Natural Novas

[NewK]

We know that some novas erupted well before N-day (Cestus Pax among them).

Now, for psionics, the natural psions are psiads, who have greater breadth at the cost of power. Given that we have Cestus, it's unlikely that "natural" novas would be the same.

How would you handle them?

My thought is that they be somewhat less vulnerable to flux, at the cost of taking longer to gain power. IE more stable, but slower (which also works to explain why Cestus is powerful--but not as powerful as a "normal" nova would seem to be after years of growing in strength).

[IanWatson]

I think you're looking at this backwards.

Psiads are naturally-occuring psi-users, who typically trigger when they're exposed to sufficient psi energies in the surrounding environment.
Psions are artificially-created psi-users, dunked in a Prometheus Chamber to rewrite their genetics to enable them to channel psi in a specific way.

Novas erupt from exposure to sufficient quantum energies. They are the naturally-occuring novas. The only thing artificial is the cause of the quantum energies to which they've been exposed.
Superiors are an example of artificially-created quantum-users, subjected to the Nakamura Process to rewrite their genetics to enable them to channel quantum in a specific way.

[Mateus Luz]

A pre N-Day Nova would have no transformations or transcendence, probability limited to quantum 3, as at Q4 you get an obligatory Transcendence. Also, Eruption would kick to a lower level, about 75XP would be enough.

There are also the stalwarts, we may need to wait for Adventure to see how they will be described before we can discuss them properly. But, they could be the idea of a Pre-N-day Nova if that fits...

[Starkiller]

Novas erupt from exposure to sufficient quantum energies. They are the naturally-occuring novas. The only thing artificial is the cause of the quantum energies to which they've been exposed.
Superiors are an example of artificially-created quantum-users, subjected to the Nakamura Process to rewrite their genetics to enable them to channel quantum in a specific way.

I always thought that superiors were a form of artificially created talents, well that was a surprise.

[Dataweaver]

In the first edition, where they never quite got published that's what they were supposed to be. The second edition changed it up. For the better, in my opinion.

[LordHeru]

What Dataweaver said. This change, from what I understand, was made because Talents already naturally exist in all eras and so there is no need for an artificial version of them in the Aeon era.

[Dataweaver]

I guess. To me, the reason probably has more to do with the fact that Superiors are more similar to what Adventure called Stalwarts than to what Adventure called Daredevils. I have no problem with their being “artificial Talents”; I just don't think they'd look like Superiors.

[LordHeru]

Well now you just make me want Adventure! and its Stalwarts, Mesmerists, and Daredevils. hehe

But yeah, as part of the original thing, Novas are the natural quantum users, them being on the same line as Psiads and such.

The idea that Superiors are the artificial quantum users makes me interested in the idea of how much they could be pushed before the nova nature pushes back. Same with Psions, I would love if there was a potential future where a modified Prometheus Process was developed to break down the barriers, thus turning Psions back into their truly natural Psiads.

[Dataweaver]

I think that it's highly likely that as psiads evolve over the century starting with Æon, they'll gradually get more potent; and once humans crack the secret of Promethean Chambers and start building their own, the limitation to one Aptitude will be revealed as an artificial restriction. End result: the distinction between psion psiad disappears.

[Lian]

I guess. To me, the reason probably has more to do with the fact that Superiors are more similar to what Adventure called Stalwarts than to what Adventure called Daredevils. I have no problem with their being “artificial Talents”; I just don't think they'd look like Superiors.

1e Superior mechanics DID look alot more like Daredevils with some cyberware than low stalwarts

[Dataweaver]

Not really, no. While they did get Ability boosts, they also got Attribute boosts, improved healing, and physical, mental, and social Merits that represent innate qualities. And the Ability boosts had more to do with their “enhanced physiology” (direct quote) and special training than with them having some sort of innate talent: almost half of the extra Ability points they were given went into Endurance and Resistance (“because of their enhanced physiology”); two points were pegged to “Mediation” (I'm assuming that was a typo, and they meant “Meditation”) and Subterfuge; and the remaining four points were specifically described as a bonus to a single skill “as a part of their special training”. The closest thing to “talent” was that those Abilities that were linked to their Primary Attributes could go up to six dots — but then, their Primary Attributes could also go up to six dots.

