Chapter IX: The Game Master
To determine what mood the character begins with at the start of an adventure, roll 1d10. 1-5 he’s on the Wheel of Pleasure for 1d10 days, followed by 1d10 more days on the Wheel of Dread. On a roll of 6-10, he begins on the Wheel of Dread for 1d10 days, followed by 1d10 days on the Wheel of Pleasure. And so on. Continue to roll 1d10 each time the character’s mood swings for the rest of his life or until he is cured or dies. A character on the Wheel of Pleasure can get himself into trouble with the law, end up in debt, perform some stupid action with great repercussions, or possibly get himself injured or killed. On the Wheel of Dread, his lack of motivation makes him a highly ineffective adventurer, and there’s always the possibility he may jump off a bridge. u sIng I nsanITy When a character goes insane it’s up to the GM to choose an appropriate disorder. There are several ways you can go about doing this. The first thing you should do is think about the immediate events leading up to the character going insane. In game terms, this is the moment when a character fails his Will Power Test to avoid gaining a disorder. What happened to make him take that Will Power Test? He had to make the test because he gained his sixth (or seventh, eighth, etc.) Insanity Point. So, how did he get that point? Through combat, witnessing an unspeakable ritual, or some other horrifying moment? Suppose a character gains his disorder while in combat with a Goblin, taking a critical hit that leaves him gravely injured and barely alive. What might go through that character’s deranged mind while recovering? • “Goblins are scary! They can hurt me real bad!” This disorder becomes The Fear. • “Goblins are out to get me. They’re crawling around under the floorboards right now!” This disorder becomes Profane Persecutions.
• “Sweet Mandrake Root, you make all the pain go away…” This disorder becomes the Mandrake Man. “Sigmar saved my life and in return he wants me to feed all the starving orphans in the Empire. I have a plan, it’s simple really, but we’ll need six thousand pounds of cheese. Who’s with me?” This disorder becomes the Delirious Saviour. “I’m lucky to be alive. That Goblin nearly killed me. HE NEARLY KILLED ME. Filthy Goblin. I almost died. That Goblin shoved a spear in my chest. I’m lucky to be…agghh, it’s happening again!” This disorder becomes the Knives of Memory. “I’m a terrible adventurer. That fight with the Goblin proves it. I can’t do this. I should just give up. What’s the point anyway? We’re never going to kill all the Goblins.” This disorder becomes the Heart of Despair. “Here I am, stinking, wounded, and no one shows me any kindness. Well, Lady Gerberson does…I’m certain she spoke to me last night in my dream, how I don’t know, but she loves me and that’s all that matters.” This disorder becomes the Lost Heart. And so on. A character who sees a loved one get tortured might gain the Blasphemous Rage disorder. A character who’s trapped for three days in a dark pit of filth and human remains might gain the Body of Rot disorder. The idea is to use a little logic, although if you want to improvise, roll randomly on the chart and then figure out how to justify the character gaining that particular disorder. Another helpful tip is to be familiar with the character’s past behaviour, before he gained the disorder. Suggestions for which disorder he’ll develop may have already been laid out in previous roleplaying sessions. For example, a character who drinks a lot could gain the Terrible Thirstings disorder. A character who dabbles in gambling, or is a professional gambler, could gain the Fortune’s Thrall disorder. A hot- headed character could gain the Beast Within disorder. The idea is to have the disorder spring from and then warp the character’s already existing personality. There are several insanities that result in actual Daemon possession. These should not be handed out lightly, as they are a potential death sentence. If you decide to use these in your game, curing the afflicted character should become a major plot line of your campaign. r oleplayIng d Isorders Roleplaying the disorder usually falls on the player. But there are many ways the GM can integrate the character’s disorder into the game. The basis of many disorders is delusion; the character’s view of reality has become twisted. The character thinks what he believes is true, when obviously it’s not. Since the GM is the one who supplies the players with all of the information about what they’re seeing, doing, and so on, the GM has an opportunity to distort that information for insane players through the lens of that player’s disorder. For example, Gregor and his adventuring companions have stopped at a coaching inn for the night. Gregor suffers from the Venomous Thoughts disorder. After the characters find a table and order their food, the GM tells them: • • • •
“Three men enter the inn. They seem exhausted, and their clothes are covered with a thick layer of dirt from the road. One of the men seems to be dressed in very fine clothing.”
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