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. When a disease gives a sickened condition that can’t be reduced until it runs its course, that typically means the disease has symptoms such as a difficulty swallowing, loss of appetite, or nausea that make eating and drinking difficult but not impossible. Despite the condition’s prohibition on eating or drinking, a creature can slowly and carefully eat and drink as long as they aren’t in an encounter.

Bog Rot

DISEASE 0

Traits: disease

Sometimes called bog foot, bog rot is caused by having waterlogged feet for an extended period of time. In addition to the usual cures for an affliction, bog rot can be cured through amputation of the affected appendages.

Saving Throw DC 13 Fortitude; Onset 1 day; Stage 1 clumsy 1 (1 day); Stage 2 clumsy 1 and a –5-foot status penalty to Speed (1 day); Stage 3 clumsy 2 and a –10-foot status penalty to Speed (1 day)

Scarlet Fever

DISEASE 1

Traits: disease

The relatively simple sore throat caused by this disease leads many victims to initially dismiss it as a mild illness, but scarlet fever can be deadly if left untreated. You can’t reduce your sickened condition while affected with scarlet fever.

Saving Throw DC 13 Fortitude; Onset 2 days; Stage 1 sickened 1 (1 day); Stage 2 sickened 2 (1 day); Stage 3 sickened 3 and can’t speak (1 day); Stage 4 death

Tetanus

DISEASE 1

Traits: disease

An infection introduced through open wounds, tetanus can produce stiffness, muscle spasms strong enough to break bones, and ultimately death.

Saving Throw DC 14 Fortitude; Onset 10 days; Stage 1 clumsy 1 (1 week); Stage 2 clumsy 2 and can’t speak (1 day); Stage 3 paralyzed with spasms (1 day); Stage 4 death

Tuberculosis

DISEASE 1

Traits: disease

An extended respiratory disease, tuberculosis can pose particular challenges to spellcasters and some performers due to the intense coughing fits it produces.

Saving Throw DC 15 Fortitude; Onset 1 week; Stage 1 carrier with no effects (1 week); Stage 2 coughing requires you to succeed at a DC 5 flat check to Cast a Spell with a verbal component or Activate an Item with a command component (1 week); Stage 3 fatigued, can’t recover from the fatigued condition, and coughing requires a successful DC 15 flat check to Cast a Spell with a verbal component or Activate an Item with a command component (1 week); Stage 4 unconscious (1 week); Stage 5 death

Malaria

DISEASE 2

Traits: disease

A pernicious disease spread by bloodsucking insects, malaria sometimes enters long periods of dormancy. If you succumb to malaria, you may continue to be periodically affected by the disease, even if you’re cured. You can’t reduce your sickened condition while affected with malaria.

Saving Throw DC 16 Fortitude; Onset 10 days; Stage 1 sickened 1 (1 day); Stage 2 sickened 2 (1 day); Stage 3 sickened 2, and disease recurs every 1d4 months even if cured (1 day); Stage 4 unconscious (1 day); Stage 5 death

Bubonic Plague

DISEASE 3

Traits: disease

This widespread illness can sweep through entire communities, leaving few unaffected. The first indication of the disease is a telltale swelling of glands. In some cases, the disease can move into your lungs (pneumonic plague) or blood (septicemic plague), which is even more fatal. If you have bubonic plague, you can’t remove the fatigued condition while affected.

Saving Throw DC 17 Fortitude; Onset 1 day; Stage 1 fatigued (1 day); Stage 2 enfeebled 2 and fatigued (1 day); Stage 3 enfeebled 3, fatigued, and take 1d6 persistent bleed damage every 1d20 minutes (1 day)

Scarlet Leprosy

DISEASE 4

Traits: disease, virulent

Scarlet leprosy is widely feared for its devastating effects, crushing bones and organs while making recovery nearly impossible. Damage taken from scarlet leprosy can’t be healed until the disease is cured.

Saving Throw DC 19 Fortitude; Onset 1 day; Stage 1 2d6 bludgeoning damage (1 day); Stage 2 2d6 bludgeoning damage, and whenever you gain the wounded condition, increase the condition value by 1 (1 day); Stage 3 4d6 bludgeoning damage and can’t heal any Hit Point damage (1 day)

Bonechill

DISEASE 5

Traits: disease, necromancy, primal

If you are wounded and exposed to persistent cold, you might contract bonechill.

