Psychomorphics

Perception Alteration is essentially the ability to make the target think he is sensing something which he isn't. Such an alteration may be either Subtractive or Additive. Subtractive alterations include blocking the sensing of something or someone ("psychic invisibility"). Additive alterations include causing the target to sense something which isn't really there, or altering the way in which he senses an object or person ("psychic illusion"). The more detailed the alteration, the more difficult the alteration becomes. The sensory environment of the target should always be taken into account when assessing the difficulty of using this ability. Causing the target to not see the psychic in the middle of a crowded market is much easier than attempting the same action in a quiet room. The opposite can be true of attempting to perform an additive alteration in a crowded environment - to make it realistic, many more factors must be taken into account. Some examples of difficulty modifiers:

Situation	Difficulty Modifier
Subtractive Alteration in a complex sensory environment (crowd, storm, lots of movement, etc)	-2
Subtractive Alteration in a reduced sensory environment (quiet room, open desert, etc.)	+2
Additive Alteration in a complex sensory environment (crowd, storm, lots of movement, etc)	+2
Additive Alteration in a reduced sensory environment (quiet room, open desert, etc)	-2
Target is trained Telepath with Mindshield	+5

Suggestion is the ability to implant sub-conscious thoughts or impulses in the mind of a target. Normally this ability is usable only if the psychic can see the subject, or if mental contact has been made through ESP. The mind of a Psychic who is trained in Mindshield cannot be affected without penetrating the shield (which normally requires a psychic attack). If Suggestion is used in concert with a Psychic Attack (see below), the difficulty of the Suggestion Trial is reduced by 3.

Five categories of Psychic suggestions exist:

1)	Actions or thoughts which are typical or likely on the part of the target	Moderate (8)
2)	Actions or thoughts which are within the target's basic nature/personality, although not typical	Moderate (12)
3)	Actions or thoughts which are not in keeping with the target's nature/personality, but which are not in direct opposition to the target's nature/personality	Challenging (15)
4)	Actions or thoughts which are directly in opposition to the target's nature/personality	Difficult (18)
5)	Actions which will directly harm the target (i.e. suicide, attacking an obviously superior foe, etc.)	Difficult (22)

A significant failure on the Suggestion Trial may result in the target becoming aware that the suggested thought or action did not originate in his own mind (Mythguide discretion based on situation and likelihood of target considering that possibility).

One specific use of Suggestion is to suggest that the target is really tired and sleepy so that the target will go to sleep immediately. This is almost always a suggestion which is typical or falls within the target's basic nature. Only in an extraordinary circumstance would it not be in the target's basic nature to sleep. Thus, suggesting a target go to sleep is usually one of the easier suggestions to make. Note that the target still gets a Charisma (Willpower) Trial to resist, according to the degree of success of the Suggestion Trial. The difficulty of the target's Willpower Trial could also be modified based on the situation (i.e. a soldier who just got a full night's sleep and is standing guard in the middle of a crisp spring day is much less likely to act on such a suggestion than one standing guard in the middle of the night).

Suggestion:

Default Difficulty	See chart above
Marginal Success	Suggestion is effective, but target is allowed a Charisma (Willpower) Trial at Routine Difficulty (3) to avoid taking action on suggestion or otherwise accepting it.
Complete Success	Suggestion is effective, but target is allowed a Charisma ( Willpower) Trial at Routine Difficulty (7) to avoid taking action on suggestion or otherwise accepting it.
Superior Success	Suggestion is effective, but target is allowed a Charisma ( Willpower) Trial at Moderate Difficulty (10) to avoid taking action on suggestion or otherwise accepting it.
Extraordinary Success	Suggestion is effective, but target is allowed a Charisma ( Willpower) Trial at Challenging Difficulty (15) to avoid taking action on suggestion or otherwise accepting it.
Mythic Success	Suggestion is effective, but target is allowed a Difficult (20) Charisma ( Willpower) Trial to avoid taking action on suggestion or otherwise accepting it.

Note: if the target is aware for any reason of the Suggestion attempt (through mystical warning, etc), the attempt will automatically fail. Certain charms also protect against Suggestion and related actions.

Psychic Attack is the ability to overcome conscious or unconscious resistance from a target.
Normally this ability is usable only if the psychic can see the subject, or if mental contact has been made through ESP/Telepathy. The rules for resolving a Psychic attack are fairly involved, but are easily applied, once the basic principles are grasped.

