Some actions and events inherently add stress to a character. A single insult, well placed or not, can generally be shrugged off, but enough of them can wear a person down. Seeing a tragic or atrocious event can mess with a person’s head. Learning of the skeletons in a trusted friend’s closet can cause denial or rationalization.

Attacks on sanity can happen at many different times in the game. When they happen, the character resists with a Resolve Ability Check. The GM may call for players to resist such attacks when appropriate, but PCs can also intentionally risk stress or attempt to inflict stress on another. To do so, the player should explicitly state their intention and make an appropriate roll for it. The GM will then assign a damage value to the attack based on how severe the attack is. If the attack was exceptionally clever, the GM may increase the damage it deals by 1. Generally, attacks on sanity due to specific events are not repeatable – human minds to adapt to the uncomfortable shock these events cause.

• Nuisance 1|2 (B) – Something to get one’s blood hot, and that bothers them, but not something they won’t be able to shrug off within a few hours. A jump scare or well-placed insult.
• Shocking 1|2 (S) – Something that sticks with you for a few days or longer: seeing a dead body for the first time, revealing one’s partner cheated on them, getting abandoned by someone you trusted. Seeing a horrifying monster that defies one’s expectations of the world.
• Traumatizing 1|2 (A) – Something that you never quite forget. Something that changes you to some degree. Seeing the mangled pieces of a friend’s body scattered around a room. Finding out your beloved father raised you to be a sacrifice to a cult’s god. Finding out the person you just killed was the son you were trying to rescue.