// Practitioners of Magic · spell & psi hybrid

Mystic

Inspired by Rifts Ultimate Edition, p. 114 CHA-key

Related rules: Magic & Psionics Megadamage & Hardness Cyberware

Overview

The Mystic is Rifts' intuitive practitioner — a caster who blends magic and psionic ability without ever separating the two in their own mind. A Mystic doesn't pick a side: they cast spells and manifest psi powers, often in the same breath. They aren't deity-bound like a priest, aren't tradition-bound like a Linewalker, and aren't a focus-pool specialist like a Psi-Knight. They are seekers — wanderers who follow visions, dreams, intuitions, and the urging of unseen forces.

In a campaign, Mystics show up as wise advisors, frustrating prophets, gentle healers, and sometimes terrifying truth-speakers who know more than they should about people they've only just met. The class is a utility-seer-healer with offensive options on the side — not a raw-psi battle-caster, but a diviner, charmer, and mender who happens to have both magic and psi at their fingertips.

Mechanically, the Mystic runs two independent systems at once: a spontaneous Occult spell repertoire and a separate Channel Psi stance with at-will Psi Impulses. Spending spell slots doesn't touch your psi, and using impulses doesn't drain your slots. A class-defining Awakening, chosen at level 1, shapes which impulses you can manifest and grants a signature intuitive gift.

At a glance

Key ability	CHA
Class DC	CHA
Hit Points	8 + CON per level
Key skills	Diplomacy, Occultism, Religion + 2 chosen
Perception	Trained at L1 → Expert at L9 → Master at L17
Saves	Fort Trained / Ref Trained / Will Expert at L1. Will Master at L9. Fort Expert at L13.
Weapons	Trained in simple weapons. Expert at L11.
Armor	Trained in unarmored and light. Expert at L13.
Spellcasting	Occult tradition, spontaneous, CHA-based, full slot progression (1st–10th rank by L19).
Psi system	Channel Psi stance (1 action to enter) + at-will Psi Impulses (some carry the `overflow` trait). All Psi Impulses carry the `psionic` trait.
Awakening	Class identity feature selected at L1. Three Awakenings: Seer's / Spirit Talker / Soul Healer.
Signature system	Magic & Psionics

Class features by level

L1start

Occult Spellcasting (spontaneous). You have spell slots and a repertoire of known spells, following the standard spontaneous spellcaster progression. Tradition: Occult. Key ability: CHA. You can spontaneously cast any spell you know that fits an available slot. Spell slots increase in rank and number per the standard spontaneous-caster table (1st-rank slots at L1, 10th-rank by L19).
Spell Repertoire + Rifts Signature Spells. Your starting repertoire includes the standard Occult cantrip + 1st-rank selections, plus the following Rifts signature spells added free:
- Sense Evil (cantrip; detect alignment + presence of supernatural malevolence within 60 ft).
- Spirit Sense (cantrip; detect ghosts, spirits, and dimensional entities within 60 ft) — psionic.
- Healing Touch (1st-rank; 1d8 + CHA HP restored; heightened scaling).
- Augury (3rd-rank; ask one yes/no question about an event within the next 30 minutes; the GM answers "weal," "woe," "weal and woe," or "nothing").
- Charm Person (1st-rank; standard Occult charm) — not psionic-tagged at this rank; the Mystic's charm here is the magical kind, not pure psi.
As you gain higher-rank slots, you can add additional Rifts signature spells through the normal learn-a-spell process.
Channel Psi (stance). Enter the Channel Psi stance. While in the stance you can use your Psi Impulses (each has its own action cost), and your eyes show a faint inner light — visible to anyone watching closely (an observer can identify the state on a successful Diplomacy or Perception check). Outside the stance, your Psi Impulses are unavailable except for designated "at-will" impulses. You can exit the stance as a free action, and exit automatically if you fall unconscious. Channel Psi can run simultaneously with spellcasting — you can Cast a Spell on the same turn you use a Psi Impulse, in either order.
Mystic Awakening (class identity). At L1, choose your Awakening. Each shapes your Psi Impulse list and grants a signature ability:
- Seer's Awakening. Divination/perception focus. Granted ability: Visionary Glimpse — during your daily preparations you gain 1 Mystic Point (at most 1 at a time; it doesn't accumulate across days). A Mystic Point can be spent either to reroll a check you just failed (as a Hero Point, taking the new result), or to ask the GM one yes/no question about the immediate future (within the next hour), which the GM answers truthfully but cryptically. Seer impulses emphasize sensing, scrying, and prediction.
- Spirit Talker. Communication/charm focus. Granted ability: Soul Voice — communicate telepathically with any creature within 60 ft. The link is two-way if the target consents and you share a language. Impulses emphasize mind-reading, telepathy, and emotional influence.
- Soul Healer. Restoration/healing focus. Granted ability: Mending Hand — (trigger: you cast a healing spell) The target also recovers from one mild persistent damage (bleed, poison, fire, etc.) of your choice. Impulses emphasize healing, condition removal, and protective wards.
Your Awakening is permanent once chosen. Features at L7 and L15 enhance it.
Starting Psi Impulses (select 2 at L1). Choose 2 Psi Impulses — from your Awakening's pool or the universal list below. Gain additional impulses at L3, L5, L7, L9, L11, L13, and L15, ending at 9 known by L15.
Spirit Sense (passive class feature, in or out of stance). +1 status bonus to Perception checks specifically against creatures with the spirit, undead, or dimensional trait. +1 status bonus to identifying magical and psionic auras within 30 ft. (Distinct from the more active 1-action Spirit Sense impulse.)

