Aggressive Bestial Compulsive Crazed Disoriented Mildly phobic Neglectful Opinionated Prophetic 10 Sycophantic
Treacherous Deranged Hysterical Jittery Hallucinating Moderately phobic Distracted Solipsistic Delusional Weak-Willed
Murderous Unbalanced Unresponsive Craven Paranoid Severely phobic Enthralled Hubristic Apathetic Fatalistic
MENTAL SYMPTOMS Depravity manifests as mental symptoms: growing paranoia, visual and auditory hallucinations, and other problems that could be described as madness. It is important to note that madness in fantastic horror is not an illness that afflicts good and evil alike: It is an expression or a result of evil gnawing away at the mind and soul.
CHAPTER 4
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RULES OF HORROR
growths develop on your organs, or tiny limbs or heads bud Mild Depravity Effects beneath your skin. Reduce your Constitution score by 2. Aggressive: You are easily angered and cannot hide your Some prestige classes allow a character to take this symptom feelings. In combat, you try so hard to hurt your enemies that in place of any other one. This symptom allows you to hide your you neglect your own defense, and you take a –1 penalty to corruption because it is all internal. This symptom can even Armor Class. be taken to replace a mild or moderate symptom if desired. Bestial: You take on a ferocious, wild demeanor. You gain No extra bonus feat is granted if this symptom is taken to a +2 circumstance bonus on Handle Animal, Ride, and wild replace a mild symptom (see page 67). empathy checks. You take a –1 penalty on other CharismaLich Eyes: Your eyes rot away, leaving eerie green flames based ability checks and skill checks. in their empty sockets. You gain darkvision out to 60 feet, Compulsive: Pick a compulsive ritual to adopt. For or add 30 feet to the range of your existing darkvision. You example, you and your equipment are never clean enough. also gain light blindness: Abrupt exposure to bright light You can only break out of the compulsive pattern by eating (such as sunlight or a daylight spell) blinds you for 1 round. bugs, which sometimes disagree with you. Once each day, On subsequent rounds, you are dazzled as long as you remain make a DC 10 Fortitude save; if you fail, take 1d4 points of in the affected area. nonlethal damage. Lungs Eaten Away: Your lungs are eaten away from the Crazed: You can no longer easily cope with sudden changes inside, resulting in wet, labored, painful breathing. Your in circumstance. If you are surprised at the outset of an encounter, for your first action you have an equal chance of physical ability scores (Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution) are each reduced by 1. charging the foe or running away. Nose Rots: The flesh of your nose rots away, leaving skullDisoriented: You lose track of events. If you are surprised like openings. Reduce your Charisma score by 2. at the outset of an encounter, you are dazed for 1 round. Shriveled Flesh: Your flesh shrivels and clings to your Mildly Phobic: You gain a mild phobia, which requires bones, making you unnaturally gaunt. When you manifest you to succeed on a Will save or become shaken whenever you this symptom, subtract your Hit Dice from your hit point encounter the object of your phobia. The DC of the save equals 12 + the CR of the challenge that is the object of the phobia. (Treat total. Thereafter, subtract 1 from the number of hit points CRs of less than 1 as 0.) See page 61 for more about phobias. you gain at each level. This effect can reduce the number of Neglectful: You disregard hygiene and cultural mores. hit points you gain to 0 (but not below). Skin Lichen: A black, lichenous growth spreads across You take a –2 penalty on Charisma-based ability checks and your skin, causing a constant itching that interferes with skill checks. any physical activity. You take a –2 penalty on Strength-, Opinionated: You are so wrapped up in commenting on Dexterity-, and Constitution-based ability checks and everything you hear that you are often caught off-guard. You skill checks. are always flat-footed in the first round of combat. Skull Deformed: Your skull becomes enlarged, distorted, Prophetic: Your dark dreams torment you with strange and deformed. Reduce both your Intelligence and Wisdom visions of things that might occur in the future. You zealscores by 2. You also take a –3 penalty on Will saves. ously proclaim a different prophecy each week, making sure Spine Twists: Your spine twists and your back hunches. everyone you meet knows what is about to transpire. Your Reduce your Dexterity score by 2. DM determines what prophetic insight you envision each Wrigglers: Parasitic worms protrude from your sores, week (10% are actually accurate!). In addition, you take all sapping your strength. Reduce your Strength score by 2. You the usual ill effects of continual nightmares (see Dreams and gain a +2 bonus to Intimidate checks and take a –4 penalty Nightmares, page 52). on other Charisma-based checks. Sycophantic: You fill the air with a torrent of unctuous flattery of your companions, opponents, or imaginary friends. Table 4–3: Depravity Effects You take a –2 penalty on Listen checks and Spot checks. d10 Mild Moderate Severe Enemies gain a +2 bonus on Listen checks to hear you.
Moderate Depravity Effects Delusional: You’re convinced that the world is an illusion and that you and your companions are being controlled by inhabitants of a distant, alien realm. You take a –2 penalty on Wisdom-based ability checks and skill checks. Deranged: Your grasp upon reality becomes tenuous. You take a –2 penalty on Intelligence-based ability checks and skill checks. Distracted: You pay more attention to the whispers in your mind than to your surroundings. You take a –2 penalty on skill checks. Hallucinating: You see things that aren’t there, and often have trouble sorting reality from your imagination. You take a –6 penalty on initiative checks. Hysterical: Everything you meet is hilarious. It takes a short time to perceive the humor; then a laughing jag
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