Figured I'd start a thread specifically for discussing the new spells that came out with the Psionic Classes UA, having had a chance to actually sit down and play with them for a little bit as both a player in a few one-shots and as a DM for somebody who decided (retroactively) that his sorta-psychic bard was actually totally psychic. Heh. Overall I love these additions, but I also write more than anyone cares to read. So I'll vomit up my thoughts on each individual spell, spoiler it so this post isn't ten miles long, and then see what you guys have to say and whether you disagree with me or not.
Mind Sliver:
This cantrip is amazing, and honestly feels like the lynchpin of any mentalist character’s arsenal. If you’re playing a psychic character and you don’t have Mind Sliver, your psychic character is weird. All offensive psionic spells have saves, and Mind Sliver allows you to land those spells more easily. The mediocre damage helps keep it in check, but after toying with it for a while now, Mind Sliver feels like a natural fit for the game and an absolutely necessary fundamental building block if they want to keep “psionics” at all.
Id Insinuation:
Id Insinuation is filthy. This is an almost strictly better Tasha’s Hideous Laughter; arguments can be made that Tasha’s Laughter disrupts communication and prones the target, yes, and clearly Tasha’s has the “make this save or drown” thing underwater. But Id Insinuation only offers one save a round instead of a save any time the creature takes damage and it deals recurring damage. On top of that, it combines disgustingly with Mind Sliver. Insinuation into Sliver can take a dangerous foe completely out of a battle; at lower levels, it can also eliminate them from the mortal coil in just a few turns. Combine it with another psionic or a friendly cleric casting Bane, and you can all but guarantee that your victim will be standing there foaming from the mouth and accomplishing nothing until its brain finishes dribbling from its ears.
Insinuation does not upcast, which is quite possibly its only saving grace. If you could upcast the damage this spell would be an absolute must have on any spell list anywhere; as it is, at higher levels the damage is mediocre though the disable is still powerful. Nevertheless, this thing feels like a critical tool in the psionic character’s toolbox and one of the main reasons to make a psychic character in the first place.
Mental Barrier
This thing has a very specific purpose, and that purpose is to flip mind flayers the bird finger. Being able to gain advantage on key save-or-suck abilities and retain the ability to act when targeted by powerful holds or stuns is pretty baller, as is being able to resist psychic damage, but the highly specific nature of the defense and the second-level spell slot required means a lot of the characters that would like to take it are forced to debate between a niche defensive spell or the five-star ungodly murder buffet that is Mind Thrust. I think the spell actually works quite well for what it is and what it does and if a psionic character has room for it it’s excellent...but Mind Thrust is bologne of the highest order, and your psionic bards, sorcerers, Arcane Tricksters and the like only have so many known spells.
Mind Thrust
This spell is not making it out of UA. I expect Mind Thrust and Id Insinuation to both be assblasted into obscurity, if not removed altogether, because these two spells are unbelievably potent. Mind Thrust deals moderate-ish damage for a second-level spell, no great shakes for something that doesn’t reoccur, but it has a very powerful disable keyed to an Intelligence save rather than Wisdom.
Virtually all controlling/disabling spells are Wisdom saves, and as such virtually all creatures worth disabling or controlling have +57 to their Wisdom saves because the game devs don’t want their dragons or their liches or their giants or their whatevers being Held and pounded into paste. Mind Thrust doesn’t care – very little has a worthwhile Intelligence save that isn’t a wizard of some stripe. Sure, Thrust only partially disables the target – it can still move – and it’s only one round. But the average combat in D&D is decided after two or three rounds, if not decided in the first round, and MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION.
Allow me to repeat, for emphasis: MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION
You can Sliver, then immediately Thrust to disable the target for a turn through their weakened save. The psionic Arcane Trickster (which is an amazing archetype that is so much more fun than Soul Knives, lemme say) can Mind Thrust to disorient and debilitate their target without sacrificing their Sneak Attack – or SA their target to death before Thrusting the target’s guardian to ease their own escape. A high-level Aberrant Mind can brain-jab the entire playing field because Mind Thrust DOES upcast, unlike Id, and when you do it multi-targets – and that Aberrant can then use its action to do whatever it wants. Anything with weapon combat worth mentioning can use Mind Thrust to power-**** its target and turn the partial disable into a total disable; take Sentinel, then Mind Thrust a target before assaulting it with your sword. The target cannot fight back, only Dash/Disengage – and if it does either of those things, Sentinel means you whack it again. Repeat as needed until second-level slots are expended.
