Mirror, mirror...

There are many superstitions surrounding mirrors, such as having seven years of bad luck for breaking one, or that they can trap the soul. A couple weeks ago, I came across this blog post with a table of some truly awful effects that mirrors - or any reflective surface for that matter - might have upon their viewers. Something about the disturbing and unfortunate nature of these effects set me to composing my own collection of horrible effects.

Although written with the Pathfinder rule system in mind, it's simple enough to use equivalent mechanics from your own game of choice. I specifically did not list a DC for any of the saving throws as these effects are intended to be used at any level - the DC should scale appropriately with that of the character gazing into the mirror. A suggested DC would be 10 + the character's level.

Become The Monster
Your reflection is a grotesque parody of your true self. Your limbs are twisted and where it hasn’t sloughed off, your skin red and scaly. If you study the image in any way, make a Will saving throw. If you fail, one of your hands twists and warps in horrifying ways. At the same time, the reflection of that same hand reverts to normal. Each time you stand in front of a mirror, you must succeed at another saving throw or suffer a similar transformation to another part of your body until your entire body is vile and deformed. The effect can be ended with a remove curse spell or similar ability. Any deformed appendages remain, although a restoration spell or similar ability can restore your body to normal once the curse is broken.

Betrayed
Everything appears normal in the mirror until you realize that your companions' reflections are leering at you. If you investigate the reflection further, the reflection of one of your companions unexpectedly lashes out at your image. Make a Reflex saving throw. If you fail, your reflection suffers a coup de grace attack. You take the damage and effects that the attack causes. If the result of the saving throw is a natural 1, you are cursed and the attack reoccurs anytime you are standing in front of a mirror - make a new saving throw each time. This curse is lifted when the attack kills you, or is dispelled with a remove curse or similar effect. If you succeed at the saving throw, you (and your reflection) manage to avoid the attack. Your companion’s reflection returns to normal.

Evil Twin
An image of you stares back, but something seems off about your reflected self. If you investigate the image further, make a Will saving throw. If you fail, you find yourself trapped within the mirror. The image simultaneously takes your place. The image has the same equipment and abilities as you, but is of a different moral alignment. If you are of a good alignment, your image is evil, and vice versa. If you are neutral, your image has either a good or evil alignment (GM’s choice).

Hangman's Noose
Your reflection looks back at you, a noose hanging from its neck. Make a Will saving throw. If you fail, the reflection of the noose suddenly snaps upward and both you and your reflection begin to suffocate. Another character must manipulate his reflection to cut the rope. If you succeed at the saving throw, the noose continues to hang from your reflection’s neck, but nothing happens.

Indescribable
The image in the mirror is not of you, but of something so inconceivable and horrifying that you can’t even describe it to yourself. The only escape from witnessing such an impossibility is madness. Make a Will saving throw. If you fail, you suffer 10 points of Wisdom drain. If you succeed, you suffer 10 points of Wisdom damage.


Inferno
The room reflected back at you in the mirror is engulfed in a raging inferno. Everything – and everyone - is ablaze. Make a Will saving throw. If you fail, the room around you also appears to be engulfed in flames. So long as you are in the room, you suffer from heat damage and are at risk of catching fire and smoke inhalation. This effect persists for 24 hours. If you succeed at the saving throw, the fire in the mirror flickers harmlessly and dies out. Everything reflected in the mirror, though, remains burnt and charred.

An Itch You Can't Scratch
Something about the reflection in the mirror makes your skin itch. If you study the image further, make a Will saving throw. If you fail, you begin vigorously scratching at your flesh. Each round, you can only use your standard action to claw to yourself, inflicting 1d3 points of damage in the process (modified for size if other than Medium). If you fail by 5 or more, you use a light or one-handed piercing or slashing weapon (if available) to rake your skin, inflicting its damage upon yourself instead. If you succeed, you reflexively give a shudder, but nothing more happens.

Old Before Your Time
Your reflection beings to slowly age before your eyes. If you continue to watch the mirror, make a Fortitude saving throw. If you fail, you age 1d10 years. You continue to age at this rate every hour until you succeed at another Fortitude save. If you fail the initial saving throw by 5 or more, you age 10d10 years within the span of a few seconds and no additional saving throws are required.

What Was Seen
The image in the mirror is a perfect reflection of the room in which you are standing – and yet something seems off. If you investigate the image further, make a Will saving throw. If you fail, blood begins to flow from your eye sockets as your eyes rapidly liquefy. You are permanently blinded. If you succeed, you realize that the mirror is warped slightly, subtlety distorting the image like a fun house mirror.

Your Own Worst Enemy
Your reflection reaches through the glass and grabs you. With a malicious gleam in its eyes, it tries to pull you into the mirror. Make a grapple check or Escape Artist skill check against your own CMD to break free of your reflection. If you fail, your reflection succeeds at pulling you into the mirror. You must then face your reflection in a fight to the death. If the reflection of anyone else is present, they take no action and do not attempt to help or hinder you. If you die, your reflection emerges from the mirror. Its intentions are left up to the GM. If you kill your reflection, you are able to pass back through the mirror, although you no longer have a reflection. If you break the hold your reflection has on you, your reflection returns to normal.