Viridium, radiation and healing.

[FrozenLaughs]

So I've been reading about Viridium...

Quote:

This deep green volcanic glass is similar to obsidian but is formed when molten rock is tainted with anomalous trace minerals from deep beneath the earth whose emanations are toxic to living things. It can be fragmented to razor sharpness, but even a tiny amount of viridium contacting the bloodstream can pass on a wasting sickness.

Any successful hit with a viridium weapon causes the target to contract leprosy (Fortitude DC 12 negates). On a successful critical hit, a tiny fragment of viridium breaks off within the target, affecting it as though with greenblood oil (Fortitude DC 13 negates).

A creature carrying a viridium weapon must save every 24 hours or contract leprosy unless the weapon is kept inside an extradimensional space (such as an efficient quiver) or a scabbard lined with lead.

Tell me that doesn't sound like fantasy Uranium and Radiation sickness? I found it very interesting, which got me wondering: was this similarity intended on purpose? The effects of radiation are pretty similar to leprosy...

Would true radiation be considered a poison or disease? Would magic heal it? Would Paladins be immune to it?

I'm toying with the idea of building a Clockwork Soldier npc powered by a Viridium crystal heart, running a mini nuclear reactor in its chest instead of the normal clockwork winding. The heart contains a soul, and the Clockwork is sentient. Just toying with it, but it sounds really fun. :)

[DominusMegadeus]

FrozenLaughs wrote:

I'm toying with the idea of building a Clockwork Soldier npc powered by a Viridium crystal heart, running a mini nuclear reactor in its chest instead of the normal clockwork winding. The heart contains a soul, and the Clockwork is sentient. Just toying with it, but it sounds really fun. :)

Trust me, the lawful good paragon of justice wasn't immune. ;)

[blackbloodtroll]

For Viridium, it would be disease.

[boring7]

Point of order, tiny chunks of toxic material is more akin to fallout poisoning than radiation sickness.

True radiation would be permanent ability drain, and probably its own animal. Unlike leprosy or parasites the cancer, ARS, and contamination of fallout particles are not external things devouring the body, they are just functions of the body breaking down, dying, and/or dysfunctioning.

Cancer is so nasty because it's your own body and your own perfectly healthy cells growing wrong, growing too fast, and not dying when they're supposed to be replaced. They AREN'T foreign parasites, that's why your immune system can't fight them properly.

Actually fallout, as a foreign contaminant, would make sense to classify as a poison.

That being said, it has enough similarities that may have been the intent. The dead zombies of Dawn of the Dead and crazy zombies of 28 Days later were both zombies and they were both zombie movies. The differences were immaterial to the underlying point.

Sorry, perhaps I'm over-analyzing.

[HarbinNick]

radiation is simple exposure, so the blood thing isn't really an issue...
...I remember reading there were anti-nuclear T-72's that were designed to operate in a radioactive area, but the crew couldn't leave the vehicle. Man it's good that cold war ended.

[Torbyne]

All kinds of military vehicles have chemical, biological and radiological defenses (CBR) and continue to be built with them. It's not like the potential for exposure to these things has lessened since the cold war.

[Bandw2]

I ended up making radiation behave like a poison, but also behave like a disease. Firstly, you only get sicker as you maintain contact, at which point over long intervals it does con damage, but at higher levels, it would apply con drain and be quicker. I had 6 radiations in total including 0 for none.

Also, this is because the actual effects of radiation poisoning don't have to do with cancer, they have to do with your cells falling to pieces as their building blocks are torn apart. You will literally die because you "melted" or "popped", both would be descriptive terms.

Chernobyl's current radiation levels only pose a moderate increase in cancer chance from long term exposure by comparison. (Animals live there but there has been a noted increase in generational mutations, and not for the better)

[HarbinNick]

Torbyne wrote:

All kinds of military vehicles have chemical, biological and radiological defenses (CBR) and continue to be built with them. It's not like the potential for exposure to these things has lessened since the cold war.

Not to be a jerk, but I'd argue the chance for nuclear war has lessened since 1950, or 1980. Is it still real? Yeah, but I think mad men did a good job of showing the sheer insanity of the Cuban Missile Crisis.

[Torbyne]

HarbinNick wrote:

Torbyne wrote:

All kinds of military vehicles have chemical, biological and radiological defenses (CBR) and continue to be built with them. It's not like the potential for exposure to these things has lessened since the cold war.

Not to be a jerk, but I'd argue the chance for nuclear war has lessened since 1950, or 1980. Is it still real? Yeah, but I think mad men did a good job of showing the sheer insanity of the Cuban Missile Crisis.

But there is a huge risk of proliferation to non state actors that may not understand or care about consequences of nuclear attacks. Or the idea that a nuclear strike against a forward base of operations may not result in a full scale retaliation, a calculated risk of sorts. Agree to disagree?

Also, didn't the numeria book have actual radiation rules in it? Viridium is still a good stand in for fantasy games though. Great for outsiders, paladins and monks who are immune to disease too.

[HarbinNick]

-Honestly, nuclear weapons (tactical and otherwise) is hardly a thread for RPG advice. As for your opinions/facts I think we could derail this thread faster than Crisco on a frog....
-That said, I dislike the idea that certain divine classes are immune to RADS..it isn't fallout.

[Torbyne]

It is if you want to base a campaign around the silver mountain and only use robots, humanoids and wasteland mutant templates oh and vermin.;)

[Blindmage]

Blightburn Paste:
http://www.d20pfsrd.com/equipment---final/goods-and-services/herbs-oils-oth er-substances#TOC-Blightburn-Paste

Seems to be a good take on radiation. I'm planning on making a Dawrven Blight druid focused on viridium who's questing for blightburn paste, and has the Radiotion subdomain.