A high-level Trickster with Sentinel, Magical Ambush, and Mind Thrust is a better assassin than the Assassin. This spell is NOT making it out of UA. Not as a bonus action.
THOT Thought Shield
Thought Shield is a niche spell that is invaluable in certain campaigns and total moose piss in others. It’s an excellently psychic-y spell that unfortunately provides very little benefit in the sorts of games most D&D turns into. Still glad it’s here, but there’s not much to say about it – either your campaign is the sort of game where this ability is worth any price and it’s cast as constantly as Mage Armor, or it’s a nonfactor. There’s not really much in-between.
Psionic Blast
On first read, this felt overtuned to me. The damage is pretty up there for a third-level AoE, and you also get a HUGE shove and a prone to boot. In practice, the short range and cone-style targeting means the psionic wizards and sorcerers end up uncomfortably close to whatever they’re Blasting, and half the time they have to contend with catching friendlies in the backblast if they’re not careful. It’s also a Dex save rather than Intelligence, and Dex is almost as bad as Wisdom when it comes to critters being given obscenely high modifiers for whatever arbitrary reason.
It’s still a very powerful spell, and I could see it losing a d8 and still being a high-end choice – this thing becomes obscene when Dark Lord Gravity comes to observe the fight and there’s cliffs/rooftops in play – but I think it might be okay to leave mostly as-is.
Ego Whip
Ego Whip is one of maybe three things I can think of that allows the players to impose disadvantage on enemy saves. It’s by FAR the most powerful such ability, imposing disadvantage on every single d20 roll the target makes while concentration lasts on top of disabling spellcasting altogether. It’s a decently high-level spell, concentration required, and allows the target to make recurring saves – but those recurring saves are at disadvantage. If you target something with a weak Intelligence save in the first place, it’s basically shuttlecocked. This spell’s short range means it’s better carried by bards or (really high level) Tricksters, but even a sorcerer or wizard could use this as a lynchpin to their game plans, or as an emergency defense against aggression by forcing disadvantage on all attacks. Whipping something, then barraging it with save-or-suck or high damage abilities is super valid. No upcasting, but if Ego Whip could be upcast for multi-targeting it’d be nearly as ridicustupid as Mind Thrust.
Intellect Fortress
This one’s pretty awesome. It’s a hell of an investment, a fifth-level concentration spell purely for defense, but oh what a defensive boost it is. Many high-level creatures rely on saves for their Big Payday ability; this lets you stuff them, and work to protect your allies as well. It feels a bit pants that you can only rescue one ally’s failed save per turn with a fifth-level concentration spell that does nothing except rescue saves, but rescuing someone from a bad save against a dominate or hold effect – or game-ending shit like a basilisk’s stare – could be very worth the cast if your game is going there.
Like most of the defensive spells, you have to weigh whether or not your campaign is going to threaten you with the sort of stuff this spell defends against. Unlike the others, the answer will usually be ‘yes’, and it’ll be up to you to decide whether you want to take a plain defensive spell instead of something flashy and awesome for fifth level.
Psychic Crush
Oooof. This one is a doozy. Very respectable damage and a long-term disable that does NOT require concentration. Good range, no bothersome material component, and keyed off an Intelligence save. This is basically smaller single-target Psychic Scream, but you know what? I am totally and completely okay with that. An excellent use of a Greater Arcana slot. The lack of upcasting is a shame, but also seems to be a running theme with this batch of psychic spells. Upcasting is rare, which feels oddly appropriate for most of them. I could stand for one of the distinguishing factors of psionic magic being an inability to upcast in exchange for greater base spell potential.
...so yeah. That’s all of them.
TL;DR: Id Insinuation is amazing, Mind Thrust is game-crushingly bonkers, and the others are very good in their niche or just good outright. Not a bum spell to be seen, even if the two mentioned are never making it out of UA alive.
Yeah I started to realize how potent some of the lower level psychic spells were while making a Blade Bard/Swashbuckler with all the bard spells being focused on mind affecting abilities. This guys likes to taunt people and mess with their heads. The bonus action one in particular looks like it may get some of its effects reduced. Because hey, bonus action.
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"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
Unfortunately I have not had a chance to play around with any of these spells, but as a man on the internet I *must* make my opinion known, dangit!
Mind Sliver: I agree 100%. Honestly, if I were running a Warlock I could see this competing with Eldritch Blast as my cantrip of choice.
