TEXT: An e23 Sourcebook for GURPS
  ®
  STEVE JACKSON GAMES
  Stock #37-0135
  Version 1.0 – April 2010
  ®
  Written by JASON “PK” LEVINE
  Edited by NIKOLA VRTIS
  Illustrated by DAN SMITH
  PSIONIC
  CAMPAIGNS
  TM
  
  INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  Recommended Books. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  Publication History. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  About GURPS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
  1. WHAT IS PSI?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
  Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
  PSYCHIC BELIEFS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
  Psi Throughout History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
  Old-Time Psi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
  Defining Psi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
  Contacting Spirits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
  Themes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
  Psychical Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
  PSIONIC POTENTIAL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
  Universal Latency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
  Within the Meat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
  Player’s Choice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
  Dain Bramage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
  A Focused Mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
  Brain Grafts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
  Psionic Institutes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
  Special Souls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
  Inhuman Ability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
  REPRESENTING PSI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
  Powers and Abilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
  Decisions, Decisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
  Options and the Power Modifier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
  Psionic Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
  STARTING CONDITIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
  Power Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
  Range of Abilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
  Unusual Background (Psi) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
  Latent Powers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
  Degree of Skill. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
  2. MIND GAMES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
  THE WORLD IN YOUR MIND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
  Frequency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
  Common for When? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
  Public Awareness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
  Debunkers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
  Unknown Psi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
  Secret (Psi) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
  Public Reaction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
  The Astral Plane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
  CAMPAIGN FRAMES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
  Discovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
  Apocalypse Soon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
  Improvement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
  Hiding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
  Other Powers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
  Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
  Responsibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
  Patronage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
  Psi Across Worlds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
  3. UNIQUE CHALLENGES . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
  EMULATING EXTREMES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
  Wimpy Psi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
  Progressive Psi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
  Godlike Psi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
  Achilles’ Heel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
  Telepaths and Mental Screens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
  PSIONIC SHORT CIRCUITS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
  Knowing Too Much . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
  Which Future? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
  Taking Over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
  Silent Killers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
  Now You See Me . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
  Good as New . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
  DETERRENTS AND FIXES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
  Known Limits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
  Countermeasures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
  Overusing Countermeasures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
  Don’t Drink the Water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
  Controlling Information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
  Personal Restraint. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
  Fear of Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
  Let the Psychic Win . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
  APPENDIX: INSPIRATIONAL FICTION . . . . . 36
  INDEX. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
  CONTENTS
  2
  CONTENTS
  Playtesters: Frederick Brackin, Leonardo Holschuh, Phil Masters, Scott Maykrantz, Elizabeth McCoy, and Matt Riggsby
  GURPS, Warehouse 23, and the all-seeing pyramid are registered trademarks of Steve Jackson Games Incorporated. Pyramid, Psionic Campaigns, e23, and the names
  of all products published by Steve Jackson Games Incorporated are registered trademarks or trademarks of Steve Jackson Games Incorporated, or used under license.
  GURPS Psionic Campaigns is copyright © 2010 by Steve Jackson Games Incorporated. Some art © 2010 JupiterImages Corporation. All rights reserved.
  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this material via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal,
  and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage
  the electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
  GURPS System Design T STEVE JACKSON
  GURPS Line Editor T SEAN PUNCH
  Managing Editor T PHILIP REED
  e23 Manager T STEVEN MARSH
  Page Design T PHIL REED and
  JUSTIN DE WITT
  Art Director T WILL SCHOONOVER
  Production Artist & Indexer T NIKOLA VRTIS
  Prepress Checker T MONICA STEPHENS
  Marketing Director T PAUL CHAPMAN
  Director of Sales T ROSS JEPSON
  GURPS FAQ Maintainer T –––––––
  VICKY “MOLOKH” KOLENKO
  
  INTRODUCTION
  3
  Psi is a potent spice that can add flavor to any genre.
  Psionic abilities can be dropped into a wide range of cam-
  paigns, from the historical to the far future, and from the grit-
  tiest conspiracy story to the most over-the-top supers game.
  Regardless of the underlying setting, games featuring psi
  have common needs and issues. The GM must make decisions
  about what psi is, how it works, and what purpose it serves in
  his particular game. Players need this information as well, to
  make psis who fit into (and make sense in) the setting. GURPS
  Psionic Campaigns offers help with these needs, along with
  campaign ideas, tweaks to help psi model fiction, and answers
  to questions like “How do I challenge a group that can read
  minds and see the future?”
  RECOMMENDED BOOKS
  This book requires the GURPS Basic Set to use. Both
  GURPS Psionic Powers and GURPS Powers are recom-
  mended, though not strictly necessary. This book references
  rules and advice found in both and uses the former as the
  default assumption for several examples; for clarity, abilities
  from Psionic Powers are always expressed in boldface.
  Readers may also find the psychotronics in GURPS Ultra-Tech
  and the campaign suggestions in GURPS Supers useful.
  GURPS Psionic Powers
  For those without Psionic Powers, the following informa-
  tion should keep the examples in this book clear.
  The powers in the Basic Set (pp. B254-257) have been
  expanded to 10: Anti-Psi (defenses and countermeasures against
  psi); Astral Projection (the ability to see, interact with, and visit
  the astral plane); Ergokinesis (control over electromagnetic
  energy, allowing command of computers, electricity, and light);
  ESP (perceiving things without using one’s normal senses);
  Probability Alteration (using subtle influence to affect how likely
  things are to happen); Psychic Healing (repairing and preventing
  damage to the body); Psychic Vampirism (feeding on the energy
  of others); Psychokinesis (affecting kinetic energy); Telepathy
  (direct mind-to-mind contact); and Teleportation (movement
  without traversing the space in between). Each power has many
  predefined abilities, each of which requires a skill (Psionic Skills,
  p. 12); for example, Psychic Hunches is an ESP ability that lets a
  psi make accurate guesses by rolling against his Psychic
  Hunches skill (bought separately).
  PUBLICATION HISTORY
  While Psionic Campaigns does not incorporate any previ-
  ous GURPS books, some of the campaign advice within was
  influenced by GURPS Psionics (for Third Edition) and
  GURPS Powers.
  ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  Rev. Jason “PK” Levine has been a GURPS fanatic for
  nearly two decades and the assistant GURPS line editor for a
  small percentage of that time. He is the author of GURPS
  Dungeon Fantasy 5: Allies and GURPS Psionic Powers,
  and co-author of the GURPS Creatures of the Night series
  and GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 10: Taverns. He runs a
  GURPS fan site (www.mygurps.com) and lives in north
  Georgia with his wonderful wife, a few cats and dogs, and
  several hundred Transformers.
  INTRODUCTION
  Steve Jackson Games is committed to full support of
  GURPS players. Our address is SJ Games, P.O. Box 18957,
  Austin, TX 78760. Please include a self-addressed, stamped
  envelope (SASE) any time you write us! We can also be
  reached by e-mail: info@sjgames.com. Resources include:
  New supplements and adventures. GURPS continues to
  grow – see what’s new at www.sjgames.com/gurps.
  e23. Our e-publishing division offers GURPS adven-
  tures, play aids, and support in PDF form . . . digital copies
  of our books, plus exclusive material available only on e23!
  Just head over to e23.sjgames.com.
  Pyramid (www.sjgames.com/pyramid). Our monthly
  PDF magazine includes new rules and articles for GURPS,
  systemless locations, adventures, and much more. Look for
  each themed issue from e23!
  Internet.
  Visit
  us
  on
  the
  World
  Wide
  Web
  at
  www.sjgames.com for errata, updates, Q&A, and much
  more. To discuss GURPS with our staff and your fellow
  gamers, visit our forums at forums.sjgames.com. The
  GURPS Psionic Campaigns web page can be found at
  www.sjgames.com/gurps/books/psioniccampaigns.
  Bibliographies. Many of our books have extensive bib-
  liographies, and we’re putting them online – with links to
  let you buy the resources that interest you! Go to each
  book’s web page and look for the “Bibliography” link.
  Errata. Everyone makes mistakes, including us – but we
  do our best to fix our errors. Up-to-date errata pages for all
  GURPS releases, including this book, are available on our
  website – see above.
  Rules and statistics in this book are specifically for the
  GURPS Basic Set, Fourth Edition. Page references that
  begin with B refer to that book, not this one.
  About GURPS
  
  Belief in the supernatural has always permeated every level
  of society, whether as superstition, true belief, or just flights of
  fancy – a mix of hoping and believing that life is more than
  meets the eye. The specific belief in psionic abilities is one of
  the most common subsets of this, with stories about empow-
  ered humans going back to the dawn of the written word – and
  still selling well today.
  PSI THROUGHOUT HISTORY
  The time in which a game is set determines much about the
  attitudes and beliefs toward psionics. However, even if the GM
  is starting a modern game, he needs to think about history –
  specifically, about how long psi has existed. People have
  believed in the existence of personal supernatural empower-
  ment since the dawn of humanity; it’s up to the GM whether
  those beliefs ever held any water, or if actual psionic abilities
  are the result of a recent mutation. See Discovery (pp. 19-20)
  for some campaign frames that assume the latter.
  Ancient Beliefs
  Tales of those gifted with “sight beyond sight” or “the evil
  eye” are as old as history itself. While unexplainable events
  that affected the world were credited to the gods or spirits,
  unexplainable personal knowledge or ability was often
  labeled “witchcraft” or “the sight.” If the special person was
  very lucky, his gifts were seen as “holy” and thus acceptable
  as the indirect work of the gods.
  Other than that, however, no real attempt was made to dis-
  tinguish between personal power and power drawn from an
  outside source (Internal vs. External, p. 6). A mystic in a game
  set far in the past might be represented as well by Magery and
  spells as with personal psionic abilities. It’s the GM’s call: Spells
  allow for such adventurers to have a wide range of effects that
  tend to require time, energy, and ritual, while psi usually
  means fewer abilities that are easier to use and more reliable.
  Games set this far in the past may need to adjust the psionic
  power modifier; see Old-Time Psi (p. 5) for more on this.
  Mesmerism and Magnetism
  Though humanity’s belief in mysticism slowly shrank as its
  understanding of the world (and the sciences behind it) grew,
  not all such phenomena were easily dismissed. While the world
  slowly came to agree that flashy magics and ground-shaking
  miracles didn’t exist (or no longer existed, as many said), con-
  cepts like “mind over matter” and “intuitive knowledge” were
  plausible enough not to stretch the average person’s disbelief,
  even if supported solely by anecdotal or sketchy evidence.
  “What is psi?” seems like a simple question, but the
  answers reveal a world of possibilities. Psi can be a
  poorly understood ability that flares up in a few kids each
  generation, the backbone of a society that trains every adult
  in basic psionic abilities, the weapon that humanity needs
  to wrest control from its alien invaders, or any number of
  other scenarios.
  Getting everyone on the same
  page before the game starts is cru-
  cial to any campaign involving
  psionic powers. Players can’t decide
  what to play until they know what
  purpose psi serves in the game and
  how it actually works. At the same
  time, the GM can’t really gauge the
  effects of psi on his world (see
  Chapter 2) until he establishes the
  basics of what “psi” really means.
  So the real question is not “What
  is psi?” but “What is psi . . . in this
  campaign?”
  CHAPTER ONE
  WHAT IS PSI?
  WHAT IS PSI?
  4
  PSYCHIC BELIEFS
  Glossary
  latent psi: A person with a dormant psionic ability (see p. 14).
  parapsychology: The study of psionics and psychics. Originally known as psychi-
  cal research.
  psi: 1. Synonym for psionics. 2. A person with psionic abilities.
  psionic: Possessing or related to psionics.
  psionics: The class of supernatural mental abilities represented (in GURPS) by
  advantages with the Psionic (-10%) power modifier.
  psychic: Possessing or related to a supernatural or paranormal power, such as
  psionics.
  psychotronics: Mundane technology (typified by electronic devices and drugs)
  capable of interacting with psionics in some way. Also known as psi-tech.
  
  The Victorian era introduced the world to the concept of
  “psychical research” – the first attempt to truly distinguish per-
  sonal psionic ability from other supernatural phenomenon.
  This was the birth of Expert Skill (Psionics), as well as the
  optional specialty Psychology (Parapsychology). In general,
  psychical researchers asserted that the mind could be trained to
  influence the world around it. Specific beliefs varied consider-
  ably, however. Many felt that the mind was sending out ripples
  through the “ether” that permeated all things. Some were con-
  vinced that sufficient psychic power would let
  a person transcend death – either as a ghost
  (perhaps psis can buy the Spirit meta-trait as
  a potential advantage; see pp. B263 and B33)
  or by fixing and reinhabiting the original body
  (treat as either Extra Life or Unkillable).
  Most such researchers agreed that “per-
  sonal magnetism” was tied directly to super-
  human mental power – a person who could
  charm those around him had the sort of
  mind that could manipulate reality. This was
  not limited to telepathy – this was believed
  to apply even to ESP, psychokinesis, etc. In a
  game set in this era, the GM may require all
  psis to have at least Charisma 1, and rule
  that no power Talent can be equal to or
  greater than Charisma in level (e.g., you can-
  not buy ESP Talent 3 unless you first have
  Charisma 4).
  Modern Day
  “Psi” is a relatively modern term, pro-
  posed in 1942 by psychological researchers
  Bertold Wiesner and Robert Thouless, who
  believed that feats such as telepathy, clairvoy-
  ance, and telekinesis were all manifestations
  of the same basic ability. The concept was
  introduced to the rest of the world (as “psion-
  ics”) by John Campbell and other science-fic-
  tion authors, who foresaw a future in which
  an understanding of the mind would allow
  humanity to unlock this potential. Inspired
  by this scientific approach to paranormal
  abilities, “parapsychologists” (a new name for
  psychical researchers) began developing tests
  to detect and measure psionic ability; see
  Psychical Testing (p. 7) for details. Interest in
  this field ballooned during the Cold War
  when the KGB was discovered to be research-
  ing remote viewing and other psionic abilities. The United
  States quickly followed suit in 1978 with Project Stargate, first
  under the U.S. Army’s Intelligence and Security Command
  (INSCOM) and later under the DIA and CIA.
  The modern attitude toward psi tends to be one of overall
  skepticism. No psychic has ever passed an independent test of
  his abilities, a fact trumpeted by debunkers such as James
  Randi (who has offered a $1 million reward to anyone who can
  prove such powers under rigorous testing). However, the world
  still has psychic hotlines and television faith healers, and a sig-
  nificant minority of believers remains (see Suspected, pp. 16-
  17). While modern science has answered many questions that
  once required humanity to believe in supernatural forces to
  explain, it has also shown the public that the universe is a
  much stranger place than previously imagined. The world
  reeled from the theory of relativity (“Wait, space is time? And
  energy is matter?”) and was just recovering when quantum
  physics appeared (“All matter is just a wave of probability? And
  particles teleport?”). For many people, the belief in mind over
  matter is no stranger than these accepted branches of science;
  even some scientists have been known to pursue the study of
  Physics (Paraphysics) . . . as a theoretical exercise, of course.
  DEFINING PSI
  Despite attempts to take a scientific approach toward
  understanding psionics, it remains conflated with other para-
  normal phenomena in the minds of most people. Some para-
  psychologists assert that everything from magic to haunted
  houses can be explained as controlled or uncontrolled use of
  psionics. Others believe that “psi” is just another word for
  magic, useful only for its veneer of scientific respectability.
  Reading a person’s future is a divine miracle, magic spell, spir-
  itual communication, heightened mental ability, or something
  else – depending on whom you’re asking. In GURPS, however,
  certain aspects set psi apart from other mystical forces.
  WHAT IS PSI?
  5
  Old-Time Psi
  The -10% power modifier for psi assumes the existence of both an Anti-
  Psi power (-5%) and scientific countermeasures to psi known as psychotron-
  ics (-5%). While the former can exist in any psionic setting, the latter only
  makes sense in a fairly modern (or futuristic) game. Because of this, games
  featuring psionics in the past may need to redefine the power modifier,
  replacing the vulnerability to psychotronics with a different -5% limitation.
  Costs Fatigue, 1 FP, is a reasonable swap; instead of psis worrying
  about neutralization rays, they have to worry about wearing themselves
  out from overexertion. Pact, Minor Vow, is also common, with psis often
  having to abstain from something (such as sexual activity) or following a
  “path” (such as vegetarianism). Any Nuisance Effect can fit, such as caus-
  ing hostile astral entities to sometimes notice the psi (6 or less chance
  every time he uses psionics), or forcing weird facial contortions that get a
  -1 reaction from anyone who witnesses the psi working his mojo.
  Psychobotanics
  A different alternative is to assume that the equivalent of psychotronics
  exists in the campaign world, in the form of natural preparations. Perhaps
  drinking a reduction of boiled peony seed and zinnia leaf gives the
  imbiber Resistant to Psionics for a day. A properly crafted headband of
  gold, amber, and iron might provide some form of Psionic Shield. Maybe
  a dart covered in bindweed sap and motherwort pollen can temporarily
  Neutralize a psi’s abilities. If one or more of these or similar combinations
  works, Naturalist (possibly along with Herb Lore and Metallurgy) fills the
  role of Engineer (Psychotronics) in the setting.
  Countermeasures may exist naturally (without requiring preparation)
  as well. For example, some natural substance – such as a plant’s pollen or
  fragrance, a gem that resonates with psionic frequencies, etc. – may inter-
  fere slightly with all psi use in the area. In a setting in which psionics take
  the place of magic, or are indicative of fairy blood, psi may instead be vul-
  nerable to traditional materials (GURPS Thaumatology, p. 244) such as
  “cold iron” and salt.
  
  Internal vs. External
  Magic use draws upon external energy (mana), shamanism
  relies upon the actions of other beings, and true religious mir-
  acles require the active participation of a deity. These abilities
  draw upon external forces; if the user is somehow cut off from
  these forces, he is unable to use his power (GURPS Powers,
  p. 24). Psionics originate from within the psi’s mind. Certain
  powers (e.g., Psychokinesis) involve energy coming out of the
  psi, which may be blockable, but the only way to stop him from
  using his abilities in the first place is to do something to him to
  suppress it. Using an ability like Neutralize or Cancellation
  isn’t “cutting off” the psi from anything – it’s making a funda-
  mental change within the psi himself.
  Mental vs. Physical
  While no consensus exists on whether it is a genetic trait or
  a learned one (Psionic Potential, pp. 8-10), everyone agrees that
  psi comes from the mind. This may mean the brain, the sense
  of self, or the soul, but the point is that psi is an intellectual
  pursuit. Most fictional psis hone their skills through intense
  training, demonstrating greater finesse and versatility (and
  sometimes sheer power) as they develop better control. Psionic
  abilities generally reflect this. A psi can know the future or
  project invisible energy with his mind, but not grow 12’ tall or
  shoot a jet of water out of his finger. Some physicality can
  occur, of course, but most believers draw the line at healing
  oneself or subtly enhancing one’s physical abilities – typical
  interpretations of psi can justify someone flying via levitation,
  but not by sprouting feathered wings.
  Pseudo-Science vs. Mysticism
  This is a recent split. As discussed in Psi Throughout History
  (pp. 4-5), up until the Victorian era, no effort was made to
  examine superhuman mental abilities from a scientific perspec-
  tive. Today, psi is usually portrayed as more scientific than mys-
  tical. While many uses of psi seem to involve the spontaneous
  creation of energy, what is done with that energy usually follows
  the normal rules of physics. A psychokinetic can melt a plastic
  toy, but he cannot change it into metal or grant it intelligence.
  Likewise, in most settings, the energy wielded by a psi can often
  be detected, blocked, and suppressed by specialized technology
  known as psychotronics (pp. 32-33). In a world where psionics
  are real, even mundane equipment and procedures may be able
  to detect and measure psi – see Psychical Testing (p. 7).
  THEMES
  Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, but psi is often a
  metaphor. Psionics can be more interesting and natural in a
  game if the GM and players consider what it really means. This
  doesn’t mean that everyone has to mesh – it’s fine if the GM is
  going for a “Homo superior” theme and one player decides to
  build his psi around the idea of “empowering the powerless.”
  Rather, it’s something that should be brought up from the start
  of the campaign. If the GM sees psi as a curse, for example, and
  doesn’t make this clear, the players will be disappointed when
  all of their shiny, fun abilities end up actually ruining their
  adventurers’ lives.
  Any list of themes can only scratch the surface of possi-
  bilities, of course. What follows are simply some of the most
  common approaches to supernatural mental power.
  Going Through Changes
  In many takes on psi, it tends to manifest when the sub-
  ject is just starting to become a teenager. Suddenly, the psi
  has to deal with something unexpected and serious, without
  having any experience in these matters. There are awkward
  moments when abilities trigger uncontrollably; surges in
  power or control due to hormonal changes; the fear that
  everyone around the psi is staring as they realize what’s hap-
  pening; a tendency to become withdrawn while trying to fig-
  ure out what’s going on . . .
  The psi-as-puberty metaphor nearly always includes
  teenage subjects, but it doesn’t have to. The theme here is
  one of self-realization and a gradual assumption of both abili-
  ties and responsibilities – something that fits adult psis just
  fine. A game about going through changes should usually start
  the party off with minimal psionic powers (Starting Conditions,
  pp. 13-14), perhaps uncontrolled, and have them develop and
  master their abilities over the course of the campaign. Just as
  many chances should occur to make things worse by using psi
  as there are to fix things – to promote responsibility and
  restraint when necessary. A PC built around the idea of going
  through changes is often unsure of himself and distressed
  about when he should rely on his psi; this can be represented
  by disadvantages like Confused, Indecisive, Low Self-Image,
  and perhaps Mundane Background. He has a drive (perhaps
  even an Obsession) for learning more about his abilities and
  developing them carefully.
  Empowering the Powerless
  Everyone who’s ever had to deal with bullies, enemies, or
  any rude, overbearing authority figure has fantasized about
  developing some sort of superpower and using it to turn the
  tables. Psi is the kind of superpower that’s just barely within
  the threshold of belief – especially for those who are already
  brainy (or who think they are).
  This is pure wish fulfillment, with a question about abuse of
  power (do you start mentally blasting everyone who ever called
  you a name?) hanging in the air. An “empowering the powerless”
  campaign should probably get the bully beating-up out of
  the way early on, after which it can move on to the group using
  their abilities to help defend others who can’t defend themselves.
  WHAT IS PSI?
  6
  Contacting Spirits
  Psychic powers and ghosts have been linked together
  since humanity began believing in both, but this link was
  reinforced in the Victorian era (Mesmerism and Magnetism,
  pp. 4-5), when both the Spiritualist movement and psychi-
  cal research began to overlap significantly. Many people
  believed that the ability to contact spirits was the essential
  psychic ability, and all others were derived from this. While
  this begins to extend into the realm of spirit powers
  (Powers, p. 28), it can also be represented by having either
  Medium (ESP, -10%), Channeling (Astral Projection, -10%),
  or Spirit Communication as a prerequisite advantage for
  any other psi.
  