A Psychic Attack is a direct mental assault on the Will of the target, represented by the Charisma (Willpower) attribute. The Psychic attempts to bypass/overcome the target's effective Willpower in order to attempt another Psychomorphic action, or to batter it down in order to inflict more permanent mental trauma. Basic success in a Psychic Attack bypasses/overcomes the Willpower of the target, for the purpose of that attack alone. This can be used by the Psychic as an entry point for one attempt at the use of another Psychomorphic ability, such as Suggestion, Emotion Alteration, or Possession. The target's effective Willpower returns to normal for any future attempt, however.

Superior success or better on a Psychic Attack grants the potential for more enduring results. Increased degrees of success can reduce the target's effective Willpower edge semi-permanently ("Psychic Damage"). Such Willpower loss is regained over time, but the target's effective Willpower is reduced for the purpose of future trials. Repetitive Psychic attacks (or a single powerful attack vs. a weak-willed target) can result in a target's Willpower rating being reduced to zero for a period of time. During this period, the target is almost completely vulnerable to Psychic Attacks (and other actions which target a Persona's Willpower). Psychic Attacks which result in Psychic Damage can now, at the option of the Psychic making the attack, permanently reduce other mental characteristics of the target. Such characteristics are typically the mental attributes (Perception, Logic, and Presence - Willpower having already been reduced). This damage does not heal on its own (unlike Willpower, which does "heal" naturally over time), but must be healed through some active means (psychic ability, magic, or deific healing).

Other mental characteristics could potentially be targeted, however. Possible targets include the Insight Trait, certain Background Aspects, etc. Negative Psychological Background Aspects could be caused by a Psychic Attack. For example, the attacking Psychic could choose to inflict psychic damage on the target by mandating a rank in the Fear Background Aspect.

Finally, an attacking Psychic may choose to apply Psychic Damage to cause the target to make a Shock Trial at a Difficulty equal to twice the number of Psychic Damage points. All Psychic Damage must be applied to one effect - a Psychic cannot split points of Psychic Damage among effects.

Willpower which has been reduced through Psychic Damage is regained over time. Each day during which the Persona gets a basic amount of rest, experiences no undue trauma, and has reasonable health requirements met (basic shelter, enough food and water to stay healthy, etc), the Persona may make a Charisma (Willpower) Trial to regain a point of Willpower. Obviously, the lower the effective Willpower of the Persona, the less likely they are to succeed at this trial, and therefore the longer it will take to recover even a single point of Willpower. A Persona whose Willpower has been effectively reduced to zero might take a very long time to heal. Care and nurturing above and beyond the minimum required might grant a slight bonus to the trials. Psychic, magical, or deific healing could also directly help the Persona. Once again, this recovery process applies only to effective Willpower reduction - it does not apply to reduction of other mental attributes due to Psychic Damage.

A target who is a Psychic trained in the Mindshield ability has the option of making an active defense against a Psychic Attack. The attacking Psychic rolls his Psychic Attack Trial as normal, using the target's Willpower attribute to determine difficulty. The target Psychic rolls a Mindshield Trial, using the attacking Psychic's Willpower attribute to determine difficulty in the same manner. The degrees of success of the two trials are then compared using the Dodge Results chart in the ARIA Conflict chapter to determine relative success or failure of the Psychic Attack. Treat AF results as requiring a Concentration Trial at the difficulty specified for a Fumble Trial on the chart. Failure on this trial results in the loss of 1 OP per degree of failure on the Trial. Treat K# results as requiring the target to make a Shock Trial at the difficulty specified for a Knockback Trial on the chart.

There may be cases where the target of a Psychic "Attack" is willing (see restoring memories using Memory Alteration, below) to allow the Psychic to bypass their defenses. Even in such cases, the Willpower of the target provides the difficulty, but the resulting difficulty can be lowered by two if the target truly trusts the Psychic. Of course, a Psychic with Mindshield is not forced to use an active defense, and can always forgo that option if she wishes.

Use of Psychic Attack requires the psychic to make a Fatigue Trial with a difficulty equal to the difficulty of the Psychic Attack Trial.

