manifester vs caster [Archive] - Wizards Community

manifester vs caster [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
DDAngel
09-17-07, 08:39 PM who is the best between manisfester character and caster character
Master_Vega
09-17-07, 09:56 PM I think you have the wrong board, good sir, unless you are asking about the roleplaying possibilities for either concept. :P

If you're looking for a crunchy answer, check out the Character Optimization board, or perhaps post in the magic or psionics D&D boards.
CrimsonDeath
09-18-07, 03:32 AM who is the best between manisfester character and caster character
Short answer: Casters have about ten times as many spells to choose from as manifesters have powers, and in the world of high-level magic, versatility is power. So, mechanically, spellcasters are stronger.

Personally, I find psionics very satisfying, though.
cog_n_taz
09-18-07, 04:37 AM Actually, even if it wasn't the intended question, it is an interesting one... which do you prefer out of magic vs psionics, as well as arcane magic vs divine magic vs psionics, and why?
Fithero
09-18-07, 06:58 AM Im a fan of magic, either arcane or divine.

To me, psionics (psychic powers) are more of a sci-fi tradition and not one from fantasy.

My :twocents: anyway...
herceg
09-18-07, 09:43 AM Arcane > Psionics > Divine (lets say 75% > 24.9999% > 0.00001% :D)

Two reasons: versatility and source.
CrimsonDeath
09-18-07, 12:00 PM To me, psionics (psychic powers) are more of a sci-fi tradition and not one from fantasy.

I'm not sure how that tradition got started, since there's never been any scientific evidence of psychic powers.
Radijs
09-18-07, 12:27 PM I'm not sure how that tradition got started, since there's never been any scientific evidence of psychic powers.

Hmm lets see, Star trek has Spock & Troi and even the pilot of TOS had a whole race of telepaths.
Star wars has the force.
Babylon 5 has the telepaths.
Known space has Kzinti telepaths (Thats 1940-ish)

Those pop into my head. And to be honest I can't think of any fantasy telepaths outside of DnD.
Fithero
09-18-07, 01:12 PM Hmm lets see, Star trek has Spock & Troi and even the pilot of TOS had a whole race of telepaths.
Star wars has the force.
Babylon 5 has the telepaths.
Known space has Kzinti telepaths (Thats 1940-ish)

Those pop into my head. And to be honest I can't think of any fantasy telepaths outside of DnD.

'Boo!' and 'Yah!'

Cheers Radijs :D

I'm not sure how that tradition got started, since there's never been any scientific evidence of psychic powers.

Theres never been any scientific evidence of aliens either... doesnt seem to stop sci-fi writers from using them :P
CrimsonDeath
09-18-07, 03:09 PM Actually, I think I have a reasonable explanation for how psionics became associated with science fiction. It's a way to give people magic without actually calling it "magic".

Hmm lets see, Star trek has Spock & Troi and even the pilot of TOS had a whole race of telepaths.
Star wars has the force.
Babylon 5 has the telepaths.
Known space has Kzinti telepaths (Thats 1940-ish)

Those pop into my head. And to be honest I can't think of any fantasy telepaths outside of DnD.
Star Wars was more of a fantasy space opera than sci-fi. (Face it: The Force is magic.) Known Space is probably the best explanation out of the lot, there, simply because of how much older it is than the others, although I don't know much about it. (Meanwhile, I don't know that much about Babylon 5, but Star Trek isn't really credible sci-fi... and I say this as a Star Trek fan. We're talking about the series that refined technobabble to an art form.)

As for telepathy in Fantasy... Off the top of my head, wasn't Sauron able to speak directly into Merry's mind through the Palantir?

Theres never been any scientific evidence of aliens either... doesnt seem to stop sci-fi writers from using them :P

We know that life exists, and we know that there are other planets. So, it's reasonable to believe that aliens could exist. Generally, they are restricted to doing things that we could probably do with sufficiently advanced technology (as we currently understand the laws of physics).
Radijs
09-18-07, 04:28 PM The Palantir felt more like a magical item then a psionic item to me. But thats opinions. It didn't really have the mentalist feel.

Most of the Sci-fi I mentioned where space opera. The only really hard sci-fi was Larry Niven's Known space and even thats stretching it because as the universe grew more and more handwavium was introduced.

But if you aim for hard sci-fi then telepathy quickly gets nixed because its made completely out of handwavium.

However if you really want more examples I'm sure I could dig through my collection & the web and find more telepaths dating back to the fifties and fourties.
I'm sure that at least some of the books of the space patrol have telepaths in them.

Oh I just thought of another example. "Psirens" from Red Dwarf where very telepathic.

