Originally posted by ruhl-than_sage:
The Crystalite
[i]The youth stood in awe as he gazed into the orb he now held in his hands. It was nearly two feet in diameter, and quite heavy, as one would expect from a masterly crafted sphere of pure obsidian. What awed the young man however, wasn’t the craftsmanship, but the knowledge of what this orb contained, and how it came into being…
He had actually been permitted to watch as his master approached the traveler who had crossed into the valley of the last sea. No words were exchanged, but the young man had advanced far enough in his studies to know a great psychic battle had been waged. The stranger at first seeming able to put up a defense; was soon overwhelmed when the master duplicated and separated his mind from his body, storing it within his crystal focus; an amplifier and the source of power of all crystallites. Against the combined attacks, the stranger soon crumpled.
What happened next the young man would never forget, for it was a power he hoped to one day possess that he saw the master use. Approaching the collapsed remains of the stranger, the master held out his hand, the perfect obsidian orb appearing from wherever he had stored it. The young man saw the master reach down and place his hand upon the strangers form, and close his eyes. The orb briefly seemed to glow a faint red, but under the harsh Athasian sun, it was impossible to tell if the effect hadn’t been created by the blazing red sun as it descended towards the horizon.
Time passed; whether it was moments or minutes, the young man was unable to tell.
The master arose and handed the orb to the young man. The young man knew what was wanted, he was to place the orb with the others, to continue the defense of the valley.
“Always remember,” the master had told him, “we are responsible for the protection of this valley, we always have been, from the green age till now. Ours is the duty to restore and preserve the guardians which watch over, and serve us.” The phrase was one oft heard by the young man.
The young man took the heavy orb, and walked away towards where he would be burying it. It would be many years before he himself was able to hatch his Psicrystal into a true crystal focus like his masters, bursting forth from its current clumsy shell, into a swift, small, semi-transparent soft hued stone capable of amplifying the powers he was learning from his master. While away from his master he marveled at the might he might one day possess, as he dug deeper into the earth with his shovel… [/i]- Crystalite initiate
The Crystalite is a Psion who has devoted his development in the psionic arts to the study of the properties of gems and crystals, and how they uniquely effect the powers of the mind. The Crystalite learns how to channel powers through a special Crystal Focus in order to amplify his abilities, and to more fully utilize psionic items made of crystal. Ultimately he also obtains the ability to transfer the mind of another into a perfect gem or obsidian orb.
Crystalites are a very uncommon breed of psion, found mainly around the last sea region and in other sheltered pockets of athas that have been cut off from the rest of the world. Though a few members of the elusive order are rumored to be amoung their number.
Hit Die: d4
Requirements:
To qualify to become a Crystalite, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:
Skills: Knowledge (Psionics) 12 ranks, Knowledge (Gemology) 4 ranks, Craft (Gem Cutting) 4 ranks, Concentration 8 ranks
Feats: Psicrystal Affinity, Psicrystal Containment, Craft Cognizance Crystal, Any Metapsionic Feat
Psionics: Manifester level 9th, Able to manifest Schism (4th lvl telepath) and Feat Leech (2nd lvl power)
Class Skills:
The Cyrstalite’s class skills are Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Knowledge (All skills taken individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), and Psicraft (Int).
Skill Points at each level: 2 + Int modifier.
The Crystalite
Level BABFortRefWillSpecial Powers Known<br />1st+0+0+0+2Crystal Focus ― <br />2nd+1+0+0+3Resonance +1 Manifesting Level <br />3rd+1+1+1+3Improved Crystal Focus+1 Manifesting Level <br />4th+2+1+1+4Fractured Mind +1 Manifesting Level <br />5th+2+1+1+4Resonance +1 Manfesting Level <br />6th+3+2+2+5Metapsionic Resonance,<br /> Improved Crystal Focus― <br />7th+3+2+2+5Resonance +1 Manifesting Level <br />8th+4+2+2+6Improved Crystal Focus+1 Manifesting Level <br />9th+4+3+3+6Resonance +1 Manifesting Level <br />10th+5+3+3+7Secret of Guardian +1 Manifesting Level <br /> Creation
Class Features:
All the following are class features of the crystalite prestige class.
