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View Full Version : [3.5] Sanity and "Limitless" Spellcasting



Wreckingrocc
2009-11-02, 11:54 PM
So I've recently been putting together an entirely homebrew campaign, and I've been working out a Sanity system to apply to 3.5 slightly differently from the way the SRD ran it. Essentially, your Sanity Points are akin to Hit points; Each class has a sanity die for each level, and you add Wisdom modifier instead of Constitution modifier each level.

I'm still in the early stages of development, but I'm trying to figure out an effective system for progressive penalties as sanity decreases.

In my current state of mind, I'm having several levels of sanity, based on percentages of your total. As you decline down the path of insanity and reach these levels, you take penalties to various abilities, primarily in the form of Wisdom damage. Sanity will recover slowly (Rate of hitpoints, methinks, per week instead of per day), or perhaps with the aid of Divine Magic (which will in all likelihood still use the Vancean system, and, thus, not reduce sanity).

As an addition to this system, I'm allowing everyone in the campaign to cast spells through truenaming; however, the pacing is extremely steep, and, thus, very large amounts of sanity are consumed in the process. Whenever a spell is cast, a Will save must be made with DC based on spell level (I'm thinking (5 + 5 x Spell Level) (yes, I understand the immense advantage over other saves this grants). A passed save results in a moderate decrease in sanity points- roughly, I'd say, (Double Spell Level + 1); a failed save results in an enormous decrease in sanity points- though I'm still figuring it out, I'd say roughly (Triple Spell Level + 3). With most classes having Sanity Dies of d4-d6, it'll severely limit spontaneous spellcasting while placing an immense risk on it; enough sanity damage can lead to a state of permanent insanity akin to death.

However, to keep spellcasting a viable option to specialists, I'm also creating a class based on this ability. It uses a sort of Vancean spellcasting- That is, you can cast spells up to a level of ((Your Level +1)/2) with a steep reduction of spell DC (~5 + (Double Spell Level)). With succeeded and failed saves, too, the damage taken will be much lower- they'll also have a d12 sanity die, allowing them to get off more than a few spells each day. They would cast spontaneously from a spell list picked either at the start of the day or whenever the character meditates at a certain minimum state of sanity. Metamagic would be immediately applicable, but would cost perhaps one extra point of sanity for each spell level in addition to increasing effective level due to the simplicity of adding it.

My question for all of you is, does this look like a promising system? My only fears are that it will either be underpowered or highly breakable; likely the latter. Keep in mind, all of the classes I'm making are homebrew, so I will be able to customize breakable flaws out of it, but I'd like to know how the scaling looks as well. The main reason for the system is due to the setting, in which most commoners will have access to low-level magic, many of which will use it foolishly. It also adds to the 'the world is rampant with the clinically insane' feel of the game I'm striving for.

Although almost all of this is still up in the air, I'd like to get a general idea for where a balanced level is for the game. Creating an entirely new form of magic is never an easy task, and regulation is the key system for making it work. Below are my rough sketches for how the Sanity system will work.

For each step of descent, players stack the penalties incurred; Yes, I am aware that (under most circumstances) Wisdom drops Will.

75% Total and up: Healthy - No penalties ensue.
25%-75% Total Sanity: Shaken - -2 Wisdom, -2 Penalty to Will Saves, PCs and NPCs should roleplay paranoia
0%-25% Total Sanity: Cracked - -4 Wisdom (On top of -2), -2 AC, -2 to Attack Rolls, -2 to Skill Checks, -2 to Saves (on top of the -2 to Will), characters are just 'there' enough to understand what's what; PCs and NPCs may roleplay strange fears, cravings, obsessions, or other mental disorders
-9 - 0 Sanity: Fit of Madness - Character is unplayable, is considered helpless to attackers, and will either run in a random direction or stand in place each round; Player should roll a d% each round; 50% chance one sanity point is lost, 40% chance of no change, 10% chance of curling up and waiting until sanity is pulled back into positive numbers; while in the fit, characters can be healed, magically or with a skill check (possibly Heal). Characters can have mixed reactions, players can get creative here
-10 Sanity and below: Insane - Character is permanently insane, and unplayable unless cured magically with a high level divine spell.

Note: These are in their very primitive stages. I'm still tinkering with them. At the moment, the only true problems I see are the steep penalties that will arise should characters with 3-6 max sanity lose any.Of course, there will also be spells to decrease the sanity of your foes :smallamused:

There may also be feats to come to reduce penalties, though I'd have to find ways to make them workable without granting unlimited access to some spells.

Any suggestions? Criticisms? As long as it has some constructive value (and 'I don't think it will work' can count as this if said in the right way :P), I don't mind.

Foryn Gilnith
2009-11-03, 11:27 AM
Losing wisdom as you lose SP is sort of like losing constitution as you lose HP. I.E. an interesting, but bizarre concept.

jiriku
2009-11-03, 11:43 AM
Losing wisdom as you lose SP is sort of like losing constitution as you lose HP. I.E. an interesting, but bizarre concept.

Bizarre, yes, but very consistent with the original Sanity mechanic from the Call of Cthulhu game. The less sanity you had, the easier it was to lose more.

For the OP:
Consider also requiring characters to permanently sacrifice small amounts of sanity simply to acquire spells known.

Mechanically: unless you intend for the sanity checks on higher-level spells to be impossible, your multiplier is too high -- the DC of the check will scale up much faster than Will saves will scale up. A DC that scales by 3 * Spell Level would be more appropriate.

Also, think about how your sanity mechanic will interact with spells cast from items. Does casting a spell from a scroll cost sanity? How about a staff or wand? How about drinking a potion or use a use-activated item like eyes of charming or boots of teleportation?

Edit: An interesting option that borrows from the old Call of Cthulhu and gives you an effect for sanity loss: after passing a threshold of sanity loss, like losing half his maxiumum sanity, the character makes a Will save. If he fails, he doesn't really comprehend what he's seeing or experiencing or suffers protective amnesia, and the impact is minimal (perhaps a brief psychotic episode or a short period of catatonia). If he passes the Will save, he grasps the true horror of the cosmos and suffers a serious episode of insanity with permanent aftereffects, such as lasting neuroses and permanently reduced maximum sanity.

This mechanic means that mundanes are less tolerant of shocks and should steer clear of forbidden rituals and such, but are likely to emerge OK from occasional bouts with darkness. Arcanists can delve into the deeps much more effectively, but their knowledge makes them vulnerable. As characters level up and grow in power, they gain more resistance to minor shocks and threats, but become more vulnerable, because their increased experience and worldliness makes them more likely to grasp what they're really up against.

Deth Muncher
2009-11-03, 11:44 AM
There is, I believe, a system like this already in effect. Blackhand, I want to say? Idk. I'm away from books at the moment, I'll repost later when I have it. In the meantime, you should look it up.