INFINITE REALMS PLAYERS BOOK

Chapter Eight - Disabilities

	Nobody is perfect, in fact some of us have fairly prominent imperfections, that’s where disabilities come into role-playing.  Disabilities can actually have a positive effect on role-playing.  Most anyone can play a perfect PC, its the quirky, imperfect characters that take the most work, but also are the most fun and the most memorable.
If that isn’t enough to convince you, creation points are also given back to the player for choosing disabilities.  The cost for each disability is actually the number of CP given back to the player.
The disabilities are broken down into physical, mental, spiritual and special abilities and are alphabetical within these categories.

Physical Disabilities

Arthritis	10	

	The character has stiff joints.  He halves his chance of escaping from any restraint and subtracts 25% from any skill involving extensive physical endeavor.  Any activity requiring fine motor skills may also be effected at the GM’s discretion.

Athletic Ineptitude		5	

	The character is terrible at sports.  Halve the PC’s chance of winning any individual contest or subtract 20% from the chance of PC’s team winning in team sports.

Blindness		100	

	The character cannot see.  This is an incredibly serious disability and must be role-played as such.  During medieval times a blind person has very limited and often could do almost nothing aside from begging.  Many skills are impossible when blind and others such, as fighting, are more difficult and are done at only 20% effectiveness.

Color Blind		5	

	The character mixes up colors, often red and green.  He will think colors are other colors and be very color uncoordinated.  Any skill requiring color differentiation is at 50% of normal.  Any skill where color blindness is a minor distraction, such as tracking, is at 90%.

Crippled Arms		25	

	The character’s arms don’t work right.  Halve anything done with them, including weapons attacks.

Deaf	50	

	The character cannot hear a thing.  This is a serious disability and must be role-played as such.  Others may communicate to you by sign language, if both characters know it, or writing, if both are literate.  All languages, including your own, is learned at twice the normal cost.  Note that mute may be combined with deaf for a 100 point disability.

Diseased	5 – 100	

	The character has a disease that will ultimately kill him.  The point value is dependent on the severity of the effects of this disease and how long the person has to live.  The player should work with the GM to design the disease, its symptoms and how long the character has to live.  The GM may disallow this disability.

Epilepsy	20	

	The character goes into uncontrollable fits of shakes.  Anytime the character is faced with stress he must make RES roll against 50.  Failure indicates a seizure lasting D10 minutes.  He can do nothing during the seizure and takes one point of fatigue damage for each minute the seizure lasts.  If the stress lasts over an hour, he must make this roll every hour.

Hard of Hearing	10	

	The character has trouble hearing all those pesky words.  To hear something important or someone talking he must make a MD roll versus 50.

Hemophilic	10	

	The character is a bleeder.  Any wound suffered that causes bleeding, such as a combat wound from a slashing or impaling weapon, must be successfully bound.  Any non-bound, bleeding wound will result in one HP lost every minute, in addition to any other damage.

Lame	25	

	The character’s legs don’t work right.  He needs a cane or crutch and can only move 25% of the normal movement rate.  Any skill that requires the use or power of the legs can only be performed at 75% to 25% normal at the GM’s discretion.

Mute	50	

	The character cannot speak.  He must communicate to others by sign language or writing if they are both literate in that form of communication.  This is a serious disability and must be role-played as such.  Note that mute may be combined with deaf for a 100 point disability.
	The Deaf – Mute disadvantage is one of the most serious disabilities and may be disallowed by the GM.  Remember, in addition to the communication problems, a Deaf – Mute cannot be warned of danger by sound and he cannot warn others by crying out.

No sense of smell or taste	20	

	The character cannot smell any scents or taste any food or drink.  He is unable to detect certain hazards that others would readily notice.  One problem in medieval times would have been rotten food.  A character with this disability might not notice that the food was spoiled and become ill from eating it.

