SANITY

 SANITY

Failing a Sanity roll always causes the investigator to lose self-control for a moment, at which point the Keeper should choose an involuntary action for the investigator. For example:

·         Jump in fright—causing the investigator to drop something (spectacles, flashlight, gun, book, etc.) 

·         Cry out in terror—drawing attention, saying something inappropriate. 

·         Involuntary movement—swerving the steering wheel dangerously to one side, throwing up one’s hands in horror, cringing. 

·         Involuntary combat action—if a Sanity roll is failed during a combat round, the investigator’s action for that round may be dictated by the Keeper; for example, lashing out with a fist, squeezing a trigger, taking shelter behind someone else. 

·         Freeze—stare disbelievingly for a moment but take no action. A fumbled Sanity roll results in the character losing the maximum Sanity points for that particular situation or encounter. 

INSANITY

In Call of Cthulhu, insanity is induced by traumatic experiences and the ghastly comprehension that connects to the Cthulhu Mythos. The duration of the insane state depends upon the number or proportion of Sanity points lost. Three states of insanity can result: temporary, indefinite, and permanent. Regardless of whether the insanity is temporary or indefinite, it will consist of three distinct game phases:

·         First: the insanity begins with a brief “bout of madness”, during which the player’s control of their investigator is compromised. 

·         Second: the bout of madness is followed by a period of underlying insanity, during which the player retains full control of their investigator; however, the investigator is prone to delusions, phobias and further bouts of madness. 

·         Third: the final phase is recovery. 

Temporary Insanity

If an investigator loses 5 or more Sanity points as the result of one Sanity roll, or 20% of their starting Sanity, sufficient emotional trauma has been suffered that the Keeper must test the investigator’s sanity. The Keeper asks for an Intelligence (INT) roll.

·         If the roll is failed, the investigator has repressed the memory (a trick the mind uses to protect itself) and does not become insane. 

·         Conversely, if the INT roll succeeds, the investigator recognizes the full significance of what has been seen or experienced and goes temporarily insane. The effects of temporary insanity begin immediately and last for 1D10 hours (or rounds if in combat).

Indefinite Insanity

·         On losing a fifth or more of current Sanity points in one game “day”, the investigator becomes indefinitely insane. No INT roll is required to confirm.

The Effects of Insanity

Both temporary and indefinite insanity take the investigator through two distinct phases of insanity. First, the investigator experiences a short bout of madness (phase one). This is then followed by a longer period of underlying insanity (phase two).

Phase 1 (A Bout of Madness): the investigator loses all self-control, lasting 1D10 combat rounds (‘real time’) if being played out.

1) Amnesia: The investigator has no memory of events that have taken place since they were last in a place of safety. For example, it seems to them that one moment they were eating breakfast and the next they are facing a monster. This lasts for 1D10 rounds.

2) Psychosomatic disability: The investigator suffers psychosomatic blindness, deafness, or loss of the use of a limb or limbs for 1D10 rounds.

3) Violence: A red mist descends on the investigator and they explode in a spree of uncontrolled violence and destruction directed at their surroundings, allies or foes alike for 1D10 rounds.

4) Paranoia: The investigator suffers severe paranoia for 1D10 rounds; everyone is out to get them; no one can be trusted; they are being spied on; someone has betrayed them; what they are seeing is a trick.

5) Significant Person: Review the investigator’s backstory entry for Significant People. The investigator mistakes another person in the scene for their Significant Person. Consider the nature of the relationship; the investigator acts upon it. This lasts 1D10 rounds.

6) Faint: The investigator faints. They recover after 1D10 rounds.

7) Flee in panic: The investigator is compelled to get as far away as possible by whatever means are available, even if it means taking the only vehicle and leaving everyone else behind. They travel for 1D10 rounds.

8) Physical hysterics or emotional outburst: The investigator is incapacitated from laughing, crying, screaming, etc. for 1D10 rounds. 

Phase 2 (Underlying Insanity): Once the initial bout of madness is over, the investigator enters a lower-level state of underlying insanity. Control of the investigator is placed firmly in the hands of the player, who may freely choose how to roleplay being insane.

Insanity Side-Effects 1: Phobias and Manias

·         Phobia: When exposed to the source of their phobia, or even just thinking about it, a character’s symptoms can develop rapidly. Within seconds, palpitations, trembling, choking and an uncontrollable anxiety appear. The character feels that they must do everything possible to avoid the situation. 

·         Mania: A character with a mania will have a fairly constant euphoric or possibly irritable mood. Symptoms include a general increase in activity, garrulousness, increased self-esteem to the point of delusion, decreased need for sleep, easily distracted, willingness for dangerous or imprudent activities such as reckless driving, hallucinations, delusions, and bizarre behavior.

Insanity Side-Effects 2: Delusions and Reality Checks (make a Sanity roll)

·         Failure: lose 1 Sanity point. This will immediately induce a bout of madness if the investigator is suffering underlying insanity. Any delusions are not dispelled. 

·         Success: the investigator sees through any delusions, and the Keeper must describe what the investigator genuinely perceives. 

o   On making a successful reality check roll, the investigator should see things as they really are and will be resistant to delusions until losing further Sanity points (thus preventing the Keeper from constantly throwing delusions at a player). 

o   Successful use of the Psychoanalysis skill will allow an insane investigator to see a delusion for what it is.

Insanity Side-Effects 3: Insanity and the Cthulhu Mythos

·         Each time an investigator reels from Mythos-induced trauma (e.g. seeing a Mythos monster, reading a Mythos tome, or affected by a Mythos spell), he or she learns more of the Mythos, and this is reflected in the Cthulhu Mythos skill. The first instance of Mythos-related insanity always adds 5 points to the Cthulhu Mythos skill.