Topic: DE Psykers?

[Scorn]

I truly don't believe it's that simple either.  It's not a case of the Dark Eldar being stupid.  It's a case of them lacking a valid reason, adequate teachers, etc.

You've got a race that does just fine as it is but lives in a precarious power with a hungry Warp God just waiting to devour all their souls.  Unneccessary exposure to the Warp is probably a bad idea.  I think most everyone can this to.  Now for extrapolation and pondering.  The powers you describe of zapping someone's brain are largely the area of the Farseers, individuals who have become trapped on the Path of the Seer, seen by many as the most demanding path, and wield great power.  Even the lesser powers employed by the Warlocks involve a great deal of training.  All of the Eldar wielding this power have the advantage of qualified teachers.

Now we go to Dark Eldar.  Apparently no qualified teachers as all-out powers in full swing psykers are so rare and tasty.  With so few psykers openly, or even secretly, wielding such powers there is little need for a like defence against them.  More mundane, guards, warriors, pacts with others, etc are likely sufficient.  Thus there lacks a major motive for the development of likely dangerous, to the practicing psyker, powers. 

As to why Dark Eldar can't just pick up a Ghosthelm for defence I would suggest this isn't something you can just strap on but something that instead utilizes that actively practicing psyker mind, and thus would be of extremely limited, if any, use to Dark Eldar what so ever.

[Lomendil]

I agree with that. It's worth noting though that the DE do have a talent for psychic technology that operates independent of the user's psy-talent (or lack of it). Several wargear items make use of it, including runic 'magic' on the Vexanthrope and the Archangel of Pain's casque. It's not unreasonable to infer that they'd have devices that protect against hostile psykers, even if those devices don't make it into the Wargear section.

[IncubiLord]

The powers you describe of zapping someone's brain are largely the area of the Farseers

- Or, if you read the Witch Hunters' Adversaries rules, completely untrained n00b-psykers with lots of potential.
The Rogue Psyker's "Brain Flayer" power is Mind War with the potential to backfire.

It may not be quite so elegant, but the powers we're discussing are available to untrained humans.

As to why Dark Eldar can't just pick up a Ghosthelm for defence I would suggest this isn't something you can just strap on but something that instead utilizes that actively practicing psyker mind, and thus would be of extremely limited, if any, use to Dark Eldar what so ever.

I'd imagine it takes a little more than putting the funny hat on, but at the very least they wouldn't have to develop the technology - they've got a working sample to duplicate.

At best, I'd suspect that a Ghosthelm can be aligned to a new wearer. It may take time, but I'd be surprised to learn that a Seer's wargear was of no use to any other Eldar psyker - DE or otherwise.

[Scorn]

The powers you describe of zapping someone's brain are largely the area of the Farseers

- Or, if you read the Witch Hunters' Adversaries rules, completely untrained n00b-psykers with lots of potential.
The Rogue Psyker's "Brain Flayer" power is Mind War with the potential to backfire.

It may not be quite so elegant, but the powers we're discussing are available to untrained humans.

I would personally believe that these untrained humans are burning themselves out and inviting Daemonic contact but channelling such extreme powers, not something I would suspect the Dark Eldar likely to do.  Aren't the Adversary abilities meant to represent those who have aligned themselves with Chaos?  If so, I think that largely explains how they can wield such power, if not, then I go back to them burning themselves out wielding that level of power, as demonstrated by the in game mechanic of them taking wounds.

[IncubiLord]

I would personally believe that these untrained humans are burning themselves out and inviting Daemonic contact

The former is quite possible, though I'd suggest that what burns out a mere human would be less dangerous to an Eldar.

The latter is pretty much a given.
Their fluff-paragraph mentions that they are "untrained and untutored" "with the risk of possession ever present" - and "few of them are remotely sane." It does mention that they slowly learn to defend themselves from Warp entities, but there's the ever-present implication that they're not exceptionally good at it.

However, I'd point out that the Fall post-dates the War in Heaven, and that means that the DE should have some knowledge of protecting themselves from Warp entities from before the Fall.

Aren't the Adversary abilities meant to represent those who have aligned themselves with Chaos?

< double-checks the WH 'dex >

Daemonhunters' Adversaries, yes, but not Witch Hunters Adversaries.
These ones are just "bad people" who deserve to be burned for their heresies... 

[Ghail]

Hey Everyone I'm Back .

Anyway, in terms of fluff, Dark Eldar don't have ANY Psykers in there Kabals or otherwise. Although there might be a couple of psykers in the lower warrens of Commorragh (I think of  Commorragh as a Coruscant offshoot type thing. but thats my opinion) that wander around killing other DE with there psychic abilities and blaming it on mandrakes or very-very-fast hellions that would be a rather amusing vision.

Warrior is wanding along a walk way in Commorragh. He's killed 15 beings this time and is feeling very proud of him self. all of a sudden he feels a weird sensation in his head. then another, more painful sensation. then his head come's flying off and hits a passing wych. The wych, who has been having a very bad day, looks around for something to kill. a random denizen (In this case a psyker) shouts out that it was the gang of hellions fault, who have been flying at low altitude, randomly gunning there boosters to decap people. the wych, who would also happen to be high on +1 to attack drugs, +1 to strength drugs and acid, screams out in anger and charges.

In 3 minuets, the entire hellion gang and the wych are dead and the only one who's there is the psyker. who helped out in the battle by secretly killing random people who were a threat to the wych, until the end of the battle, when he killed him to. the psyker, who feels good, now walks home.

Well, i feel I've fulfilled my duties of providing a long returning post

Carpe Diem.

P.S This is all IMO.

[Makaan]

Anyway, in terms of fluff, Dark Eldar don't have ANY Psykers in there Kabals or otherwise.

That's because there is practically no background lore to the Dark Eldar and the DE codex was one of the two first codex to ever appear in third edition... 

[Scorn]

Anyway, in terms of fluff, Dark Eldar don't have ANY Psykers in there Kabals or otherwise.

That's because there is practically no background lore to the Dark Eldar and the DE codex was one of the two first codex to ever appear in third edition... 

Indeed, we have no information stating the presence of the absence of pyskers amongst the Dark Eldar.  Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.