Nova is a deadly combination of psychic power and technological enhancements. Trained from birth in the channeling of her psionic energies, she has perfected a host of psionic abilities that she can use to accomplish her goals. These psi powers are learned at various times throughout the game, and each one will prove instrumental to Nova’s success throughout her missions. With her psychic powers alone, Nova would be a deadly force, but when combined with her advanced technological equipment and weaponry, she becomes an unstoppable assassin.
Psi Energy: Nova’s psi powers require the expenditure of psi energy. Usually, while a psi power is activated, it drains Nova’s available psi energy. Once her energy meter is tapped out, the power ends. When Nova isn’t using a psi power, her psi energy will slowly trickle back up over time, but she can also take a few moments to actively meditate to refill her energy. There are differences in psi use between multiplayer and single-player games, but in general, using a psi power usually drains Nova of available psi energy.
Cloak
There are many obstacles and enemies that Nova can overcome easily with the use of her cloaking ability. Using her psychic ability to activate special receptors in her advanced biosuit, Nova can create a personal cloaking field around her that renders her invisible to the naked eye. While cloaked, Nova can sneak past enemy soldiers without trouble. However, she isn’t completely immune to detection. The Terrans and Protoss deploy detector robots at various strategic locations to pin point cloaked intruders, and the Zerg of course have the omnipresent Overlords to locate invisible enemies. However, even without these special detectors, Nova must still move with care when cloaked. She can fire her weapon while cloaked, but the distinct muzzle flash from her gun will alert guards to her location, as will careless bumping into enemies.
Speed
Not only does Nova’s superior conditioning give her a physical edge over her opponents, but her psi powers also give her a speed advantage as well. Using her psi speed power, Nova can quicken her movements to such a degree that the rest of the world seems to come to a literal standstill. This power is extremely draining on her psi energy reserves, but when she uses it, she moves at superhuman speeds while her enemies move drastically slower, enabling her to easily dodge their attacks and outmaneuver them.
Vision
In addition to her psionic powers, Nova has access to advanced bio-enhancement technology in her Ghost suit. One such technological benefit is her Vision ability. When she engages her advanced sensory goggles, she can perceive additional information that is otherwise hidden to the naked eye. She can discern vulnerable spots on targets, such as the beating hearts of humans or the slivers between Protoss armor plates where they are vulnerable to one-shot assassinations. This special Vision mode also tells Nova what mechanical targets are susceptible to lockdown and gives her the ability to see even in.
