Broadcaster Quest (D&D SI Multicross) (AKA "Can someone turn down the volume?! I can't hear myself think!")
- Thread starter Mr. Cloak
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- Crossover Mature Sci-Fi Fantasy
Well, We all know the saying of "the abyss stars back at you". Nothing good ever comes out of interacting with those guys, their minds are so eldritch to our own that their definition of 'helping out a dude' roughly translates to 'fate worse than death' to us.
Eh, as long as you don't run around like a jackass screaming out their names in the metaconcert and the real world you SHOULD be relatively safe, however, this is D&D, something will go wrong, either the insert starts blaring his emotions in the metaconcert, or some idiotic cultist decides that [insert Great Old One/Outer God name here] might be in a good mood this time of the year and wouldn't mind being summoned.
Mr. Cloak
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Canonically, the gods in D&D are afraid of the horrors in the philogoston, as their powers do not stretch into it. A cleric that goes into the philogoston between solar systems can cast the spells they have ready, but not get any back until they return to a crystal sphere.
Wizards, in contrast, can recover their spells, but not learn new ones, as the goddess Mystra (or whoever governs the weave within a crystal sphere) is the repository of what spells are possible. Same for all other magic casters save the Warlock, as the soul-connection is tougher than the usual weave-link.
Interestingly, that means all Gods have an equivilant in every crystal sphere (domain-wise anyway), and traveling-clerics will need to find a similar god to their original if they leave their original sphere.
Thankfully, those monsters that live in the philogoston cannot enter the crystal spheres- too big, you see. Frankly, only astronomers might see them... Or more likely, see the shadow they cast as they pass between spheres.
Mr. Cloak
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In my setting- yes. Indeed, I think a number of good and evil gods would offer to be patrons for properly-ambitious and right-minded prospective warlocks.
They would be the Hitters of the A-men team. (internet cookie if you get the reference)
What about people that have innate holy powers like oracles and aismars.
And how do overgods like AO fit into those
Mr. Cloak
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In reverse order:
AO and other overgods in this D&Dverse are more powerful than normal gods. While most gods are beings that are linked to the various domains within a Crystal Sphere, the overgod is a distributed intelligence that a) exists within all the Crystal Spheres (and may be the source of the Crystal Spheres in the first place) and b) has links to ALL domains. Indeed, AO is more like the GOD that gods must pay homiage to, if only because they are all like warlocks- linked intrinsically to AO's personal power, but with AO defining how the power is limited, used.
Indeed, gods have been forced to inhabit their avatars by AO before. There is only one thing in the universe that AO does not have a direct hand in manipulation (well, two in this current D&Dverse), and that is the collective being that broke into the Obyrith-class of demons.
Individuals such as oracles and aasimars have links to domains, through their sight or their angelic companion-link. Aasimar can gain power through evil, malicious, or 'dark' domains as well, but it requires as LOT of mental twisting, and they don't have the help of an angel.
Oracles though... They are closest to demi-gods without being the offspring of a godly avatar, as they have natural links to a domain- sometimes more than one. This is because, like a psionic being, their soul is greater than their body can completely contain. Unlike a psionic, their soul is more 'open' at the edges, and slides forward and backwards in time just a little.
Of course, 'just a little' when it comes to time is very hard to quantify.
This 'openness' of the soul allows the oracle to, like a mold, to slowly leech out until they gain a level of Oracle, and begin the process of forming a connection to a domain.
Cool, but my question was regarding weather their power would work outside the sphears.
Mr. Cloak
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Ah. No- not for Oracles, and neither for Aasimars. Their link is 'local'.
For AO- yes, but his 'self' is somewhat fragmented at this point, and he, she, it is mercuirial at the best of times.
Hmmm, well if that's the case then I'm guessing that my secret ambitions to pull off what is referred as a pro-Bloodborne Hunter move (hehe memes and references) and screw over an eldritch creature to take its power and place in the philogoston in order to become Cthulhu junior are ill-fated, are they not? If so, what a shame, it would have only been a matter of time until a particularly moronic being did something stupid or reckless (whether it was by accident or not is irrelevant) enough that allowed Cthulhu!you to enter that particular sphere.
