Self Preservation

Self Preservation or "Protecting Oneself Against the Rot", is a comprehensive catalogue of recipes relating to the protection against both natural or magical rot, corruption, and the like. The book is separated into different categories based on the product of each recipe: Incense, Talisman, Potions, Salves, Technology and even Clothing.
This book was located by Agave while the Spiritual Travelers were exploring the Sylvan Library.

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Incense

Incense can be a useful tool not only to make a room smell nice, but also to help protect against the rude spirits in the world.
Pleasant Smelling Incense
It makes traversing particularly foul smelling places a bit easier. Could protect against rot, but you’d need a lot!

• Base - Pine
• Aromatic - Lavender and Thyme
• Water - A small amount of Oil from a Citrus fruit like Grapefruit or Bergamot, then water until good consistency.

Protective Incense
Provides protection against rude spirits and can also help protect against the rot or corruption found in the world.

• Base - Thick Sage stems
• Aromatic - Hyssopus which provides protection and cleanliness, conveniently enough.

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Talisman

Talisman have a variety of functions including warding off rude spirits and summoning polite spirits. Oftentimes, summoning a spirit will involve breaking the Talisman or combining it with a special incense while warding off a spirit is more straightforward.
Binding Talisman
This talisman can be crafted like your standard talisman, though it does have one special ingredient. Well that, along with the ritual needed to actually bind the spirit to the talisman. This special ingredient needed is Dill, and with that you can bind any spirit you so choose to this talisman. If a spirit is bound it could prove to save you from whatever you were hoping to preserve against, or it could be called forth to protect you.
The Dill should be carefully placed within the layers of wood and processed into an oil to coat the talisman after the spirit has been bound. Keep in mind that a small indentation should be left within the wood while crafting. This indentation will hold a small amount of brewed tea leaves which will be preserved and held in place with some melted resin (any kind will do, whatever you have handy). This resin should be melted ahead of time and kept at a hot enough temperature to keep it from solidifying until used in the ritual.
Depending on the strength of the Spirit desired, it may be quite challenging to tame and bind, and failing in any way could result in the death of the occultist or any of their comrades.

1. Consider what spirit you hope to bind and either prepare some Luring Incense or go to the location you know the spirit haunts. If you are dealing with an aggressive spirit it may be as easy as going to the client's house or the field where the spirit resides. If you are seeking the spirit out for another reason, then socialization might be essential to find it or lure it closer.
2. Prepare your spirit's favorite tea. This might require some research and tea parties to get to know your spirit better, but it'll eventually come around.
3. Pour tea for the Spirit, then for yourself and any other mortals involved. Burn incense and light candles that have desirable scents for the specific spirit. This is about creating a comfortable atmosphere for it to reside in until trapped within the talisman, or until it willingly enters.
4. Make a perimeter around your table from your most powerful warding powder. This will be important to ensure the spirit doesn't just leave at later stages in the ritual. Someone else could do this while the occultist or ritualist maintains any necessary socializations with the spirit.
5. After enjoying some tea, the remaining tea leaves inside the pot should be pressed into the indentation that was left in the talisman. Incense should be slowly extinguished along with the candles leaving only the tea leaves as the one remaining source of comfort for the spirit. Warding incense of some variety should then be lit to drive it further towards the talisman.
6. After the warding incense has been burning for a few minutes, it should be safe to coat the tea leaves in the melted resin. It should dry fairly quickly, and once it is dry then it should be coated in more dill oil.

Depending on the spirit that was captured, it could be used simply to empower the talisman and act as a powerful ward, cleanse, or other passive effect. It could also be a powerful ally if released, though it will only stick around a short amount of time afterwards. There are also tales of powerful occultists or ritualists that have managed to build a rapport with the spirit they captured. These spirits allegedly fight for their new-found friend and stick around afterwards, though they can only stay conjured for brief periods of time before returning to their talisman.

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Potions

Potion of Fungicide - Apple cider vinegar, Ginger, Echinacea and a magical potion base that can be found in most any apothecary or alchemy kits. Can include some Spirit Salt to provide additional Spiritual Antifungal properties as well. Removes 1D4 stacks of Rot or Fungal Overgrowth.
Blue Potion - A thick, viscous, unpleasant blue potion with glints of metal running throughout. The book describes in great detail the process involved in making this potion. It is apparently designed to help rid the body of toxins that build up when exposed to certain types of radiation. Radiation Sickness is apparently a very serious issue, and this potion is one of the few ways to purge these toxins. The Blue liquid apparently helps bind to the radioactive compounds and metals, the metal flakes perform a similar purpose though do not pass through the body the same way.
The steps required to actually craft this potion seem beyond the skillset of the Spiritual Travelers, though perhaps Quince will have some available or the ability to obtain some from Probono Auttomations.

