Shock

Whenever
you
suffer
injury,
reduce your DX and IQ by the num-
ber of HP you lost – to a maximum
penalty of -4, regardless of your
injuries – on your next turn only. This
effect, called “shock,” is temporary;
your attributes return to normal on
the turn after that.
Shock affects DX- and IQ-based
skills, but not active defenses or other
defensive reactions; see Temporary
Attribute Penalties (p. 421). Therefore,
on the turn after you are badly hurt, it
is often a good idea to try flight or All-
Out Defense instead of an immediate
counterattack!
High HP and Shock: If you have 20
or more Hit Points, your shock penal-
ty is -1 per HP/10 of injury (drop all
fractions). Thus, if you have 20-29 HP,
it’s -1 per 2 HP lost; if you have 30-39
HP, it’s -1 per 3 HP lost, and so forth.
The maximum penalty is still -4.