In many High Post-Apocalyptic settings, mutations that result in mental/psionic powers are among the most common. Mental powers have lots of story potential and are at least faintly sinister, giving them great dramatic impact. Characters with mental mutations often have physical features that give away their powers. Examples include: a bald head with visible veins that throb or glow when he uses his powers; an enlarged cranium; and having two heads.
The mental mutations listed below typically have Limitations like Concentration or Extra Time to indicate that they’re difficult to use compared to making ordinary physical attacks. Depending on how the GM wants psionics to work in his cam- paign, these Limitations may not be required, or the powers may need many more Limitations (such as Requires A Skill Roll).
For hundreds more example mental/psionic powers, see The Ultimate Mentalist.
BRAINBURNING
Effect: RKA 2d6, BOECV, Does BODY Target: One character
Duration: Instant Range: LOS END Cost: 9
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -9
Description: By turning his telepathic powers on a target full-force, the character can literally fry the target’s brain, killing him without leaving any outward trace. The target may bleed from his nose, mouth, ears, or forehead veins when attacked this way due to the brain hemmorhage the attack causes.
Game Information: RKA 2d6, BOECV (Mental
Defense applies; +1), Does BODY (+1) (90 Active Points); Concentration (½ DCV throughout use; -½), Extra Time (Full Phase; -½). Total cost: 45 points.
BRAIN DRAIN
Effect: Drain EGO 2d6, BOECV Target: One character Duration: Instant Range: LOS END Cost: 5
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -5
Description: The character can psionically attack other people to reduce their general willpower and resistance to other Mental Powers. This version applies against Mental Defense; the character can change that to Power Defense when he buys the ability if he prefers.
Game Information: Drain EGO 2d6, BOECV
(Mental Defense applies; +1), Ranged (+½) (50 Active Points); Extra Time (Full Phase; -½). Total cost: 33 points.
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DETECT MINDS
Effect: Detect Minds Target: Self Duration: Persistent Range: Self END Cost: 0
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -1
Description: The character can sense the presence of other minds near his, making it easy to, among other things, track targets in combat when the character cannot use his eyesight. The character can also tell if the minds he perceives have any mental or psionic powers, including the type of power (or its typical effects) and its rough power level (“much stronger than mine,” “about the same as mine,” and so forth). He can make the same determinations about the target’s INT and EGO. He does not, how- ever, know what the target’s Psychological Limita- tions are; that requires Telepathy.
Game Information: Detect Minds (INT Roll)
(Mental Group), Discriminatory, Increased Arc Of Perception (360 Degrees), Sense, Targeting. Total cost: 27 points.
FEAR CONTROL
Effect: Drain PRE 3d6 Target: One character Duration: Instant Range: 185” END Cost: 5
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -5
Description: The character can psionically instill intense fear in another person or animal. (In game terms, he reduces the victim’s PRE, making him far more susceptible to fear-based Presence Attacks.)
At the GM’s option, characters could build other emotion-affecting powers with this model. For example, Drain EGO might represent the abil- ity to inflict despair and hopelessness.
Game Information: Drain PRE 3d6, Delayed
Return Rate (points return at the rate of 5 per Minute; +¼), Ranged (+½) (52 Active Points); Extra Time (Full Phase; -½). Total cost: 35 points.
ILLUSIONS
Effect: Sight, Hearing, and Smell/Taste Group Images, -3 to PER Rolls
Target: 8” Radius Duration: Constant Range: 255” END Cost: 5
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -5
Description: The character can psionically gener- ate highly believable illusions that look, sound, and even smell like the real thing. Unfortunately, touch- ing them reveals that they’re mere phantasms.
Game Information: Sight, Hearing, and Smell/
Taste Group Images, -3 to PER Rolls, Increased Size (8” radius; +¾) (51 Active Points); Con- centration (½ DCV throughout use; -½), Extra Time (Full Phase; -½). Total cost: 25 points.
MENTAL CONTROL
Effect: Mind Control 8d6 Target: One character Duration: Constant Range: LOS END Cost: 8
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -4
Description: The character has the ability to take control of another person’s mind. The more extreme or dangerous the commands he gives, the more likely it is that his attempt to control another person will fail.
Game Information: Mind Control 8d6 (40
Active Points); Increased Endurance Cost (x2 END; -½). Total cost: 27 points.
MENTAL INVULNERABILITY
Effect: Mental Damage Reduction, 75% Target: Self
Duration: Persistent Range: Self END Cost: 0
Mentalism Roll Penalty: N/A
Description: The character possesses a high degree of protection against mental and psionic powers. Even those that manage to hit him rarely have much, if any, effect.
Game Information: Mental Damage Reduction,
75%. Total cost: 60 points.
MENTAL LINK
Effect: Mind Link, one specific mind Target: One character
Duration: Persistent Range: LOS END Cost: 0
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -1
Description: The character can establish a limited form of telepathic contact — a mental commu- nications link — between himself and one other person, whom he must define when he purchases the power. Typically this person is a spouse, trusted friend, faithful animal companion, or the like.
Game Information: Mind Link, one specific
mind. Total cost: 5 points.