Saving Throw DC 20 Fortitude; Onset 1 day; Stage 1 clumsy 1 (1 day); Stage 2 clumsy 2 and can’t heal cold damage until this disease is cured (1 day); Stage 3 clumsy 3 and all cold temperature effects are one step more severe for the victim (Core Rulebook 517) (1 day); Stage 4 paralyzed and all cold temperature effects are one step more severe for the victim (1 day)

Choking Death

DISEASE 6

Traits: disease

This disease is capable of wiping out nations or even entire continents. A few pockets of the disease still remain in Iobaria, keeping that region’s population sparse.

Saving Throw DC 22 Fortitude; Onset 1 day; Stage 1 hoarse voice but no other symptoms (1 day); Stage 2 drained 1 (1 day); Stage 3 drained 2 and can’t speak (1 day); Stage 4 death

Blinding Sickness

DISEASE 7

Traits: disease

Endemic to jungles of the Mwangi Expanse, blinding sickness is transmitted by dirty water or the bites of certain creatures.

Saving Throw DC 23 Fortitude; Stage 1 carrier with no effects (1 day); Stage 2 enfeebled 1 (1 day); Stage 3 enfeebled 2 (1 day); Stage 4 enfeebled 2 and permanently blinded (1 day);

Stage 5 enfeebled 4 (1 day); Stage 5 unconscious (1 day);

Stage 6 death

Sewer Haze

DISEASE 7

Traits: disease, virulent

Many healers and alchemists suspect that sewer haze has a supernatural origin, given its association with particularly strong otyughs.

Saving Throw DC 23 Fortitude; Onset 2 days; Stage 1 stupefied 2 (1 day); Stage 2 drained 2 and stupefied 2 (1 day); Stage 3 drained 3 and stupefied 3 (1 day)

Nightmare Fever

DISEASE 8

Traits: disease, necromancy, occult

Thought to be caused by a night hag’s curse, nightmare fever inflicts you with terrible nightmares, and you awaken with the wounds you received in your dreams. Some versions cause you to dream of being wounded by bludgeoning or piercing weapons, in which case you take that type of damage instead. Damage and the fatigued condition caused by the disease can’t be healed until the disease is removed.

Saving Throw DC 25 Will; Stage 1 2d6 slashing damage and fatigued (1 day); Stage 2 4d6 slashing damage and fatigued (1 day); Stage 3 4d6 slashing damage, fatigued, and whenever you take slashing damage, you must succeed at a Will save against the disease’s DC or become frightened 2 (1 day); Stage 4 6d6 slashing damage, fatigued, and whenever you take slashing damage, you must succeed at a Will save against the disease’s DC or become paralyzed for 1 round (1 day); Stage 5 6d6 slashing damage and unconscious

Brain Worms

DISEASE 11

Traits: disease, virulent

Scholars suspect these brain parasites have an otherworldly or extraplanar origin. Though transmitted by the bites of infected targets, the disease remains relatively rare—most hosts are killed by the effects before they can pass it on. While infected, whenever you attack due to confusion, you bite your target (if you don’t have a jaws or fangs attack, you deal piercing damage as an unarmed attack with damage equal to your lowest unarmed attack).

Saving Throw DC 28 Fortitude; Onset 1 day; Stage 1 stupefied 2 (1 day); Stage 2 stupefied 2, and whenever you take damage, you must succeed at a Will save against the disease’s DC or become confused for 1 round (1 day); Stage 3 stupefied 3, and whenever you take damage, you must succeed at a Will save against the disease’s DC or become confused for 1 minute (1 day); Stage 4 stupefied 4 and confused, damage does not end the confused condition (1 day); Stage 5 unconscious (1 day);

Stage 6 death

Crimson Ooze

DISEASE 15

Traits: disease, virulent

This devastating fungus infects your hand and can be cured by amputating the limb before you reach stage 4.

Saving Throw DC 34 Fortitude; Stage 1 clumsy 1 (1 day);

Stage 2 clumsy 2, and using the infected hand deals 3d6 persistent bleed damage (1 day); Stage 3 clumsy 2, stupefied 2, and the infected hand is unusable (1 day); Stage 4 clumsy 3, stupefied 3, and infected hand is permanently unusable (1 day); Stage 5 confused, and damage does not end the confused condition (1 day); Stage 6 death