Sanity and Mental Anguish

The investigator’s first line of defense against the dangers of the Mythos is their Resilience skill. Failing a Resilience check, their mind, unable to process the cosmic danger, suffers the risk of shattering forever, and they suffer Mental Anguish. Sanity is the investigator’s second line of defense. A PC's Sanity score is 1/2 their Spirit die+2.

Mental Anguish

Your investigator suffers one point of madness for every four points of Mental Anguish they take in excess of their Sanity. Wild Cards can suffer no more than three levels of madness before they go Insane. (The “fourth” lost point of madness pushes them over the edge and causes them to suffer Insanity.)

If Mental Anguish is equal to or greater than your investigator’s Sanity, but no more than three points greater, they are Shaken. If an investigator gains madness and wasn’t Shaken already, he’s Shaken as well. If an investigator is already Shaken, he gains madness, but this isn’t cumulative. Wild Cards only suffer one level of madness per raise whether they are Shaken or not.

Rationalizing the Madness Soak Roll

If the investigator spends a benny immediately after taking one or more levels of madness, he may make a Smarts roll. This is the investigator’s attempt to “rationalize” the encounter and reduce it to a form that his mind can comprehend. Each success and raise eliminates a level of the madness suffered by 1.

Example: Amanda Locke is wandering through a graveyard when a Ghoul springs out from behind a tombstone. Experienced, she has a Guts d6 and Sanity 6 (half her Spirit of d8 +2). She fails her Guts check and suffers Mental Anguish in the amount of 10 points. This is applied against her Sanity and is just enough to give her a level of madness. She decides to rationalize what she sees and spends a benny to make a Smarts roll. Succeeding on this roll, she suffers no madness and reconciles the fact that, evidently, the dead can indeed rise…

Madness

Each level of madness causes a –1 cumulative penalty to his Pace (minimum of 1) and to all further Trait tests up to a maximum madness penalty of –3. Distinctions should be drawn between madness and insanity. Madness is the result of Mental Anguish and can be recovered through therapy and self-reflection. Insanity, on the other hand, encompasses any mental disorder that an investigator may suffer as a result of going insane, and is only restored through long term treatment and care.

Treating Madness

The Knowledge (Psychology) skill can be used to treat investigators suffering from madness. Each attempt takes 20 minutes, and requires a safe, quiet place in which to talk with the subject. If such a location is not available, the treating investigator suffers a –2 penalty to his roll. The treating investigator must also subtract the subject’s levels of madness and wounds from his skill roll.

Note as well that the treating investigator subtracts any penalties he may be suffering as a result of his own madness and wounds from the roll as well. An investigator suffering from madness trying to cure his own madness doubles his madness penalties (once for the distraction of his madness, and once for the severity of his madness) and adds in any wound penalties he may be suffering from as well.

A success removes one level of madness, and a raise removes two. Investigators with Knowledge (Psychology) can reattempt their roll as often as they like within one hour of the incident causing the madness—after this, only natural recovery or long term therapy can aid the unhinged investigator. A result of 1 or less, however, means the patient suffers an additional level of madness. This new madness is treated as any other madness an investigator may receive under the governing Sanity system. However, no further treatment can be administered to an unhinged investigator for a twenty-four hour period.

Aftermath

Extras and madness After an encounter with cosmic horror, the investigators make Spirit rolls for all their allies who suffered madness. A success indicates they are okay, they were just terrified for the scene. Failure indicates they are treated as Incapacitated—they were so badly frightened that they are in a fugue, and a 1 on the Spirit roll indicates they were driven over the brink and are catatonic or worse (the exact results are at the Keeper’s discretion). The successful use of Knowledge (Psychology) can restore an Incapacitated ally’s mental stability, but only long term care can help those driven over the brink.

Mental Recuperation

Every five days, investigators suffering from madness may make Resilience rolls. Wild Cards remove one level of madness with a success, and improve two steps with a raise. A Critical Failure on this roll increases a Wild Card’s madness by one level. An Extra loses their Incapacitated status with a success, and go over the brink if they roll a 1 on their Spirit die. Subtract wound and madness penalties from these rolls as usual, as well as any of the modifiers below. These are cumulative. Proper care means that someone with Knowledge (Psychology) is actively keeping tabs on the patient’s mental state, giving what medicines are available, and looking after the patient’s well-being.

Mental Recuperation Modifiers

Modifier	Condition
-2	Rough traveling
-2	No treatment
-2	Poor environmental conditions, such as intense cold, heat, or rain
-1	Indifferent staff
+2	In therapy (under the care of a psychotherapist)

Example: An investigator whose companions are slain manages to escape into the woods, but has suffered a level of madness. He knows that something still pursues him so cannot afford to slow down. He is –2 for rough traveling, –2 for no treatment, and –1 for madness for a grand total of –5. The odds are great that he will descend further into madness if he cannot find help.

Luckily, he wanders out of the woods a week later with one additional level of madness and is immediately carried to an asylum. He is at –2 for his madness. He is lucky enough to benefit from therapy (receiving an additional +2) and makes an unmodified Spirit roll. Before long, he should be seeing the glass as half-full instead of half-empty.