Options:
1) Group Mental Link I: The character can establish a Mental Link with any one member of a specific group of persons (such as his family or his team- mates). Increase to Mind Link, one specific person within a defined group. Total cost: 10 points. 2) Group Mental Link II: The character can estab- lish a Mental Link with any eight members of a specific group of persons. Increase to Mind Link, up to eight persons within a defined group. Total cost: 25 points.
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MENTAL SCANNING
Effect: Mind Scan 10d6 Target: Self
Duration: Constant Range: Special END Cost: 5 to activate Mentalism Roll Penalty: -5
Description: The character can scan for specific minds, and even establish a “mental lock-on” that enables him to target the subject mind with Mental Powers.
Game Information: Mind Scan 10d6. Total cost:
50 points.
MIND BLAST
Effect: Ego Attack 4d6 Target: One character Duration: Instant Range: LOS END Cost: 4
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -4
Description: The most basic form of psionic attack is simply to assault another person’s mind with mental energy. This could represent mentally lull- ing the victim to sleep, inflicting torturous head- aches, or a painful mental overload.
Game Information: Ego Attack 4d6 (40 Active
Points); Concentration (½ DCV; -¼). Total cost: 32 points.
MINDSCAPES
Effect: Mental Illusions 8d6 Target: One character Duration: Constant Range: LOS END Cost: 4
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -4
Description: The character can project vivid, believ- able images directly into another character’s mind. Game Information: Mental Illusions 8d6 (40
Active Points); Concentration (½ DCV; -¼). Total cost: 32 points.
MIND SHIELD
Effect: Mental Defense (20 points plus EGO/5) Target: Self
Duration: Persistent Range: Self END Cost: 0
Mentalism Roll Penalty: N/A
Description: The character possesses strong mental “shields” that make it difficult for other people to affect him with mental and psionic powers.
Game Information: Mental Defense (20 points
plus EGO/5). Total cost: 20 points.
PREMONITIONS
Effect: Danger Sense (immediate vicinity, any danger, sense)
Target: Immediate vicinity Duration: Persistent Range: Self END Cost: 0
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -3
Description: The character can foresee threats that exist and dangers that are about to arise near him.
Game Information: Danger Sense (immediate
vicinity, any danger, sense) (INT Roll). Total cost: 32 points.
PSIONIC PALSY
Effect: Drain DEX, BOECV Target: One character Duration: Instant Range: LOS END Cost: 5
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -5
Description: The character projects a pulse of psionic energy into the victim’s mind that interferes with his brain’s ability to send nerve impulses to the rest of his body. This makes him clumsy and his attacks less accurate. This version applies against Mental Defense; the character can change that to Power Defense when he buys the ability if he prefers.
Game Information: Drain DEX 2d6, BOECV
(Mental Defense applies; +1), Ranged (+½) (50 Active Points); Extra Time (Full Phase; -½). Total cost: 33 points.
PSYCHIC DIAGNOSIS
Effect: Detect Disease Target: One character Duration: Persistent Range: No Range END Cost: 2
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -2
Description: The character can send his mind into a person’s body to discern whether he has an illness, and if so what kind.
Game Information: Detect Disease (INT Roll)
(Mental Group), Discriminatory, Analyze, Sense (22 Active Points); Costs Endurance (-½), No Range (-½), Requires An SS: Medicine Roll (-¼). Total cost: 10 points.
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PSYCHIC VAMPIRISM
Effect: Transfer 3d6 (target’s EGO to character’s EGO)
Target: One character Duration: Instant Range: 335” END Cost: 7
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -7
Description: The character can leech psionic energy from another person’s mind for his own use — he strengthens his willpower while weakening the other person’s. Many mentalists use this attack to “soften up” a target before applying continuing- effect Mental Powers like Mind Control.
You can create a similar power by substitut- ing INT for EGO. This creates the ability to leech intelligence, making the character smarter while his victim becomes dumber.
Game Information: Transfer 3d6 (target’s EGO
to character’s EGO), Ranged (+½) (67 Active Points); Concentration (½ DCV; -¼), Requires An EGO Roll (assumes an EGO Roll of 14-; -½). Total cost: 38 points.
TELEKINESIS
Effect: Telekinesis (20 STR), Fine Manipulation Target: One character or object
Duration: Constant Range: 200” END Cost: 4
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -4
Description: The character can move, damage, and otherwise manipulate objects without having to physically touch them. He can even perform fine work, like typing or playing the piano (assuming he knows how to do those things).
Game Information: Telekinesis (20 STR), Fine
Manipulation (40 Active Points); Concentra- tion (½ DCV; -¼). Total cost: 32 points.
TELEPATHY
Effect: Telepathy 8d6 Target: One character Duration: Constant Range: LOS END Cost: 4
Mentalism Roll Penalty: -4
Description: The character has the ability to read the thoughts in another person’s mind, or to com- municate with another person mentally by project- ing his own thoughts into that person’s mind. The deeper the character wants to delve into another person’s mind, the more likely it is that his attempt to find information will fail.
Game Information: Telepathy 8d6 (40 Active
Points); Concentration (½ DCV; -¼). Total cost: 32 points.