Mystic Psi Impulse list

Available to all Mystics:

Spirit Sense (at-will). While in stance, detect any creature with the spirit, undead, or dimensional trait within 60 ft. Identifies type but not specific identity. psionic.
Soul Touch. While in stance, make a melee touch attack against one creature. On a hit, deal 1d6 mental damage + 1d6 per 2 class levels; the target attempts a Will save vs. your class DC and, on a failure, is also Frightened 1. psionic, mental.
Shield of Spirit. overflow. While in stance, gain Resistance 5 to all damage except sonic, force, and positive/negative for 1 minute. Resistance scales: 5 at L1, 10 at L9, 15 at L17. psionic.

Seer's Awakening impulses:

Glimpse the Future. Choose one creature within 30 ft. Until the end of your next turn, you gain a +2 status bonus to attack rolls and skill checks against that creature (you see their movements before they make them). psionic.
Read the Threads. 10-minute activity, overflow. Concentrate on a specific event, person, or location. Receive a brief vision (GM-described) of one significant past event tied to your subject. psionic.
Premonition. Trigger: a creature targets you with an attack. overflow. Effect: gain a +2 circumstance bonus to AC against that attack. If the attack still hits, you take half damage from it. psionic.

Spirit Talker impulses:

Mind Read. 1-minute activity, overflow. Target one creature within 60 ft. The target attempts a Will save vs. your class DC. On a failure, you read surface thoughts for the next minute (1 question per round answered truthfully but in the target's own words). psionic, mental.
Empathic Bond. While in stance, target one willing creature within 30 ft. Until you exit stance, you and the target share emotional state — you both know if either is Frightened, Charmed, etc., and gain a +1 status bonus to checks made to aid the other. psionic, mental.
Compel Truth. overflow. Target one creature within 30 ft. The target attempts a Will save vs. your class DC. On a failure, the target must answer your next question truthfully (or refuse to answer — they cannot lie). The effect lasts until the target's next turn ends. psionic, mental.

Soul Healer impulses:

Restorative Touch. While in stance, touch a willing creature. They recover 2d6 HP + 1d6 per 2 class levels. psionic.
Cleansing Aura. overflow. While in stance, all allies within 15 ft attempt a Fortitude save vs. your class DC against one mild condition each (Sickened, Frightened, Fascinated, etc.) — on a success, they reduce the condition's value by 1. psionic.
Soul Anchor. overflow. While in stance, target one ally within 30 ft. Until the end of your next turn, the ally has temporary HP equal to 5 + your CHA modifier and gains a +1 status bonus to saves against death effects. psionic.

