All psychic disciplines are used in the same fashion, using the Psi skill. When you want to use a discipline, you must first determine what and how you will use your ability and what effect you wish to achieve.
When using a psychic power, you must determine the answer to the following questions:
Once you have determined the qualities of your power use, you look up the Difficulty Modifiers for the Distance, Duration and Scope of your power and add them to determine the final difficulty.
Example 1: You wish to lift an enemy into the air and hold them there to prevent escape. The target is running and is 2 zones away from you. This power falls under the discipline of Telekinesis or Projection. Consulting the Psychic Modifiers Table, the distance is a few zones (+2) and the scope is a single target (+1) which results in a total Difficulty Modifier of +3. You must score at least 1 shift to succeed.
Example 2: You wish to cause confusion among your enemies by clouding their thoughts using Telepathy. You are facing five individuals the furthest of whom is 4 zones away. The distance is a few zones (+2) and the scope is a few individuals (+2) for a total difficulty of 4. You must achieve at least one shift to place the Clouded Thoughts aspect on each of them which you may invoke once each. If you succeed with style, you may invoke each aspect twice for free.
Example 3: That security guard totally saw you. You attempt to erase his memories of you and make him think he saw someone else. This falls under Telepathy. The guard is a few zones away (+2), is a single target (+1) and you wish the memory loss to persist for at least a few days (+3) the total difficulty for this roll would be a whopping 6! You may consider making his memory loss only a few hours (+2) to reduce the difficulty to 5.
What is the effect you wish to achieve? Are you attempting to erase the memories of the security guard you just spoke to? How about attempting to give him an aneurism instead? Your decision on what the effect is will be represented in either of two ways: an advantage created on the target or scene which you may invoke once for free, or direct stress caused to either the physical or mental stress tracks - depending on method of delivery.
The discipline descriptions are your guide to determine which the power falls under. If it is not obvious, choose a discipline which the table agrees is the most appropriate.
The distance to the target makes the use of the power more difficult. The further the target, the more you must strain yourself. If you are targeting multiple targets, the furthest one sets the difficulty modified. See the Psychic Modifiers Table for the distance difficulty modifiers.
You may wish to have some of your effects linger. The longer the effect lingers, the more difficult it is to achieve. See the Psychic Modifiers Table for the effect difficulty modifiers. The base duration chosen determines the duration modifier. However when the duration can be modified, use the Time Scales ladder to alter the duration.
| Distance | Duration | Scope | Difficulty Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self | Instant | Self | 0 |
| Same zone | A few minutes | A single target | +1 |
| A few zones | A few hours | A few targets | +2 |
| A city block | A few days | A dozen targets | +3 |
| A city | A few weeks | A few dozen targets | +4 |
| A region | A few months | A hundred targets | +5 |
| A continent | A few years | A few hundred targets | +6 |
| A planet | A few decades | A thousand targets | +7 |
| A solar system | A lifetime | A few thousand targets | +8 |
A psychic may exert themselves mentally when using their psychic disciplines. This is a dangerous method of achieving success as it weakness the psychic mentally and may even cause real consequences depending on the level of exertion. In a situation where psychic combat is waged, such an action may be extremely dangerous.
When you just have to succeed but the endeavour may be too great for you due to a combination of distance, duration and scope. Even though your roll may not succeed, you may use your Mental stress track to improve your roll. For each Mental stress box you check off, you may add +1 to your roll result. If you decide to take a consequence, you receive a bonus equal to the stress the consequence absorbs: Mild (+2), Moderate (+4) and Severe (+6). This is done retroactively after the roll is made.
All psychics leave a psychic echoes when they use their abilities. These echoes persist at the location or object where the power was used. These echoes may be detected and examined using the Clairvoyance discipline. A psychic echo may reveal a lot of information about the situation, those involved and the state of mind of the psychic.
It is very difficult to hide these psychic echoes. Those wishing to be subtle and to shorud the psychic echo left behind must exert themselves. When wishing to make it harder for another to analyze the psychic echo, each +1 added to the discipline difficulty results in a +1 added to the base difficulty of analyzing the echo.
The base difficulty of detecting and analyzing a psychic echo is 2. See Clairvoyance for additional information.
A psychic may interrupt and break a psychic effect created by another. To do so, the psychic must succeed on a Psi skill roll, using the matching Psi field, with a difficulty of 2 modified by scope. Each shift gained can be applied negatively to the power's duration on the Time Scales table or causes stress if the effect has stress boxes. If you succeed with style, the power is instantly broken.
