So I am running a planeshift campaign, and the party is currently in Innistrad, during the events of Avacyn's Madness and Emrakul. While it has been going pretty fine currently, I also introduced the sanity mechanic as it felt appropriate, but I don't feel like I've used its full potential, and alot of the time it's fallen to the side.
So does any fellow DM's that has used the system before have any tips on how to better use it to make the campaign more eerie and have more effect on the group?
I, for one, don't think that the madness symptoms in the DMG are suitable to a horror campaign like Innistrad. I've considered making different random madness effects than the ones used. Especially with the indefinent madness effects. Those just cause the character to develop idiotic personality flaws (for example, would you use the "I keep whatever I find." flaw on an NPC who has gone mad from encounters with the Far Realm? I don't think so.).
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Devious serpent folk devoid of compassion, yuan-ti manipulate other creatures by arousing their doubts, evoking their fears, and elevating and crushing their hopes. From remote temples in jungles, swamps, and deserts, the yuan-ti plot to supplant and dominate all other races and to make themselves gods.
I've been relying less on the Madness rolls and instead on sanity score and a bit of dm talks with the affected players. So those on low sanity are feeling those pushing emotions of dread and loneliness that Emrakul brings.
But it has still been a bit difficult at times to think on how to properly use this and really let this creeping feeling and horror style of the story arc play out as it should.
I've been running an irl game of Innistrad for almost 2 years (level 9 players). I also run the pbp Innistrad: The Cursed Blade here on DnDBeyond (level 2 players). Neither campaign has reached when Emrakul has appeared. Really, Avacyn hasn't even returned in either game. But I still use Sanity in both.
The way I use it, is that any time I feel someone sees or discovers something appropriately morbid, such as opening a casket and it pours out a wave of dark blood and the body within is decapitated. That is not a normal sight by any means, and I have the player's who witnessed it make a Sanity saving throw. DC up to you as the DM.
On a successful save: Nothing happens mechanically, but that doesn't mean the player can't roleplay their moral, ethical, or physical disgust
On a failed save: Their Sanity Score is reduced by 1, and They suffer short-term madness. This is changed from the original Sanity rules, where only long-term and indefinite madness cause a decrease in Sanity score.The madness effect is usually made on the spot, but has something to do with what caused the saving throw to be made. (One player that failed the above save could not stand the sight or smell of blood, and had disadvantage on all ability checks while seeing or smelling blood, or if blood was on them. Another player that failed was unnaturally thirsty, and would even stoop to drinking this blood if he had no other liquids. He had disadvantage on ability checks if no source of drinking liquid was immediately within his reach or in hand.)
The way I plan on doing Long-term madness, is when any player with a Sanity score of 9 or lower fails a Sanity saving throw, they instead gain long-term madness and still have their Sanity score reduced only by 1. Once a player has their Sanity score reach 5, they gain indefinite madness.
To regain Sanity is also modified, with a casting a lessor or greater restoration to restore Sanity. However, only greater restoration restores a Sanity score below 10. At this point, any short-term or long-term madness is removed. Indefinite madness requires a wish spell or nothing short of divine intervention or similar magic to remove. I believe amazing character progression and growth can also remove indefinite madness over some time (DM's discretion).
Because Emrakul still hasn't arrived, and the true madness part of the story hasn't been revealed, I'm pretty sparing with this Sanity saving throws, and the DCs aren't too difficult. But, in my irl game, one player has spoken with me and agreed to let his character's mind begin to slip as he's attuned to a blade with a demonic entity stored within it (Elbrus, the Binding Blade for MtG fans). Another player has spoken with me and they've started to realize their character is doing things that they would not have even begun to consider at the start of our game (thus we've agreed their character is now true Neutral instead of previously Neutral Good, or now Black-white instead of mono-White for MtG fans). Idk if these two personal stories help, but this system has been working for me. It does require some improvisational skills if you don't have short-term or long-term madness effects of your own on hand (because I agree, the ones given as example lack in horror and dread and are much more often comical).
I quite like your method of approaching the sanity, both with the short-term madness and determined sanity decrease, rather than a roll. As do I find your way of restoring sanity quite interesting :). If you do not mind, I might draw some inspiration from this into my own campaign while looking over how I've been doing it myself up until this point. Granted, due to it being around the time of Emrakul's arrival, the sanity loss will probably be tuned a bit, and when they fall below 10, I am considering using the Planeshift: Innistrad guide to Emrakul's corruption.
Feel free to borrow and adjust according to your game!
I'm happy to read that others play on Innistrad. I really, really really hope D&D releases a campaign book on Innistrad, similar to the Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica for the plane of Ravnica, or at least a more fleshed out Planeshift: Innistrad document, such as Planeshift: Ixalan for the plane of Ixalan.
The Planeshift: Innistrad doc offers a good translation of Curse of Strahd to a Stensian-focused game, but I'd like to see a more involved doc with the world created by D&D, such as Ixalan's 'X' Marks the Spot.
