```metadata title: Revised Sanity - Ariadne's House Rules description: '' tags: [] systems: [] renderer: V3 theme: 5ePHB ``` {{frontCover}} {{position:relative,top:-20px # Revised Sanity ## Ariadne's Codex of Strings ___ }} {{banner Ichorous Peninsula}} {{footnote A set of rules to roleplay your gradual descent into madness over the course of an entire campaign! }} ![background image](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1105488303710543923/1206626853935120414/tomfarlane_an_elf_going_mad_crying_shouting_hands_in_hair_femal_6d47cbec-91d0-4ba7-a886-609d7401ee85.png?ex=65dcb1d4&is=65ca3cd4&hm=05f5b48e6fd56ca69c09b071ddc063561e367e21d452d34de19f61287bb09a21&=&format=webp&quality=lossless&width=3001&height=4000){position:absolute,bottom:0,left:0,height:116%,top:0} \page {{imageMaskEdge5,--offset:43%,--rotation:180 ![](https://i.imgur.com/PSWkfmB.png){height:80%,position:relative,left:-210px,top:-300px} }} :::::::: {{text-align:center,wide # Ariadne's House Rules: Revised Sanity }} {{ Dungeons and Dragons is a game that often delves into dark and mysterious settings, where the characters encounter horrors and eldritch entities that can test the limits of their sanity. During our play, we felt that the DM's Guide rules for sanity could be much more than just a random roll on a Madness table. These optional rules for sanity and madness provide a framework for simulating the psychological strain and repercussions of facing the difficult life of an adventurer. They primarily represent the mental deterioration of characters over a long period of time, instead of just some random quirk you adacquire quire due to a roll of the dice. : ### Sanity Score All characters start with a sanity score of 10, as if it were an additional ability score. It represents the general state of mind a character might have, and cannot be increased by ability score improvements. : Characters who have suffered greatly in their backstories can (and should!) start the game with a sanity score of 9 or lower, to represent their fragile state of mind entering the campaign. They can get better over time, which adds a layer of *mechanical* benefit to many activities, such as developing a romantic relationship, forging a bond with your friends, or finding purpose in life, among other things. ##### Sanity Tiers **10:** This is considered being mentally stable. You may have a normal life, with the occasional traumatic event. Whatever happened, it got resolved in the past or didn't affect your mental health. A character can be at this tier while having suffered much; that would indicate they are over whatever trauma they endured. : **9:** A particular event may have traumatized you, be it the death of your parents, the loss of your home, or even a personal failure that haunts you. Most backstories have an event that could call for a sanity score of 9, but it generally depends on how your character has lived through it. Luke Skywalker saw his aunt and uncle roasted alive and kept going without a care in the world. It boils down to how you would like to play your character. Most adventurers find themselves in this bracket, in one way or another. : **8:** You had a difficult life, a traumatic experience, an event or series of events that changed you for the worse. In this Sanity bracket you can start to find the most common }} \column {{ afflictions of the mind, such as Insomnia, Depression, Addiction, and many others. Note that your symptoms are still mild and they do not impede your normal functioning. You may have OCD, but it doesn't mean you take psychic damage whenever your Barbarian friend eats with their mouth open. : **7:** You are heavily scarred by your past and actively deal with profound issues that affect your day to day life. In this bracket, the symptoms get worse; compulsions, chronic depression, post-traumatic stress disorder. You may experience regular panic attacks, or freeze during a fight, or have bouts of uncontrollable anger. A good example would be Caleb Widogast from campaign 2 of Critical Role. His issues make him stop dead in his tracks whenever encountering fire. : **6:** This is as low as you should go when creating a character. This sanity score is reserved for the insane. Whatever the circumstances, your life has led you to a point were you cannot trust your own mind. You may suffer from constant hallucinations, multiple personality disorder, psychosis, among other things. The difference between this bracket and the one below is that you still function as a character, despite (or even because of) your insanity. The Mad Hatter, Patrick Bateman, the Joker; this tier makes the insanity of the characters not just a struggle, but a defining characteristic. : **5:** Your mental health problems impede