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Mr. Cloak
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Some moron did do it, or set up the conditions so it could be done, but the totality of Mystra (thats all the Mystras working in concert) shut off that level of spell between what the psions call the 2-3 knowledge boundry, or for 3rd edition.
As a fellow bloodborne fan, you can do that in D&D, but you need to start as a warlock with a friendly outside god patron. Like the Pale Doll.
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Really now? That's interesting, I didn't know about that (Then again I know barely anything about D&D, a problem I am seeking to rectify these days). Alright then, no becoming a tentacle god (for now, [insert evil/sinister laughter here]), the MC's first priority should be to finish his Profesor X training, pay of his debt, then learn how to munchkin his already (potentially) awesome powers. Messing with the beings from beyond the mortal ken can come later.
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Mr. Cloak
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TBH, Elan Broadcasters are pretty close already. Elan are unaging (they gain alien features rather than degrade), and as a psionic race in the event of physical death they have a built-in phylactery gemstone that allows them (after a random time) to manifest a Gem Ghost that can rebuild a meat body if it finds a victim. Yes, all psionic humanoids and elan can do that. Not illithids though.
Broadcasters, if they hit level 20, can take over bodies once a year if they kill the mind operating said body, and spread like that, where every humanoid body becomes an elan that looks like what it used to be, and every nonhumanoid body gains some alien traits. Plus, no few nonpsionics can shield their mind enough to have any sort of resistance to direct mental disruption, and those that do are either a member of the psionic classes, or have merely resistance.
And every body is viable for a Broadcaster potentially. Thats one of the reasons their numbers are limited by treaty- on top of the whole 'made of glass' thing.
D4 hit die.
Krazyfan1
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Does the victim have to be sapient for it to work? or could a cow or something work?
Hmm... I wonder if this spell
simply sever the connection after its fully grown, and you have an empty body that could be inhabited by whoever purchases it
Huh, even more interesting. Quick question though, you've said before that psionics are basically (very simplified definition) people who's souls are too big for their body, if the Elans/Broadcasters are like super psionic, could they hypothetically posses more than one body at a time due to the size of their soul? Of course since the soul would have to battle another mind or because the soul is contained by more than one body it's psionic potential would be significantly reduced for the time its possessing the bodies. Oh, two more questions: 1)if an Elan possesses a body and defeats the mind in it and then the Elan leaves because it/he/she found/built a more suitable vessel, does the body left behind die, or is it left in a vegetative-like state? 2) can an Elan hitch a ride in a body WITHOUT subverting the mind controlling it? Just hide in its consciousness, for example it could be great in infiltration and information gathering, it could be the Metal Gear Solid cardboard box of D&D, hitch a ride in a mage and you can get through most of his wards and defenses, read a tome through his eyes with him being none the wiser.
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If this works then you could take it a step further and craft clone bodies that are physically superior to the original, or even have bodies of different races stored if you ever need to be an elf or dwarf for example. Anyways having our very own *Reiquarium* (and now we have Evangelion memes/references, I must be stopped I can't control myself when I write these things) an MCquarium if you will, would be unbelievably helpful for many things, such as, first and foremost evading death, faking your own death (dead men can't pay debts), making jokes and references about Evangelion or any show that has clones really, controlling more than one clone at once would essentially allow you to be at two places at once, giving you the greatest alibi. And HOLY CRAP, Evangelion just gave me an AWESOME idea: could we make our very own Rei Ayanami? NOW HOLD ON A MINUTE, you might have missed the implications in that phrase, as these are not the ramblings of a rabid Rei fanboy (even though I am a fan, BUT THAT'S IRRELEVANT). What I mean is: could we build a servant? A LIVING servant with a soul (how to get or create that possible a soul is the only issue I see given my lack of D&D knowledge) who is capable of complex thought, free will, emotions, and is basically a person, who has its/his/her own skills and abilities, a minion who is loyal to the deepest circle of hell and back, who will never betray you, who will go to greatest of lengths for you, a servant who will die if you ask that of them not because of magic or compulsion but because of sheer loyalty and/or devotion? Now, there's probably another method that can be used to acquire such a servant in D&D already, but it's the principle/concept that I am wondering if it would work, it might not be as practical as other methods, but damm if it isn't an awesome idea.