  A psi created with this theme in mind tends to start off as both
  overprotective (often with Charitable, Sense of Duty, or a pro-
  tective Code of Honor) and prone to lashing out at perceived
  slights (Bad Temper and, ironically, Bully may be common).
  Once he gets his emotions under control, he fits into society
  better, but he may still have an attitude, often represented by
  an Intolerance of either bullies or authority figures.
  Homo Superior
  Many people assume that if humanity eventually evolves
  into a new species, it will be because people have learned to
  harness their latent psionic abilities. This theme shares com-
  mon threads with the previous two – it’s about going through
  changes and gaining personal power. What makes it different
  is the approach: psi is not scary, dangerous, unexplainable, or
  the “salvation” of a victim. Instead, psi is a natural develop-
  ment that shifts normal people to a new level, where the only
  reasonable response (or perhaps just the response they have) is
  to see themselves as a separate species: Homo superior.
  This doesn’t mean they’re nice, however. In fact, such a
  game can certainly play out as a war between those who stand
  with humanity versus those who think humanity should be
  slaves, destroyed, etc. (See the X-Men movies for a recent
  example, although it substitutes “mutant” for “psi.”) However,
  just as frequently, humanity is the antagonist, as the authori-
  ties try to chase down and dissect any psis they can. Someone
  who sees himself as Homo superior tends toward arrogance
  and a detachment from humanity. Callous, Delusion (“I’m not
  even somewhat human”), Odious Personal Habit (Arrogant),
  and Overconfidence are all common; in some fiction, the
  Homo superior package automatically comes with Low
  Empathy, No Sense of Humor, or Oblivious. If he still respects
  humans, he is often patronizing but willing to go out of his way
  to “shepherd” them; if not, he may be downright sociopathic
  (and Intolerant of all non-psis).
  Your Head Asplode
  Sometimes psi is just straight-up horror. While Carrie was
  psionics as puberty, Scanners is about nasty psychics popping
  heads like balloons. Psi may be a twisted curse that drives its
  users insane and makes them incredibly difficult to track,
  counter, and put down. If this is the case, such psis are NPCs,
  unless the group’s tastes run to some gruesome activities.
  However, the “psi as a curse” theme can be scaled down. If
  all psi is Uncontrollable, all information powers come with
  Backlash, and psis have to take disadvantages (or at least
  Temporary Disadvantage limitations) like Chronic Pain,
  Flashbacks, Neurological Disorder, and Phantom Voices . . . psi
  can be usable, but at what cost? Such a game should focus on
  situations where using psionics would be useful but where the
  “cost” to use them may cause complications, as well as on the
  need to keep people at a distance to avoid hurting them (or
  being hurt). Obviously, this kind of game appeals to fewer peo-
  ple than the other themes presented here.
  Alien Minds
  In some sci-fi games, psi is the biggest feature that differenti-
  ates aliens from humans. (In fact, in many cases, it’s the only
  thing, along with perhaps a bumpy nose or excess facial hair.)
  WHAT IS PSI?
  7
  If psychotronic means of detecting psis do not exist (or
  are not available), researchers can try other methods to
  determine whether a subject has a certain latent (p. 14)
  psionic ability or power. (If he has an actual psionic ability,
  ignore these rules; successful use of it demonstrates its
  existence just fine!)
  The researcher first sets up a basic demonstrative test,
  such as with Zener Cards (TL6). In this, cards with five dif-
  ferent symbols (circle, cross, wavy lines, square, star) are
  shuffled and the subject either attempts to predict which
  card will be drawn (for Precognition) or to read the image
  of the card from the hand or mind of the researcher who is
  holding it (for Clairsentience or Telepathy). Parapsycholo-
  gists use electronic random number generators (TL7) to
  test for Probability Alteration, by having the subject
  attempt to influence the result. Similarly, they test for Psy-
  chokinesis by having the subject try to affect a scale, ther-
  mometer, bowl of water, or even grains of salt.
  For each test, the researcher must roll against Expert
  Skill (Psionics)+4 or Psychology to administer the test and
  interpret the results properly; on a failure, the subject
  comes up negative regardless of the truth. Otherwise, if the
  subject is cooperating, he may then roll against IQ, plus any
  Talent for the power in question. (Exception: If the ability
  being tested for would normally be covered by a Per or Will
  roll, use that attribute instead.) On a success by 10+ or a
  critical success, he demonstrates his latent ability in a
  measurable way. Of course, if the subject is not cooperating,
  the experiment fails – although at the GM’s discretion it be
  may possible to trick the subject into revealing powers.
  Some parapsychologists use medical equipment such as
  an EEG (TL7) to map the subject’s brain-wave patterns dur-
  ing experiments. Use the rules above, but first the operator
  makes an Electronics Operation (Medical or Scientific) roll.
  On a failure, the subject automatically comes up negative.
  Otherwise, add one-third of the margin of success (round
  down) to the subject’s roll to demonstrate his latent ability.
  A Watched Pyro Never Boils
  The real world is full of self-proclaimed psis whose abili-
  ties mysteriously fail to work when tested. Putting the most
  obvious explanation aside, this may be due to what has been
  dubbed “the observer effect”: The act of observing affects the
  observed. If the campaign would benefit from psis being
  unable to reliably demonstrate their abilities for a rigorous
  test, the GM may decide that active psi “turns latent” when
  scientifically observed; psis cannot use their abilities freely
  and must follow the rules above to demonstrate them. This
  may be due to self-consciousness on the part of the psis or
  evidence of latent anti-psi found in the average researcher –
  see Anti-Psi (pp. 31-32) for more on the latter.
  Psychical Testing
  
  When Race X can read minds and Race Y can control comput-
  ers, it provides the writers – or the GM – with a quick hook to
  capture the flavor of the race. When building a sci-fi setting
  from scratch (in which case, GURPS Space is invaluable), the
  GM should decide if psi is restricted to certain races, and if so,
  whether each psionic race only has access to certain powers.
  The racial template for a psionic alien may even include inborn
  psionic abilities that every member of the race has.
  Alien psis often appear in modern, non-sci-fi settings as
  well. They are usually crash survivors, advance scouts, or some
  other small group that is currently cut off from the rest of their
  race. This set-up is necessary; a few aliens on Earth adds color
  to a modern game, but thousands of aliens turns it into a sci-fi
  game, even if the players don’t realize it yet! As above, the GM
  may incorporate whatever traits (psionic or otherwise) he
  wishes into their racial template, though there is a long-stand-
  ing tradition in fiction for the aliens to either look like or be
  able to disguise themselves as humans. See Inhuman Ability
  (p. 10) for more ideas.
  WHAT IS PSI?
  8
  I know you don’t want accept it,
  but it’s true. She’s not human.
  – Jim Valenti, Roswell #3.14
  PSIONIC POTENTIAL
  What makes a psi? Some believers say that every human
  being has the potential to develop powerful mental gifts. Some
  stories focus on psionic families, each member passing down
  latent abilities to the next generation. Other campaigns work
  well when the PCs are the only people on the planet who can
  learn psionic abilities.
  This doesn’t mean the players or their adventurers need to
  start the game knowing this answer, of course! If the source
  of psi is a central mystery in the campaign, the GM should
  feel free to keep this decision to himself, giving away as little
  as possible when vetting origin stories (“You discovered your
  powers after getting hit by a car? Fine, but note that you were
  unconscious for a few days before coming around.”)
  It’s important to distinguish the question “What kind of
  person has the potential to be a psi?” from “How common
  are true psis?” The two are not necessarily related. For
  example, in a campaign with universal latency (below), psis
  may be common, but because so few people are aware of
  psi, only a small number have trained actual abilities. See
  The World in Your Mind (pp. 15-19) for more ideas.
  UNIVERSAL LATENCY
  Perhaps the simplest decision is to say that everyone has
  psionic potential. The world is full of latent psis, which implies
  that anyone can develop actual powers with the right motiva-
  tion or training. Everyone may have a level of Talent (Latent
  Powers, p. 14) or they may just have Weak Latency (Psi)
  (Psionic Powers, p. 19), either as a perk or a 0-point feature.
  This doesn’t necessarily mean that active psis are common (see
  Frequency, pp. 15-16), but if that’s not the case, the GM must
  consider why. A world with universal latency doesn’t require
  much thought about background on the players’ end; anyone
  can build a psi, because anyone can be a psi.
  WITHIN THE MEAT
  Psionics may be mental abilities (Mental vs. Physical, p. 6),
  but that doesn’t necessarily remove physicality from the equa-
  tion. On a fundamental level, mental capacity is governed by
  the way each brain is built; damage or alteration to certain
  parts of the brain can have drastic effects on thoughts, person-
  ality, and other “purely mental” things. Because of this, a per-
  son’s body may have to come properly “pre-wired” before he
  has a chance of developing powers.
  Genetics
  Many stories feature psionic bloodlines – entire families
  with latent or actual abilities, who pass this psionic potential
  down from generation to generation. In some cases, it may
  skip generations, or be a realistic trait (in a genetic sense) –
  that is, it may be recessive or dominant, with a varying proba-
  bility of showing up in any one descendant. Some families may
  only have a gift for one psionic power; interbreeding between
  bloodlines may be the only way to birth multi-talented psis (see
  Range of Abilities, pp. 13-14).
  If the campaign will feature genetic lines of psis, the GM
  may wish to decide how far back up the genealogical tree the
  psychic blood can be traced. If the potential in a family can all
  be traced back to one ancestor, an investigative adventure (or
  full campaign arc) may reveal hitherto unknown facts about
  the bloodline in question or even about psionics in general. For
  extra intrigue, what if all psionic families can trace their poten-
  tial back to a single common ancestor?
  Player’s Choice
  Some GMs, particularly those running a game with
  open powers (p. 12), may not really care to define who has
  the potential for psi; if a player wants to build a psi, the
  background details don’t really matter. If the GM doesn’t
  want the “world of latent psis” implied by Universal Latency
  (below), he can take that option off the menu while letting
  a player choose any of the other explanations for why his
  adventurer has psi. For example, one may have been a gov-
  ernment test subject, another may come from a long line of
  telepaths, and a third may have developed powers when
  trapped in a house fire.
  
  Genetic engineering poses another possibility – what if a
  given line of psis was created intentionally? This shades into
  Intervention (below) but requires scientists willing to engage
  in long-term planning, possibly to create a self-sustaining
  supply of psis. See GURPS Bio-Tech for details and rules on
  this kind of tampering.
  Intervention
  Perhaps the body can be adapted to bring out psi? If so,
  experiments on brain tissue or hormone therapy may be able
  to turn a non-psi into a latent (or actual) psi. This is often the
  domain of secret government doctors and mad scientists,
  though some settings feature benevolent groups who simply
  want to bring people to the next level. This may be mixed with
  Genetics (pp. 8-9), as doctors examine the brains of the gifted
  and use that knowledge to “upgrade” others – or it could be the
  only way to create psis in the campaign. The latter could be the
  result of an experimental cocktail of hormones and/or surgery.
  It may be permanent, or it may require the psi to
  return for regular medicine to avoid losing his
  powers. See Brain Grafts (below) for another,
  gruesome possibility.
  At higher TLs, doctors may be able to give sub-
  jects a “psionic upgrade” via a tailored proteus
  nanovirus (Bio-Tech, p. 184). Mere minutes after
  being infected, a normal human may find himself
  developing strange mental powers! This is an
  intriguing alternative to normal neurosurgery,
  from a game perspective, due to the possibility of
  such a virus becoming contagious: By spreading
  out of control, it could drastically increase the
  number of psis in the setting in less than a month.
  Instead of doctors, psi may represent the result
  of alien meddling! Extraterrestrial visitors may be
  forcibly “uplifting” abductees as part of a long-
  term plan. Deciding what that plan is will have a
  major effect on the campaign. The aliens may just
  be trying to help by raising humanity to the next
  level (Homo Superior, p. 7). This may be a human-
  itarian effort (no pun intended), a need for an ally
  (militarily, economically, etc.), or an attempt to
  evolve humans enough not to head into space and
  nuke everything they meet. Alternatively, it could
  be a devious plot: Along with their powers, the psis
  are unknowingly implanted with Will -10 (Only to
  resist the Greys’ psi, -80%) [-10], and their Mind
  Shield is useless against the aliens! With psionic agents in place
  all over the world, the aliens could accomplish a lot . . . unless
  someone can stop them, that is.
  A FOCUSED MIND
  A common belief regarding psi is that, while any-
  one could become psychic in theory, in practice it
  requires a special state of mind. This is different
  from Universal Latency (p. 8) in that the average
  person is not a latent psi and, in fact, has no special
  inherent psionic aptitude. Instead, anyone could
  undergo some sort of experience that shapes his
  mind into the right mold for paranormal abilities.
  The catalyst required depends on the setting (exam-
  ples follow), though some worlds allow any of them
  to act as a psionic “trigger.”
  The experience may require a “trigger roll”
  against Will to awaken psionic powers instead of it
  happening automatically; see Awakenings (Powers,
  p. 36) for detailed rules. Alternatively, it may give
  the subject a latent power (p. 14) rather than actual
  abilities. As a compromise, success on the trigger
  roll reveals a gain of actual powers, with a failed roll granting
  latent ones instead.
  Adrenaline Shock
  In times of incredible stress or trauma, people have been
  known to demonstrate some amazing abilities. When a mother
  lifts a car off her child to save his life, that may be pure adren-
  aline charging her muscles, or a latent psychokinesis being
  triggered. This is a very common theme in fiction, and meshes
  well with Going Through Changes (p. 6), where a shocking
  event is the catalyst for latent abilities blooming into real ones.
  WHAT IS PSI?
  9
  Dain Bramage
  In GURPS, some physical effects and mental trauma can cause
  the permanent or temporary loss of IQ or other mental traits. Psi,
  being a mental trait, is vulnerable to this; someone who fails a Fright
  Check badly enough may lose levels in one of his psionic abilities!
  Optionally, if the GM wants to emphasize the tie between the physi-
  cal brain and the abilities it allows (Within the Meat, pp. 8-9), he may
  rule that any physical trauma that results in the loss of IQ or mental
  traits also causes the victim to lose the same number of character
  points’ worth of psi. This can be harsh, but it can ensure that those
  with psionic abilities value their heads . . . literally.
  Brain Grafts
  In TL7+ worlds where Intervention (above) is true, desperate or mad
  scientists might attempt to create new psis by adding brain tissue from
  existing ones. The donor psi can be dead (if not, this procedure kills
  him), but not from damage to the brain; if deceased, he must have been
  put on life support within four minutes of death. Brain tissue from the
  donor is good for (1d/2) brain grafts, +1 for every full 50 points in
  psionic abilities, Talent, and skills he had. (Or, if the GM allows cloned
  neural tissue to work, one donor can provide infinite grafts.)
  This procedure takes 24 hours and is at -15 to Surgery skill at TL7,
  -10 at TL8, and -5 at TL9+. Use the full surgery rules from Bio-Tech
  (pp. 135-139) or the simpler modifiers on p. B223. If the Surgery roll
  fails, the victim permanently loses one point of IQ (1d+1 points on a
  critical failure) and gains nothing psionic. On a normal success, the
  subject gains one level of Talent in up to (1d/2) powers that the donor
  had; as a latent psi (p. 14), he can go on to learn actual abilities. On a
  critical success, he also gains one psionic ability of the donor’s (at the
  minimum possible level).
  Brain tissue does not suffer from rejection, but the subject must
  make a HT-1 roll to assimilate the new brain tissue. At TL9+, the use of
  nanotherapy adds a bonus of (TL-8)¥2 to this roll. There is no special
  effect on a success or critical success. On a failure, he permanently loses
  points of IQ equal to the margin of failure; on a critical failure, he dies!
  
  Altered Consciousness
  There is a long tradition of using chemicals to achieve a
  “higher state.” Vedic clergy consumed soma to see visions,
  Bolivian shamans inhaled burnt cohoba seeds for inner clarity,
  and Native Americans ingested peyote to commune with spirits.
  In practice, this is often easier and safer than adrenaline shock,
  with similar results. It always requires a trigger roll to get some-
  thing useful out of the experience without losing oneself.
  Training
  Instead of a sudden, dramatic event, truly developing one’s
  psi may require serious, intense training. (Or the shock may
  bring out latent powers, which training then brings forth fully.)
  This generally requires weeks of study (if not longer) with suc-
  cessful Teaching rolls by the trainer. Instead of a Will roll to trig-
  ger abilities, students may have to make IQ rolls to absorb the
  lessons. In a cinematic game, the Training Sequence rules from
  GURPS Martial Arts (p. 147) can be adapted to speed this up.
  Obviously, this choice requires the GM to decide who can
  (and does) train psis. Two common fictional tropes are the
  psionic institute (p. 10) and the wise, old master (or small
  group of wise, old monks). The latter can usually be found in a
  remote location, where he (or they) train students in basic
  techniques before sending off the potential psis off on bizarre
  quests (“Head north, and fetch me the topmost apple from the
  first tree you come to when you can no longer see this tem-
  ple”). These errands invariably turn out to be full of complica-
  tions that require the use of the psionic abilities the students
  have. If the campaign will be sufficiently long-lived, it may be
  fun to start in this situation, moving on to the “real game” once
  the party is ready.
  SPECIAL SOULS
  If psi isn’t connected to the flesh and blood, and it isn’t
  formed from the mind, then that leaves the esoteric as an
  option. This can be anything the GM (or player – see Player’s
  Choice, p. 8) feels is a plausible explanation for who can be a
  psi. Maybe it’s not tied to any specific family lines, but any sev-
  enth son of a seventh son can learn psionics freely. Or anyone
  whose cradle was left under a weeping willow during the first
  thunderstorm of their existence. Or all who enter the temple of
  Amun-Ra with an offering of a priest of Apep’s decapitated
  head. (Or all three, but that’d be a strange world . . .)
  While deciding this, bear in mind that if anyone is able to
  do a scientific study on a large number of psis, the origin of
  superhuman abilities will eventually become public knowl-
  edge. If parents know about the “weeping willow and thunder-
  storm” trick, they can effectively choose whether to gift their
  child with psionic abilities. If being struck by lightning is
  known to have a 1-in-6 chance of triggering latent abilities,
  many people are going to die of electrocution each year. Be
  sure to consider the ramifications, and how this will affect the
  game world. This option may be best for campaign where
  psionic powers are a mixed blessing – if half of all psis turn into
  rampaging monsters (Your Head Asplode, p. 7), folks will be
  less likely to run into storms with a lightning rod in one hand.
  INHUMAN ABILITY
  It’s possible that humans can’t become psis – but others can!
  In a sci-fi setting, this is often what sets aliens apart from
  humans. For more on this, see Alien Minds (pp. 7-9).
  This does not preclude psionic characters, of course.
  Thematically, little difference exists between psionic humans
  and psionic aliens – both have abilities beyond those of nor-
  mal people, and both are likely to be viewed with fear and dis-
  trust. If the aliens just happen to look like humans (a very
  common approach in fiction, despite being mind-bogglingly
  unlikely) or can use psi or technology to disguise themselves
  as such, all of the advice for human psis in this book can be
  applied with no significant changes. If not, the advice on
  aliens found in GURPS Space is invaluable for the GM.
  WHAT IS PSI?
  10
  A staple of modern and sci-fi fiction, the psionic insti-
  tute is made up of a few dozen psis, devoted to training
  those who need it. It’s possible for there to just be one such
  institute, but one location for every 10 million to 100 mil-
  lion people is more common in most games and fiction,
  even if these are only different branches of a single organ-
  ization. Some designate entrance requirements – ranging
  from specific religious beliefs and social standing to “any-
  one willing to give us $1,000” – while some take anyone
  with psionic potential.
  Once in, training generally proceeds like a normal
  school; see Improvement Through Study (p. B292). Many
  institutes begin to “make use” of their students once
  they’ve developed a few abilities, however. This can range
  from the innocuous (e.g., helping victims of a bombing
  while wearing T-shirts to advertise the school) to the shady
  (e.g., breaking into offices to alter financial records). The
  institute may openly oppose a rival institute (or faction) –
  some settings are riddled with competing schools, each
  with a different vision.
  In some campaigns, these institutes work openly, with
  advertisements in the Yellow Pages and the occasional bill-
  board. In others, they are forced deep underground,
  requiring the use of Contacts and Streetwise skill to find
  them, where they swear all students to secrecy (and may
  even back it up with a little Mental Surgery).
  For a thorough take on this subject (in a sci-fi setting),
  see GURPS Traveller: Psionic Institutes.
  Psionic Institutes
  Here await the birth of the son
  The seventh, the heavenly, the chosen one
  – Iron Maiden,
  “Seventh Son of a Seventh Son”
  
  While most players want enough game-world information
  to build psis that will be interesting while still fitting in, their
  first question usually is “What cool powers can we get?” It’s up
  to the GM what sort of “shopping list” to hand the group dur-
  ing character creation.
  POWERS AND ABILITIES
  In GURPS, psionics use the power system, as defined on
  p. B254 and greatly expanded on in Powers. Past that, it’s up to
  the GM as to how much is predefined.
  Closed List
  Psionic Powers takes the “closed list” approach: All of the
  powers available are defined and the GM creates all of the abili-
  ties available within those powers ahead of time. The players are
  given the list, and may buy anything on it, but cannot make their
  own. This approach takes the most work (unless
  using Psionic Powers), but often gives the best
  results for the GM and the players. The GM does-
  n’t have to worry about anyone designing a game-
  breaking ability, and he doesn’t need to include
  anything that he feels would break the game –
  even a predefined list (like Psionic Powers) can
  be pared down by simply excluding any “problem
  abilities.” The players don’t have to do any extra
  effort – they can choose from the list, pay the
  points, and build their characters in little time.
  However, this may not appeal to players who feel
  comfortable enough with GURPS to create their
  own abilities and want the freedom to do so.
  Fuzzy Abilities
  This is the method used by both the Basic
  Set and Powers. All of the powers available are
  defined ahead of time by the GM, along with a
  list of appropriate advantages for each. Any
  advantage that must have certain modifiers (or
  lack of modifiers) to make sense with a power
  needs to be noted – for example, the Telepathy
  power might list “Affliction (only with Based
  on Will and Malediction; can’t make any phys-
  ical changes)” among its available advantages.
  The players then decide which powers they
  want, and use the listed advantages to build the
  abilities. This approach retains many of the
  advantages of Closed List (above) while adding
  more freedom – but it requires experienced
  players who understand advantages and modifiers well (or
  who are comfortable with simply taking the basic advantage
  plus a power modifier, where allowed).
  Open Abilities
  For an even more free-form approach, the GM can skip
  defining abilities and merely list the powers; the players then
  create whatever abilities they feel would fit the power. This
  necessitates defining the powers in enough detail that players
  can reasonably tell what abilities would be appropriate. For
  example, one entry might say, “ESP: The ability to perceive
  things without involving your normal five senses. Involves
  getting info from the past or future, from a distance, through
  barriers, etc., but nothing involving someone else’s mind,
  which is Telepathy’s domain.” This approach offers even
  more freedom than Fuzzy Abilities (above) but with similar
  results, as long as the GM retains veto power. It requires even
  more player knowledge, however – without even a list of
  advantages to go by, inexperienced gamers may not realize
  what their options are.
  Nonetheless, an experienced GM with enough free time to
  put in the extra work can still use this option with a mixed
  group of players. As long as the player who’s unfamiliar with
  GURPS is willing to trust the GM, simply have the player
  describe what he wants his adventurer to be able to do. The
  GM then “custom builds” the ability for him.
  WHAT IS PSI?
  11
  REPRESENTING PSI
  Freak of nature, born with a
  certain form of ESP; derangement of
  the synapses which we call telepathy.
  – Paul Ruth, Scanners
  Decisions, Decisions
  When relying on Psionic Powers in a game, it’s important to take a
  moment and consider which of its optional rules and suggestions to
  use. Note that all page references in this box are to Psionic Powers, not
  this book.
  • Is Ergokinesis split into Cyberpsi, Electrokinesis, and Photokinesis?
  • Is Psychic Healing split into Biokinesis and Psychometabolism?
  • Does Animal Telepathy exist? If so, normal Telepathy does not work
  on animals; use the racial costs provided on p. 81.
  • Does Dream Control exist – and if so, is the dream world a separate
  plane?
  • Are you using Optional Crippling Rules (p. 7)?
  • Can psis (or anyone) use the new mental maneuvers (p. 11)?
  • Does the Jam technique (p. 31) exist, and if so, for what abilities?
  Be aware that as Jam becomes more common, “psi vs. psi” becomes
  more prevalent than “psi vs. anti-psi,” which weakens the impact of fac-
  ing anti-psis.
  • Does Telekinetic Control (p. 54) exist, and if so, does it replace
  the separate Telekinesis abilities?
  • Does Telespeak (p. 59) exist, and if so, does it replace Telesend
  and/or Telereceive?
  • Does RL Exoteleport (p. 70) exist, and if so, does it replace the
  standard Exoteleport?
  • Are you using Abilities as Advantages (p. 74)?
  • Is the game going to be so insanely over-the-top that you’ll allow
  “uber-techniques” (p. 76)?
  
