This article covers expansion-only (Mindgames) content.
Contents
General information[]

Psionics are abilities introduced in the Mindgames Expansion that are comparable to spells found in traditional RPGs. They add a wide variety of useful powers vital to surviving in The Pit. Each Class is typically encouraged towards certain "schools" of psionics due to a higher starting score in certain skills or differences in Psi point pool or regen, e.g. Telekinesis for the Engineer, Manifestion for the Psion, Resistance for the Ranger and so on.
New abilities are unlocked as you invest into each of the 7 psionic skills. Casting a psionic costs Psi Points, along with 1 to 2 food, and will end your turn. After being used, it will take a certain number of turns before it can be used again. This waiting period is known as "Recharge (Rc)".
Every class recovers Psi Points after a certain number of ticks. Both the number of ticks between each recovery and the amount of Psi Points that regenerate are based on both the character class and the game Difficulty Setting. The table below is ordered from the class that has the poorest Psi Point regeneration to the best. Please note that game doesn't display fractions for Psi Regeneration but it still counts them.
Psi Point regenerated / every x ticks | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Class | Easy | Normal | Hard | Insane | Seriously |
Warrior | 2 / 10 | 1 / 10 | 0.8 / 10 | 0.8 / 10 | 0.5 / 10 |
Mercenary | 4 / 10 | 2 / 10 | 1.6 / 10 | 1.6 / 10 | 1 / 10 |
Engineer | 4 / 8 | 2 / 8 | 1.6 / 8 | 1.6 / 8 | 0.5 / 8 |
Medic | 2 / 4 | ||||
Ranger | 6 / 8 | 3 / 8 | 2.4 / 8 | 2.4 / 8 | 1.5 / 8 |
Marine | 6 / 6 | 3 / 6 | 2.4 / 6 | 2.4 / 6 | 1.5 / 6 |
Shepherd | 4 / 6 | 2 / 3 | 1.6 / 3 | 1.6 / 3 | 1 / 3 |
Scout | 8 / 4 | 4 / 4 | 3.2 / 4 | 3.2 / 4 | 2 / 4 |
Striker | 6 / 2 | 3 / 2 | 2.4 / 2 | 2.4 / 2 | 1.5 / 2 |
Psion | 10 / 2 | 5 / 2 | 4 / 2 | 4 / 2 | 2.5 / 2 |
Seeker | 6 / 1 | 3 / 1 | 2.4 / 1 | 2.4 / 1 | 1.5 / 1 |
Most Psionics improve in duration as their governing skill increases. The exact duration in turns / moments of most psionics can be viewed in the SotSDex log. Targeted psionics can only be cast within your line of sight but not on an Invisible creature or furniture, with some exceptions (e.g. disguised Adaptoids).
- The amount of Psi Points at your disposal is equal to your Brains + Power * 2. It can be increased or decreased by serum Bio mods.
- Most classes also gain psi points from levels: Shepherds gain 6 per level, Psions, Seekers, Strikers, and Scouts gain 5, Marines gain 3, Engineers gain 2, Mercenaries and Rangers gain 1, and Warriors gain 0.
- Power has no direct effect on the strength of psionics, but more psi points does allow for certain potent combos and more frequent use of low-cost psionics. Whether a creature resists certain offensive psionics or not is checked through your 'psi skills' or power (depending ob ability).
- Cyborg creatures can be targeted by Psionics which affect Mecha and Organic, but the resulting effect tends to be less effective.
- Being afflicted by the Pain status effect strips you of any Psionic protection or "buff" you currently have, and prevents you from using any psionics.
- Stim Towers and Master Minds grant immunity against Status Effects to all creatures within the room. Thus, a Fear would do nothing while a Shrapnel Storm would cause damage, but never Paralyze. Indoctrinators on the other hand cause you to be much more vulnerable to offensive enemy psionics.
- The terms "entry level" or "entry point" simply refers to the number you need to reach to unlock a psi skill's first ability, e.g. "Empathy and Resistance have an entry point of 15".
Empathy[]
15 makes it a good all-around choice, but it is best paired with another school, especially after acquiring Psi Drain. It has everything a Scout needs
Ability | Skill | Cost | Rc | Description | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 skill | 55 psi |
30 turns |
Marks all Organic/Cyborg creatures on your screen and on the map for 36 turns. |
Reveals disguised Adaptoids and invisible creatures. Does not help against "Blind". Useful when affected by Madness Trap - It doesn't mark illusions. Should be used often. | |
45 skill | 80 psi |
3 turns |
Fears an Organic/Cyborg creature for 6-15 turns. On successful roll has 50% chance to Paralyze it instead. |
Success chance depends on your and enemy's Power. | |
65 skill | 25 psi | 10 turns | Drains Psi points from a creature, provided it has any to begin with and that it hasn't used or lost it already |
Low cost, very efficient way to refill your Psi points. Success chance depends on your and enemy's Power. The max amount drained per cast is linked to your empathy skill - a cast with 92 skill would drain a max of 92 Psi. | |
85 skill | 145 psi | 50 turns | Disguises you into a nearby creature for [Empathy / 10] turns (rounded up)*. Same effect as Image-Inducer belt | Prevents resting, and attacking a creature cancels the effect. |
*When enemies use this ability they become immune to behaviour altering status effects like Paralyze. It is unkown wether or not this is a bug.
