Trait and Passions tests
These tests are an important part of the Pendragon game, and a great way to situate your play within the context of the Middle Ages. The rigors and population of forum games mean that the gm staff will not be able to challenge characters' passions and traits with the regularity or frequency we might wish. They will be a feature of events, and players meeting with important NPCs, like Eleanor, Richard, or William Marshal, should expect these rolls to pop up as well. The gm staff likewise reserves the right to intervene in any thread to request passion and trait rolls from players. Please do comply. Like questions of honor in l5r, they do make the game a significantly richer experience.

Players are likewise strongly encouraged to consider their traits and passions in the course of their play, especially their legendary traits and passions.

Passions, or, how to make it weird.

A Passion represents a powerful draw on the mind of a character. When the subject of the Passion is in question, a character can roll a Passion to trigger one of several effects. The request to roll for a Passion can come from a player or from a gm.

The roll has these consequences:
Critical Success: Character is inspired (see below) and acts strongly in accordance with the passion. Gain 1 point in the passion, plus an experience check.

Success: Character is inspired (see below) and acts in accordance with the passion. Gain an experience check in the passion.

Failure: Character is disheartened (see below) and immediately loses 1 point in the relevant passion unless the Gamemaster rules otherwise.

Critical Failure: Character is maddened (see below) and immediately loses 1 point in the passion.

Inspiration, or, hulking out
An inspired character may choose any one skill or combat skill; if he had a critical success on the Passion roll, he doubles that skill or gains a +20 modifier. If he had a success, he adds a +10 modifier. This inspiration lasts until the task at hand is completed, but never for more than a full day.

If you should fail to complete the task you were Inspired to complete, you suffer shock. Suffering shock means that you roll on the Aging Table in the rules.

Disheartened: Riding the Bummer Train
Suffer -5 on all further roles in the scene. Once the scene has ended, become melancholic.

Melancholy: The character is overwhelmed by grief, and demonstrates the madness that is associated with that feeling. Such a character torments himself, and will lash out at anyone who approaches. This state can be cured in 1 of two ways:
1) A full day may pass.
2) A would-be healer may choose a trait to try to remind the character of virtue and goodness or possibly of vice and pleasure. The healer and melancholic player make a contested roll. The healer uses the chosen trait, the melancholic player uses its opposite. If the healer wins, huzzah! No more melancholy. If the melancholic player wins, too bad, the character lashes out either physically or verbally at the healer. The healer may try again with a new trait, if they care to.


Maddened: This Is Really Bad. Don't Do This.
A character may be driven mad by his passions. This madness may occur at once, or once the relevant action is over (at the Gamemaster’s discretion).

Once madness sets in, the character becomes an NPC, and the Gm will narrate his actions until such time as his madness abates. In the tabletop game, this might be a very long time, and the player may be invited to play someone else for a time. Here, it will certainly not be that long unless the player wishes to experiment with this.