Mental

August 3, 2022
Limitless Heroics Cover: As our heroes fight the hydra, we see just some of the variety of symptoms represented in this book. The paladin has a prosthetic arm to assist with their amputation. The barbarian rages from their wheelchair, providing mobility for their paralyzed legs. The ranger, whose body is more accustomed to an aquatic environment just as someone in the real world may be more comfortable in a quieter or darker sensory environment, finds ways to compensate and keep fighting. The wizard’s vitiligo may not be thought of as a disability, nor should it be, yet many in the real world experience severe discrimination due to unusual skin pigment — how many celebrities, corporate executives, or politicians do you know with visibly irregular skin?

function showRandomTrait() { const traitTable = { 1: 'Animated Hand', "02-04": 'Alleviation Behavior', "05-07": 'Amplified Emotion', 8: 'Anhedonia', "09-11": 'Attention Difference', "12-14": 'Baseless Emotion', "15-16": 'Confusion', "17-18": 'Delusions', 19: 'Depersonalization', 20: 'Derealization', "21-25": 'Diminished Motivation', "26-30": 'Disinhibited Social Engagement', "31-34": 'Eating Disruption', "35-37": 'Emotion Fluctuation', 38: 'Plurality', "39-42": 'Executive Functioning', "43-44": 'Hallucinations', "45-46": 'Intellectual Disability', 47: 'Intrusive Thoughts', "48-59": 'Learning Difference', 60: 'Obsessive Thoughts', 61: 'Personality Difference', "62-78": 'Phobia', "79-83": 'Repetitive Movement', "84-90": 'Startle Amplification', "91-95": 'Stimulus Avoidance', "96-100": 'Traumatic Flashbacks', }; const randomNum = Math.floor(Math.random() * 100) + 1; let trait; for (const key in traitTable) { if (key.includes("-")) { const [start, end] = key.split("-"); if (randomNum >= start && randomNum <= end) { trait = traitTable[key]; break; } } else if (parseInt(key) === randomNum) { trait = traitTable[key]; break; } } document.getElementById("trait").innerHTML = trait; }

d100 Trait
01 Animated Hand
02–04 Alleviation Behavior
05–07 Amplified Emotion
08 Anhedonia
09–11 Attention Difference
12–14 Baseless Emotion
15–16 Confusion
17–18 Delusions
19 Depersonalization
20 Derealization
21–25 Diminished Motivation
26–30 Disinhibited Social Engagement
31–34 Eating Disruption
35–37 Emotion Fluctuation
38 Plurality
39–42 Executive Functioning
43–44 Hallucinations
45–46 Intellectual Disability
47 Intrusive Thoughts
48–59 Learning Difference
60 Obsessive Thoughts
61 Personality Difference
62–78 Phobia
79–83 Repetitive Movement
84–90 Startle Amplification
91–95 Stimulus Avoidance
96–100 Traumatic Flashbacks

A Note about Mental Health Mechanics

As with all rules in this compendium, these game mechanics are simply suggestions to begin the discussion on how to safely include these in your games. Mental health issues are complex and diverse, so the distinction between neurological traits and mental traits in this book is artificial and purely for game design. We've included these mechanics for the sake of representation and education, but everyone’s experience is different, so the player and game master should start with the rules for any given trait as suggestions, and then discuss how they would like to portray these traits at their table — collaboration is key to safe play. Even though this is a book of game mechanics, “I want to roleplay the trait without modifiers or other rules” is a valid way to play these traits.

Some traits also include a path to recovery. If a trait does not include such a path in its entry, that doesn’t mean recovery is impossible — you may find inspiration from the assistive options listed under each entry to play a recovery narrative in your game. Note that recovery is an often-complicated process that cannot be adequately portrayed through a few dice rolls, and the recovery mechanics are given here to communicate hope to those affected by these experiences.

Missing from nearly all of these descriptions is one of the most effective assistive options: a qualified therapist. We didn’t include that in this book due to the complexity of the therapy process, but note the suggestions throughout this section if one of these affects you in real life. We want everyone to get the help they need to fight the monsters in their lives. The Geek Therapeutics network may be a good match for many of our readers, depending on your location, insurance, and specific needs. Otherwise, check your local listings for providers.