Weapons and Armor:
Crystalites gain no proficiency with any weapon or armor.
Powers Known:
At every level indicated on the chart above the crystalite gains power points per day and access to new powers as if he had also gained a level in whatever manifesting class he belonged to before he added the prestige. He does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (bonus feats, metapsionic or item creation feats, and so on). This essentially means that he adds the level of crystalite to the level of whatever manifesting class the character has, then determines power points per day, powers known, and manifester level.
If the character had more than one manifesting class before he became a crystalite, he must decide to which class he adds the new level of crystalite for the purpose of determining power points per day, powers known, and manifester level.
Crystal Focus:
At 1st level, the crystalite fashions a new shell for his psicrystal as part of becoming a crystallite. The Psion forms a special bond with his psicrystal, this bond alters both his connection with it, as well as its own physical form gaining special properties. The Psicrystal is henceforth transformed into a crystal focus.
The crystalite enters a deep meditative trance in which he merges his mind with the mind fragment contained within the psicrystal, achieving an enhanced link and resonance with the crystal. During the course of this trance an opaque shell of psychic energy forms around the psicrystal eventually cracking and hatching out a new crystal focus over the course of a full day and night. A crystalite must fashion a new psicrystal and repeat this process should the crystal focus ever be destroyed.
Use this new chart for the crystal focuses special abilities:
Crystal Focus Specail Abilities
Owner Level# Natural Armor Adj. Int Adj.Special Power Point Reserve <br />11th-12th +5 +5 Alterness, improved evasion, personality*, <br /> share powers*, sighted, telepathic link*, <br /> deliver, touch powers*, flight*, power <br /> resistance 1 <br />13th-14th +6 +6 Sight link 3 <br />15th-16th +7 +7 Channel power* 7 <br />17th-18th +8 +8 ― 11 <br />19th-20th +9 +9 ― 15 <br />21st-22nd +10 +10 Crystal focus power 21 <br />23rd-24th +11 +11 ― 27
- indicates a power appearing in the original psicrystal chart that has been altered. #For this purpose the owner level is calcualted using all of his levels in psionic classes, just as for a psicrystal. Any class that grants even one manifester level is considered a psionic class, as are any classes which grant psionic abilities as their main feature, that work outiside of the manifester level system (such as a Pyrokinetist or Soulknife).
Crystal Focus Ability Descriptions: All crystal focuses have special abilities and impart specail abilities to their owners, as shown on the table above. The abilities on the table are cumulative. Only abilities that differ from those of a psicrytal (see p. 22 of the XPH), are listed below.
Power Point Reserve (Su.): Crystal Focus’ have a power point total as indicated by the chart. These power points can be used by the owner as if it were a crystal capacitor or by the crystal focus once it gains the ability to manifest powers.
Personality (Ex.): Each crystal focus has a semi-distinct personality. In addition to the personality (or personalities) it already has when it is created it gains the personality Single-Minded. If it already had the personality Single-Minded it gains another one of the owner’s choice. This counts as though the owner had gained the benefits of the improved psicrystal feat giving the +1 bonus to effective level for determining special abilities.
Share Powers (Su): As psicrystal, except this effect works both ways if the crystal focus is able to manifest powers.
Telepathic Link (Su): As psicrystal, except the range of this effect is reduced to 300ft.
Deliver Touch Powers (Su): A crystal focus can deliver touch powers for its owner, much like a psicrystal of sufficient power can. If the owner and the crystal focus are in contact at the time he manifests a touch power, he can designate the crystal focus as the “toucher”. The crystal focus can then deliver the touch power just as the owner could. If the owner manifests another power before the touch is delivered, the crystal focus can “hold” the touch power as long as it is psionically focused and has at least one power point remaining in its reserve. If it doesn’t meet these conditions the power is lost as normal. When a crystal focus expends a touch power it is “holding”, it must expend its psionic focus. The crystal focus cannot manifest any powers or deliver/channel any other powers while it is “holding” a touch power. If the crystal focus loses its psionic focus or its last power point for any reason, while it is “holding” a power, the power is lost.
