POISONS

Some referees may eschew the use of poison as a player character weapon in their campaigns. At the least, poison acquisition should be difficult, and its use by intelligent creatures is almost always an act of Evil. Of course, exceptions may apply: When the preeminent pulp fiction barbarian skewers a toxic fruit on the end of his spear and stabs a ferocious forest dragon in its open maw, alignment has no bearing, for this is an act of survival. Notwithstanding, a paladin must never use poison, no matter the circumstances.

Poison used to assassinate is typically penetrative or ingestible, though it might be encountered as a gas, powder, or spore. Some poisons are slow-acting, whereas others are rapid. Poison can cause blindness, death, nerve damage (intense pain), paralysis, or other serious harm to most men; effects can be reduced or negated by death (poison) saving throws, which may be modified by constitution.

Poison usually is concocted by alchemists, necromancers, witches, and assassins. It is derived from toxic roots, berries, spores, and blossoms; the deadly venom of amphibians, reptiles, and insects; and rare, radioactive materials. More information on brewing poison is available for the referee in LORE. If poison is allowed and available for purchase, the following general classifications are recommended:

Poisons Defined:

Poison Type: Penetrative types include envenomed blades, arrows, or crossbow bolts. The substance must be smeared on the weapon and used within 24 hours, or the poison’s efficacy will expire. Ingestible types must be swallowed, usually mixed into food or wine. The mildest forms, if introduced daily, can be used to slowly poison the victim over several days or weeks; this scheme can create the illusion of the victim becoming ill and dying of natural causes.

Cost per Dose: The usual cost in gold pieces for a volume of poison sufficient to affect one Medium creature. At the referee’s discretion, multiple doses may be required to produce similar results in Large creatures, and/or the standard dosage may have lessened effects (e.g., a cave bear consuming a standard dose of ingestible IV poison may suffer damage as if from ingestible II).

Time of Onset: How long before the introduced poison takes effect. Chance of Detection: The chance-in-ten that the subject (if intelligent) will see, smell, taste, or otherwise deduce that a poisoning attempt is taking place. If the subject has 16+ wisdom, he gains a +1 bonus to this check.

Saving Throw Modifier: Weaker poisons are less effective, and thus subjects gain bonuses to their saving throws.

Passed / Failed Saving Throw: The damage sustained following a successful or unsuccessful saving throw.

N.B.: The poisons presented in Table 101 are those that injure or kill their victims. Other poison types exist, such as curare, a resinous substance used on blades or arrows that will paralyze a victim for 1d2 turns, unless a death (poison) saving throw is made; if the saving throw is successful, the wound site will be numb for a like number of turns. Curare may cost somewhere betwixt the cost of penetrative II and penetrative III types. In many cases it contains the venom of snakes, spiders, scorpions, or other horrors; in other instances it may contain the powdered pods of violet lotus. Some poisons simply may cause blindness; others still might have soporific or hallucinogenic effects, the most severe inspiring insanity (see LORE: madness).

Penetrative Poisons

Penetrative poisons are applied to weapons and take effect upon wounding a target. The weakest form, passing the saving throw for any penetrative poison prevents damage entirely.

Ingestible Poisons

Ingestible poisons must be swallowed to take effect.