 January 7, 2010 - 8:44am | Not eveyone can see new posts in projects so I wanted to blast this out to the community. Over in the Mentalism project we are (all two of us, lol) are discussing equipment that "enhances", "blocks" or "detects" mentalism powers. I'm not sure if you need to be a member in order to post. In either case I'd like to hear what you have to say. :-) Refer to: Mentalist Equipment |
 January 7, 2010 - 4:52pm | I was under the impression most of us didn't use any Mentalist in our games. At least I never did except for the alien lifeform that it's a part of their genetic make-up. In every age, in every place, the deeds of men remain the same. |
January 7, 2010 - 9:01pm | I would have guessed the same. I've been working on a mentalism project and play-testing a few mentalist character so I'm pretty pumped about it. If you have any suggestions please let me know. |
 January 9, 2010 - 11:50am | I started the Mentalism project for those who like it. Post as you wish, its open to all, but please only if you LIKE mentalism. After reading a lot of pulp era sf, psychic abilities seem to be part and parcel of the genre, so I feel that mentalism should have its place in SF. Likewise, some of the races, such as the ul-mor and sathar have at least pseudo-mentalism abilities, or at least abilities that would be enhanced or blocked by mentalism. As to mentalist items, yeah go for it! Long live the Frontier! |
January 10, 2010 - 12:33pm | One could always borrow the idea of the lens from Lensman and adapt it into SF. Maybe tone it down a notch, after all some lensman were pretty powerful dudes. A very good way to add Mentalist abilities into a game. I've just recently gotten around to going through the Lensman books and have gotten to the final one. But how would one make a thought screen? In every age, in every place, the deeds of men remain the same. |
January 10, 2010 - 8:14pm | One could always borrow the idea of the lens from Lensman and adapt it into SF. Maybe tone it down a notch, after all some lensman were pretty powerful dudes. A very good way to add Mentalist abilities into a game. I've just recently gotten around to going through the Lensman books and have gotten to the final one. But how would one make a thought screen? Sounds interesting, "thought screen". I'm not familiar with Lensman - can you elaborate? |
January 11, 2010 - 10:45am | One could always borrow the idea of the lens from Lensman and adapt it into SF. Maybe tone it down a notch, after all some lensman were pretty powerful dudes. A very good way to add Mentalist abilities into a game. I've just recently gotten around to going through the Lensman books and have gotten to the final one. But how would one make a thought screen? Sounds interesting, "thought screen". I'm not familiar with Lensman - can you elaborate? I'm not overly (only vaguely) familiar with Lensmen myself (I couldn't really get into the first book; its so dry), but as to how to build a "thought screen" - well, how does one build an inertia screen, or an albedo screen, or any other screen? If we treat mentalism as an energy type, then it should be able to be manipulated to at least some degree, even if machines can only block or enhance it. Or, some race could have devised biotechnology that interacts with mentalism, and can produce some sort of thought screen. just some ideas, here... Long live the Frontier! |
January 11, 2010 - 11:44am | Yeah, Lensman is pretty dry at times. The thought screen is a device that must be powered like any other screen. I'd guess it came about in the Lensman books from the development of scanners that can read thoughts and even aliens that could do all this naturally, then along come the Lensmen that can do this with a small lens on their wrist. The lens gave Lensmen abilities to send or recieve messages with a thought, and over very great distances at that. The main character Kim Kinnison became a second stage Lensman got the ability to take control over an unwary mind and remote control them. Thought screen would block such things, and the Boskone leader Lord Helmuth reminded his underlings to keep checking the batteries in their thought screens. The thought screens were powerful enough to even block a second stage Lensman. The lens of the Lensmen comes from the planet Ariesia and can not be copied by any means. And neither can a lens made for one lensman be worn by any one else, to try and do so results in instant death. And when the Lensman dies the lens disappears with him. There was even a tiny device suggested by Worsel and made by Thornedyke that can kill with a thought and use less mental energies in that process. They did this because it was already known a Lensman can kill with a thought, but at great mental exertion. This device made it easier, and only one was made and given to Kinnison. Come to think of it, the Lensman is listed in the back of the SF Alpha Dawn rule book. In every age, in every place, the deeds of men remain the same. |
January 11, 2010 - 12:29pm | A book I just read, "The Last Colony", by John Scalzi, featured a piece of biotech called a BrainPal, which was a piece of wetware that amplified the user's mental capacities in memory and speed of thought, as well as allowing instant communication between users, and in some cases, telepathy. He didn't go into the science of it too much in this book, but it was third in a trilogy, so perhaps he discussed it earlier ("Old Man's War" and "The Ghost Brigades" are the previous titles). Long live the Frontier! |
 January 11, 2010 - 4:11pm | One could always borrow the idea of the lens from Lensman and adapt it into SF. Maybe tone it down a notch, after all some lensman were pretty powerful dudes. A very good way to add Mentalist abilities into a game. I've just recently gotten around to going through the Lensman books and have gotten to the final one. But how would one make a thought screen? Sounds interesting, "thought screen". I'm not familiar with Lensman - can you elaborate? I'm not overly (only vaguely) familiar with Lensmen myself (I couldn't really get into the first book; its so dry), but as to how to build a "thought screen" - well, how does one build an inertia screen, or an albedo screen, or any other screen? If we treat mentalism as an energy type, then it should be able to be manipulated to at least some degree, even if machines can only block or enhance it. Or, some race could have devised biotechnology that interacts with mentalism, and can produce some sort of thought screen. just some ideas, here... If I may, gargoyle, skip Triplanetary, and go straight to First Lensman, the action picks up there, if you can stand the patriotic preaching. I believe Kimball Kinnison and his children actually became the living embodiment of the Lens as time went on. My suggestion for a thought screen: Clone some living brain tissue, and incorporate it into an electronic wearable device which amplifies the cloned tissue's thoughts, so they will be picked up by any prying telepaths instead of the wearer's. On the other hand, an AI, assuming we go with the premise that AIs have thoughts which can be read/transmitted, can make up the core component in a thought screen. "You're everything that's base in humanity," Cochrane continued. "Drawing up strict, senseless rules for the sole reason of putting you at the top and excluding anyone you say doesn't belong or fit in, for no other reason than just because you say so." —Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stephens, Federation |
January 11, 2010 - 10:22pm | Now there's a twist - do robot brains produce thought waves? Can robots have mentalist powers? These are the questions that keep w00t up at night. (Actually it's work but I lie to myself. ;-)) Star FrontiersMan #6-p1 "The Improved AI hardware and software gives the robot the ability to adapt, grow, make decisions, have a sense of self, receipt and use of tactile sensors to have a sense of touch, approximation of sense of smell through special air receptors and membranes, and other things that define sentience. The robot will be able to ponder situations even when not directly confronted with them, has random thoughts moderated by need and current focus level, can express its thoughts imaginatively, and will wonder about its place in the universe." Interesting comments all. :-) |