About the overflow trait: an overflow impulse can be used only once per Channel Psi activation. To use another overflow (or the same overflow a second time), you must first re-Channel — a 1-action activity that re-enters the stance. There is no daily cap; the limit is purely action-economy and stance management.

Class feat. Skill feat.

Skill increase. General feat.
Additional Psi Impulse.
2nd-rank spell slots.

Class feat. Skill feat.

Ability boost. Skill increase.
Additional Psi Impulse.
3rd-rank spell slots.
Spirit Sight. Spirit Sense's range increases from 30 ft to 60 ft. You can also identify whether a creature is psionic (without needing to identify the specific impulse).

Class feat. Skill feat.

Skill increase. General feat.
Expert Perception.
Expert Armor.
Additional Psi Impulse.
4th-rank spell slots.
Awakening Resonance. Your Awakening grants a passive scaling benefit:
- Seer's: +1 status bonus to initiative rolls. Glimpse the Future's bonus increases to +3.
- Spirit Talker: Soul Voice range increases to 120 ft. You can have two simultaneous telepathic links active.
- Soul Healer: Healing spells you cast restore +2 HP per spell rank.

Class feat. Skill feat.

Skill increase.
Master Perception.
5th-rank spell slots.
Will Master.
Additional Psi Impulse.
Dual Channel. When you Cast a Spell while in Channel Psi stance, the spell gains the psionic trait — making it subject to anti-psionic effects, but also letting it benefit from psi-bonus effects (your own and allies'). Conversely, when you use a Psi Impulse on the same turn you Cast a Spell, the impulse's damage or healing increases by +1d6 as the magic resonance amplifies the psi. This is the Mystic's signature blending feature.

L10

Ability boost. Class feat. Skill feat.

L11

Skill increase. General feat.
6th-rank spell slots.
Additional Psi Impulse.

L12

Class feat. Skill feat.

L13

Skill increase.
7th-rank spell slots.
Fort Expert.
Additional Psi Impulse.

L14

Class feat. Skill feat.

L15

Ability boost. Skill increase. General feat.
8th-rank spell slots.
Master Armor.
Legendary Perception.
Additional Psi Impulse. (9 known total at this level.)
Greater Awakening. Your Awakening grants a major scaling benefit:
- Seer's: You gain 2 Mystic Points at your daily preparations instead of 1 (and can hold up to 2). When you spend a Mystic Point to reroll, you gain a +2 circumstance bonus to that reroll.
- Spirit Talker: You can attempt Mind Read without breaking concentration on other spells. Compel Truth range increases to 60 ft.
- Soul Healer: Once per long rest, a healing spell you cast can also remove one persistent damage effect (poison, bleed, fire, etc.) from the target, regardless of severity.

L16

Class feat. Skill feat.

L17

Skill increase.
9th-rank spell slots.

L18

Class feat. Skill feat.

L19

Skill increase. General feat.
10th-rank spell slots.
Master Spellcasting.

L20capstone

Ability boost. Class feat. Skill feat.
Living Conduit. Declare Living Conduit at the start of your turn. For 1 minute (10 rounds):
- You can Cast a Spell as a 1-action activity (one fewer than its normal action cost; cantrips become free actions).
- Your Psi Impulses cost no action — the impulse fires automatically when you declare which one each round, in addition to your normal action economy.
- Your spells and impulses both gain the other's trait set — spells gain psionic, and impulses count as magical-occult spells for interaction purposes.
At the end of the minute, you suffer 10 HP of fatigue damage that cannot be reduced. This is the moment of perfect insight — the Mystic's two systems collapsing into a single unified channel.

Awakenings

Three Awakenings: Seer's (divination/perception), Spirit Talker (communication/charm), and Soul Healer (restoration/healing). Chosen at L1, permanent. Each grants:

A signature L1 ability (Visionary Glimpse / Soul Voice / Mending Hand).
An Awakening-specific Psi Impulse list (3 impulses each).
An L7 Awakening Resonance — a passive scaling benefit.
An L15 Greater Awakening — a major scaling benefit plus a new ability or expansion.

