User:Fwcain/PDQ/DI

These are Franklin's "house rules" and other notes specifically involving Dead Inside, including how to integrate it with PDQ Sharp.

Mundanes
A Mundane (aka "Average Person" in "DI") is one of the unenlightened, someone who is blissfully unaware of the spiritual cosmos.

A Mundane who has his veil of ignorance removed from his eyes and becomes truly aware of the existence of the spirit realms -- one who has actually experienced contact with the spiritual cosmos -- can become one of the Enlightened, if this enlightenment came in a relatively peaceful manner. Unfortunately, the means of enlightenment are all too often far from peaceful -- in fact, they are most often traumatic, resulting in grievous spiritual harm to the person, causing him to become Dead Inside (see below).

Dead Inside
A Dead Inside (aka Half-Souled) is someone who has become painfully aware of the spiritual cosmos, often times as the result of a traumatic encounter with one of the predatory horrors lurking the spirit realms.

Presuming the Dead Inside is able to heal his spiritual injuries, he can become one of the Enlightened. In game terms, "Dead Inside" is a Gift, and the improvement of this Gift tracks the character's spiritual restoration. Once the character has improved this Gift the Master [+6] Rank, the next such promotion will actually grant the new Gift "Sensitive" at Average [+0] Rank.

Sensitive
A Sensitive (aka Enlightened) is someone who is aware of the spiritual cosmos, and is capable of interacting with the Spirit Realms. Some Sensitives came to their powers as part of healing from spiritual trauma; others came to their powers by inheritance or other aspects of their birth.

Through study, meditation, and good deeds, a Sensitive can eventually ascend to the next higher level of spiritual awakening. In game terms, once the character has improved this Gift to Master [+6] Rank, the next such promotion will actually grant the new Gift "Magi" at Average [+0] Rank.

Magi
"Paging Doctor Strange. Paging Doctor Stephen Strange, please..."

(Technically, the proper singular term for one of the Magi would be "Magus". However, we will be using "Mage" for the singular, and "Magi" for the plural as well as for the Gift itself.)

Shadow Points
Any time the character is to suffer a loss of "Soul Points" (as per the rules in Dead Inside as written), he instead receives an equal number of Shadow Points.

Shadow Points will be used as a specialized version of Training Points, solely for "improving" the Pseudo-Gift "Corrupted Soul".

Corrupted Soul
This Pseudo-Gift will track the character's spiritual digression. When the character earns (or re-earns; see below) his first Rank in this Pseudo-Gift, it starts off at Average [+0] Rank. Once the character has spiritually devolved completely (i.e.: once this Pseudo-Gift has been improved all the way to Master [+6] Rank and the character has enough Shadow Points to promote that Pseudo-Gift once more), he becomes one of the Qlippoth.

The player can, however, save his character from this doom, by repairing the damage to his soul. In game terms, any time the character improves the Gifts "Dead Inside", "Sensitive", or "Magi", he also gets a demotion in this Pseudo-Gift. And once he gets it down to "Poor [-2] Rank, the next such demotion with remove this Pseudo-Gift entirely! (At least, until he earns it again...)

In case the character has already ascended as high as he can go. he can still repair his soul by means of the same efforts as he once did. In other words, once he has already promoted Magi to Master [+6] Rank, he can still "demote" this Pseudo-Gift by paying the same amount of Training Points as it would have taken to promote Magi another Rank.

Please note that the player of any character having this "Gift" is not able to utilize this "Gift" for any purpose (e.g.: damage absorption). This "Gift" exists only for the GM's use.

Types of NPCs
Any PC who becomes a Zombi or Qlippoth has become a non-player character (NPC) under the control of the Game Master.

Free Spirit
xxx

Ghost
xxx

Qlippoth
Qlippoth are soul-sucking entities of the void.

Tulpa
xxx

Zombi
A person who is Dead Inside who subsequently dies becomes a mindless undead -- a Zombi.