A funny thing happened...

...on the way to wherever I was going.

I was thinking about stuff (as you do) and the conversation turned to human nature and how the environment affects how people respond to things. From the simplest of things that cause arguments to the more major things that cause tears of joy...or heartbreak, different peolple will react differently to others.

Throughout my life, I have seen many things...from the birth of children, to the death of a family member...from military funerals to being under fire in a 'peace keeping' environment...yet throughout all of my experiences, one thing has always stood out and that is how people react to situations...sometimes in a completely unexpected fashion.

I have seen pillars of the community cowering under a table when an air raid siren went off...being bolstered by someone who, normally, would be a timid little rabbit. I have seen people I would not expect, sobbing with grief...and others sobbing with joy (some of them real 'MEN' too...)...

...this got me thinking about how sci fi wargaming could be effected by a different sort of psychology...one that isn't 'the captain is an inspirational leader...immune to fear' but more like 'the captain is an inspirational leader who is normally immune to fear but sometimes is momentarily affected by indecision, fear or uncertainty'.

I can say that people react in an unpredictable manner in stressful situations...some fall to pieces where others throw aside their timid nature and take control. I know this because I have seen it!

Why am I going on about this? Like I said, a conversation got me thinking...how about a random generator for the unpredictability of a stressful situation?

Roll a D6: on the roll of:
1 to 3 - the character behaves as they would normally expected.
4 to 5 -The character faulters and needs to take stock...missing all of the actions this turn.
6 - The character loses their nerve and breaks. Treat them as if they had routed.

Add to that, a few extra categories, like becoming immune to fear/terror or charging into the enemy in a suicidal attack...it could be interesting. It could also be applied to troop models...how would they react if the officers weren't keeping an eye on them? How could an officer affect the poor trooper's actions...would he inspire or break the trooper?

I saw a lizard at work today. It was about 8" long and smooth. and grey/green in colour.

See you through the arched window!

On a different note...Tuskers Beer reminds me of Toby Bitter...something I remember from a long time ago.