Thenidiel
2016-09-23, 03:16 PM
I always loved the idea of a Sanity system for 5E, but I didn't like the idea of just porting over the tables upon tables of material from CoC. When I was slated to DM Curse of Strahd in the setting of Innistrad, I made my own system, using inspiration from the DMG's Sanity rules and the effects of Sanity described in Plane Shift: Innistrad.
Here goes nothin'.
The starting Sanity score is up to the DM's discretion, possibly based on a character's backstory. In the horror campaign I created this for, each PC began with a 12, to represent a PC's above-average tolerance for horrible things. It's in the job description. Like other ability scores, it cannot normally be higher than 20. It cannot be lower than 1.
Sanity saving throws occur when:
1) An aberration is witnessed, once per tier per day, and only from lowest to highest. If the party encounters an aboleth at breakfast, a gibbering mouther later on won't bother them so much. This is to enable the system to work even in an aberration-heavy environment or dungeon without just giving each PC a timer until their inevitable demise.
2) Making psychic contact with an aberration or a creature with less than 10 Sanity. 'Psychic contact' is up to the DM's discretion, but generally refers to any effect or spell involving a mental touch or link. Most effects that deal psychic damage fall into this category, as do spells like detect thoughts or, situationally, telepathy. What is and what isn't psychic contact is up to the DM's discretion.
On a failure:
The creature suffers madness appropriate to tier, and reduce the creature’s Sanity score by 1. If the tier has a maximum Sanity lower than the creature’s Sanity, reduce the creature’s Sanity until it is equal to the maximum Sanity. While affected by the madness, a creature’s Sanity cannot increase past that tier’s maximum Sanity. Curing the madness increases a creature’s Sanity score to 6 if it was lower.
On a success:
Increase the creature’s Sanity score by 1. That creature gains Inspiration (optional). The Inspiration was a way to make use of that system for those who don't. Thematically, it represents the courage one gets when you discover a horrific beast but resist despair.
All characters are proficient in Sanity checks and saving throws.
Any creature with a Sanity score of 5 or less at any time gains indefinite madness until cured and a maximum Sanity of 5, as if they had failed a third tier saving throw.
Any creature with a Sanity score of 1 stops making saving throws, can no longer increase their Sanity by any means, and becomes an NPC if they weren’t already.
Aberrations do not have a Sanity score. Instead, they trigger a saving throw of a tier appropriate to their CR when seen for the first time that day, as designated in the table.
Psychic contact saves are triggered every time a creature makes psychic contact with any creature that fits the description in the appropriate column.
Tier
DC
Madness and Duration
Max Sanity While Mad
Psychic Contact
Aberration Sighting
Cure
1
10
Short-term 1d10 rounds
No Maximum
Sanity 4-9
CR 1-4
lesser restoration
2
15
Long-term 1d10 minutes
10
Sanity 2-3
CR 5-9
lesser restoration
3
20
Indefinite (Until cured)
5
Sanity 1, aberration of CR 1-19
CR 10-19
greater restoration
4
25
Permanent
1
Aberration of CR 20+
CR 20+
None
The major concern my fellow players have raised to me is that Sanity systems are often just another hit point total, or another way for a PC to die. With this system, that should only really happen in the case of Tier 4 saving throws, which are meant for something alike to Cthulhu or another BBEG or god-like creature.
I am currently playtesting this in my Innistrad reskin of Curse of Strahd. The entire system is kept behind the DM screen, so when the players start to hallucinate they won't know who is the sane one. I am thus supplementing the system as written here with the Sanity score side-effects from page 30 of Plane Shift: Innistrad, and with roleplaying events related to Sanity score (shared hallucinations only the less sane see, for example).
The system is designed to be flexible. Feel free to trigger Sanity saves due to other conditions (such as more mundane horror, like a horribly mutilated corpse of a close friend). Likewise, perhaps the gods of your world or some other agency can raise a character's Sanity. Up to you.
Any and all feedback would be much appreciated. This is my first real time DMing, so I'm sure I goofed up somewhere.
Here goes nothin'.
The starting Sanity score is up to the DM's discretion, possibly based on a character's backstory. In the horror campaign I created this for, each PC began with a 12, to represent a PC's above-average tolerance for horrible things. It's in the job description. Like other ability scores, it cannot normally be higher than 20. It cannot be lower than 1.
Sanity saving throws occur when:
1) An aberration is witnessed, once per tier per day, and only from lowest to highest. If the party encounters an aboleth at breakfast, a gibbering mouther later on won't bother them so much. This is to enable the system to work even in an aberration-heavy environment or dungeon without just giving each PC a timer until their inevitable demise.
2) Making psychic contact with an aberration or a creature with less than 10 Sanity. 'Psychic contact' is up to the DM's discretion, but generally refers to any effect or spell involving a mental touch or link. Most effects that deal psychic damage fall into this category, as do spells like detect thoughts or, situationally, telepathy. What is and what isn't psychic contact is up to the DM's discretion.
On a failure:
The creature suffers madness appropriate to tier, and reduce the creature’s Sanity score by 1. If the tier has a maximum Sanity lower than the creature’s Sanity, reduce the creature’s Sanity until it is equal to the maximum Sanity. While affected by the madness, a creature’s Sanity cannot increase past that tier’s maximum Sanity. Curing the madness increases a creature’s Sanity score to 6 if it was lower.
On a success:
Increase the creature’s Sanity score by 1. That creature gains Inspiration (optional). The Inspiration was a way to make use of that system for those who don't. Thematically, it represents the courage one gets when you discover a horrific beast but resist despair.
All characters are proficient in Sanity checks and saving throws.
Any creature with a Sanity score of 5 or less at any time gains indefinite madness until cured and a maximum Sanity of 5, as if they had failed a third tier saving throw.
Any creature with a Sanity score of 1 stops making saving throws, can no longer increase their Sanity by any means, and becomes an NPC if they weren’t already.
Aberrations do not have a Sanity score. Instead, they trigger a saving throw of a tier appropriate to their CR when seen for the first time that day, as designated in the table.
Psychic contact saves are triggered every time a creature makes psychic contact with any creature that fits the description in the appropriate column.
Tier
DC
Madness and Duration
Max Sanity While Mad
Psychic Contact
Aberration Sighting
Cure
1
10
Short-term 1d10 rounds
No Maximum
Sanity 4-9
CR 1-4
lesser restoration
2
15
Long-term 1d10 minutes
10
Sanity 2-3
CR 5-9
lesser restoration
3
20
Indefinite (Until cured)
5
Sanity 1, aberration of CR 1-19
CR 10-19
greater restoration
4
25
Permanent
1
Aberration of CR 20+
CR 20+
None
The major concern my fellow players have raised to me is that Sanity systems are often just another hit point total, or another way for a PC to die. With this system, that should only really happen in the case of Tier 4 saving throws, which are meant for something alike to Cthulhu or another BBEG or god-like creature.
I am currently playtesting this in my Innistrad reskin of Curse of Strahd. The entire system is kept behind the DM screen, so when the players start to hallucinate they won't know who is the sane one. I am thus supplementing the system as written here with the Sanity score side-effects from page 30 of Plane Shift: Innistrad, and with roleplaying events related to Sanity score (shared hallucinations only the less sane see, for example).
The system is designed to be flexible. Feel free to trigger Sanity saves due to other conditions (such as more mundane horror, like a horribly mutilated corpse of a close friend). Likewise, perhaps the gods of your world or some other agency can raise a character's Sanity. Up to you.
Any and all feedback would be much appreciated. This is my first real time DMing, so I'm sure I goofed up somewhere.