Multiple psychics may combine their psychic potential in order to affect a larger area or multiple targets with a power. For each psychic beyond the first with the same field as the discipline being used grants a +1 bonus to the Psi roll. There is no upper limit to the number of psychics who can contribute. The psychic who is the primary focus of the power may at his discretion use the contributors' stress to increase the result, even cause them consequences. The contributing psychics may oppose the action with Will against the Psi roll made on the test. Giving your psychic potential to another willingly may result in undesirable consequences.
The collective extrasensory ability to perceive and affect the world though the power of the mind is labelled as Psi. This power is further divided into a number of disciplines which group together abilities of a similar sort. Psychics have access to all of the disciplines as their psychic abilities grow, however many choose only a couple to practice and often use.
The Psi skill has a field for each of these disciplines.
Clairvoyance is the discipline is associated with remote viewing, seeing auras and detection of psychic emanations. The discipline is associated with external, psychic senses.
Some discipline uses:
Auras: Clairvoyance is used in a similar fashion to the Notice skill except that it allows you to perceive things beyond normal ken. When noticing such things, the GM will set the difficulty for the roll. You may read another's aura to get their general state of mind such as happy, sad, suspicious, etc. The difficulty to read their aura is their Will skill. For each shift gained, you get one mood of the individual. You may create advantages using Clairvoyance in social situations by reading another's aura and placing an aspect on them such as Playing To Their Mood or I Know How To Push Their Buttons.
Remote Viewing: You can project your senses to another location which is known to you. The primary restriction of this power is that you must have been at the exact location in person and can recall the details. The difficulty depends on the distance to the location you wish to view. Once in a viewing session, all of your senses will be projected to that location which involves your sight, smell and hearing. Your body will appear to be unconscious and you will not feel any pain or sensations while you are projecting. The session ends when you choose to end it. This power is also useful when faced with torture or extreme pain. Go to your happy place. Remote viewing combined with Telepathy allows you to communicate remotely with others and to experience their environment.
Psychic Echoes: Through concentration you can detect the psychic residue left behind by other psychics when they used their powers. The difficulty to do so is base 2 and is modified by whether the psychic attempted to shroud their psychic use. For each shift obtained, you receive one fact about the power which was used. If you succeed with style, you also see a ghostly echo of the individual when they used the power.
Projection permits an individual to create energy fields around their body and their vicinity. These fields may be used to enact all sorts of effects, such as electromagnetism and gravity.
Some discipline uses:
Energy Shield: You can project an energy shield around your body or nearby object which will repel energy based attacks. This works in the same fashion as shunt shields. The difficulty is determined by combining the distance, duration and scope. The number of stress the shield may absorb is determined by the number of shifts obtained. The shield collapses once it takes stress beyond its stress track or the duration expires. It has no consequences.
Manipulate Gravity: You can decrease or increase the gravity in an area. The difficulty is determined by the distance and duration. All within the field are affected, including you. This places a Zero Gravity(P), Lower Gravity(P) or Heavy Gravity(P) persistent aspect on the scene or zones affected. This power also lets you move and levitate objects by making localized micro changes to the gravity around the object. Fine manipulation of objects is not possible with this power as you are manipulating the fields around an object, and not the object itself.
EM Pulse: You can generate an electromagnetic pulse which will disrupt most unprotected technological devices within the area of effect. The pulse is centred on you and the difficulty depends on the distance and scope. Each shift generated will result in temporary technological malfunction for one exchange. Projectors will cease firing and powered armour will lose power and become Heavy(P), etc. If you succeed with style, the technological malfunction will last for the entire scene. Artificial and cybernetic beings will receive 1 mental stress for each shift you obtained opposed with the target's Will.
Psychometry is the discipline of reading the psychic echoes left on objects and places by living beings. When emotionally charged events occur in an area or when the object is held, a psychic echo is imprinted on the object which slowly fades with time. The more significant the event, the longer the echo lasts. The discipline also involves amazing feats of thought and intuition.
Some discipline uses:
Meditative Trance: You may enter a meditative trance which allows you to recall events and things you saw in extreme detail. You may recall a room you walked through perfectly, playing through your field of view with extreme attention to detail. The difficulty to perform this action is 2 with a +1 modifier for each week which passed since the memory was created. Each shift nets you one fact of interest about the room. A success with style means you also receive additional insight which grants you a boost for the next investigation roll you make on the subject.
Read Object/Place: You can concentrate on an object you are holding or a place you are at to gain insight about the events which transpired. This differs from Clairvoyance in that the events need not be associated with psychic power use. The difficulty is the standard 2. Each shift gleams one fact about the history of the object or place. If you succeed with style, you also gleam a secret or aspect of the last person who held the object or visited the place.
