Chapter IX: The Game Master
Auditory hallucinations can include the sound of footsteps behind the character, hissing or buzzing sounds, and voices. The voices always speak in commands, ordering the character to do some specific thing like tell everyone the world is going to end or kill the tax collector because he’s an agent of Chaos. It’s up to the GM to determine where the character thinks the voices are coming from. After the second month, things really go downhill. The character suffers a –10% penalty to all of his Characteristics, and an additional –10% Fellowship penalty. Every day he must make a Toughness Test to avoid becoming mutated. If he fails, the mutations begin slowly, with the eyes, mouth or head. Once the mutations have begun, the character no longer needs to make a daily Toughness Test until the third month. In the third month, if the character is still alive, he must continue to make a Toughness Test every day to avoid turning into a Horror of Tzeentch. If he fails, the last vestiges of his mind are destroyed as something spectacularly grotesque happens to his body, usually turning inside-out and growing copious arms, legs, and mouths. The character has transformed into a Daemon of Chaos and must be relinquished from the player’s control. Both Witch Hunters and the followers of Tzeentch are eager to find those suffering from the Glorious Corruption. Heart of Despair A character with a Heart of Despair operates under the delusion he is a worthless person, incapable of doing anything right and living in a world that is always against him. He believes that every action is doomed to end in failure and quickly looses hope that anything can be changed for the better. Things that once brought him joy become meaningless, and he goes out of his way to avoid friends and family. The Heart of Despair weighs down on him like a malevolent anchor, until finally the character decides that killing himself is the only way to end his suffering. A character with the Heart of Despair is very difficult to be around. He’s incapable of being cheered up and brings down the morale of others with his gloomy disposition. Because of his disorder, he permanently looses 1d10 Fellowship points. He must also make a successful Will Power Test every time he gains an Insanity Point, or he’ll hide himself away from the world for 2d10 days. During this time he’ll refuse to go out, and will struggle against those who wish him to do otherwise. When a character with the Heart of Despair gains another 6 Insanity Points, he must make a Will Power Test. Should he fail, instead of gaining another disorder, he tries to kill himself. He becomes single- minded in his desire to die, and will make arrangements to do so as soon as possible. He waits for the right moment when others won’t be around to stop him, and chooses a method to die with very little chance of accidental survival. Killing yourself is not against the law in the Old World, but attempts to do so will rouse the concern of friends, family and the local clergy. Host of Fiends Sometimes not all vanquished Daemons return to the Realm of Chaos. If the circumstances are right, their noncorporeal form can take up residence in the fragile mind of an unsuspecting mortal host. A character can become a Host to Fiends under the following conditions: he must be in the same immediate area has a Daemon who has just been slain, and he must have 6 or more Insanity Points but not yet possess a disorder. The Daemon, sensing the character’s mind is weak, attempts to break inside provoking a Will Power Test to keep the fiend at bay.
Should the character fail, the Daemon forces its way into his mind and he looses his 6 Insanity Points. However, it’s important to note that whether the Daemon is successful or not, the character remains ignorant of what has occurred. Furthermore, if the character does become a Host of Fiends, he’s initially unable to find a rational explanation for his sudden shifts in personality. Once inside, the Daemon begins its daily battle to wrest control of the character’s mind and body away from him. Everyday the character must make a Will Power Test. If he fails, the Daemon exerts its powerful influence over the character’s thoughts and actions, causing the character’s personality to change dramatically. Because the Daemon is a creature of Chaos, it possesses aspects of the four dark Gods of Chaos: Khorne, Slaanesh, Nurgle and Tzeentch. Roll percentile dice and consult the chart below for which aspect of the Daemon is exerting its corrupting control. h osT of f Iends % roll Result 01-25 Aspect of Khorne. The character turns irritable, violent, argumentative, contemptuous, bloodthirsty, sadistic, and cruel. He suffers a –10% penalty to Fellowship.
Aspect of Slaanesh. The character becomes narcissistic, self-indulgent, and hedonistic; he’ll also drink, lie, gamble, steal, and pursue sensual pleasures. He suffers a –10% penalty to Will Power. Aspect of Nurgle. The character refuses to wash, eats only rotten food, pokes at scabs and wounds, plays with insects, vomits, seeks out the diseased, and wallows in filth. He suffers a –20% penalty to Fellowship Aspect of Tzeentch. The character cuts his hair, adopts a new style of clothing, speaks with a different voice, callously abandons those who care about him, seeks out a new career, and refuses to acknowledge his former life. Furthermore, he feels a single-minded and powerful urge to violently change the status quo through infernal words and deeds. This aspect will remember its plans, even while dormant, and will patiently carry out its sinister schemes each time it’s able to manifest itself. The GMmay opt to have the character become an NPC during these moments of possession, leading a mysterious double life.
26-50
51-75
76-100
Each particular aspect of the Daemon exerts its control for d10 days. At the start of each new day, the character is allowed another Will Power Test to regain control of his mind and body. At the end of the aspect’s influence, the character returns to normal. However, the next morning he must once again make his daily Will Power Test to keep the Daemon away. When a character who is a Host of Fiends gains another 6 or more Insanity Points and fails his Will Power Test, instead of gaining another disorder the Daemon takes over their mind and body completely, and the character’s soul is banished to the Realm of Chaos. Knives of Memory There are some events so horrible, so traumatic, they scar an adventurer’s mind forever. When a character is assaulted by the Knives of Memory, he relives a specific traumatic event over and over through his dreams, obsessive thoughts and in sudden, frightening moments where he actually believes he’s experiencing the event again. In the waking hours the character broods over the details of the event, becoming depressed and irritable. He also has trouble concentrating and feels the urge to avoid friends and family. At night, his dreams
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