your normal functioning. Fuge states, amnesia, hysterical paralysis. A character with a sanity score of 5 is barely able to participate in the campaign. However, this can make for a pretty interesting story. Not too long ago, one of my players was brought back from the dead and lost a sanity point, bringing her down from 6 to 5. She ended up losing all her memories, which allowed a bad guy to take her under his wing (damn you, Constantine!). Next time she found the party, a tragic fight ensued, in which she slowly regained her memories in battle against her friends. This bracket can result in really powerful moments if you know how to capitalize on them. : **4:** Players that end up this low on sanity lose control of their characters. They become raving lunatics, mute hermits, or frenzied killers. This tier represents a complete loss of bodily autonomy, akin to player character death. : **1-3:** A creature with a sanity score of 3 or lower is no longer present in the mind. The body is still there, like an abandoned husk, but the self has left and is unable to come back. Vegetative states, comas, and other terrible fates make up this sanity tier. }} {{pageNumber,auto}} {{footnote Threadmaster's Vault: Sanity}} \page {{watercolor6,top:-150px,left:0px,width:400px,background-color:#BBAD82,opacity:100%}} ![mad city](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1105918269992480819/1112028939146231859/City_in_the_sky-transformed-transformed.png?width=764&height=1286) {width:255px,position:absolute,top:-0px,left:100px,mix-blend-mode:multipl} ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ### When to Call for a Sanity Roll Like other ability scores, sanity saving throws can be called to determine the effect of a particular event on a character. Many things can induce a sanity save, from traumatic experiences to eldritch monstrosities. In situations that would test a character's sanity, the DM may call for a Sanity Saving throw. Roll a d20 and add or subtract your Sanity modifier. The DC works much like a death saving throw would; its always 10. This makes it so a character that is already mentally unstable is more likely to break under difficult circumstances and spiral out of control. :: ##### Negative Sanity Modifier | Sanity Score | Modifier | |:------------------|:-----:| |10 | 0 | | 9 | -1 | | 8 | -2 | | 7 | -3 | | 6 | -4 | | 5 or less | -5 | ##### Short-term, long-term Before the roll is made, the DM must determine if the event in question provokes short-term sanity loss or long-term sanity loss. Finishing a long rest recuperates a single point of short-term sanity. Regardless of which roll is made, the results are the same. To determine the effects of losing sanity, use the same parameters for both short-term and long-term as to create a more believable descent into madness. One could even think spells and other magical effects in this way; crown of madness is nothing but a spell that reduces your sanity to 4 for the duration, while hypnotic pattern goes a step further and reduces it to 3 for as long as you are under the effect. : Consistency goes a long way in creating a believable world for your players to inhabit, and makes it much easier for you to improvise on the spot, rather than having to roll on a madness table that, when in context, ends up making little to no sense whatsoever. ##### Descent into Madness When should you call for long-term sanity rolls? Generally after traumatic events a character has gone through at the table. The death of a loved one right in front of your eyes. Being brought back to life after a gruesome demise. Having your entire worldview questioned or outright destroyed. These scenarios are plentiful but are primarily focused on the character and their lived experience. : For example, when Luke confronts Darth Vader and learns the truth (I AM YOUR FATHER), the DM may call for a sanity save. One could say Luke failed the save and changed as a person because of it, becoming a grittier character by the third film (brother is killing extras like nobody's business. Go, green-saber Luke!). : Don't make the aberration beyond space and time provoke a long-term sanity roll; that may be a very cool (if not cliché) concept on paper, but a horrible thing to force onto a player. They must above all understand why their character is losing sanity, so as to be able to roleplay as said character. Reserve your sanity-loss combat mechanics for short-term rolls. : On the other hand, you could argue that some events are so traumatic they don't need a roll to be resolved. This can be a great tool when cooperating with a player; we do not advise forcing a character to lose a sanity point if your player isn't comfortable with it. Remember, the more sanity points a character