PSYQualia

**PSYqualia** is a special ability possessed by several characters in Seaside's setting. Originally part of the *Cardfight!! Vanguard* setting, its exact mechanics and origin differ heavily between its canonical meta source (which this article will briefly skim), pre-Discord RPs, and Seaside.

## In *Cardfight!! Vanguard*

PSYqualia is a somewhat variable set of card game related powers that are apparently related to synchronizing one's actions (in the game) with the actions of the actual Units on the real Planet Cray. What it actually does and the rules around it are not particularly clear (and frequently change per series); this is made particularly confusing because in its original representation, it appeared to be allegory for the problem with being overly-competitive in a game, and the last-second exposition dump about its true nature effectively retconned a large portion of the show and also opened some small but significant characterization plot holes.

You can read more about it on the Vanguard wiki.

## Pre-Discord

In pre-Discord RPs, PSYqualia largely emulated the predictive power of its *Vanguard* anime counterpart, and was typically represented by allowing the user's player to check or even arrange the top cards of their deck before performing trigger checks, giving them a significant but not insurmountable advantage.

Typically this upgrade came with batting for the villain's team; Suenami Midori avoided this seemingly due to her low aptitude (which also meant she didn't receive the trigger-checking bonus).

## Seaside

PSYqualia was largely similar to *Sense*, a mechanic introduced in the *Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds* manga. The most basic ability of PSYqualia in Seaside is the ability to Realize one's cards; all wielders of PSYqualia possessed this power. Other abilities tended to vary by user, ranging from minor psychic powers to bizarre and powerful superpowers. The term 'PSYqualia' was used as a generic term for card game-related superpowers in-universe, although later revelations indicate that all of these powers are fragments of God that have been inherited by people in various worlds.

Note that PSYqualia is distinct from a Purpose, and no character demonstrated both at the same time.

### Users

#### Suenami Midori

Midori initially possessed low aptitude for PSYqualia, gaining no real benefit from it; after defeating Void-as-Nagi and apparently siphoning a large portion of the power they'd instilled in Nagi, Midori's abilities skyrocketed to levels that are normally not associated with PSYqualia. In addition to developing superhuman physical abilities, Midori apparently no longer required nutrition or sleep, and seemed to have acquired effectively infinite stamina. She could also Realize cards on a grand scale, enough to fight directly with Loptr when her seal was broken. Finally, and most importantly, she developed her power of Destruction, an ability head and shoulders above any other PSYqualia-user.

When pressed, Midori was able to limit her powers by wearing a blindfold, which did little to impede her vision but helped prevent her powers from being used accidentally, such as when playing in the Vanguard tournament in Seaside Ride.

#### Nakadai Ginko

Ginko, as Nagi, is the character who introduced this power into the canon, and is a rare 'natural' user. By the time of Seaside, however, she had lost most of her powers (rather, they had been absorbed by Midori), and was largely limited to Realizing her cards. She trained Aoi in *controlling* her powers, unlike Midori.

#### Suenami Aoi

Another 'natural' user, Aoi possessed a prodigious talent for the use of PSYqualia; Midori suspected that Aoi's latent potential would allow her to exceed even her own abilities. Aoi's powers weren't nearly as overt as Midori's, but hers are also far more controlled. Her resistance to cold temperatures and affinity for water may have been a product of her powers. Additionally, she possessed an incredibly strong will - strong enough that she was able to confine ViiBaCi MijiiRa inside her mind during the period when they were working together.

Using a specialized duel disk and deck - her Celestial Necloths - Aoi was able to Realize cards of incredible power by exploiting what Rebecca Hawkins called a *resonance phenomenon*; a side effect was that her body suffered significant backlash from the amount of power being channeled through her, resulting in exhaustion and what appeared to be burn scars manifesting on her body (although they faded away after a period of time).

#### Suenami Ryuko

Midori and Aoi both mentioned that Ryuko possessed some trace PSYqualia ability, but not enough to be reasonably useful, which is part of why she was relegated to putting out smaller fires than Aoi.

#### Angels

Each of the Angels possessed an ability tantamount to PSYqualia, although far more powerful than would be typical for a mere mortal, allowing them to exert far greater control upon the outcome of a game, such as allowing them to bypass Master Rules or pre-setting specific cards on the field.

#### God

As the progenitor of PSYqualia, God possessed a perfected version; she not only held the powers of her Angels, but the ability to draw any card from her deck at will, effectively eliminating 'luck' from her game, save for her opening hand - a weakness that Azure Talon was able to exploit during the Last Trial.