Friday 2 October 2020

Mental Inventory and Mindsets

I said that the spell mutator was next, I was wrong, I want to rewrite it first and I need to figure out the code to make a non-flat random table work right.

Without further ado: Mental Inventory. Jellied Rat uses Mental Inventory.

Just as you have a physical slotted inventory, you can have a mental slotted inventory. You have a number of slots: 7 + Wis Mod.

Mental slots can hold:
    - Your persistent sense of self
    - Homes for memorised spells
    - Permanently fused "passive" spells
    - Mindsets
    - Mental stowaways: mnemonomorphs, parasites/parasitoids, spies, etc.
    - Mental Baggage (Trauma)
    -     Trauma may be gained by experiencing or seeing a friend sustain terrible injury.
    -     Trauma may not manifest immediately. Maybe a day later?
    - Negative status effects: Fear, Hunger, Stress are big ones.
        Drunkenness doesn't go in there. That's separate.
        Hangovers do.
        Bards might give you Earworms.

Skills do not go inside separate mental slots.
The act of gaining a skill is hard work but they don't really take up space - the existence of a skill is encoded within the intersection of the Animal Soul (instinct, which is retrainable) and the Purple Soul (memory).

In addition to your normal Mental Inventory slots, you have 5 Suppressed slots. If you would exceed your mental inventory, Souls, Mindsets, and Fused Spells (the things are are most deeply linked to who you truly ARE) can be relocated to Suppressed slots - they're not really gone but they're also not usable. Spells and negative effects cannot be willingly moved to suppressed slots in this manner; spell homes are simply lost and the spell falls out. If you lose a spell home, you can usually recreate it more easily than you did the first time, but the spell might be pissed at you.

Things suppressed in this manner can be restored to their rightful place once space exists for them again and a proper rest is taken (a meal and a rest in a safe place).


== Souls ==
Starting with Arnold's stuff, he envisions that a person is a *gestalt* of multiple distinct souls. Three lower souls and four upper souls. All can be modified. All can be removed and moved around.
Upper souls depart the body quickly after death and are USUALLY eventually drawn to the River of Souls and then sorted into some kind of afterlife.
Lower souls - earthly souls - stick around for varying amounts of time (Mineral much longer than the others) and then evetually are reincarnated.
If the upper souls are prevented from going where they should, they will reincarnate too.
Be aware that they are still wilful and may deliberately evade capture.
An "escaped" soul will eventually grow - all things strive - so it no longer lacks the other parts.
= Lower =
Mineral: Raw material interactions. Can remember a few basic facts.
Vegetable: Knits together fleshy form. Makes zombies go.
    Lack: cellular functions cease. Immunity to poison. Death in 1d6 hours.
Animal: The desires of the flesh.
    Lack: Dwarves don't have this.
= Upper =
Purple: Memory
Red: Personality
    Lack: No style or individuality. Dwarves don't have this.
White: Goals
Blue: Spirit
    Lack: No casting, no religion. +4 to Save vs Magic.

If you're paying attention, you'll realise that you could have 3 wisdom and have to store 4 souls. In practice this means that you will either have no Personality or no Goals.

However, barring extereme circumstances, those first four slots are going to be filled up with your YOU.

== Mindsets ==
Players can adopt or discard a mindset if they can supply a good enough reason to do so, such as some critical and life-changing event that they recently went through. Anything traumatic or stressful, or a pyrrhic victory, or an interaction with a cherished acquaintance. Replacing a mindset in the middle of a desperate battle is fine. Replacing a mindset multiple times in one turn is less fine.

You can put a mindset into more than one slot for a greater effect. Combine Desperate and Seeker of Destruction! I'm sure nothing bad will happen.

`Prideful` If you fail a check relating to your pride, once-per-session you get a do-over with advantage.
`Angry` Reroll failed initiative check if you immediately charge
`Goblinism` Compulsory for goblins. This is what makes a goblin a goblin.
`Confidence` +2 to do the first thing you suggest, instead of dallying/planning
`Cowardly` +2 Defense while avoiding danger
`Cruel` When you use unnecessary force on a vulnerable enemy, you can force a Morale check. Results may vary.
`Inquisitive` 1/session, you find something hidden
`Desperate` +1 to everything while at 0 HP
`Oathbound` +1 to everything opposing your oath
`Magnetic Personality` +3 retainers (normally 2 or 6 + Cha mod)
`Greedy` Can accurately compare the relative worth of things
`Stoic` You can ignore minor mental penalties (up to -2) and never complain about them
`Stalwart` You can ignore minor physical penalties (up to -2) and never complain about them
`Happy` NPCs don't automatically treat you as an "adventurer"
`Inspiring` Followers are on their best behaviour (if there is any chance you'll hear of what they do)
`Helpful` 1/session, after a friend has rolled a d20, allow them to reroll it and take the higher result
`Iron Stomach` +4 to save against anything you ate
`Innocent` Anything will hesitate to kill you, at least for a moment
`Joker` An in-character quip that the DM deems sufficiently witty heals 1HP, up to 3/session
`Knowledgeable` 1/session learn a new rumour if in town. If not, DM's choice of something potentially useful.
`Mysterious` Conceal your backstory. When you reveal it, exchange this Mindset for a different one.
`Observant` INT check to ask detailed questions after you've left a scene (flashback style)
`Paranoid` GM will suggest lots of ways that things could go wrong.
`Grandiose` Enemies that fail a morale check and would flee/rout (not retreat) instead grovel
`Immaculate` +1 damage at full HP
`Zealous` Your voice counts as a holy symbol
`Seeker of Destruction` Do +1 damage always, have +1 Death Die always
`Brave` +2 vs fear
`Hasty` +1 to Move
`Steadfast` +2 to save when holding breath or for feats of endurance
`Lithe` +2 to AC when unarmored
`Alcohol Dependence` Alcoholic drinks heals you for 1 hp.  You still get drunk, though.
`Pew pew` +1 to hit with ranged attacks, but -1 to hit with melee attacks.
`Beatstick` +1 to hit with melee attacks, but -1 to hit with ranged attacks.
`Hatred of X` +1 to hit against a certain type of creature (if you start with this, determine randomly)
`Sir Robin` Can disengage from combat without penalty, attacks of opportunity, or whatever
`Superstitious` +2 to save against curses
`Leadership` Associates must use your save against emotional effects
`Suave` If you make an effort to present yourself well, you get a +2 to positive social interactions
`Expressive` You have a gift for art - visual, music, dance, whatever. This is more about bold artistic vision and baring your soul rather than actual technical skill.
`Low Standards` Things that would be soul-crushing for most people are just a Regular Tuesday for you.
Pious: ?
Inconspicuous: ?
Showboat: ?
Ugly: ?
Competitive: ?
Servile: ?
Thinky: ?
Faithful: ?
`Contemplative` Increases the power of cleric miracles. Somehow. Others who share your faith and who are also being contemplative may assist.

= Quasi-Mindsets =
`Crammed X` You are treated as knowing a particular skill (at a small penalty) but you must Save every night or lose this. Requires a teacher and quite possibly some special ability to obtain (that either you or they have)

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