Vanilla Anomaly Expanded - Sanity - Mental Stability, Madness and Inhumanization for RimWorld

Vanilla Anomaly Expanded - Sanity is a RimWorld mod that introduces a new sanity system inspired by Lovecraftian horror. Colonists who repeatedly encounter mysterious entities and study the horrors of the void gradually lose their connection to humanity, potentially developing dangerous behaviors or becoming completely inhumanized.

The modification expands the psychological and supernatural aspects of the Anomaly DLC with a long-term character development mechanic. Players must decide whether to confront hostile entities to restore sanity or continue studying them at the risk of gradually losing their colonists' humanity.

Sanity System - The Influence of the Void

The central feature of Vanilla Anomaly Expanded - Sanity is a new resource called Sanity, which represents a character's connection to human values, concerns, and priorities.

Unlike the standard mood system in RimWorld, sanity is not affected by ordinary psychological stress or everyday inconveniences.

Important features of the sanity system:

• Exposure to horrors: Prolonged interaction with Anomaly entities gradually reduces sanity.
• Studying anomalies: Researching mysterious entities can accelerate sanity loss.
• Fighting supernatural threats: Confronting hostile entities helps restore sanity.
• Long-term progression: Sanity is designed to decrease over several in-game years and generally takes even longer to recover.
• Individual differences: Certain character traits affect sanity gain and loss through special multipliers.

Events such as losing family members, eating nutrient paste, or experiencing ordinary mental breaks do not directly reduce sanity.

This makes sanity a separate strategic resource that requires long-term planning rather than constant attention to everyday mood fluctuations.

Madness, Mental States and Inhumanization

As sanity decreases, colonists become increasingly detached from ordinary human concerns.

Low sanity can trigger additional events, social interactions, and mental states that influence how characters behave.

Possible consequences include:

• New mental states related to declining sanity.
• Changes in social interactions and character behavior.
• Harmful actions caused by severe sanity deterioration.
• Gradual loss of human priorities and emotional connections.
• Inhumanization, which fundamentally changes a colonist's relationship with humanity.

Inhumanization is not necessarily entirely negative. However, players who wish to restore an affected character can work toward rehumanization.

The system creates additional choices between preserving colonists' humanity and exploring the consequences of prolonged exposure to supernatural forces.

Cultists, Ideology and Special Characters

Vanilla Anomaly Expanded - Sanity includes special interactions with certain character types and existing RimWorld mechanics.

Cultists begin with zero sanity. If captured, they can become candidates for rehumanization.

The mod also interacts with the Inhumanization: Required precept. Characters following this precept still become inhumanized after their first mental break, as in the original system.

However, they can subsequently undergo rehumanization through the mod's mechanics.

Androids have an additional restriction: only awakened androids possess sanity.

Customizable Sanity Settings

The mod includes extensive configuration options that allow players to adjust the sanity system to match their preferred difficulty.

Players can modify various sanity-related values, including the conditions and effects associated with gaining or losing sanity.

It is even possible to disable sanity recovery entirely, creating a more demanding experience where prolonged exposure to the void has lasting consequences.

Content settings: More severe self-harm-related content is disabled by default. Players can explicitly enable it through the mod settings if they choose.

Requirements and Compatibility

Vanilla Anomaly Expanded - Sanity requires the RimWorld Anomaly DLC. The mod is built around its supernatural entities and inhumanization mechanics.

Compatibility information:

• Anomaly DLC: Required.
• Existing saves: Expected to be compatible, although this is not guaranteed.
• Combat Extended: Compatibility has not been confirmed.
• Ideology precepts: Supports interactions with Inhumanization: Required.
• Character traits: Various base-game and Vanilla Expanded traits affect sanity gain and loss.
• Androids: Only awakened androids are affected by the sanity system.

Authors

• Oskar Potocki - Graphics and visual design.
• Taranchuk - Programming.
• vitalii - Storyteller artwork.