In general, psionic armor and shields follow the rules for the equivalent magic items, as far as enhancement bonuses, stacking, and other base abilities are concerned. An enhancement bonus is treated the same way regardless of whether magic or psionics created it.
Psionic armor and shields differ from standard and magical equivalents in that psionic armor and shields incorporate one or more crystals into their construction. Particularly powerful armor and shields may be entirely composed of brightly hued or transparent crystals.
Psionic Armor and Shield Special Abilities
Most psionic armor and shields only have enhancement bonuses. Such items can also have one or more of the special abilities detailed below. Armor or a shield with a special ability must have at least a +1 enhancement bonus.
Minor | Medium | Major | Special Ability | Base Price Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
01–30 | 01–07 | 01–03 | +1 bonus1 | |
31–74 | 08–30 | 04–05 | +4,000 gp | |
75–80 | 31–46 | 06–10 | +4,000 gp | |
81–96 | 47–55 | 11–20 | +6,000 gp | |
97 | 56–66 | 21–30 | +6,000 gp | |
98 | 67–75 | 31–40 | +2 bonus1 | |
99 | 76–83 | 41–50 | +10,800 gp | |
– | 84–89 | 51–60 | +3 bonus1 | |
– | 90–94 | 61–70 | +3 bonus1 | |
– | 95–98 | 71–77 | +3 bonus1 | |
– | 99 | 78–83 | +24,000 gp | |
– | – | 84–89 | +4 bonus1 | |
– | – | 90–94 | +4 bonus1 | |
– | – | 95–96 | +40,320 gp | |
– | – | 97–98 | +5 bonus1 | |
– | – | 99 | +65,520 gp | |
100 | 100 | 100 | Roll twice again2 | – |
1Add to enhancement bonus to determine total market price. | ||||
Minor | Medium | Major | Special Ability | Base Price Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
01–35 | 01–05 | 01–03 | +720 gp | |
35–60 | 06–10 | 04–05 | +1 bonus1 | |
61–89 | 11–15 | 06–10 | +6,000 gp | |
90–97 | 16–35 | 11–24 | +2 bonus1 | |
98 | 36–58 | 25–34 | +10,800 gp | |
99 | 69–88 | 35–44 | +12,960 gp | |
– | 89–92 | 45–54 | +3 bonus1 | |
– | 93–96 | 55–64 | +3 bonus1 | |
– | 97–98 | 65–74 | +20,160 gp | |
– | 99 | 75–81 | +24,000 gp | |
– | – | 82–88 | +4 bonus1 | |
– | – | 89–93 | +40,320 gp | |
– | – | 94–96 | +5 bonus1 | |
– | – | 97–99 | +5 bonus1 | |
100 | 100 | 100 | Roll twice again2 | – |
1Add to enhancement bonus to determine total market price. | ||||
Armor & Shield Ability Descriptions
Aporter
As a standard action, a suit of aporter armor or an aporter shield transports the wearer and her equipment to any spot within 800 feet that she can visualize or specify, as the Dimension Door, Psionic power. The armor or shield can transport the wearer in this fashion twice per day.
Moderate psychoportation; CL 10th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Dimension Door, Psionic; Price +40,320 gp
Averter
On command, up to three times per day, any creature to whom the wearer presents an averter shield must succeed on a DC 14 Will save or be overcome by a powerful aversion to the wielder (actually the shield), and will not approach within 30 feet. This is a mind-affecting compulsion effect, as the Aversion power.
Faint telepathy; CL 5th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Aversion; Price +12,960 gp
Ectoplasmic
As a standard action, ectoplasmic armor converts itself, its wearer, and all the wearer’s equipment into Ectoplasmic Form for up to 5 minutes once per day, as the power of the same name. In this semisolid state, the wearer gains damage reduction 10/psionics.
Faint psychometabolism; CL 5th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Ectoplasmic Form; Price +10,800 gp
Floating
This kind of armor is psionically buoyant in water or a similar liquid, negating the normal penalty for wearing armor when making Swim checks. Additionally, it grants a +4 circumstance bonus on Swim checks.
Faint psychoportation; CL 4th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Float; Price +4,000 gp
Gleaming
This kind of armor is usually made of crystal, though it doesn’t have to be. Gleams and flashes from the armor give the wearer and his armor a “fuzzy” appearance, granting the wearer concealment.
Faint metacreativity; CL 5th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Concealing Amorpha; Price +3 bonus
Heartening
This kind of shield grants the wearer up to 5 temporary hit points per day on command. These temporary hit points fade after 4 minutes. The wearer can activate this power as an immediate action at any time.
Faint psychometabolism; CL 4th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Vigor; Price +720 gp
Landing
A suit of armor with this capability allows the wearer to ignore any damage dealt by the first 60 feet of a fall. Regardless of the height of a fall, the wearer always lands on her feet.
Faint psychoportation; CL 4th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Catfall; Price +4,000 gp
Linked
This kind of armor or shield allows the wearer to form a telepathic bond with other wearers of linked armor or shields within 10 miles. This ability is otherwise similar to the Mindlink power.
