Avert Your Eyes! Saving Sanity By Not Looking

[talien]

This came up recently because I've been converting Tatters of the King to the d20 system, and I've seen it so many times in that book that it's starting to become comical. And oh yeah, the comment in this thread, about having low Spot/Listen, also made me think of it.

Scenario: Monster From Beyond shows up, slurping and sloshing through the woods. The PCs have an opportunity to lose sanity. And it can be a pretty big loss of sanity, depending on which thing they see. But PCs who "look away" actually suffer less sanity loss, because...they're not looking at the horrible thing.​

I'm sorry but that is the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Since when does averting your eyes when you encounter something terrible make it okay? Aren't there sounds? Smells? General creepy feelings? Why does not looking at something act as a legitimate defense against it?

Heck, I could argue that not actually seeing a monster actually causes MORE of a loss of sanity than less! Sometimes the horror in the mind's eye is far worse than staring straight at it.

Has anyone else found this peculiar in CoC or it's d20 variant? Or is it just me?

 

[mmadsen]

Since when does averting your eyes when you encounter something terrible make it okay?

I think the vast majority of girlfriends dragged to horror movies would disagree with you...

 

[Nifft]

I'm sorry but that is the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Since when does averting your eyes when you encounter something terrible make it okay? Aren't there sounds? Smells? General creepy feelings? Why does not looking at something act as a legitimate defense against it?

It works against a medusa ... why not?

I'd at least allow some sort of circumstance bonus to any save.

-- N

 

[Shroomy]

I don't think it makes much sense either. I like what the authors and designers of FCI did with the Cthulhoid obyrith's "form of madness" special ability; it afffects all five senses.

 

[Umbran]

A character loses sanity basically because the thing in question fundamentally conflicts with their concept of how the universe works. The horrors should not exist, as far as their brains are concerned.

So, if someone presented you with an odd smell, would you be able to tell if the origin of the odor is beyond mortal ken? Could you hear it trod upon the ground, and fully understand that something must be wrong with the universe for that footstep to occur? Would you have enough information to come to that conclusion?

Probably not. Humans (and, presumably, all the PC races in the game books) are highly visual creatures. For us, seeing, unfortunately, is believeing.

 

[Knight Otu]

Since when does averting your eyes when you encounter something terrible make it okay?

It doesn't make it okay - it makes it (likely) less terrible, and leaves the looks to your imagination (which likely won't conjure up something too sanity-shattering). The text, after all, still says that there is sanity loss - just less sanity loss than if you subjected yourself fully to the sanity-shattering creature and/or event.

 

[talien]

While I can agree to the concept (one sense somehow not perceiving the horrible thing thereby makes it less potent), I can't imagine genuinely doing it.

In other words, when I stumble upon something horrible, I do not look away. I CAN'T look away! It's hardly my first instinct. I'm concerned that the mechanic encourages characters to become peek-a-boo weenies who cover eyes and ears shouting "la-la-la!" and then somehow, because they didn't look at the horrible thing, are better off than the poor saps who looked straight at it.

This doesn't strike me as evoking horror, or objectively representing any kind of sanity loss. I'm not sure what even would act as a defense against sanity loss...maybe someone trained to go to their "happy place" by reciting a mantra over and over.

But averting your eyes? Just doesn't seem appropriate.

 

[Starglim]

I agree. Blocking your sight against a monster that's charging down to melee you with snake-hair and big nasty claws and teeth is one thing. That's a harrowing tactical challenge. But unless there are visual patterns in the thing that physically invade and damage your brain (as some gaze attacks might), demurely averting your sight from some unholy thing that you know is there is not going to help your sanity at all.

 

[jefgorbach]

Unsure about the rule in question, but the principle seems sound...since the PC isnt actually experiencing the Outsider's full physical "wrongness", they wouldnt lose as much Sanity as someone who did....however should combat eventually occur, that PC would again be subject to the Sanity loss since they would be viewing the being itself "for the first time", although their earlier smell/hearing/whatever -might- give a minor adjustment since they are somewhat prepared for the viewing.

 

[Zaruthustran]

Creepy sounds, gurgling, weird smells... all these can be rationalized away. But seeing the Horrible Thing makes the terror true.

Just think about the last time you've been creeped out. Maybe you were in the basement at night and heard a noise from where a noise shouldn't be. I bet your mind instantly flashed through "it's a mouse/it's a hot water pipe/it's the house settling/it's some doodad I dislodged earlier".

Suppose that the fact of the matter was the noise was caused by a spoooooky monster. Well, no harm done. You didn't see it.

What if you did see it?

What if you didn't hear it at all, and merely happened to glance up out the window just as some thing silently dragged its carcass across your field of vision?

Seeing is believing, and believing in things that should. Not. Exist. leads to insanity.

-z