Lycanthropy

Transmission & Vectors

Lycanthropy is a terrible disease native to Ecumene that is vaguely related to rabies, but it is a much slower and much more horrible death. It can only be transmitted via the bite of an afflicted canine or Humanoid. This is because the virus is present in the saliva of the affected animal, and when the host bites down on the skin, the saliva enters the victim's bloodstream. Other animals and the non-humanoid Intelligent Races cannot be stricken with the ailment.

Symptoms

After being transmitted, this horrible disease lies in wait for many months. At first, it appears only as a slight tingle or itch around the bite area, a herald of doom for things to come. A few weeks later, a fever, muscle aches, and headaches will develop in the victim. However, this is not the strangest thing, as, around the same time, the hair on the victim's body will begin to grow thicker, longer, and shaggier. The enamel on their teeth will also begin to decay rapidly, and in its place, all the teeth in the victim's mouth will become sharper.
These physical changes are paired with disturbing mental changes. The brain of the victim becomes inflamed, and they develop extreme anxiety, paranoia, and hallucinations. Strangely enough, those afflicted will also develop a strange sort of polyphagia in which their body will completely reject plant matter but feels a constant hunger for meat. Patients will also become hyper-aggressive later down the line, feeling a horrible compulsion to bite and consume any living being they come across.
A few months after the disease has first shown symptoms, the victim is almost completely unrecognizable. Their body is covered in shaggy, matted hair, their teeth have grown sharp and bloodstained, and they tear apart anything that tries to approach them. After about half a year of suffering (though it is likely that by this time, the victim has had their psyche entirely broken), they will enter the end stages of Lycanthropy. The polyphagia, as well as their metabolism, will rise rapidly, putting the victim into a state of constant starvation, no matter how much they eat. If that were not bad enough, the decay of their brain also reaches its final stages, causing their motor function to falter and their senses to escape them before finally, after weeks of the disease entering its end game, the brain is forced to shut off totally.

Treatment

In the Steam Age, a vaccine for Lycanthropy would be produced, but it would not be until much later that it would become common for the average person. However, before then, there was no cure for the condition, and most Lycanthropes would be mercy killed before their condition could progress further.

Cultural Reception

Lycanthropes have always been looked upon with horror, rightfully so. Those stricken with the illness become incredibly violent, increasing the chance of it spreading, not to mention that the physical changes are horrifying. Tales of the disease often serve as horror stories for children, and although it is rare, all Humanoids fear its insidious symptoms.

Cycle

Chronic, Acquired

Rarity

Rare