Powers: Pact Magic Revised

Powers: Pact Magic Revised

One of the coolest D&D 3.5 classes was the binder - it was oozing with flavor, and mechanically it had just the right amount of power. I have converted pact magic to GURPS a very long time ago, but looking at it all these years later, I see that it simply isn't appealing compared to other powers I'm using in my games, and that it suffers too much from being a one-to-one conversion from D&D. So, it's time to rework it, and make it cheaper and more appealing. Also, a much more appropriate advantage exists now - Loa!

Powers: Photokinesis

Powers: Photokinesis

In GURPS Psionic Powers, the Ergokinesis powers contains three subpowers - Cyberpsi, Electrokinesis, and Photokinesis. Since I'm mostly running D&D-style games, Cyberpsi is practically useless, and while in modern or sci-fi games Ergokinesis and Photokinesis do work well together, in a more fantasy setting, they feel like separate powers - that why I actually made Electrokinesis a separate power, and that leaves just Photokinesis. D&D doesn't have a photokineticist class, but it does have some light-based powers that one can use for inspiration. Also, I decided to merge Photokinesis with the Umbrakinesis subpower of Necropsi (Pyramid #3-99), as that would make sense, but I removed the Silhouette ability - this is too much even for a fantasy game (and I hate "variable" costs).

Powers: Sonokinesis

Powers: Sonokinesis

Sonokinesis was introduced as a subcategory of Psychokinesis in Pyramid #3-29. However, I would like to excise it from Psychokinesis and turn it into a separate power. I will probably write up new abilities and rework some of the existing ones to get a more D&D feel. I reworked Muffle, because not only I do not want it to be useable at range, but also the writeup has some mistakes. Due to the rework, the Muted Movement technique became more expensive and one part of it had to be cut. I decided to remove the Sonic Dampening technique and turn it into a separate ability to ease access to the DR aspect of the power against screaming monsters.

Powers: Metacreativity Revised

Powers: Metacreativity Revised

There is one psionic power in D&D that is not represented in GURPS - metacreativity. Many years ago, I wrote a post with some metacreativity abilities, and then added some more in other posts. However, now that I'm busy tweaking psionics more to my liking, I decided to revise the old stuff and combine it with the "new" abilities in a single post. Some abilities were cut or reworked because they were too similar to existing abilities of other powers, and some new techniques were added. To be honest, I'm not really content with the result. I wanted to make more abilities, but after looking through D&D books, I found that many powers that are assigned to the metacreativity discipline have nothing to do with it - they just didn't fit anywhere else. But nonetheless, at least the end result is usable. Now I only have to expand/rework sonokinesis and photokinesis as separate powers.

Ultra-Tech: New/Old Options for Guns

Ultra-Tech: New/Old Options for Guns

Now that I'm looking more closely at 3e Ultra-Tech and 3e Vehicles, I notice some options that did not make it to 4e. Let's convert them.

TL11 Slugthrowers

TL11 Slugthrowers

When it comes to ultra-tech games, it seems that the vast majority of players and GMs prefer TL9-10 to TL11-12. These "low" TLs feel more grounded and familiar, providing the players with many gear options. I like using occasional TL11-12 elements in my games, so I devote them some attention as well. TL11 is when conventional firearms and electromagnetic firearms become outdated, when beam weapons reign supreme. But let's see how these "outdated" guns fare against TL11 beam weapons and TL11 armor!

Radiation in GURPS

Radiation in GURPS

Radiation is something that is likely to come up only in high-tech GURPS games, but does it have to? GURPS has abilities and spells that can both irradiate and cure radiation, so why not use it in low-tech fantasy games occasionally? Even in D&D, the deepest reaches of the Underdark have sickstone that glows with a sickly-green light and causes Constitution drain… and that sounds suspiciously similar to radiation. If I recall things correctly, Pathfinder also blightburn crystals that are quite literally radioactive. So, in this post, I would like to explain how radiation works in GURPS.