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Mindscapes: A Psion’s Guide
Tulmercy, stuck with Fortitude Intuition +2 (his resting mode) because of being surprised—and flat-footed, to boot—rolls a 10. Fortitude Intuition is a Constitution mode, which, in the sea, grants no benefit. As a 12th-level psion, his mode check modifier is +8. Thus, Tulmercy’s total for the opposed mode check is 10 (roll) + 0 (mindscape type modifier) + 2 (psionic combat mode modifier) + 8 (psion mode check bonus) = 20. Rulwar’s 24 beats Tulmercy’s 20, and the Mindscape Psionic Combat Sequence mindscape benefit for It’s important to remember that, during mindthe round goes to scape psionic combat, no actual physical action takes place within the mindscape. You don’t use Rulwar. Rulwar’s Mind powers there, nor do you take a swing at your Insurgency +4 grants combatant. The mindscape is a purely mental plane in which a mode check victory gives a him, in the real world for character the edge in an ongoing real-world his normal action, a +1 conflict. Here’s a quick recap of the combat steps: bonus to the Difficulty 1. Mindscape Formation: Roll to determine the Class of any power he mindscape type. Combatants may adjust the uses against his foe. It mindscape type. doesn’t make any differ2. Decide to Fight: If combat occurs, roll initiative unless initiative has already been rolled for ence what Tulmercy’s physical combat. mode would have 3. Declare Modes: The combatant with the lowdone—he doesn’t get its est initiative declares its mode, then the next lowest declares its mode, and so on until all benefit because he lost combatants have declared modes. the opposed roll. Taking 4. Opposed Mode Check: Each combatant rolls advantage of this benea mode check on the highest initiative result achieved by any psionic combatants present. fit, Rulwar’s real-world The check is opposed by all other combatants. surprise action is to The highest modified result wins the round. manifest stomp, which 5. Apply Mode Effects in the Real World: normally has a Difficulty Modify physical-world actions according to the winner’s psionic mode. Class of d20 + 2 for 6. End of Round: When all creatures involved in him, but in this instance mindscape and real-world battle have taken has a Difficulty Class of their actions, go to the next round. If the mindscape combat continues, go to Step 3 and d20 + 3. Rolling the repeat until mindscape combat ends. Difficulty Class normally, he gets a 12 + 3 = 15. Rulwar’s stomp precipitates a shock that threatens to topple Tulmercy, who rolls his Reflex saving throw normally—and fails! He falls prone. The surprise round is over. With the surprise action resolved, the combatants roll initiative for the first normal round of combat. And so the battle continues. . . .
Complicating Factors What if psionic combat is more complicated than the scenario described above? Refer to this section for your answers. Unconsciousness: If one psionic combatant becomes unconscious, through any means, she can no longer take part in psionic combat, and her avatar drops out of the mindscape. If she is one of only two psionic entities sustaining it, the mindscape fades.
Reluctant Combatant: If you engage an enemy in psionic combat who doesn’t wish to clash, too bad for him. If the decision to drop the mindscape is not mutual, the mental plane stays. And, if you lash out with a mode on your initiative, your enemy’s avatar’s very nature means that it has to interact with yours. In other words, a mode check occurs, regardless of the reluctant combatant’s wishes. Of course, if the reluctant combatant wins the mode check for the round, he doesn’t have to press the advantage he gains in the realm of the real. Multiple Combatants: When more than two psionic creatures come within 60 feet of each other, their avatars all appear in the same mindscape. No matter how many psychic avatars appear in a given mindscape, each combatant rolls only a single mode check per round. Those who are unfriendly to each other compare totals, and depending on whose opposed mode check is higher, two or more enemies could potentially win the mindscape combat round against a single foe, or just one, or none, depending on whose opposed check was highest. (Friends could compare their opposed checks, too, but in the portion of the round in which they take real-world actions, they most likely will not target each other with attacks or powers.) For instance, if Zelestine and Rulwar (psionic characters) fight against three blues (psionic goblins from the Psionics Handbook), each rolls just a single opposed mode check. The results: blue #1 gets 25, Zelestine gets 23, blue #2 gets 19, Rulwar gets 18, and blue #3 gets 15. No matter the order of initiative, when blue #1 takes its real-world action, its unbeaten mode check this round means that its action (or defense) is positively modified versus any of the others. Of course, it can physically act against only one of its foes this round. Zelestine’s opposed rolls were higher than two of her foes’, so if she chose a Strength-based mode, she’ll target either blue #2 or #3 (but again, she can act against only one foe during one action with the benefits of her mode). Finally, Rulwar beat only one of the blues. Since he switched to a Dexteritybased mode this round, he hopes that blue #3, at least, attacks him; it is the only foe against which his mode has an effect. If Rulwar had beat all the blues and had used the Reflex Catechesis mode (which grants a bonus on his Reflex saves), he’d gain that bonus against all three if they targeted him with an effect that required a Reflex saving throw. Despite the number of contests, all opposed mode checks are rolled simultaneously during the action of the psionic character with the highest initiative. Moving Around: You win a mode check, but your enemy (who won initiative) moves farther than 60 feet from you, and so collapses the mental plane before you take your action. It doesn’t matter—if the mode check indicated you as the winner, you gain the benefits of the particular mode against your foe for the round (and vice versa). Haste or Schism: Regardless of the number of actions you gain in the real world, the effects of an opposed mode check