  Open Powers
  For supers games and other over-the-top settings, the GM
  can let players invent whatever powers and abilities they want.
  As long as a player can rationalize (to the GM) a concept as a
  psionic power, he can then design whatever abilities fit that
  new power. This is generally only appropriate in a campaign
  that already permits every (or nearly every) advantage in the
  book – if a hero could already buy Shadow Form as a normal
  advantage, no harm is done in letting him buy it as part of a
  new Umbra-kinesis power.
  PSIONIC SKILLS
  Psi, more so than most powers, is often heavily associated
  with training (p. 10). The idea that true power comes from
  control over inner strength is centuries old. Because of this,
  psionic abilities often have associated skills – one unique
  Hard skill for each ability, based on whatever attribute is used
  to control it. See Skills (Psionic Powers, p. 5) or Skills for
  Everyone (Powers, p. 162) for more on this approach. Note
  that this requirement adds to the cost of these abilities, and
  thus should be balanced by giving the power a beneficial
  option of some sort – see Options and the Power Modifier
  (above) for more ideas.
  When using unique psionic skills in this way, be aware that
  they interact poorly with the Reliable limitation. If players are
  allowed to build their own abilities, they’re likely to take high
  levels of Reliable instead of buying up skill, as this is often
  more point-efficient. Because of this, the GM may wish to limit
  Reliable to only buying off inherent penalties (e.g., the -8
  penalty to use Precognition actively).
  A compromise is bundling Reliable 6 into the Psionic power
  modifier, raising the power modifier from -10% to +20%. As
  psionic skills usually default to (controlling attribute)-6, this
  would allow untrained psis to use their abilities at the full
  attribute level, while making psis who did put points into the
  skill very talented!
  A different, yet related, approach is to focus on mundane
  skills, as discussed in Using Abilities With Skills (Powers,
  pp. 161-163). Instead of requiring a specific skill for each abil-
  ity, the GM and players can decide which skills could be used
  to enhance abilities and vice-versa. For example, a telepath
  might not have to learn any skills to use Mind Control, but he
  may learn high levels of Brainwashing and Hypnotism anyway
  to use it better.
  Esoteric Skills as Psi
  Cinematic martial-arts skills (such as Breaking Blow,
  Invisibility Art, and Light Walk) are generally associated with chi
  powers, if any. However, it’s perfectly reasonable to make them
  available to psis, especially in a campaign with a martial bent.
  The same goes for other esoteric skills, such as the Enthrallment
  skills, Musical Influence, etc. It’s up to the GM whether to let
  psionic powers replace the prerequisite for Trained by a Master
  or Weapon Master, or to make it an additional one. Note that this
  choice is for flavor more than play balance – each skill is already
  balanced in terms of time and circumstances required.
  Imbuement Skills as Psi
  These
  skills,
  introduced
  in
  GURPS
  Power-Ups
  1:
  Imbuements, allow warriors to bend the rules for (or outright
  transform) their weapon attacks. As such, a game featuring
  “psychic warriors” could benefit from using Imbuements in
  addition to, or instead of, the normal psionic powers. If so, they
  should be changed from DX/VH to IQ/VH, as befitting the
  mental nature of psi. For more detail, each power group could
  govern a different set of Imbuement Skills. For a complete
  treatment of this approach, see Psi-Powered Imbuements
  (Pyramid #3/12, p. 24).
  WHAT IS PSI?
  12
  Powers (pp. 156-174) introduced a number of power
  options, both empowering and limiting, which the GM
  may use to add flavor to a given power. The easiest way to
  keep this balanced is to include roughly an equal number
  of good and bad options with each power. Thus, if the GM
  feels that a psionic person should be able to use Combining
  Powers, he might balance that with the Multiple Feats
  penalty, and so on. Powers (p. 177) and Psionic Powers
  (Powers and Options, p. 6) each provide a balanced list of
  options that are especially appropriate for psi.
  If the benefits severely outweigh the drawbacks, or vice-
  versa, it makes sense to adjust the power modifier. No fixed
  rule applies to this; it is the GM’s call. A suggested guideline:
  If there are at least twice as many benefits as there are draw-
  backs and at least two more benefits than drawbacks,
  increase the power modifier by +5% (normally from -10% to
  -5%). If the reverse is true, reduce the power modifier by -5%
  (from -10%to -15%). Extremely lopsided arrangements may
  justify a larger change (up to ±10%), at the GM’s discretion.
  Example: Joan is running a game in which psionic pow-
  ers can use extra effort, but can be crippled, are penalized
  for multiple feats, and require a special skill. As there are
  at least twice as many drawbacks as benefits, and at least
  two more drawbacks than benefits, Joan reduces the
  Psionic power modifier to -15% for this game.
  Options and the Power Modifier
  Ordaz was standing quietly
  beside me, letting me make my
  examination without interruption.
  Naturally he had no way of
  knowing about my restricted psi
  powers.
  – Larry Niven, Flatlander
  
  There’s no rule saying that the GM has to put any restric-
  tions on psi – “buy whatever you can afford” is a valid instruc-
  tion in GURPS. However, if the heroes are supposed to be
  people first and psis second, it may be better for the campaign
  to impose some reasonable limits.
  POWER LEVEL
  When setting the starting power level (p. B487) for a game,
  it can be helpful for the GM to mentally separate the points
  he envisions people spending on mundane traits from the
  points he sees them spending on psi. This helps prevent a dis-
  connect between how he envisioned the PCs and how the
  players create them.
  Example: Cliff is going to run a “commandos with psi”
  game, so he tells his players to build on 150 points – enough to
  build a reasonably skilled commando. He figures any points
  spent on psi are a wash, as far as effectiveness goes. When the
  game starts, the party is full of commandos who spent around
  90 points on attributes, skills, etc., and 60 points on psi. While
  the psionics do prove useful, the commandos lack the basic
  skills and abilities to make it through Cliff’s first adventure in
  one piece. Oops!
  Psionics can substitute for some missing skills or abilities,
  but not all. With many games, the best approach is to think of
  psi as an add-on – treating the group as “X-point heroes with Y
  points of psi.” For example, if Cliff expected fully skilled com-
  mandos who also had a small measure of psi, he should have
  considered them 150-point heroes with 50 points of psi, and
  run a 200-point game.
  It’s important for the GM to communicate this to the play-
  ers when the game starts. It can be as casual as saying, “Build
  150-point investigators, and try to spend around a third of it on
  psi,” or as restrictive as setting strict spending limits, like
  “Build 105-point investigators with only mundane traits, and
  then add 45 points in psionic abilities, Talent, and skills.”
  Knowing how much psi to allow can be tricky. As a general
  guideline, the power levels listed on p. B487 apply well to psi
  campaigns if you halve the points. That is, spending 13-25 points
  on psionics gives you an “average” psi, spending 100-150 points
  on it gets you a “larger-than-life” psi, and so on. Thus, a 150-
  point hero needs to add about 75 points’ worth of psi to be both
  a hero and an equally heroic psi. This does not include the cost
  of any Unusual Background (see below) required by the GM.
  RANGE OF ABILITIES
  In a game focused on psionic development, it can be unre-
  alistic for some of the psis to start with multiple powers and a
  handful of abilities for each. Therefore, if it fits the campaign,
  the GM may wish to impose some starting limits. In some
  games, especially those where psi is not the focus, these limits
  can even be imposed throughout the game.
  One Ability
  Psis can have only one psionic ability (and only one power,
  of course). This can help keep players from feeling over-
  whelmed when creating a psi, though some may chafe at the
  lack of versatility. As a compromise, the GM may allow them to
  buy additional latent abilities (p. 14), to be developed as the
  campaign goes on.
  WHAT IS PSI?
  13
  In a game where psionics are uncommon enough to
  count as a surprise, the GM may require psis to take an
  Unusual Background (UB). This covers the “unfair” advan-
  tage of having mental powers in a world where most peo-
  ple do not (and will not commonly be expecting their use).
  The following steps may be used to approximate a fair UB.
  This is completely optional, however; these guidelines exist
  to help the GM’s decision, not to replace it.
  After taking all the factors below into consideration, if the
  UB ends up 0 or less, there is no need for a psionic UB in this
  game. Note that the GM may choose to require a separate UB
  for access to specific powers or abilities (e.g., in addition to
  the UB to be a psi, teleporters may need an extra 10-point
  UB), but this is a campaign-specific decision.
  1. Consider what the public knows about psi – see Public
  Awareness (pp. 16-18) for more. If psi is completely
  unknown, the base UB is 30 points. Suspected psi is 15
  points; denied is 5 points; and acknowledged is 0 points.
  2. Consider how common psi is – see Frequency
  (pp. 15-16) for details. Very rare adds 10 points; rare or
  uncommon adds 5 points; common adds 0 points; very
  common subtracts 5 points; and ubiquitous subtracts
  10 points.
  3. (Optional) Consider any limits on power – see Start-
  ing Conditions (above) for suggestions. If the PCs are lim-
  ited to spending less than 1/5 of their points on psionic
  abilities, skills, and Talent, subtract 10 points.
  4. (Optional) If starting characters can only buy latent
  powers, either subtract 15 points or halve the final cost of
  the UB (rounding down to the nearest 5 points), whichever
  makes it smaller.
  Example: Beth is running a psi-sci-fi game where psis
  are denied and rare, and players will spend about half of
  their characters’ points on psionics. The UB is (5+5), or
  10 points.
  Example: John is running an adolescent psi game where
  psis are completely unknown and uncommon, and will
  only start off with a single level of Talent (as a latent
  power), which will cost far less than 1/5 of their points. The
  UB is (30+5-10-15), or 10 points.
  Unusual Background (Psi)
  STARTING CONDITIONS
  
  Note that “one ability” doesn’t necessarily mean “one advan-
  tage.” Many psionic abilities are designed with multiple advan-
  tages, often joined with Link. This is not an issue if players are
  just choosing from a list (Closed List, p. 11). In a game where
  players can design their own abilities, they should be limited to
  one concept built from two or three advantages at the most.
  In a world where every psi only has his one particular
  knack (such as in the Necroscope series), this may be a rule
  for the entire game, instead of just a starting condition. Bear
  in mind that this can lead to psis trying to turn every situa-
  tion into one suited to their particular abilities (“How can we
  three use TK Grab, Retrocognition, and Mental Blow to get
  those bank records?”).
  One Power
  Less restrictive than One Ability, this allows the psi some
  versatility while still establishing boundaries. This usually
  comes in one of two flavors: Either every psi must pick a differ-
  ent power (to give everyone their own niche), or everyone has
  to build from the same power (e.g., if they’re all part of the
  same family or experiment). If this is a permanent restriction,
  it may prevent anyone from willingly starting with a power
  that has few abilities (e.g., Astral Projection).
  Unrestricted
  This is the default assumption in most games. Psis can start
  with whatever abilities and powers they want. Their only
  restriction is the campaign’s power level (p. 13). This is usually
  the best choice for games that aren’t going to be focused on
  development, and don’t otherwise have a special need to limit
  starting psi.
  DEGREE OF SKILL
  In many ways, skill is power with psionic abilities – the
  effectiveness of most psi is dependent on the user’s margin of
  success (or victory). Because of this, the GM may wish to con-
  sider just how talented psis can be.
  Talent
  In a game featuring new psis, or one with a focus on devel-
  opment and self-exploration, the GM may wish to restrict start-
  ing adventurers to only one level of Talent (or no Talent at all).
  If psionic skills (p. 12 and below) are not being used, this
  means starting psis are limited by their attribute levels, prima-
  rily IQ. Since Talent is an important part of psionics, the GM
  should make it clear whether psis will have the opportunity to
  raise Talent as the game goes on.
  In addition to the above, the GM has the option of setting
  the maximum levels of Talent available in the game. By
  default, a power Talent is limited to four levels. However, this
  can be raised to fit a more cinematic game. As a general
  guideline, a limit of six levels is reasonable for a campaign
  featuring extremely well-trained psis. Settings that include
  other powerful forces (e.g., high technology, super abilities,
  etc.) may be able to justify up to eight levels, if nec-
  essary to keep psis on an even footing. A completely
  over-the-top game – where a group saves the world
  before breakfast each morning – might run fine
  with up to 10 levels!
  Generally, a higher ceiling on Talent gives psis
  more reason to focus on one or two power groups.
  Someone with one power can spend 30 points on
  Telepathy Talent 6, for +6 to every psionic skill he
  knows; one with three powers might spread the
  same 30 points among ESP Talent 2, Psychokinesis
  Talent 2, and Telepathy Talent 2, for only a +2 bonus
  to his skills. If the GM wishes to encourage the
  opposite, he should lower the ceiling on Talent.
  Completely removing Talent has the effect of elimi-
  nating any benefit from focusing on a single power,
  leading to psis “cherry picking” their favorite abili-
  ties from different powers.
  Skill Level
  Psionic skills (p. 12) are an easy way to allow
  variety in a psi’s abilities – a telepath might be
  amazing at controlling minds, but only competent
  at reading them. Because of this, it’s usually best not to set
  any special restrictions on skill level. An exception to this is
  for a game about new psis learning to control and develop
  their powers. In this instance, the GM may wish to set a start-
  ing cap, either limiting psionic skills to a fixed maximum
  (e.g., none higher than 15) or a relative cost (e.g., no more
  than 4 points spent).
  WHAT IS PSI?
  14
  Latent Powers
  In GURPS, the term “latent psionic power” can mean two
  things. Most commonly, it refers to having Talent in a psionic
  power without possessing actual abilities. However, it can also
  refer to buying a psionic ability as a potential advantage (p. B33)
  with or without Talent in that power. The two are equivalent in that
  neither can be used in any meaningful way, but both serve as
  “placeholders” to later improve one’s psi.
  Example: Jonathan has Telepathy Talent 1. Robbie has Telere-
  ceive 1 bought as a potential advantage (for half price). Michelle
  has Telepathy Talent 1 and Telereceive 1, bought normally.
  Jonathan and Robbie are both latent telepaths, while Michelle is a
  telepath (no “latent”).
  If psis are not allowed to learn new abilities or powers as the
  campaign goes on, there is no reason to take latent powers. The
  GM must make this clear, to prevent a player from wasting points.
  
  Psionic abilities change things. The inclusion of psis in a
  setting, whether as the focus or as one feature among many,
  will have a significant effect on the campaign as a whole.
  Even if the existence of psi is a closely guarded secret, and the
  world looks the same as the real world, the mere fact that
  some people can use supernatural gifts to accomplish their
  goals will have a huge impact behind the scenes. Of course, it
  doesn’t have to be a secret – psis could be anything from the
  common man to the undisputed rulers of the planet!
  More than the world changes. A “realistic mob war” game
  will look and feel very different from a “psionic mob war”
  game; the GM has to take this into account, both when
  designing the setting and when crafting adventures. With a
  little extra effort, psi can even advance beyond a campaign
  feature, adding a thematic element to the game and provid-
  ing another direction in which the setting and the adventur-
  ers can grow.
  MIND GAMES
  15
  THE WORLD IN YOUR MIND
  Anyone building a new, custom setting or adapting an exist-
  ing one must consider how long psi has existed; see Psi
  Throughout History (pp. 4-5) for more-detailed ideas. In some
  worlds, psi has been a part of humanity’s nature since it first
  evolved, while others posit a mutation or other change that
  occurred in the recent past – or is happening as the campaign
  starts. Either way, the GM has to determine what effect psi has
  had on the world’s background. If building a history from
  scratch, this means accounting for psionic influence when
  designing the timeline. If adapting a setting, it often involves
  looking at past events that some superhuman faculty could
  have prevented (often Precognition) and asking why they hap-
  pened anyway.
  To make these decisions about the past, it makes sense to
  first decide how psionic abilities affect the campaign world in
  the present. Once the GM knows how common psis are, how
  informed the public is, etc., it’s easier to work backward and
  set those factors for 10 years ago, then 50 years ago, then 100
  years ago, and so on. The following section represents some of
  the most important considerations, with advice on the ramifi-
  cations of each.
  FREQUENCY
  How many actual psis (as opposed to those with latent abil-
  ities; see p. 14) exist in the setting? The rarity of psis can have
  a significant effect on public awareness (pp. 16-18) and public
  reaction (pp. 18-19); as psis become more prevalent, it
  becomes harder to keep their existence a secret.
  When making this decision, it’s important to remember that
  the number of psis cannot exceed the number of people with
  psionic potential (pp. 8-10); it is usually much lower.
  Very Rare: One psi per 100,000,000 people – this is about 60
  psis worldwide, assuming modern-day Earth (but see
  Common for When? in the box). Most nations have no psis, and
  only a few have more than one. Keeping paranormal abilities
  a secret is easy on this small of a scale. If the populace is aware
  of it, any known psis become instant celebrities.
  Rare: One psi per 3,000,000 people (about 2,000 psis
  worldwide). Most – but still not all – nations have at least one
  psi, and some have 100 or more. A large state (e.g., Califor-
  nia) has a dozen psis, on average. This is a good choice for
  globetrotting psionic-conspiracy games, with a pool of psis
  small enough to necessitate secrecy and caution, but large
  enough to keep anyone from automatically knowing all the
  major players. If psis rule the world (whether openly or
  secretly), they are very powerful.
  CHAPTER TWO
  MIND GAMES
  Common for When?
  The examples in Frequency (above) use modern illus-
  trations of nations, population, etc. This is done to help
  players more easily visualize the effects on the world. For
  any setting in which cities and metropolises exist, the
  options are applicable as-is, regardless of actual popula-
  tion. If the star empire has 45 trillion subjects and 10
  million are psis, that’s still about one psi per three mil-
  lion people, so psis are rare.
  In much older or post-apocalyptic campaigns, where
  villages and small townships are the rule of the day,
  travel is a difficult process, and/or mass media is nonex-
  istent (or at least unreliable), it may be necessary to
  make psis from 10 to 100 times more common than the
  options suggest. For example, in an alternate reality
  where technology is the same but everyone lives in
  decentralized rural areas, even one psi per 300,000 peo-
  ple is still considered rare – while in a medieval game
  where few people ever even leave their hamlet, “rare”
  may mean one psi per 30,000 people.
  
  Uncommon: One psi per 100,000 people (about 60,000 psis
  worldwide). At least one psi exists in every significant nation,
  with up to 100 found in each of the largest cities (e.g., New
  York, Tokyo) alone. If psionics are supposed to be a secret, they
  likely are at least suspected (below), as a significant percentage
  of people have had some contact with a psi. With this many
  psis, any factions that form cannot be all-encompassing; even
  if one or two “psionic guilds” dominate, a significant number
  of free agents will always be around. This is a good choice for
  “secretive psi” games with a local scope, as it’s possible to have
  multiple large, underground groups in a single nation.
  Common: One psi per 3,000 people (about 2 million psis
  worldwide). All but the smallest towns have at least one psi;
  major cities have over a thousand. The government is almost
  certainly aware of psionic abilities (if it’s supposed to be
  secret) and a few psis are in key positions even without a con-
  spiracy. Almost everyone has had at least brief interaction
  with a psi, and stories about psionic abilities are somewhat
  common (whether as hushed “urban legends” or as open
  news). If people are aware and afraid of psis, lynchings and
  bashing are common at the local level, though unlikely to
  gather any national momentum.
  Very Common: One psi per 100 people (about 60 million psis
  worldwide). Psis are roughly as prevalent as twins; nearly
  everyone either knows a psi or knows someone who does.
  Psis make up a significant part of the workforce, the armed
  forces, etc. It is almost impossible for psi to avoid being
  known, whether acknowledged or not. Ironically, psis are a
  large enough group to garner serious persecution at this
  point, but not quite numerous enough to guarantee their
  own rights.
  Ubiquitous: Psis make up somewhere between 5% to
  100% of the population. At the lower end, they are essen-
  tially a “racial” minority; toward the higher end, they domi-
  nate society. Even if they don’t run society, statistically,
  many psis hold positions of power. Short of a massive con-
  spiracy by the world’s most powerful telepaths, the existence
  of supernatural faculties cannot be kept a secret at this level.
  The public reaction may vary, but even if many people fear
  and hate psis, there are too many psis for them to risk
  openly committing hate crimes.
  In addition to determining how many psis there are, it is
  useful to think about how they are distributed throughout
  the world; the decision for psionic potential (pp. 8-10)
  affects this as well. For example, statistically speaking,
  about 5% of the psis in the world are United States citizens.
  However, if a pregnant mother can raise the chances of
  birthing a psi by taking expensive, legal, psychotronic drugs,
  closer to 30% of the world’s psis may be American. See
  GURPS Supers (p. 132) for more on this, including detailed
  rules for additional distribution models.
  PUBLIC AWARENESS
  One of the coolest things about psi is how little suspen-
  sion of disbelief it requires. With a few exceptions, psionic
  use is invisible, undetectable by normal folks, and often has
  effects that could be considered coincidence. It’s easy to
  imagine that these abilities are out there and that people
  just don’t know about them. Because of this, the “secret
  psionic conspiracy” is a much more common trope in mod-
  ern-day stories than openly acknowledged psi.
  The further the setting’s era moves away from today, how-
  ever, the closer the ratios come to flipping. Near-future stories
  often feature the realization (and the beginnings of accept-
  ance) of psi, while more distant science fiction often treats
  psi as just another skill that humanity – or, at least, alien-kind
  (pp. 7-8 and 10) – has mastered. Moving backward, classic
  fantasy tends to stick to magic (or to blur psi and magic
  together), but the few stories that feature people obviously
  exhibiting psionic abilities rarely have them hiding their gifts
  from the rest of the world.
  Regardless of the situation in common literature, the pub-
  lic awareness of psi can be at any level in any game, and should
  be chosen to best fit the campaign.
  Suspected
  In this setting, the world as a whole agrees that psionics
  do not exist. No conclusive proof has been found, and the
  media has never captured any clear use of supernatural abil-
  ities. Nonetheless, enough circumstantial evidence has come
  up to make the average person at least consider that such abil-
  ities may be real, even if he’d never admit it publicly. About
  one person in 10 wholeheartedly believes in psi (even if not
  by that name), with about a quarter of those doing so openly
  and proudly. Networks of believers exist, along with small,
  poorly funded research teams set on proving its existence.
  MIND GAMES
  16
  Debunkers
  If psi is Suspected (above) or Denied (p. 17), there are
  certainly debunkers – researchers who attempt to reveal
  charlatans for what they really are. Their motivations are
  wide-ranging, but they generally fall into one of the follow-
  ing three mindsets.
  The Quester. He believes that paranormal abilities may
  exist (and he may even be a genuine parapsychologist; see
  p. 5). He hopes to find a psi who can prove his abilities in
  an independent test. In the meantime, he’s committed to
  stopping the charlatans who are preying on the weak and
  muddying the field of actual psi research!
  The Skeptic. He has serious doubts about psi and sees
  most of them as delusional or con artists. He tries to
  debunk them to help humanity move past the need for such
  wishful thinking, and focus on actual personal develop-
  ment. If confronted with a demonstrable, repeatable
  psionic ability, he would search for a more believable
  answer first, but would eventually acknowledge it.
  The Gainsayer. He knows that psi is bunk and aims to
  free believers of their ridiculous mindset. Upon encounter-
  ing a demonstration of actual psi, he attempts to find any
  other justification for the result (up to and including “coin-
  cidence”). He may require more tests with increasingly
  stringent requirements (“Sure, you guessed seven out of 10
  cards, but can you guess nine out of 10?”) until the psi man-
  ages to fail one.
  In all cases, the debunker who happens to be an anti-psi
  is a very common trope – so much so that most groups who
  encounter an NPC debunker will be expecting it.
  
