Has anyone home-brewed a Sanity mechanic like the Call of Cthulhu RPG for Pathfinder?
I was thinking of designing a mechanic for when PCs are subjected to extreme mental stresses, experiences and hidden knowledge.
Relevant encounters, adventures or non-combat events have a SAN ability check DC and a pre-defined SAN points-loss (fixed or a die roll) if that check is failed. PCs have to roll a mental-based ability check e.g. Will, at a given trigger point (which could be as simple as viewing a horrible cultist frieze depicting torture or self-mutilation like in the excellent Pathfinder Society module 'In Wrath's Shadow'). Fail the check and they lose some points from a Sanity pool of say 100 SAN points.
Once a PCs SAN pool is reduced to a certain level (say below 50) they start to exhibit certain behaviours to do with 'losing it'. This could be run by a DM using rolls e.g. every time a PC does x, there is a 1 in 20 chance that y happens due their current SAN position e.g. simple examples could be a barbarian raging in combat when not intended by the PC; a cleric healing the wrong people; a fighter turning against an ally with one attack due to mad visions that they are an enemy. A few home-brewed tables could develop low SAN class-based mechanics along those lines in and out of combat, and some low SAN effects could be applicable to all classes. Or a DM could also just run it on the fly without rolling anything, based on the situation.
When a PC's SAN pool gets to a low level, like under 30, a PC gains one of the sanity conditions in the Game-mastery guide. If it gets to zero, they are effectively mad and too far gone to recover, and probably end up in a sanatorium or wandering the byways of Avistan begging and mumbling nonsense in what they think is Yithian.
SAN can be recovered by spiritual healing or new types of magic. Given the direction of travel of the mechanic and its effects is mainly downward and 'negative', when SAN is recovered to 'normal, sane' thresholds there are mechanical boons associated with that recovery and regaining ones mental faculties e.g. temporary boons to SAN DC rolls ('seen it done it'), temporary boons to Will or Fortitude saves ('mental resilience') or temp HPs etc. This adds incentives to seek SAN recovery, though for balance purposes all boons would need to be temporary.
In addition, for certain campaigns which might test a party's sanity more than others, sanity flavoured material could be designed and built into that campaign e.g. character design and progression options such as campaign traits to bolster Will; magic items which give a bonus to SAN DC checks; magic or other items to heal SAN point loss.
Clearly I would need to get the Maths right in the mechanics so that in any adventure or campaign there is a small chance that a PC goes mad, or is on the way to going mad, based on the potential SAN points loss designed in and the potential SAN points recovery available if the PCs find it. I'd want the threat of going mad to be real and visible to the PCs, but a threat which can be overcome.
Any thoughts?
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There were some detailed rules for insanity in Unearthed Arcana (3.5), which can be found HERE.
Maybe that can be of help to you.
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I just picked up a 3pp supplement from Alea Publishing Group entitled Insanity Rules. It develops a sanity point system for Pathfinder. I haven't had a chance to put it into play yet but it looks solid at first glance.
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I mean, it's not like you're reinventing the wheel, like a madman or anything...
If you want something like Lovecraft or Soul Eater (the author of which is a HUGE Lovecraft fanboy, and SE was effectively him applying the Mythos to shounen manga), you could also treat Madness as a Disease that can spread to those around you.
That'd require some finagling, since you'd have to come up with a Madness Disease stat block (and remember that Will would be the save, not Con; or maybe Will AND Con in some instances), but it'd end up working well enough.
Pathfinder models sanity with Wisdom damage/drain. If a PC takes a significant amount of mental stat drain, they risk suffering an insanity.
How do you integrate the Insanity Spell that makes characters long term confused with this point system?