PSYCHICS

NOTE: This is a variation of the Psychic rules written by Gary Astleford (ocelot@connectnet.com). A lot of the text is cut and paste from that text, with some variations done to make things easier on myself for my own game.

New stat: POWER
Power, for all intents and purposes, is the "tenth attribute." It can be raised like a skill with an IP multiplier of 4. If the subject wishes to employ a psychic talent, he adds his Power to his score in that talent as well as the results of a 1d10 roll and compares it to a difficulty number. If the result is equal to or higher than the difficulty, the effect is successful.

Career Skill Package:
Awareness/Notice
Endurance
Disguise
Education & General Knowledge
Pharmacuticals
Cryokinesis/Pyrokinesis
Read/Block
Precognition
Telekinesis
Injure/Kill

"Psychic Talents"
These are the skills a psychic uses to do his tricks. They are all rated as normal skills, with a rating between 1 and 10. There are five documented talents: Cryokinesis/Pyrokinesis, Read/Block, Precognition, Telekinesis, and Injure/Kill. They are detailed below.

Cryokinesis/Pyrokinesis : This is the ability to manipulate temperatures. The base difficulty is modified by range and area of effect.

EFFECT Base Difficulty

Drop/Raise Temperature by 1-10 Degrees Fahrenheit                 5
Drop/Raise Temperature by 11-25 Degrees Fahrenheit             10
Drop/Raise Temperature by 26-50 Degrees Fahrenheit             15
Drop/Raise Temperature by 51-100 Degrees Fahrenheit           20
Drop/Raise Temperature by 101-250 Degrees Fahrenheit         25
Drop/Raise Temperature by 250-??? Degrees Fahrenheit          30+

Note that psychics adept at Cryo- and Pyrokinesis aren't immune to their own powers.

Read/Block : This is the ability to read (or scan) someone's thoughts, as well as preventing your own thoughts from being scanned. The base difficulty to read someone is the target's COOL attribute times 2.5 (round up), modified by range. The total for this ability is also added to his own COOL times 2.5 when resisting a scan. Example : Liza wishes to keep Fred from scanning her thoughts. Her Cool time 2.5 is 18. Her Read/Block talent is rated at +4. Fred will have to roll over 22 (18 + 4) in order to read her thoughts.

Precognition : A sixth sense, which grants those skilled in its use a glimpse of things that may or may not occur. Results from the use of this talent are usually fuzzy at best, but they can give the psychic an edge in some situations. Generally, the psychic chooses a target - a person, place, or object. He then decides how far into the future he wishes to search for information on that person, place, or thing. Modify the base difficulty by the range of the person, place, or object.

EFFECT Base Difficulty

Predict Person/Place/Object's next 1-30 seconds              5
Predict Person/Place/Object's next 31-60 seconds          10
Predict Person/Place/Object's next 1-10 minutes             15
Predict Person/Place/Object's next 11-30 minutes           20
Predict Person/Place/Object's next 31-60 minutes           25
Predict Person/Place/Object's next 2-10 hours                30

Such predictions must be very specific. The psychic can query, "Which card will be drawn from the deck next?" or "Where will this man be in twenty minutes?" Of course, answers can be as clear or as fuzzy as the GM wishes them to be. The future is never set in stone, and the psychic can choose to interfere with the outcome of his prediction if he so wishes. Psychics with exceptional talent in Precognition are excellent gamblers who rarely, if ever, lose.

Telekinesis : This is the ability to move objects with one's mind. The base difficulty is modified by range and area of effect. An object can be thrown a distance in meters equal to the Telekinesis Talent's level, but a to-hit roll must be made using a second POWER+Telekinesis roll. Figure any damage based on the object's size and weight.

EFFECT Base Difficulty

Lift/Move Something that Weighs 1 kg. or less              5
Lift/Move Something that Weighs 2-10 kg.                  10
Lift/Move Something that Weighs 11-25 kg.                15
Lift/Move Something that Weighs 26-50 kg.                20
Lift/Move Something that Weighs 51-100 kg.              25
Lift/Move Something that Weighs 101-250 kg.            30

Injure/Kill : A specialized form of Telekinesis, it is used to alter the structures of living things. With this Talent, a psychic can pinch nerves, cause strokes, collapse lungs, burst organs, rupture blood vessels, or cause cuts and scratches. Of course, the more invasive the attack, the harder it is to accomplish.

EFFECT Base Difficulty

Pain - No damage, but causes a stun/shock roll at -1 5
1d6 Damage - Cuts, Bruises 10
2d6 Damage - Deep Lacerations, Minor Internal Damage 15
3d6 Damage - Severe Internal Damage and Bleeding 20
4d6 Damage - Major Internal Damage 25
5d6 Damage, Stat Reduction - Heart Attacks, Strokes 30

The base difficulty is modified by range to target. The Injure/Kill talent can never be higher than a psychic's Telekinesis talent.

Use of Psychic Talents
It is important to note that using a Psychic Talent takes a lot of concentration. A character using a Talent can do nothing else, and must concentrate on his task. What's more, by spending more time concentrating than normal, a psychic can reduce the difficulty of a Talent by -1 per turn spent concentrating, up to a ceiling of -5 to the difficulty number. The power will not manifest until the psychic is satisfied that he has concentrated long enough. The psychic is unable to perform any task other than concentrate, and is extremely vulnerable. Also note that standard difficulty modifiers apply (see CP2020 pg. 42).
Concentration is difficult to maintain, and even a slight disturbance will break it. If something occurs that might cause a psychic to lose his concentration, he must roll a save against his COOL. The GM should decide the save's difficulty depending on the circumstances. If he fails, his concentration is broken and the power does not manifest. Sample incidents that may call for a roll are listed below.

INCIDENT DIFFICULTY

Sudden loud noise, gunfire                                   Difficult
Explosion                                                            Very Difficult
Psychic hit, nudged, or pushed (no damage)         Easy
Psychic takes light wound                                    Average
Psychic takes serious wound                               Difficult
Psychic takes critical wound                                Very Difficult
Psychic takes mortal wound                                 Impossible
PCs are arguing/kibitzing (if psychic is a PC)        Average

Range and Area of Effect
Use of these powers is limited by range and, occasionally, by area of effect. The closer a psychic is to his target, the easier it is to perform the selected task.

RANGE Difficulty Modifier

Touching - 1m.                                           -5
2m. - 10m.                                                   0
11m. - 25m.                                               +5
26m. - 50m.                                               +10
51m. - 100m.                                             +15
101m. - 250m.                                           +20
251m. - 500m.                                           +25
501m. - 1000m.                                         +30

Area of effect for Talents that may require one (ie, Cryo- and Pyrokinesis) is equal to a one meter diameter area. For every extra meter of diameter, add 2 to the total difficulty. For example, if Liza wants to cause a 5 meter area, centered on her, to drop in temperature by 20 degrees, she must roll above a 13 (10 Difficulty Base - 5 for range, +8 for expanded area of effect). Voila! Instant air conditioning.