  Charlatans abound, unfortunately – some just looking for
  attention; others seeking to get rich at the expense of the
  gullible. Some charlatans may even be sponsored by a psionic
  conspiracy, to discredit the whole idea of psi. If the campaign
  is modern, the result looks much like the real world (Modern
  Day, p. 5).
  Psis need to take a Secret (p. 18) and be careful how they
  use their abilities. The GM may wish to even forbid blatant
  powers like Psychokinesis and Teleportation as inappropriate
  for the setting! On the plus side, psis in a world of disbelievers
  can get away with a lot – for example, when no one believes in
  telepathy, people are much more likely to write off the feeling
  of someone else in their head. A slight chance exists of a
  believer coming across their work, though . . . one who may
  recognize the actions of a mind controller or teleporter! With
  word of mouth spreading rumors and news, it’s very likely that
  psis will meet up – first on the local level, but eventually form-
  ing larger groups – and organize for their own protection.
  Underground psionic groups, perhaps even full psionic insti-
  tutes (p. 10), exist; the frequency (pp. 15-16) of psi determines
  how large and numerous these groups are.
  One common twist on this approach is “Nobody has proof
  that psi exists . . . except the government!” In this type of cam-
  paign, a super-secret, black-ops task force is not only aware of
  psi, but is actively studying it, and doesn’t want the public to
  know to avoid a panic. In reality, a secret this huge would be
  nearly impossible to hide for more than a decade or two, but
  some fictional depictions have them doing it since the govern-
  ment was first formed centuries ago. This is generally as “in the
  dark” as a game world gets, but for a setting with even less
  awareness, see Unknown Psi (above).
  Denied
  In this setting, psi does not exist officially. The government,
  police, media, etc., all have perfect explanations for all strange
  events. Even so, the average person has reason to suspect that
  people with supernatural powers are out there. If psis are par-
  ticularly rare, perhaps one of them was caught on film and the
  government’s explanation just didn’t quite ring true; if not, then
  enough people have seen some sort of psionic display to make
  it a very common urban legend. Still, no one wants to look like
  an idiot, so even though somewhere between one-quarter to
  one-half of the population is sure that some sort of psi exists
  (and almost everyone at least suspects it), people never discuss
  it openly with anyone other than very close friends. For an
  excellent depiction of this state (but for “general weirdness”
  instead of just psi), see Sunnydale in the television show Buffy
  the Vampire Slayer.
  Those with superhuman abilities may need a Secret
  (p. 18), but it’s possible for someone to operate openly as long
  as he’s discreet in using and discussing his abilities. Many
  people suspect psi use if something seems “fishy” – regardless
  of whether psionics were actually involved! In fact, most peo-
  ple think they know more about psi than they actually do; this
  often takes the form of exaggerated ideas about psionic capa-
  bilities. While this allows a known esper to bluff more effec-
  tively, it also means his enemies may assume he’s a much
  larger threat than he really is and react accordingly (“He
  blinked! Shoot him!”).
  Unfortunately, charlatans are as common as they are for
  Suspected (pp. 16-17), along with a large number of delu-
  sional folk who are convinced that they have supernatural
  abilities. This can make psionic support groups (or conspira-
  cies) difficult to form, as effort must be expended figuring out
  who’s really a psi and who just thinks he is. (Of course, in a
  world with universal latency – see p. 8 – everyone technically
  qualifies as at least a weak psi.)
  The government, media, etc. may be equally as aware as the
  rest of the world, but until enough members sit down together
  and openly admit what they suspect, the group as a whole is
  officially ignorant. Alternatively, they may be perfectly aware of
  what’s going on, but have decided that openly acknowledging
  it is not in the world’s (or their own) best interest. A common
  literary device for the government in this situation is the exis-
  tence of a small, secret scientific group dedicated to the study
  of psis, whose leaders are actively working to keep the rest of
  the government from going public about this issue.
  MIND GAMES
  17
  Suspected (pp. 16-17) posits a world that doesn’t believe
  in psi. However, it’s possible to go a step further, for a set-
  ting where hardly anyone even knows what psi is.
  In such a world, less than one person in 100 even
  understands the concept of “psionic powers,” and less
  than one in 1,000 actually believes in such things beyond
  simple superstition. It’s even possible that no one’s come
  up with an accepted term for psi yet – if so, the first part
  of convincing a person that psi exists is explaining the
  actual concept to him! Only those with Expert Skill
  (Psionics) have any idea that psi breaks down into pow-
  ers like Psychokinesis, Telepathy, etc., and that skill is
  extremely hard to come by.
  Unless psis are especially rare, this is likely to be the
  effect of some sort of conspiracy to keep their existence in
  the dark. This is often a covert group of psis who are also
  out for control and world domination, or a similar but
  well-meaning organization with no goal other than pro-
  tecting their own. This type of group makes an excellent
  Patron or Enemy – or both, if multiple factions exist.
  Alternatively, psi may be unknown because anti-psi is
  very widespread. If half the population has the Skeptic
  perk, psi becomes something nearly impossible to do in
  front of others! (See Anti-Psi, pp. 31-32, for more on this.)
  The Monkey Wrench
  While a world in which psi is completely unknown may
  be hard to fathom, it may make more sense when mixed
  with other powers (as discussed on p. 21). If magic is com-
  mon and well-known, while only a handful of people have
  psionic abilities, psi may be seen as a magical aberration
  instead of as a separate power. Psychics who can use their
  abilities in no-mana zones may cause amazement and con-
  fusion, while still being thought of as “wizards.”
  Unknown Psi
  
  Acknowledged
  Psi exists and everyone knows it. (Well, there are a few dis-
  believers, but they’re looked at the same way as those who still
  insist that the Earth is flat.) It’s been demonstrated for the
  media, and the government has openly acknowledged it.
  Parapsychology (and possibly psychotronic research) is a valid
  scientific field.
  The biggest decision involved with this option is “For how
  long?” A world that has come to terms with the existence of psi
  last week is very different from one that’s known about psi for
  several centuries. In general, the longer psi has been known,
  the more casual society’s attitude is toward it.
  Having psi openly acknowledged brings up more questions
  about the world. Do psychotronics exist? If so, how available
  are they? (This can vary; tech stores may sell a Psionic
  Shield 4 headband off the shelf, while only a written order
  from the president can get you a one with power 12.) Is psionic
  aptitude tested for? If so, when? (Most countries will do it
  either in school or when reaching the legal age of adulthood.)
  Are psis drafted into a particular occupation or forbidden from
  one? (Many settings draft all psis into the armed forces; some
  forbid them from holding political office.) The GM may want
  to consider the public’s reaction to psis (below) when deter-
  mining how they fit into the world.
  PUBLIC REACTION
  Everyone will have a different reaction when meeting some-
  one with psionic abilities, but it’s possible to generalize how
  the average citizen will feel. If psi is secret, this is a question of
  how most people will react when they discover the truth. If psi
  is openly known, this decision is the same as determining the
  status of any minority group (in the majority’s eyes).
  Fear
  Unfortunately, fear is one of humanity’s most common
  reactions to anything truly different. If psis are a minority, this
  can lead to persecution – from insults and snubbing to bash-
  ing and lynching. In general, known psis in a world that fears
  them have a Social Stigma. This is most often Social Stigma
  (Minority Group), but this can vary; psis that are only slightly
  feared may have Social Stigma (Second-Class Citizen), while
  those in a world that sees them as inhuman may have Social
  Stigma (Monster). This may be combined with a loss of
  Status or Wealth, if society has a “glass ceiling” that keeps
  psis “in their place.”
  If psis are not a minority, or if the average psi is (or is con-
  sidered to be) powerful enough to single-handedly take on an
  entire lynch mob without blinking, known psis may have levels
  of Social Regard (Feared) instead! While people may talk
  trash about the psi after he’s gone, they’ll defer to him when
  present and avoid making trouble out of fear that he may
  scramble their brains or set them on fire.
  Note that many people are especially afraid of telepaths
  – to some, the thought of being picked up, having their
  future scanned, or getting teleported against their will is
  annoying, but the idea of having their thoughts read or
  (even worse) altered is terrifying! Campaigns in which this
  is true can use this new Social Stigma:
  Telepath: You are a known telepath; people believe that
  you can read and control minds, regardless of your actual
  capabilities. You receive -1 to reactions from normal folk;
  in some games, this even includes other (nontelepathic)
  psis. This reaction penalty becomes -2 from anyone who
  has a reason to believe you may use your ability on him.
  If the setting requires all psis to take a Social Stigma,
  or Social Regard (Feared), you may have that trait as well.
  -5 points.
  Acceptance
  The world may just treat psis as a normal part of soci-
  ety. This is most likely if psionic abilities have been openly
  acknowledged (above) for a long time. In such a setting,
  psis do not have to take any special traits to reflect their
  social standing. Most people react to psis normally, with
  those who have relevant Intolerances or quirks being the
  exception.
  Deference
  In
  some
  societies
  (especially
  far-future
  utopias
  and dystopias), psionic power may be seen as a sign
  of intelligence, implying that psis are smarter or other-
  wise more competent than the average person. This can
  lead to a world in which psis are the natural leaders.
  MIND GAMES
  18
  Secret (Psi)
  Depending on public awareness (pp. 17-18), psis may be
  required to take a Secret. To determine the value of this dis-
  advantage, decide what traits the psi gains if people discover
  the truth. First, consider the effects of the public’s reaction
  (pp. 18-19), and then add any of the following, if applicable.
  Duty: Psis may be forced to serve in the military, or to do
  other service for their country. For a person in hiding, this
  Duty is Involuntary.
  Enemies: If psionics are unknown, scientists may kidnap
  a discovered psi so that he can be probed and experimented
  upon by them. This is Enemy (Medium group; 6 or less;
  Hunter) [-10] for most psis, or (9 or less) [-20] if psis are
  also especially rare.
  Loss of Social Advantages: If being “outed” would cause
  the psi to lose Status, Wealth, etc., treat that as a disadvan-
  tage for these purposes.
  Total the traits; if they end up positive, or no worse
  than -5 points, the Secret is a quirk. Otherwise, halve their
  value, and round to the nearest value of Secret (-5, -10,
  -20, or -30 points).
  Example: In a modern psi game, psionic abilities are
  suspected (pp. 16-17) and psis are somewhat feared
  (p. 18). All known psis have Social Stigma (Second-Class
  Citizen) [-5] and the Enemy listed above on a 6 or less
  [-10]. In addition, the average citizen is Comfortable;
  being outed forces a person to work menial or “gray mar-
  ket” jobs, losing that advantage [-10]. This comes to a total
  of -25 points. Halving -25 produces -12.5, which is closest
  to Secret (Utter Rejection) [-10].
  
  Psionic ability may be a prerequisite for holding government
  office, for being a military officer, and so on. If psis are rare or
  very rare, this often develops into a unique form of oligarchy;
  if not, it looks more like a class-based society, with a clear divi-
  sion between the psis and the “norms.”
  Psychics in a world like this must buy Social Regard
  (Respected). All psis may have the same level of Social
  Regard, or it may be based on measurable power level, skill,
  or what powers the psi knows. For example, a society may
  value insight above all else, requiring anyone with ESP
  power to add Social Regard 4; telepaths to take Social
  Regard 3; those with Astral Projection or Psychic Healing to
  buy Social Regard 2; and all other psis to have Social
  Regard 1. In addition to Social Regard, psis may have to pur-
  chase some level of Rank or Status; the specific levels
  depend on the setting.
  MIND GAMES
  19
  CAMPAIGN FRAMES
  A campaign frame is a simple description that comprises
  the focus, the theme, and the overall plot of a campaign, such
  as “adolescent psis trying to find somewhere they fit in,” or
  “hardened psi-soldiers caught between fighting the enemy and
  unraveling corruption in their own ranks.” The GM can build
  a meta-plot around the frame – in which each story arc
  becomes a means to advance the overall plot, and each adven-
  ture is a way to further the current story arc – or use it as inspi-
  ration for coming up with self-contained adventures.
  The following suggested campaign frames are focused on
  games where psi plays a large role. The list is far from exhaus-
  tive! In particular, if psionics are not a major part of the game,
  the GM should come up with a campaign frame that adequately
  captures whatever the focus is. In that case, it’s still worth con-
  sidering the theme (pp. 6-8) of psi in the game, and what that
  means for the PCs. For example, a game about cops with minor
  psionic abilities cleaning up the local streets might focus on
  dealing with the gangs and the legal system; the campaign can
  add depth by also having a subfocus on the necessity of hiding
  their abilities from the rest of the force (Hiding, pp. 21-22).
  DISCOVERY
  The campaign begins as the heroes realize that they have
  mental powers. What do they do with these strange new
  abilities, and who can help them figure out what’s going on?
  Tales of personal psychic exploration go together with Going
  Through Changes (p. 6), but the concept meshes just as well
  with most psionic themes.
  Psionic abilities are either unknown or suspected (Public
  Awareness, pp. 16-18). The party members may even be the only
  psis on the planet, if this is a recent mutation in the human race.
  If not, they should still feel like the only psis – at least at first. The
  beginning of a discovery campaign is one of confusion and feel-
  ing like an outcast until coming to grips with these new abilities.
  For all of the following frames, a low starting power level (p. 13)
  is generally a good idea; the PCs are not yet heroes.
  Adolescence
  The psis are children (teens or younger) who begin develop-
  ing strange new powers. At first, their abilities are difficult to
  control, and manifest in times of stress. This may be because
  the players bought them with the Uncontrollable and
  Unreliable limitations, or the GM can simply make it a cam-
  paign feature that new abilities are “wild” until the psi has
  practiced with them heavily every day for a week (or longer).
  Since most kids are interacting with adults (be they relatives,
  teachers, truant officers, gang leaders, city guards, etc.) daily,
  the first few games can involve the excuses and challenges
  involved in keeping their secret a secret.
  If astral projection exists, the astral plane can be
  customized to better fit the setting. Psionic Powers
  (pp. 27-28) covers the general concept and game
  mechanics behind the plane, but it leaves many details
  open for the GM.
  In a game that revolves around a certain theme or
  concept, the inner plane can reflect that concept. For
  example, if psi is achieved through cybernetic implants,
  and loss of humanity is a major question, the inner plane
  may appear as a circuit board floating atop a circulatory
  system, with visitors choosing whether to journey via
  the electric pathways or the blood vessels. Populating the
  plane with native denizens and large “astral cities” can
  add a lot of color to the game. If travel to the inner plane
  will be a major part of the campaign, the GM can intro-
  duce a psychotronic drug that extends or suspends the
  time limit for the Piggyback technique (or even for the
  projector’s entire Astral Travel ability) while visiting the
  inner plane only.
  The outer plane rarely changes much, as it is simply an
  “overlay” on the physical world. However, in an interpla-
  nar game, where every world has its own astral plane, the
  GM should decide if they’re connected, and how. GURPS
  Infinite Worlds assumes that each world’s outer astral
  plane is unique and discrete, but that one can journey
  from one inner astral plane to another – allowing a pro-
  jector to visit any world with enough time and effort.
  The default assumption is that the outer plane only
  extends as far as the atmosphere (or an equivalent dis-
  tance, on an airless planet), restricting projectors to a sin-
  gle world. Removing this restriction allows projectors with
  enough duration (and provisions for long-term care of
  their unconscious bodies) to explore other planets, possi-
  bly replacing space probes with trained psis.
  The Astral Plane
  
  After this, the campaign can move in a few different direc-
  tions, as the PCs continue to develop and control their abilities.
  They may want to find someone who can teach them more
  about their psi (Training, below); this could be as simple as a
  friendly librarian who is much more than he appears to be, or
  as complex as having to abandon their lives and sneak into
  another country. Likewise, the campaign could take on a “kids
  investigating strange things” bent, drawing inspiration from
  The Hardy Boys, Scooby-Doo, The Zack Files, and early episodes
  of Smallville as the group pokes into local weirdness and
  crimes. For a taste of empowerment (pp. 6-7), they may
  become “playground protectors,” standing up against bullies
  while trying to fix bigger problems (e.g., abusive parents, a big
  brother getting pulled into a gang). The eventual appearance of
  a big, psionic bully is inevitable; the comic PS238 (especially
  issues 17-24) may provide inspiration for this.
  The Psychics Next Door
  The party is a bunch of average folks who end up with super-
  human powers. Players shouldn’t build excessively “heroic”
  characters – these are nurses, lawyers, auto mechanics, etc., who
  find themselves gifted with supernatural abilities. The most
  important decision is how this happened; see Psionic Potential
  (pp. 8-10) for many suggestions. It may be as simple as a genetic
  mutation or as involved as a shared alien abduction, exposure to
  a chemical, or a common traumatic experience.
  Much like the adolescent campaign (pp. 19-20), the game
  can take a few different paths, including a quest for more infor-
  mation and training. Adults may take the protector idea a bit
  further, becoming “superheroes” of a sort, using what abilities
  they have to Do Good wherever possible. If other groups are
  aware of what’s happened, they may be pursuing the new psis –
  government labs may want to examine alien abductees, the
  company that made the chemical may want to find out why this
  happened, and so on. If said group is powerful enough to act
  openly, this can turn the campaign’s focus to hiding (pp. 21-22).
  Spotlight
  The world is made aware of the reality of psionics by being
  introduced to the group! This could happen through one of
  many ways, depending on how psionic potential (pp. 8-10) is
  determined in the game. If scientists “created” the psis, they
  may hold a press conference to prove their work to the world.
  If parapsychologists discovered the group’s abilities, they
  may do the same. Alien abductees may be returned publicly,
  their new psi manifesting itself before they’ve learned to con-
  trol it. Alternatively, the group may have just been indiscreet
  one too many times, and now a cable news network is run-
  ning video of the ergokinetic and ’porter stomp-
  ing on the laws of physics.
  Regardless of the method, the party has just
  become world-famous as the poster children for
  psi. If other psis exist, they may use this a rea-
  son to come forward, as will thousands of peo-
  ple who think that they are. The public’s
  reaction (pp. 18-19) will vary greatly – it takes
  years for a social shock wave like this to settle
  down enough for there to be a typical, homoge-
  neous reaction. Typically, the more widespread
  psionic potential is, the more likely people are to
  accept the existence of psi.
  For a less drastic approach, start an
  Adolescence (pp. 19-20) or Psychics Next Door
  (above) game, and midway through the cam-
  paign, have the spotlight fall on someone else.
  Suddenly the world knows about psi – how
  does that affect the PCs and their choices?
  IMPROVEMENT
  Having powerful mental abilities is useful,
  but a true master of the mind has learned to
  control and develop those abilities. Because of
  this, many campaigns focus on personal
  improvement – from formalized training to self-
  actualization. This can be the sole point of the
  game, but it can also work as a subfocus for a
  different frame. For example, a group of psionic
  investigators (p. 23) may have become friends with a local sufi
  who they encountered on a previous case; if they sometimes
  meet with him as students, it can justify an occasional training
  adventure without shifting the overall focus of the campaign.
  Training
  As discussed on p. 10, most training involves either a
  wise master (or small group of such) or a larger, more-
  formalized psionic institute (p. 14). Both are very different
  in design and worldly influence, but very similar from a plot
  perspective. Trainees can expect to be given duties to per-
  form; these are rarely dangerous and, though they may be
  rather difficult, the goal is always something the trainers
  believe the psis can accomplish. Morality can be an issue –
  many fictional trainers have a dark side, which the heroes only
  discover as their missions become increasingly questionable.
  MIND GAMES
  20
  Apocalypse Soon
  For an interesting twist in any game, an esper (preferably a PC with
  some form of Oracle or Precognition, but a friendly, trustworthy NPC
  can work as well) might get a clear, unmistakable vision of a coming
  apocalypse! Can the party head it off before the world is consumed?
  The “end of the world” part is always clear, but the details may vary.
  The vision may include the doomsday method (e.g., “atomic war” or “a
  plague of mutated influenza”) so the psis get an idea of what they have
  to stop. A glimpse of specific people or organizations can give the pre-
  cog a good starting point for investigations, though the premonition
  may not be clear on how the party is involved. A sense of time (or even
  an exact date) can provide a feeling of urgency. However, the GM may
  want to be careful not to be too specific, or he may have to railroad the
  plot when that time grows near.
  Alternatively, the precog may have a disturbing lack of visions. Sup-
  pose he used to get flashes from events up to four years away . . . then
  up to three . . . then two . . . eventually, it becomes obvious that every-
  thing past a certain date is a complete blank! Talking to other espers
  reveals that they’ve experienced the same thing. This is similar to the
  above situation, but lacking any useful information except the date; the
  GM should be generous with the first few clues if the party decides to
  investigate. See The Wall in GURPS Y2K for more on this concept (and
  apocalyptic gaming in general).
  
