Stress System
As the Void invades more and more into our world, the horrors therein become increasing common. Even heroes are not immune to this. This system is designed to simulate how that terror might overtake a hero's psyche.
At a time of the GM's choosing, they might have a player character make a Stress Saving Throw, as they encounter the otherworldly horrors of the Void. This is a Will save with a DC based on their level (see table 10-5 in the Core Rulebook) plus that character's total accumulated Stress.
Success: The character gains no Stress.
Failure: The character gains 1 Stress.
Critical Failure: The character gains 2 Stress. The maximum amount of Stress a character can handle before suffering serious repercussions is equal to their Wisdom score. Further, at certain thresholds equal to 1/4 and then 1/2 their Wisdom score, they become afflicted in different ways, based on the table below: Thresholds: 1/4 Stress: The PC is Frightened 1
1/2 Stress: The PC is now Frightened 2 and Fleeing
Max Stress: The PC is now Immobilized with fear
Max Stress +3: The PC has now gone temporarily insane and is now Stupefied 1
Max Stress +6: The PC has now gone partially insane and is now Stupefied 2
Max Stress +9: The PC is mostly insane and is now Stupefied 3
Double Stress: The PC is now Confused and has gone insane. The character does not recover from these conditions when afflicted by Stress until their Stress drops below each threshold. The GM might also add in a little bit of flavour, such as the character jumps at shadows, or babbles incoherently. This is just for roleplay. So how does a character recover and reduce their Stress? Every 24 hours, the character may spend 1 hour to attempt a Resolve check. However, at Max Stress +3 threshold and above, this Resolve check becomes harder with insanity beginning to set in, and receives a -2 Circumstance penalty per threshold above Max Stress. Be aware, Stress does not recover on its own, even during downtime! It will accumulate unless you do something about it. Resolve A character may, once every 24 hours, spend 1 hour to attempt a Resolve check. This check takes the form of either the afflicted character spending time focusing inward or doing something they enjoy, and making a Will save. Or, they may talk with another character, with that other character performing a Medicine check on them. Either way, the DC is based on the afflicted character's level plus their total accumulated Stress. This check may only be attempted once every 24 hours. Critical Success: The character loses 2 Stress.
Success: The character loses 1 Stress.
Failure: The character does not lose any Stress.
Critical Failure: The character gains 1 Stress. If this results in their Stress dropping below a threshold, as seen above, they lose the associated condition from that Threshold.
Failure: The character gains 1 Stress.
Critical Failure: The character gains 2 Stress. The maximum amount of Stress a character can handle before suffering serious repercussions is equal to their Wisdom score. Further, at certain thresholds equal to 1/4 and then 1/2 their Wisdom score, they become afflicted in different ways, based on the table below: Thresholds: 1/4 Stress: The PC is Frightened 1
1/2 Stress: The PC is now Frightened 2 and Fleeing
Max Stress: The PC is now Immobilized with fear
Max Stress +3: The PC has now gone temporarily insane and is now Stupefied 1
Max Stress +6: The PC has now gone partially insane and is now Stupefied 2
Max Stress +9: The PC is mostly insane and is now Stupefied 3
Double Stress: The PC is now Confused and has gone insane. The character does not recover from these conditions when afflicted by Stress until their Stress drops below each threshold. The GM might also add in a little bit of flavour, such as the character jumps at shadows, or babbles incoherently. This is just for roleplay. So how does a character recover and reduce their Stress? Every 24 hours, the character may spend 1 hour to attempt a Resolve check. However, at Max Stress +3 threshold and above, this Resolve check becomes harder with insanity beginning to set in, and receives a -2 Circumstance penalty per threshold above Max Stress. Be aware, Stress does not recover on its own, even during downtime! It will accumulate unless you do something about it. Resolve A character may, once every 24 hours, spend 1 hour to attempt a Resolve check. This check takes the form of either the afflicted character spending time focusing inward or doing something they enjoy, and making a Will save. Or, they may talk with another character, with that other character performing a Medicine check on them. Either way, the DC is based on the afflicted character's level plus their total accumulated Stress. This check may only be attempted once every 24 hours. Critical Success: The character loses 2 Stress.
Success: The character loses 1 Stress.
Failure: The character does not lose any Stress.
Critical Failure: The character gains 1 Stress. If this results in their Stress dropping below a threshold, as seen above, they lose the associated condition from that Threshold.
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