Dungeon Fantasy: New Fright Check rules

[b-dog]

I was thinking of using sanity rules for GURPS to try to simulate the Call of Cthulhu game. I was thinking of making a new Fright Check table where players may lose temporary Will points. These will heal at the same rate as HP ( Hit Points ). I was thinking that if a Fright Check is -5 or greater then if it is failed, then the player loses one Will point. The Will point will heal in one day provided the player makes a Will ( this roll would be at the original level ).

This would more closely reflect the cumulative effects of dealing with elder entities, demon lords and other horrors. What do you think?

[Kromm]

I don't think that's good for fantasy. It's good for horror, but my goal in DF -- even where Elder Things get involved -- is for adventurers to be posterior-kicking hardcases, like in old-time FRPGs. The newfangled idea of sanity being important came along quite some time after those games, and was a dramatic device for less-hardened horror protagonists facing Things they couldn't kill. I think that's incompatible with the subgenre that DF is shooting for.

[b-dog]

OK, I understand. I guess I was just thinking about having campaigns where the PCs are super tough but when they encounter a temple dedicated to an Elder Thing, they realize there is no way to destroy the Elder Thing. The only thing the PCs can do is try to rid the temple of its followers while avoiding going insane in the process. There will be treasure that has been aquired by the temple followers from looting other people, but the items dedicated to the Elder Thing would probably need to be destroyed and the temple sealed off.

[sjmdw45]

I think the most Dungeon-Fantasy-ish way to handle your hypothetical evil temple must still give some possibility of destroying the Elder Thing entirely. It's within genre to try to destroy it and fail so it can come back later (Vecna), but there should be at least a possibility of finding and smashing its phylactery or whatever.

Gord the Rogue failed to take out Tharizdun, and in fact Tharizdun eventually destroyed the universe, but it was just bad luck because several times he almost had him. (In GURPS terms, Tharizdun out-spent Gord with CP.)

-Max

[Kromm]

I just think that imposing a major, character-affecting horror trope in a dungeon-crawl game would be unpopular . . . a bit like telling people they're in for a cops-and-crooks game, running it straight for 10 adventures, and then having the cops run into a real, blood-sucking vampire with fangs and a coffin. The only kind of horror that really mixes well with dungeon fantasy is camp horror and splatter. Mind-bending horror and even classic Gothic horror really don't work well with heroes who are simply out to get the most plusses.

[stilleon]

Originally Posted by Kromm

I just think that imposing a major, character-affecting horror trope in a dungeon-crawl game would be unpopular

I agree. For the most part, Dungeon Fantasy characters are kind of like Supers. They got the powers and can face almost anything.

If you want to add fear as a feature into DF you should emulate that other dungeon crawling game. They treat it as a supernatural attack, akin to a basilisk gaze. In it, some creatures (and spells, like Fear) cause a character to make a Will save or suffer the effects of fear.

I would give certain creatures a Fear power it can use: Terror (30 points), either from a gaze or horrible shriek (when it needs to activate it), ot Always on (-20) for something you just can't help but retch from. For 10 points per -1 to the Fright check you can make some creatures that much scarier.

This invokes a Fear check from all characters and if you fail, you suffer. however, running into a dozen skeletons ready for battle is not scary: ITS CLOBBERING TIME!!!!

[b-dog]

I just think that imposing a major, character-affecting horror trope in a dungeon-crawl game would be unpopular . . . a bit like telling people they're in for a cops-and-crooks game, running it straight for 10 adventures, and then having the cops run into a real, blood-sucking vampire with fangs and a coffin.

I would be interested in a campaign like this!

Anyway, I concede your point. You did a great job creating the first four DF PDFs.

*Ravenloft was pretty popular and it contained some mind rending horror.

[Captain-Captain]

So long as I can take out a law rocket, which Buffy proved Dark things that are immune to weapons can't handle. ;)

[Rupert]

Originally Posted by b-dog

OK, I understand. I guess I was just thinking about having campaigns where the PCs are super tough but when they encounter a temple dedicated to an Elder Thing, they realize there is no way to destroy the Elder Thing. The only thing the PCs can do is try to rid the temple of its followers while avoiding going insane in the process. There will be treasure that has been aquired by the temple followers from looting other people, but the items dedicated to the Elder Thing would probably need to be destroyed and the temple sealed off.

Ignoring the popularity of such a mechanism in a DF game, such a temple will probably result in a TPK or a major disruption of the game universe. You see, PCs who are that powerful, and who have had successful careers of Killing Things and Taking Their Stuff aren't going to believe they can't take the Elder Thing, and nor are their players (and even if they do, the ones who are into careful portrayal of their characters aren't going to let that influence their play), so the PCs will either all die trying to take said Elder Thing, or they'll break your game-world by finding a way of killing the unkillable.

[b-dog]

Originally Posted by Rupert

Ignoring the popularity of such a mechanism in a DF game, such a temple will probably result in a TPK or a major disruption of the game universe. You see, PCs who are that powerful, and who have had successful careers of Killing Things and Taking Their Stuff aren't going to believe they can't take the Elder Thing, and nor are their players (and even if they do, the ones who are into careful portrayal of their characters aren't going to let that influence their play), so the PCs will either all die trying to take said Elder Thing, or they'll break your game-world by finding a way of killing the unkillable.

Let me say one thing, I am not an experienced GURPS player but from what little I know, Dr. Kromm is extremely intelligent as are many of the posters on this forum. For that reason I would assume that many GURPS players who play Dungeon Fantasy would know that they are not going to kill Hastur the Unspeakable when they have an elf armed with a sword.