An “affliction” is a harmful effect other than direct injury or fatigue, usually the result of an attack, hazard, illness, magic spell, or toxin. In most cases, the victim gets a HT roll to resist, and only suffers the affliction on a failure. Duration depends on the cause; see the relevant disease, hazard, poison, spell, or weapon description for details.
Irritating Conditions
Coughing or Sneezing
You are at -3 to DX and -1 to IQ, and cannot use Stealth.
Drowsy
You are on the verge of falling asleep. Make a Will roll every two hours you spend inactive. On a failure, you fall asleep, and sleep until you are awakened or get a full night’s sleep. On a success, you have -2 to DX, IQ, and self-control rolls.
Drunk
You are highly intoxicated: -2 to DX and IQ, and -4 to self-control rolls except those to resist Cowardice. Reduce Shyness by two levels, if you have it.
Euphoria
You have a -3 penalty to all DX, IQ, skill, and self-control rolls.
Nauseated
You have -2 to all attribute and skill rolls, and -1 to active defenses. As well, roll vs. HT after you eat, are exposed to a foul odor, fail a Fright Check, or are stunned, and every hour in free fall or in any situation where you might suffer motion sickness. A rich meal in the past hour gives -2; anti-nausea remedies give +2. On a failure, you vomit for (25 – HT) seconds – treat as Retching, below.
Pain
You have a penalty to all DX, IQ, skill, and self-control rolls. This is -2 for Moderate Pain, -4 for Severe Pain, and -6 for Terrible Pain. High Pain Threshold halves these penalties; Low Pain Threshold doubles them.
Tipsy
You are slightly intoxicated: -1 to DX and IQ, and -2 to self-control rolls except those to resist Cowardice. Reduce Shyness by one level, if you have it.
Incapacitating Conditions
All of these afflictions prevent you from taking voluntary action for the duration. In addition to their other effects, you’re effectively stunned (-4 to active defenses). In combat, you must Do Nothing on your turn. If an affliction lets you drop, you can sit, kneel, go prone, etc. if standing, or go prone if kneeling or sitting. If it lets you stagger, you can drop, change facing, or step or crawl one yard. In all cases, you are still effectively stunned.
Agony
You are conscious but in such terrible pain that you can do nothing but moan or scream. If standing or sitting, you fall down. While the affliction endures, you lose 1 FP per minute or fraction thereof. After you recover, anyone who can credibly threaten you with a resumption of the
pain gets +3 to Interrogation and Intimidation skill rolls. Low Pain Threshold doubles the FP loss and torture bonus. High Pain Threshold lets you overcome the agony enough to function, but at -3 to DX and IQ.
Choking
You are unable to breathe or speak. You may do nothing but drop. While the choking endures, you suffer the effects of suffocation (see Suffocation, p. 436). If you have an object lodged in your throat, a friend can try a First Aid roll to clear it; roll at -2 before TL7. Each attempt takes 2
seconds. If you have Doesn’t Breathe or Injury Tolerance (Homogenous), you cannot choke!
Daze
You are conscious – if you are standing, you remain upright – but you can do nothing. If you are struck, slapped, or shaken, you recover on your next turn.
Ecstasy
You’re incapacitated with overwhelming pleasure. Treat as Agony, but neither Low Pain Threshold nor High Pain Threshold has any effect – and instead of a bonus for torture, someone offering to continue the pleasure gets +3 to any Influence roll! If you have Killjoy, you’re immune.
Hallucinating
You can try to act, but you must roll vs. Will before each success roll. On a success, you merely suffer 2d seconds of disorientation. This gives -2 on success rolls. On a failure, you actually hallucinate for 1d minutes. In this case, the penalty is -5. The GM is free to specify the details of your hallucinations, which need not be visual. On a critical failure, you “freak out” for 3d minutes. You might do anything! The GM rolls 3d: the higher the roll, the more dangerous your action.
Paralysis
You cannot move any voluntary muscles, and fall over if you are not in a balanced position. You remain conscious, and can still use advantages or spells that require neither speech nor movement.
Retching
You are conscious but vomiting (or suffering dry heaves). You can try to act, but you will be at -5 to DX, IQ, and Per, and automatically fail at any action that requires a Concentrate maneuver. At the end of the retching spell, you lose 1 FP. You gain no benefit from recent meals or
oral medication – you’ve thrown it up.
Seizure
You suffer a fit of some kind. Your limbs tremble uncontrollably, you fall down if standing, and you cannot speak or think clearly. You can do nothing. At the end of the seizure, you lose 1d FP.
Unconsciousness
You are knocked out, just as if you had suffered injury.
Mortal Conditions
Coma
You collapse just as if you had been wounded to -1xHP or below and passed out; see Recovering from Unconsciousness (p. 423). You get a single HT roll to awaken after 12 hours. On a failure, you won’t recover without medical treatment. Until you receive treatment, roll vs. HT every 12 hours. On any failure, you die.
Heart Attack
Your heart stops functioning (“cardiac arrest”). You immediately drop to -1xFP. Regardless of your current HP, you will die in HT/3 minutes unless resuscitated – see Resuscitation (p. 425). If you survive, you will be at 0 HP or your current HP, whichever is worse. Missing HP heal normally. If you die and it matters what your HP total was, treat this as death at -1xHP or your current HP, whichever is worse. Injury Tolerance (Diffuse, Homogenous, or No Vitals) grants immunity to this affliction.