One Arm	20	

	The character lost an arm somewhere along the way.  He can’t do anything that requires 2 hands, i.e. wield a 2 handed weapon.  Many skills, such as craft skills, assume the use of two hands.  Anyone with this disability would take longer and have greater difficulty using these types of skills.

Poor Health	20	

	The character’s body naturally gives in to sickness.  The Resistance rating is half that for a normal character and the character takes double damage from illness.  Disease, Poison, Infection, Viruses and similar things are effected. 

Poor Vision	20	

	The character is either nearsighted or farsighted.
	If nearsighted the character can’t read small print and generally everything has to be close before he can see it.  Hand to hand combat is at 90% of normal for all chances to hit and when using ranged weapons half all the ranges.
	If farsighted, the character has great trouble reading and any close manual work is at 75% of normal.

Stutter	10	

	The character’s words come out in bursts, he repeats sounds and takes forever to say most anything.  Social reactions when someone hears him speak are at 50% and all oratory skills are impossible.  Note that his associates would become somewhat used to this disability and their reactions to the character would approach normal after a while.

Mental Disabilities

Academic Ineptitude	10	

	The character is not good at academic pursuits. Language, math, science, history...  He hates them all, because he can’t do them.  All Academic pursuits are at twice the normal cost.

Combat Paralysis	20	

	If there is danger the character freezes up.  Initiative is at 50%.  Weapon and Defense skills are used at 75%.

Craft Ineptitude	20	

	Blacksmithing, Carpentry, Mechanics and all similar Physical based skills are twice as costly for the all thumbs character.

Direction Nonsense	10	

	The character has an absolute sense of misdirection.  The character often gets lost under normal circumstances and halves his skill in trying to read a map, finding his way around unfamiliar territory or remember directions.
When he is traveling alone or leading the way for a group in familiar surroundings, make a SD roll versus 25 initially and once an hour there after.  Failure means the character is lost and will take D100 minutes to find his way.
If he is traveling in unfamiliar land the SD roll is against 50 with the same results for failure.

Dull Memory	10	

	Halves the character’s chance to remember anything not obvious.

Oblivious	20	
			
	The character is easy to surprise.  Halve his chances on any roll against being surprised or ambushed.  Also subtract 25% to any roll to notice anything odd or important.

Weapon Ineptitude	10	
		
	The character is poor with weapons.  His skill with all weapons is improved at twice the normal price.  The zero level cost is still the same as normal.

Insanity Disabilities

Delusions	5-30	

	The character believes things that aren’t in line with reality.  Extreme delusions may cause insanity.
	The 5 point version of delusions would be things that aren’t overly obvious and don’t affect the way the character acts all that often.  Thinking you’re a long lost prince, but not advertising it would be an example.
	At 10 points the delusions become noticeable to anyone who knows the character or hangs around him for any length of time.  They will have a negative impact on relationships and could, on occasion, be physically dangerous.  An example might be, thinking you’re immortal
	20 point delusions get serious.  They are obvious almost immediately and will cause others to wonder about the character’s sanity and they may not be overly inclined to trust him.  This delusion could get dangerous to the character’s health and well-being.  Someone thinking they are invulnerable, would be a 20 point delusion.
	If a character has a 30 point delusion, he’s got problems, mental and otherwise.  Other characters may be afraid to associate with him and certainly will think he’s insane.  The delusion has a strong potential to be physically damaging.  Thinking you are a God and trying to act on this belief is a good example.

Paranoia	15	

	A specialized form of delusion, where the character believes everyone is out to get him.  Reaction rolls should be made at 75%, possibly lower if the character meets total strangers or unfriendly people.  A fighter with paranoia may pick fights with strangers for no good reason.