Id Insinuation: Yeah, as is this is without a doubt better than Tasha's Hideous Laughter. If they halved the range and added the ability to repeat the saving throw when the target takes damage I could see it maybe being more comparable then, but otherwise yeah, hands down this is better.
Mental Barrier: As you say, it's niche but for what it does it's pretty dang good. Plus, I think it's cool to have another spell that uses your reaction, personally.
Mind Thrust: Somehow, I missed that this uses a bonus action. Yeah, one way or another this is definitely getting nerfed. My only argument here, is that it doesn't take much to be a better assassin than the Assassin, because Assassins are so gorram niche it's ridiculous.
THOT Shield: I was unaware that thots were an enemy type in this game. Next time I roll a Ranger I'll be picking them as my favored enemy! (In seriousness though, this is great for more social minded campaigns and pretty much garbage for anything else)
Psionic Blast: It is pretty strong, but honestly I don't really see it being any stronger than Fireball; in fact, I'd say they're roughly comparable, with potentially better damage through high enough upcasting for Psionic Blast, but that range is still a problem that Fireball doesn't necessarily have.
Ego Whip: Oof, yeah, this is strong. So strong in fact, it might even make Poison Spray worth taking! Okay, that might be a stretch but it's pretty damn good, and if you combine it with the Sorcerer's Heightened Spell metamagic it becomes even better.
Intellect Fortress: Yup, it's pretty good. Don't think there's anything else for me to really add there.
Psychic Crush: Not the strongest damage dealer for a 6th level spell, but still pretty dang good. As for it being a smaller scale version of another spell, I seem to recall there being a couple other spells that are like that so I'm not bothered by it either.
Overall I think we're in agreement on this one. The only thing I have to add is if WotC is going to go the route of psionics=spells that they seem to want to go in, then I really don't see them throwing any of these spells in the bin. Nerfing them, sure, but if they scrapped them altogether I think that would just cause another headache.
Pretty sure the 'mystic points' stuff is not happening. It Tested Poorly(C), which is the death knell for any 5e thing, and Wizards' mania for ruthlessly hypersimplifying the game means that if they can make it work as simply a package of alternate spells, they will.
But yeah. At lower levels, Id Insinuation into Mind Sliver spam is brutal on critters with weaker INT saves. At lower-middish levels you can add an occasional spike of Mind Thrust for extra damage (though that does waste the disable) and just slag their brains beyond belief with Insinuation, Thrust, and Sliver all running at the same time so long as your slots hold up. Or use Thrust to hinder targets other than whatever it is you're focusing on with your Insinuation/Sliver combo. It's disgusting.
Other casters can lock single targets down, yeah - but generally only with WIS saves, which're much harder to stick, and they don't get what amounts to free Witch Bolt damage on top of it without Witch Bolt's range or action requirement. Sliver weakening the recurring save is just obnoxious for the DM, and psionics being able to hinder other stuff with Thrust while focusing on this combo is even more obnoxious.
The higher level spells are honestly mostly gravy on these three insanely potent tools. By the time you get them, enemies typically have ways and means of dealing with them, but there is no level at which robbing 2+ enemies of their actions turn after turn with damage stacked on top of it is not an excellent use of first and second-level spell slots.
Id Insinuation can be fixed by just adding the functionality of it's previous iteration in the Mystic UA. Have it so that it so that the creature effected can ONLY take Dodge or Attack actions and nothing else for it's duration instead of being completely incapacitated.
As for Mind Thrust... just make it an action.
Other than that though I like the rest of these spells quite a lot and want to see more Psionics interpreted eventually. Getting new versions of stuff like Distracting Haze, Mind Storm, Broken Will and Forceful Query would be pretty rad.
Eh, psi points probably aren't coming because of previous feedback. But then again, Superior Attunement also tested poorly and that made it's way back in the final Artificer, so I guess it's not impossible. More likely though, they'll probably add an extra sidebar plugging the spell point system from the DMG as an optional rule like they did with firearms proficiency in the Artificer.
Personally I was hoping for a slightly different system from spellcasting with a couple of the same rules to appease the Balance Gods, but it seems that's not in the wind. I guess I can take this just as well.
Which of those spells would make sense to be on an Archivists spell list? Yea they already have an extended list with a bunch of psychic stuff but i feel like it'd be a shame to not have at least some of these be included.
