Stress
A measure of a character’s emotional trauma, mental strain, and psychological instability, stress increases when bad things happen. Taking damage increases a character’s stress, being near monstrous enemies or embroiled in scary situations may increase her stress as well, at the GM’s discretion.
Stress has a minimum of 0 and a maximum of 8 and is tracked on your character sheet.
Stress From Damage
Each time you take damage, you gain stress based on the highest severity of wound that the incoming damage creates. You do not add multiple severities together (moderate + heavy, for example). Only the highest severity is applied. For example:
If you take 3 damage while uninjured, you fill 3 light wound boxes. Light wounds give +1 stress, so you gain 1 stress total.
If you take 5 damage while uninjured, you fill all 4 light wound boxes and 1 moderate wound box. Because the highest severity filled was moderate, you can +2 stress total.
Wound Severity | Stress Increase |
|---|---|
Light | +1 |
Moderate | +2 |
Heavy | +4 |
Stress Penalties
Stress weighs on a character mentally; the more stress they have, the harder it is to focus, to remain calm, and even to act at all.
Stress Penalty = ½ stress (rounded up) - Cool Under Fire
Thus, a character with Cool Under Fire 1 and 3 stress would suffer a -1. This effect only applies to the first roll you make to use an action or reaction each round.
Crucible Test
If a character takes enough stress to push her above 5, she reaches a Crucible Test. She must immediately roll a Cool Under Fire check (not affected by any Bonus or Penalty dice). The DC for this check is 8 + incoming stress. So for example, if a character is at 4 stress and would suffer an additional 4 stress, she must roll a Cool Under Fire check and meet or exceed 12 (8 base + 4 from incoming stress amount).
Success: her stress is reduced to 5 and she may apply an Indomitable effect to herself (see below).
Failure: she suffers the stress as normal and enters into PTSD range.
If a character fails a Crucible Test, she may choose to spend one point of her Cool Under Fire attribute (reducing that attribute’s level by 1 permanently) to pass it instead.
Indomitable
Once per session, when you succeed on a Crucible Test, you may… (choose one)
Take no stress penalty to skill checks for 1 hour
Immediately take 1 full turn (3 actions). If it’s already your turn, take another full turn directly after your current turn ends instead.
Ignore all stress increases for 1 hour
PTSD Range (stress levels 6-8)
While in the PTSD range, a character:
Is considered extremely psychologically fragile
Must roll on the PTSD Reaction Table (below) upon receiving any additional stress or failing a roll (if failing a roll grants stress, only roll once).
Suffers the Stress Penalty to all rolls, instead of only the first roll each round.
Succeeds with an Extreme Success only when roll exceeds DC by 6+ (rather than 4+)
PTSD Reaction Table | |
|---|---|
1d4 roll | Result |
1 | Freeze (lose 1 action. If it is not your turn, then instead lose 1 action on your next turn) |
2 | Cower (receive Fleeing (1) condition) |
3 | Push Through (no effect) |
4 | Push Through (no effect) |
Stress Breakdowns
A character reaching her maximum stress level means she suffers a break of some sort (rolled on the table below or defined by the GM). This can range from a temporary effect to a permanent, character-altering one.
Stress Breakdown Effects | ||
|---|---|---|
Roll (1d4) | Effect | Description |
1 | Freeze up | Mind blanks. Cannot act for 1 minute. |
2 | Collapse | Falls unconscious from strain |
3 | Panic | Flee for 1d6 rounds |
4 | Mental Scar | Gain a permanent fear or phobia (GM’s discretion) |
Reducing Stress
Healing wounds received reduces stress by half the amount the wound caused (rounded up). For example, recovering from a moderate wound would reduce a character’s stress by 1.
Passive Recovery
During downtime, a character may rest up to reduce stress at a rate of 1 point per day. Some character Archetypes may also reduce stress for allies at a faster rate. Additionally, specialized therapy, prescription drugs, or even cybernetic implants can reduce stress. A character who has entered PTSD range may not lower their stress below 5 using this method; they must seek other ways to reduce their stress.
Therapy, Empaths, and Medication
Therapy helps bring characters down from PTSD levels of stress, though the process is often expensive and time-consuming (weeks or even months in extreme cases). After each week of a character’s therapy, the GM rolls a d12 check based on the therapist’s skill level; three successful checks reduce the character’s stress below PTSD range.
Unskilled Therapist (DC10, 1500 credits per week)
Skilled Therapist (DC8, 2500 credits per week)
Expert (DC4, 5000 credits per week)
Empaths provide a path toward recovery that is much quicker than therapy, however true empaths are rare and difficult to find, while there are many charlatans after big paydays. An empath may work only for favours, or may charge upwards of 10000 credits to bear the burden of another’s emotional trauma.
Medication may help some come down from PTSD range, however there are always side effects. Stress-reducing medication may be found in the Equipment & Gear section.
Pep Talk
A character may attempt to aid another character’s stress recovery by giving them a quick pep talk. A pep talk can be given as an action (within or without combat) or over the duration of 10 minutes. Any additional pep talks given to the stressed character have no effect until the next day.
If done as a single action, giving a pep talk requires a SOC (DC8 + stress level) empathy check.
If done over the course of 10 minutes, giving a pep talk requires a SOC (DC4 + stress level) empathy check.
A success or extreme success reduces the target’s stress by 1. Extreme failure increases the target's stress by 1.
A character cannot attempt to give a pep talk if he is in PTSD range, and pep talks have no positive effect if the target is in PTSD range.
Whisperspace
There’s something unsettling about travel through the starless void; while in Whisperspace, a character cannot reduce stress via passive recovery, therapy, or medication and the DC for giving a pep talk is increased by +2.