Flight (Su): A crystal focus can fly, much like a psicrystal of suficient power can. As a free action the owner of a crystal focus can will it to fly at a speed of 50ft. (perfect). The crystal focus drifts gently to the ground within a day, if it ever moves more then 300ft. away from its owner. The owner can also deactivate the power at any time as a free action.
Channel Power (Ex.): As psicrytal, except the range is reduced to 300ft.
Crystal Focus Power (Su): Your crystal focus gains the benefits of the feat Psicrystal Power (see p. 34 XPH), however it doesn’t gain any power points unless its pool is insuficient to manifest all of the powers it knows once.
Resonance:
Crystalites have a unique resonant ability with crystalline psionic items of all kinds, that can manifest in a variety of forms. At 2nd, 5th, 7th, and 9th level, a crystalite gains an ability from the following list. He must meet any listed prerequisites to take an ability.
Dorje Metapsionics:
Prerequisite: Craft Dorje
Through your special resonance with Dorjes, you can now apply metapsionic feats to them at the time of activation. To apply a metapsionic feat in this fashion you must expend your psionic focus and pay the extra power points as normal. The manifester level required to activate the power contained within the dorje + the extra cost of applying the metapsionic feat cannot exceed your manifester level.
Efficient Manufacture:
Prerequisite: Appropriate item creation feat
Choose a type of crystalline psionic item (Cognizance Crystal, Dorje, or Power Stone) that you have the item creation feat for, you can now create this type of psionic item at a reduced cost. The base price of crafting an item of this type is reduced by 25%, this also affects the experience point cost of crafting the item. This ability may be taken multiple times. Each time it is taken it must apply to a different Item Creation feat that you have.
Hide Life:
Prerequisite: able to manifest Mind Switch, Fractured Mind class feature.
Through close association and the merging of minds with your crystal focus, you have learned a special application of the power mind switch. You can use it to escape death at a moments notice. Once per day you can use mind switch as an unconditional and quickened power to switch minds with your crystal focus. If your body dies while you have your minds switched, you remain alive but trapped within your former crystal focus. You continue to be able to manifest powers and regain power points as normal, but lose all other benefits of having a crystal focus and you cannot create a new one unless you obtain a new body. This means you must use psionic powers to do even simplest things like move or sense your surroundings. In order to gain a new body you must use (or have used on you) true mind switch. Alternately if your body has raise dead or ressurection cast on it you may choose to return to your body at that time. You cannot gain experience points while inhabiting the shell of your crystal focus.
Item Drain:
Because of your special understanding of the properties of crystals, you have learned how to drain the raw psionic power out of power stones and dorjes to restore your own power point pool. Draining an object of its power takes a standard action and you must be holding the item in question. You can drain a maximum of your manifester level in power points per turn, and must drain the item in increments of charges (for a dorje) or powers (for a power stone). Each charge or power has a power point value of half of the number of power points normally required for its activation. Any half points left on your power point total at the end of the turn are lost, as are any extra power points you cannot absorb (due to the limit imposed by your manifester level). Cognizance crystals can be drained of power points at a rate of 1 for 1, but you still cannot exceed your manifester level in drained points per round.
Overchannel Dorje:
You have learned how to overchannel the powers contained within dorjes by expending more then one charge at the same time. You may use a number of extra charges equal to 1/2 your crystalite level (round down) and must expend your psionic focus. The dorjes effective manifester level is increased by 2 per extra charge expended for the purpose of determining all variables and is automatically augmented if possible. Every time you overchannel a dorje it has a 5% chance of back firing destroying the item and dealing you 1d6 dmg/extra charges used as it shatters. You cannot overchannel a dorje in excess of your manifester level.
Overchannel Power Stone:
You have mastered the technique of using your own psychic energy to boost the effectiveness of power stones that you use. Any time you activate a power stone you may spend a number of power points equal to _ your crystalite level to augment the power countained within as you choose. This increases the manifester level of the power stone by a commensurate amount, in addition to any augmentation that may be possible. The power stone’s manifester level cannot exceed your own when you overchannel a power stone. Overchanneling a power stone not only drains it of its power, but also destroys the stone, which crumbles harmlessly into a fine powder.
