Found in a House Rules collection for the GDW-d20 System:
Other Role-playing Information
Effects of Pregnancy
Pregnancy in the 21st Century should be a matter of choice rather then an accident. With the advent of readily available, inexpensive, dependable, and safe birth control methods, unintended or unwanted pregnancies should be rare, however, they are not. And, of course, some women do intentionally become pregnant and do wish to have the child. The information in this topic is general information based on actual human pregnancies and is a compilation of data found online, in maternity reference books, through interviews, and from other various sources.
Stages of Pregnancy/GM Addition
The table below lists the changes that a pregnant character may go through during the course of a “normal” pregnancy. The table below is broken down into Stages to represent when changes are normally expected to take place during a pregnancy. Each Stage lasts for about one month. If the Stage or a die roll calls for an effect, please refer to the Effects Descriptions for more detailed information on what the character experiences.
1st Stage
1. Mood Swing, check at least every 8 hours at 55% chance [1].
2. Morning Sickness, check every morning at 20% chance.
2nd Stage
1. Mood Swing, check at least every 8 hours at 65% chance [1].
2. Morning Sickness, check every morning at 25% chance.
3. Increased fatigue affects CON, reduce by 1 [3].
4. Increase in urination output, character must stop every 2 hours.
3rd Stage
1. Mood Swing, check at least every 8 hours at 75% chance [1].
2. Morning Sickness, check every morning at 30% chance [2].
4. Increase in urination output, character must stop every hour.
4th Stage
1. Mood Swing, check at least every 8 hours at 45% chance [1].
2. Morning Sickness, check every morning at 10% chance.
3. Increased fatigue affects CON, reduce by an additional 1 (-2 total reduction) [3].
4. Increase in urination output, character must stop every hour.
5. Weight gain, noticeable weight increase.
6. Food cravings.
7. Discomfort hinders concentration, which affects INT and EDU-based skill checks, apply a -1SL penalty to INT and EDU-based skill checks.
5th Stage
1. Mood Swing, check at least every 8 hours at 35% chance [1].
2. Morning Sickness, check every morning at 5% chance [2].
4. Increase in urination output, character must stop every hour.
5. Weight gain, weight increase continues.
6. Food cravings continue.
7. Discomfort continues to hinder concentration, which affects INT and EDU-based skill checks, apply a -1SL penalty to INT and EDU-based skill checks (-1SL total penalty).
8. Loss of balance (shifting of center of gravity) affects AGL, reduce by 1 [3].
6th Stage
1. Mood Swing, check at least every 8 hours at 25% chance [1].
3. Increased fatigue affects CON making CON-based skills difficult to safely perform, increase attribute and CON-based skill checks one difficulty level higher (+1DL).
4 Increase in urination output, character must stop every hour.
5. Weight gain, weight increase continues causing the need for adjustment to clothing.
6. Food cravings continue.
7. Discomfort continues to hinder concentration, which affects INT and EDU-based skill checks, apply an additional -1SL penalty to INT and EDU-based skill checks (-2SL total penalty).
8. Loss of balance (shifting of center of gravity) affects AGL, reduce by 1 (-1 total reduction) [3].
7th Stage
1. Mood Swing, check at least every 8 hours at 35% chance [1].
3. Increased fatigue affects CON making CON-based skills impossible to safely perform, unable to perform attribute or CON-based skills.
4. Increase in urination output, character must stop every ½ hour.
5. Weight gain, weight increase continues causing the need for adjustment to clothing.
6. Food cravings continue.
7. Discomfort continues to hinder concentration, which affects INT and EDU-based skill checks, apply an additional -1SL penalty to INT and EDU-based skill checks (-2SL total penalty).
8. Loss of balance (shifting of center of gravity) affects AGL, reduce by an additional 1 (‑2 total reduction) [3].
9. Backache, check every morning [4].
10. Loss of endurance affects movement, reduce to 1 / 5 / 10 / 20 [5].
11. Loss of stamina effects STR making STR-based skills more difficult to perform, apply a -1SL penalty to STR-based skill checks.
8th Stage
1. Mood Swing, check at least every 8 hours at 45% chance [1].
3. Increased fatigue affects CON making CON-based skills impossible to safely perform, unable to perform attribute or CON-based skills.
4. Increase in urination output, character must stop every ½ hour.
5. Weight gain, weight increase continues causing the need for adjustment to clothing.
6. Food cravings continue.
7. Discomfort continues to hinder concentration, which affects INT and EDU-based skill checks, apply an additional -1SL penalty to INT and EDU-based skill checks (-3SL total penalty).
8. Loss of balance (shifting of center of gravity) affects AGL, reduce by an additional 1 (‑2 total reduction) [3].
9. Backache, check every morning [4].
10. Loss of endurance affects movement, reduced to 1 / 4 / 7 / 15 [5].
11. Loss of stamina effects STR making STR-based skills more difficult to perform, apply an additional -1SL penalty to STR-based skill checks (-2SL total penalty).