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So I am running a planeshift campaign, and the party is currently in Innistrad, during the events of Avacyn's Madness and Emrakul. While it has been going pretty fine currently, I also introduced the sanity mechanic as it felt appropriate, but I don't feel like I've used its full potential, and alot of the time it's fallen to the side.
So does any fellow DM's that has used the system before have any tips on how to better use it to make the campaign more eerie and have more effect on the group?
I, for one, don't think that the madness symptoms in the DMG are suitable to a horror campaign like Innistrad. I've considered making different random madness effects than the ones used. Especially with the indefinent madness effects. Those just cause the character to develop idiotic personality flaws (for example, would you use the "I keep whatever I find." flaw on an NPC who has gone mad from encounters with the Far Realm? I don't think so.).
Devious serpent folk devoid of compassion, yuan-ti manipulate other creatures by arousing their doubts, evoking their fears, and elevating and crushing their hopes. From remote temples in jungles, swamps, and deserts, the yuan-ti plot to supplant and dominate all other races and to make themselves gods.
I've been relying less on the Madness rolls and instead on sanity score and a bit of dm talks with the affected players. So those on low sanity are feeling those pushing emotions of dread and loneliness that Emrakul brings.
But it has still been a bit difficult at times to think on how to properly use this and really let this creeping feeling and horror style of the story arc play out as it should.
I've been running an irl game of Innistrad for almost 2 years (level 9 players). I also run the pbp Innistrad: The Cursed Blade here on DnDBeyond (level 2 players). Neither campaign has reached when Emrakul has appeared. Really, Avacyn hasn't even returned in either game. But I still use Sanity in both.
The way I use it, is that any time I feel someone sees or discovers something appropriately morbid, such as opening a casket and it pours out a wave of dark blood and the body within is decapitated. That is not a normal sight by any means, and I have the player's who witnessed it make a Sanity saving throw. DC up to you as the DM.
On a successful save: Nothing happens mechanically, but that doesn't mean the player can't roleplay their moral, ethical, or physical disgust
On a failed save: Their Sanity Score is reduced by 1, and They suffer short-term madness. This is changed from the original Sanity rules, where only long-term and indefinite madness cause a decrease in Sanity score.The madness effect is usually made on the spot, but has something to do with what caused the saving throw to be made. (One player that failed the above save could not stand the sight or smell of blood, and had disadvantage on all ability checks while seeing or smelling blood, or if blood was on them. Another player that failed was unnaturally thirsty, and would even stoop to drinking this blood if he had no other liquids. He had disadvantage on ability checks if no source of drinking liquid was immediately within his reach or in hand.)
The way I plan on doing Long-term madness, is when any player with a Sanity score of 9 or lower fails a Sanity saving throw, they instead gain long-term madness and still have their Sanity score reduced only by 1. Once a player has their Sanity score reach 5, they gain indefinite madness.
To regain Sanity is also modified, with a casting a lessor or greater restoration to restore Sanity. However, only greater restoration restores a Sanity score below 10. At this point, any short-term or long-term madness is removed. Indefinite madness requires a wish spell or nothing short of divine intervention or similar magic to remove. I believe amazing character progression and growth can also remove indefinite madness over some time (DM's discretion).
Because Emrakul still hasn't arrived, and the true madness part of the story hasn't been revealed, I'm pretty sparing with this Sanity saving throws, and the DCs aren't too difficult. But, in my irl game, one player has spoken with me and agreed to let his character's mind begin to slip as he's attuned to a blade with a demonic entity stored within it (Elbrus, the Binding Blade for MtG fans). Another player has spoken with me and they've started to realize their character is doing things that they would not have even begun to consider at the start of our game (thus we've agreed their character is now true Neutral instead of previously Neutral Good, or now Black-white instead of mono-White for MtG fans). Idk if these two personal stories help, but this system has been working for me. It does require some improvisational skills if you don't have short-term or long-term madness effects of your own on hand (because I agree, the ones given as example lack in horror and dread and are much more often comical).
Hope this helps!
Thank you alot for sharing this!
I quite like your method of approaching the sanity, both with the short-term madness and determined sanity decrease, rather than a roll. As do I find your way of restoring sanity quite interesting :). If you do not mind, I might draw some inspiration from this into my own campaign while looking over how I've been doing it myself up until this point. Granted, due to it being around the time of Emrakul's arrival, the sanity loss will probably be tuned a bit, and when they fall below 10, I am considering using the Planeshift: Innistrad guide to Emrakul's corruption.
Feel free to borrow and adjust according to your game!
I'm happy to read that others play on Innistrad. I really, really really hope D&D releases a campaign book on Innistrad, similar to the Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica for the plane of Ravnica, or at least a more fleshed out Planeshift: Innistrad document, such as Planeshift: Ixalan for the plane of Ixalan.
The Planeshift: Innistrad doc offers a good translation of Curse of Strahd to a Stensian-focused game, but I'd like to see a more involved doc with the world created by D&D, such as Ixalan's 'X' Marks the Spot.