Psychic Attack:

Default Difficulty	Target's effective Charisma (Willpower) attribute *3
Marginal Success	Psychic Attack is successful. The Psychic may attempt any one Psychomorphic ability on the target, without resistance. However, the difficulty of the accompanying Psychomorphic Trial is increased by one.
Complete Success	Psychic Attack is successful. The Psychic may attempt any one Psychomorphic ability on the target, without resistance.
Superior Success	Psychic Attack is successful. The Psychic may attempt any one Psychomorphic ability on the target, without resistance. At the attacking Psychic's option, one point of Psychic Damage may be applied to the target instead, attacking Charisma (Willpower) first.
Extraordinary Success	Psychic Attack is successful. The Psychic may attempt any one Psychomorphic ability on the target, without resistance. At the attacking Psychic's option, up to two points of Psychic Damage may be applied to the target instead, attacking Charisma ( Willpower) first.
Mythic Success	Psychic Attack is successful. The Psychic may attempt any one Psychomorphic ability on the target, without resistance. At the attacking Psychic's option, up to three points of Psychic Damage may be applied to the target instead, attacking Charisma ( Willpower) first.

Emotion Alteration is the ability to manipulate the emotions of a target. This is normally possible only after a successful Psychic Attack has bypassed or reduced the target's mental defenses.

In order to determine the effects of this ability on a target, the Mythguide must first assess the current emotional state of the target. This may have already been done as part of an earlier sensing action by the Psychic. Use the following guidelines to quantify the emotional state of the target along one or more continuums: Happy/Sad, Calm/Angry, etc. Examples of such a quantification include:

	Happy / Sad	Calm / Angry
+2	Target is elated. Target is visibly happy and continuously demonstrates behavior appropriate to the target's emotional state, but in a more extreme fashion (i.e. joyful singing, laughing out loud, etc.)	Target is very calm. Target is unflappably calm, and will not lose his temper even if severely provoked.
+1	Target is happy. Target is visibly happy, and occasionally demonstrates appropriate behavior (whistling, chuckling, greeting passersby, etc)	Target is calm. Target is not likely to lose his temper, even if provoked.
0	Target is slightly happy or slightly unhappy, but not visibly so.	Target is somewhat calm or slightly agitated, but not visibly so.
-1	Target is unhappy. Target is visibly unhappy, and occasionally demonstrates appropriate behavior (frowning, bleak appearance, etc.)	Target is upset. Target is visibly angry (reddened complexion, agitated movements, gestures, etc.)
-2	Target is sad. Target is visibly sad, and continuously demonstrates appropriate behavior, and in a more extreme fashion (crying/weeping, listless, etc.)	Target is furious. Target is at the point of losing control of his actions, or already has done so. Target demonstrates extreme behavior (shoving, fighting, shouting, strong gestures).

Once the target's beginning emotional state is determined, the Psychic attempts an Emotion Alteration Trial, and may alter the target's emotional state along one or more continuums, according to the degree of success.

Emotion Alteration:

Default Difficulty	Moderate (10)
Marginal Success	Target's emotional state may be adjusted by one step in either direction along one continuum.
Complete Success	Target's emotional state may be adjusted by up to two steps in either direction along one continuum, or by one step in either direction along two different continuums.
Superior Success	Target's emotional state may be adjusted by up to three steps in either direction along one continuum, or by one or more steps in either direction along two or more different continuums, up to a total of three steps.
Extraordinary Success	Target's emotional state may be adjusted by up to four steps in either direction along one continuum, or by one or more steps in either direction along two or more different continuums, up to a total of four steps.
Mythic Success	Target's emotional state may be adjusted by up to five steps in either direction along one continuum, or by one or more steps in either direction along two or more different continuums, up to a total of five steps.

Dream Alteration is the ability to influence the dreams of a target. Like Emotion Alteration, this is normally possible only after a successful Psychic Attack has reduced the target's mental defenses. If the target is asleep, the Psychic can provide direct input to the target's dreams, either by suggestive symbolism or by altering dream elements in the target's mind. If the target is awake, the Psychic can implant suggestions of dream subjects or elements which will come into effect when the target next sleeps. Dream Alteration techniques rely more on subtlety and long-term reinforcement than on direct control of elements. Dreams are powerful elements in the psyche of a Persona, but their power is balanced by their relative resistance to outright control.

See the Dreamlands section for more information on dreams and interactions in the dream world/state. Note that use of Psychomorphics does not put the Psychic into the target's dreams, it merely influences the mind of the dreamer. Thus, the Psychic is influencing the dreams only indirectly, through the mind of the dreamer.