Oh, just out of curiosity; There's credible sci-fi. Is there credible fantasy?

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
DDAngel 09-17-07, 08:39 PM	who is the best between manisfester character and caster character
Master_Vega 09-17-07, 09:56 PM	I think you have the wrong board, good sir, unless you are asking about the roleplaying possibilities for either concept. :P If you're looking for a crunchy answer, check out the Character Optimization board, or perhaps post in the magic or psionics D&D boards.
CrimsonDeath 09-18-07, 03:32 AM	who is the best between manisfester character and caster character Short answer: Casters have about ten times as many spells to choose from as manifesters have powers, and in the world of high-level magic, versatility is power. So, mechanically, spellcasters are stronger. Personally, I find psionics very satisfying, though.
cog_n_taz 09-18-07, 04:37 AM	Actually, even if it wasn't the intended question, it is an interesting one... which do you prefer out of magic vs psionics, as well as arcane magic vs divine magic vs psionics, and why?
Fithero 09-18-07, 06:58 AM	Im a fan of magic, either arcane or divine. To me, psionics (psychic powers) are more of a sci-fi tradition and not one from fantasy. My :twocents: anyway...
herceg 09-18-07, 09:43 AM	Arcane > Psionics > Divine (lets say 75% > 24.9999% > 0.00001% :D) Two reasons: versatility and source.
CrimsonDeath 09-18-07, 12:00 PM	To me, psionics (psychic powers) are more of a sci-fi tradition and not one from fantasy. I'm not sure how that tradition got started, since there's never been any scientific evidence of psychic powers.
Radijs 09-18-07, 12:27 PM	I'm not sure how that tradition got started, since there's never been any scientific evidence of psychic powers. Hmm lets see, Star trek has Spock & Troi and even the pilot of TOS had a whole race of telepaths. Star wars has the force. Babylon 5 has the telepaths. Known space has Kzinti telepaths (Thats 1940-ish) Those pop into my head. And to be honest I can't think of any fantasy telepaths outside of DnD.
Fithero 09-18-07, 01:12 PM	Hmm lets see, Star trek has Spock & Troi and even the pilot of TOS had a whole race of telepaths. Star wars has the force. Babylon 5 has the telepaths. Known space has Kzinti telepaths (Thats 1940-ish) Those pop into my head. And to be honest I can't think of any fantasy telepaths outside of DnD. 'Boo!' and 'Yah!' Cheers Radijs :D I'm not sure how that tradition got started, since there's never been any scientific evidence of psychic powers. Theres never been any scientific evidence of aliens either... doesnt seem to stop sci-fi writers from using them :P
CrimsonDeath 09-18-07, 03:09 PM	Actually, I think I have a reasonable explanation for how psionics became associated with science fiction. It's a way to give people magic without actually calling it "magic". Hmm lets see, Star trek has Spock & Troi and even the pilot of TOS had a whole race of telepaths. Star wars has the force. Babylon 5 has the telepaths. Known space has Kzinti telepaths (Thats 1940-ish) Those pop into my head. And to be honest I can't think of any fantasy telepaths outside of DnD. Star Wars was more of a fantasy space opera than sci-fi. (Face it: The Force is magic.) Known Space is probably the best explanation out of the lot, there, simply because of how much older it is than the others, although I don't know much about it. (Meanwhile, I don't know that much about Babylon 5, but Star Trek isn't really credible sci-fi... and I say this as a Star Trek fan. We're talking about the series that refined technobabble to an art form.) As for telepathy in Fantasy... Off the top of my head, wasn't Sauron able to speak directly into Merry's mind through the Palantir? Theres never been any scientific evidence of aliens either... doesnt seem to stop sci-fi writers from using them :P We know that life exists, and we know that there are other planets. So, it's reasonable to believe that aliens could exist. Generally, they are restricted to doing things that we could probably do with sufficiently advanced technology (as we currently understand the laws of physics).
Radijs 09-18-07, 04:28 PM	The Palantir felt more like a magical item then a psionic item to me. But thats opinions. It didn't really have the mentalist feel. Most of the Sci-fi I mentioned where space opera. The only really hard sci-fi was Larry Niven's Known space and even thats stretching it because as the universe grew more and more handwavium was introduced. But if you aim for hard sci-fi then telepathy quickly gets nixed because its made completely out of handwavium. However if you really want more examples I'm sure I could dig through my collection & the web and find more telepaths dating back to the fifties and fourties. I'm sure that at least some of the books of the space patrol have telepaths in them. Oh I just thought of another example. "Psirens" from Red Dwarf where very telepathic. Oh, just out of curiosity; There's credible sci-fi. Is there credible fantasy?