Each Awakening is built with the same number of impulses and the same scaling structure. Players who want flavor outside these three can multiclass or take Mystic class feats that grant impulses from other Awakenings.

Class feats

Class feats available at each feat level — you gain one at every even level, and can always pick a feat of your level or lower. (The Mystic has no focus pool; feats are gated by the Channel Psi stance, the overflow trait, spell slots, round limits, or reactions.)

Level 1

Spirit Touched. You learn one additional cantrip from the Occult tradition that has the psionic trait. The cantrip is added to your repertoire.
Sense Truth. While engaged in conversation, you can attempt an Occultism check (DC 15 + target's level) to determine if the target's last statement was a deliberate lie. Cannot be used to detect ignorance, omission, or hedging — only direct lies.
Cross-Awakening Glimpse. You learn one Psi Impulse from an Awakening other than your own. The impulse must be available at your character level.
Stance Reflex. You can enter the Channel Psi stance as a free action when you roll initiative. Your intuition opens the channel before the first blow lands.

Level 2

Psi-Touched Spell. When you Cast a Spell while in Channel Psi stance, you may change one of its damage types to mental or force (whichever suits the spell), and the spell counts as psionic for that casting.
Warding Word. Trigger: an ally within 30 ft fails or critically fails a save against a fear or mental effect. Reduce the resulting condition's value by 1.
Spirit Familiar. You gain a familiar (as the Familiar Master feat), drawn from the spirit world, with the Occult tradition.

Level 4

Augury Mastery. Augury (signature spell) can be cast as a 1-minute activity instead of 10 minutes. The vision is clearer, and the GM provides more useful detail.
Empathic Echo. Trigger: an ally within 30 ft is reduced to 0 HP. The ally becomes stable and gains 1 temporary Hit Point as your spirit-sense reaches out to hold them. Once per round.
Greater Healing Touch. Healing Touch signature spell heals an additional 1d6 HP per spell rank.

Level 6

Empowered Impulse. Your damaging Psi Impulses (such as Soul Touch) deal 1 additional die of damage of the impulse's type.
Twin Awakening. You learn the base L1 signature ability of one Awakening other than your own (Visionary Glimpse, Soul Voice, or Mending Hand).
Lingering Stance. When you exit the Channel Psi stance — voluntarily or by falling unconscious — your active overflow impulse effects run their full duration instead of ending early.

Level 8

Premonition Mastery (Seer's only). Premonition is no longer overflow — it can be used multiple times per Channel cycle, but no more than once per round.
Compel Greater Truth (Spirit Talker only). Compel Truth duration extends to 1 minute (was 1 turn). The target must answer all your questions truthfully (or refuse) for the duration.
Restorative Aura (Soul Healer only). Restorative Touch affects all willing creatures within 15 ft instead of a single touch. Healing amount unchanged.

Level 10

Greater Dual Channel. Prerequisite: Dual Channel (L9). The impulse damage/healing bonus from Dual Channel increases to +2d6, and once per round you may grant one spell the psionic trait even while not in Channel Psi stance.
Healer's Resonance. When you cast a spell that heals, one creature it heals also gains temporary Hit Points equal to your CHA modifier until the start of your next turn.
Reactive Premonition. Trigger: an ally within 30 ft is targeted by an attack you can perceive. The ally gains a +2 circumstance bonus to AC against the triggering attack.

Level 12

Walking Vision. You can spend 10 minutes meditating to receive a clear, narrative vision of a future event (within 24 hours) tied to a specific person, place, or object you focus on. The GM provides usable detail and may rule that repeated visions on the same subject reveal nothing new.
Mage-Touched. Choose a 1st-rank spell from the Arcane, Divine, or Primal tradition; it is added to your repertoire as an Occult spell. You cast it by expending a spell slot of its rank or higher, like any repertoire spell.
Spirit Channel. While in Channel Psi stance, you can Sustain a Spell as a free action once per round — the psi holds the magic in place for you.