  Realistically, though, if anyone knows how far not to push
  their students, it is a group of highly trained psis! Because
  of this, the GM may find the “evil” tag better hung on a rival
  organization, or perhaps a small corrupt part of the training
  environment – a single monk or a few institute administra-
  tors who’ve crossed the moral threshold.
  Personal Journeys
  Improvement doesn’t have to involve trainers. Many
  accounts of psionic ability teach that everyone has unlim-
  ited potential within himself – the only barriers are the ones
  that he must break down within his own mind. A journey of
  improvement can be a spiritual road trip, as the psis resolve
  issues in the world to heal themselves within.
  This kind of campaign requires a great deal of coopera-
  tion between the players and GM, of course. The back-
  ground for each PC must include at least a handful of
  unresolved issues. These can be personal (“I never got to say
  goodbye to my grandfather”) or general (“Racism needs to
  be stamped out”); ideally, there’ll be a mix of both. The GM
  may even wish to treat these as extra quirks, letting adven-
  turers go beyond the normal limit of five. As the game tack-
  les each problem, the player can buy off that quirk once he
  feels that it’s been properly addressed, and then use bonus
  character points (p. B498) to improve or add psionic traits
  (“With that weight lifted off my shoulders, I now realize that
  I can do more with my TK than I thought!”).
  The group may travel all over the nation, or even around
  the world, as relevant opportunities pop up. To use the
  examples above, the group might track down a medium (if
  they don’t have one) to discover that the grandfather’s spirit
  is still bound to Earth, but is too restless to talk – what with
  that company building a factory on the site of his old home.
  Likewise, while no one can stamp out racism everywhere, a
  story arc about bringing together a bitterly divided town
  may be enough for the psi to feel closure.
  HIDING
  If psi is a secret, even someone with no enemies needs to
  keep a low profile. Blatant abilities have to be saved for witness-
  free situations. Even subtle ones have to be carefully guarded –
  a noninvasive esper can still be caught if he reveals more knowl-
  edge than he should have. Nonetheless, this kind of “hiding” is
  best served as part of another frame; keeping one’s abilities out
  of the public eye is rarely enough to base an entire campaign on.
  A game focused on hiding needs a well-defined antagonist
  to hide from. Even a small-scale adversary must be powerful
  enough that hiding is a better option than confrontation– a sin-
  gle scientist isn’t enough, but an entire scientific corporation
  (with the requisite black vans and neutralizer rays) is. To be the
  focus of a campaign, the Enemy should thus have a base cost
  of at least -20 points. On a much larger scale, the entire govern-
  ment (-40 points) could be after the psis – perhaps psionics are
  illegal to use if you’re not using them for your nation, or the
  party are the only known psis (or aliens hiding among human-
  ity) and the patriotic thing to do is to lock them up for detailed
  analysis. In such a case, expect false arrest warrants to be
  quickly circulated, making every local authority a potential
  danger. The group must stay constantly on the move, either
  going from town to town or making contact with an under-
  ground group to use local safe houses and hiding places.
  Survival
  If the psis have a powerful Enemy on their tail, mere survival
  can be a goal in and of itself. A large part of the campaign will
  involve responding to the latest incursion, driving or slipping
  away from the attackers, and finding a safe place to regroup.
  This can get boring quickly, however, so it should be interwoven
  with other adventures. If the party is transient, one classic, “tele-
  vision-style” approach is to have a new adventure or two in each
  town before the group chooses (or is forced to) move on. If
  they’re hunkered down as part of a local underground, their fel-
  low outcasts can help with a variety of issues – but they also need
  to expand territory and keep the group stocked with supplies.
  If the campaign antagonist is a single group – from a corpo-
  ration to a “black budget” branch of the government – the over-
  all campaign goal is likely about figuring out how to bring them
  down. As time goes on, proactive adventures aimed at sussing
  out and attacking the enemy’s weak spots should become a more
  frequent part of the campaign. The game usually climaxes with
  the defeat of the adversary, after which the campaign either
  shifts to a new focus or simply ends. (The latter is especially
  appropriate if the common enemy was the only thing forcing a
  party of unrelated PCs to band together.)
  MIND GAMES
  21
  Other Powers
  Most of the advice in this chapter assumes that psi is the
  only type of power in the setting. If not, the social effect on
  psi are interwoven with that of the other power(s). If only
  one other power exists (e.g., psi and chi), society may lump
  them together, but it is just as likely to treat them differ-
  ently: Psi may be regarded as a dangerous, invasive ability,
  while chi is considered a natural faculty, honed by training,
  something to be proud of. Many classic fantasy settings fea-
  ture both magic and psi, and themes run the gamut from
  “they’re basically two ways to accomplish the same thing”
  to “one is a respected and learned tradition while the other
  is the devil’s work and we’ll kill any known practitioners.”
  If several powers coexist, the setting will start to look more
  like a supers game, where people abound with different abil-
  ities granted by different sources (perhaps all even from dif-
  ferent origins). GURPS Supers is an invaluable source of
  campaign advice for the GM running such a game.
  Power vs. Power
  Psi is completely different from the other power sources
  found in GURPS, which means that an anti-psi cannot use
  Neutralize or Cancellation on a mage, psionic abilities are
  not affected by Resistant to Chi Powers, and so on. How-
  ever, the effects of a power interact normally. A divine Mind
  Shield protects against a psionic Mental Blow, and a mage
  and teke can use Apportation and TK Grab (respectively) to
  wrestle for control of an object at a distance.
  Sometimes the GM may need to convert one ability into
  the terms of another ability – e.g., figuring out what the BL
  of the Apportation spell is, to approximate its effective ST.
  When in doubt, estimate it or simplify the situation to a
  Quick Contest of skills or attributes – especially if the alter-
  native is to spend 10 minutes holding up play time to do
  detailed calculations!
  
  If the enemy is the entire government, or if the group can’t
  come out of hiding because society itself will never accept
  them, see below.
  Changing the System
  Viva la revolution! If the negative psi sentiment runs deep,
  either socially or legally, the party cannot hope to simply
  “beat the bad guy.” In such a case, fundamental change
  becomes the long-term goal. A typical adventure works much
  like Survival, above, but as the game goes on, instead of find-
  ing weak spots, the group must aim to shift the beliefs of the
  masses. This can involve persuading people in high legal
  and/or social standing, typically by doing favors (read: adven-
  tures) for them that they cannot do themselves, along with
  actions that impress many people at once (e.g., saving a town
  from a group of terrorizing bikers). More corrupt adventur-
  ers may choose to threaten or otherwise intimidate those who
  speak out against psi. However, this is prone to backfiring, as
  is any attempt to make a lasting change by forcibly altering
  peoples’ minds (which will eventually wear off or be discov-
  ered, and just proves the point that psis are dangerous).
  Campaigns of this kind present the opportunity to use
  Control Ratings (p. B506). For example, the “overthrow of the
  system” may be a drop from CR5 (repressive) to CR2 (free),
  with respect to psi. The group’s success during each adventure
  determines the degree to which the CR changes (if at all). One
  approach is to have success in each story arc lower the CR by
  1, which means three arcs to fully change the system.
  Assuming that each story arc comprises three to six adventures
  (completed over several sessions each), this will produce
  results at a satisfying pace for most groups. For a much shorter
  and more cinematic game, each adventure may lower the CR
  by 1; this is thoroughly unbelievable, but can be a good way to
  “get past” this part if the campaign has an expiration date, or
  if changing the system is intended as a prelude to another cam-
  paign frame (such as Politics, below).
  POWER
  Realistically, as people develop strange, wonderful abilities,
  they tend to put them toward personal gain at first. This doesn’t
  have to speak ill of a psi’s morality – it’s natural for people to use
  their talents, experience, and circumstances to support them-
  selves. However, the question of right or wrong still hangs in the
  air, as many people will consider the use of superhuman abilities
  to be “cheating” at jobs or activities that they feel they accom-
  plish via hard work. Even an activity completely free of negative
  connotations may still be seen as a serious waste of a miraculous
  ability (“You can see into the past and all you do with it is find
  buried treasure?”). Certainly, all of the examples in this section
  can be played as “good” (or, at least, as “no one was harmed”).
  Crime
  Some psis decide that, since the laws of physics no longer
  apply to them, neither should other laws. This is abuse of
  power at its most flagrant. Even so, this can be a fun game, as
  long as the players get to pick the crimes. Psis work best with
  stealth and guile, which lends itself to acquiring and transport-
  ing high-value, well-guarded objects or information.
  Organized criminals, from street gangs to large, well-con-
  nected mobs, will actively recruit psis if aware of their exis-
  tence. This could influence the PCs’ crimes and targets, as
  NPCs now have input into how things should go down.
  Allying with a group also means inheriting their enemies,
  however; gang wars and mob wars can be dangerous, even
  for those with paranormal powers! For Mafia and similar
  crime families, the advice under Responsibility (p. 23-24) and
  Patronage (p. 23) will prove useful, as the organization acts
  almost as an employer.
  For a less morally gray approach, the group can limit their
  targets to those who truly deserve it. Thieves may go after a
  rich slumlord, inside traders may attempt to bankrupt compa-
  nies who destroy the environment, and so on. Even gangs and
  mobs can be on the side of right – in reality, there are a small
  number of gangs who genuinely protect the streets without
  stealing from or extorting anything out of the locals.
  Politics
  For a slightly more respectable (if just as morally turbulent)
  take, the game can revolve around the world of politics – a
  campaign that overlaps somewhat with Changing the System
  (above). This could mean that some of the psis are running for
  (or currently in) public office; if so, the campaign will likely
  focus on either the acquisition of further political power or on
  the new upstarts trying to make a difference by fixing broken
  laws. The biggest issue will be the intense public scrutiny –
  even if psi is openly known, the government may have rules
  prohibiting psis (or at least telepaths) from holding public
  office, forcing psionic politicians to protect their Secret. This
  may be a blessing – unless psi use is very common and com-
  pletely accepted, known psis in office will be under the eye of
  the microscope even more, with opponents constantly accus-
  ing them of illicitly using their abilities. (Remember that mud-
  slinging doesn’t require proof.)
  It may be more viable to have the party involved in the
  world of politics without actually running for office. A group
  of psis might “sponsor” a candidate who could make the
  world a better place for them. This might mean merely
  uncovering the truth behind political conspiracies and find-
  ing evidence to counter the false slings and arrows flung at
  their candidate . . . or going so far as to dig up blackmail
  material, release forged information in the name of their ene-
  mies, and do whatever it takes to get people to vote for the
  “right” person.
  While every campaign can benefit from the GM and players
  talking about what everyone is and isn’t comfortable with (a
  “social contract”), a political game almost demands it.
  Everyone has hot-button issues, and it is important either to
  avoid them or to take the time to approach the issue in a way
  that all the players are comfortable with. One avenue to this is
  reworking today’s issues into allegories. For example, a debate
  about the effects of prenatal testing for homosexuality could be
  turned into one about prenatal testing for psionic potential.
  MIND GAMES
  22
  
  Fame
  Mental gifts smooth the road to the spotlight. A
  teke or ’porter makes an amazing stage magician, a
  photokinetic is always well lit on stage, and most
  powers facilitate becoming a professional mental-
  ist. The Social Vampire perk doesn’t make fame
  easier to achieve, but it does make it more worth-
  while! Telepaths with Control abilities (Psionic
  Powers, pp. 60-64) can often force their way to
  fame by simply making enough people love them;
  moderate fame can quickly snowball into world-
  wide celebrity for the person who can get the media
  involved. In fact, if psi is acknowledged, being a
  powerful psionics user can be a form of fame in
  and of itself.
  A party of celebrities (or one celebrity and his
  entourage) can be an interesting game, as the
  group deals with paparazzi, crowds, and the occa-
  sional stalker – but for long-term viability, the cam-
  paign may need to cross over with another concept.
  For example, mixing Fame with Investigation
  (below) might result in a rock band that’s “working
  undercover for the Man” – moving from town to
  town, playing gigs and using their image to infil-
  trate the local drug scene and bust kingpins.
  RESPONSIBILITY
  Given power, many psis put it to good use, doing
  what they can to improve the world. Some set out
  on their own, while others get assistance from a
  patron (or even a Patron) – often the government,
  but sometimes a corporation or organization. The
  decision of who the psis are working for is an important one.
  If self-employed, the GM and players should discuss how
  much financial detail the game will involve. While no sane
  person wants to play GURPS Accountants, some campaigns
  benefit from an idea of whether the group will be able to
  afford rent and gas next month. Doing so can add a sense of
  urgency to an adventure, along with a serious temptation to
  take a bribe or otherwise put money ahead of principle. Less
  morally gray games can ignore all that and just focus on
  doing the right thing – if the world is a little bit better at the
  end of the day, the bill collector must have better things to do
  than come a-knockin’.
  Working for the government or a private organization
  requires the GM to flesh out details about the patron. The party
  likely has “handlers” who act as go-betweens – coordinating
  missions, listening to feedback, and so on – and become almost
  de facto members of the team. The handlers need personalities
  and motivations, as does anyone else the group comes in fre-
  quent contact with. In addition, the organization itself has its
  own goals; see Patronage (above) for more ideas.
  Investigation
  Psychic talent and investigation go together beautifully;
  the list of ESP and Telepathy abilities are a detective’s great-
  est dream! Because of this, many psis turn their powers
  toward solving difficult and unusual cases. This tends to
  involve more than just investigation, however, with the party
  doing what it takes to fix the underlying problem as well.
  (“Looks like she’s possessed – we’ll be leaving now” isn’t much
  of an adventure, after all.)
  A self-employed investigative team often operates as a com-
  mercial business (the television show Angel features a good
  example), but a self-funded group of philanthropists may take
  on cases solely because it’s the right thing to do. If psi is secret,
  clients may hear about them through word-of-mouth, or the
  heroes may do the legwork, finding interesting cases via strange
  news reports, contacts, or even ESP, and showing up with an
  offer to help. Open acknowledgment of psi offers more options,
  of course, up to and including commercials and websites.
  A crew working for someone usually has a specific type of sit-
  uation to investigate, or the patron might deal with the supernat-
  ural on a regular basis; a corporation or organization wouldn’t
  hire a team of psionic detectives if they didn’t have a need for
  them. For example, a police force may have a Special Investiga-
  tions Division that looks into claims of psionic assault, teleki-
  netic battery, etc. A corporation may rely the psis’ special talents
  to better handle mundane issues, such as preventing (or com-
  mitting!) corporate espionage or insider trading. For an interest-
  ing twist on this scenario, the organization may be unaware that
  there is a “psi division” in its ranks! If a person with some influ-
  ence (a corporate VP, an army general, etc.) realizes the utility of
  having such a group, he might create one by recruiting and
  transferring psionic individuals without letting his supervisors
  know. This can work well in a secret-psi game, where the
  founder is one of the few people aware of its existence.
  See GURPS Mysteries (pp. 97-99) for more on psionic
  investigations and crime scenes.
  MIND GAMES
  23
  Patronage
  Some psis have a responsibility (below) to a company or organi-
  zation – sometimes just because they feel that’s where they can do
  the most good, but often there’s another reason. The company’s sci-
  entists may have created the psis (or helped them understand and
  actualize their abilities), the organization may have bailed the psis
  out of a bad situation, or the employees may just be the only people
  who’ve learned the psis’ secret and this seems to be the best compro-
  mise to keep it that way.
  If this is the case, it’s important to add as many details to the
  patron as possible. An organization is almost a living thing; it has a
  goal, needs, etc. While these goals should rarely overlap perfectly
  with those of the party in order to infuse some level of tension into
  the campaign, the GM can still create many interesting adventures
  without resorting to the cliché of “the evil company manipulating
  the good psis.”
  Another common trope is the company that forces psis to work
  for it against their will. This generally happens either with hostages
  or because the psis need a substance to maintain their powers (or
  even to stay alive). This is a good background story for sympathetic
  NPC psis who are caught doing criminal things by the party; a story
  arc to free the evil corporation’s grasp on them can be rewarding and
  provide the heroes with new allies.
  Putting the PCs under the reign of an evil organization is rarely
  enjoyable – few players like to feel like puppets on strings. However,
  if the GM designs adventures so that the opportunity to turn the
  tables comes up quickly, this situation can become even more satis-
  fying as the group brings down the big bad business.
  
  ESPionage
  National defense takes many forms, and psi lends itself to
  most of them. Every common psionic power can be used to
  safeguard against national threats and to ferret secrets out of
  other countries or hostile groups. If the government (or even a
  small part of the government) is aware of psi, it will waste no
  time recruiting as many users as possible!
  This frame works in any setting; the state of the world sets
  the tone of the game. If the world is actively at war, the cam-
  paign overlap somewhat with Soldiering (below) – missions
  may involve going behind enemy lines to secure crucial intel,
  using psychological warfare to foment revolution and disrup-
  tion, or liaising with a normal squad to help secure or destroy
  a target. If the world is more or less at peace (especially in a
  “cold war” situation), the missions are more varied: stealing
  state secrets, smuggling out defectors, searching for spy rings
  at home, and so on. In a game set in the modern United States,
  the PCs could act as agents of the CIA, working to undermine
  dictatorial regimes; the FBI, breaking up powerful
  crime rings; the DHS, identifying and neutralizing
  terrorist cells; the DEA, going after major drug traf-
  fickers; or any of the other government organiza-
  tions with agents in the field.
  A “psecret agent” benefits from a wide range of
  traits, but Danger Sense, Data Retrieval, Mind-
  Clouding, Patron, Photorefraction, and Smooth
  Operator are especially useful. Most have Duty or
  Obsession, and are skilled in Computer Operation,
  Guns, Shadowing, Stealth, Melee Weapon skills for
  concealable weapons, and possibly a martial arts
  style (see GURPS Martial Arts for details on styles).
  Soldiering
  Every military branch has its elite units – but in
  some games, those units have a special “edge.” A
  psionic soldiering campaign is structured like a typi-
  cal military/commando game. The team is assigned
  objectives, usually to be accomplished in a “get in, get
  it done, get out” fashion with an emphasis on speed
  and stealth. This doesn’t always mean fatigues and
  face paint – even realistic special-ops teams often
  blend in with the populace to accomplish the occa-
  sional goal, and psis are far better equipped to bluff
  their way past guards and accomplish a job with min-
  imal equipment. While psionic soldiers most often
  work for a government, this campaign can be run as a
  mercenaries game with little to no changes required.
  In a high-powered game, the psis may be so elite
  that each is as powerful as a squad (or platoon . . . or company!)
  of regular soldiers, leading to situations where sending in one or
  two psionic warriors may constitute a “show of force.” The
  prime examples of this are the Star Wars Jedi (best exemplified
  in The Phantom Menace) and Doc Smith’s Lensmen, but there’s
  no reason to limit the trope to science fiction. The battlefields of
  a low-tech world may be ruled by psionic knights (especially if
  they have access to cinematic martial-arts skills and/or
  Imbuement Skills; see p. 12).
  In a modern “pspecial forces” game, where the group is
  expected to get shot at on a regular basis, Combat Reflexes, PK
  Shield, Rapid Healing, TK Bullet, and TK Crush can help
  them fight back and stay alive. A Duty is ubiquitous, while
  post-traumatic stress can inflict many disadvantages, includ-
  ing Flashbacks, Nightmares, and Post-Combat Shakes. Skills
  depend on the setting, with a modern or near-future game
  likely requiring Battlesuit, Forward Observer, Guns, Hiking,
  Liquid Projector, Soldier, and Survival.
  MIND GAMES
  24
  Psi Across Worlds
  Unlike mana level, which can vary from world to world (and
  even within each world), there is no “psi level” that makes psion-
  ics especially easy or difficult to use on a large scale. This makes
  psi somewhat more reliable than magic in a world-hopping game.
  While the GM may be tempted to create “Global Psi Static” to com-
  pensate, this is rarely a good idea – psi has its own, specific draw-
  backs that should exist (in some form) in each world. Anti-Psi may
  be an active power in a small part of the population, or perhaps
  everyone just has the Skeptic perk (see Anti-Psi, pp. 31-32); alter-
  natively, it may be a natural ability in many animals. Likewise, psy-
  chotronics may not always exist as a separate science, but the
  drugs and technology of a strange parallel may have unpredictable
  effects on psi. See Psychobotanics (p. 5) for a similar psychotronic
  “fix” for low-tech worlds.
  Infinite Psi
  Infinity is quite aware of psi (Infinite Worlds, p. 22), with an
  entire section of Paralabs devoted to psychotronics and psychical
  research. ISWAT, in particular, is known to have at least a dozen
  psis of various abilities and calibers. A psionic Patrolman is
  extremely valuable; officers in the Penetration Service go to almost
  any length to get a telepath, esper, or astral projector assigned to
  the contact or survey crew; and the I-Cops can find use for every
  psionic ability.
  These were Krakovitch’s thoughts as he entered what long ago had been a
  cobbled courtyard – now a large area of plastic-tiled floor, partitioned into airy
  conservatories, small apartments and laboratories – where E-Branch operatives had
  studied and practised their esoteric talents in comparative comfort, or whatever
  condition or environment best suited their work.
  – Brian Lumley, Necroscope II: Vamphyri!
  
  One of the features that makes roleplaying so rewarding is
  its scope; in theory, the party can do anything . . . including
  things that (purposefully or accidentally) derail the adventure.
  This is normal, and – with experience – the GM can learn to
  plan for it. Adding psionics to the mix can create a whole new
  set of challenges.
  Part of the issue is the unique abilities that psi tends to focus
  on – abilities that are primarily silent and subtle, allowing them
  to be used on a subject openly without anyone in the area (or
  even the subject, usually!) realizing it. In addition, some gaming
  groups have a view of psi that doesn’t mesh perfectly with the
  GURPS approach, requiring some fine-tuning to the system.
  This shouldn’t be taken as a warning against bringing psi
  into a game, of course. If every potential complication were
  removed from roleplaying, there’d be no game left at all!
  Instead, what follows is a “heads up” for the GM, to make sure
  that he is not blindsided by these issues, and that he is ready in
  advance to deal with them when they do pop up.
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  25
  EMULATING EXTREMES
  GURPS takes a balanced approach when it comes to psi. A
  psi who wants to use an active ability must make a skill or
  attribute roll to do so. Any subject affected by the ability gets a
  resistance roll of some sort. Even the most skilled psi won’t
  succeed 100% of the time, and even the most strong-willed
  subject won’t resist 100% of the time.
  This doesn’t work for everyone. Most gamers have a favorite
  movie, show, or book that they think of when they think of psi,
  and this portrayal may paint psionics as either weaker or much
  more powerful than the GURPS approach. This can usually be
  simulated by adjusting how many points everyone may spend
  on psi (Power Level, p. 13), but the most extreme changes may
  require something different.
  WIMPY PSI
  Numerous ways exist to weaken psi. Any of the limitations
  suggested under Starting Conditions (pp. 13-14) could be
  made permanent. For example, if no psi can buy more than
  one level of a single ability and can’t put more than 1 point
  into the skill, most players will think of psi as a weak add-on
  to their adventurers, at best. Further suggestions for limiting
  options can be found throughout both GURPS Powers and
  GURPS Psionic Powers.
  However, one take that’s somewhat common in fiction is
  for psi to be potent and useful, but to require a disproportion-
  ate amount of skill or effort to affect another person.
  Sometimes this only refers to attempts to affect a person’s
  mind, but it may also extend to physical effects (e.g.,
  Confuse, Exoteleport). If so, the Easily Resisted limitation,
  below, can be applied to any psionic ability that allows a
  resistance roll.
  Easily Resisted
  -5% per level
  This limitation can only be applied to an ability that affects
  another subject and offers a resistance roll to avoid the effects.
  If your target possesses an ability that would resist your use of
  psi (Obscure vs. ESP, Resistant to Psionics, etc.), multiply its
  resistance bonus or skill penalty by (1 + limitation level); if not,
  he still gets a bonus equal to your limitation level to any roll to
  resist your psi. Your roll to use the ability is unaffected. The
  GM must set the maximum number of levels; a cap of four to
  six levels is recommended.
  Alternatively, the GM may decide that this limitation must
  be applied to the cost of Talent. Because it gives less of a point
  break, this is not quite as fair, but it is much easier to imple-
  ment, especially if using a pre-made list of abilities (such as
  Psionic Powers). In such a case, it should be applied to every
  “weakened” power that has resisted abilities (e.g., all of the
  major powers except Astral Projection and ESP).
  CHAPTER THREE
  UNIQUE
  CHALLENGES
  Heh, heh . . . what’s happened
  to me? I must be dreaming. I feel
  like I can take out the world.
  – Tetsuo, Akira
  
