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Designed by: Team Walrus Designs

The Psychic – 5e Class isn’t the first Psionic class I’ve reviewed for 5e, and probably won’t be the last. It’s definitely the best I’ve come across, however. At nearly 40 pages, The Psychic is a well-designed and flexible class with five subclasses, dozens of psionic powers, and an excellent resource system that draws from Warlocks, Monks, and Bards.

With d6 hit die and zero armor proficiences, the Psychic is as squishy as squishy can be. They make up for it by being a full caster — except without the spells. Sort of.

Psionics are similar to spells, and are affected by counterspell, dispel magic, etc. The Psychic learns Psionic Talents (cantrips) as well as Psionic Powers (spells). They don’t use spell slots, instead borrowing from the Spell Points rules variant in the 5e Dungeon Master’s Guide, giving them a pool of Psionic Energy that increases as they level, and replenishes on a short rest.

At first level a Psychic knows two Talents and probably around 4-5 Psionic Powers (INT + level). They begin with only two Psionic Energy die to activate their powers, which could cost anywhere between 1 and 15 energy.

There are no hard level restrictions on any of the powers; but the Psychic is effectively capped from using certain powers until they have enough dice to activate them.

Talents and Powers offer a wide range of abilities, and I appreciate that most of them are not simply re-skinned spells. Create an invisibility field around you, summon an ooze companion, set people on fire, go hogwild with various telekinetic powers, and (Force) choke your enemies, restraining them until they fall enough times, and dropping them instantly.

In addition to spending Psionic Energy, each point of energy is actually a die that scales as you level up, similar to Bardic Inspiration (starting at a d6, then d8 at level 5, etc). Most Powers and Talents use this die to determine damage, creating an instant scaling effect for nearly every ability.

awakening of psion

Powers can also be modified and enhanced by spending additional Psionic Energy die, like upcasting with higher level spell slots, but often with different effects.

One of my favorite early examples is the simple Charm power, which is similar to the charm person spell. But by spending additional Psionic Energy die (beyond the two it takes to activate the power), you can add the command spell on top of that, ordering your temporary ally to follow a one-word command. All of that for only three energy and one power!

At second level the Psychic gains a Focus, a passive ability that further specializes them into certain roles. These foci are similar to Warlock Invocations but without all the crappy ones. All the Foci are fantastic, such as gaining a special armor (10+DEX+INT), ignoring cover, getting an INT bonus to initiative or temp hit points, or just straight-up flying!

At later levels the Psychic can swap their saving throw proficiencies, regain energy die (possibly by taking damage) and gain appropriate resistances and immunities.

As impressed as I am with the base class and its cool powers, I’m less enthusiastic about the subclasses. Out of the five subclasses, the boring, default Awakening of the Psion looks like the clear winner, which simply bolsters all your great psychic abilities.

The melee, Monk-like Egoist is fine, though I worry about that squishiness (love the 14th level diamond form though!). The Lurk isn’t very stealthy, and expands on a subclass ability that’s not all that interesting compared to other Psionic Powers. The Collective could be an interesting supporter with Mind Link, but the 30-ft range is super limiting (although I like the overall balance of Psionic Powers is they’re much lower range than spells). The Wilder’s Wild Surge is okay, and a neat theme when playing a more untested, uncontrollable Psychic.

The Psychic also features six new feats, one new background, and detailed appendices. The appendices feature insightful designer notes, as well as rules and tips for creating other psionic classes, half-classes, and subclasses.  It’s an impressively meaty supplement with the perfect amount of content, and easily the best attempt at a psionic 5e class I’ve seen so far.

Pros:

  • Includes over 60 psionic powers and over a dozen psionic talents
  • Psionic powers are moddable and flexible thanks to the Psionic Energy system.
  • Appendix that details the psionics system and how to create your own half-classes, subclasses, and powers.
  • Insightful designer notes with inspirations, goals, and explanations.

Cons:

  • Subclasses aren’t very exciting.

The Verdict: By channeling the best parts of Bards, Warlocks, Monks, and the spell points variant rules, The Psychic is a squishy yet flexible controller, damage dealer, and supporter that feels appropriately distinct from a re-themed spellcaster.

A review copy of “The Psychic” was provided by the publisher. Find more DMs Guild Reviews on my website and YouTube channel.

Support my work by using my affiliate links and pledging via Patreon.