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Mr. Cloak
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No, the victim does not have to be sapient for it to work (as a broadcaster can cast BEES! continiously for an hour to have a perminant insect familliar- or swarm of them if they are willing to put in the time), but the being needs to be sapient (or have had an INT score greater than 4) to support the Broadcaster's conciousness in the event of the main body dying.
And the body needs to have a soul inhabit it in order for it to be a potential vessel. It's not going to come up for a while, but the main defensive measure Broadcasters have is their power to do ability score damage- specifically, damage to INT, WIS, and/or CHA with a single attack at first level. It's called Migrain (Spike) and it effects anything if it has an INT, WIS, or CHA score of 1 or (cumulatively) 3.
Clone bodies are... Undead, to some degree, until a soul inhabits it. Then the mind can function... But a Spiked-to-coma being, unless someone casts Greater Restoration, is braindead. Their soul is fragmented, as a mind is needed to keep a soul together, and will die unless on life-support or that ability-score damage is repaired.
A Broadcaster needs to willingly shred the mind of a being, then use their soul to envelop and absorb what's left of the original. This is a well-kept-secret, but if a Broadcaster posesses a being, they learn everything the original knew- even if they can't do anything magical, their physical skills are saved. So a theif or fighter that was inhabited would still have all their not-magically-based skills.
Broadcasters can inhabit an indefinite number of bodies- and as such could potentially be a terrifying villain. Psionic souls are too large for their bodies, but Broadcasters are souls that have been twisted into the penultimate form that Psions (the class) are striving towards (in the same way that Fighters strive for martial perfection and wizards strive for magical skill). As such, as a Broadcaster grows into their power, it's more an application of self-control than just power.
The only limit is in the Broadcaster's attention at that stage. Their powers are INSANE at level 20, and can level armies of lower-leveled beings if they choose the right actions and stay out of range. A Broadcaster in 2 bodies would only be able to leverage a certain ammount of power across all tasks. So one body could do something that erases an army, but the other one would be vulnerable then, as their power needed to recharge.
For the questions:
1) Broadcasters cannot 'change' bodies. They can posess a body, and their mind now inhabits that body AS WELL as their old body. They cannot 'unposess' bodies, and as such the few Broadcasters that can do this only let their enclave know that they have multiple bodies at all, as a Broadcaster can, potentially, be tortured via a captured body if enough other psionic beings work in metaconcert to shut them down.
None of them want that.
But I think you are more asking what happens if a Broadcaster Spikes an enemy into a coma- and if any of the 3 mental stats (CHA, WIS, INT) drop to zero, the enemy goes unconcious (but stable), and they take 1 level of exhaustion per day they are in that coma. CHA, WIS, and INT damage do not persist unless the being takes a long rest, but for a comatos patient, a long rest is over a YEAR to get a chance to get a point back (DC 19, CON based), and it is assigned randomly (D6 roll, 1 & 4 go to INT, 2&6 go to WIS, 3&5 go to CHA), AND all three need to be above 0 in order to wake up.
2) Yes, a Broadcaster can ride in a body- BUT NOT without the target knowing. Their Veiwing ability allows them, and all psionic classes, to 'see' minds. Broadcasters have a massive range for this, and it allows them perfect targeting (their spells and attacks do. not. miss.), but without permission and being let in, the most they can do is see the general emotional intent of the person (excited, malicious, happy, angry, deceptive, etc).
With permission though, they can see and hear through the eyes and ears of anyone who lets them in. This is a MindLink, and they use it mainly to 'speak' with people over vast distances. This is one of the main services that the Enclaves offer, to make a cheaper alternative to Sending spells in realtime. They can also use this to get images of memories, if the person in question is cooperative.