  PROGRESSIVE PSI
  Psis are often depicted as starting with
  only a minor ability or two in their forma-
  tive years. Once a psi learns to tap into his
  powers, he begins to grow progressively
  stronger, unveiling new abilities and new
  levels of power every month (or week or
  day)! A similar concept is that of the psychic
  vampire who can use Steal Power and keep
  the psionic abilities even after the subject
  has gotten them back.
  Easily represent this by starting the PCs
  at a low power level (p. 13) and awarding
  an unusually large number of bonus char-
  acter points (p. B498) at the end of each
  session. The GM may allow these to be
  spent freely, or he may designate a certain
  amount as “psi only.” For example, a game
  might start at 75 points (with a limit of no
  more than 25 spent on psi), but give out
  awards of 10-15 character points per ses-
  sion, with everything after the first 4 points
  earmarked exclusively for psi.
  Another approach, usually reserved for
  NPCs, is for the psi who gets progressively stronger as he
  becomes progressively crazier! (This often comes wrapped in a
  moral about how power corrupts.) The simplest way to accom-
  plish this is to award bonus character points along with a new
  disadvantage for which the psi receives full value! For example,
  adding four bonus points plus Fanaticism translates to 19 extra
  points in psi.
  GODLIKE PSI
  More commonly, gamers are influenced by the portrayal of
  psis as nearly omnipotent beings. This is often simply a matter
  of raising the power level (p. 13) for psionic-using PCs. If play-
  ers are given a few thousand points to work with, their psis will
  be quite godlike – at least, with regard to the power groups they
  purchase.
  Many fictional psis can go further, though. They can rewrite
  reality, manipulate subjects in an unlimited number of ways,
  and otherwise come up with new abilities as the plot demands.
  For such psis, the best solution is to buy several hundred levels
  of Cosmic Power (Limited Scope, Psi, -10%); see p. B71. This
  costs thousands of points, but such godlike power shouldn’t be
  cheap – a psi like Akira (from the eponymous movie) would be
  at least a 3,000-point character.
  Irresistible Psi
  Aside from raw power, some fictional psis can overcome
  others with ease. These mental masters brush past any men-
  tal resistance with but a thought, never fail to affect a subject,
  and generally act as though the non-psis around them had no
  volition or capacity to resist whatsoever. This is at odds with
  GURPS, which has many rules in place to guarantee the vic-
  tim a chance to overcome psionic attacks. The Rule of 16
  (p. B349) makes “automatic victory over resistance” impossi-
  ble – even against a 4,000-point psi with skill levels in the 30+
  range. To get around this, the GM may allow the following
  optional enhancement.
  Cosmic (No Rule of 16)
  +50%
  Your supernatural ability ignores the Rule of 16. When
  rolling a Quick Contest against a subject, you may always use
  your full (modified) skill. If you are highly skilled, this may
  make resistance nearly impossible!
  The subject may always try to resist, even if his effective
  resistance is less than 3 (due to penalties from high levels of
  Affliction, previous attacks, etc.). In such a case, only a roll of
  3-4 succeeds; treat this as success by 0, not as automatic resist-
  ance! If your margin of success is 1 or better, you still overcome
  his resistance.
  Abilities with this enhancement allow a highly skilled psi to
  bowl right over all but the most extraordinary subjects. If this
  is allowed in the game, anyone who’s intended to stand a
  chance against such “super-psis” must be built with either
  extremely high HT and Will or many levels of the Mental
  Strength skill.
  Unlike the option for Easily Resisted (p. 25), this version of
  Cosmic can never be applied to Talent – always add it to the
  abilities it affects.
  Infallible Psi
  Psi is sometimes depicted as being no more difficult than
  walking. Psychics can read minds and teleport from place to
  place with no particular effort or chance of failure. While this
  can make psi seem mundane and commonplace, some cam-
  paigns may call for this change. The Cosmic (No die roll
  required) enhancement (Powers, p. 101) covers this; for sim-
  plicity, it can be bundled into the Psionic power modifier, rais-
  ing it from -10% to +90%.
  Even resisted abilities may have this version of Cosmic.
  However, when using them, the psi must still roll against the
  controlling attribute (or skill) to determine his margin of suc-
  cess for the Quick Contest. If he fails the roll, the ability still
  works, but treat his margin of success as 0.
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  26
  
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  27
  A more specific version of “irresistible psi” is that of the
  telepath living in a world where the average person broad-
  casts his thoughts (loudly) without being aware of it. The
  poor psi must keep his own mental screens up to avoid
  hearing everything and being overwhelmed by it.
  This can be represented by taking Mind Reading or
  Telereceive with both the Reflexive (+40%) enhancement
  and the Uncontrollable (-10%) limitation. Reflexive turns
  the ability into a passive one. The GM should make a single
  roll against the telepath’s skill (applying the Rule of 16) each
  time he encounters a new group of people. If he fails, he
  won’t pick up any thoughts; otherwise, note the margin of
  success. As NPCs experience particularly intense thoughts,
  make a Will roll for them. If their margin of success is less
  than the telepath’s, he picks up a mental snippet.
  Normally, Uncontrollable wouldn’t cause any particu-
  lar embarrassment or inconvenience when applied to
  Mind Reading; unless someone detects the psi, it’s a very
  unobtrusive ability. To make the limitation worth the
  point break, when the psi loses control, he starts reading
  everyone around him, experiencing the effects of Super-
  sensitive (p. B158). If he already has Supersensitive, dou-
  ble the range and penalties.
  Constant Projectors
  If the setting demands telepaths who can pick up every-
  thing going on around them – in other words, the subjects
  shouldn’t be able to resist – also apply the suggestions for
  Irresistible Psi (p. 26) and have the telepath buy a very high
  level of Talent or skill. An average margin of success of
  around 20 (which suggests a skill in the low 30s) is impos-
  sible for any normal person to match.
  Alternatively, the campaign world could simply reflect
  the truth – that the average person cannot control his
  thoughts. To reflect this, the Easy to Read disadvantage,
  with the new Psychic Only enhancement (below), can be
  considered part of the “standard human template”; assume
  that every NPC has it unless he’s specifically bought it off.
  This shifts things from a particular talent on the psi’s part
  to a general failing in humanity. Be aware of the implica-
  tions when making this change; it “downgrades” the aver-
  age person even further with respect to psis!
  With this change, the GM must decide who can buy off
  Easy to Read; can anyone who makes the effort do so,
  only psis, or only telepaths? Do any of these groups
  require an Unusual Background? It’s possible, for exam-
  ple, to have a campaign where telepaths can (and in fact
  must) buy it off, while nontelepathic psis can do so by
  paying a 5-point Unusual Background, and normal peo-
  ple are stuck with it.
  Easy to Read
  see p. B134
  If everyone starts with this trait, it shouldn’t count
  against any disadvantage limit; in essence, buying it off is
  like purchasing a 10- or 20-point advantage! Alternatively,
  this could be a racial trait genetically engineered into any
  species created by psis as servants or underlings.
  Special Enhancements
  Psychic: In addition to your physical “tells,” you project
  your thoughts uncontrollably. Your resistance rolls against
  spells or abilities that read your thoughts or emotions are
  at -8. Moreover, if you are experiencing a high level of emo-
  tion or stress, you must make a Will roll (14 or higher
  always fails) to avoid projecting your thoughts and feelings
  so loudly that they’re picked up automatically by all nearby
  mind readers! Assume that any telepath can “hear” such
  thoughts within skill¥3 yards, or (IQ + Talent)¥3 yards if
  not using psionic skills. You may not learn the Mental
  Strength or Mind Block skills, nor have the Mind Shield
  advantage. +100%.
  Psychic Only: As for Psychic, but you only project your
  thoughts; your body language is no easier to read than a
  normal person’s. +0%.
  Telepaths and Mental Screens
  ACHILLES’ HEEL
  Psis with godlike power can be – frankly – boring. When no
  one can stand in the psi’s way, it becomes hard for the GM to
  come up with challenging and fun adventures. One way to
  mitigate this is by adding a weakness in the form of a disad-
  vantage or limitation. This may be something with an in-
  game justification (e.g., something built into the psi by his
  creators), but it’s more often just a meta-game concept added
  to keep the PC interesting.
  Appropriate disadvantages are those that limit the psi’s “tar-
  gets” or provide others with a way to indirectly influence the
  person’s actions and choices. This includes Code of Honor,
  Compulsive Behavior (e.g., psis raised via virtual training may
  have Compulsive Video-Game Playing limited to games that
  resemble their “childhood”), Dependency (commonly a rare
  psychotronic drug), Dependents, Dread (of something that
  emits detectable waves of energy), Fanaticism, Honesty,
  Maintenance, Obsession, Pacifism (one common variant is
  Total Nonviolence, but only for one large class, -60%, or small
  class, -80%, of people), Phobias, Secret (though blackmail is
  rarely fun!), Sense of Duty, Susceptible (often to a particular
  chemical or drug), or Vow.
  For limitations, Accessibility is often the best choice.
  However, instead of putting the same Accessibility on every-
  thing, consider using it to split up the psi’s choices. Adding
  “Not versus women” to half of the psi’s offensive abilities
  and “Not versus men” to the other half can limit his options
  enough to keep things interesting without taking away his
  “godlike” status. Other appropriate limitations include Costs
  Fatigue or Limited Use (both of which force the psi to ration
  his abilities), Preparation Required or Takes Recharge (to
  force “downtime”), Trigger, and Unreliable.
  
  Something about psi makes it lend itself to abilities that can
  seriously affect the plot of an adventure. A GM who isn’t pre-
  pared for this may be upset when a player decides to use his
  esper to discover clues to the mystery that was supposed to
  take the group a whole session to figure out. The important
  thing is that the GM can plan for it, however.
  In addition to the specific issues addressed below, see
  Deterrents and Fixes (pp. 31-35) for more general ways to
  keep psi under control and GURPS Powers (pp. 194-198) for
  additional (not specifically psi-related) advice on plot-stop-
  ping abilities.
  KNOWING TOO MUCH
  Telepathy and ESP both include supernaturally effective
  abilities to gather information, whether from out of a person’s
  mind or out of thin air. This can replace a long investigation
  with a quick application of psi. Sometimes this is a good thing!
  If a fast-paced action game would be better served by glossing
  over such details, the GM can use an esper as a mouthpiece to
  point the agents at the next target. If gathering information is
  supposed to be the main thrust of the adventure, this can
  short-circuit the entire game session.
  In addition to the ability limits discussed below, see
  Controlling Information (pp. 33-34) for a different approach.
  Invasions of Privacy
  Telepaths can read thoughts and emotions using Emotion
  Sense and Telereceive, while psychic vampires can do the
  same (though in a weaker, more indirect manner) via Drain
  Emotion and Steal Dreams. In a game with custom abilities,
  anyone with Empathy, Mind Probe, or Mind Reading has a
  way to peek into the head of another person. This can take all
  of the uncertainty out of questioning NPCs, or even make it
  unnecessary; in particular, in a “whodunit” situation, it can
  easily lead to the bad guy being caught the first time the group
  speaks to him!
  Catching a person lying or hiding something requires the psi
  to win a Quick Contest of Detect Lies versus the better of the
  target’s IQ, Acting, or Fast-Talk skill. Empathy and Emotion
  Sense give a +3 bonus to Detect Lies and, even if the psi loses
  the Quick Contest, he still gets a flash of emotion from the
  subject. (Drain Emotion does not give a bonus to Detect Lies,
  but it can be used to experience the subject’s feelings.) The GM
  should make a separate “mental control roll” against the better
  of the NPC’s Will, Acting, or Mind Block skill to see how
  restrained his emotions are at the moment; if the NPC has
  recently succumbed to a disadvantage, that emotion shows
  through regardless of this roll. For Mind Reading and surface-
  level Telereceive, the Detect Lies bonus rises to +4, and if the
  subject fails at the “mental control roll,” his surface thoughts
  are anywhere from suspicious to outright incriminating!
  Because of this, if the adventure requires that information
  remains hidden from the party, or that an NPC is able to lie to
  them without being caught, it may be necessary to keep those in
  the know away from the psis. Communication over the phone,
  via writing, or through a third-party messenger can preserve
  this. If the group members are openly known to be psis, this may
  even be a normal protocol followed by everyone dealing with a
  telepath; after all, who doesn’t value their mental privacy?
  Mind Probe and deep Telereceive are more potent, but also
  more specific. If the psi knows what question to ask, he can be
  guaranteed a truthful answer by overcoming the subject’s resist-
  ance. In addition to the advice above, note that the telepath
  using this approach must know which questions to ask! A bit of
  misdirection can work wonders here; if the telepath suspects
  that the Templars have a plot to assassinate the king, while they
  really plan to blackmail the queen, questions like “Who will the
  king’s assassin be?” provide no useful answers.
  Second Sight
  Many ESP abilities (Prognostication, Psychic Hunches,
  Retrocognition, Retrocognitive Flashbacks, and Visions)
  and advantages (Blessed, Intuition, Oracle, Precognition, and
  Psychometry) give the psi access to a supernatural well of gen-
  eral information. These have the potential to bypass whole sec-
  tions of the plot with even greater ease than Invasions of
  Privacy (above), as they require no subject – the esper simply
  asks the universe for answers.
  Fortunately, this information comes from one source – the
  GM – who can balance utility to the psi with necessity of the
  plot. In fact, because the GM has so much control over this
  information, the real issue is making sure the balance doesn’t
  tip the other way, making the esper feel that his ability is use-
  less. Successful application of a paranormal ability should
  always give some clue or bit of information, even if it’s not
  exactly what the psi was seeking.
  Example: An esper is using Retrocognition at a murder
  scene. The GM doesn’t want to give away the murderer’s identity,
  so he plays out the vision through the eyes of the murderer. If the
  GM only describes the victim and method of death (things the
  police already know), the player will wonder why he bothered
  buying this psionic ability. However, if the vision includes new
  information that only ESP could provide – perhaps the murder
  weapon was a (very rare) autographed Ty Cobb baseball bat and
  the victim smiled warmly when he first saw the murderer – the
  clues make the use of Retrocognition worth the time and trou-
  ble, without spoiling the mystery completely.
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  28
  But there are experiments, sufficiently
  vouched for, which seem to indicate that
  the sense of touch can be extended, as it
  were, from the organs and be made to feel
  objects in the distance.
  – Henry Frank,
  Psychic Phenomena,
  Science and Immortality
  PSIONIC SHORT CIRCUITS
  
  If the GM allows psis to see the future (by allowing them
  to take Precognition, Prognostication, or Visions), he also
  needs to make some judgment calls (before the game starts)
  about how this works – see Which Future? (above). One inter-
  esting option is to set the defaults per the lists in the boxed
  text, but allow psis to trade certainty for clarity, or vice-versa,
  by taking a skill penalty. For example, in a campaign where
  visions are “guaranteed to happen,” but “muddy,” an esper
  may be able to roll at -5 to get a “hazy” vision that’s only
  “guaranteed, barring interference.”
  TAKING OVER
  One of the most common obstacles, put in the path of the
  heroes by the GM, is the hostile NPC. He represents something
  that the party must “get past” somehow, whether this means
  sneaking by, fighting, persuading, interrogating, or something
  else. While in most games, a variety of different skills is neces-
  sary to be prepared for all of these possibilities, in a psionic
  campaign, they can all be (potentially) overcome by just tele-
  pathically taking over the NPC.
  The degree to which this can be done, and the effect it can
  have on the game, varies. Subtle takeovers are the work of
  Drain Emotion, Emotion Control, and low-level Suggestion.
  These abilities allow the telepath to influence the subject’s
  actions without being able to issue precise orders; the results
  can be potent, but require subtlety and timing, along with
  additional skills to exploit the situation. Blatant takeovers
  demand a high level of Suggestion or the standard Mind
  Control advantage. A blatant approach requires no real finesse;
  subjects can be made to tie themselves up, give up their dark-
  est secrets, or whatever else the telepath wishes. Always
  remember, however, that any self-destructive or truly repug-
  nant (to the NPC) order allows another resistance roll!
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  29
  Precognition and the ESP abilities Prognostication
  and Visions allow an esper to see into the future. But what
  does that mean? The GM must figure out how such visions
  work in the game. Even more important, he must let the
  players know, if they will (or might) be playing precogs!
  Clarity is usually inversely proportional to how certain
  the future is. If visions are guaranteed to happen, they’ll
  often be metaphorical or murky, while sharp visions are
  rarely the default unless they’re only likely to happen. This
  is because visions that are both sharp and guaranteed to
  happen require an incredible amount of railroading, to the
  point where the players may feel like they’re merely watch-
  ing a story as opposed to participating in one.
  Certainty
  First, the GM decides how likely events are to happen in
  the future, once a vision has been seen. Here are three pos-
  sibilities.
  Guaranteed to happen: No matter what anyone does,
  this vision will come to pass. This requires active railroad-
  ing on the GM’s part, up to and including declaring that
  some actions succeed or fail by fiat (instead of rolling dice).
  Guaranteed, barring interference: What’s in the vision
  will happen . . . if nobody does anything to stop it.
  Heroes can “fight fate” by trying to prevent the events
  that have already been set in motion.
  Likely to happen: There are many possible futures,
  and the vision is from the one that is currently the most
  likely. (If precogs are common, this is actually more
  probable than the above option, as every major event
  has people interfering with it.) Precognition is mainly a
  way for the GM to pass along hints and plot hooks.
  Clarity
  It is also important to determine how accurate and
  informative the visions are. This does not have to be
  fixed – it’s reasonable to say that some visions will be
  clearer than others – but it’s best to at least establish a
  rough baseline.
  Metaphorical: The vision represents what’s going to hap-
  pen. For example, a presidential assassination might be
  shown as a chess king falling over with a thunderclap. This
  allows the GM to set up multiple possible meanings for each
  vision, and requires the players to puzzle out the intent; this
  will suit some gaming groups better than others!
  Muddy: Random images and sensations – e.g., a
  blonde woman is stabbed, a leather satchel passes
  between hands, and then a baby cries. This may not be
  enough to act on, but the psi can recognize specific com-
  ponents as he comes across them, eventually figuring out
  how they’re related. This gives the GM freedom to make
  the vision come true, though players may be frustrated
  with the lack of clear information.
  Hazy: The esper gets a full scene, though the details
  aren’t always clear. Important parts may be “off screen” or
  shadowed, and it may end without a clear conclusion. For
  example, if the psi sees a friend shot in an alleyway, he
  knows what’s happening, but not where, when, or who did
  it. This is a reasonable compromise for most visions, but it
  can be tricky for the GM to ensure the event happens.
  Sharp: The vision is clear and
  unambiguous, with visible faces and
  a recognizable location, and it lasts
  long enough to realize what’s going
  on. The esper has a rough sense of
  “when” – or may see a clock, newspa-
  per, etc. that gives more detail. Essen-
  tially, the esper knows exactly what’s
  going on and only needs to decide
  what to do about it. The GM might
  not be able to bring the event to
  fruition without a large degree of rail-
  roading – at least, not without player
  cooperation.
  Which Future?
  
  Complete takeovers involve Possession (usually as Mind Swap
  or Telecontrol) and work by removing the NPC from the equa-
  tion completely! This often works less well for interrogation (as
  the victim’s mind is not present in most psionic possessions), but
  allows the psi to do anything he wishes with the victim’s body.
  The easiest way to prevent psis from simply mind-controlling
  their way through an encounter is to have more NPCs present
  than the party can take over. If the party has two telepaths but
  there are three guards in front of a door, the third guard is going
  to notice (and act) if his two friends suddenly move to unlock the
  door and step aside for a group of strangers. Of course, the two
  guards could probably overpower the third, which suggests that
  a truly challenging encounter requires at least twice the number
  of NPCs that the psis could take over.
  These psis are often the most vulnerable to Fear of Detection
  (pp. 34-35), as mental control is often considered one of the
  most (if not the most) despicable acts that a psi can commit. If
  psionics use is known, “mind rape” laws probably exist. If not,
  the psi’s victims (if they realize what happened) are likely to
  hunt him down with a vengeance; manipulating others’ minds
  is a good way to make new Enemies.
  SILENT KILLERS
  Any ability that can cause damage (even fatigue damage),
  physically relocate others, or control minds can be used to kill
  without leaving a normal forensic trail. This includes direct
  attacks (e.g., TK Squeeze, Mental Stab), indirect attacks (e.g.,
  Steal Dreams, Exoteleport), and Taking Over (pp. 29-30) by
  forcing the victim to commit suicide. In many games, the party
  may not even consider these actions, finding them too repug-
  nant – but some campaigns are painted in shades of gray.
  Furthermore, this advice applies to the actions of psionic, bad-
  guy NPCs that heroic investigators may need to track down.
  If psi is a known factor, this is essentially a complication.
  Police departments (or the equivalent) will have access to psy-
  chotronics that provide the equivalent of Signature Sniffer;
  this does not guarantee that the psionic criminal is caught, but
  does give the detectives a fair chance. If psi is a secret, though,
  this allows for some potentially unsolvable murders. A subtle
  psionic attack can be disguised as an aneurysm, stroke, or sui-
  cide – and even a blatant use of Lightning or Pyrokinesis will
  baffle an investigator who hasn’t seen it happen before. In such
  a case, the importance of other evidence is magnified. If the
  psis had to break into the home to get close to the victim,
  detectives can use Forensics skill to find footprints, finger-
  prints, hair samples, etc. An unseen witness may not realize
  what was going on, but even if “I saw him staring at Dr. Jones
  for a minute, then Dr. Jones collapsed onto the floor” isn’t likely
  to get a conviction in court, it’ll certainly earn the psi a few
  Enemies (Watcher) on the police force. Furthermore, an inves-
  tigator might be a Signature Sniffer himself, though that twist
  is best used sparingly.
  NOW YOU SEE ME . . .
  Some psis can get into (and out of) places in ways that no
  normal human can. This may be via an ability to violate phys-
  ical laws of movement (e.g., Autoteleport, Levitation) or to
  walk past others without being detected (e.g., Mind Clouding,
  Photorefraction). Either way, this can cause the GM some
  headaches; an adventure centered on a certain bad guy can be
  cut rather short by the heroes zipping in, shooting him, and
  zipping out again! It also makes it very difficult to put those
  psis in physical danger – if they get caught in a firefight, they
  can simply walk away.
  Fear of Detection (pp. 34-35) is a major issue with flight and
  teleportation, two of the most blatant abilities that psi has to
  offer. Even an openly psionic person may wish to hide these
  abilities to avoid being rounded up or otherwise accused every
  time an “impossible crime” has been committed. Teleporters
  are especially feared by most people; anyone known to be a
  ’porter may find that a large percentage of his foes have
  invested in psychotronics (pp. 32-33) to safeguard their homes
  or bases. Said foes may also hide themselves (or important
  things) in a secret “safe room”; if the ’porter doesn’t know it
  exists, he won’t think to jump there.
  The opposite is true with stealth-based abilities, which work
  by not being blatant in any way. While this makes detection
  that much more difficult, the psi using them must be wary of
  other senses. Telepathic stealth cannot fool security cameras;
  the power-user may also wear a mask to avoid being caught on
  tape, but if a guard manages to resist, he’ll immediately realize
  that the psi is up to something. Photokinetic stealth works on
  everything but only applies to vision – those nearby should get
  Hearing rolls to detect something, Smell rolls if the psi passed
  through any strong scents, etc. Likewise, simple pressure
  plates and tripwires can be even more effective than psy-
  chotronics in this situation!
  GOOD AS NEW
  Healing abilities, specifically Cure (or the Healing advan-
  tage), can easily remove the fear of death from adventures. If
  the heroes can get patched up quickly and easily every time
  they’re wounded, the campaign may take on a video-game feel.
  For cinematic games, this may be a plus! For other games, it
  can remove much of the “grit” and danger.
  Fortunately, Healing/Cure has a built-in, cumulative
  penalty for repeated use. A psychic healer can easily patch up
  a friend once or twice per day, but if he has to do it five or six
  times, it becomes much harder. Notably, this has nothing to do
  with how much damage he heals, just how often he does it.
  Thus, a party with someone who has Psychic Healing is chal-
  lenged more if the damage they take is minor but frequent.
  Instead of having one or two major firefights or sword fights
  per adventure, the GM can tone down the “combat set-pieces”
  while adding many small chances to be hurt (e.g., brawls, acci-
  dents, etc.). With the penalties for repeated healing, a hero will
  be tempted to hold off on fixing that 3-HP wound for now, just
  in case something serious happens later.
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  30
  