Phobias	5-30	

	The character is unreasonably and terribly afraid of something.  The something could be spiders, crowds, the opposite sex or just about anything.  The point value of the phobia depends on the likelihood of the object of terror cropping up and the severity of the phobia.  Phobia of an uncommon object would be worth 5 points, a fairly common object is worth 10 points and a common object - 15 points.  A mild phobia would require a SC roll against 50 for every ten minutes the object is around the character.  A severe phobia is worth twice the points and requires a roll against 100.  Common phobias would be of crowds or darkness, fairly common phobias would be of heights or death and uncommon phobias might be of one-eyed monsters or axe wielding mother-in-laws(though this last may be more a common phobia depending on the mother-in-law).

Pyromania	15	

	PC likes to burn things down.  Make a SC roll against 50 to avoid setting a fire, 100 if noone would know and it wouldn’t hurt anything(honest).

Schizophrenia	10 – 30	

	The character thinks he is several characters and may actually be.
	For a 10 point disadvantage create a second character, similar to the main character.  He should have most of the same attributes, thought the spiritual side may vary, the same skills, though the skill level may vary a bit and maybe a new ability or disability.  This is largely a schizo with two facets of one personality and the personalities should be aware of each other.  The character can slide in and out of the facets virtually at will, except while under duress.  In very stressful situations, roll a SC against 50, for another facet to emerge for the duration of the situation.  Oh by the way, if creating another similar character was fun, do it a few more times and have a number of different facets, no extra points though.
	The 20 point disadvantage is more serious (what a surprise).  As for the 10 point version create at least one alternate personality.  The new character should have the same physical attributes, but at least 3 of the mental and spiritual attributes and intuition should be quite different.  Some of the skills should also be different, with a few known skills disappearing completely and a new skill or two showing up.  The personality should be different and so should the abilities and disabilities.  The main personality will be in charge for D10 days, then the alternate or one of the alternates(roll for which one) shows up for D10 hours.  Also under stressful situations roll SC versus 50 to change facets for the duration of the situation.
	Ha-Ha, the 30 point version is fun.  Create at least 3 additional characters.  One of whom should be dangerously and irrationally violent (if the main character is dangerously and irrationally violent, then at least one character should be dangerously and irrationally passive).  All of the attributes should be different in each of the characters, though the physical attributes should not change too much.  The skills will be wildly different and don’t have to be logical.  Each character should have at least on high-end mental disability.  By the way, the assorted characters aren’t aware of each other.  One facet will be in control for D100 hours and then one of the other facets will take over(roll for which one) for D100, this goes on infinitely.  One little thing, every year a new facet will be born.  He may replace one of the nonviolent facets or not, player’s choice.

Spiritual Disabilities

Addiction	5-30	
			
	Addicts crave something and cannot live without it.  This object of desire is often a form of a drug, but can also be things like sex, food or wealth.
	The value of the addiction depends on the severity of the addiction, the availability of the needed object, the legality of that object, the cost of the addiction, the social acceptance of the addiction and how addictive the object is.
	To avoid submitting to the addiction when the urge takes him, the PC must make a SC roll against the addiction’s severity times 10.  So a 10 point severity addiction would be a SC roll against 100.  Severity can range from 5 to 15 points.  The illegality, cost and such affect the rest of the addiction’s CP value.
	An normal tobacco smoker in a land where tobacco is legal, cheap and socially acceptable has a 5 point addiction.  All 5 points are for severity.
	An addict of opium in a church run state where opium is highly illegal and exorbitantly expensive has a 30 point addiction.  15 points are for severity.
	A drunk will usually have a 15 to 25 point addiction, depending on alcohol’s legality in his area.  10 points are for severity, 5 for social acceptance and 0 to 10 for legality.

Animal Ineptitude	5	

	Animals dislike the character.  Half the PC’s skill on all interaction rolls with animals.

Artistic Ineptitude	5	

	All types of art are impossible for the character to learn.

Bloodlust	10	

	The character wants to kill his foes, no matter what.  Make a SC roll versus 100 to lay off a defeated foe.

Bigoted	5 – 10	

	The character dislikes others because of their race or class.  If this bigotry is limited to one race or class, it is worth 5 points.  If the character is bigoted against anyone who isn’t like him, then the disability is worth 10 points.  All reaction rolls involving the disliked race are at 50%.

