Author Topic: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?  (Read 4531 times)

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Endarire

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Prelude
Expanded Psionic Classes: Egoist, Kineticist, Nomad
Expanded Psionic Classes: Seer, Shaper, Telepath

Discipline Powers

My Stance
Metacreativity (Shaper) has the most versatile powers.  Go, go, astral construct!  This gets better if you use the Personal Construct mentioned in the above link.  (I ignore Complete Psionic regarding Metacreativity power nerfs.)

Shapers also have crystalize, a save-or-die.  They get fabricate at power level 4 and minor creation at power level 1.  Be a Warforged and coat yourself in your Poison of Hugging!

Ectoplasmic coccoon is an amusing power.  Reflex save versus being stuck in a 'straightjacket.'
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Don't even need TO for this.  Any decent Hood build, especially one with Celerity, one-rounds [Azathoth, the most powerful greater deity from d20 Cthulu].
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RelentlessImp

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Re: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?
« Reply #1 on: November 07, 2010, 09:53:28 PM »
I like the Telepath's Telepathic Communication. Free access to Mindsight? I'll take it. For pure power, Mindsight's one of those that's right up there when it has a decent range, especially if your DM likes to throw invisible enemies at you.
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KellKheraptis

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Re: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?
« Reply #2 on: November 07, 2010, 10:22:02 PM »
Nomads get to screw with time, but then again I'm biased...the downer is some of my favs are spread out amongst several disciplines, so it's a pain in the ass to get all the powers I want without wasting feats on em or being item dependent.
-Schism is Telepathy
-Control Body is Psychokinesis
-Psionic Fly is Psychoportation
 Just three off the top of my head.  Fly can kinda be subsumed by the channeling power from Complete Psionic, leaving Telepath and Kineticist (though some of the more time specific Nomad powers are most likely Nomad-only).  RelentlessImp has a good point with the ACF for Telepath though...Mindsight straight up ROCKS.
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jameswilliamogle

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Re: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?
« Reply #3 on: November 07, 2010, 10:50:28 PM »
Egoist has Hustle, Metamorphosis, Fission, Fusion, and Greater Metamorphosis.  Those are all powers which I consider invaluable in any psionic nova, but can be worked around via high level Expanded Knowledge choices.

Kineticist has Control Body, the basis for a lot of Gishes, and a lot of powers that DD loves, but otherwise kind of sucks (why not just augment some general psion stuff instead?).

Shaper has Astral Combat, Psionic Minor Creation (WHICH IS AWESOME!), Fabricate, Astral Seed, Genesis.  Crystalize never works (well, thats an exageration, but not much of one).  These are all great powers for long-term power, but they aren't so great at Novas.

Nomad has been covered; its OK, but IMO the XPH powers are all easily imitated by proper magic items and normal spellcasters.  Evade Attack is freakin' awesome.

Telepath has Psionic Charm, Brain Lock, Crisis of Breath, Dominate, Schism, Dominate, Metaconcert, Mind Switch, Crisis of Life, True Mind Switch, and Psychic Chirurgery.  All these are about as awesome as powers come, all at the level which they become active.

Seer has Second Chance, Fate Link, Remote Viewing, Fate of One, Metafaculty.  Thats all well and good, but its not filled with a lot of really fun stuff for a varied experience.

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So it all depends on what you're building for.  For a character that can "fit in" in any group, I think Telepath has the best powers not easily duplicated by spells.

If you're trying to Gish, I'd say Nomad or Egoist is the way to go.

The best Novas come from combinations of Schism, Fusion, Fission, Assimilate, Time Hop, Feat Leech, Power Leech, and the Leadership feat and/or Thrallherd.

All that said, I'd say either Egoist or Telepath gives the most unique stuff, followed by Shaper.  The rest of the abilities are easily duplicated by non-psionic items.

Havok4

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Re: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?
« Reply #4 on: November 07, 2010, 10:59:55 PM »
I really like the shaper's ability set that allows them to basicly make whatever they want, from minions to poison to seafaring ships. I just wish there was a psionic version of magecraft to make the shaper's abilities even better.

PhaedrusXY

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Re: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?
« Reply #5 on: November 08, 2010, 12:05:55 PM »
Ectoplasmic coccoon is an amusing power.  Reflex save versus being stuck in a 'straightjacket.'
And then you dump your bucket of contact poison (made via Minor Creation) on their head, since the power explicitly says liquids and gases can pass through it. :D
[spoiler]
A couple of water benders, a dike, a flaming arrow, and a few barrels of blasting jelly?

Sounds like the makings of a gay porn film.
...thanks
[/spoiler]

Necrosnoop110

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Re: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?
« Reply #6 on: November 08, 2010, 12:26:53 PM »
Another vote for Egoist or Telepath. Their powers have both breadth and depth. And a tricked out Telepath is very hard to duplicate. Did I say I really like Telepaths?

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geniussavant

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Re: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?
« Reply #7 on: November 08, 2010, 03:00:53 PM »
another vote for egotist, fusion +thrallherd for the win  :D
[spoiler]
I see that you want to solve problems. Not problems like, "What is beauty?," because that would fall within the purview of your conundrums of 'philosophy'. You want to solve practical problems. F'r instance, how are you gonna stop some big, mean Mother Hubbard from tearing you a structurally superfluous new behind? The answer: Use a gun. And if that don't work? Use more gun.
And if that fails try this


 
[/spoiler]

X-Codes

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Re: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?
« Reply #8 on: November 08, 2010, 04:54:38 PM »
Seer needs more love in this thread.  Their best toys come early, and they have a lot of really great no-augment powers.

PhaedrusXY

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Re: What is the strongest psionic discipline for its powers and specials?
« Reply #9 on: November 08, 2010, 05:08:30 PM »
Seer needs more love in this thread.  Their best toys come early, and they have a lot of really great no-augment powers.
Some of the Clairsentient powers are WAAAY better than their arcane counterparts, also (i.e. Remote Viewing vs. Scrying). And some amazing ones just don't really have an arcane counterpart, like Object Reading. But you can get Object Reading from the gloves, and Remote Viewing from a feat by the time you really want it. So discipline choice really comes down to what you want the most of, and how fast you want it, and also skills if they matter to you.
[spoiler]
A couple of water benders, a dike, a flaming arrow, and a few barrels of blasting jelly?

Sounds like the makings of a gay porn film.
...thanks
[/spoiler]