Chapter IX: The Game Master
GM may decide that prolonged exposure to what the character fears requires a Will Power Test to avoid gaining an Insanity Point. Should the character succeed, he still suffers a –10% penalty to his Will Power and Fellowship Characteristics until he’s safely away from what he fears. In more severe cases, a character suffering from The Fear becomes convinced the object of his discomfort is hidden yet everywhere, lurking just out of sight, ready to get him as soon as his guard is down. Running away from rats and ranting about needles lying everywhere, ready to prick you, are actions sure to get the attention of Witch Hunters. Firebug The character feels an irresistible compulsion to set fires. He’s been driven to a point where he believes that life is nothing but misery and darkness, an endless grind of dread and danger. There is no joy for him and nothing offers the character any real sense of pleasure—except for starting fiery blazes and burning down buildings. When a character who is a Firebug is presented with an opportunity to set a fire, he must make a Will Power Test to resist his incendiary urge. Should he fail, the character will attempt to set a fire, ignoring any risks involved and with an appalling disregard for the consequences. While igniting and observing the fire, the character feels an intense sense of pleasure and sweet relief. The bigger and more vigorous the conflagration, the more powerful these feelings become. This elated state lasts d10 hours, after which the character becomes depressed and nervous, suffering a –10% penalty to Fellowship for d10 days or until he successfully starts another fire. A Firebug is constantly putting his own life, as well as those of others, at risk every time he sparks up a blaze. Many have been severely burned or killed in fires started by their own hand. Arson is also a crime punishable by death in the Old World, and the Firebug may meet his fate at the
end of a hangman’s noose. Slaanesh and his minions are quite fond of Firebugs, whose pyromaniacal urges are the doorway to their ultimate
corruption by Chaos. Fortune’s Thrall
When a character becomes Fortune’s Thrall he feels a constant, overpowering desire to gamble. The character has been driven to believe that ordinary life is boring and depressing, full of petty problems and distressing memories of all the horrors he has seen. Desperate for some action and a little risk to speed along the grim and quiet hours, the character turns to games of chance and quickly becomes addicted to their seductive lures. When a character who is Fortune’s Thrall is presented with an opportunity to gamble (for example, passing by a dice game on the street, or being invited to play a hand of cards in a tavern), he must make a Will Power Test to resist the temptation to participate. If the test is failed, the character will continue to gamble, making a Will Power Test before each new wager to try and break away. Regardless of whether he is winning or losing, each new wager reduces the character’s Will Power by 5. The Gamble skill does not take away the –5% penalty, it simply makes it easier for the Fortune’s Thrall to win. If the character runs out of money but continues to fail his Will Power Tests, he must continue to play by either borrowing more money or wagering personal items. This can lead to complicated and potentially dangerous situations. A character who is Fortune’s Thrall is almost always in debt, constantly hounded by those looking to collect their money, and often in trouble with the law. He can quickly loose friends by borrowing too much money from them and never paying it back. Worse still, he’ll wager items that don’t even belong to him, or are considered property of the adventuring party (like a boat), without seeking permission. From there it’s a slippery slope to pernicious lying, outright stealing and the waiting arms of Slaanesh and his minions. The Glorious Corruption Being exposed to warpstone and other forms of Chaos energy is never a good thing. For just as Chaos can mutate the body, so too can it distort the minds of the mentally weak. When Chaos is able to attack and mutate the brain, the end result is the Glorious Corruption. To be susceptible to the Glorious Corruption, a character must have 6 or more Insanity Points but not yet possess a disorder. When that character comes into contact with Chaos energy, he must immediately make a Will Power Test to avoid becoming infected. Should he fail, he loses his 6 Insanity Points, but the Glorious Corruption takes hold of his mind. In the beginning, the character suffers a random –10% penalty to one of his Characteristics every day. After one week, the character then suffers a permanent –10% Fellowship penalty, and begins to get strange ideas. For example: bathing leads to death, all money is fake, animals are spying on him, sleep is for idiots, putting dirt in your pocket keeps Elves away, and so on. After the first month, he begins to hallucinate. The hallucinations mainly come in two forms: visual and audio. Characters will see normal things turn inappropriate colours, inanimate objects move, shadowy figures lurk just out of view, animals speak, religious iconography suddenly appear in various objects or in the sky, and so on.
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