Thread by @SandyofCthulhu

Where did Call of Cthulhu's Sanity System come from?

In 1980 I got the job of writing The Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game. Even back then, my goal was always for my games to reflect the game's theme as much as possible. I wanted players to feel like they were in a ghost story or a horror movie. I guess I didn't, and still don't, look on my games as just games - but as fun experiences, that you control instead of an author.

Anyway, one feature of Lovecraft's tales is that the hero often freaks out, goes insane, or faints dead away. So I wanted this in the game. The monsters would be so shocking that the hero would swoon or go into hysterics.

To reflect this, I created the Sanity system. I gave each player an amount of Sanity, and as they learned more about the Cthulhu Mythos, or saw monsters, or read terrible arcane books, their Sanity would seep away.
1/4

Now, my idea for the monsters was that this would just be one more tool that the monsters would have at their disposal. They could claw or tentacle you, they could cast spells, AND they could blast your Sanity with their horror.

The first time I tested Sanity was in Davis California. The players were alerted to how Sanity worked. They were playing the scenario The Haunted House (still available). They'd found a creepy old book and found a spell in it which they were going to cast. I told them it was "Summon Malignity From Beyond" but they weren't discouraged. They collected the components and cast it. I tried to make it all theatrical - "You hear a weird rasping noise in the air. A blue-lit portal opens! A talon claws forth!"

And here I was astounded. One player said, "I'm covering my eyes." Another said, "I run upstairs." A third said, "I'm turning my face to the corner." Wow! This would NEVER happen in D&D, or any other RPG. Knowledge is power! Why would you not want to look?

Well of course it was because the monster was scary. I hadn't realized this would actually make the players act as if their characters were frightened! I'm not saying the PLAYERS were scared, but they acted that way.
2/4

While I didn't realize that this is what would happen, I was smart enough to realize that this was an extremely powerful mechanic. I had a tool that would change roleplaying. In D&D a scary monster is dangerous because it can kill you. In Call of Cthulhu an investigator is scared to see what's around the corner in the catacombs. Just like a horror movie! Or, I suppose, a monster story.

I then began adapting it to other things and it became so handy. Does a player want to murder innocent people? Obviously he's going mad. Dock his Sanity. He can still DO it. He just gets ... twitchy. Eventually he actually becomes a Keeper tool, and then the other players get to enjoy his presence a long long time.

Let me tell you, nothing is better in a session than having your current crop of players being stalked and threatened by one of their former characters. The recriminations are non-stop. "Why did you give your guy Dapper Dan 75% in Demolition?! Now he's sneaking bombs into the sewers under our building." It really works.
3/4

Anyway that's how Sanity become not just a throwaway feature, but the central pillar of my game.

True story: when I visited Japan in 2019, I made a speech and took questions. I answered a question about Sanity, and then I said that I couldn't have done the game without my wife's support, and I made her stand up while everyone applauded.

After the Q&A, I was interviewed by a magazine, a radio station, and a website. Apparently I mixed up what I was saying about Sanity and my wife, and all three interviewers in turn asked about how "My Wife Invented the Sanity System" I guess it was a cool scoop. I shrugged and decided to roll with it. "Sure my wife came up with it." Apparently this is how it was reported in Japan. So if you are Japanese, and you've heard that my wife Wendy created the Sanity system that's where it came from. But I'm happy to give her credit, because no Call of Cthulhu would exist at all without her.

Have you seen your Sanity ebb away or plunge to nothingness? Tell us some tales of glorious lunacy!
#Lovecraft
4/4

Those more curious about why these new players of Call of Cthulhu would want to cast a spell - well, they had figured out that the house was haunted, and thought that the book they'd found would summon up the haunting creature so they could deal with it. Unfortunately, it was just a leftover from Walter Corbitt's time.

Also, for what it's worth, the spell summoned a Dimensional Shambler. Sanity loss 1d6/1d10. They were probably more worried than necessary because no one had ever used Sanity before. On the other hand, there was like a 50-50 chance they'd lose 5 SAN and be forced to faint or get a phobia by the then-rules.