loses, the harder it is to succeed in the following rolls. In this way, short and long-term sanity loss can be intertwined, making the character descend faster and faster into madness. : ### How to Interact with Sanity This is all well and good, but what impact does this score actually make in regular play? Well, to be perfectly honest, it depends on what you, as a DM (or player!) think is appropriate according to the respective sanity tier. : Going from X sanity to X - 1 may entail a Wisdom save, for example; on a failure, the character freezes, stunned for the round, as they process what happened. During a {{pageNumber,auto}} {{footnote Threadmaster's Vault: Sanity}} \page fight, you could impose disadvantage on certain tasks, give them a condition (be it frightened, demoralized, incapacitated), or even award them bonuses and benefits, as they snap and desperately try to achieve their goal. : More broadly, when interacting with a score of 7 or lower, you can have them hear voices, hallucinate, develop compulsions towards certain objects. As a player, you have free reign over what you think your character would be like under the strains of sanity-loss. We find that the more this score incites roleplay, the better. : We generally divide the sanity effects in two categories: instant, or temporary effects, and prolonged symptoms. Thinking in these terms will allow you to come up with believable (and original) repercussions to losing sanity. Think of the following as simply a guideline, not as an immutable fact. The true goal of these optional rules is to get you thinking! Teach a man to fish... : ##### A Few Examples | Sanity | Instant Effect | Prolonged Symptoms | |:------------------|:-----:|:-----------------:| | 9 | Stunned for a round, Frightened, Demoralized | Nightmares, self-doubt, anxiety, nervousness | | 8 | Frenzied (gains an additional attack), Tunnel-vision (must succeed on a task no matter the cost), Mental Breakdown (incapacitated) | Insomnia, Abusive Behavior, Alcoholism | | 7 | Fainting (unconsciousness), Irrational behavior, Frenzy (attacks whoever is closest) | Chronic Depression, traumatic flashbacks and dissociation, apathy | | 6 | Same effects as tier 7 | Multiple Personalities, Hallucinations, Suicidal-tendencies | | 5 | Loss of bodily autonomy (temporary) | Partial loss of bodily autonomy (permanent) | | 4 | Loss of bodily autonomy (permanent) | - | : ### Character Development The Sanity score can be a great way to track your player's character development. Awarding a Sanity point after overcoming a great hurdle can be a way to encourage players to focus on what story they want to tell, be it the triumphant tale of a hero that conquers their fears, or the tragic downfall of a damaged person, destined to darkness. Cooperating with your players on this can make for an amazing story. : On the other hand, the Sanity score gives you a way to punish your players without ending their story prematurely—and have it not feel like you saved them when they should have died. If, for example, the players lose a fight against the main bad guy and one of them dies (a TPK is right around the corner), you can instead incapacitate the characters and capture them. : This is a pretty common DM tool to avoid the end of the campaign, but using the Sanity score, you can make it have tangible repercussions—and in turn make it feel more real for your players. Call for a Sanity save when the fighting is over, as the characters truly realize their friend is gone for good. Some will succeed, some will fail. That becomes a great jumping off point for players to develop how the event affected their characters! : You can even have them roll a Sanity Saving Throw without the player-character death; you can kill an NPC (old Ben Kenobi), destroy something your players hold dear (Alderaan), or even make the loss so devastating it scars the characters even if nothing has truly been lost (Han Solo frozen in carbonite). {{imageMaskCorner22,--offsetX:50%,--offsetY:-45%,--rotation:0 ![](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1105488303710543923/1188571257420136521/tomfarlane_a_pool_of_black_ichor_corruption_fantasy_art_in_a_ru_5bc4a2b4-c963-4674-a752-3e507ad28821.png?ex=659b023e&is=65888d3e&hm=0438723d66b612a366c01639bddeaa897ae2f0922b8755299f496d6188614bb0&=&format=webp&quality=lossless&width=3394&height=4092){height:80%,right:-100px,top:} }} {{pageNumber,auto}} {{footnote Threadmaster's Vault: Sanity}} \page {{imageMaskEdge5,--offset:5%,--rotation:270 ![](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1105488303710543923/1188585347966304336/tomfarlane_an_policeman_wizard_in_a_dungeon_in_the_style_of_WLO_afc3e682-fe2f-4312-9cbb-0e3d98a02ea7.png?ex=659b0f5d&is=65889a5d&hm=55b79c8e1c9ac1ee3d3ea4da876b82ae11faad1655666c3a55b32a97a787818c&=&format=webp&quality=lossless&width=4092&height=4092){height:100%,transform:scalex(-1),left:-100px,TOP:00PX} }} {{imageMaskEdge5,--offset:16%,--rotation:0 ![](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1105488303710543923/1188585347966304336/tomfarlane_an_policeman_wizard_in_a_dungeon_in_the_style_of_WLO_afc3e682-fe2f-4312-9cbb-0e3d98a02ea7.png?ex=659b0f5d&is=65889a5d&hm=55b79c8e1c9ac1ee3d3ea4da876b82ae11faad1655666c3a55b32a97a787818c&=&format=webp&quality=lossless&width=4092&height=4092){height:100%,transform:scalex(-1),left:-100px,tOp:00PX} }} ### Sanity Scores Above 10 We have established that this iteration of sanity is not only a game mechanic much akin to permanent exhaustion, but also a measure of character development. With the addition of this ability score, you can encourage your players to change, to stay on their toes, to be open to improvisation. Sometimes, however, characters do not change, no matter the circumstances. These are generally NPCs, but sometimes a player may want this to be the case for their character. : These are static characters, such as Luffy from One Piece or Ben Kenobi in a New Hope, who don't change with the story. As such, they should be treated differently when it comes to sanity; these are the rare sanity scores beyond 10, be it 12, 14 or even 20 (with a crazy modifier like +5, your call). These characters have things figured out and are not affected by the sanity tiers above mentioned. : Some characters can even have a static Sanity score, in the case of the Mad Hatter example. Unable to change, be it for better or for worse, his sanity remains around 6 or 7. I mean, it's in the name, you can't have the Mad Hatter become the Sane Hatter, but you wouldn't make him the Clinically Insane Hatter either, lest he kills Alice in the third act. : In this vein, a character that is considered static shouldn't be affected by long-term sanity loss. This isn't a mechanic inherent to your players, more your NPCs, but sometimes you can give a player a sanity score above 10, to represent their sturdiness of mind and unwavering purpose. They don't change, they make the world around them change. Great convictions translate into peace of mind, regardless of the consequences. {{pageNumber,auto}} {{footnote Threadmaster's Vault: Sanity}} \page {{ ##### Positive Sanity Modifier | Sanity Score | Modifier | |:------------------|:-----:| |11 | 0 | | 12 | +1 | | 13 | +1 | | 14 | +2 | | 15 | +2 | | 16 or more | +3 | :: {{note ##### Asymmetrical Modifiers Note that Negative Modifiers are much harsher on the roll than Positive ones. Thing is, sanity scores above 10 do not come with an inherent tier, like scores below 10 do. Failing a sanity save when above 10 doesn't mean much, just that the character has been scarred by the event and is more likely to have mental issues in the future. In this vein, positive modifiers being incrementally lower in comparison represents the harshness of life, the difficulties of coping. Not everyone is a true stoic, and events that challenge the sanity of a character shouldn't be easy to ignore. }} ### Getting Better When thinking about what could heal long-term sanity loss, several things come to mind. Religion, a quest, a struggle, a group of friends, a partner. When mapping out a character's mental health journey, these kind of things are the inflection point, but it never happens from one day to another. : This is where you can start to use short-term sanity increases, meaning they are treated much like temporary hit points, unrecoverable and expiring after a while (could be a week, could be a month). This is a particularly powerful tool to represent chronic mental health issues, such as depression, where even if things get better for a while, the darkness always comes back. For those Stormlight Archive fans, Kaladin is a great example. Fair warning, it can be a bummer to explore these difficult topics in your DnD games, and you should make sure your players are comfortable first and foremost. Remember you are not the master of the story, you are merely a guide. : To think about what would make a character gain sanity, consider their arc, their backstory, and their direction. Would an edgy kleptomaniac rogue who has no parents and kills indiscriminately at every chance just to steal everything from the corpses ever get better? That's a harsh one. : Well, maybe he spares someone's life, or refuses to take something that isn't his, or gives something away for once. Think of Han Solo in a New Hope. The rebellion becomes a sort-of purpose (sanity restored to 10!), then by the second film, he resolves his situation with Leia (now going strong on 11 sanity) and is perfectly okay with dying in