Bubonic Plague

Uncommon Disease

Lethality: Medium

Transmissibility: High

Infection: Initial infection occurs when a disease-carrying creature, such as a sewer rat or a plague warbler, bites or scratches a humanoid. After one humanoid is infected, it can infect other humanoids through physical contact. The clearest sign of infection is swollen, discolored lymph nodes, and forming hard, painful knots on the neck, torso, and limbs.

Outbreak: 5d20 creatures in an urban area contract the Bubonic Plague.

Contagion: At the end of each day Xd20 additional creatures are infected, where X equals the total number of days since the outbreak. Subtract 1 die from this roll (to a minimum of 0d20) for every 20 infected creatures that have remained completely quarantined for the past 24 hours and have received basic hygienic care. If all infected creatures are quarantined and receive basic hygienic care, then the disease does not spread.

If you need to determine whether a specific hero or NPC contracts the disease, make an attack against that creature’s FORT. The attack bonus is +1 per 1 minute the creature has spent in close proximity to one or more infected creatures, to a max of +30.

Symptoms: A creature gains progressively worse symptoms the longer that they are infected. Once a creature is infected, they become infectious and can spread the disease 1d8 days later. Once the creature is infectious, then it gains the following symptoms at the start of each of the following days. These effects are cumulative.

Day 1: Shaken
Day 2: No new symptoms
Day 3: Sickened
Day 4: No new symptoms
Day 5: Slowed
Day 6: No new symptoms
Day 7: Staggered
Day 8-18: Gain Fatigue

A creature that survives but became Fatigued as a result of the Bubonic Plague retains 1 Death Point permanently. This Death Point cannot be removed in any way short of divine magic that restores HP or otherwise heals a target. Such divine magic must be cast at 100 or more SP or be a ritual with the Divine 24 prerequisite.

Treatment: Treating a creature with Bubonic Plague requires an INT/Medicine check. The DC is 15 + the number of days since the creature has become symptomatic. If you succeed, then the creature’s symptoms do not progress for the day. If you treat the same creature three days in a row and are successful all three times, then the creature is cured and becomes Immune to the Bubonic Plague for 1 year.