Spore Marked

The intrinsic cause of Spore Marking is due to living for too long in a highly fungal environment. Although most of the time early infections can be stemmed by proper treatment, long term growths need substantial magical intervention to thwart.


Excerpt from Medical Maladies
by Prof. Longthumb

Spore Marking was discovered by the first residents of the City of Spores years after it initial occupation. It occurs when the spores of the city begin to take root in the individual. Although they can easily be treated or slowed early in the infection, only magic can stop infections that have endured past the first three months. While normally not lethal, be spore marked can have substantial changes on the appearance and intellect of an individual.

Appearance

Spore Marking seems to take a unique appearance or location every time. Some renditions are rather normal with warts, skin scaling, and other growths being almost normal.

Other changes are a bit more unique though include skin hue changes (including to blue, orange, yellow, and red), texture changes (with the skin becoming glossy, rough, or flaky) or even just patchy growths of what looks like mold on the skin.


Most of the growths have a distinct smell to them and the bearers of the mark are advised to avoid hot climates due to an uncertainty of how the markings might react to the heat. Creatures with tougher skins, such as scaled skins like kobolds and thicker skins like goliaths seen to be more resistant to these effects.

Mental and other enhancements

The spore have also been known to intellectually affect their hosts. People have been seen to both grow and detract in awareness after achieving their mark and many of the marked hold heightened senses, able to see in the dark or even sense things that are not visible. These types of marking though are also the more dangerous because the spores are marking the very brain of the person and the slightest I'll growth could cause the death of the person.

Dangers of being Spore Marked

Being spore marked carries with it several extra dangers. The main effect is that the person is more easily sickened. Their body cannot fight both normal illnesses and the fungi at the normal rate, resulting in them falling prey to these lesser sicknesses. Additionally, the mental marking can result in comas, brain death, and, in one extreme case, the explosion of the fungus through the skull, killing the victim instantly.


Spore Marking also has the more rare result of providing the effects of the more diluted sedative and euphoria effects that some find in smoking or injection certain spores. While the carries eventually becomes more resistant to these effects they can seriously inhibit the individuals ability to contribute to society.


DND 3.5 Attributes

RPG adjustments 3.5 DND

-1 con

2 special effects

3 negative effects

+4 intimidate

-4 diplomacy

A restoration or greater heal, or wish will successfully remove the template for first generation growths. Those born with the condition are not healed with anything short of a wish or greater heal

Attributes

Vision: increase or decrease vision by one scale (impaired to normal to lowlight to darkvision)

Senses +/- 5 to spot and listen and sense based checks

+/- 1 to an ability score. Might have other knock on effects depending on description

Repellent: able to release a spore cloud that sickens surrounding creatures (benefit is activatable, negative is set off by specific circumstances that might be out of players control)

DR 1 / slashing or damage vulnerability 2 for slashing or damage vulnerability slashing (counts as two negatives)

Resistance: +/- 2 to saves against poison and disease or enchantment and illusion magic

Fire spores: when hit with a fire spell or attack a cloud of spores erupts from you 1 round later in a 20ft burst. Fort or poison damage as inhaled. Deals 5 damage (counts as a negative and positive)

Other: talk with DM

Type

Fungal

Origin

Mutated

Cycle

Chronic, Acquired & Congenital

Rarity

Uncommon

Transmission
Air and Contact
Causes
Living in the City of Spores 
Treatment
Strong magic