  While Psionic Short Circuits (pp. 28-30) addresses some fixes
  for specific issues, many general methods exist for keeping a
  handle on psi – things that apply to almost any ability. The GM
  can use these, sparingly, to help keep adventures on track when
  psionic powers are threatening to derail it. Before doing so, how-
  ever, he should always consider whether intervention is truly
  necessary – see Let the Psychic Win (p. 35) for more discussion.
  KNOWN LIMITS
  Many psionic abilities have range limits. Sometimes these
  are defined sharply, as for any ability that uses the Psionic Range
  Table (Psionic Powers, p. 22). Others are defined broadly (e.g.,
  “-1 per yard to the subject”) or vaguely (e.g., Visions works when
  you “encounter” the subject). If the GM does not want a specific
  psionic ability to be used on a specific person or object, he needs
  to make a note of the minimum distance to be kept between this
  subject and the psi with the ability. If the adventurer could use
  extra effort or a psi technique to boost this range, the GM may
  wish to consider this when figuring the “safe distance.”
  For broad ranges, a good guideline is to subtract 3 from the
  psi’s skill; treat the result as a penalty, and look up the distance
  on the appropriate range table. For example, a psi with
  Telereceive 4 and the skill Telereceive-14 has an effective maxi-
  mum range of about 150 yards (-11 on the Size and Speed/Range
  Table, p. B550). The range for Astral Travel 1-5 can be calculated
  as for vehicular travel – by multiplying the projector’s top speed
  (considering any Astral Celerity) by the ability’s duration.
  When using range limits like this, one of two general
  approaches can be taken. If it is critical that a certain piece of
  the plot be protected (at least, for now), it should be kept at
  least twice the “safe” distance from the psis; an in-story reason
  for this should be in place. It also helps to have another part of
  the adventure that distracts the psis and that they can make
  progress toward. If this distance is being placed to challenge
  the psis, however, then it’s best to place it outside of their nor-
  mal range but where it is theoretically reachable – either
  through extra effort, psi techniques, a lucky roll, or a mini-
  adventure to penetrate into the heart of enemy territory.
  Other abilities may have limits that should be kept in mind
  when planning adventures. For example, if a plot is supposed
  to kick off with a bomb being dropped onto an island, the GM
  can prevent telekinetic interference by ensuring the bomb
  weighs more than any nearby psychokinetic can lift. Similarly,
  if Adjustment is becoming an issue due to overuse, the GM
  can plan ahead of time to ensure that a bit of chaos is intro-
  duced to the situation.
  At the highest levels, many psionic abilities (especially tele-
  pathic ones and Astral Travel) have unlimited range, which
  means that none of the advice here applies. Because of this, the
  GM may wish to cap such abilities at the penultimate level (or
  charge an Unusual Background for hitting the maximum).
  COUNTERMEASURES
  At its most basic, the Psionic power modifier is considered
  a limitation because of the inherent countermeasures that
  affect all psionic powers. “Intuition” cannot be taken away by
  Neutralize, but “Intuition (ESP, -10%)” can. While some cam-
  paigns may modify the specific drawbacks involved (Old-Time
  Psi, p. 5), the default assumption is that psi is vulnerable to the
  Anti-Psi power and to the special electronic equipment and
  drugs collectively known as psychotronics.
  Anti-Psi
  The Anti-Psi power can play many roles in a game. Maybe
  anti-psis are the black-hat-wearing bad guys opposing the
  plucky group of psionic heroes. Alternatively, a significant per-
  centage of the population has developed Anti-Psi, as a
  metaphor for the public’s resistance to accept psionic citizens.
  In a game focused on psi-versus-psi conflicts (e.g., psionic fac-
  tions at war), each side may actively recruit anti-psis, consid-
  ering them elite weapons against the enemy. The details and
  theme can vary from campaign to campaign, but what’s impor-
  tant is that Anti-Psi exists in some form.
  The most common assumption is that Anti-Psi is an inborn
  power found in a small (but significant) percentage of the pop-
  ulation; having one anti-psi for every 10 psis is reasonable (see
  Frequency, pp. 15-16, for more ideas). For someone to discover
  his Anti-Psi abilities generally requires interacting with a psi in
  some way; if psionic use is especially rare or unknown, most
  anti-psis may not even realize they have the capability. In such
  a case, an anti-psi can still buy abilities and Talent (and even
  skills, if applicable), all representing an inherent subconscious
  faculty in using his power. When encountering a psi, assume
  that an unaware anti-psi unknowingly relies on his abilities to
  defend himself (taking Attack or Concentrate maneuvers as
  necessary) – if he realizes what’s going on, this may be the
  breakthrough that unlocks the awareness of his true abilities.
  As a countermeasure, the existence of these “unconscious anti-
  psis” allows the GM to drop one into any situation as needed
  (but see Overusing Countermeasures, p. 32, for advice on this).
  The assumptions above can be altered for any given game
  – or any given world, if multiple worlds exist (Psi Across
  Worlds, p. 24). Anti-psis might be very rare (one for every 100
  psis) but incredibly powerful; even a group of psis might
  panic at the thought of facing one. Alternatively, there may be
  many anti-psis (perhaps even more anti-psis than psis), but
  with weaker power levels overall. For example, if there are
  two million psis in the world, there might be 10 million anti-
  psis – but of these, only 10% are about as powerful as the PCs;
  the rest are limited to a few levels of Psionic Shield or one
  level of Screaming, plus a perk or two.
  This “spreading out” of anti-psi capability can be taken to
  the extreme, in a world where hardly any anti-psis are as
  powerful as the PCs (maybe one for every 10,000 psis), but
  where around 10-35% of the population possesses some sort
  of Anti-Psi perk (Psionic Powers, p. 24). This turns anti-psi
  from a serious threat into a frequent source of annoyance (e.g.,
  Gaze Into the Abyss, Simple Defense) and of extra resistance
  to
  overcome
  (e.g.,
  Personal
  Awareness,
  Tolerance).
  The Skeptic perk deserves special mention; assuming that
  it is spread evenly throughout the population, the penalties
  for being watched by a certain number of “skeptics” can
  be generalized to penalties for being watched by a certain
  number of people, depending on how common the perk is.
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  31
  DETERRENTS AND FIXES
  
  This turns all psi into something that must be done in private
  – or, at least, out of the sight of crowds – to avoid incurring a
  significant penalty!
  Example: In a certain setting, 20% of the population has one
  of the Anti-Psi perks, with Skeptic showing up about 1/10 of
  the time. This means that, statistically speaking, one person in
  50 is a “skeptic.” Therefore, in this world, a psi is at -1 to all psi
  skills when being watched by 250 normal people, at -2 when
  watched by 500 people, at -3 when watched by 1,000 people,
  and so on!
  Psychotronics
  All psychotronics are superscience (p. B513) by definition,
  as the field of study only comes into existence when people
  start to understand how psionic powers work. The “TL^” des-
  ignation should never deter the GM from adding psi-tech to the
  game world, however – if psi is real, psychotronics becomes a
  realistic science! Even low-tech worlds may have an analogue
  to psi-tech; see Psychobotanics (p. 5) for one take on this.
  Psychotronics is only openly available for purchase if psi is
  known to exist. However, even a secret-psi world can still have
  psi-tech. Those who are aware of psi and who have the oppor-
  tunity to study it a little are quick to protect themselves – thus,
  the foes faced by a party of psis often has psychotronics even if
  the world does not.
  In addition to this, existing technology may disrupt psi!
  What if every microwave gave off psi static while in use? Or a
  popular brand of MP3 player acted as a mental shield when
  active? It’s possible to fill the world with psionic countermea-
  sures without adding a single piece of technology, by adding a
  feature that blocks or disrupts psi to common items. This may
  be a complete coincidence, or it may reflect the actions of a
  cabal of engineers trying desperately to protect the world from
  a psionic takeover . . .
  Unlike the other countermeasures discussed in this section,
  psychotronics are a double-edged sword, with tech capable of
  enhancing psi as well as working against it (e.g., the psi ampli-
  fiers from GURPS Ultra-Tech, p. 94). This can add flavor to the
  game, especially if psis have (or can get) access to experimental
  new devices and drugs that boost their abilities at the cost of a
  few “minor” side effects. Note that the presence of beneficial
  psychotronics does not affect the Psionic power modifier; the
  boosts given are not free – the adventurer must buy, barter, or
  deal for each piece of gear, which comes with additional encum-
  brance and/or side effects. In GURPS, expensive gear is sup-
  posed to give adventurers a bonus.
  A full treatment of psionic technology, with lists of equip-
  ment and detailed statistics, is outside the focus of this supple-
  ment. The advice that follows thus focuses primarily on
  psychotronics as countermeasures.
  Psi Gear
  Psychotronic engineering allows special electronic devices
  to replicate or counter the effects of psi. The effects are limited
  to the GM’s imagination, but they generally fall into two cate-
  gories: offense and defense.
  Offensive psi-tech includes weaponized uses for psionic
  energy, like the mind disruptors and psi-bombs from Ultra-
  Tech (pp. 132 and 158), and weapons specifically designed to
  be used against psis, like the psionic neutralizer (Ultra-Tech,
  p. 132). Unless the game is focused on war and fighting
  (Soldiering, p. 24), these weapons only show up in the hands of
  specific, elite enemies, and only when they know they’ll be fac-
  ing psis in a hostile situation.
  Defensive gear is far more common. Anyone familiar with
  psi will want to take reasonable measures to protect his mind,
  body, and property from those who play fast and loose with the
  laws of physics. Electronic mind shields (Ultra-Tech, p. 188)
  are a key invention; depending on the game world, they may be
  an acceptable fashion accessory or the “tinfoil hat” that identi-
  fies the paranoid. Other common psi-tech may include brief-
  case-sized static generators that offer a certain radius of
  Screaming, and expensive organic paint that, when used to
  cover a room, gives a flat penalty to any psi trying to “pene-
  trate” the walls in any way (with senses, teleportation, etc.). In
  game terms, if the GM notices that a certain psionic ability is
  easy to exploit in an unfair way, it’s likely that someone in the
  game world has figured out the same thing, and is working on
  a way to counter it.
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  32
  Of all the ways to keep psi in line, countermeasures are
  arguably the simplest. Want to keep espers out of a room?
  Wrap it in psychotronic “tin foil” that blocks remote view-
  ing! Want to make bad guys more dangerous in a fight
  against psis? Give them all Anti-Psi power! The players
  can’t complain that much, since this kind of stuff is the
  whole reason they got that -10% point break.
  However, this ease of use is precisely what can lead to
  overusing them. If every challenging encounter involves
  mooks with neutralization guns and every important NPC
  has a mind-shielding headband, it will start to strain the
  players’ suspension of disbelief. Psionic countermeasures
  should always exist, but the moment they become common-
  place, they also become boring. To balance this, the GM may
  establish a few weak-but-ubiquitous countermeasures to
  keep the psis challenged on a day-to-day basis, while saving
  “the good stuff” for special moments, enemies, etc.
  Example: A game world has mature psychotronic tech-
  nology, most of which is very expensive. However, inven-
  tors have discovered that a certain suspension of easily
  crafted molecules seriously impairs a psi’s ability to con-
  centrate (-5 on all psionic rolls) if inhaled. As this can be
  cheaply made, it was quickly introduced into many per-
  fumes as an added value: “Keep your life fun and your
  thoughts safe!” While not everyone wears these perfumes,
  the GM can use them as a common, expected foil when he
  needs to make an adventure a bit more challenging. This
  way, he can keep the high-end tech in reserve; when he does
  break it out, the players will take notice!
  Overusing Countermeasures
  
  Psi Drugs
  Biological psychotronics are (arguably) more
  realistic than electronic gear – anything that
  affects the brain is going to affect abilities that
  derive from the mind, after all. In fact, instead of
  inventing a custom drug with a certain effect on
  psi, the GM may decide that an existing psychi-
  atric drug can serve the same purpose. Treatments
  for ADHD may enhance skill at the cost of power
  (or vice-versa), antipsychotics may make psi tech-
  niques
  impossible
  to
  use,
  serotonin/MAO
  inhibitors may add a 1 FP cost to every use of psi,
  and so on.
  Psychotronic drugs range from psi blockers to
  psi enhancers, with a lot of strange effects in
  between. The GM can justify almost any effect on
  a psi – including (mundane) physical effects lim-
  ited to psis. For example, if a chemical exists that
  acts as knockout gas only for psis, foes can be cav-
  alier about throwing gas grenades, flooding the
  ventilation system of a mall, and so on.
  Psi drugs can also be used defensively by those
  concerned (justly or not) about telepaths and psy-
  chic vampires influencing their mind. A dose of
  “psi blocker” (which may even be the same drug
  that, when injected into a psi, blocks all of his abil-
  ities) will provide a subject with some level of
  Resistant to Mental Psionics for the duration. In a
  cinematic game, it may even protect against physical effects,
  like TK Grab and Exoteleport!
  CONTROLLING INFORMATION
  Many psionic abilities have ways to get information out of
  people. Telepathy is the most notable, but other powers can be
  used in indirect ways: astral projectors and clairvoyants can
  eavesdrop, psychokinetics can threaten, teleporters can steal
  correspondence, and so on. While the GM can use the occa-
  sional deterrent or countermeasure to simply stop this action
  from succeeding, players will get frustrated and upset if it hap-
  pens frequently. After all, why play a telepath if every impor-
  tant NPC has a nearly unreadable mind?
  To avoid this, the GM needs to control the information that
  every NPC has, whether he’s designing them for an adventure
  in advance or just making them up on the spot. When no NPC
  has the sort of knowledge that can short-circuit the entire plot,
  the GM can comfortably encourage psis to use their gifts for
  information gathering. The result will be players happily using
  their capabilities to good effect while still enjoying the unfold-
  ing plot of the story.
  Rationing and Distributing
  If an investigation is supposed to take up a significant
  chunk of an adventure, then no NPC who is accessible to the
  PCs should possess enough information to end the plot with
  one interrogation. The GM has to assume that the party will
  pry information from every single NPC that they encounter.
  The “big picture” must be broken into pieces, with no single
  person holding all of them.
  The simplest approach is to write down all of the major
  facts and pieces of information that the heroes can eventually
  discover. Ask, “Which combination of facts is the minimum
  needed to end the investigation?” Move these over to a Key
  Facts list, then flesh out the remaining Other Facts with other
  useful (but minor) bits of information.
  Every NPC who “knows something” should have one or
  more of these key facts, but not all; a good guideline is about
  one-third to one-half of the key facts, plus one or two other
  facts. This doesn’t mean that one person should have half of
  the picture while a second one has the other half, though! The
  NPCs’ knowledge can (and should) overlap significantly –
  when interrogating a new person, the group should learn a lot
  of the same stuff they already knew (which reinforces that it’s
  probably true) plus one or two new facts (key or not).
  Example: The GM has crafted a modern plot involving a
  string of celebrity assassinations. He narrows the Key Facts
  down to (A) “Contracts were placed via code on a do-it-your-
  self website,” (B) “The details were spread to the underworld
  by John Casale, a local fixer,” (C) “The local bottling plant was
  the dead drop for instructions,” (D) “The Martoni syndicate
  was paid to keep a few of the hits clear of authorities,” and
  (E) “Payment was made via FedEx, as loose cash.” Ironically,
  the names of the six hit men are part of the Other Facts, as
  knowing who did it is only a step toward figuring out who
  arranged it.
  The group of psis canvasses all six crime scenes; clues there
  point them toward a bar. The bartender knows (B), a hit man’s
  name, and some other facts. The hit man knows (C) and (D). A
  local Martoni boss knows (B), (D), and another hit man’s
  name. On the way, they stop and read a local informer’s mind;
  the GM wasn’t expecting this, and decides that he knows (C)
  and (D), but also a new (minor) fact. So far, the group has got-
  ten new information out of everyone, but is only halfway to
  getting all of what they need.
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  33
  Don’t Drink the Water
  Contaminating a country’s water supply with drugs is a classic fic-
  tional plot. In a dystopia (or false utopia), it’s usually done by the gov-
  ernment; otherwise, it is the work of a powerful and well-networked
  cabal. (Size and power are necessary if an entire nation is to be
  affected – a small group would have to work full-time to affect even
  a large city.) In a psionic campaign, these are likely to be psy-
  chotronic drugs (above) to suppress the psionic abilities of anyone
  who drinks or bathes in the water. This way, latent psis never mani-
  fest and actual psis have difficulty using their abilities (in the form of
  penalties to skill and/or power).
  One approach this is to assume that the standard psionics rules
  take into account that the psi has been drinking and bathing in con-
  taminated water. By avoiding this for at least a month, his psi
  becomes more potent (+2 to extra effort rolls; +1 to every other suc-
  cess roll). This is harder than it sounds, however, especially when it
  comes to bathing! Nearly every drink except alcohol, milk, and fresh
  juice is made with concentrates that are reconstituted with local
  water. If standard filters can’t detect or remove the psi drugs, even
  bottled water is unsafe. Imported water can get around this (at great
  expense), but only if other countries don’t dose their citizens as well!
  The psi may end up trading that +1 to skill for an Odious Personal
  Habit (Doesn’t bathe unless it’s raining) [-10].
  
  At times, this requires some thought as to why a certain NPC
  doesn’t know a certain fact. For example, why would the hit man
  not know about the code on the website? Perhaps he was, him-
  self, hired by a middleman who is taking a cut off the top. This
  can add depth and options, as the psis may decide to question
  this middleman, instead. Any NPC who must necessarily know
  the whole picture needs other forms of protection – being kept
  far from sight (p. 28), given a mind shield (p. 32), etc.
  Misunderstanding and Misdirection
  Sometimes, people are simply wrong. It is completely real-
  istic for an NPC to possess (and wholeheartedly believe) false
  information. If psis get in the habit of believing everything they
  Telereceive, this sloppiness may lead them down the wrong
  alley. A smart investigator expects a story to check out, with
  multiple people and evidence corroborating it. Some wrong
  data will obviously contradict existing facts, leading to a clear
  choice between the two. When the false information is compat-
  ible with the truth, that’s known as a red herring, which often
  requires further investigation before it can be dismissed.
  Another classic red herring is misdirection. Adventurers
  often become so focused on unraveling the details of their story
  that they assume every fact is germane to it. For example, if the
  group is trying to find out who’s been shaking down the water-
  front, and a ship captain’s thoughts revolve around a frantic
  “Can’t talk to them about Gaston . . . Gaston will kill me . . .
  threatened to eat my lips,” they’re likely to assume that Gaston
  is behind the extortion, even if the ship captain is only scared
  because he had been sleeping with Gaston’s sister. Obvious red
  herrings like this shouldn’t be used too often, lest the party
  become paranoid and overly analytical, but they can be fun as
  an occasional diversion. See GURPS Mysteries for more on
  NPC knowledge and red herrings.
  If people are aware of psi, they may intentionally use misdi-
  rection to confuse psis. A CEO with an expensive psionic shield
  may hold staged conversations within the earshot of his body-
  guards, expecting telepaths to attack their unprotected minds
  instead of his. Alternatively, he could order a bodyguard to
  stand around, thinking about how the bomb he planted is
  about to go off, just to see who in the crowd reacts.
  Proving It
  If the adventure is constructed so that the party must not
  only figure out what happened, but also obtain proof (in the
  form of hard evidence), their information-gathering abilities
  can be put to good use without steamrollering over the plot.
  This is especially common if the party is part of the justice sys-
  tem (e.g., police detectives or judiciary investigators) or if they
  are unable to reveal their abilities because psi is unknown or
  socially unacceptable. If the above advice on controlling infor-
  mation is followed, this can provide a second “layer” of the
  adventure – as the group first figures out what’s going on, and
  then tries to find a way to prove it. If not – that is, the psis are
  able to figure things out quickly, but the evidence gathering is
  the tricky part – it transforms a mystery adventure into more
  of a tense thriller . . . which may be a desired outcome in an
  action-oriented game! The trick is to come up with evidence
  that is straightforward but isn’t immediately recoverable.
  Example: Sue is under suspicion of killing her business
  rival, Cynthia, for financial gain. After a visit with Sue, the
  telepath knows that Sue broke into Cynthia’s home, accessed
  her computer (to read memos, patents, and profit/loss state-
  ments), and shot Cynthia when she came home unexpectedly
  early. Sue panicked and sold her (unregistered) gun to the first
  street tough she saw, and she has used the data she learned to
  stay two steps ahead of the other business. The party knows
  she’s guilty, but they will have to track down the weapon (based
  solely on the mental image Sue had of the thug) and/or find a
  way to show that Sue’s business actions since the incident
  could have only been taken with illicit knowledge of what Cyn-
  thia’s company was planning.
  PERSONAL RESTRAINT
  In a way, the only thing that can truly stop a psi from cross-
  ing certain lines is the psi himself; certain disadvantages can
  prevent psionic adventure short circuits (pp. 28-30) better than
  any outside influence. Someone with Honesty must make a
  self-control roll before attempting to invade another person’s
  privacy (whether reading minds, eavesdropping on conversa-
  tions, or ’porting into homes) or physically affecting other peo-
  ple in a negative way. Many psis have a power-related Vow,
  such as “never use my psi to harm another,” or “never read a
  mind without the subject’s knowledge.” Even a Vow unrelated
  to psionic use can act to restrain it – e.g., Vow (Always fight
  fair) would forbid relying on Pyrokinesis to cook off a foe’s
  bullets in a gunfight. In addition, the following Code of Honor
  may appear in any psionic game:
  Code of Honor (Psychic’s): Never use your psi solely for per-
  sonal gain. Never harm another person with your psi except in
  self-defense. Never psionically invade another person’s privacy
  (including eavesdropping) without his knowledge. Obviously,
  this cannot be taken by a psi whose abilities can only affect
  him! -10 points.
  If the campaign calls for the PCs to be the good guys, it’s
  reasonable to expect their disadvantages to reflect this. The
  GM can accomplish this with either a fixed, mandatory pack-
  age (e.g., “Everyone must take Honesty (15) and Code of Honor
  (Psychic’s)”) or a character creation rule (e.g., “Every PC must
  take at least -15 points from the following list”).
  FEAR OF DETECTION
  Psis benefit greatly from keeping their capabilities secret.
  Even if psi is common knowledge, someone who can hide his
  abilities has a “secret weapon”; when fingers are pointed at
  the psi who did something, they’ll be pointed away from him.
  Moreover, if the public isn’t aware of psionics, he can get
  away with feats that others consider flatly impossible!
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  34
  Smart psis stay subtle.
  – Tongue-Twisters for
  the Psychic Child
  
