[TEKRALH] The Black Death...

Believed to be caused by miasma (bad vapours), the bubonic plague is actually spread primarily by rats and their fleas.

A person can become infected if bitten by a flea or coughed upon by a sufferer who is spitting up blood.

The player-character must make an immediate Saving Throw at -3 (but plus their Constitution bonus) to avoid contracting the disease.  If the character has been coughed upon though he suffers an additional -2 on this initial Saving Throw. Symptoms will not start to develop for 1d4+1 days, so the character won't know he is infected.

At first the victim will appear to simply be suffering from a virulent bout of the flu, with heavy sweating and high fever (39 °Celsius; 102 °Fahrenheit), but within 2d12 hours the lymph glands beneath the arms, at the neck and in the groin will swell to form smooth, painful, black buboes. These can grow as large as an egg or even an orange.

The patient must then make a straight Saving Throw (plus CON bonus) to avoid exhibiting 1d4+1 further sysmptoms, randomly generated from the list below:

1. Gangrene of the extremities (Roll 1d6: 1-2: toes, 3-4: fingers: 5: lips, 6: tip of nose. If survive plague then must make a final Saving Throw to avoid losing this extremity to gangrene. In case of toes and fingers roll an Average dice for the number lost)
2. Chills
3. Muscle Cramps (unable to move)
4. Seizures (50 per cent chance of being unable to move every time he tries)
5. Bleeding out of the ear (this begins after 1d12 hours)
6. Frequent, serious coughing up of blood (this halves the daily chance of recovery listed below)

At this stage additional buboes appear over the sufferer's legs, arms, thighs and chest. He also starts to emit a foul stench and other characters will have to make a STAT check against their CON+LVL on 4d6 simply to approach without gagging. The plague victim's urine will have also turned into a thick, dark red liquid.

During the next 1d3+1 days, the character must make a STAT check against their CON +LVL on 4d6 each day to avoid becoming delirious and "dancing" (screaming, shouting, singing and claiming to have visions or hallucinations).

However, during this time there is also a percentage chance (each day), equal to the victim's CON, that the buboes will harden and then burst, releasing their poisonous liquid. The patient then returns to full health after 10d6 days of a mild fever.

Otherwise, after the indicated time has elapsed, the buboes contract suddenly releasing the plague into the sufferer's blood stream and killing him in (CON x 2) seconds.

Note, the magician's spell Cure Disease demands he lay hands on the infected (it has a range of 'touch'), thus requiring him to make a Saving Throw (as detailed above) to avoid contracting the black death.

Possible Treatment: The plague is seen as a punishment sent by Mythra and is beyond the comprehension of most barber-surgeons. Knowledgeable medical folk will suggest good diet, rest and moving out of the infected area (if the patient can find anyone brave enough to help them), while some branches of the clergy will demand a regime of self-flagellation to scourge the sick person's sins.

In-Depth Research:

• The Plague (History Channel Documentary, 2012)
• Booty And The Beasts, Erol Otus, (Fantasy Art Enterprises, 1979)
• The Black Death And Other Putrid Plagues Of London, Natasha Narayan (Watling Street, 2002)
• Wikipedia

As with my article on leprosy in Tekralh, this is not a scientific piece but simply some game mechanics to simulate a virulent disease - thus giving the players something else to worry about besides fighting monsters!