RP reset: psionics

[Ivan2006]

I see your concern, catsonmeth.
If we outline psionics in too much detail, there may turn out to be loopholes in the system that allow people to arsepull uberpowerz with it.
This would clearly be a worrying scenario.

I am honestly partly using "paranormal activity" as a by-product of psionic stuff existing. If a force of nature exists, its effects would have been observed at some point. Therefore I need to find something that normal science can not explain (umbrella term: paranormal activity) and have it be a by-product of psionics existing in our universe.
It is a simple matter of logic.
Psionics exist -> psionics do stuff
Psionics have always existed -> psionics have always done stuff
People didn't know psionics back in the pre-warp era -> there must have been events with psionics incolved that had been explained differently/incorrectly or not at all.
"scientifically unexplainable phenomenons" = "paranormal activity" by definition -> at least partial psionic involvation
psionics exist -> paranormal activity at least partially caused by psionics
As you can see, if we want to both have psionics and maintain our "obey physics somewhat"-policy while not altering earth's history until present day, we need to make psionics the explanation for at least some paranormal activity.

I also agree that subspace is very energetic and unfocused, this is one of its primary attributes. And also the reason why putting the psionic background noise in there would make total sense and why that would lead to psionic subspace drives. Imagine if it was, among other forms of energy, flooded with psionic energy. Anyone entering subspace would get grinded down by their forces. However, imagine if one had the ability to control the psionic part of that energy. Firstly, the psionic energy would no longer be a threat to you and secondly, it would even shield you from other forms of energy, which reduces the load on your FTL-stabilizers by a great ammount and allows development of subspace drives at an earlier stage than without psionics. However, keep in mind that this type of FTL would have a major downside: litterally any psionic would be able to sense if you pass nearby, and with nearby, we are talking about distances between from an earth-sized planet's surface to high orbit to across half a system depending on how adept that psionics user is.

As for the general issue of overdefining you are talking about, my personal fear is UNDERdefinition.
Imagine we have psionics and no detailed layout on how they are supposed to work. Someone could litterally present "special agent X" with "ability Y" due to "blah psionics Z" and get away with it because a) psionics are allowed and b) the definition of psionics does not deliberately exclude Z.
I think we need a TIGHT definition of psionics if we want to avoid it from being used as generic.plot_device by more or less anyone.
We have this beautiful system set up where anything needs to have a somewhat scientific explanation in order to work. If we refuse to apply this to psionics as well, we are more or less purpusefully creating a backdoor in the very system that is supposed to prevent plot-device equipment from being arsepulled. I am not on the board of GMs, but please hear my warning.
Not to mention that if we do not define how any and all psionics would work, it would be a very hard job to judge if a technology was "scientifically sound" in the sense of our rules as soon as the term "psionics" shows up in the explanation. If we have tight rules, we can cross-reference the effect the psionics have in that tech with our general psionic theory and either declare it valid or invalid based on that.

PS: I understand that psionics are a very complicated matter. Provided we use my system, I would volunteer for the job of "Psy-GM", essentially a sub-GM with the sole job of making sure people use psionics properly. Of course, I would still have to write up the last, and possibly most controversial bit of psionics: the means to technological utilization of psionics and even more dreading: how the hell do you get enough psionic energy to use in major ship-to-ship weaponry, shields and get a hold on the psionic storm you'd have to deal with in psionic FTL.

[Ivan2006]

Iv, you don't even RP. Why are you here?

There is a minor chance that he may at some point waht to join an RP and he then wants that RP to confine to his personal ideas of what the FC universe should be like.
Also he smalled controversy, and for some reason he always get a say in controversial topics.

[Professor Fenway]

I understand your point, though I am completely opposed to the paranormal part/ background psionics, because it is a purely biological thing that works in subspace.

[Iv121]

Plus who knows ACH once Im past my exams I mgiht be working on that RP tool again.

[Ivan2006]

I understand your point, though I am completely opposed to the paranormal part/ background psionics, because it is a purely biological thing that works in subspace.

That's the fundamental difference between our ideas.
You think of psionic energy being CREATED by life.
I think of psionic energy being native to subspace and being drawn into normal space and utilized by life.
Background psionics would not be an effect of psionics, but rather the natural, uncontrolled form of psionic energy which psionic signals move through as waves through water.
If psionics were a "purely biological thing", you have exactly two options: defy the first law of thermodynamics by making psionic energy be "magically regenerated" over time and essentially insert the rules of Eragon magic into a sci-fi setting or you make psionics have the metabolism of a snorlax (requireing giganormous ammounts of calories in proportion to physical activity). Unless you have another idea, then feel free to tell me.

[cats]

Most of what you're already suggesting is magic, you just replaced it with "psionic" or "subspace."