Shroud Object/Place: You can attempt to shroud the echoes left on an object or place and make it difficult for others to read. The difficulty is 2 and each shift you generate results in a +1 difficulty modifier for the next person who reads the object or place.
Telekinesis is the discipline of manipulating physical matter at the atomic scale. It allows you to create pressure waves to knock things over, increase friction to cause fires and slow the movement of molecules to cause substances to freeze. The discipline also allows you to move physical objects with your mind and to manipulate an object as if you were holding it.
Some discipline uses:
Manipulate Matter: You may manipulate matter on an atomic level, causing it to heat or freeze through the manipulation of friction. You may start or put out fires and cause substances to freeze or thaw. You may also use this to cause stress either through the application of heat or cold.
Pressure Wave: You are able to create pressure waves using the local atmosphere. This requires a standard atmospheric level and may be more difficult in thin atmosphere situations. You may create enough pressure to throw objects or to stop them. This includes shredder weapons fired at you. The pressure wave is instantaneous and directional. When used to stop physical attacks, each shift adds to your evasion roll. When used to attack, each shift causes stress to the target manipulated.
Manipulate Object: You may move physical objects with your mind as if holding them. You may lift them up (including yourself) or hit them with your invisible hand. This permits you to levitate objects, manipulate machinery and even punch opponents from a distance.
Telepathy is the discipline of mental manipulation of other living beings. Through this discipline you are able to read thoughts, manipulate thoughts, communicate without speaking, cause delusions and even take physical control of another being.
Some discipline uses:
Manipulate Thought: You are able to manipulate the thoughts of another. Whether to communicate with them, to read their thoughts or to erase them. You may also place ideas into another's head and make them believe the idea was theirs. A target resists using active opposition with their Will skill. Each shift gained permits to obtain one thought or idea the person has in relation to what is sought. This power may also be used to obtain secret Aspects from a target. Thought manipulation is done through the creation of advantages. Delusions may be used to distract another (an advantage) or to cause them mental stress directly using gruesome images and thoughts. The shifts gained on the Psi roll translate directly to stress. This is opposed with Will as usual.
Puppeteer: You are able to take direct control of another's nervous system. The victim is still conscious as to what you are doing and can experience their surroundings - they just can't do anything about it. Due to the disconnect between your own body and theirs, all actions you perform are at -1. You may speak as the victim in their voice, but the manner of speech will always be yours. Once in control, you may make the target do anything you wish. The shifts you receive on your Psi roll become the difficulty for the target to resist your control each exchange. If you succeeded with style, the target was rendered unconscious with your intrusion and will not remember what happened. The target also cannot resist until the end of the scene. While in control of another, you do not have control of your own body and it becomes still. You are however, sensitive to what happens to your own body.
Mental Barrier: You may create a barrier of thought to block another's telepathy on you and/or your allies. The size of the barrier depends on scope and the difficulty for the use of Telepathy by another within your barrier is raised by each shift you obtained. If you succeed with style, Telepathy may not be used at all against those protected by the barrier.
Spiritualism is the discipline which manipulates the bio-energy of living creatures. This includes speeding up the body's natural healing process, causing it harm and diagnosing its health. This discipline may also be used to temporarily enhance or decrease the performance of a living creature.
Some discipline uses:
Bio-Manipulation: You may manipulate the bio-field of living creatures for their benefit or ill. This power allows you to grant temporary enhancements to the living creature in the form of boosts. The boost aspect may be used in a subsequent action which relates to that boost. The boost last until the end of the scene or until used. If you succeeded with style, the boost becomes an aspect with two free invokes and lasts the entire scene during which it may also be invoked with Fate points. You may also sense the bio-fields of other living beings from a distance and know their location and relative distance. This does not allow you to identify the individual unless you are already familiar with their bio-field. Some xample boosts: Clear Mind, Increased Vigor and Single-minded Determination.
Heal/Harm: You may stimulate the body's bio-field to increase healing. This immediately marks any consequences on the target as treated and grants them a +2 bonus to Physique when healing the consequence. Likewise, the power may be used to harm a living being by causing internal injuries. Each shift equates to one stress on the target. This may be resisted with Will.
Diagnose: You may diagnose living creatures for problems with their physiology. Whether this is due to natural causes or toxic substances. You are able to determine the exact cause of the problem, however identifying a toxic substance is not possible without using Science on a sample. This power allows you to create advantages for treating and healing of the problem. You may also use this power to determine the cause of death in a recently dead being by creating an advantage to help with subsequent Investigation rolls.