[johndallman]

Chronic Pain is a mundane physical disadvantage that comes as a toolkit, rather than with a fixed cost. Essentially, you have something wrong with you that produces pain, for long enough and often enough to be a problem. This disadvantage appeared at GURPS 4e, as a generalisation of the 3e disadvantage Migraine.

Pain comes in levels, mild, severe, or agonising, which give penalties of -2, -4 or -6 to IQ, DX and self-control rolls for disadvantages that relate to keeping a cool head. If pain attacks happen when you should be sleeping, you don't get to sleep, and suffer sleep-deprivation penalties instead. An attack of pain lasts for some fixed time (the "interval") , which modifies the value of the disadvantage, and then you get to attempt a HT roll to recover. If you fail it, you carry on experiencing the pain until another interval has passed, and try again. Pain attacks are rolled for once a game day, at a time set by the GM according to your activities. They use the Frequency of Appearance value modifiers. The overall range of possible values is [-1] to [-90].

Clearly, Chronic Pain can take mitigator modifiers, which could reduce the level or interval, or reduce the likelihood of attacks. Drug side-effects could apply, or even be the cause of the disadvantage. This is mostly useful in character design for "old war wounds" and migraines. It's also important for side-effects of injuries, missing Dependency or Maintenance, and the like, and its occasional appearances as an option on character templates reflect this.

Bio-Tech has this disadvantage as a potential side-effect of drastic bioengineering, plus ways to treat it, including implants, physiotherapy and surgery. Fantasy-Tech suggests electrical treatments. Horror adds some disturbing reasons for Chronic Pain while Madness Dossier has ways to cause it. Infinite Worlds' Reich-5 has bio-tech Jumpers that suffer it; Low-Tech has treatments of its own. Martial Arts has lasting injuries that cause this disadvantage, as can Powers: The Weird radiation. Pisonic Campaigns points out pain as a Temporary Disadvantage, and Psis has more detail.

How has this disadvantage made itself felt in your games?