So... A heavily-boosted Dominate or Thrall to the target, then a MindLink to get the data, and possibly a Memory Erasure to prevent the Thrall from talking about what just happened? It's a bit convoluted, and the Broadcaster could always send a small swarm of bees into the fortress instead, riding on the tails of Mage Robes or similar to get the data.
Frankly there are very few problems sufficiently-large swarm of bees have trouble with. Unless it's under water.
Now, what Ascandas wrote as I was answering his question:
That's... Neat, but there are a few barriers to doing this (besides cost, for instance). I will clarifying a couple points though.
SOULS: Anything with a mind has a soul. That's true for anything that has an INT, WIS, or CHA score greater than zero. It's why the Migraine(Spike) ability is so devistating- it is an attack on the MIND, which links the Soul to the Body.
CLONING: Yes, Psionic Enclaves use clones. Unfornately, unlike 'normal' wizard/sorcerer clones, which work on death because the soul is discorperated, Psionics souls are linked to a jewel that grows as their power does, eventually crystalizing within their frontal lobe (or the bit that is actually anchored to the soul), allowing for them to become Gem Ghosts. This poses a problem, as while the Enclaves DO use clones to deal with fatalities, they have to retreive the gemstones and place them in the body as it matures, to allow for soul-mind-body linkage. They can't grow the clones without that, you see- as the clone is inherently a near-undifferentiated mass of cells until the gemstone is added to the mixture. (And before you ask, YES, every body a Broadcaster controlls that can support the psionic mind grows it's own crystal).
This crystal growth and it's abilities sparked the idea of the Communication Stones.
SERVANTS: That's pretty much just a golem within a living body- which can be done. Living servants that are truely self-aware have the same issues of self-determinacy though, and psions don't know how to pre-program souls any longer. They used to, but that knowlege was lost between 2nd edition and 3rd edition.
There is a way to have a semi-customized soul, but that is depenant on the Network, and how every time the rules change, the souls within have their memories erased by the ripple effect. See, this means there are MILLIONS upon MILLIONS of souls within the Network that are content to observe the world through their psionic senses, as those are the only senses they have ever known, but many that remember being alive, as they lived in the current cycle.
One would need to give it's consent to not just being a servant, but also having their mind changed to reflect such a alteration in how they are used to being, that none have taken it up. Since bodies can be altered with an 'Alter Flesh' ritual spell (think Alter Self, but more in-depth and perminant), few psionics choose to serve others in such a way for long.
Such a thing is call Thallment, and it is only ever potentially done to enemies of the Enclave that cannot be killed, are psionic, and thus are denied access to the Network after death as the mind they are. Another name for it is Mind Destruction, and it is what can happen to Broadcaster applicants that fail to survive the ritual to become a Broadcaster, and do not have their memories promptly erased.
The Enlcaves are a method of self-defense, improvement of one's life, and learning. It is democratic to a significant degree, otherwise nothing would get done without massive fights. Enclaves do not fight, because the inhabitants are brutally aware how endangered their way of life and knowlege is- and how dangerous the universe truely is to those who are not magical. Besides- why have servants when you can have well-designed dumb psionic machines to do things for you?
The next chapter (which I am currantly working on) will show what sort of things psionic machinery can achieve.
So my ideas could have kinda worked-ish in the past but not anymore? Well that's a shame, I was really exited about being able to mess with the very definitions of life and death, and the laws that define of what reality allows you to do and then it doesn't. Oh, well I guess that the MC would have to be a sorcerer or warlock to do that (also a lack of morals, but who needs those). It doesn't matter, I'm still more than curious to see what the MC will get with his psionic powers once he gets free reign to do as he wants.
Mr. Cloak
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It's more like there isn't a pre-established path to doing that. It's not impossible, but noone has discovered it yet.