Insanity

A Wild Card goes Insane when he takes more than three levels of madness (after Rationalizing). Exactly how much madness is irrelevant—anything more than three means Insanity. An Insane hero must make an immediate Spirit roll, applying all applicable modifiers. Raise: The investigator is Shaken and suffers Insanity that fades after the encounter is over (or sooner if the madness is restored before then). Roll on the Mental Disorder Table for the effect. Success: The investigator is Shaken and suffers Insanity that lasts until all levels of madness are eliminated. Roll on the Mental Disorder Table for the specific effect. Failure: The investigator is Shaken and suffers an indefinite Insanity. Roll on the Mental Disorder Table for the specific effect. Critical Failure: The investigator has stared into the Abyss, and the Abyss accepts them into its warm embrace. The investigator falls unconscious for d6 hours or until restored to consciousness (successful Healing roll) and permanently loses 1 point of Sanity. Should this reduce the investigator’s Sanity to 0, their mind is irrevocably lost beyond all hope.

Mental Disorder Table

d20	Disorder
1	Amnesia
2-4	Delusions and Hallucinations
5	Depression
6-7	Generalized Anxiety Disorder
8	Mania
9-10	Night Terrors
11	Obsession

12	Obsessive-Compulsive
13-14	Paranoia
15	Phobia
16	Psychotic Episodes
17	Sociopathic Tendencies
18-20	Weak Mind

Amnesia

The investigator mentally blocks out the memories of whatever caused the trauma, but suffers from occasional flashbacks. If an investigator suffers from this disorder, take note of the event that triggered it. If reminded of the event in the future, the investigator must make a Spirit check or else the repressed memories flood back in. Failure on the Spirit check means the character immediately suffers the effect of a 2d4 Mental Anguish. Stacking Effects: If this disorder is caused by a similar event or memories of the original event, the Spirit check penalty increases by 1 as the memories become harder and harder to shut out.

Delusions and Hallucinations

The investigator begins to hear voices, catch movement out of the corner of their eye, and see fleeting glimpses of things when nothing is present. They cannot be certain if what they see is real or just the product of their own troubled mind. They have a –1 penalty on all Notice and Guts rolls. Stacking Effects: Increase the penalty on Notice and Guts rolls by 1.

Depression

The investigator loses hope for the future and ceases attaching emotional importance to certain aspects of life. He immediately loses a benny and starts each session off with 1 benny less than normal. Stacking Effects: Increase the penalty by 1.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

The investigator suffers from a variety of physical and emotional symptoms such as jumpiness, twitches, expectations of doom, and hyper-vigilance. He jumps at shadows and is always looking for danger. All Trait rolls suffer a –1 penalty with one exception: Notice rolls have a +1 bonus. Stacking Effects: Increase the penalty on Trait rolls (as well as the bonus on Notice checks) by 1.

Mania

The investigator’s mind is constantly racing, and he has difficulty focusing on anything in particular. He suffers a –1 to all Trait rolls. Stacking Effects: Increase the penalty by 1. For every two levels of mania, the character suffers a –1 penalty to Charisma.

Night Terrors

The investigator’s sleep is tainted by the horrors they have seen. Each time the investigator sleeps, they must succeed on a Spirit roll or suffer a nightmare so vivid they wake up screaming and cannot sleep for at least 8 hours. The investigator gains a level of Fatigue for the next 24 hours. The only way to alleviate this penalty is through a full 8 hours of sleep. An investigator resorting to pharmaceutical means to achieve his needed rest runs the risk of addiction. Stacking Effects: The investigator gains a –1 to Spirit rolls to avoid having a night terror.

Obsession

The investigator becomes obsessed with something or someone, investing strong emotional bonds in it or gaining a sense of security from possessing it or being near them. The object of the obsession can range from a good luck charm or a teddy bear to a person or even a place. The investigator must keep the object of their obsession close by at all times. If the item is removed from the investigator for any reason, they become frantic and suffer a –1 penalty on all Trait rolls until the object is returned or the disorder is removed. Stacking Effects: Increase the penalty on all Trait rolls by 1.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

The investigator develops a set of rituals and nervous responses that he must perform. They could range from simply repeatedly washing his hands to very complex patterns of behavior. This unsettles people around him, giving the investigator a –1 Charisma. If the investigator is prevented from performing his rituals (which take a full round), he suffers a –1 penalty on all Trait rolls. Stacking Effects: Increase the investigator’s Charisma penalty by 1 as well as his penalties for failing to perform his rituals.

Paranoia

The investigator becomes convinced that enemies are everywhere, and believes others are plotting against him. He is at a –1 to all Trait rolls when others are around him. Stacking Effects: Increase the penalty by 1.

Phobia

The hero has a strong, unnatural fear of some particular object or situation, and suffers a –2 to all Trait rolls whenever in the presence of their phobia. Stacking Effects: Select an additional phobia or increase the penalties of an existing phobia by 2 (to a maximum of –4).

Psychotic Episodes

The hero suffers occasional psychotic episodes during which they become detached from reality. They may see terrifying hallucinations, suffer delusions, or become manic and rant wildly about the horrors they have witnessed or even curl up into a ball. Any time an investigator attempts a Guts check, he must also make a successful Spirit roll or be Shaken. Stacking Effects: The Spirit roll is made at an additional –2.

Sociopathic Tendencies

Some horrors are so great that they force an investigator to become emotionally detached from the world around them to insulate them from what they have witnessed. Such individuals seem strange to better adjusted folk. The investigator suffers a –1 to Charisma except when attempting to Intimidate, and then gains a bonus of +1. Stacking Effects: Increase the penalty and bonus by 1.

Weak Mind

The investigator suffers a –2 to Guts checks and Spirit rolls. Stacking Effects: Increase the penalty by 1 each. For every two levels of this disorder, the investigator suffers from a –1 Charisma modifier as they exhibit nervous twitches and other erratic behavior.