I’ve been thinking about insanity and how it might play out in my DCC game. Unfortunately, most of the sanity/fear rules out there are terribly complex, random, and worse yet, aren’t fun for the player.
Taking away player agency sucks. It shouldn’t be done. So after seeing Cthulhu, failing a sanity check, and inconceivably developing an abiding fear of cats, telling the player, “roll some dice and you run away screaming” really doesn’t make the player a memorable game moment.
The best roleplaying mechanics make the player want to have their character behave like the numbers on the paper say – wizards seeking forbidden knowledge, fighters gleefully wading into the fray, clerics praying in supplication to an unknowable being – that just feels right. We can do the same with insanity rules. Less granular crunchy mechanics and more flavour text opportunities for roleplaying.
Now, let’s look at the DCC Core Rulebook – it talks briefly about Morale checks or fleeing, and mentions ‘going permanently insane’ with a couple spell descriptions, and that’s it. So let’s wrap fear, morale, and sanity all together in a simple mechanic shall we?
Morale
As the DCC Core Rulebook, whenever a stressful situation calls for it (hirelings first encountering combat, a fearsome monster reduced to half hit points, etc), the Judge might call for a DC11 Morale check (rolled with a Will save modifier, and for hirelings, adding their employer’s Personality modifier), and modifying the DC by up to +4/-4 depending on the motivations and source of fear. Simple enough.
Fear
Now, if an NPC fails a morale check, they flee – but if a player character fails a morale check, they ‘should flee’, but can operate with trepidation, making all skill checks, action die rolls, and saving throws at -1d until out of the influence of the source of fear (line of sight, sound, or to a place of perceived safety). An NPC unallowed to flee would operate the same.
If a character remains in the presence of their fear, the Judge can call for repeated Morale checks (frequency dependent on the source of fear - travelling the underdark, once a week, buried alive in a tomb once a day, confronted by Cthulhu, once a round). Further failures continue to apply cumulative -1d. Once ‘safe’, all penalties are removed, and if the NPC/PC re-encounters their source of fear, they will have to make a new check.
Madness
Now, if someone critically fails a Morale check with a natural 1, insanity ensues as below, and lasts longer than normal. The more negative dice penalties, the more likely madness ensues.
Even if 'insane' the player may continue to roleplay their character.
Roll 1d7 for the manifestation of the insanity.
(1) phobia - roll a d6 for the source of their irrational ongoing fear causing -1d to all skill, ability, and action checks while in it’s presence: (1) the source of their insanity, (2) something they saw leading up to the source of their insanity, (3) something similar to the source of their insanity, (4) something common like enclosed spaces, darkness, or loud noises, (5) everything, (6) judge’s choice.
(2) mania - roll a d6 for the source of their unnatural fascination causing -1d to all skill, ability and action checks while distracted by something present: (1) the source of their insanity, (2) something they saw leading up to the source of their insanity, (3) something they think would protect them from the source of their insanity, (4) something common like insects, hair, the stars, etc, (5) everything, (6) judge’s choice
(3) dementia - Roll 1d4 to determine which attributes to reduce by -1d6 each: (1) Intelligence, (2) Personality, (3) Luck, (4) all three.
(4) paranoia - subject senses danger asnd doom around every corner and has their Morale checks and Will saves reduced by -1d
(5) catatonic - subject is less aware of the world around them and has their Action die rolls reduced by -2d
(6) twitches and spasms - subject has their Action die rolls and Reflex saves reduced by -1d.
(7) imaginary illness - roll 1d3: minor affliction such as headaches, insomnia, stomach pains, shortness of breath, wracking cough, wild mood swings, irrational guilt, poor self worth, voices in their head (-1d), moderate affliction such as palsy, weakness, lethergy, hallucinations, wracking fear, overbearing sense of doom (-2d), blindness, deafness, muteness, amnesia, multiple personalities (as described)
Insanity lasts for 1d6 days, but on a roll of 6 it is instead permanent till removed – 4 dice of lay on hands, or a restore vitality spell check of 34+
If a player enthusiastically embraces any insanity and role plays it well, when they are cured or the effect wears off, reward them with +1 point of Luck.
That's it … nice and simple, builds on the Morale check rules,
Thoughts? Drop me a note at archadethered@gmail.com.
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