Page 99 - World of Darkness

or win his goal, whether it’s an opponent, a broken shoe- He questions everyone’s sincerity and doubts that anyone
lace or the model of car driven. In the case of a defeat, he tries to help him, even if someone saves his life. He suffers
cannot help but simmer in anger, cursing a circumstance a -1 penalty on all Social rolls. Note that, even though
or trying to devise a method of circumventing it in the your character is suspicious, he can still be taken in by
future. In the case of a victory, he becomes a fanatic, spend- con men and hucksters. He gets no special bonus to resist
ing much of his time researching, observing or acclaiming their attempts to sway him even though he suspects them
an activity or factor that allowed him to succeed. of being as bad as everyone else.
The Storyteller rules on how this derangement af- Paranoia (severe): Your character believes that her misery
fects your character’s dice pools or behavior. It might cause and insecurity stem from external persecution and hostility. (That
him a -1 on any task not related to his fixation, or he would be an accurate assumption in the World of Darkness, if
might refuse to engage in an activity if it doesn’t some- people actually knew of monsters’ existence.) Paranoids obsess
how tie into his obsession. Since this derangement is po- over their persecution complexes, often creating vast and intri-
tentially active for many scenes, rather than one, its ef- cate conspiracy theories to explain who torments them and why.
fects should be mild but persistent. Anyone or anything perceived to be “one of them” might be
Obsessive Compulsion (severe): The trauma, guilt or subjected to violence.
inner conflict that causes this derangement forces your char- Effect: A character who suffers from paranoia auto-
acter to focus nearly all of his attention and energy on a matically suffers a -2 penalty on Social rolls. The charac-
single repetitive behavior or action. Obsession relates to an ter is distrustful and wary of everyone, even close friends
individual’s desire to control his environment — keeping and family. The slightest hint of suspicious behavior is
clean, keeping an area quiet and peaceful, or keeping unde- enough to provoke a Resolve + Composure roll to retain
sirable individuals out. A compulsion is an action or set of control (made at a -2 penalty). A failed roll indicates that
actions that an individual is driven to perform to soothe his your character flees or attacks an offender.
anxieties — placing objects in an exact order, constantly Inferiority Complex (mild): Whenever your char-
checking to make sure a weapon is loaded, praying every acter is subjected to a stressful situation in which the re-
few hours to give thanks for surviving that long. sult of a single choice or dice roll can determine success
Effect: Determine a set of specific actions or behav- or failure, she might be overcome with such self-doubt
iors that your character follows to the exclusion of all else that she threatens the outcome. She might need to tell a
(even if doing so interferes with his current agenda or convincing lie to get out of a dangerous situation or cut a
endangers his life or others’). The effects of obsessive com- wire to disable a bomb. Roll your character’s Resolve +
pulsion can be negated for the course of one scene by Composure for her to remain composed.
making a successful Resolve + Composure roll at a -2 pen- Effect: If your roll fails, the weight of the momentous choice
alty. If your character is forcibly prevented from adhering is too much for your character and she is flustered, doubting her
to his derangement, he may lose control among enemies ability to choose correctly or to perform adequately. Once in
or allies and attack either (or both) indiscriminately. this state, any rolls made for the remainder of the scene — in-
Suspicion (mild): Anytime your character suffers cluding the momentous act itself — suffer a -1 penalty. In addi-
intentional misfortune at the hands of another, he might tion, a Willpower point cannot be spent on the singular roll
become extremely suspicious of everyone’s motives toward that inspires her bout of inferiority.
him. He might crash as a result of being cut off in traffic Anxiety (severe): As Inferiority Complex, but your
or receive little help from assistants in a teamwork effort character’s general anxiety plagues things so badly that
(see p. 134). Roll Resolve + Composure for your charac- she suffers a -2 penalty on all rolls for the remainder of the
ter to resist the suspicion compulsion. scene, and Willpower points cannot be spent to bolster
“Misfortune” is characterized as failing an important any rolls in that period.
task due to the intentional intervention of another person Vocalization (mild): Whenever your character is sty-
— even if it’s a friend or ally. Those people whom your char- mied by a quandary and must make an important decision
acter already mistrusts for good reason can still trigger his about a course of action, or is under extreme stress, she
suspicious nature if they successfully foil his task — every- might talk to herself without realizing it. Roll Resolve +
one then becomes a suspect, plotting to do him wrong. Com- Composure to avoid this discomforting habit.
bat does not necessarily trigger this derangement. A Re- Examples of important decisions include:
solve + Composure roll is made only if combat is the means Trying to figure out which fork in the road to take so
by which someone intentionally prevents your character that the guerillas don’t get to the village first. The wrong
from achieving a goal. (Note: A roll for a task might fail and choice means arriving precious minutes late and finding
your character chooses to blame someone else, but that innocents killed or kidnapped.
doesn’t necessarily trigger this derangement’s effect. Only if When your character has one bullet but two foes, both
someone directly causes him to fail is a roll made to avoid of whom prepare to strike lethal blows against two sepa-
triggering his suspicious nature.) rate friends. Which should be shot?
Effect: Your character’s trust is undermined for the When the attorney slides a piece of paper with his
remainder of the scene, regardless of whether or not the final offer across the table. Your character has minutes to
person or persons who did him wrong meant any harm. say “yes” or “no.”

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Chapter 4- ADVANTAGES