Dream Alteration:

Default Difficulty	Moderate (10)
Marginal Success	Target's dreams may be influenced in one minor way - a minor dream element may be introduced, for example.
Complete Success	Target's dreams may be influenced in one way - adding one element to a dream, or suggesting a subject for a dream.
Superior Success	Target's dreams may be influenced in one major way, or in several lesser ways. Several minor dream elements could be introduced, for example, or a subject may be imposed for a dream (although the actual events or result of the dream remains outside the direct control of the Psychic).
Extraordinary Success	Target's dreams may be influenced in recurring ways. A recurring dream on a subject of the Psychic's choice could be imposed, or a recurring dream element may be introduced into the target's normal dreams.
Mythic Success	Target's dreams may be influenced in multiple major or recurring ways. A recurring dream on a subject of the Psychic's choice could be imposed, with several dream elements of the Psychic's choice.

Memory Alteration is the ability to alter the memories of the target, either by adding false memories or by removing or altering existing memories. This is normally possible only after a successful Psychic Attack has bypassed or reduced the target's mental defenses. Like emotions and dreams, memories are somewhat subjective in nature, and require judgment on the part of the Mythguide in resolution of this ability. Memories can be fundamentally quantified using three main aspects: duration of the memory, intensity of the memory, and relation of the memory to other memories of the target.

For example, a memory of a conversation which lasted for several hours would require more effort to alter than a memory of a brief glimpse of a face. Likewise, a memory of an emotional scene (an angry exchange, winning a race, lovemaking, etc.) would require more effort to alter than a memory of walking to the market and purchasing bread. And a memory of drinking beer with a known friend, just like the target does every night at the local tavern, would be harder to alter than a memory of a single meeting with an acquaintance whom the target barely knows and has only seen a couple of times.

Altering a brief, unrelated memory of an less intense event is the simplest task for this ability. Increasing the duration, intensity, or relatedness of the memory each adds to the complexity of the task, and thus adds to the difficulty of the Memory Alteration Trial. The Mythguide should assign a difficulty modifier to the trial based on the described alteration. Note that the type of alteration (adding a memory, removing or changing one, etc.) is not important in determining the difficulty of the trial. The relative complexity of the alteration is the primary determinant.

Memory Alteration:

Default Difficulty	Moderate (8)
Marginal Success	The memory is successfully altered, although the alteration will fade with time, and the "original" memory will restore itself gradually (Mythguide discretion).
Complete Success	The memory is successfully altered. The target may attempt a Routine Intellect Trial whenever he encounters, even casually, evidence in opposition to the alteration. If successful, the target may remember the "original" memory (partially or fully).
Superior Success	The memory is successfully altered. The target may attempt a Moderate Intellect Trial whenever he is confronted with evidence in direct opposition to the alteration, and if successful, may remember the "original" memory (partially or fully).
Extraordinary Success	The memory is successfully altered. The target may attempt a Challenging Intellect Trial whenever he is confronted with evidence in direct opposition to the alteration, and if successful, may remember parts of the "original" memory. Some aspect of the alteration will always remain, however.
Mythic Success	The memory is successfully altered. The target may attempt a Difficult Intellect Trial whenever he is confronted with evidence in direct opposition to the alteration, and if successful, may remember minor parts of the "original" memory. Several aspects of the alteration will always remain, however.

Note that a Psychic using this ability can also restore the memories of a target. Use the degree of success of the first alteration as a guide to modifying the difficulty of the restoring alteration (i.e. a Marginal Success on the first alteration would likely result in a lowered difficulty to restore the target's memory, while a Mythic Success would greatly increase the difficulty of doing so).

Possession is the ability to take active control of another's consciousness. A Psychic who possesses another sentient being can control the target's will and body, and can even rummage through the target's memories to a limited extent (more precise or involved memory functions can be attempted using a version of Memory Alteration, above). Possession is an ethically troubling action, and is rarely practiced by any psychic who adheres to a positive code of ethics. The practice of Possession has been the cause of many anti-Psychic movements and/or "witch hunts" in some areas in the past, and past excesses by Psychics have resulted in cultural taboos against psychic ability/training in some cultures. Nevertheless, there are applications of Possession which could potentially be used for good, and thus some psychics who would otherwise abhor the practice may study its use.