carbonite ("I love you!", "I know"). }} {{imageMaskEdge1,--offset:3%,--rotation:270 ![](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1105488303710543923/1188190184957812798/tomfarlane_a_master_hunter_bloodborne_character_WLOP_witch_hunt_dc680c1a-d416-4762-a41e-91d52051a8c1.png?ex=65999f57&is=65872a57&hm=65f8fbe99d6f15c6f34daa6657c28092867657efc2cc666ea4a2a28222ab8d2b&=&format=webp&quality=lossless&width=3394&height=4092){height:100%,left:280px} }} {{pageNumber,auto}} {{footnote Threadmaster's Vault: Sanity}} \page \column ### Lord of the Rings (yes, really) The Sanity score allows you to construct a gradual descent into madness, as well as to tell a moving story about recovery. The Lord of the Rings, the archetypical DnD campaign, uses sanity in this manner to its fullest potential. Everything we talked about can be exemplified with LOTR (like many things in life). : The One Ring is a sanity altering item in and of itself. It not only provokes short-term sanity loss, but in the long run, also permanently reduces sanity. Gollum is a 6-sanity character, while Frodo is going on 7 sanity by the end of the trilogy. You can think of Boromir's descent into madness, then following redemption, as incremental sanity losses--and gains! : You could argue Gimli and Legolas to be static characters, affected only by short-term sanity loss (the Mines of Moria), while Aragorn starts out with 9 sanity (in the films!) and ends up with 12 or 13 when he accepts his purpose and becomes king. Gandalf could also be taken as a static character, but I would argue his transformation from Gandalf the Grey into Gandalf the White comes with a great deal of enlightenment, which would put him in the upper sanity brackets (15 or 16). Samwise Gamgee and Gollum can be thought of as sanity modifiers for Frodo, like Rivendell is for Bilbo. Note that the old hobbit gains temporary sanity, not permanent, as he relapses the second he sees the ring again. : LOTR is an amazing example of how sanity can affect your DnD campaign, from short-term sanity loss to psychological recovery. In the end, what truly helps the characters mental health are their friends, hence the 15 minute long reunion scene at the end of Return of the King (I never skip it). : The party is the essence of many campaigns, and adding this ability score will allow your players to find mechanical benefit in mental wellbeing. Sometimes, recovering your sanity can become a purpose in and of itself! Items can increase or decrease sanity, monsters can have mechanics tailored around sanity damage (short-term!), places and down-time can give bonuses or buffs in short-term sanity gains, etc. The possibilities are endless. : Most importantly, by adding sanity into your game, you create an additional layer of character progression that has a direct impact on roleplay. Gaining extra hit points, increasing your main stat, learning a new feat. These game mechanics are not discussed enough in the context of your world. Sanity allows you to represent with a numerical value a state of mind, a profound issue, or a devout purpose. Its a step towards further resonance between game mechanics and roleplay. That, my friends, is all for now. Go nuts (pun intended)! {{pageNumber,auto}} {{footnote Threadmaster's Vault: Sanity}} {{imageMaskEdge1,--offset:4%,--rotation:90 ![](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1105488303710543923/1188584749451722823/tomfarlane_the_shire_lord_of_the_rings_landscape_fantasy_art_fa_3b35cc96-831e-4988-ba21-a0d73326d9ab.png?ex=659b0ecf&is=658899cf&hm=a61e4529f4e156199d0fe84e680d64bf5531718bd46a2ab04d68a40f3392c7b7&=&format=webp&quality=lossless&width=3394&height=4092){height:100%,left:-180px} }} \page {{backCover}} # That's all, Folks! : We hope you enjoyed this little sourcebook. The Ichorous Peninsula was our first entry in this burgeoning universe we call the Codex of Strings. It badly needed a glow up. Which one should we remaster next? If you want to see more of us, we have a lot more content in our site: www.codexofstrings.com : We would like to extend a big *THANK YOU* {{width:1px}} to all of our patrons, who make these entries possible and give us starving creatives some stability in this ever-fledging world. : These commendable Threadmaster-tier Patrons have climbed through the ranks of our organization, and are the lifeblood of this project: ##### **-- Dakota Hinton** ##### **-- Richard J Shepard III** ##### **-- Asin Samay** ##### **-- John Doe** ##### **-- Davin Pacheco** ##### **-- Kristian Meling** ##### **-- Gavin Pacheco** : A Special thank you to our Stringweavers! ##### **-- Steven Zillinski** ##### **-- Zack Byers** Got any feedback? Ideas? Suggestions? We have an email! 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