The Old World is a fairly unsanitary place; the science of medicine is in its infancy and few communities are so enlightened as to have taken any worthwhile public health measures. Rats are more numerous than people in most towns and other sources of disease are polluted water supplies, open sewers, and badly-preserved food. Occasionally terrible plagues and epidemics can sweep across whole areas, but the main risk of infection for adventurers comes from bites and other wounds.
Contracting Disease[]
The conditions for contracting a particular disease are given in the description. When characters have a chance of contracting a disease, they make a Disease test, including any modifiers given in the disease description. Whenever characters come into contact with disease, the gamesmaster should make a T test to decide whether or not they contract the ailment. The test can be modified according to the virulence of the disease and by the Immunity To Disease skill. If the test is successful, the character does not contract the disease; if not, the disease takes hold and the character suffers the symptoms given in the description.
Common Disease[]
A few of the more common diseases encountered in the Old World are detailed here, together with their effects and the procedures for dealing with them in the game. The gamesmaster can create more diseases if desired, following the general pattern of these examples.
Black Plague: This disease is spread by rats; the organism that causes it infects fleas, which feed on rats, and the disease is passed on when these fleas bite people. Unfortunately, nobody in the Old World knows this. The opinion of medical science is that the disease is caused by 'unwholesome vapours' carried on the air and the standard precaution is to hoist a side of beef up a flagpole and leave it there for two days, then take it down and bury it in a deep pit, together with the 'unwholesome vapours'. Not surprisingly, these measures do nothing to halt the spread of the plague and it can decimate whole countries. Fortunately, the Black Plague is very rare; the last known outbreak anywhere in the Old World was almost a century ago.
A character exposed to the Black Plague must make a Disease test. If this is successful, the character is unaffected and further rolls against the same disease are made at +10%. If the roll is unsuccessful, the plague takes a hold on the character.
After an incubation period of 2D10 days, the Plague victims will begin to suffer from nausea, diahorrea, and vomitting and will be completely unable to keep any food down. This has an understandably wearing effect on the constitution and the character must make a test on each characteristic in turn every day (except M, W, or A), losing 1 point or 10% as appropriate for every failed test. If S and T reach zero, the character dies.
The disease lasts for 2D10 days, after which surviving characters will begin to recover lost characteristic points at the rate of 1 point or 10% every two days of complete bed rest; attendance by a character skilled in medicine will reduce the recovery time as for W. At the start of the recovery period, however, they must make two 50% Risk tests; if the first one is failed, the character loses D3 S permanently and, if the second test is failed, the character loses D3 T permanently.
Red Pox: The red pox can only be transferred by contact with someone who already has the disease. Characters who have had contact with a carrier of the disease must make a Disease test with a modifier of -10%.
If the test is failed, the character will break out in red blotches D10 days later. The blotches last for 2D10 days and, during this period, the character loses 1 point each from S and T and D10 WP, as well as 3D10 Ld, Cl, and Fel. Once the disease has run its course, all characteristics will return to normal except for Fel, from which D10 will be lost permanently owing to scars left by the spots.
Tomb Rot: This disease is sometimes carried by mummies, zombies, and other undead creatures - see the relevant entries in the Bestiary for precise details. Any character who is wounded by an undead creature carrying the disease must make a Disease test after the fight, with a -5% modifier for every W point lost fighting the creature.
If the test is failed, the character is infested with the rot and must make a similar test every day or lose 1 point of T and 10% each from Dex and Fel. Once the rot has set in, it can only be removed by the Cure Disease skill or by magical means. Characteristic points are lost permanently and can only be regained by subsequent advance schemes.
Wound Infection: Some animals have a chance of carrying infection. Full details are given in the Bestiary. A character who is wounded by an attack which may cause infected wounds must make a Disease test with a -5% modifier for each W point lost fighting the creature.
If the test is failed, the wound is infected. The area struck becomes swollen and inflamed over a period of D4 hours, during which time the character loses 3D10 Dex. W points from an infected wound are recovered at only half the normal rate, although medical attention will shorten recovery times as normal. However, the character must make a successful T test or lost one W point permanently; if 91-00 is rolled, one W point is lost from each wound caused by the attack.
Nurgle's Rot[]
Nurgle's Rot, often known simply as the Rot, is a terrible contagious disease which affects the victim's mortal body and his shadow-self or spirit. A person who dies from Nurgle's Rot is turned into a Plaguebearer and becomes a servant of Nurgle himself. Nurgle's Rot epitomises the core of Nurgle's ethos: suffering and overcoming suffering by great bravery and resolve. Those who contract the Rot often slay themselves in reckless battle, hoping to die quickly and cleanly and by this means to avoid becoming a Plaguebearer.
Catching The Rot[]
Nurgle's Rot only affects mortals; it cannot affect daemons of any kind or allegiance. It is passed on by physical contact such as hand-to-hand combat. Creatures engaged in combat against a Daemon of Nurgle risk catching the Rot. Victims can also catch the Rot as a result of a Plague Wind spell, touching a Death Head, treading in the slime-trail of a Beast, stepping into a sticky pool left by a Palanquin, or simply by being a Champion of Nurgle.
To determine if a victim has caught the Rot, roll a D6 and apply the following modifiers:
- +3: Engaged in combat with a Great Unclean One
- +2: Engaged in combat with a Plaguebearer
- -1: If victim is the Champion of another Chaos Power
If the result is 6 or more, the victim has contracted the Rot with the following effects.
The Progress Of The Rot[]
It seeks to turn its victim into one of Nurgle's Plague Bearing Demons. Unfortunately, the mortal form cannot take this tortuous metamorphosis, and must eventually perish under the strain. Only Champions and Beastmen of Nurgle are immune to its effects, serving only as carriers. Victims gradually mutate until their characteristics are identical to those of a Plaguebearer, at the rate of 1 or 10 points (as appropriate for the affected characteristic) per month. Select the affected characteristic randomly each game month.
As well as the characteristic changes, certain other physical changes take place, as follows:
| After 1 month | Skin turns pale yellow/brown |
|---|---|
| After 2 months | Green blotches appear |
| After 3 months | Skin begins to rot, attracting flies |
| After 4 months | A single horn begins to grow from the forehead. The victim gains the Plaguebearer's additional horn attack when it charges |
| After 5 months | Horn fully grown, eyes begin to move together, nose atrophies |
| After 6 months | Eyes merge into single great eyes, feet turn to three-clawed hooves |
| After 7 months | Face dissolves in a horror of melting flesh |
| After 8 months | The Victim dies and his shadow-self becomes one of Nurgle's Plaguebearers |
There is no known cure for this disease.