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Salves

Antifungal Cream - A combination of Citronella, geranium, lemongrass, eucalyptus, and peppermint along with something to make it a cream like coconut or whatever that works to both kill and prevent fungal infections. Depending on how much you make, you could reasonably apply it to the entire body, however, it works better when applied to any incidental fungal infection acquired along the way, makes it last a bit longer too. Fungi in this gate can be avoided or prevented through other means. Lasts about 1-2 hours upon application depending on environment and the quality of the mixture.
Antibacterial Goop - A collection of Garlic, Honey, Ginger and Echinacea that works to both kill and prevent bacterial infections. Similar to the Antifungal Cream, though works better against bacteria and is the consistency of gel or a thick syrup like molasses or honey instead of a cream. Lasts about 1-2 hours upon application depending on environment and the quality of the mixture.
Patricia Habberdien's Vapor Rub - A collection of herbs, flowers, oils and roots that, when blended together, create a smooth cream that can be gently rubbed on the upper chest/neck area or just under the nose. The vapors are inhaled and can protect against fowl smells and certain illnesses while helping clear the lungs. It lasts about 1-2 hours depending on the severity of the location or illness as well as the quality of the mixture.

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Technology

Gas Mask - A simple, non-magical contraption capable of filtering out toxins found in the air. Comes in several styles all pictured along with diagrams and instructions on how to build one on your own. Takes around 3-4 days to build if the components are readily available, could be faster with a more proficient artisan.
Rebreather w/ Optional Filter Attachment - Thanks to the power of science and black magic, artificers have found a way to efficiently convert exhaled CO2 into Oxygen while collecting different toxins and converting them into the other necessary components found in air to prevent oxygen toxicity. The technology involved is slightly more affordable than a Potion of Water Breathing as it is reusable and comes with the added benefit of protecting against the sludge that might be found when diving through swamps. The filter/rebreather combination lasts between 1-3 hours depending on how awful the water is, though it could last longer if the user as the ability to clean it while underwater somehow. (the book also has diagrams and instructions on how to build the contraption, takes a couple of weeks due to its multi-magical and scientific nature.)

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Clothes

Long-Beaked Mask - Is it a Kiwi, an echidna or something else entirely? This mask has a long beak which can hold pleasant smelling flowers along with a filter. It's unclear if the filter or the flowers really stop toxins, but they do cut down on the foul smells of the world. Plus it's a very stylish mask. It's incredibly easy to make and requires no magical abilities...though it could be enhanced if some extra time were put into it to make it a bit more magical.
Scarf of Purification - This item may not be ideal for warmer environments, especially when exploring places like swamps which are notoriously humid, but it does provide adequate filtration of airborn pathogens. Normally a scarf would take about 8-12 hours to weave in total when using an adequate loom, however, the magical energy needed to make this scarf requires a bit more time and patience. In total it requires about 56 hours to complete (seven -8 hour- days). Once complete, the scarf has a magical, glittery look about it as if specks of diamonds and other gems were woven into it rather than ordinary thread. This scarf is capable of magically cleansing the air that is breathed through it while looking very fashionable. If nobody in the group is capable of weaving in this way, then maybe some help could be provided from some friendly Mothlings as they're known for their work with silk!

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Food

Herb-infused Butter and Oil - Cooking requires fats, and fats can easily be combined with herbs to create herbal butters, oils and such to enhance foods with special resistances. Sage, dill and other such protective herbs can be infused into these fats, and when a dish is cooked using them they can provide additional levels of protection against Rude Spirits or even harmful environmental effects! Some examples would be Sage-oil Fried Potatoes/fish (or it could be made with dill, or any other herb), Sage-butter Rice, Sage-butter on Toast with a hearty breakfast, Stir fry made in sage-oil, sage-butter garlic bread and so on.
Detox Tea - A combination of Lemon, Ginger, Turmeric, Honey and Cayenne. Designed to rid the body of most toxins, can be an effective treatment against most of what this gate has to offer. However, it has proven to be significantly less effective against radiation and anything that would require a more topical treatment like Skin Infections. Drinking a cup upon waking up and before bed is a great habit to get into to purge anything that might've been accumulated during your rest or that went unnoticed during travels. This removes 2D6 stacks of rot per person or all rot if you have 5 or less stacks.
Use Spirit Salt! - While wandering through the Rotting Gate, it is imperitive that as many protections as possible are included, and the use of Spirit Salt in meals can improve your chances of surviving another hour at least. A sprinkle of Spirit Salt on each meal or ration cna go a long way, but I'd hold off on using it outside this or any other Gate that might prove a detriment to your own spirit/body. Consuming too much Spirit Salt when there isn't a constant threat of ...manipulation, can definitely pose some unusual results as it isn't being used up resisting the effects of Spirits.