So Sculpt Flame allows my Rank 4 Psyker to fill a potential of 72 square meters with raging fire, seeking my foes blazing demise. As cool as just wreathing myself in flames and generally emitting bursts of explosive power is, I want to use it as my primary offensive power until Rank 5. My reasoning is that I want to follow a logical power-progression, so I'm taking Call Flame as my Rating 3 power, then buying the Psychic Power talent to get Sculpt Flame. Makes sense, learn first to summon a flame on command, then learn to control it. I could have gone for Burning Fists, but I think that's a 5th power type to represent a sort of advanced version of Call Flame rather then an actual separate power.

So, my question is what the damage template of Sculpt Flame if you choose to extend a flame by (your Willpower Bonus) square meters? Example: My Psyker, with a Willpower of 64, is standing 5 meters from a mutant. He casts Sculpt Flame with a Power Roll of 15, and sends a spurt of flame surging to consume the unholy flesh of his enemy in the fiery rage of his deadly wrath.

The mutant must make an Agility Test or be hit for 1d10 + WP Bonus damage with 1/2 WP Penetration. It rolls a 67 - Failure! It screams as it's flesh is seared for 3+6 = 9 Damage, bypassing its toughness bonus of 3 cleanly. It beats at it's flesh to put it out, but the flames seem downright living, and refuse to die - he must now make another agility test to avoid catching fire, this time at a (-5 x WP Bonus) penalty to represent the Psykers will covering him in psionic flame.

What do you guys think? Overpowered, just right, or what?

Related Question:Pyromancy is the only Discipline that doesn't scale with Willpower. Psychic Blade, Force Barrage, Psychic Crush, Fling, Force Bolt and Bio-lightning all determine damage by the Willpower bonus of the Psyker, while in Pyromancy, despite being an almost purely aggressive Discipline, only Holocaust deals more damage for a high willpower bonus. What's up with that?

Nice Idea.

But Don´t forget that Pyromancy is the Discipline with the highest offensive Potential.

I think it´s not neccessary to Design all Powers to Attack someone. And even if you use Sculpt Flame not as Weapon, there will be some Powers to Purge the Unclean. Maybe it´s better to have some Powers not to Kill. Instead use it to create Cover through smoke or to close the Way behind you.

Use your MInd to find Possibiltys for the Power.

Treat as a flamer attack that deals 1d10 damage and requires the target to test against being set on fire per the normal rules. Depending on the amount of fire available you could reduce to the damage to 1d5 or even no damage, but still have the target test against being set aflame.

Black_Kestrel said:

Give it the Flame mechanics for dodging it/avoiding getting set on fire, but it shouldn't be a template.

Personally? I'd suggest its whole offensive capability to be "Ag test or set on fire". The power isn't designed for damage dealing - there are other powers for that. This power is made for its versatility outside of combat, and doesn't need more than a "desperation" combat usage.

It could work as a close and middle-range AoE attack, but one thing you absolutely should NOT do is make Control Flame a more capable combat power than, say, Fire Bolt or Firestorm. Looking at what you've suggested... you have. Tone it down to make sure it doesn't steal the spotlight from other, more offensively designed powers.

Unusualsuspect said:

Well it would never be more combat capable until Ascension level, and then it wouldn't be provided the other powers become scaled. With a Power roll of 21, Firestorm would deal 2d10+5 in addition to the agility test to avoid catching flame. Fire bolt, on the other hand, is (IMO) among the worst offensive powers in the game, purely by not scaling with the character. In the game in question, I'll either be re-writing the damage codes to replace damage bonuses with + WP Bonus, or if the GM disallows it, not taking Pyromancy. The thing you may not be realizing, is the damage template described above is limited to a range of (WP Bonus) Meters, and not in a cone as most flamer weapons but in total square meters. Perhaps change the penalty to an Overbleed effect at -5 per 5 or 10 points.

The effect used to set folks aflame is already detailed as "Burst Flame" in the Core book.

In conclusion, I disagree, but thanks for the input.

I would just tell you flat out no, you are combining the effects of many of the other pyro powers into that single power. It also is not a power that generates fire, it uses fire that is already there. You are treating it like a WP range based flame thrower. You are attempting to make a fluff power do what incinerate does but with more effect. The thing that makes firestorm and fire bolt scale with other powers is it's overbleed effects. They are fairly low threshold powers with overbleed being ever 5 points after.

BangBangTequila said:

2d10 +5 damage? that'll hurt a lot, probably will kill mooks. Chance of being on fire? Very scary possibility. Less damage, but guarantee of being caught on fire? Constant scary reality. Fire is very, very lethal in this game, hitting you with willpower test or be useless, fatigue (and thus -10 to all tests), and damage every round... And your power bypasses the second agility test entirely.

My thought is that, well, this is already a pretty awesome power, even without more combatastic capabilities. I don't think it needs to be competing with Fire Storm, an explicitly offensive-only power focused on destruction, in terms of Sculpt Flame's own destructive capabilities. I personally think you could easily get away with this:

1d10 +3 E/Pen 2, Agility/Dodge tests as per a weapon with the Flame quality, similar agility test or be set on fire. A flamer burst, in any other shape, will burn as hot... or so the saying doesn't really go. This isn't warpfire here, clinging sentiently to it's screaming victims, its just the ambient fire being manipulated to touch potentially flammable objects. The range bonus alone from overbleed makes this a perfectly potent psychic power, and in fact is at high overbleed a flamer that hits what you want, in whatever shape they are in, so long as you can link the fire. Seriously, as long as you know its an ally, it don't have to burn.

It really doesn't need the Telekine WP x9000 approach to be effective - fire is a dangerous, dangerous effect. While that Firestorm just gets hotter and hotter in that same radius of destruction, the Scupted Flame simply moves with enough grace and speed to burn more and more of the heretics, but not the Inquisitorial forces fighting them.

BangBangTequila said:

Related to the above reply.

Pyromancy's damage is slightly below other disciplines (once 60+ WP or Unnatural Willpower is reached, at least) simply because the add-on to every Pyromancy damage power is the debilitating, damaging, horrific nature of being set on fire. With a few overbleed, Fire Bolt can get at least a few hits in, requiring multiple agility tests or be caught on fire. Watch the elf dance... missed the first! But the second... too slow, flaming elf, too slow.