12. Develops nesting habits.
9th Stage
1. Mood Swing, check at least every 8 hours at 55% chance [1].
3. Increased fatigue affects CON making CON-based skills impossible to safely perform, unable to perform attribute or CON-based skills.
4. Increase in urination output, character must stop every ½ hour.
5. Weight gain, weight increase continues causing the need for adjustment to clothing.
6. Food cravings continue.
7. Discomfort continues to hinder concentration, which affects INT and EDU-based skill checks, apply an additional -1SL penalty to INT and EDU-based skill checks (-3SL total penalty).
8. Loss of balance (shifting of center of gravity) affects AGL, reduce by an additional 1 (‑3 total reduction) [3].
9. Backache, check every morning [4].
10. Loss of endurance affects movement, reduced to 1 / 2 / 5 / 10 [5].
11. Loss of stamina effects STR making STR-based skills more difficult to perform, apply an additional -1SL penalty to STR-based skill checks (-3SL total penalty).
12. Develops nesting habits.
NOTES: [1] – see Mood Swings for other factors that may cause a mood swing check; [2] – checks do not continue into the later stages; [3] – may not be reduced below a minimum of 1; [4] – {[50 – (STR + CON)] + 5 per stage} + 5 per incident = percent chance of backache; [5] – must rest 3 times more often then usual.
Effect Descriptions/GM Addition
1. Mood Swings: The pregnant character must roll the mood swing check at least once every eight waking hours for a possible attitude change. If the percentage or less is rolled on a 1d%, then she must roll 1d6 on the table below for the new attitude; it is possible for the character to re-roll her current attitude. A result of obsessive behavior causes the character to become obsessed with whatever the team is doing at the moment. This obsession drives her to the point of not letting anyone, or anything, get in her way of trying to accomplish the current goal. There are circumstances that can and may “force” the character to make a mood swing check in addition to the check once every eight hours. The character must roll a mood swing check if...
A situation has been unusually stressful (i.e. after combat, during an argument, and etc.).
Any person who comes in contact with the character (excl. other PCs) who influences or affects the character, especially emotionally (very good friend, recent or current lover, hated enemy, and etc.) thereby possibly changing her mood.
At the GM’s discretion.
NOTE: This “rule” may also be used to represent PMS or for any player that wishes to play a character with unstable moods or personality treats.
Roll Moods & Attitudes
1 Happy, cheerful, optimistic, helpful, friendly
2 Self‑pity, unhelpful, brooding, pessimistic
3 Pissed off, vengeful, cruel
4 Depressed, sullen, feeling inadequate
5 Depressed. brooding, pessimistic
6 Restless, impatient, takes control, urge to get on with things [1]
NOTES: [1] – roll 1d6 for obsession check, a 1 indicates obsessive behavior.
2. Morning Sickness: If a check indicates that the character may suffer morning sickness, roll on the table below for the severity. If the character is continuing to have morning sickness from a previous Stage, then an additional roll on the table is not necessary. Once the character suffers from morning sickness no more checks are needed until the duration is over or until the next stage; this includes the resulting level of “none”.
Morning Sickness: A character with morning sickness is essentially incapacitated for the duration of the bout each day.
Nausea: A character with nausea feels like vomiting. The character has difficulty concentrating and therefore has a -1 penalty to all Skill Checks for the duration of the nausea. Furthermore, she suffers a ‑1 penalty to both AGL and STR for the duration of nausea.
Roll Level Duration
01‑60 None --
61‑80 Mild 3 stages
81-95 Moderate 5 stages
96-00 Chronic until birth
Mild
Consists of 1-2 hours of nausea each day.
Moderate
Morning sickness lasts 1d4 hours each day after which the character must make a CON attribute check with a -1 penalty for an additional 1-2 hours of nausea.
Chronic
Morning sickness lasts 2d4 hours each day after which the character must make a CON attribute check with a -2 penalty for an additional 1d4 hours of nausea.
3. Increased Fatigue: The increased fatigue brought on by pregnancy is represented by the temporary loss of CON attribute points and the decreased ability to perform CON-based skills. The loss of these CON points comes with all the penalties that any such loss would impose. The character will regain the lost points and the ability to perform CON-based skills, one per week, after the birth of the baby.
4. Increased Urination Output: This is caused less by the actual increase in urine, but more by the reduction in room for the bladder to expand.
5. Weight Gain: The character’s weight has begun to increase noticeably. Each Stage, increase the characters weight by 10%. If the character wishes to continue working she may be faced with the need to alter her clothing.
6. Food Cravings: The character’s friends may be sent on wild treks to find exotic foods, or outlandish food combinations, to curb her cravings.
