Does it say anywhere? I always imagined a really strong rotting fish odor.
That is an excellent question :)! Running Extinction Curse and there is a lot of them. I'd like to know specifically as well!
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Underground species may be sulfur metabolizers, so hydrogen sulfide (rotten eggs) would be a pretty good start. But while it stinks, it only stinks. It doesn't induce physical illness like the xulgath's stench is supposed to.
There are other sulfur-containing compounds that elicit a more visceral response - thiophenol, for instance, is pretty bad, and it's really persistent. But it's not naturally occurring, so non-chemists will never know the horror of watching someone drop a beaker of thiophenol. Slow motion NOOoOOoOOoOooOOoooo.
There are also some non-sulfur compound like putriscine and cadaverine that are ... aptly named. They are naturally occuring compounds that probably have evolved revulsion among humans so they definitely tickle the innate fight or flight response in addition to smelling really bad.
That explanation sounds sience-y enough to be plausible for me, Watery Soup. :)
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There's a fair bit of lore about xulgath biology in the Extinction Curse books (some mutate or are born without the stench in favor of other abilities), but I think their stench is tied to their ancient ancestral psychic magic.
There's an ability that ancestral xulgaths have in pathfinder 1e that might be of interest:
A xulgath’s stench is far more potent than that of its troglodyte cousins. Although a xulgath’s oily secretions are completely odorless, they cause any creatures (other than xulgaths) that come within 30 feet of a xulgath to immediately recall the most repugnant odor they have ever smelled. This is a mind-affecting effect, but it bypasses a vermin’s immunity to mind-affecting effects. The stench assaults the mind of its victims; even if a creature succeeds at its saving throw to resist being sickened by the xulgath’s stench, it takes a –4 penalty on Will saving throws to resist the xulgath’s psychic magic. A xulgath’s nonhostile psychic powers, including its mindlink spell and ability to communicate telepathically, are also limited by the range of its stench, as its strange secretions are what allows it to form a bond between its own mind and the minds of others.
I swear one of the books describes it somewhere. I just can't remember where on what page.
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I don't know what they smell like in your games, but personally, I would say that they smell like Joe.
The hell?
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I swear one of the books describes it somewhere. I just can't remember where on what page.
I believe I touched on it in Book 2’s Among the Xulgath section! I think you have pretty broad creative license, though - their diets are upsetting by most folks’ standards and demonic forces have messed with their species for a looooong time.
Don't worry, it's about you. It's Joe Mama.I don't know what they smell like in your games, but personally, I would say that they smell like Joe.The hell?
That somehow manages to be even more offensive to poor Joe!
That somehow manages to be even more offensive to poor Joe!Don't worry, it's about you. It's Joe Mama.I don't know what they smell like in your games, but personally, I would say that they smell like Joe.The hell?
Naw. Metric's comments are just so dumb and out of nowhere. More confused than offended.
(I was making a goof about the assumed typo of forgetting "not" before "about you", I think Metric's posts were fine. :b )
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I know this is an old thread, but I finally found a place that says it. According to beginner set, they smell like a combination of rotten fish and sweat.
I always thought they smelled sulfurous, but to the extreme that you can't get much oxygen through and literally gag.