Psychic Phenomena
Psychic phenomena and more deadly perils of the warp have a chance of occurring whenever a psyker uses their psychic powers.[4]
When a psyker uses one of their powers, they invariably draw from the essence of the warp to manifest fantastic abilities that would be otherwise impossible to perform. However, using psychic powers sometimes yields unexpected and unpleasant results, because the energies of the warp are unpredictable and it is filled with daemons who are drawn to psykers. The Empyrean can bleed into reality when a psyker draws into the warp for power; the deeper they draw, the higher the risk of unbidden phenomena occurring.
When a psyker uses their power, they run the risk of incurring psychic phenomena, proportional to the amount of power they choose to wield; greater power means greater risk. Most psychic phenomena do little harm, but there is a slim chance that they may suffer perils of the warp, a category of phenomena that are very harmful indeed.[1][4] However, some make no distinction between phenomena and perils, classing all psychic phenomena as perils of the warp.[6]
Warded objects, daemons, and untouchables tend to be immune to weaker phenomena or less affected by more violent perils.[1][4]
This list is by no means exhaustive, as the potential side effects of warp powers are endless. Other dangers that might also be incurred by using warp powers can include attracting miscellaneous warp entities such as Psychneuein or Enslavers.[6]
Known Psychic Phenomena
Different psychic phenomena:[1][4]
- Flickering Lights — For a brief moment, all light sources flicker and go out.[6]
- Roiling Mist — A clammy mist roils up from the ground. This obscures vision and distorts sounds with weird echoes.[6]
- Whispers in the Dark — All light sources nearby grow dim and shadow pool thickly. Sinister whisper echo and potentially corrupt those nearby.[6]
- Dark Foreboding — A faint breeze surrounds the area, giving nearby individuals an unsettling feeling.[1][4]
- Warp Echo — For a short period, any sounds cause strange echoes.[1][4]
- Unholy/Ethereal Stench — The air around the psyker becomes either pleasant or noxious.[1][4]
- Mounting Paranoia — The psyker gets an itchy back, as if there is someone behind them.
- Grave Chill[1][6] or Hoarfrost[4][6] — The area around the psyker becomes cold and frost covered out for several metres.[1][4] The temperature instantly drops 20 degrees, and returns to normal over the course of a minute. Grave Chill can be a more intense version of Hoarfrost, where a larger area becomes even more numbingly cold and is covered in ice, rather than frost.[6]
- Unnatural Aura or Aura of Taint — Any nearby animals become frightened and attempt to get away,[1] or also become agitated.[4]
- Memory Worm — Anyone in the vicinity of the psyker forgets something minor.[1][4]
- Spoilage — Any perishable goods within several metres become stale and useless.[1][4]
- Haunting Breeze — Winds surround the psyker strong enough to move around small objects.[1][4]
- Veil of Darkness — The area becomes devoid of natural light for a few seconds. Being plunged into darkness for a brief moment.[1][4]
- Distorted Reflection — Any reflective surfaces nearby break or distort.[1][4]
- Breath Leech — The air in nearby individuals lungs becomes lost, causing them to pause. The psyker and those nearby become short of breath.[1][4]
- Daemonic Mask — The psyker channels a daemon for an instant, causing them to take on a frightful appearance for a moment, but corrupting their body permanently.[1][4]
- Unnatural Decay — All plants in the area wither and die.[1][4]
- Life Drain — A numbing cold washes over the psyker, leaching the life essence of those nearby. All lesser life forms (plants, avians, insects, etc.) wither and die.[6]
- Spectral Gale — Very strong winds envelop the area, knocking people to the ground.[1][4]
- Bloody Tears[1][4] or Tears of the Martyr[6] — Images or statues appear to weep blood. Chipped stone and wood ooze blood (rather than sap in the case of the latter).[1][4]
- The Earth Protests — The ground shakes violently, causing a local earthquake.[1][4]The shaking ground can sometimes cause no real damage, but still causes any individuals within range to feel as if the ground is violently shaking.[6]
- Psy Discharge or Actinic Discharge — Static electricity fills the area, causing the psyker to float for a short period.[1] Unprotected electronics nearby short out and hair stands on end.[4]
- Warp Ghosts — Howling ethereal apparitions fill the area, flying around or howling in pain. Unnerves the living (except the psyker) and potentially causing insanity.[1][4]
- Warp Spectres — For about a minute, ethereal images of strange creature move in and out of existence, passing through objects and the living alike. The strange animals are seemingly unaware of the real world and strike fear in the living who witness the event.[6]
- Falling Upwards — Gravity reverses for a few seconds then abruptly returns to normal.[1][4]
- Banshee Howl[1][4] or Banshee Scream[6] — A very loud screech or shrill keening fills the immediate, potentially causing those nearby and the psyker to go deaf.[1][4] Glass shatters in the immediate area.[4] The Banshee Howl's area can potentially reach up to a kilometre in distance.[1] This mighty roar is akin to a sonic boom. All nearby lesser life (insects, rodents, avians, etc.) within several metres of the psyker are killed instantly, and larger lifeforms nearby might be staggered.[6]
- The Furies — The psyker is assaulted by an invisible force or unseen horrors, causing himself and nearby objects to be thrown around viciously or be slammed into the ground.[1][4]
- Shadow of the Warp — (not to be confused with the Tyranid ability) The world changes appearance, causing people to glimpse the warp for an instant. Potentially destroying or corrupting minds with the glimpse at the nature of the unseen unreality.[1][4]
- Tech Scorn — All unwarded tech devices and weapons nearby malfunction or jam.[1] Machine Spirits reject the psyker's unnatural ways.[4]
- Warp Madness — A psychic backlash of violent emotion fills the area, causing nearby individuals to become frenzied and mad. Potentially causing further emotional harm.[1][4]
The Perils of the Warp
The most dangerous psychic phenomena are referred to as the Perils of the Warp and are the most undesirable effects of using psychic abilities. It is for this reason that Psykers are considered to be a considerable threat to the Imperium, as the effects can be potentially catastrophic; allowing daemonic forces to enter the materium, or manifesting abilities beyond the control of the psyker. Therefore it is of the utmost importance that psykers be properly trained in the responsible use of their abilities and why such resources are used to capture unsanctioned and nascent psykers.