Figured I'd start a thread specifically for discussing the new spells that came out with the Psionic Classes UA, having had a chance to actually sit down and play with them for a little bit as both a player in a few one-shots and as a DM for somebody who decided (retroactively) that his sorta-psychic bard was actually totally psychic. Heh. Overall I love these additions, but I also write more than anyone cares to read. So I'll vomit up my thoughts on each individual spell, spoiler it so this post isn't ten miles long, and then see what you guys have to say and whether you disagree with me or not.
Mind Sliver:
This cantrip is amazing, and honestly feels like the lynchpin of any mentalist character’s arsenal. If you’re playing a psychic character and you don’t have Mind Sliver, your psychic character is weird. All offensive psionic spells have saves, and Mind Sliver allows you to land those spells more easily. The mediocre damage helps keep it in check, but after toying with it for a while now, Mind Sliver feels like a natural fit for the game and an absolutely necessary fundamental building block if they want to keep “psionics” at all.
Id Insinuation:
Id Insinuation is filthy. This is an almost strictly better Tasha’s Hideous Laughter; arguments can be made that Tasha’s Laughter disrupts communication and prones the target, yes, and clearly Tasha’s has the “make this save or drown” thing underwater. But Id Insinuation only offers one save a round instead of a save any time the creature takes damage and it deals recurring damage. On top of that, it combines disgustingly with Mind Sliver. Insinuation into Sliver can take a dangerous foe completely out of a battle; at lower levels, it can also eliminate them from the mortal coil in just a few turns. Combine it with another psionic or a friendly cleric casting Bane, and you can all but guarantee that your victim will be standing there foaming from the mouth and accomplishing nothing until its brain finishes dribbling from its ears.
Insinuation does not upcast, which is quite possibly its only saving grace. If you could upcast the damage this spell would be an absolute must have on any spell list anywhere; as it is, at higher levels the damage is mediocre though the disable is still powerful. Nevertheless, this thing feels like a critical tool in the psionic character’s toolbox and one of the main reasons to make a psychic character in the first place.
Mental Barrier
This thing has a very specific purpose, and that purpose is to flip mind flayers the bird finger. Being able to gain advantage on key save-or-suck abilities and retain the ability to act when targeted by powerful holds or stuns is pretty baller, as is being able to resist psychic damage, but the highly specific nature of the defense and the second-level spell slot required means a lot of the characters that would like to take it are forced to debate between a niche defensive spell or the five-star ungodly murder buffet that is Mind Thrust. I think the spell actually works quite well for what it is and what it does and if a psionic character has room for it it’s excellent...but Mind Thrust is bologne of the highest order, and your psionic bards, sorcerers, Arcane Tricksters and the like only have so many known spells.
Mind Thrust
This spell is not making it out of UA. I expect Mind Thrust and Id Insinuation to both be assblasted into obscurity, if not removed altogether, because these two spells are unbelievably potent. Mind Thrust deals moderate-ish damage for a second-level spell, no great shakes for something that doesn’t reoccur, but it has a very powerful disable keyed to an Intelligence save rather than Wisdom.
Virtually all controlling/disabling spells are Wisdom saves, and as such virtually all creatures worth disabling or controlling have +57 to their Wisdom saves because the game devs don’t want their dragons or their liches or their giants or their whatevers being Held and pounded into paste. Mind Thrust doesn’t care – very little has a worthwhile Intelligence save that isn’t a wizard of some stripe. Sure, Thrust only partially disables the target – it can still move – and it’s only one round. But the average combat in D&D is decided after two or three rounds, if not decided in the first round, and MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION.
Allow me to repeat, for emphasis:
MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION
MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION
MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION
MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION
MIND THRUST IS A BONUS ACTION
You can Sliver, then immediately Thrust to disable the target for a turn through their weakened save. The psionic Arcane Trickster (which is an amazing archetype that is so much more fun than Soul Knives, lemme say) can Mind Thrust to disorient and debilitate their target without sacrificing their Sneak Attack – or SA their target to death before Thrusting the target’s guardian to ease their own escape. A high-level Aberrant Mind can brain-jab the entire playing field because Mind Thrust DOES upcast, unlike Id, and when you do it multi-targets – and that Aberrant can then use its action to do whatever it wants. Anything with weapon combat worth mentioning can use Mind Thrust to power-**** its target and turn the partial disable into a total disable; take Sentinel, then Mind Thrust a target before assaulting it with your sword. The target cannot fight back, only Dash/Disengage – and if it does either of those things, Sentinel means you whack it again. Repeat as needed until second-level slots are expended.
