The Old World: Grim and Perilous

Galloping Consumption
Episodes of a dry, tiring cough, combined
with hemoptysis, are a common problem for
many wanderers, especially outlaws, who
spend nights under the stars. Infection occurs
through contact with the blood and secretions
of the patient's body, especially in the terminal
stage of the disease. Symptoms intensify in situations
that require concentration and coordination
from the patient, e.g. approaching animals,
aiming or operating tools. Fortunately,
there are several effective herbal treatments.
A character infected with this disease must
make a Daunting (kkkk) Resilience check.
If the check fails, the character suffers a Critical
Injury of Daunting (kkkk) severity with
the following effect: the victim upgrades the
difficulty of all Agility, Cunning or Willpower
checks once until the Critical Injury is healed.
If a healer with at least rank in the Apothecary
talent is taking care of the character, reduce
the difficulty of Resilience checks to heal
this Critical Injury by for each additional
week of treatment, down
to a minimum of
Easy (k).
Lepra
Lepra is a relatively rare and extremely dangerous
disease, as it does not exhibit clear
external symptoms except for non-specific
discoloration and thickening of the skin.
However, the patient suffers from sensory disturbances
and slow muscle and bone atrophy,
which predisposes them to injuries and often
leads to life-threatening wounds. Infection
usually occurs through direct contact with the
patient, their bodily secretions, or personal
belongings. Therefore, family members of the
patient are most commonly infected.
There is no cure for lepra, although some doctors
and healers claim to know treatments
capable of slowing down the progression of
the disease.
A character who has had contact with the
source of infection has to make a Hard (kkk)
Resilience check. If the check fails, they suffer
a Critical Injury with severity of Formidable
(kkkkk) and the following effect: the victim
adds + to the results of rolls determining
subsequent Critical Injuries (this effect accumulates
with the standard + for each Critical
Injury a character suffers, meaning that
Lepra increases the result of the roll for the
next Critical Injury by ).
Nurgle's Rot
Most academics and theologians agree that
this terrible disease is the work of the Plaguelord
Nurgle himself. Those infected with the
rot initially feel great. The demonic energy infusing
their bodies gives them strength, but it
soon becomes clear how treacherous this feeling
is. The patient's body begins to swell, taking
on an unhealthy blue-green color, the eyes
begin to merge into one, and an obscene black
horn grows from the forehead. While most
Oldworlders focus on the horrific physical deformities,
the soul of the infected suffers
even more, torn apart by the daemonic
creature taking over their being.
Unlike the other diseases covered in
this chapter, Nurgle's Rot is not a
Critical Injury, but a Dark Gift (see
page ) with the following effect:
the victim increases their Brawn
by , increases their Soak value by ,
and ignores the effects of any other
130 The Old World: Grim and Perilous