Mental Strain
From D20advanced
Mental strain represents the psychological damage caused by terrible experiences: horror, violence, and trauma. When confronted by these things, some people collapse under the strain. This variant is most appropriate for very realistic settings where characters are expected to deal with terrible situations and their consequences. When confronted with a particularly stressful situation, characters make Will checks. The DC of the check depends on the circumstances.
| TABLE 9.1: MENTAL STRAIN | |
| DC | Situation |
| 10 | Witness a friend killed. Kill an enemy in the heat of battle. |
| 15 | Witness a gruesome death or torture. Suffer torture. |
| 20 | Witness a friend or loved one killed in a terrible manner. Commit murder. |
| 25 | Commit cold-blooded murder. Witness death and destruction on a vast scale. |
| 30 | Encounter a terrible horror of cosmic proportions. |
If you succeed on the Will check, nothing happens; you manage to deal with the circumstances and move on. If you fail the check, then your character momentarily loses control. You, the player, have three choices:
- The character becomes panicked and attempts to flee as quickly as possible. If unable to do so, the character cowers, helpless.
- The character becomes helpless, cowering, curled up in the fetal position, or just standing dumbstruck and unaware.
- You spend a hero die and the character is dazed for one round, losing both of his actions, but defending normally. The character then shakes off the horror of the situation and acts normally.
The first two effects last for the duration of the encounter (more or less at the GM’s discretion). Spending a hero die at any time during either effect allows the character to shake it off immediately.
Mental Strain and Complications
If desired, mental strain can have a long term impact as well as a short-term one. When a character fails a Will check, in addition to the normal effects, the character may develop a number of psychological complications equal to the check’s DC/10. So, a failed Will check vs. a DC of 20 results in two complications. The character suffers the effects of these complications but does not gain hero dice for them. The complications are permanent, although the GM can allow characters to eliminate them with time and psychological treatment; a minimum of one month per complication is recommended.
The player and Gamemaster should cooperate to come up with complications suited to the nature of the mental strain that caused them.
Mental Strain and Taint
If you’re using the Taint rules, a failed mental strain save can cause psychological (or even other forms) of taint (especially Madness).
 Option: How To Use Mental Strain
Mental strain and the options for Madness may seem very similar. Mental strain is meant to provide a very simple means of tracking strain for more realistic games, not a robust system where tracking your mental health becomes one of the key indicators for your character's wellbeing. This is a simple way to tell how much a given experience has shaken a character up. While mental strain does serve as a good initial way to determine whether or not an experience is maddening, and it does work well as part of the madness rules, mental strain by itself is likely not enough to truly invoke the feeling a horror game should be able to. |
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| Chapter VII: Combat | Combat Sequence | Combat Statistics | Actions | Action Descriptions | Damage | Tactical Movement and Options | Maneuvers | |
|---|---|---|
| Chapter VIII: Environments | Zones | Terrain Effects | Climate Effects | Conditions | |
| Chapter IX: Dramatic Interactions | Dramatic Interaction | Interaction Types | Reputation | Mental Strain | Taint | Examples of Taint | |
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