The Psionic Tradition, Because gimping them is stupid Options

[Eyeless Blond]

After seeing Gothic Rose's excellent homebrew tradition I was inspired to write one up for Psionics. So, here we go:

Psionics
Concept: "Magic" is nothing more nor less than the power of intelligent thought manifested in the world. Casting spells, conjuring spirits, and all other magical activities are a result of those with exceptional mental power manipulating the common reality through sheer will and mental fortitude.
Combat: Beasts. (Manifestation of primal, "lower brain" thoughts)
Detection: ?Air (Really no idea, but it seems to fit)
Health: ?Fire (Again, no idea. Earth might do well here also, come to think of it)
Illusion: Water. (Water spirits are the essence of flexability, and go well with illusion)
Manipulation: Man. (Higher thought-forms, associated with higher-order spells that directly alter reality)
Drain: Willpower+Intuition (I considered Logic, but Intuition just "feels" more right I guess.)

I think, therefore I am. Descartes, like most so-called "men of science" may have artificially hobbled themselves by limiting their theories to what can be difinitively proven, but he did manage to describe, in one sentence, the first and most essential law in the universe. Thought exists; indeed it is the only thing that can truly be said to exist. The use of magic is evidence of this fact, as it proves that even reality itself can be bent to a strong will.

Unlike hermetics, who base their magic on complex formulae and rigorous study, psions are more flexible in their practice. They believe it is their own willpower that is used to alter reality in spellcasting, their own inner thoughts made manifest when conjuring Thought Forms, or "Spirits" as some of the less enlightened call them.

Mages who are drawn to live the life of a psionic mage care deeply about their personal philosophies. Thought being more important to many psionic mages than life itself, some will pursue their chosen philosophy as wholeheartedly as a fanatic; zealots are all too common among psionic mages. Others choose a more libertarian approach; all thought is sacred, being the fundamental building block of existence, so all thoughts and all thinkers are equally acceptable. Most come somewhere in-between.

As thought is the bedrock upon which their lives are based, psionic mages are drawn to intellectual pursiuts, and many are counted as prominent members of the academic world. Many, though, have willingly left such institutions, insisting that such places are bastions to old, tired dogma, and sometimes strike out on their own to find their own truth. These mages can quickly tire of the feel-good falseness of corporate life and are eventually drawn to the shadows, where truth can exist most freely, or so they believe.

Trappings of psionic magic are many and varied. Crystals and pyramids are in fashion these days, as are magnets and headbands or bracelets made of precious metals and the like. Other psions adhere to a philosophy dictating that the form of an object of power is not so important as the thoughts and feelings associated with them. Such mages will make their foci and fetishes out of childhood toys, favored or important objects in their lives such as a pair of old glasses. Sometimes they will choose objects that are symbolic of ideas important to their own lives, such as a cross for a Christian Psion.


So how's that? I'm a little iffy on the Detection and Health associations, but I couldn't really think of anything better.