Afflictions
Pathfinder Gamemastery Guide (Second Edition), page 116
Wherever there is life, there are insidious perils that threaten the health and well-being of living creatures. Some of these afflictions, including many diseases, are inherent to the natural world. Others, such as drugs, are crafted by people the world over for recreational, unscrupulous, or other uses. And some—curses being the most notorious—exist solely to cause harm to others.
Afflictions strike creatures with potent and often escalating results. This section presents a variety of curses, diseases, and drugs for use in your game. A broad sampling of poisons can be found beginning on page 550 of the Core Rulebook, and the rules for afflictions start on 457.
Depending on the tone of the campaign, the GM might want to roll secret saving throws for PCs affected by an affliction. This is particularly effective when the affliction is an element within a survival or horror game, or when it’s part of a mystery.
In this section
- Curses A curse is a manifestation of potent ill will. Curses typically have a single effect that takes place upon a failed saving throw and lasts a specified amount of time, or can be removed only by certain actions a…
- Diseases Exposure to disease can be a hazard, such as when PCs come into contact with a plague-ridden corpse; such hazards grant XP as a simple hazard of the disease’s level.
- Drugs Drugs offer short-term benefits with harmful side effects and long-term consequences. These short-term benefits, such as euphoria, draw many to drugs, but addiction keeps users hooked long after their first dose.