[Powers] I will know soon enough...

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Rogue Scholar
Telepathy [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Psion/wilder 2, Lurk 2
Display: Mental
Manifesting Time: 1 minute
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: One living creature
Duration: 24 hours
Saving Throw: Will negates
Power Resistance: Yes
Power Points: 3

You delve into another's mind and learn what they know at an intensely accelerated rate. Weeks, months, perhaps even years of learning is compressed into seconds. You gain their expertise, adding 1 skill rank to your skills. If the skill is cross-class, you gain only a 1/2 rank.

You cannot exceed the normal maximum ranks for your level in any skill, nor can you gain ranks from one who has less in the chosen skill than yourself.
Augment: You can augment this power in one or both of the following ways.

1. For every 4 additional power points you spend you gain 1 extra rank.
2. If you spend 6 additional power points the chosen skill becomes a class skill and any half-ranks become full ranks.
3. If you spend 8 additional power points the duration of this power becomes 1 day/2 levels.

-=-=-=-=-

Rogue Scholar, Thieving
Telepathy [Mind-Affecting]
Level: Psion/wilder 4, Lurk 4
Display: Mental
Manifesting Time: 1 minute
Range: Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: One living creature
Duration: 24 hours
Saving Throw: Will negates
Power Resistance: Yes
Power Points: 7

This power functions as Rogue Scholar, except that every rank you learn you temporarily drain from your victim at a 1-for-1 basis.

[The Demented One]

Neat idea. I'd personally slap a small XP cost on these, just because the benefit is permanent.

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Neat idea. I'd personally slap a small XP cost on these, just because the benefit is permanent.
Thought of doing just that, but in reality the nature of this power would be more likely to grant XP, so I just left it off and called it even.

[Yuki Akuma]

Thought of doing just that, but in reality the nature of this power would be more likely to grant XP, so I just left it off and called it even.

Uh.

That... what? The flavour is irrelevent; anything that lets you gain skill points should cost XP. Skill points are supposed to be rare, and with this power you can just know every skill in the game at the cost of a few power points.

This is a Bad Thing.

[Maryring]

I agree. There really is no way one should be able to permanently add skillpoints that easily. If I was a level 3 Psion, I could suddenly become a master at many things. Come level 9, and I can do ANYTHING, skillwise. See why this makes a level 2 power overpowered?

[Yuki Akuma]

If you're a wilder 7 and live in a sizable city, given a month you are a master in every skill in the entire game at no cost to you. Skill points at level up become irrelevent, as as soon as you have some downtime you can gain a rank in every single skill in the game.

Why would a psychic with this power even adventure? He can do anything he likes. He could become a famous performer, he can try his hand at any profession under the sun, he can make any mundane item he could care to... why would he need to risk his life when he can just make money the easy way?

[Khantalas]

Of course, you only have 10 ranks in those skills. 5 if cross-class.

Still, too powerful, methinks.

[The Vorpal Tribble]

That... what? The flavour is irrelevent; anything that lets you gain skill points should cost XP. Skill points are supposed to be rare, and with this power you can just know every skill in the game at the cost of a few power points.

This is a Bad Thing.
Reguardless of the flavor I cannot reconcile in my head how literally gaining experience should cause you to lose it. Some other modifiers might be in order, and I'm open to suggestions, but XP isn't it.

And yes, you can learn all skills... eventually, if you spend enough power points. But never past normal ranks. And you have to find someone who has more than even you do. And remember, if its cross-class you only gain half a point. So though this fellow may have 10 ranks, you can only grab 5, tops, though this will require 30 power points.


If you're a wilder 7 and live in a sizable city, given a month you are a master in every skill in the entire game at no cost to you. Skill points at level up become irrelevent, as as soon as you have some downtime you can gain a rank in every single skill in the game.
First you have to find someone who will let you in their head or is weak-willed enough to be bypassed. And no, skill points at level up are NOT irrelevant. Leveling up raises the bar for how many ranks you can gain.


Why would a psychic with this power even adventure? He can do anything he likes. He could become a famous performer, he can try his hand at any profession under the sun, he can make any mundane item he could care to... why would he need to risk his life when he can just make money the easy way?
You would have to find a famous performer to become a famous performer, and good luck asking for their skill points.

And by this reasoning, why does anyone become anything but an expert? Most folks don't adventure for the sheer sake of money making.

[Maryring]

The +6 augment makes it so that you can make CC skills class skills. And 10 ranks is a LOT. Most people only have 2 or 3 in a skill. (I don't think commoners place 4 on two different skillsets.)

[Yuki Akuma]

The wilder can Wild Surge his way to the second augmentation and make all skills class skills, you know... That's why I chose the wilder (well, that and the fact that he won't have a high Intelligence like the Psion would).

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Ok, can anyone tell me why this is more powerful than Psychic Reformation? Sure, it costs XP, but you can choose new feats, new powers, you name it, in addition to skills. You can also use it on others and so everyone could have their ideal skills and feats that coincides with everyone else's.

[Yuki Akuma]

Psychic Reformation lets you reallocate skill points (and feats, and powers known). This gives you new ones for free.

This is a case of "something for something else that may as well be nothing", which is never a good thing.

[The Vorpal Tribble]

Psychic Reformation lets you reallocate skill points (and feats, and powers known). This gives you new ones for free.

This is a case of "something for something else that may as well be nothing", which is never a good thing.
This gives new ones if you find someone who doesn't mind having their minds searched. And you can only gain what he knows.

Psychic Reformation lets you become an expert in 'any' skill at any time at the cost of being lax at others. You can then bring in feats and powers that play to that.

Say I'm a wilder with psychic reformation. We will soon be venturing into the land of the amazons. I can now max out jump, climb, survival, knowledge (nature), swim, spot and listen. The rest of my skills are trash, but thats ok. I will now take the Brachiation feat, a bunch of combat feats, and be ready for whatever is ready.

With Rogue Scholar I must search out the countryside for folks with these skills who'll let me take them, or, if I have no scruples, be weak-willed enough to have their skills, and only skills, ripped out.

Both have their strengths, but I just don't see RS approaching it.

[Ryshan Ynrith]

See, with this, you gain skill points. Heck, you just drain a bunch of low-level mooks, then use Psychic Reformation to reallocate the skill points you got as you wish. Additionally, I can think of very few adventuring parties who would not be willing to allow virtually unlimited use of this power on them-tadaa, you now have the skills of an ENTIRE PARTY, on one character. Sure, you don't have class abilities to match, but you can use the skills as you will, even to enter prestige classes and the like. And it costs you...nothing. A simple expenditure of power points that can be recovered in a day.

I'd hesitate to allow something like with even /with/ an XP cost, and to have it completely free of consequences is over the top.

[Maryring]

Well, you only drain the skill points if you want to cause other harm. The lower level power doesn't drain skillpoints.

[Rumda]

maybe put the duration of the skill points aquired at a day/level just to balance it out

[The Vorpal Tribble]

maybe put the duration of the skill points aquired at a day/level just to balance it out
So wished to make it permanent, but that is probably a good idea. Have adjusted.