Insanity
Beyond the shelter of civilization, untold horror awaits in the dark recesses of the wilderness. Sometimes, the blackened alleys of an oppressed city and hidden basements of mad scientists hold horrors just as foul. Adventuring often brings heroes face to face with terrifying monsters and maddening experiences.
When your heroes come face to face with abject terror, you might make them roll for insanity. Insanity should primarily change a character’s outlook on the world and be a roleplay tool, although the worst effects of insanity will also have mechanical detriments attached. Be mindful of your players’ yellow and red zones when implementing any of these effects.
Depending on the type of horror that confronts the heroes, you might ask each hero to make an AWR, INT, or CHA check. The higher their roll, the more minor the insanity effect, and a very high roll might allow a hero to shrug off any insanity altogether. The lower the roll, the worse or longer-lasting a hero’s insanity will be.
When assigning DCs to the various effects of insanity, you can use this table as a quick reference, adjusting the DCs up and down as you feel is appropriate for the insanity.
| Hero Level | Terrible | Significant | Notable | Trivial | No Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-6 | 5 | 9 | 13 | 17 | 21 |
| 7-12 | 8 | 13 | 18 | 23 | 28 |
| 13-18 | 11 | 16 | 22 | 28 | 34 |
| 19-24 | 14 | 20 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| 25-30 | 17 | 25 | 32 | 40 | 48 |
Insanity Themes
Insanity effects should generally feel cohesive and thematically similar. Below are some example insanity tables, each of which focus on a specific theme within horror.
| DC | Effect | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Abysmal | You gain Vulnerable 1 to all damage.
Death is rational. There is no way out of this endless madness other than to simply give up. |
1 week |
| Terrible | You are Sickened.
I stared into the void for a moment too long, and I saw the secrets of the universe. While I now know everything, some horrible thing stared back at me. |
1 day |
| Very Significant | You are Shaken.
Everything is but a dream of some unknowable god. All of our actions are meaningless |
1 day |
| Significant | Death is rational. There is no way out of this endless madness other than to simply give up. | Indefinite |
| Somewhat Significant | I stared into the void for a moment too long, and I saw the secrets of the universe. While I now know everything, some horrible thing stared back at me. | 1 week |
| Very Notable | Everything is but a dream of some unknowable god. All of our actions are meaningless. | 1 day |
| Notable | Death is rational. There is no way out of this endless madness other than to simply give up. | 4 hours |
| Somewhat Notable | I stared into the void for a moment too long, and I saw the secrets of the universe. While I now know everything, some horrible thing stared back at me. | 1 hour |
| Trivial | Everything is but a dream of some unknowable god. All of our actions are meaningless. | 10 minutes |
| No Effect | - | - |
| DC | Effect | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Abysmal | You always go last in Initiative and are Staggered.
You contemplate the futility of life. All of your actions will amount to nothing in the end, so why bother? |
1 week |
| Terrible | You are Demoralized. Enemy creatures attempting to Charm or Enthrall you can roll 2d20, using the higher.
Without doubt, you will not be able to keep your dark secret hidden forever. Your friends will find out eventually, and then they will leave you. |
1 day |
| Very Significant | Whenever one of your allies becomes Bloodied or reaches 0 HP within 30 ft of you, you take 2d6 psychic damage.
With resounding clarity, you know that you will live until you are old and gray, but all of your cherished friends will die in your arms, one after the other. |
1 day |
| Significant | You contemplate the futility of life. All of your actions will amount to nothing in the end, so why bother? | Indefinite |
| Somewhat Significant | Without doubt, you will not be able to keep your dark secret hidden forever. Your friends will find out eventually, and then they will leave you. | 1 week |
| Very Notable | With resounding clarity, you know that you will live until you are old and gray, but all of your cherished friends will die in your arms, one after the other. | 1 day |
| Notable | You contemplate the futility of life. All of your actions will amount to nothing in the end, so why bother? | 4 hours |
| Somewhat Notable | Without doubt, you will not be able to keep your dark secret hidden forever. Your friends will find out eventually, and then they will leave you. | 1 hour |
| Trivial | With resounding clarity, you know that you will live until you are old and gray, but all of your cherished friends will die in your arms, one after the other. | 10 minutes |
| No Effect | - | - |
| DC | Effect | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Abysmal | The next time you roll Initiative, a Weleshyr appears and is solely focused on you.
When the wind howls, you believe you can hear it calling your name. Something is stalking you and will dismember you. |
1 week |
| Terrible | Each time you roll Initiative, also make a DC 20 CHA check. If you fail, you are Phobic of plant life larger than one shrubbery.
The tangle of roots and brush of leaves seems to hold untold menace. |
1 day |
| Very Significant | You are Phobic of dim light and darkness. When this Phobia is active, you are Suppressed.
You are convinced that something lurks in the shadows, forever just outside your periphery. |
1 day |
| Significant | When the wind howls, you believe you can hear it calling your name. Something is stalking you and will dismember you. | Indefinite |
| Somewhat Significant | The tangle of roots and brush of leaves seems to hold untold menace. | 1 week |
| Very Notable | You are convinced that something lurks in the shadows, forever just outside your periphery. | 1 day |
| Notable | When the wind howls, you believe you can hear it calling your name. Something is stalking you and will dismember you. | 4 hours |
| Somewhat Notable | The tangle of roots and brush of leaves seems to hold untold menace. | 1 hour |
| Trivial | You are convinced that something lurks in the shadows, forever just outside your periphery. | 10 minutes |
| No Effect | - | - |
| Abysmal | You are Phobic of weapons that deal sharp damage and cannot use such weapons. Furthermore, you gain Vulnerable Corrosive 1 and Vulnerable Sharp 2.
The body is fallible, and many things can permanently ruin it. You must be careful. |
1 week |
| Terrible | You are Phobic of Bloodied creatures. When you are Bloodied, you are also Suppressed.
Underneath your skin, you are just squishing, squirting blood and squirming, slippery organs. |
1 day |
| Very Significant | You are Phobic of Undead.
The horrible realization that we will all one day be rotting corpses is overwhelming. |
1 day |
| Significant | The body is fallible, and many things can permanently ruin it. You must be careful. | Indefinite |
| Somewhat Significant | Underneath your skin, you are just squishing, squirting blood and squirming, slippery organs. | 1 week |
| Very Notable | The horrible realization that we will all one day be rotting corpses is overwhelming. | 1 day |
| Notable | The body is fallible, and many things can permanently ruin it. You must be careful. | 4 hours |
| Somewhat Notable | Underneath your skin, you are just squishing, squirting blood and squirming, slippery organs. | 1 hour |
| Trivial | The horrible realization that we will all one day be rotting corpses is overwhelming. | 10 minutes |
| No Effect | - | - |