A high-level Trickster with Sentinel, Magical Ambush, and Mind Thrust is a better assassin than the Assassin. This spell is NOT making it out of UA. Not as a bonus action.
THOT Thought Shield
Thought Shield is a niche spell that is invaluable in certain campaigns and total moose piss in others. It’s an excellently psychic-y spell that unfortunately provides very little benefit in the sorts of games most D&D turns into. Still glad it’s here, but there’s not much to say about it – either your campaign is the sort of game where this ability is worth any price and it’s cast as constantly as Mage Armor, or it’s a nonfactor. There’s not really much in-between.
Psionic Blast
On first read, this felt overtuned to me. The damage is pretty up there for a third-level AoE, and you also get a HUGE shove and a prone to boot. In practice, the short range and cone-style targeting means the psionic wizards and sorcerers end up uncomfortably close to whatever they’re Blasting, and half the time they have to contend with catching friendlies in the backblast if they’re not careful. It’s also a Dex save rather than Intelligence, and Dex is almost as bad as Wisdom when it comes to critters being given obscenely high modifiers for whatever arbitrary reason.
It’s still a very powerful spell, and I could see it losing a d8 and still being a high-end choice – this thing becomes obscene when Dark Lord Gravity comes to observe the fight and there’s cliffs/rooftops in play – but I think it might be okay to leave mostly as-is.
Ego Whip
Ego Whip is one of maybe three things I can think of that allows the players to impose disadvantage on enemy saves. It’s by FAR the most powerful such ability, imposing disadvantage on every single d20 roll the target makes while concentration lasts on top of disabling spellcasting altogether. It’s a decently high-level spell, concentration required, and allows the target to make recurring saves – but those recurring saves are at disadvantage. If you target something with a weak Intelligence save in the first place, it’s basically shuttlecocked. This spell’s short range means it’s better carried by bards or (really high level) Tricksters, but even a sorcerer or wizard could use this as a lynchpin to their game plans, or as an emergency defense against aggression by forcing disadvantage on all attacks. Whipping something, then barraging it with save-or-suck or high damage abilities is super valid. No upcasting, but if Ego Whip could be upcast for multi-targeting it’d be nearly as ridicustupid as Mind Thrust.
Intellect Fortress
This one’s pretty awesome. It’s a hell of an investment, a fifth-level concentration spell purely for defense, but oh what a defensive boost it is. Many high-level creatures rely on saves for their Big Payday ability; this lets you stuff them, and work to protect your allies as well. It feels a bit pants that you can only rescue one ally’s failed save per turn with a fifth-level concentration spell that does nothing except rescue saves, but rescuing someone from a bad save against a dominate or hold effect – or game-ending shit like a basilisk’s stare – could be very worth the cast if your game is going there.
Like most of the defensive spells, you have to weigh whether or not your campaign is going to threaten you with the sort of stuff this spell defends against. Unlike the others, the answer will usually be ‘yes’, and it’ll be up to you to decide whether you want to take a plain defensive spell instead of something flashy and awesome for fifth level.
Psychic Crush
Oooof. This one is a doozy. Very respectable damage and a long-term disable that does NOT require concentration. Good range, no bothersome material component, and keyed off an Intelligence save. This is basically smaller single-target Psychic Scream, but you know what? I am totally and completely okay with that. An excellent use of a Greater Arcana slot. The lack of upcasting is a shame, but also seems to be a running theme with this batch of psychic spells. Upcasting is rare, which feels oddly appropriate for most of them. I could stand for one of the distinguishing factors of psionic magic being an inability to upcast in exchange for greater base spell potential.
...so yeah. That’s all of them.
TL;DR: Id Insinuation is amazing, Mind Thrust is game-crushingly bonkers, and the others are very good in their niche or just good outright. Not a bum spell to be seen, even if the two mentioned are never making it out of UA alive.
Please do not contact or message me.
Yeah I started to realize how potent some of the lower level psychic spells were while making a Blade Bard/Swashbuckler with all the bard spells being focused on mind affecting abilities. This guys likes to taunt people and mess with their heads. The bonus action one in particular looks like it may get some of its effects reduced. Because hey, bonus action.
"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
Unfortunately I have not had a chance to play around with any of these spells, but as a man on the internet I *must* make my opinion known, dangit!
