Poisons of the Shattered World

‘A Vial of Mystery’ by tharosa1942 on Flickr

This is part of my ongoing series on the Shattered World setting, which contains pieces you can drop into your own game. Today: poisons!

Karawa powder is a strong irritant, derived from certain ores found mainly on the island of Iziz. While fairly expensive, it is odorless and tasteless, and enough of it will kill an adult. It is typically sold in small paper packets.

Marik acid is sold in small bottles as a household corrosive, particularly used to destroy calcium buildup from sea water. Ingested, its victim will die a horrible death within minutes, and it’ll leave a good scar on skin, too.

When swallowed, the bitter kumalu root attacks the lungs and kills within half an hour. It’s normally sold in small bags, and remains widespread due to its effectiveness as a vermin poison.

Crushed langam berries taste curiously like meat, so they are typically added to a sauce or rub. This neuro-muscular poison kills within an hour, but its effects are subtle.

Sissano venom is a mild, non-fatal nerve poison that nevertheless causes its victim great pain, stiffness, and lethargy for a day or two, and thus is a favorite for poison-tipped arrows. Usually sold in small sachets.

Magori venom, sold in tiny vials, must be injected into its victim; it is harmless when swallowed. If injected, it attacks the nerves and kills within seconds. Fortunately, it is extremely rare due to the difficulty and danger of extraction.

Tanggu spores are nasty business. When these spores contact living tissue, they attach and feed off the tissue itself to form a viscous, grey-green sludge. It literally sloughs off the victim’s skin and muscles within minutes. I have never found them in the wild (perhaps some supplier cultivates them?), and are sold in clay bottles.