BX Psionics Update

I've been plugging along steadily with my BX mystic class and psionics system (along with a ton of other gaming projects and diversions). But, as of this morning, I'm feeling particularly accomplished. I just finished writing the fifth section of the psionic disciplines.

Since I've tried to go back to Steve Marsh's original concept for psionics (mental abilities based on a character class inspired by Indian mystics), the different groups of disciplines (which Steve Winter did a great job of breaking out in 2e's Complete Psionics Handbook) into 6 different chakras (a concept which, IIUC, Steve Marsh originally intended before Tim Kask hacked up the concept in Eldritch Wizardry).

From an email I received from Steve Marsh: "Major powers correspond to the chachras and the traditional powers so that each character had a consistent core."

This led me to attempt to define the disciplines by chakra (my preferred spelling). All chakras are not open to the first level mystic. New chakras are accessed as the mystic attains new experience levels. (This concept will likely seem familiar to those with knowledge of the 2e psionicist.)

The six chakras I've defined (based on metaphysical teachings,
and hopefully true to SM's ideas) correspond pretty well to the 2e groupings...

1. The Root (Psychometabolic) Chakra provides the mystic power over his or her own body, granting control over its physical aspects.

2. The Sacral (Clairsentient) Chakra connects the mystic to knowledge and information, including the past, present, and future.

3. The Plexus (Psychokinetic) Chakra supplies the mystic with dominion over different forms of matter, including its movement and its state of being.

4. The Heart (Telepathic) Chakra provides the mystic the abilities of communication and thought, including control over emotions and desires.

5. The Throat (Psychoportative) Chakra permits the mystic to access other dimensions and allows the mystic to travel through space and time.

6. The Third Eye (Metapsionic) Chakra is accessible only by a mystic who has accessed the the other five. This chakra is interdisciplinary, and allows the mystic to combine the powers and energies of the other chakras.

As of this morning, I finished the fifth group of disciplines (throat/psychoportative). That means the following sections are complete: 1) the mystic class, 2) the first five groups of disciplines, and 3) the "optional" psionic combat system.

So what's left to write? 1) the third eye/metapsionic disciplines, 2) BX stats for psionic monsters (including the psionic creatures I've written for the Creature Compendium), 3) a "Planar Primer", 4) the "Planar Travel Guide" (planar travel and adventure is HUGE part of Steve Marsh's original concept for the mystic class), and 5) a section on creation and use of astras (supernatural weapons and artifacts related to specific deities, which I see as part of extra-planar adventuring).

The book is likely to come in at 40 pages (plus cover), and I feel like I'm about 80% of the way there with the content (even if that leaves a BUNCH of illustrations to do).

No target on publication, but I imagine I'll start reaching out for some playtesting in the next few weeks. Updates to follow.

(BTW, before you ask about the Creature Compendium... I'm close. Just a few more illustrations to finish up. I just haven't had the time to concentrate on them.)

A Look Back at AD&D Psionics

Recently, I was looking back at Dragon Magazine #78 (which was one of the first dozen or so Dragons I bought back in the day). This issue is the one dedicated to psionics. In that issue, no less than 14 pages are dedicated to "fixing" and "answering" the issues with and questions about psionics. That's twice as many pages than are given psionics in the AD&D PHB. Think about that for a moment... The magazine spent twice as much space in the magazine trying to resolve psionics issues than the original rules were given.

In that issue of the magazine, the material noted above was presented in three different entries: 1) "Psionics is Different" by Arthur Collins, 2) the "Sage Advice" column for that issue, and 3) "Overhauling the System" by Robert Schroek. As part of a larger "Mind Games" selection of psionic-related material, the issue also included the following: a psionicist character class, an article on the Deryni (a creation of author Katherine Kurtz) also by Collins, stats and descriptions for "Heroes & Villains of the Deryni", all by Arthur Collins; an ecology of the mind flayer by Roger E. Moore; and an article on how spells can also be psionic by Kim Mohan.

I suppose the argument could be made that the 8-page article about the psionicist class could be included with the material that "resolves" the issues with AD&D psionics, meaning that over 3 times the material was included in Dragon magazine to "fix" psionics than were included in the PHB. It's no wonder that the 2e Complete Psionics Handbook was inevitable.

Why my 10% OFF sale is better than Lulu's 20% OFF sale!

Below is a comparison of the pricing for single titles at the NBD Storefront vs. Lulu. I'm also including Lulu's 20% off discount for the Labor Day weekend, and the 10% off discount at the NBD Storefront for the Labor Day weekend (w/ the code LD2014 at checkout).

Title	Standard Lulu Price	Lulu Price w/ 20% Discount	Standard NBD Price	NBD Price w/ 10% Discount
d30 DM Companion	$9.95	$7.96	$7.95	$7.15!
d30 Sandbox Companion	$11.95	$9.56	$9.95	$8.95!
Valley of the Five Fires	$11.95	$9.56	$9.95	$8.95!
Ogress of Anubis	$5.95	$4.76	$4.95	$4.45!

And if you buy products in bundles from the New Big Dragon Square Storefront, you'll save even more! Now, consider that Lulu doesn't sell print copies of the Dragon Horde zine, and that anyone who orders from the New Big Dragon Square Storefront this weekend also gets a free sheet of Order of the d30 stickers, it's a win-win-win! (My apologies to buyers outside the U.S., you'll have to buy through Lulu, as my storefront does not yet offer international shipping... but I hope to soon!)

d30 Feature of the Week: Statue Generator (2 Parts!!)

I'm trying to get back in the swing of regular d30 Friday posts. I've just been swamped with work lately, and it's really jacking with my schedule. So I'm trying to make up for my d30 slacking with today's 2-parter (separate downloads for each part; scroll down to see them).