Mind Sliver: I agree 100%. Honestly, if I were running a Warlock I could see this competing with Eldritch Blast as my cantrip of choice.
Id Insinuation: Yeah, as is this is without a doubt better than Tasha's Hideous Laughter. If they halved the range and added the ability to repeat the saving throw when the target takes damage I could see it maybe being more comparable then, but otherwise yeah, hands down this is better.
Mental Barrier: As you say, it's niche but for what it does it's pretty dang good. Plus, I think it's cool to have another spell that uses your reaction, personally.
Mind Thrust: Somehow, I missed that this uses a bonus action. Yeah, one way or another this is definitely getting nerfed. My only argument here, is that it doesn't take much to be a better assassin than the Assassin, because Assassins are so gorram niche it's ridiculous.
THOT Shield: I was unaware that thots were an enemy type in this game. Next time I roll a Ranger I'll be picking them as my favored enemy! (In seriousness though, this is great for more social minded campaigns and pretty much garbage for anything else)
Psionic Blast: It is pretty strong, but honestly I don't really see it being any stronger than Fireball; in fact, I'd say they're roughly comparable, with potentially better damage through high enough upcasting for Psionic Blast, but that range is still a problem that Fireball doesn't necessarily have.
Ego Whip: Oof, yeah, this is strong. So strong in fact, it might even make Poison Spray worth taking! Okay, that might be a stretch but it's pretty damn good, and if you combine it with the Sorcerer's Heightened Spell metamagic it becomes even better.
Intellect Fortress: Yup, it's pretty good. Don't think there's anything else for me to really add there.
Psychic Crush: Not the strongest damage dealer for a 6th level spell, but still pretty dang good. As for it being a smaller scale version of another spell, I seem to recall there being a couple other spells that are like that so I'm not bothered by it either.
Overall I think we're in agreement on this one. The only thing I have to add is if WotC is going to go the route of psionics=spells that they seem to want to go in, then I really don't see them throwing any of these spells in the bin. Nerfing them, sure, but if they scrapped them altogether I think that would just cause another headache.
Pretty sure the 'mystic points' stuff is not happening. It Tested Poorly(C), which is the death knell for any 5e thing, and Wizards' mania for ruthlessly hypersimplifying the game means that if they can make it work as simply a package of alternate spells, they will.
But yeah. At lower levels, Id Insinuation into Mind Sliver spam is brutal on critters with weaker INT saves. At lower-middish levels you can add an occasional spike of Mind Thrust for extra damage (though that does waste the disable) and just slag their brains beyond belief with Insinuation, Thrust, and Sliver all running at the same time so long as your slots hold up. Or use Thrust to hinder targets other than whatever it is you're focusing on with your Insinuation/Sliver combo. It's disgusting.
Other casters can lock single targets down, yeah - but generally only with WIS saves, which're much harder to stick, and they don't get what amounts to free Witch Bolt damage on top of it without Witch Bolt's range or action requirement. Sliver weakening the recurring save is just obnoxious for the DM, and psionics being able to hinder other stuff with Thrust while focusing on this combo is even more obnoxious.
The higher level spells are honestly mostly gravy on these three insanely potent tools. By the time you get them, enemies typically have ways and means of dealing with them, but there is no level at which robbing 2+ enemies of their actions turn after turn with damage stacked on top of it is not an excellent use of first and second-level spell slots.
Please do not contact or message me.
Id Insinuation can be fixed by just adding the functionality of it's previous iteration in the Mystic UA. Have it so that it so that the creature effected can ONLY take Dodge or Attack actions and nothing else for it's duration instead of being completely incapacitated.
As for Mind Thrust... just make it an action.
Other than that though I like the rest of these spells quite a lot and want to see more Psionics interpreted eventually. Getting new versions of stuff like Distracting Haze, Mind Storm, Broken Will and Forceful Query would be pretty rad.
Eh, psi points probably aren't coming because of previous feedback. But then again, Superior Attunement also tested poorly and that made it's way back in the final Artificer, so I guess it's not impossible. More likely though, they'll probably add an extra sidebar plugging the spell point system from the DMG as an optional rule like they did with firearms proficiency in the Artificer.
Personally I was hoping for a slightly different system from spellcasting with a couple of the same rules to appease the Balance Gods, but it seems that's not in the wind. I guess I can take this just as well.
Which of those spells would make sense to be on an Archivists spell list? Yea they already have an extended list with a bunch of psychic stuff but i feel like it'd be a shame to not have at least some of these be included.
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