Moderate telepathy; CL 6th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Mindlink; Price +6,000 gp
Manifester
This kind of shield generates 3 power points once per day that the wearer can use when manifesting a power he knows. These power points must all be used on the same power. As usual, a psionic character cannot pay a power’s cost with power points from more than one source, so the power points in the shield must be used for discrete manifestations.
Moderate clairsentience; CL 6th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, knowledge of any 2nd-level psionic power; Price +10,800 gp
Mindarmor
This kind of armor or shield grants the wearer a +3 insight bonus on Will saving throws to resist all mind-affecting and/or compulsion powers.
Faint psychokinesis; CL 5th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Empty Mind; Price +24,000 gp
Phasing
The wearer of this kind of armor can move through wooden, plaster, or stone walls, but not other materials. The wearer can call on this special ability as a standard action. When the phasing ability is active, the wearer can pass through a wall or some other kind of appropriate object for a total distance of 60 feet per day (see below), breaking this distance up into several smaller passages or one long one, as desired. A wearer who exceeds this daily distance limit while inside solid material is ejected from the material at the point of entry, ending up prone in front of the now impassable barrier.
Phasing through a wall that separates two adjacent squares on the grid counts as 5 feet of distance. Phasing through a wall or barrier of any greater thickness counts as a distance equal to the barrier’s thickness plus 5 feet. feet of distance.
Strong psychoportation; CL 13th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Phase Door, Psionic; Price +65,520 gp
Power Resistance
This kind of armor or shield grants the wearer power resistance while it is worn. The power resistance can be 13, 15, 17, or 19, depending on the amount that was built into the armor or shield.
Moderate clairsentience; CL 9th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Power Resistance; Price +2 bonus (PR 13), +3 bonus (PR 15), +4 bonus (PR 17), +5 bonus (PR 19)
Quickness
This kind of armor increases the wearer’s speed by 5 feet. Thus, a character whose normal speed in armor is 20 feet moves 25 feet in armor of quickness.
Faint psychoportation; CL 4th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Burst; Price +1 bonus
Radiant
The wearer of this kind of armor gains resistance 10 against energy attacks (acid, cold, electricity, fire, or sonic). The armor absorbs the first 10 points of damage dealt by any such attack, and this absorption causes it to radiate light for a number of rounds equal to the points of damage absorbed. This light is sufficient to illuminate a 60-foot-radius area.
If the armor absorbs more damage while it is radiating light, the newer radiant effect overlaps (does not stack with) the effect that was already in place.
Moderate psychokinesis; CL 9th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Energy Adaptation; Price +4 bonus
Ranged
The wielder of a ranged shield can throw it in combat, with a range increment of 30 feet. While in the air, the shield is treated in all ways as a ranged weapon and cannot be blocked or grabbed except by those with appropriate feats. No matter the size of the wielder, a buckler or light shield deals 1d6 points of damage and a heavy one 1d8 points. (A tower shield cannot be created with this special ability.) The wielder’s Strength modifier and the shield’s enhancement bonus add to the base damage.
A ranged shield flies through the air back to the creature that threw it. It returns to the wielder just before the creature’s next turn (and is therefore ready to use again in that turn).
Catching a ranged shield when it comes back is a free action. If the wielder can’t catch it, or if the wielder has moved since throwing it, the shield drops to the ground in the square from which it was thrown.
Faint psychokinesis; CL 5th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Far Hand; Price +1 bonus
Seeing
This kind of armor grants a wider than normal field of vision, so that opponents flanking the wearer gain only a +1 bonus on their attack rolls instead of +2 (rogues still get their full sneak attack damage because the wearer is still flanked). The wearer gains a +1 enhancement bonus on Spot checks but takes a –2 penalty on saves against gaze attacks.
Faint clairsentience; CL 5th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Ubiquitous Vision; Price +6,000 gp
Time Buttress
This kind of shield gives the wielder a chance to avoid telling blows by using time itself as a shield. Once per day, the wielder can use Timeless Body as though manifesting the power.
Strong psychoportation; CL 17th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Timeless Body; Price +5 bonus
Vanishing
On command, this suit of armor or shield renders its wearer and all the wearer’s equipment invisible to the minds of others, as if he had manifested the power Cloud Mind. The wearer can use this ability twice per day.
Faint psychokinesis; CL 5th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Cloud Mind; Price +3 bonus
Wall
As a standard action once per day, the wielder can drop this kind of shield at his feet and command a Wall of Ectoplasm (as the power) to come into being, with the shield as the point of origin for the effect. This effect forms a wall whose area is up to twelve 10-foot squares or a sphere or hemisphere with a radius of up to 12 feet. The wall dissipates after 7 minutes, or sooner if the wielder of the shield reclaims it (thus dismissing the effect).
Strong metacreativity; CL 12th; Prerequisites: Craft Psionic Arms and Armor, Wall of Ectoplasm; Price +20,160 gp