The DnD Psion's metamorph subclass is absolutely disgusting. As a horror fan, it's the most excited I've been about class options in a long time, even with all the spooky options previously included in Dungeons and Dragons. I'm itching to play a character that can morph their limbs into weird and disgusting tools that heal as well as harm. My enthusiasm is dampened a little by Wizards' playtest document, however. The flavor of this class is incredible, but it has so many problems in practice.
To explain my reservations, let's run through each rule for this new addition to the DnD classes roster. If you'd like a reminder of what the Psion actually does, check out my other summary article.
Metamorph spells
A Metamorph always has the following spells prepared:
| Psion level | Spells |
| 3 | Alter Self, Cure Wounds, Inflict Wounds, Lesser Restoration |
| 5 | Aura of Vitality, Haste |
| 7 | Polymorph, Stoneskin |
| 9 | Contagion, Mass Cure Wounds |
It's a list of good DnD spells, but there's nothing here that excites me too much. This shows that the subclass is going to lean hard into its healing capabilities. Pretty much all healing spells got stronger in the 2024 rules, which is nice, but it creates an extra decision point for Metamorph players. Do I want to use my precious action healing when dealing damage or establishing control could be just as valuable?
Organic Weapons
Next, we come to the Metamorph's gloriously gory signature ability. Whenever you take the attack action or make an opportunity attack, you can turn your free hand into one of three Organic Weapons:
- A blade of bone that counts as a Finesse weapon, deals 1d8 piercing damage and gives you advantage on your attack roll if an ally is within five feet and not incapacitated.
- A flesh Maul that deals 1d10 bludgeoning damage and gives its target disadvantage on its next Strength or Constitution save.
- A crossbow made of muscle that fires bile with a range of 30/90 feet that deals 1d6 acid damage, with the potential to deal another 1d6 acid damage once on your turn.
Each of these is absolutely gnarly, and I'd like nothing more than to go full John Carpenter's The Thing on a combat encounter. However, there are a lot of downsides to consider first.
The biggest issue is that the specific wording of this ability discourages synergy. The major issue comes from the fact that "your limb immediately returns to its previous form after your Organic Weapon hits or misses its target".
Many feats and class abilities require you to be holding a weapon in order to benefit from them. The Bone Blade may count as a Finesse weapon, but you can't benefit from Defensive Duelist, as you're not technically holding said weapon until you attack. Similarly, it doesn't look like you can use an Organic Weapon to make your second Dual Wielder attack.
It also looks like Organic Weapons fails to synergize with one of the subclass' own features, Extra Attack. This lets you attack twice instead of once when you take the attack action, but does the Organic Weapon dissolve into nothing after landing its first hit? This surely can't be Wizards of the Coast's intentions, but rules lawyers might take it that way.
Beyond wording issues, Organic Weapons is still slightly underwhelming, because it simply doesn't scale well. You can use your Intelligence modifier for attack and damage rolls, but that still only ups your damage by a point or two at certain DnD level ups.
Before long, even cantrips are a better source of damage for the Metamorph. The Psion spell list mainly focuses on control options, but it does offer a few damage spells, and these tend to scale far better than Organic Weapons.
Once again, we return to the problem of decision-making. Is it more valuable to cast a high-level AoE spell from a distance, or wade into combat to deal 1d8 damage? An optimally played Metamorph seems like it will constantly be fighting against its subclass flavor to make sensible choices.
Extend Limbs
Next is a bonus action that costs a Psionic Energy Die. For one minute you can either increase your reach by five feet, increase your speed by five feet, or change the range of a spell from Touch to 10 feet whenever you cast it.
This is an acceptable (if a little situational) ability. However, it highlights one of the overarching problems with the Metamorph. To attack and heal effectively, you'll need to spend more time in close range than any other Psion. And the Psion class has zero defenses. No armor proficiencies, and no shield spell - you've got Mage Armor, and that's about it.
If you want to live out your fleshy fantasy of mauling enemies with gross body parts, you should expect to be downed a lot. A 1D6 Hit Die isn't going to get you very far.
Extra Attack
Attacking twice rather than once with a single attack action is always excellent. However, we've already pointed out a wording inconsistency that could make this difficult for Metamorphs who aren't dual-wielding.
Quickened Healing
From here on, the abilities for the Metamorph are pretty sweet, though they don't do much to address the issues highlighted earlier. This lets you cast Cure Wounds as a bonus action if you spend two Psionic Energy Dice, and you can also roll one Psionic Energy Die and add it to the number of HP you restore.
It's a fairly expensive cost for Cure Wounds, but there are many cases where it's worth it. Quickened Healing lets you juggle your healing role without having to sacrifice an entire action (and, presumably, your attacks or control spells).
Mutable Form
At level 10, your Extend Limbs feature gets significantly better. Its duration is now 10 minutes, and you gain one of the following benefits:
- Advantage on concentration saves and resistance to a particular DnD damage type.
- The ability to Dash as a bonus action, plus a climb and swim speed.
- A +2 AC bonus and the ability to squeeze through a space as narrow as one inch while still carrying all your equipment.
That first one is great for a full caster, but when the War Caster feat is sitting right there, it feels bad to wait until level 10 to get it. Similarly, it sucks that this is the first time that a Striker Psion gets any kind of benefit to their armor class. The Dash and squeeze option offer some fun and useful utility, but only in the right scenarios.
Life-Bending Weapons
Lastly, there's the level-14 capstone. Once per turn, when you hit a creature with an Organic Weapon, you can spend and roll a Psionic Energy die. Each creature of your choice within 10 feet gains HP equal to that roll plus your Intelligence modifier, and one creature takes necrotic damage equal to the number rolled.
This is another nice way to juggle your healing roll with other activities. You can still focus on the offensive without having to sacrifice that supportive role.
For more on the Psion, here's the original playtest document. If you're looking to build a Psion of your own, here's all you need to know about DnD races and DnD 2024 backgrounds. Or, if you'd like to share your Psion playtest findings, hit us up in the Wargamer Discord.