It's more like the ENTIRE ENCLAVE is built like a semi-modular smart-house, or the link between psionics and the Network allows for a great deal of semiautomation as the beings within the Network are willing to do things if fed power and asked nicely. Between the two, any adventuring party would be in for a WORLD of pain if they attacked the Enclave.
But yes- Crystal Golems and Crystaline Automatons are a thing, but golems are risky and Automatons are machine-dumb.
No i meant the minion for the psion class. The thing you can add features to.
Mr. Cloak
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A psicrystal? Yeah, thats a thing. Useful too- but limited, as it's an extension of the psion nof a seperate entity.
Krazyfan1
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the whole "Give them free will and some of them will probably not want to work for you anymore" thing i'm guessing?
probably ways around that (don't mistreat them, give them reasons to want to work for you, e.t.c), but overall probably not something to be done on a whim, with each perspective golem maker probably having to fill out the needed paperwork first?
....also
Would this mean that some Psionics would have a rather casual view of lethal wounds that they take? at least if they know that they have another body in storage and that the gem is safe?
i.e during training, trainee 1 trips and accidentally beheads trainee 2 (hey, it happens), the head trainer takes a clone out of storage and puts trainee 2's crystal into it, Trainee 2 isn't punished as severely as if it would have happened to a non-psyonic?
speaking of the Soul gems, how long can they be without a body safely, and can they be used to power things without damaging the soul irreparably?
cause i'm imagining a rather nasty boss pulling a You Have Failed Me on one of his injured minions, tearing out the gem, and using it to power his magic weapon or something as punishment...
Big Bad: "I'll let you out in a couple years, maybe, but as it stands you're far more useful to me at the moment as a glorified battery, think about what you've done while i crush the ones you failed to beat"
Kinda like this, but with the soul instead of the body...
Mr. Cloak
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Golems- that, and most wild (psionics that are found in towns outside of enclaves) usually greatly dislike the thought of creating a mind just to serve. There's an anti-Ai-servant sentiment because of this, as Illithids have left a bad taste in everyone's mouth on the subject.
There are Psionic Golems, but they can evolve into self-awareness, and the Shardminds treat them as we would toddlers.
They have Ancillia, but getting one of those is like getting married- you don't do it lightly, especially because the Network is acting like the shotgun-holding father.
It's more a relationship like Johna and Cortana than not for those few who have them- and it is taken very seriously.
LETHAL WOUNDS: yes, but not much more than adventurers with a bit of treasure and a good cleric on tap. First, the body has to grow around the gemstone, so that takes 120 days, in addition to a pcionic clone requiring twice the reagent cost and thousands of psi-points of work to pre-charge for growth.
Its more like wrecking an expensive car- y'all may live, but it will cost a pretty penny to fix... And you are going to lose some time in the process.
If its a legimiate accident, then the cost is distributed amoung the participants, but in case of negligence, the one at fault is billed for the cost.
Soul-Crystals are viable indefinitely, but they are like a being in a coma. They cannot be forced into activity, and until the soul within generates enough power passively to awaken, they remain inert.
It takes 10.2 million power points to wake up from this state, and upon immediately awakening, the gemstone is used as a focus for the Jem Ghost to manifest. (It is traumatic and disorienting to be disincorperated, and that 'cost' is more of a timer that indicqtes flexibility of mind.
Active Jem Ghosts usually prefer to have a body, but they could choose to be a power source. Thing is, without a coherent mind, the jem is just that- a jem. The only reason anyone would normally find something off is if a Broadcaster scanned the stone, or the ghost within woke up.
There is a theory that the enclaves don't like to talk about, and its how they cannot prove that near-flawless gemstones were not potential Jem Ghosts before an edition change. Every large gemstone could have been a psionic person once that had their memories erased like the poor ones lost in the Network, but without company, their souls just evaporate into the Ether.
Psionics don't get an afterlife other than the one they made themselves.
Sorry- no people-as-generators here. They can get psionic power other ways, but all of it requires some link to a mind.
Krazyfan1
Worrying for the future.
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Actually, why is that?