Possession is also somewhat harder to accomplish than other Psychomorphic abilities - not just because of the high default difficulty, but also because the target gains an active opposition roll based on their effective Charisma (Willpower). If the target's degree of success on a Routine (5) Willpower Trial exceeds (not equals) the degree of success on the Possession Trial, the attempt fails. Thus, possession is most often attempted only after the target's effective Willpower has been significantly or totally reduced.

Once the psychic has possessed the target, the psychic can control the target's actions by making Routine (7) Concentration Rolls each Action Interval, or can control the target outright by allowing his own body to relax and enter a state of subdued consciousness (similar to sleep). Either way, the possessor must split his Option Points between the bodies, and may not use more Option Points than the respective body would normally have. In addition, if the possessor is making Concentration Rolls to control the target, 1 OP each Action Interval must be spent to make the Concentration Roll.

Use of this ability costs the Psychic one Fatigue Level.

Possession:

Default Difficulty	Challenging (15)
Marginal Success	The target is possessed, but only for a single action interval, after which the target's consciousness reasserts itself.
Complete Success	The target is possessed, but may make a Moderate (8) Charisma (Willpower) Trial each Narrative Interval to reassert control, or in response to an appropriate situation (Mythguide discretion).
Superior Success	The target is possessed, but may make a Challenging (13) Charisma ( Willpower) Trial each Narrative Interval to reassert control, or in response to an appropriate situation (Mythguide discretion).
Extraordinary Success	The target is possessed, but may make a Difficult (18) Charisma ( Willpower) Trial each Narrative Interval to reassert control, or in response to an appropriate situation (Mythguide discretion).
Mythic Success	The target is possessed, and may not reassert control except as a result of truly extraordinary circumstances.

Mindswap goes a step beyond Possession, allowing the Psychic to actually "switch" his consciousness with that of the target. The Psychic may, with a significant degree of success, impose a coma-like state on his own body for a short period of time, during which the target's consciousness will in effect be imprisoned inside the Psychic's own body. The Psychic is free to control the target's body (but not mental processes) while his body rests. With lesser success, the target's consciousness has a degree of control over the Psychic's body, and can move about, talk, etc. Obviously, this might present problems in some circumstances.

The Psychic must be in sight or in mental contact with his original body in order to return his consciousness to his own body. The Psychic may make a Possession Trial at -5 Difficulty to retain control of the target's body / consciousness after returning to his own body. Failure allows the target to reassert control. The possessing Psychic is the only entity which can end the Mindswap at will, although the target could theoretically attempt a counter-possession if the target was a Psychic with that ability (!).

Use of Mindswap costs the Psychic one Fatigue Level.

Mindswap:

Default Difficulty	Difficult (18)
Marginal Success	Psychic exchanges consciousness with the target, but target remains free to act while in the Psychic's body.
Complete Success	Psychic exchanges consciousness with the target, but target remains free to act while in the Psychic's body.
Superior Success	Psychic exchanges consciousness with the target. Target's consciousness is held captive in a coma-like state for up to several hours. After that period, the target may make periodic Moderate (8) Charisma (Willpower) Trials to gain control of the Psychic's body (Mythguide discretion as to interval between attempts).
Extraordinary Success	Psychic exchanges consciousness with the target. Target's consciousness is held captive in a coma-like state for up to one day. After that period, the target may make periodic Challenging (13) Charisma ( Willpower) Trials to gain control of the Psychic's body (Mythguide discretion as to interval between attempts).
Mythic Success	Psychic exchanges consciousness with the target. Target's consciousness is held captive in a coma-like state for up to several days (although the health of the body might suffer). After that period, the target may make periodic Difficult (18) Charisma ( Willpower) Trials to gain control of the Psychic's body (Mythguide discretion as to interval between attempts).


	Psychomorphics is an advanced psychic discipline that can only be learned by a trained psychic who is an experienced telepath.

	Psychomorphics allows a psychic to alter and/or manipulate mental qualities of another, including memory, opinion, and tendencies. Psychomorphics possesses the most potential for unethical behavior, and as such its use is often shunned by some psychics. Its potential power, however, makes it popular among unscrupulous or desperate psychics. Psychomorphics can also be used in a beneficial manner, and its abilities are often employed by healers who seek to remedy psychological or emotional trauma or problems.