Telekinesis[]
Ability | Skill | Cost | Rc | Description | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
25 skill | 25 psi | 15 turns |
Allows any interaction from a distance. Use Arrow keys to target. |
You can still be Stunned by
a device, but explosions will not harm you so long as you are far enough. Can be used to close doors from a distance. | |
40 skill | 50 psi | 5 turns | Single-target damage from any range, but poor against armored creatures. Damage, penetration and knockback scale with Telekinesis. |
A successful roll will knock back the target. Try to memorize which creatures have low armor, so you can save ammo against them. | |
65 skill | 50 psi | 100 turns | Increases your chance of being "missed" for [Telekinesis / 2] turns:
|
Effective against ranged creatures, especially when combined with other accuracy penalties. | |
75 skill | 70 psi | 5 turns | Paralyzes a target and causes moderate damage for 3 turns. Damage scales with skill level, but has static penetration of 60. | Paralysis has 100% chance unless target has immnuity to Paralysis or it is in a room with Stim Tower or Master Mind. Damage will always happen. |
War Mind[]
Ability | Skill | Cost | Rc | Description | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
30 | 50 psi | 5 turns | Causes Berserk onto an Organic creature. | Like all Status Effect psionics, your success % improves with your skill. | |
60 | 60 psi | 4 turns | Causes Paralysis onto an Organic creature. | Better recharge, cost and overall effectiveness than the Fear psionic. | |
75 | 100 psi | 30 turns | Damages an Organic creature and heals you for part of the damage dealt. | Works well against high armor low health mobs. | |
99 | 150 psi | 50 turns | Attempts to turn an Organic creature into a companion until death or approx. 15 turns. | Successfully using this ability will make the targeted Organic or Cyborg a temporary ally. |
Redaction[]
Ability | Skill | Cost | Rc | Description | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
20 | 50 psi | 15 turns |
Restores 18.75 + (1.25 * Redaction) health. |
Lowers the need to carry certain medical items. | |
45 | 75 psi | 5 turns | Cures one Lvl. from one condition, or the whole condition if it has no Lvl. | Cures Blind and Madness too, so you can safely test door traps. Doesn't cure the "Slow" status though. | |
65 | 100 psi | 100 turns | Reduces hunger rate by a fixed amount. Lasts an amount of turns equal to your Redaction skill. | Effective when combined with Resting. | |
80 | 100 psi | 100 turns | Grants additional passive health regen. Lasts an amount of turns equal to your Redaction skill. | Best combined with other regeneration effects. |
Manifestation[]
Ability | Skill | Cost | Rc | Description | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
50 | 80 psi | 80 turns | Creates food which grants you +30 food. |
Combined with Metabolism Control, makes a full rest almost free. | |
60 | 50 psi | 2 turns | Causes Fire and damage in Flamethrower-style area. |
Highly effective against creatures with low armor. Can damage a specter. Combined with a disabling ability from another skill tree (or sometimes even by itself), this allows to kill specters without any energy weapons. | |
80 | 60 psi | 2 turns |
Deals 200 damage to Objects or obstacles, including doors. |
It is helpful to use this to destroy Masterminds, Indoctrinators, Stim Towers and Manufacturing Bays. | |
90 | 200 psi | 150 turns |
Checks Manifestation skill to copy an item. @ Skill Level 100 there is an aprox. 50% chance you succeed, 40% chance for a failed attempt or 10% chance to destroy the item with an explosion which damages 2 items in your inventory with durability. Maximum chance is ~55%. |
Similar to a 4D Copier, only works on items which take 1 square in your inventory. |
Mecha Empathy[]
Ability | Skill | Cost | Rc | Description | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
20 | 55 psi | 30 turns |
Marks all Mecha creatures on your screen and on the map. Use before entering security and repair rooms. |
Reveals invisible Cyborgs.Does not help against "Blind". | |
45 | 135 psi | 80 turns | Causes Unconscious to a Mecha creature for 3-5 turns. | Note that being Unconscious also multiplies damage taken. Success rate depends on skill level only. | |
65 | 100 psi | 50 turns | A large explosion (4 range) which does high damage to all Mecha creatures caught in it. | 25% damage VS Cyborgs. Damage depends on Mecha's max HP and distance from the target point. Powerful, but damage is applied after a 1 turn delay. | |
75 | 170 psi | 50 turns | Attempts to turn a Mechanical creature into a companion until death or [Mecha Empathy / 10] turns. | Success rate is based on skill level and target's remaining health. |
Resistance[]
Ability | Skill | Cost | Duration | Rc | Description | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 | 35 psi | Resistance/2 |
60 turns |
Grants near-immunity to all offensive Psionics. |
Depending on difficulty, it may be a good idea to use this psionic everytime it's up to increase your Resistance skill in early floors. | |
35 | 65 psi | 50 turns | 75 turns |
Increases armor by ~0.3 per Resistance skill. |
May help prevent durability damage to your equipped armor. | |
55 | 100 psi | Resistance/10 | 100 turns |
Makes you invisible for a short time, at least to creatures who aren't aware of your presence yet. See Stealth for more details. |
Can be used to loot some containers without having to fight. | |
80 | 200 psi | Resistance/2 | 150 turns |
Grants a small chance to reflect each ranged attack received back at the attacker. |
The high psi cost means this ability is best used when under fire from several creatures. |