Level 14

Mass Impulse. When you use a single-target Psi Impulse (such as Soul Touch or Restorative Touch), you may apply it to a second eligible target within 30 ft. If the impulse has the overflow trait, this still counts as a single use of it.
Soul Bind. overflow. Target one willing ally within 30 ft. For 1 minute, whenever the ally would take damage you may redirect any amount of it to yourself (no action), and the ally gains a +1 status bonus to saves.
Prophetic Defense. You can't be made flat-footed to any creature you can sense, and while in Channel Psi stance you gain a +1 circumstance bonus to all saving throws.

Level 16

Master Seer. All Seer's-restricted impulses gain an additional benefit (see specific feats); your Awakening Resonance bonuses double in magnitude.
Unified Resonance. Dual Channel expands: when you Cast a Spell while in Channel Psi stance, the spell's damage or effect (one numeric or dice value, your choice) increases by 50%. When you use a Psi Impulse on the same turn you Cast a Spell, the impulse's damage or healing increases by +2d6 (was +1d6).
Unbroken Channel. Your overflow impulses are no longer limited to once per Channel Psi activation; instead, each can be used once per round.

Level 18

Spell-Impulse Fusion. Once per round, when you Cast a Spell and use a Psi Impulse on the same turn, you may have the impulse share the spell's targets or area (or the spell share the impulse's), fusing the two into one delivery.
Greater Awakening Mastery. Your Awakening's Greater (L15) benefit improves: the Seer gains a third Mystic Point at daily preparations and can spend Mystic Points on the d20 rolls of allies within 30 ft; the Spirit Talker's telepathy reaches anywhere on your current plane; the Soul Healer removes persistent damage on every healing spell, not one per day.
Resonant Soul. You gain resistance to mental damage equal to your level, and you are immune to the controlled and confused conditions.

Level 20

Perfect Conduit. Your Living Conduit capstone lasts 2 minutes instead of 1, and its end-of-effect fatigue damage drops from 10 to 5.
Transcendent Seer. Your spells and Psi Impulses ignore resistance to mental and force damage, and when a creature critically fails a save against one of your mind-affecting effects, it is also slowed 1 until the start of your next turn.
Avatar of Insight. 1-minute activity (declared as a free action). For 1 minute, you perceive all creatures within 60 ft regardless of cover, concealment, or invisibility; your save DCs for mind-affecting effects gain a +2 status bonus; and once per round you may Cast a Spell or use a Psi Impulse as a free action. Afterward, you can't enter the Channel Psi stance for 1 minute.

Out of stance & off spotlight

The Mystic has two soft failure modes: out of the Channel Psi stance, and with no spell slots available. Neither shuts the class down.

Out of Channel Psi stance

Passive features remain: the Spirit Sense passive, and spell slot casting.
Active Psi Impulses are unavailable (except at-will impulses).
Your spell repertoire is fully functional — you're a competent Occult caster.
Most encounters give you time to enter the stance (1 action), so this is rarely a true combat failure mode.

Spell slots drained

Psi Impulses are still available (with the stance).
Cantrips are still available.
The class survives on cantrips + impulses until your slots refill.

Where the class shines

Investigation, mystery, and social scenes: the Mystic excels. The Awakening features — Visionary Glimpse, Soul Voice, Mending Hand — are class-defining utility. You're the party's seer, diplomat, and healer out of combat.
Combat: a versatile caster plus a supplementary psi user. Not the heaviest damage dealer, but flexible — the Soul Healer Awakening in particular makes a strong party-support build. Its damage is reduced by Hardness and Resistance like anything else; where the Mystic ignores armor is its control — conditions that deal no damage, which Hardness can't stop.
Anti-magic zones: spells suppressed; impulses may also be suppressed depending on the zone. The Mystic is reduced to a skill-based character leaning on the Spirit Sense passive.
Anti-psionic zones: spells still work (they're Occult, not psionic, unless cast with Dual Channel active); Psi Impulses are suppressed. The Mystic plays as a straightforward Occult caster.