Power Stone Metapsionics:
Prerequisite: Imprint power stone
Through your special resonance with power stones, you can now apply metapsionic feats to them at the time of activation. To apply a metapsionic feat in this fashion you must expend your psionic focus and pay the extra power points as normal. The manifester level required to activate this power stone with the metapsionic feat must be met, or the crystalite must make a Manifester level check as per the rules found on page 168 of the XPHB. The increased manifester level from the metapsionic feat is included for the purposes of calculating the difficulty of the check.
Improved Crystal Focus:
3rd, 6th, and 8th level, the crystalite gains the benefits of the feat improved psicrystal. Use the crystal focus chart above instead of the psicrystal chart for determining specail abilities.
Fractured Mind:
At 4th level, the crystalite gains the ability to utilize his Schism power in a unique way. He is able to duplicate his psyche in the normal fashion, but he now draw upon a combined pool of his own power points and those of his crystal focus. The duplicate mind, is transferred to his crystal focus, gaining control of the crystal’s functions (movement, inherent abilities, etc). Because of the mind fragments already contained within the crystal focus, the strength of the second mind manifested by the schism is only 4 manifester levels lower then the crystalite manifester level (rather then the usual 6).
Metapsionic Resonance:
Beginning at 6th level, your crystal focus gains the ability to aid you in the application of metapsionic feats to powers you manifest. As long as your crystal focus is within 5ft of you, the power point cost of applying metapsionic feats to powers is reduced by up half. This effect extends to the use of the Power Stone Metapsionics and Djore Metapsionics resonance abilities as well. Your crystal focus can only preform a single move action in a round that you utilize this ability. The cost cannot be reduced by more than 3 points in this fashion. Nor does this ability allow you to exceed your normal manifester level for manifesting powers.
Secret of Guardian Creation:
At 10th level a crystalite gains the secret of guardian creation. Once per day he can create a guardian from the mind of a psionic creature that is dying (-1 to -9 hit points). The process takes 1 min, but once started (unless interupted) the creature will not die and is instead transferred into an obsidian orb and aquires the guardian template (see p. 66 of Terrors of Athas). While making a new guardian, the crystalite cannot preform any other actions and is considered flat-footed, but not helpless. He is aware of his surroundings and can stop the process at any time, but doing so spoils the attempt and results in the death of the subject. This ability does not give a crystalite the ability to make the Orbs of Psyche Storing (see p.9 Dragon rules). He must either be able to manufacture them, or obtain a suitable orb from somewhere in order to make use of this ability.
Originally posted by Pennarin:
I was told by someone working high up in athas.org’s hierarchy that only obsidian orbs should be able to contain a person’s mind, not any other material or object, including other forms of crystals.
Heh, I’ll wait 'till the formating is there for further comments.
Originally posted by lyric:
even if that is so, the Crystalite when using his own mind, does it temporarily, else Obsidian is involved. Also, a Crystalite’s Crystal Focus, being derived from a Psicrystal, is a unique factor. A typical Psicrystal can contain a fragment of a personality, a mind of sorts. This is a unique situation (and you need to be very high level to make it happen).
Originally posted by Pennarin:
Sage, want me to make you tables for those two difficult-to-read blocks of text?
Originally posted by lyric:
please do 
Originally posted by Pennarin:
Well, it’s not perfect, but I tried.