7. Discomfort: The general discomfort of pregnancy (ranging from gas craps, mild aches and pains, to the baby’s movement) hinders concentration enough to affect the character when using both INT-based and EDU-based skills. The roll for the amount that this affects these abilities is rolled only once per Stage for each affected skill.
8. Loss of Balance: The increase in weight and other effects of bodily changes during pregnancy are represented by the temporary loss of AGL attribute points. The loss of these points comes with all the penalties that any such loss would impose. The character will regain the lost points, one per week, after the birth of the baby.
9. Backache: The formula to find the percentage to check for a possible backache is as follows: {[50 – (STR + CON)] + 5 per stage} + 5 per incident. If a character has a backache, it lasts 2d4 days. She is in great pain and is functionally incapacitated. The character should get rest and not engage in strenuous activity. If she decides to engage in strenuous activities, to simulate the agony she will suffer, the character loses 1d4 HPs (sub-dual damage) for every turn of strenuous activity. It is not unusual for a backache to be constant during the last three Stages of pregnancy.
10. Loss of Endurance: Loss of, or the reduction in, endurance, affects the character’s ability to crawl, walk, trot, or run over any distance. The character is also forced to stop and rest quite often (three time more often than normal).
11. Loss of Stamina: The loss of stamina is actually a combination of the loss of endurance and increase on fatigue; the loss of stamina affects the character’s strength in such a way as to affect her attempts to use STR-based skills. The roll for the amount that this affects these abilities is rolled only once per Stage for each affected skill.
12. Develops Nesting Habits: The character develops the desire to make a warm, cozy home, and prefers not to go anywhere.
Charisma and Pregnancy/GM Addition
Some people believe, and rightly so, that a large majority of pregnant women find themselves fat, ugly, and undesirable. Thus, these pregnant women do not give off an aura of coolness, magnetism, leadership, and determination. Very few people will follow a leader that is either emotionally unstable or emotionally weak (woman or man). On the other hand, other people feel that pregnant women "glows with motherhood". That being pregnant is the essence of womanhood and many men find this attractive. In fact, a pregnant woman can usually get most people to wait on her beckon call because she seems so helpless. Given these completely different views, a bonus or penalty may be applied to CHR attribute checks and/or CHR-based skill checks based on the individual view of those that encounter the pregnant character and the current mood of the pregnant character herself.
Pregnancy Duration/GM Addition
The duration of the pregnancy depends on the individual female. The average duration is 40 weeks. The GM will roll the Actual duration secretly (36+1d6 weeks).
Miscarriages/GM Addition
If a character suffers Abdomen wounds greater than a Scratch, there is a chance that she suffers a miscarriage.
Stages Percentage Formula Possible Effect
1,2, and 3 50% - CON x2 miscarriage [1,2]
4,5, and 6 25% - CON x2 miscarriage [1,2]
7,8, and 9 50% - CON x2 premature birth.
NOTES: [1] – the character has 3d4 hours to get medical treatment to save the child, the child must make an EZY CON check using the mother’s CON score; [2] – in the case of a miscarriage, there is a 25 - CON x2 percent chance of internal hemorrhaging, causing 3d6 points of Abdominal damage plus minor internal bleeding casing an additional 1 point every 10 minutes (an unmodified roll of 96-00 represents serious internal bleeding, causing 1 point of every minute).
Labor and Birth/GM Addition
Normally, when a character has her first child, she will be in “heavy” labor for 4 to 24 (4d6) hours. Subsequent labors will usually last for 4d6-CONx2 hours (minimum of 4 hours).
The chance for a successful birth is based on the mother making a primary EZY CON Attribute Check. If successful, “both mother and child are doing fine.” If the mother’s primary check fails, the mother must make a secondary CON check at an AVG DL. If she succeeds, the child makes a survival roll (on 1d%) based on the mother’s CON score; the formula for this is: (mother’s CON x 10%) - 5% per day the birth is premature. If both checks are successful, both are alive, but require triple the normal recovery time for a Serious Wound.
If the mother’s second CON check fails, roll on the table below with a +20% modifier. If the child’s survival check fails, roll on the table below with a -20% base modifier and an additional -10% for each day the child is premature. If both the mother’s secondary CON check and the child’s survival check fail, roll on the table below without additional modifiers.
Roll Result Roll Result
01‑40 child dies 81.98 both die
41‑80 mother dies 99-00 both live
Recovery/GM Addition
The mother, and child, must spend time recovering. She must rest as if healing naturally as if from a Serious Wound. If the character wishes to engage in strenuous activities rather than recover, the penalties for loss of CON, AGL, and movement remain in effect until the character has rested the required time.
The Mood Swing effect should remain for an additional 1d4 weeks after the birth.
Mögen uns die Leserväter
mal sagen, wie das denn paßt...