[Professor Fenway]

My idea is akin to your second thing. If you bothered to read my prior statement, I likened psionics to "life force," energy that takes no physical form, but without it, the subject dies. It's technically the total energy density of the person, and by using psionics, you're reducing the total energy of yourself. Thus over-exertion and overuse can be deadly. This 'life force' is essentially extracted from food. HOWEVER, psionic amps exist that serve to siphon off life force over long periods of time, holding them in a capacitor. Psionic energy is drawn from these capacitors first, and these regenerate by taking energy from the person slowly, at a rate consistent with their metabolism.

These psionic amps are crucial for any psionic and can store HUGE amounts of 'life force', thus allowing for extended psionic use without needing excessive food. Unfortunately, their only use is with psionics.

Think of 'life force' this way (It's just a name); it's the collective energy released by all chemical reactions in one's body at any given time. This energy can be diverted by a psionic, but do it too much and the body begins to fail.

[Error]

So if I'm reading Fen's thing right, psionics are the "why" of sentient life (why it happens, I mean). It exists within every sentient being, but not all of them can use it for anyrhing in particular.

Or maybe I'm rambling.

[Professor Fenway]

Not really. It's just a pattern, and 'life force' is just a name for simplification. It's the energy every living thing has that is released by every chemical reaction; such as splitting H2O, respiration, etc. Psionic potential just allows you to use that energy for things other than bodily functions.

Hell, a plant could potentially have psionic potential, just not be able to use it at all.

[cats]

@Ivan's post: It's not a force of nature, it's a method of using the forces nature. "Psionic Energy" is just energy that is being used by a psionic. Subspace isn't filled with "psionic energy," it's filled with raw, dense quantum forces which are insanely difficult to extract in any large quantity. An enormous expenditure of energy would be required to open a subspace rift for more than a few nanoseconds, even more to guide a ship through subspace without being spat out into realspace or hyperspace or being torn apart by the raw energy. This is why subspace transportation is only available in the far latter part of the 3rd millennium.

I listed a few ideas for energy sources in my first post. There's not much of a point even linking to subspace at all. Those that leech interdimensional forces would be the rare exceptions, not the usual, and they would be pretty powerful because they'd have a nearly inexhaustible amount of energy at their disposal at any time in any place in two universes. Of course, they could burn up or create a fissure in realspace and be accelerated into the energetic vacuum at lightspeed or collapse into a microsingularity.

@Error: "Psionics" is a term that includes every instance of a mind affecting the universe without using the body (well, the brain, but not the other parts.) as a medium. Most things with nervous systems produce some electromagnetic field, that could be considered an example of psionics.

[ACH0225]

Strigiforme Psionic Birth Statistics
Cuuyth- 1 per 6 billion average
Vyytral- 1 per 10.5 billion average
Iiyllan- None born(pop. 12 billion)
Hyyra- None born(pop. 15 billion)
Jyytil- None born(pop. 8 billion)
Cyyrc- None born(pop. 18 billion)
Byytryy- 1 per 7 billion average
Pyyrtii- None born(pop. 9 billion)
Piirriic- None born(pop 11 billion)

This does not include all worlds, as many have not yet been properly polled.

[cats]

Pretty sure that's not how it works.

[ACH0225]

I'm making the assumption that psionics are like the thing stuff from Mass Effect, where a segment of the population has it and most of them don't. Running on that assumption, the Strigiforme are pretty much psionically barren.

[cats]

It would be a one in several hundred trillion chance that an organism would have the correct mutations on the correct chromosomes to develop the neurological apparatus and complex instincts needed to be a fully-functional psionic described by Ivan.

Psionic devices would be applied to the subject according to the species' neural structure. If the biological apparatus doesn't exist, then it can be substituted with other signals. Psionic adeptness would be measured not only by the existence of natural ability, but also by elasticity of the brain and its pathways and structures, how well it can accept a device. It would be more of a spectrum rather than psionic or not psionic.

[ACH0225]

It would be a one in several hundred trillion chance that an organism would have the correct mutations on the correct chromosomes to develop the neurological apparatus and complex instincts needed to be a fully-functional psionic described by Ivan.

Psionic devices would be applied to the subject according to the species' neural structure. If the biological apparatus doesn't exist, then it can be substituted with other signals. Psionic adeptness would be measured not only by the existence of natural ability, but also by elasticity of the brain and its pathways and structures, how well it can accept a device. It would be more of a spectrum rather than psionic or not psionic.

I think you are complexicating that more than necessary. While it would be fine for an individual RP, having an empire run on psionics like the MQR or derivatives would lead to large resource drain and eventual annoyance. The prior concept of genetic psionic ability has worked well in Empire RPs, which are the main focus of RP forum.