Level BAB Fort Ref Will Special Powers Known<br />1st +0 +0 +0 +2 Crystal Focus ― <br />2nd +1 +0 +0 +3 Resonance +1 Manifesting Level <br />3rd +1 +1 +1 +3 Improved Crystal Focus +1 Manifesting Level <br />4th +2 +1 +1 +4 Fractured Mind +1 Manifesting Level <br />5th +2 +1 +1 +4 Resonance +1 Manfesting Level <br />6th +3 +2 +2 +5 Metapsionic Resonance,<br /> Improved Crystal Focus ― <br />7th +3 +2 +2 +5 Resonance +1 Manifesting Level <br />8th +4 +2 +2 +6 Improved Crystal Focus +1 Manifesting Level <br />9th +4 +3 +3 +6 Resonance +1 Manifesting Level <br />10th +5 +3 +3 +7 Secret of Guardian +1 Manifesting Level <br /> Creation
Owner Level Natural Armor Adj. Int Adj. Special Power Point Reserve <br />11th-12th +5 +5 Alterness, improved evasion, personality*, <br /> share powers*, sighted, telepathic link*, <br /> deliver, touch powers*, flight*, power <br /> resistance 1 <br />13th-14th +6 +6 Sight link 3 <br />15th-16th +7 +7 Channel power* 7 <br />17th-18th +8 +8 ― 11 <br />19th-20th +9 +9 ― 15 <br />21st-22nd +10 +10 Crystal focus power 21 <br />23rd-24th +11 +11 ― 27
Originally posted by ruhl-than_sage:
The currently exsisting rules for psicrystals have them containing personality fragments, as lyric said. In those rules (which are officially adopted for DS at this point) and psicrystal can be enhanced with the feat Improved Psicrystal potentially as many times as their are different personality fragments. As the psionic strength of the owner grows, so does the intelligence of a psicrystal, and since each time you select Improved Psicrystal that also increases you effective level by one, you can end up with an extremely intelligent psicrystal.
The crystal focus is merely an enhanced/altered version of a normal psicrystal (alread accepted by the rules). By 20th level (if you have completed this PrC), even without anyother outside improvements to your crystal focus it will have an intelligence of 18 with 5 different personality traits and the ability to manifest a power on its own. I think that qualifies as a mind. It should be noted that the same thing could be accomplished if you took the Improved Psicrystal feat four times.
Now, if the DS community wants to alter the rules for psicrystals to make them all obsidian orbs, then those will be the only things that can contain minds, but as the rules are currently adopted psicystals (and by extension crystal focuses) are a sort of back door exception.
Originally posted by ruhl-than_sage:
Doesn’t anybody have anything to say about the balance of the abilities/progression of the class? Do you like the concept? Or think it needs work. Please any feedback is welcome. 
Even from the co-designers who already helped to put this together.
Originally posted by Pennarin:
Its a daunting read.
Originally posted by kalthandrix:
I only had minimal input on the creation, but I really like it- and I am glad that a form of the hide life I had suggested made it into the PrC.
Indepth posting will have to wait for now.
Sage- if you e-mail me a file with any fixes you made I can put all of the formatting issues to rest and add all the charts too.
This week is just really busy- but I will do it this weekend if you send it
Originally posted by lyric:
I think its great, I’ve e-mailed Sage with my comments, mostly formatting and typos, two questions in there as well… but I think it looks great. I do hope we get more feedback on this though, it would be a shame to come out with something this nice and have it ignored 
… Hey, do you think this would be an interesting PrC for say, an Avangion? I know Dragons already use orbs and all, but this might be a way for an Avangion to gain that power of storing minds without being a Dragon… should they normally not gain that power (can’t wait for the writeup).
Originally posted by zombiegleemax:
Very true (needs formating), but it’s basically built around improving one’s psicrystal. All the other abilities can be seen as offshoots of that core.
Originally posted by lyric:
I think that’s what we were going for mostly.
Originally posted by zombiegleemax:
Definitely, and it turned out rather nicely
Originally posted by Pennarin:
There’s no need for this post now.
Originally posted by kalthandrix:
I think it would also be easier to follow if the Psi-crystal information, chart, and abilities were all at the bottom- keeping all the Crystalite abilities together instead of breaking them up with the other info.
Originally posted by ruhl-than_sage:
My internet is finally up and running at my new address, so I should be able to give the boards more attention once again. The crystal focus information is all listed right before the classes other abilites, so I don’t think it’s too bad, I’ll go ahead and reformat it some though. To make it easier to read.
Originally posted by ruhl-than_sage:
[quote]I only had minimal input on the creation, but I really like it- and I am glad that a form of the hide life I had suggested made it into the PrC.
Indepth posting will have to wait for now.
Sage- if you e-mail me a file with any fixes you made I can put all of the formatting issues to rest and add all the charts too.
This week is just really busy- but I will do it this weekend if you send it[/quote]
Everyone’s help was much appreciated , don’t downplay your input Kal. I already sent everyone who worked on the project an RFT file of the class as an attachment on the last email I sent. Did you not get it 
? Send me an email and I’ll reply back with the RTF file if you still want it.
or a 
?
