Fatigue
Fatigue measures the slow damage done by exhaustion, stress, exposure, injury, and supernatural pressure. HP tells you how close a Hunter is to dropping right now; Fatigue tells you how much of themselves they have already spent getting this far.
Effects of Fatigue
Each point of Fatigue reduces all of a Hunter's attribute modifiers by 1. This means a fatigued Hunter struggles with checks, resists damage less effectively, and performs worse under pressure.
Fatigue also affects derived stats:
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HP: When Fatigue lowers a Hunter's Durability modifier, their maximum Hit Points (HP) decrease as well. Current HP cannot exceed the new maximum.
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Hit Threshold: A Hunter's Hit Threshold (HT) is reduced by their Fatigue.
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Pace: Fatigue is subtracted from a Hunter's Pace.
Fatigue cannot reduce an attribute modifier below -5. If a calculation would push a modifier lower than that, treat it as -5 and apply any additional consequences through the danger rules below.
Accumulating and Recovering from Fatigue
Hunters can gain Fatigue points in various ways, such as:
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Not resting for an extended period, typically 24 hours
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Engaging in strenuous activity for hours without taking a break
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Remaining in exhausting conditions like extreme heat or cold
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Being affected by certain Horrors' abilities or supernatural effects
To recover from Fatigue, Hunters must rest somewhere safe enough for sleep, treatment, and decompression. Each full rest (6-8 hours of sleep) reduces a Hunter's Fatigue by 1. Medical care, therapy, safe shelter, or certain abilities may reduce additional Fatigue at the Overseer's discretion.
The following table provides examples of scenarios and their associated Fatigue points:
| Scenario | Fatigue Points |
|---|---|
| Not resting for 24 hours | 1 |
| Strenuous activity for 1 hour without rest | 1 |
| Extreme temperatures for 1 hour | 1 |
| Significant injury, such as a broken bone or deep laceration | 2 |
| Severe mental trauma, such as witnessing an intimate supernatural violation | 2 |
| A Horror's draining ability | 3 |
| 1 hour in a supernaturally oppressive environment | 2 |
| A complex ritual attempted without proper preparation or materials | 3 |
| A mildly toxic substance, such as spoiled food or impure water | 1 |
| A powerful psychic attack | 4 |
Dangers of Fatigue
Fatigue becomes deadly when it strips away the last of a Hunter's ability to function.
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If Fatigue reduces a Hunter's maximum HP to 0, the Hunter dies from systemic collapse.
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If Fatigue reduces three or more of a Hunter's attribute modifiers to -5, the Hunter becomes incapacitated (this is not the Downed state unless their HP is also 0) and cannot recover until their Fatigue is reduced. If they gain any additional Fatigue while in this state, they die.
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If a Horror ability or hazard says it kills through exhaustion, suffocation, or collapse, apply that rule directly.
David: "I've been awake for almost 24 hours now, hunting that poltergeist. I'm exhausted."
Overseer: "That's one Fatigue. All your attribute modifiers drop by 1. Your Durability modifier is now 2 instead of 3, so your max HP drops from 29 to 26. Your HT and Pace each drop by 1 as well."
Amy: "You should rest, David. If the trail is still there in the morning, we can follow it without seeing monsters in every shadow."
John: "Counterpoint: if the shadow starts seeing us, we win."
Overseer: "David can keep going, but if Fatigue keeps stacking, this stops being a penalty and starts becoming a medical emergency."