Two questions, both not directly addressed in the rule book.
1) During the Haunt, if I pick up the Madman card (gain 2 might, lose 1 sanity) and my sanity is already on the lowest value, do I die? Can Omen cards kill you?
2) If I did die and dropped the Madman, can a teammate send the Dog to pick up the Madman (assuming he is within 6 spaces)? Can the Dog retrieve (companion) Omen cards?
1) Yes you would die from the sanity loss. From the rule book (page 9):
Once the haunt begins, if any of your traits (Speed, Might, Sanity, or Knowledge) moves down to the skull symbol, your explorer dies.
This does not differentiate in any way between taking direct damage and any other forms of stat loss, so gaining the Madman can kill you if your sanity is already at its lowest point.
2) No, the Dog cannot carry the Madman (or the Girl). According to the rule book (page 7):
Some omens, like the Dog, aren’t items at all, so they can’t be dropped or traded. They’re companions that follow the explorer who has custody of them. (The Dog, Girl, and Madman all work this way.)
and according to the Dog card:
Once during your turn, the Dog can move to any explored room up to 6 spaces away, using doors and stairs, and then return. It can pick up, carry, and/or drop 1 item before it returns.
The Dog explicitly states that it can only pick up items. The rules explicitly state that both the Madman and the Girl are not items, so therefore neither of them could be carried by the Dog.
I have played this game several times, and the way we played was as follows (regarding your questions):
1) You die from the loss of Sanity.
2) The dog can pick up the omen if he has enough mouvement to make it to the room (where the Madman is) and back.
