several Dark Sun products introduced new psionic powers.
[edit] Revision
The psionics system was greatly revised in Player's Option: Skills and Powers and the revised Dark Sun Campaign Setting. The system was redevised around a Mental Armor Class (MAC) and a Mental THAC0 (MTHAC0), mimicking the Armor Class (AC) and THAC0 used in normal combat. The harder the power was to use, the lower the MAC was to activate it. Likewise, the harder a mind was to break into, the lower that person's MAC was. Psionicists would have MTHAC0 scores that represent their ability to wield the psionic arts. This was exactly 21 minus the level of the psionicist. Many of the powers were also altered in this revision.
[edit] Third Edition
Psionics were overhauled yet again in the release of the Psionics Handbook for Dungeons & Dragons Third Edition. The psionicist was renamed to the "psion" and more closely resembled the magic-using sorcerer in terms of combat ability, and a new character class, the psychic warrior, was introduced. Psions were given several new abilities and psionic powers that were intended to complement the new and revised abilities of the magic-using character classes, and psionic items were introduced to give psionic characters an alternative to using magical items. The psionics system was again revised for the 3.5 edition of the game, in the Expanded Psionics Handbook. This change streamlined the system by eliminating most power "chains" as well as eliminating the psionic combat system that had previously been employed.
More recent has been the release of the supplemental rule book, Complete Psionic, which introduces three new standard classes as well as several prestige classes for the psionic character. It also includes a variant Psion class called the Erudite which does not specialize in a specific 'discipline' in the way that Psions do (putting it on par with Wizard and Archivist). It also has the ability to learn an unlimited number of powers but can manifest only a limited few each day. Complete Psionic also introduced a number of minor rules changes and clarifications.