Click here to download a free PDF of d30 Statue Generator, Part 1 page from MediaFire.



Click here to download a free PDF of d30 Statue Generator, Part 2 page from MediaFire.

New BX/LL Character Class: Siamangs ("Type B" Intelligent Animal")

Given everyone's interest in the ape classes I did a couple of weeks ago, and given that I could see an entire game world using nothing but ape classes, I decided to fill out the classes. I've decided to add siamangs and bonobos. While siamangs are (arguably) just gibbons, and bonobos are a chimp variant, they are each different enough from their related standard types, that some break them out classification-wise. Today is the siamang, and if I get my crap together for tomorrow, you should see the bonobo then.

Siamangs

Level	Title	Exp. Points	Hit Dice
1	Siamang Medium	0	1d4
2	Siamang Seer	3,000	2d4
3	Siamang Conjurer/ess	6,000	3d4
4	Siamang Magician	12,000	4d4
5	Siamang Enchanter/ress	25,000	5d4
6	Siamang Warlock/Witch	50,000	6d4
7	Siamang Sorcerer/ess	100,000	7d4
8	Siamang Necromancer	200,000	8d4
9	Siamang Wizard/ess	300,000	9d4
10	10th Level Siamang Wizard/ess	400,000	9d4+1*
* Constitution adjustments no longer apply

Siamangs are larger species of gibbon, different enough from gibbons to be classified separately. Several features make them distinctly different from standard gibbons. First, siamangs are often twice the size of standard gibbons, having longer, denser shaggy hair, often quite dark in color. Second, the first two digits of each of a siamang’s feet feature a thin connecting membrane. Finally, siamangs have a gular sac, a large throat pouch that can be inflated to the size of its head. This gular sac enables the siamang to make loud, resonating calls and songs. It is this sac (through these powerful calls and songs) that enables them to be quite capable spellcasters.

The prime requisite for an siamang is Intelligence. Siamangs with an Intellgigence score of 13 or greater will gain a +10% bonus to earned experience points.

RESTRICTIONS: Siamangs determine their hit points using four-sided dice (d4). They may advance to a maximum of 10th level of experience. Siamangs are prohibited from wearing any type of armor or using a shield, and may only use a dagger as a weapon.

SPECIAL ABILITIES: Siamangs fight and save as magic-users of the same level, and may use the same magic items permitted to magic users. Siamangs also use spells as a magic-user of the same level and are able to climb trees as a thief of the same level. Like other apes, siamangs are able to swing through trees at a rate equal to their standard movement, and may hang from trees by their arms and use their feet attack and defend with -1 “to hit” and +1 AC penalties (respectively). In addition to common, Siamangs speak the language of apes, and use the sign language understood by apes, but are able to use the sign language “dialect” of gibbons.

Beginning at 9th level, siamangs gain the ability to create magic items (as a magic-user).

On Productivity and the Bottomless Cavern of the Infinite Commute

I've often been asked by a couple of folks how I continue to produce so much gaming output. And while I usually answer with a fairly stock answer (which I wholeheartedly believed was the reason), I got a great big confirmation on it this week. My stock answer is this... I have the HUGE benefit of working from home. First off, that means the same computer with my work-work is also the enabler of my gaming stuff, so I can bounce back and forth at will from work files to gaming files. More importantly, my commute is officially the 27 steps from my bedroom to the chair in my office (ironically, it is also 27 steps from my chair to the coffee maker in the kitchen; I counted).

My wife gets up early and usually leaves the house by 7 a.m. (she's a teacher and assistant principal). I try to fix her breakfast and pack her lunch every day. That means I'm usually ready to get my day started about 7 a.m. I don't really need to get cracking on work stuff most days until 8:30 or 9. That pretty much means while you're commuting, I'm working on game stuff. And if it's a slow work day, I don't have to look busy until I clock out at 5. I can hop over to one of about a dozen things that are currently occupying my time, and work on those. Now consider I only need about 6 hours a night of sleep (more than that, I'm sleepy during the day) and my wife is usually in bed by 8:30. That leaves me time from about 8:30 to midnight to do... whatever.

For the last couple of days, I've been on a photo shoot for a client. Today, the drive from my house to the photographer's studio was about 45 minutes, and the drive home was about the same. Yesterday, I missed a turn because of traffic and the drive to the studio was nearly an hour, and the drive home was almost as bad. In the days of the job I had just before I went back to work for myself (I have worked from home during 2 different distinct career periods), the office I shared with my 2 business partners was near the same part of town as the photographer's studio. It wasn't as far away as the studio, but, at the time, there were massive amounts of road construction near our office (they were installing a new rail line). So even though the office was technically closer, it still took at least 45 minutes each day... each day. Considering a 5-day week, that's 8 hours a week (or more) in traffic. That's a full day's work!!! Plus, take part in a Dallas-area commute any day and you will find yourself mentally drained. The last thing you'll want to do when you get home is to keep working... on anything! Because of this photo shoot, my sum gaming production total for the last two days has been 5 one-sentence-long descriptions for some magic items I intend for the next Dragon Horde zine. I'm just glad I only have one of these photo-shoots every year.

Tomorrow my schedule should get back normal.

Time is Running Out: Win Dead Tree Copies of the d30 Sandbox Companion and d30 DM Companion

d30 Dead Tree Giveaway
Time is running on on the New Big Dragon/Tenkar's Tavern GenCon Jet Lag Giveaway.
Get the details on your chance to win print copies of the d30 Sandbox Companion or d30 DM Companion over here...

d30 Sandbox Companion Flash Sale
And until tomorrow (Tuesday) night at midnight CST,
the d30 Sandbox Companion .PDF is 33% OFF at RPGNow.