A thought, when a character passes a SAN check for any horror, they are thereafter not subject to SAN checks for the same horror.

Therefore, instead of first time only for things like being in another time, they have to make a SAN check each time the trigger occurs until they pass. Then they no longer have to make SAN checks for that trigger.

That would seem rational to me.

RPGPundit

Quote from: Gordon Horne;339044A thought, when a character passes a SAN check for any horror, they are thereafter not subject to SAN checks for the same horror.

I've seen that bounced around a lot as a house-rule for CoC... at least for all the lesser critters.

Quote from: RPGPundit;338477I've often considered that BRP would be an excellent system for running Dr.Who.

What I would do, which addresses some of the concerns over SAN here, is the following: SAN works similar to CoC for the purposes of encountering horrific beings, freezing in fear, etc.
But losing SAN points down to 0, rather than leading to "permanent insanity", obliges the Companion PC to "leave the TARDIS", and thus the game.

I'd treat SAN as a direct analog to classic Hit Points.  Characters will take SAN "damage", but it is all temporary, and SAN points will be recovered at a relatively steady rate or scale over time or from scene to scene.  Still, also like HPs, if you hit a SAN of 0, you've bottomed out and stand a serious chance of being permanently "dead", or in this case, mad/world-weary/booted from the TARDIS.

What sets the Doctor's companions apart from your average person off the street is either inherently higher resistance to SAN shock.  They get a higher "saving roll" than most, if you will.  An example would be the Doctor's adoption of Martha Jones as his companion in "Smith & Jones" when the Judoon kidnapped the entire hospital to the moon.  While Martha was keeping her head about her, one of her colleagues was cowering in fear; the Doctor said to Martha, "Come with me.  Not her -- she'll only slow us down."  Martha had a high SAN resistance, her colleague was only average at best.

So, hmm.  Maybe matching a character's SAN vs. situation's/monster's SAN threat on the Resistance Table, rather than a straight roll-under on a character's SAN.

!i!

Quote from: Ian Absentia;339148An example would be the Doctor's adoption of Martha Jones as his companion in "Smith & Jones" when the Judoon kidnapped the entire hospital to the moon.  While Martha was keeping her head about her, one of her colleagues was cowering in fear; the Doctor said to Martha, "Come with me.  Not her -- she'll only slow us down."  Martha had a high SAN resistance, her colleague was only average at best.

While Martha "I want to be a doctor" Jones was running around with the cute guy, her "unsuitable" friend was actually being, you know, a doctor. Tending to the patients and stuff.

Quote from: Gordon Horne;339152While Martha "I want to be a doctor" Jones was running around with the cute guy, her "unsuitable" friend was actually being, you know, a doctor. Tending to the patients and stuff.

Martha was responding to "a higher calling". Arguably, she did more for all of the patients than the other intern.  That's what the show (and, presumably, a game) would be all about.

!i!

Quote from: Ian Absentia;339162Martha was responding to "a higher calling". Arguably, she did more for all of the patients than the other intern.  That's what the show (and, presumably, a game) would be all about.

But the other intern was hotter. (Sorry Freema. )

Quote from: Gordon Horne;339173But the other intern was hotter. (Sorry Freema. )

Can't I have both?

Quote from: Ian Absentia;339148I'd treat SAN as a direct analog to classic Hit Points.  Characters will take SAN "damage", but it is all temporary, and SAN points will be recovered at a relatively steady rate or scale over time or from scene to scene.  Still, also like HPs, if you hit a SAN of 0, you've bottomed out and stand a serious chance of being permanently "dead", or in this case, mad/world-weary/booted from the TARDIS.

Good idea! In fact, I think I like your idea better than mine about Cthulhu/Whoniverse Mythos being a sanity DR-type thing.

QuoteSo, hmm. Maybe matching a character's SAN vs. situation's/monster's SAN threat on the Resistance Table, rather than a straight roll-under on a character's SAN.

Sounds promising. I'll check my generic BRP book when I get home today.