Madness - Tumblr Posts
For the first time she saw its eyes. They were red, and mad as hell. Anything with eyes like that could kill anything it wanted, because madness, true madness, can drive a fist through a plank.
Men at Arms; Terry Pratchett
Rob Brezsny:
"Poet Robert Bly says that to be wild is not to be crazy like a criminal or psychotic, but "mad as the mist and snow." It has nothing to do with being childish or primitive, nor does it manifest as manic rebellion or self-damaging alienation. The marks of wildness are a love of nature, a delight in silence, a voice free to say spontaneous things, and an exuberant curiosity in the face of the unknown. What do you say?"
In the very center of him a cold certainty was forming and the certainty was that he was losing his mind.
- Stephen King, The Shining
I'm numb and messed up, with raving madness of terror in my soul..
Emily Yvonne, fragments of my mind
I am the anger, the madness running through my veins.
I am the dagger, the hand that's cutting off my wings.
I am my own rage, my own despise,
I am the teeth that's gnawing at my mind.
I am my own rope to tie around my neck.
I am the shovel that's digging out my grave.
I am the misery, I am the grief,
I am my own angel, my own disease.
𝐄𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐘𝐯𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞, 𝔪𝔶 𝔬𝔴𝔫 𝔞𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔩
(from "The Faithful Heart") Couldn't get closer to anything with staying still, so I got scared when I saw a bad poetry. At the heads of fools, gonna gather bones of peaches and throw'em, and then giggle and laugh for you sons of bitches.
This is *chefs kiss* I can’t even fathom how much time this took but it’s now near and dead in my heart
Daughter of the Vines & Son of the Sea
I would tear this world apart to find you
Horns and Swords series by @fandomqueen696
Discord
I started a server if anyone want to join just please be respectful to each other 🙏🏾
WE NEED TO START A PETITION OR SMTH TO STOP THIS
#STOPMILESCEST
PLS
Losing Control in D&D 5E
I love trawling through Pathfinder 1E to find ideas for builds, character concepts, homebrew mechanics and encounters. There's just so much content for it on the Open Gaming Network, it's pretty much a bottomless well of ideas that translate pretty well to other TTRPGs.
But D&D 5E is the game I'm actually playing right now, and adapting stuff is effort. And since I still have lycanthropy and Path of the Beast barbarians on the brain right now, here's some thoughts on berserk rage and losing control. (I should probably get Baldur's Gate 3 to check out the Dark Urge as well, huh?)
Art by Borja Pindado from the card Monstrous Rage. Now I don't think you actually need to have mechanics that take away control of your character if you want to mess around with this idea. If you want to play a character that's possessed, a werewolf or otherwise loses control sometimes, you can just... roleplaying that happening. Freak out, make bad choices, do things you'll regret when you're back to normal. As long as the GM and the party are onboard, it'll probably be fun, and a good GM will reward suboptimal play in service of roleplay in other ways.
But what mechanics are there for losing it? Even if you don't hard-code them into your game, you can keep them in mind. Lots of players impose a private Wisdom saving throw on themselves when their character is tempted by something. So here's a couple more toys for that toybox!
Some of these are things you can do yourself as a player, others you need to sort out with the GM.
Order of the Lycan - Bloodlust
If you start your turn with fewer hit points than half your hit point maximum, you must succeed on a DC 8 Wisdom saving throw or move directly toward the nearest creature and use the Attack action against that creature. If you’re concentrating on a spell or are under an effect that prevents you from concentrating (such as the barbarian’s Rage feature), you automatically fail this saving throw.
Unlike the rage, the Lycan's Hybrid Transformation doesn't stop you from casting spells, but it does have a spicy downside similar to the Crown of Madness spell. I think this is a good way to represent a character that is completely lost in the sauce during combat.
Feeblemind
On a failed save, the creature's Intelligence and Charisma scores become 1. The creature can't cast spells, activate magic items, understand language, or communicate in any intelligible way. The creature can, however, identify its friends, follow them, and even protect them.
There are some evil enchantment spells out there, but Feeblemind might be the most upsetting to think about. I wouldn't usually recommend using this spell on players given how hard it is to remove, but if you want to bring your character low for dramatic effect, this is one way to do it.
Cannibal Compulsion
Whenever the accursed creature sees a creature of its own type within 30 feet take necrotic damage or a critical hit with a piercing or slashing weapon, it must succeed on a Charisma saving throw or begin plotting to eat that creature’s flesh, but the end result of the accursed creature’s plotting is always a cannibalistic feast.
This particular curse is probably a bit disruptive for regular play, but I think it does a good job of demonstrating how you might embody a disturbing compulsion in-game (the above is just a snippet).
You can swap out the thing that your character is terrified of/terrifyingly compelled towards for just about anything, whatever fits your character concept. The main downside of stuff like this is that you and/or the GM need to be constantly looking out for the thing that triggers it.
Confusion
This spell assaults and twists creatures' minds, spawning delusions and provoking uncontrolled actions.
If you've ever failed a saving throw to this spell you'll know that it feels almost as bad as being paralyzed or stunned, so I'd recommend toning it down a bit for regular use. Skipping your turn isn't fun.
In fact, you probably want to tinker with the table quite a lot, replacing the 'do nothing' options with actions more fitting to whatever horrors your character has going on. But I think it's a good starting place for modelling madness or delirium.
Dominate Person
While the target is charmed, you have a telepathic link with it as long as the two of you are on the same plane of existence. You can use this telepathic link to issue commands to the creature while you are conscious (no action required), which it does its best to obey.
Pretty straightforward; you can give the GM control of your character under specific circumstances. Works especially well in case of possession/particularly bad warlock pacts.
Suggestion
You suggest a course of activity (limited to a sentence or two) and magically influence a creature you can see within range that can hear and understand you.
Similar to the above, but subtler. Again requires extra work from the GM, but can you imagine if once or twice a session, the GM just hands you a little self-destructive or upsetting thought out of nowhere.
Now this is definitely making me want to try playing the Dark Urge.
Fran Bow Dagenhart.
Commissions are O P E N ♥
If you want to see more content like this, follow me on:
Instagram ~ ArtStation ~ Tumblr
"Madness is the inability to communicate your ideas. It's as if you were in a foreign country, able to see and understand everything that's going on around you, but incapable of explaining what you need to know of of being helped, because you don't understand the language they speak there. "
HOW TO MAKE THE FIRE SIGNS
This recipe makes (1) fire sign, Aries, Leo, or Sagittarius.
Ten cans of Monster Energy Drink
2 gallons of the blood of your enemies
An unused box of fireworks
A dash of adventure
2 tbsp of irresponsibility
One cup of madness
A box of stubborn pride
To make an Aries, add: 2 cups passion
To make a Leo, add: 1 quart glitter
To make a Sagittarius, add: Spoonful of optimism
Mix all ingredients well. Let sit in the sun for 5 hours, then bake at 450 degrees for 2 hours. Do NOT cool before serving. Enjoy!
is there any sanity in a daughter who has known her mother?
“Madness is not hysteria. It can be very quiet…”
—
So unserious having a goddamn closet for this shot surrounded by yellow walls lmao