In a nutshell, the bulk of their boosts related either to enhanced innate qualities, which is not what the heart of Adventure!'s Daredevils was all about (they were about exceptional skill, courage, and luck); but it's very much in line with what its Stalwarts were all about.

To my mind, an “artificial Talent” would look more like the Excelsiors from Fists of Flux than like the Superiors of either edition of the game.

[Mateus Luz]

In 1e daredevils were not more than extreme specialists or lucky bastards, as there was no energy, flux or dimensional explanation to their existence. Stalwarts and Mesmerists had a direct correlation to the other 2 games in the fact they were capable of handle quantum and psi, but not Daredevils.

There were a lot of discussion on Daredevils nature in forums, some syaing Mercer was unique kind of super human, and some that he was a Talent that went beyond the limits, what means Mercer and Talents were dealing with some kind of energy. One theory was that they were some kind of proto-proto Nova/Psion, a interaction of humans capable of dealing with both quantum and psi simultaneously in a subconscious way, the other was basically what we have as a talent in TC, dealing with a third energy, capable of alter time and probabilities.

As a side note here, in D20 Adventure! Mercer power is described as Psionic in nature, what would make him a Psiad of a 9th aptitude.

Then there were the Asia Ascended, that were never released officially, but was turned available later online (I have it in PDF for the last 15 years or so, and I have no idea where I got it, probably in Eon site, I don’t know). There, the writers put an end on the discussion, and Daredevils become handlers of a third energy and Superiors were an forced variation of them, stronger and more capable, not different than a Psion to a Psiad.

The idea of a “limited Nova” is new to Trinity Continuum, and probably the best solution to this entire a situation.

By the way, thanks for the Excelsior reference...

[Eldagusto]

Yeah Novas are their version of Psiads it would be One offs that would be like Psions. They would be from experiments and the like and N days seems to have expanded their potential if not boosted them right at the event.

[johntfs]

I think that it's highly likely that as psiads evolve over the century starting with Æon, they'll gradually get more potent; and once humans crack the secret of Promethean Chambers and start building their own, the limitation to one Aptitude will be revealed as an artificial restriction. End result: the distinction between psion psiad disappears.

Agreed, though that's probably not going to be a thing in Aeon - unless it's a Huang-Marr Bioware-style horror thing that the regular Psions (and Psiads and Superiors and Talents etc.) have to stop before it eats a city population's brains or something.

I find as I go along that while I really like the mechanics of Trinity Continuum, especially for Aeon, I kind of prefer the world setting of Trinity (Base). I liked the stories of people who clearly had good intentions but did some pretty awful things - as with Huang-Marr. I liked that Zwiedler is a caring doctor but also a severely out-of-touch administrator and that the lack of trust and communication among the Psi Orders was directly responsible for the Esperanza disaster. That for all their great power, the proxies were still very much fallible human beings who fucked things up and made bad judgements.

I don't know. In some ways in Trinity Continuum there's a bit of a through-line of "The NPCs have got this. We'll be fine." Heck in the Aeon book that's the overall takeaway for the Aeon future. Humanity will be fine even if the PCs do absolutely nothing.

In Trinity (Base) it was pretty clear that the NPCs had very much not got this. The PCs were directly involved in vital, necessary actions and changes. Haung-Marr is discovered and smashed because of them. The teleportors are discovered and many freed from the Chromatics because of them. The ability to negotiate in good faith with the Chromatics happens because of them. Learning about the FTL capability of the Coalition Ark happens because of them.

The tag of Trinity: Continuum is Hope, Sacrifices, Unity. I just wish it were clearer that "The PCs are the Hope, because they can make the Sacrifice to achieve Unity."

[Mateus Luz]

I don't think you must take that part of the book as the "Meta Plot" behind TC: Aeon. My view of that is, the characters will do their parts, but can't do it all by themselves, so someone will do the rest when you are not looking.

The proxies are as failed as they were before, but now there is a general increased hope that missed in 1e. To be fair, 1e characters were considered doing everything only if you follow all the adventures written, much like what happens in Aberrant 1e, where you are hunting/finding Antaeus in the jungle and latter helping with the election, and later you are scouting Corbin, and latter you are killing Elites or Utopians, basically all the main plot points are covered by the characters because yes.

You can have a sequence of events that guide your characters to all the places and situations needed to cover all the plot points, but you don't have to as a SG, basically because the characters are not alone in a universe of useless people, or at least people too busy to avoid world end...