  However, once his secret is revealed, he may start to be
  blamed not only for his own deeds, but also for the actions of
  other psis who have similar abilities! When everyone knows
  that a person is a pyro, it can be very hard to convince them
  that it must have been some other pyro who spontaneously
  combusted one of his coworkers.
  Some psis are open about their powers and abilities; even
  then, most adventurers have to do things that are rude, sneaky,
  and possibly illegal. While a person might not mind if the world
  knows about his telepathy, he still won’t want to get caught pok-
  ing around in someone’s mind without permission. Likewise,
  someone openly psionic may wish to keep a
  few abilities hidden from public knowledge,
  just to have something “in reserve.”
  It’s possible for a psi to avoid hiding any-
  thing about his abilities and to always use
  them in a manner that is both courteous
  and legal – rare, but possible; see Personal
  Restraint (p. 34). If the GM needs to
  counter his abilities (for plot purposes),
  he’ll need to refer to the other deterrents in
  this section; such a noble psi has nothing to
  fear from detection.
  Other Psis
  Psis with the right abilities are the undis-
  puted masters of detecting nearby supernat-
  ural activity. Espers (and anti-psis, in some
  settings) with Psi Sense automatically get a
  roll to detect any nearby use of psi; telepaths
  and teleporters (if using Telepathy Sense or
  Portersense, respectively) get the same roll
  to detect the use of their particular powers.
  When building abilities from scratch, note
  that adding the Reflexive enhancement to
  Detect (Psionic Activity) turns it into a pas-
  sive sense, allowing a similar roll.
  Even if no psi is within range when an
  ability is used, espers who come by later may
  be able to pick up traces of what happened,
  using Signature Sniffer, Retrocognition,
  Retrocognitive Flashbacks, or the Psychometry advantage.
  If psi techniques are being used in the game, note that a
  psionics user can reduce or avoid this chance of detection
  with Hide Signature (Psionic Powers, p. 41); this technique
  can be used with any psionic ability. The skill penalty and FP
  cost required should keep this in line, however, and the GM
  may raise either (by fiat) if this technique seems to be unbal-
  ancing the game.
  Psi-Tech
  Psychotronics (pp. 32-33) can
  stand in for ESP when it comes to
  detecting psi. The paranormal equiv-
  alent of a radiation detector may go
  off when it picks up psionic activity
  nearby. Electronic mind shields
  (Ultra-Tech, p. 188) are not perfect,
  but if they successfully resist an
  incoming attack, a built-in alarm
  alerts the user. If psi is known, the
  boardrooms of top companies have both psi static generators
  and psionic wave detectors, to protect and alert.
  For game purposes, psi-tech allows the GM to make fear of
  detection an issue even with no other psis around. For simplic-
  ity, each device can just be given an appropriate psionic ability
  and skill level. The suggestion about mundane devices is appli-
  cable here, as well – even if intentional psychotronics are not
  common, normal electronics may fill the gap. For example, the
  use of psi may set up a resonance in fluorescent light fixtures,
  allowing a trained observer to make a Perception roll to pick
  out the distinctive “hum.”
  Mundane Detection
  In most games, “normals” outnumber the psis by quite a
  bit. Thus, even if the average person is less likely to detect psi,
  they make up much more of a threat. Detailed rules for
  detecting the use of psi can be found in Psionic Powers
  (pp. 11-12). For those without that book, the following sim-
  plified rules may prove useful.
  A subject may make a Per roll to realize that he is being
  affected by something. Extreme physical effects (e.g., HP
  damage) are noticed automatically; other effects require a
  roll with a modifier set by the GM. Noninvasive psi (e.g.,
  ESP) and failed psi (that is, the user failed at his skill or
  attribute roll) cannot be detected.
  Even if the detection roll succeeds, someone unfamiliar
  with psi may chalk it up to some other strange cause. Roll
  against his IQ-4 or an appropriate skill. On a critical failure
  or failure, he blames divine intervention, sickness, etc. On a
  success, he realizes that an outside source is responsible (or,
  if he is familiar with psi, recognizes its effects). On a criti-
  cal success, he gets another immediate resistance roll!
  UNIQUE CHALLENGES
  35
  Let the Psychic Win
  This chapter goes into detail on various ways to counter psi, to prevent
  psi from ruining plots, to make psi riskier to use, and so on. This is some-
  times necessary to keep the plot of an adventure moving. However, the fol-
  lowing advice may be the most important in this book:
  Psis should be able to use their powers successfully, to obtain results that
  normal actions could not.
  Mind readers should be able to steal passwords and dark secrets from the
  minds of those around them. Teleporters should be able to pop into a locked
  vault to grab a well-guarded item. Espers should be able to second-guess
  their opponents and avoid oncoming danger. Cyberpsis should be able to
  turn advanced, powerful computer systems into pets.
  Players buy psionic abilities for this reason – to do cool, impossible
  things that no mundane person can (or, at least, to do things better than a
  non-psi could). If the GM allows the players to purchase these abilities, it
  is simply unfair to make them impossible to use, and frustrating to make
  them less effective than “plain, honest legwork.” Deterrents and counter-
  measures should exist to challenge the psis, not to make their abilities use-
  less or inconsequential.
  Some campaigns may intentionally play against this rule, treating psi as
  a minor advantage or even an outright curse. This is fine, as long as the GM
  is very clear about this to the players before the game starts. Otherwise, most
  players expect psi to be useful, reliable, and (most of all) fun.
  
  The following books, films, and television shows are excel-
  lent sources for psionic campaign ideas and adventure seeds.
  While much of this fiction is good in its own right, note that
  some of these were chosen for gaming compatibility over liter-
  ary excellence.
  BOOKS
  Bester, Alfred. The Demolished Man (Sidgwick & Jackson,
  1953). Award-winning novel that explores how telepathy
  “sounds,” among other things. Also see his The Stars My
  Destination (1956) for a setting with ubiquitous teleportation.
  Blish, James. Jack of Eagles (Avon, 1982). An up-and-com-
  ing esper becomes involved in the conflict between two
  underground psionic factions. Ties psi to both science and
  mathematics.
  King, Stephen. The Dead Zone and Firestarter (Viking, 1979
  and 1980). The former depicts precognition as powerful and
  horrifying, while the latter features a psionic family trying to
  escape government agents; both film adaptations are worth
  watching.
  Lumley, Brian. Necroscope (Tor, 1986) and sequels. Weakly
  written, but the setting (ESPionage agents fight Cold War
  enemies and the occasional monster) makes for a wonderful
  campaign.
  May, Julian. The Many Coloured Land (Collins, 1985),
  Intervention (Collins, 1987), and sequels. Two interweaving
  series featuring psionic abilities grouped by power, psychic
  bloodlines, psychotronic amplifiers, and gestalts.
  McCaffrey, Anne. To Ride Pegasus (Del Rey, 1973), The
  Rowan (Ace, 1990), and sequels. Two series set in a world in
  which psi is accepted, understood, and keeps society going.
  Niven, Larry. Flatlander (Del Rey, 1995). A collection of
  short stories about Gil “The Arm” Hamilton, a sci-fi/noir detec-
  tive with modest (but very useful) ESP and telekinetic abilities.
  Smith, E. E. “Doc.” Triplanetary (Fantasy Press, 1948) and
  sequels. The Lensman series combines space opera with
  incredibly high-powered psis, and was adapted to GURPS
  Third Edition as GURPS Lensman.
  COMIC BOOKS
  Claremont, Chris; Byrne, John; and others. Uncanny X-Men
  (Marvel, 1963-present). The Dark Phoenix Saga (1980) makes a
  good starting point, due to its focus on the psionic Jean Grey
  and the introduction of the Hellfire Club.
  Ellis, Warren and Duffield, Paul. FreakAngels (Avatar Press,
  2008-present). Inspired by John Wyndham’s novel The
  Midwich Cuckoos (Penguin, 2000). A dozen powerful psis acci-
  dentally ended the world; now they work to rebuild it. Free to
  read at www.freakangels.com.
  MOVIES
  Akira (Katsuhiro Otomo, 1988). A must-see anime that
  demonstrates out-of-control psi, secret government labs, and
  several of the themes on pp. 6-8.
  Fury, The (Brian De Palma, 1978). Thriller about cultivat-
  ing psis as weapons, with a healthy dose of Your Head
  Asplode (p. 7).
  Men Who Stare at Goats, The (Grant Heslov, 2009). A dark
  comedy poking fun at Project Stargate (p. 5) and the “warrior-
  monks” who emerged from it. Based on the Jon Ronson non-
  fiction book of the same name (Simon & Schuster, 2005).
  Push (Paul McGuigan, 2009). Psychics on the run fight
  against an evil psionic conspiracy. Shamelessly low-brow, but
  arguably the purest “psionic action” film yet.
  Serenity (Joss Whedon, 2005). A black-ops agent hunts a psy-
  chic and the secret she accidentally learned. Good depiction of a
  psi-enhanced warrior and of psi as a sanity-blasting curse.
  Scanners (David Cronenberg, 1981). Iconic depiction of psi
  as horror (see p. 7); it also features the intentional creation of
  psychics, psychotronic drugs, and psi-versus-psi battles.
  Star Wars (George Lucas, 1977) and sequels. Heavy use of
  psi (“the Force”) in a space-opera context, including training
  sequences and telekinetic swordsmanship.
  X-Men and X2 (Bryan Singer, 2000 and 2003). Excellent por-
  trayal of society’s fear of the unknown and of how powerful a
  telepath can be.
  TELEVISION
  Charmed (Constance M. Burge, 1998-2006). Three sisters use
  their psychic powers to fight demons and warlocks in this inten-
  tionally cheesy series that happily conflates psi and magic.
  Roswell (Jason Katims, 1999-2002). Four human-like aliens
  with extremely versatile psionics hide from the authorities
  while making friends with humans.
  Tomorrow People, The (Roger Price, 1973-1979 and
  1992-1995). This look at the next stage of evolution helped pop-
  ularize the term Homo superior for psis; the two series take dif-
  ferent approaches to the same theme.
  INSPIRATIONAL FICTION
  36
  APPENDIX
  INSPIRATIONAL
  FICTION
  
  Abilities, anti-psi, 31-32; defining, 11-12; for
  detecting other psis, 35; potential problems
  with, 28-31, 34, 35; starting number of,
  13-14; starting selection, 11-12; see also
  Powers.
  Acceptance (public reaction), 18.
  Achilles’ heel, 27.
  Acknowledged psi, 18.
  Adolescence (campaign frame), 19-20.
  Adrenaline shock as psi source, 9.
  Advantages, see Abilities.
  Aliens and psi, 7-10; intervention, 9; theme,
  7-8.
  Allowing psi to be useful, 35.
  Altered consciousness as psi source, 10.
  Alternate worlds and psi, 24.
  Ancient beliefs about psi, 4.
  Anti-psi, 7, 31-32; debunkers and, 16; in
  settings, 17, 24; latent, 7; other powers
  and, 21; see also Countermeasures.
  Apocalypse, foreseeing, 20.
  Astral plane, 19.
  Autoteleport ability, potential problems with,
  30.
  Average people with powers, 20.
  Beliefs about psionics, 4-8.
  Blatant takeovers, 29.
  Blessed advantage, potential problems with,
  28.
  Books, inspirational, 36.
  Brain, damage, 9; grafts as psi source, 9; psi
  and, 8-9.
  Campaigns, frames, 19-24; overcoming
  difficulties in, 28-35; psionics in settings,
  15-19, 25-27; powers and ability selection,
  11-12; starting conditions, 13-14; themes,
  6-8.
  Certainty about future, 29.
  Changing society, 22.
  Character trait suggestions, 6-8, 24-27, 34;
  anti-psi, 31.
  Charisma advantage, 5.
  Charlatans, 16, 17.
  Chemicals to gain psi, 10; see also Drugs.
  Cinematic martial-arts skills as psi, 12.
  Clarity about the future, 29.
  Closed list of abilities (character creation
  method), 11.
  Code of Honor (Psychic’s) disadvantage,
  34.
  Comic books, inspirational, 36.
  Common (frequency of psi), 16.
  Complete takeovers, potential problems
  with, 30.
  Constant projectors, 27.
  Contacting spirits, 6.
  Contaminating water, 33.
  Controlling information in campaigns, 28-
  29, 33-34.
  Cosmic enhancement, No die roll required,
  26; No Rule of 16, 26.
  Cosmic Power advantage, 26.
  Countermeasures to psi, 5, 31-33; overusing,
  32, 35; see also Anti-Psi.
  Crime (campaign frame), 22.
  Cure ability, potential problems with, 30.
  Debunkers, 16.
  Detectives with psi, 23.
  Deference (public reaction), 18-19.
  Defining parameters of psi, 5-6.
  Degree of skill, 14.
  Denied psi, 17.
  Detecting psi, 34-35.
  Detect Lies skill, 28.
  Deterrents to psi, 31-33; see also
  Countermeasures to Psi, Problem Abilities
  and Advantages.
  Disadvantages, new, 18, 27, 34; psionics and,
  27.
  Discovery (campaign frame), 19-20.
  Distributing information, 33-34.
  Divisions in organizations, special, 23.
  Drain Emotion ability, potential problems
  with, 28, 29.
  Drugs, psi, 33; examples, 9, 10, 16, 19.
  Easily Resisted limitation, 25.
  Easy to Read disadvantage, 27.
  EEG, 7.
  Emotion Control ability, potential problems
  with, 29.
  Emotion Sense ability, potential problems
  with, 28.
  Empathy advantage, potential problems
  with, 28.
  Empowering the powerless (campaign
  frame), 6-7.
  Emulating psi extremes, 25-27.
  Enemy disadvantage, 17, 18, 21-22.
  Enhancements, new, 26, 27.
  Esoteric, options to gain psi, 10; skills as psi,
  12.
  ESP abilities, potential problems with, 28,
  29.
  ESPionage (campaign frame), 24.
  Exoteleport ability, potential problems with,
  30.
  Experience requirement for psi, 9-10.
  Expert Skill (Psionics), 5, 7, 17.
  External sources of powers, 6.
  Fame (campaign frame), 23.
  Fear (public reaction), 18.
  Fear of detection, 30, 34-35.
  Focused mind as psi source, 9-10.
  Foreseeing an apocalypse, 20.
  Frames, campaign, 19-24.
  Frequency, in modern settings, 15-16; in
  nonmodern settings, 15.
  Function of brain, 8-9.
  Future, seeing into, 29.
  Fuzzy abilities (character creation method),
  11.
  Gainsayers, 16.
  Gear, psi, 32, 35; see also Psychobotanics,
  Psychotronics.
  Genetics as psi source, 8-9.
  Glossary, 4.
  Godlike psi, 26.
  Going through changes (theme), 6.
  GURPS, 3, 4, 5, 9, 11, 13, 14, 21, 23, 25, 26,
  32; Basic Set, 3, 11; Bio-Tech, 9; Infinite
  Worlds, 19, 24; Lensman, 36; Martial
  Arts, 10, 24; Mysteries, 23, 34; Powers,
  3, 6, 9, 11, 12, 25, 26, 28; Power-Ups 1:
  Imbuements, 12; Psionic Powers, 3, 8,
  11, 12, 19, 23, 25, 31, 35; Psionics, 3;
  Space, 8, 10; Supers, 3, 16, 21;
  Thaumatology, 5; Traveller: Psionic
  Institutes, 10; Ultra-Tech, 3, 32, 35;
  Y2K, 20.
  GURPS Psionic Powers, using, 3, 11.
  Healing advantage, potential problems with,
  30.
  Hiding (campaign frame), 21-22.
  History and psi, 4-5.
  Homo superior (theme), 7.
  Imbuement Skills as psi, 12.
  Improvement (campaign frame), 20-21.
  Infallible psi, 26.
  Infinity Unlimited and psi, 24.
  Information, controlling in campaigns, 28-
  29, 33-34.
  Inhuman psi ability, 10; see also Aliens and
  Psi.
  Inspirational fiction, 36.
  Institutes, psionic, 10, 17.
  Internal origins of psi powers, 6.
  Intervention to gain psi, 9.
  Intuition advantage, potential problems
  with, 28.
  Invasions of privacy, 28.
  Investigation (campaign frame), 23.
  Irresistible psi, 26.
  Knowing too much, 28-29, 33-34.
  Known limits of psi, 31.
  Latency, 4, 14; determining, 7; powers, 14;
  suppressing, 33; triggering abilities, 9, 10;
  universal, 8, 17.
  Let the psychic win, 35.
  Levitation ability, potential problems with,
  30.
  Lightning ability, potential problems with, 30.
  Limitations, new, 25; psi abilities and, 27.
  Magnetism, personal, 4-5.
  Martial-arts skills as psi, 12.
  Medical, equipment to determine psi, 7;
  intervention to gain psi, 9.
  Mental screens, 27.
  Mental Stab ability, potential problems with,
  30.
  Mental trait, psi as, 6, 9.
  Mesmerism, 4-5.
  Mind Clouding ability, potential problems
  with, 30.
  Mind control of NPCs, 29-30.
  Mind Probe advantage, potential problems
  with, 28.
  INDEX
  37
  INDEX
  
  Mind Reading advantage, 27; potential
  problems with, 28.
  Mind Swap ability, potential problems with,
  30.
  Misdirection, 34.
  Misunderstanding, 34.
  Modern day views of psi, 5.
  Movies, inspirational, 36.
  Mundane detection, 35.
  Mysticism, 4, 6.
  Observer effect, 7.
  Old-time psi, 5.
  One ability for starting psis, 13-14.
  One power for starting psis, 14.
  Open selection of abilities, 11.
  Open selection of powers, 12.
  Oracle advantage, potential problems with,
  28.
  Other powers and psi, 17, 21.
  Overcoming difficulties of psionics, 28-35.
  Overusing countermeasures, 32, 35.
  Parapsychology, 4, 5, 18.
  Patron advantage, 17, 23.
  Patronage, 23.
  PC trait suggestions, 6-8.
  Personal journeys (campaign frame), 21.
  Personal magnetism, 5.
  Personal restraint as psi-use deterrent, 34.
  Photokinetic stealth, potential problems
  with, 30.
  Photorefraction ability, potential problems
  with, 30.
  Physical, effects of power, 6; reasons for psi,
  8-9.
  Player’s choice for explanation of psi, 8.
  Plot-stopping abilities, 28-31, 34.
  Politics (campaign frame), 22.
  Possession advantage, potential problems
  with, 30.
  Potential for psi, 8-10.
  Power (campaign frame), 22-23.
  Power level, starting, 13.
  Power modifier options, 5, 12, 26.
  Powers, defining, 11-12; psionic vs. other, 21;
  starting number of, 13, 14; starting
  selection, 11-12; see also Abilities.
  Precognition advantage, potential problems
  with, 28, 29.
  Privacy and psi, 28.
  Problem abilities and advantages, 28-31, 34,
  35.
  Prognostication ability, potential problems
  with, 28, 29.
  Progressive psi, 26.
  Project Stargate, 5.
  Providing hard evidence, 34.
  Proving results of investigations, 34.
  Psecret agents, 24.
  Pseudo-science, 6.
  Psi, term defined, 4.
  Psionic, term defined, 4.
  Psionic institutes, 10, 17.
  Psionic potential, 8-10.
  Psionic powers list, 3.
  Psionics, term defined, 4.
  Psi-tech, 4, 32, 35; see also Psychobotanics,
  Psychotronics.
  Pspecial forces, 24.
  Psychic, term defined, 4.
  Psychic beliefs, 4-8.
  Psychic enhancement, 27.
  Psychic Hunches ability, potential problems
  with, 28.
  Psychic Only enhancement, 27.
  Psychical research, 5, 6, 24.
  Psychical testing, 7.
  Psychics next door (campaign frame), 20.
  Psychobotanics, 5, 24, 32.
  Psychometry advantage, potential problems
  with, 28.
  Psychotronics, 4-7, 18, 24, 30; affect on psi, 5,
  32-33, 35; term defined, 4; see also Drugs.
  Puberty metaphor, 6.
  Public awareness of psi, 16-19.
  Public reaction to psi, 18-19.
  Publication history, 3.
  Pyramid, 12.
  Pyrokinesis ability, potential problems with,
  30.
  Questers, 16.
  Range limits of psi, 31.
  Range of abilities in campaigns, 13-14.
  Rare (frequency of psi), 15.
  Rationing information, 33-34.
  Reliable limitation, 12.
  Representing psi, 11-12.
  Responsibility (campaign frame), 23-24.
  Retrocognition ability, potential problems
  with, 28.
  Retrocognitive Flashbacks ability, potential
  problems with, 28.
  Science and psi, 4-6.
  Second-sight abilities interfering with
  campaigns, 28-29.
  Secret (Psi) disadvantage, 17, 18.
  Seeing into the future, 29.
  Selecting powers and abilities, 11-12.
  Settings, psionics in, 15-19, 25-27.
  Short circuiting psi, 28-35.
  Signature Sniffer ability, potential problems
  with, 30.
  Silent killers, abilities that are, 30.
  Single ability for starting psis, 13-14.
  Single power for starting psis, 14.
  Skeptic perk, 17, 24, 31-32.
  Skeptics, 16.
  Skills, esoteric, 12; Imbuement, 12; level of
  psionic, 14; psionic, 12, 14.
  Social Regard advantage, 18, 19.
  Social Stigma, disadvantage, 18.
  Soldiering (campaign frame), 24.
  Special souls as psi source, 10.
  Spirits and psi, 6.
  Spotlight (campaign frame), 20.
  Stargate, Project, 5.
  Starting, campaign conditions, 13-14; cap on
  skills, 14; power level, 13; psi characters,
  11-14.
  Steal Dreams ability, potential problems
  with, 28, 30.
  Stealth-based abilities, potential problems
  with, 30.
  Subtle takeovers, 29.
  Suggestion ability, potential problems with,
  29.
  Supersensitive disadvantage, 27.
  Surgery to gain psi, 9.
  Survival (campaign frame), 21-22.
  Suspected psi, 16-17.
  Taking over minds, 29-30.
  Talent advantage, 5, 8, 9, 14, 25.
  Technology and psi, 32; see also
  Psychotronics.
  Telecontrol ability, potential problems with,
  30.
  Telepathic stealth, potential problems with,
  30.
  Telepaths and mental screens, 27.
  Telepathy power, potential problems with,
  28.
  Telereceive ability, 27, potential problems
  with, 28.
  Television, inspirational shows, 36.
  Testing for psi, 7.
  Themes, 6-8.
  TK Squeeze ability, potential problems with,
  30.
  Training, 10, 20-21.
  Trait suggestions, see Character Trait
  Suggestions.
  Trigger roll to determine potential, 9.
  Triggers for psionic, 9-10.
  Ubiquitous (frequency of psi), 16.
  Uncommon (frequency of psi), 16.
  Universal latency, see Latency.
  Unknown psi, 17.
  Unrestricted starting abilities, 14.
  Unusual Background (Psi) advantage, 13, 27.
  Very common (frequency of psi), 16.
  Very rare (frequency of psi), 15.
  Victorian view of psi, 4-5.
  Views of psi, 4-5.
  Visions ability, potential problems with, 28,
  29.
  Vow disadvantage, 34.
  Water, contaminated, 33.
  Weak psi, 25.
  Wimpy psi, 25.
  World hopping and psi, 24.
  Your head asplode (theme), 7.
  Zener Cards, 7.
  INDEX
  38
  In the eighties, I was trained at Fort Bragg in a secret
  initiative code-named Project Jedi. The objective of the
  project was to create Super Soldiers.
  – Lyn Cassady,
  The Men Who Stare at Goats
  
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