Crepuscule

The Twilight Isles is one of few locations on Prostesa where the Shadowfell overlaps with the Prime Material. Because of this, necromancy is easier to cast than other schools of magic, and aspiring necromancers often journey across the continent to study in Morigan academies. And while necromancy is not necessarily an “evil” school of magic, the effects it can have on life are devastating.
One such example is a magical illness caused by a curse known as the Evernight, a curse that once threatened to reduce all of Daybreak to rubble. Those that come into contact with any form of the Evernight are tainted with an illness called crepuscule. It is because of crepuscule alone that the Evernight is feared.

Transmission & Vectors

Crepuscule is transmitted through contact with the Evernight. Because the Evernight can manifest in many forms and corrupt organic matter, reports of accidental consumption have been documented. Touching another infected unprotected transmits the disease as well. Even if contact is brief, it is more than enough time for Crepuscule to begin developing.

Symptoms

Crepuscule is an extremely distinctive disease in that it affects both the living and the dead. The undead of the Twilight Isles are no different from the living under normal circumstances, retaining speech and fine control of their limbs. Crepuscule, however, drives the undead to madness, causing aggression and amnesia. Undead infected with crepuscule appear keenly aware of healthy individuals and will attack on sight. If a living individual becomes infected by crepuscule, they have a grace period of a week before symptoms begin showing. Early signs of crepuscule include paralysis, confusion, and amnesia. Once symptoms begin showing, there is no effective treatment. In later stages of crepuscule, the infected are slowly converted to one of several undead creatures.

Prevention

The only effective way to deal with crepuscule is to prevent unprotected contact. But, for those that have come into contact with crepuscule, the other most reliable method of treatment is “purification” via any willing cleric in the Twilight Isles. Dirge, Claude’s shovel, is also capable of removing all traces of crepuscule from a still-living host. But, without Dirge’s original form, Claude is unable to cure later stages of crepuscule.

Type

Magical

Origin

Magical

Cycle

Chronic, Acquired & Congenital

Rarity

Unique