Compulsive Liar	10	

	The PC has to lie, whether he needs to or not.  Roll SC against 50 on the chart to see if he lies in any notable instance.  Roll SC against 100 if the lie would save his hide.

Kleptomaniac	10	

	The character has to steal, not because he needs to, but because he wants to.  Roll SC against 50 to see if the character steals something in a shop or similar place.

Earth Ineptitude	10	

	The character is poor at growing things.  Half skill at growing anything.

Impulsive	10	

	Just do it baby.  The PC tends to act first and think later.  If a great or impressive opportunity comes up Roll SC against 50 to see if he thinks or just goes for it.

Lazy	10	

	The character loves yawns, naps and excuses.  That’s his favorite schedule day after day.  Roll SC against 50 to see if he rouses himself and gets off his maximums duffus.

Low Pain Threshold	10	

	The character can take only half as much damage as others before it affects his ability to perform.

Musical Ineptitude	5	

	The character doesn’t do well in musical endeavors.
At 5, all types of instruments or singing are impossible for him to learn.
	At 10, all types of instruments and singing are impossible for him to learn.

Temper	5 – 10	

	The character may lose it during stressful situations when things aren’t going his way.  Make a SC roll against 50 for the 5 point disadvantage or 100 for the 10 version.  If the roll is failed, the character will throw a temper tantrum.  A tantrum will last D10 minutes and involve yelling, throwing things and generally being noisily unpleasant.  Anyone witnessing such a tantrum will react negatively toward the character for several days and generally try to avoid him.  All social interact will be at 50% normal.

Special Disabilities

Appearance	10 / level	5 levels	

	This disability indicates that the character is a very unattractive person.  There are 5 levels of appearance, the first will draw a somewhat negative reaction to the PC, while the fifth may draw offers to play the Hunchback of Notre Dame on stage, no makeup needed.
	On appropriate occasions, Level One will function at 75% of SD, Level Two halves SD, Level Three is 25% of SD, Level Four is 10% of SD, Level Five is 5% SD.
	While Appearance does modify SD on some occasions, there are others such as when communicating with dissimilar looking races when it will make no difference.

Poverty	10 / level	5 levels	

	Congratulations, the character is broke.  This indicates either lack of starting funds or a debt which must be paid.
	For debts, Level One would indicate that the PC pays back 25% of the average tradesmen’s yearly wage each year.  Level Two 50%, Level Three 100%, Level Four 200%, Level Five 500%.  The life of the debt should be about 25 years.
	For starting poverty, Level One would mean starting with 50% of normal, Level Two would mean the PC starts with absolutely nothing, but the shirt on their back.
	Note that the two types of poverty may be combined, for instance a PC could take 3 levels of poverty, 2 as starting poverty (nothing) and 1 as debt (25% of tradesmen’s wage)

Enemy		10 / level	5 levels	

	A powerful person or organization is out to get the character.  Level One might indicate that a fairly rich person or a middling politician is often after him, or that a big organization is infrequently interested in his head.  Level Five would mean a globe spanning, incredibly rich organization is sending out ninja assassins every thirty days to rip out his vital bits.
	The level of the enemy is decided by two things.
The first factor is the interest level of the enemy in the pursued and hence the frequency tracking him down.  This can vary from infrequent to all-encompassing interest.
The second factor is the power of the enemy.  The more powerful the enemy, the stronger the bounty hunters sent after the pursued.
At the beginning of each gaming session the GM should make a roll to see if the enemy will find the character in this adventure, if he does work it into the plot as an additional challenge.  If the enemy is not overly interested in him then a confrontation will occur on a roll of 10 or less.  If his enemy is very interested, then an encounter will occur on a roll of 50 or less.
	The difficulty of the foe should be related to the strength of the foe.  A local politician will have access to only a weak mercenary or two.  A national guild can hire several top flight assassins to chase the character down.