While the perils of the warp are as wild and unpredictable as any other psychic phenomena, some races such as the Eldar have managed to mitigate their effects using technological devices, (such as a Ghosthelm). However, the Imperium has yet to master their understanding of these technologies, and so the common policy with dealing with Psykers who suffer the Perils of the Warp is to provide the Emperor's mercy (execution) to them as soon as their powers become out of hand; referred to as the Ultimate Sanction[3]
Even if a psyker survives an attack from the warp, their souls are permanently marked by the close contact with the warp, becoming more susceptible to the forces of the warp in future.
The different phenomena of the Perils of the Warp:[1]
- The Gibbering — Uncontrolled warp energy surges through the psykers mind, burning out their minds and driving them insane.[1][4]
- Warp Burn — The energies of the warp manifest, striking the psykers mind and stunning him temporarily.[1][4]
- Psychic Concussion — The violent energies knock the psyker unconscious and cascade outwards, also stunning those nearby.[1][4]
- Psy-Blast — There is a sudden explosion, casting the psyker several metres into the air.
- Soul Sear — The psyker's soul is overpowered by warp energy, scarring their spirit and preventing them from using their powers.[1][4]
- Locked In — The excess energy remains in the psyker's mind, locking them into a coma until it is overcome by sheer willpower.[1][4]
- Chronological Incontinence — The psyker vanishes as time bends around them, they reappear a few moments later.[1][4]
- Psychic Mirror — The psychic power targets the psyker themselves.[1][4]
- Warp Whispers — The voices of daemons fill the area, speaking into the minds of others and corrupting their souls.[1][4]
- Vice Versa — The soul of the psyker is cast out and swaps bodies with a nearby being for a short period of time, if there is no nearby other, the soul wanders the warp for the same period and returns slightly less sane.[1][4]
- Dark Summoning — A lesser daemon physically manifests for a short period.{{Fn|1} For example, Khorne may be wrathful at the arrogance of the psyker and a bloodletter may be sent to deal with the fool.[4]
- Ethereal Storm — The excess psychic energy lashes the minds of nearby sentient creatures.[1]
- Rending the Veil — The air vibrates with images of cackling daemons and the kaleidoscopic taint of the warp is now visible, causing fear in any sentient creatures.[4]
- Blood Rain — A cloud of psychic energy envelops the area, causing storm winds and rain of blood. While this storm is in effect, any psychic powers in the area always cause perils of the warp[1][4][5][6]
- Cataclysmic Blast — The psyker is immolated with psychic energy, burning their possessions, equipment and the area around them for a few metres.[1] Arcing bolts of warp energy lash out from the psychic overload.[4]
- Psychic Overload — Streaming warp energy bursts from the psyker's eyes and mouth, going in all directions and penetrating all living creatures surrounding them.[6]
- Mass Possession — Daemons reach into the minds of all living creatures over a large area for a period. Sentient individuals must spend their time mentally combating the daemonic influence or they fall to corruption.[1][4][5]
- The Surly Bonds of Earth — much like the Falling Upwards phenomena, but gravity is reversed over a much larger area for much longer. Lifting objects much higher into the air and ultimately plummeting from greater heights.[1]
- Reality Quake — Reality buckles and is sundered around the psyker. Solid objects rot, burn, or freeze, and individuals experience rending forces through their armour. Warded objects, daemons, and untouchables are less effected by the Reality Quake.[4]
- Eye of the God — The psyker fleetingly draws the gaze of one of the Ruinous Powers. Nearby mortals are subject to potential corruption.[6]
- Daemonhost[1] — One of the most dangerous perils; the psyker is possessed by a daemon, becoming an unbound daemonhost.[1]
- Grand Possession — A greater daemon takes interest in the psyker's soul and seizes the mortal's body for its own purposes. If possession is resisted, their body now serves as a conduit for the power of the warp. If the psyker dies while possessed, the greater daemon manifests in reality for a number of days or until destroyed or banished.[4]
- Warp Feast[1] or Annihilation[4] — The uncontrolled psychic energies rip a whole in reality, centering on the psyker, sucking them into the warp to be consumed forever.[1][4]
Notes
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Some RPG game systems discard the distinction between "phenomena" and "perils", instead including all potential events under "Perils of the Warp". As such, all potential events in the Wrath & Glory Core Rulebook are listed as Perils in the Warp.[6]
See also
Sources
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- 1: Dark Heresy Rulebook, pgs. 161-163
- 2: Fallen Angels (Novel),
[Help] - 3: Codex: Imperial Guard (5th Edition), [Help]
- 4: Black Crusade Core Rulebook, pgs. 210 & 211
- 5: Harrowmaster (Novel), Part Two, "White Out"
- 6: Wrath & Glory Core Rulebook, pgs. 263-264
