Bleaklands excerpt: Corruption points draft

I feel like all I do is blog about some stupid setting I don't barely even run, so after I get this stupid Bleaklands Primer document finished, I'm going to stop talking about it for a while. Anyway, here is some stupid nonsense I wrote as a rough draft about Corruption points for my Bleaklands setting. It borrows heavily from the Corruption points of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 3E (of which I have previously attempted to hack into AD&D), which is the best RPG and if you haven't played it you should go hop in a coffin.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Prolonged exposure to the hellish environments of the Bleaklands can cause dramatic changes to the mind and body of adventurers. Corruption is a tracking system to manage these changes. Corruption begins at 0, and this number can be increased from a variety of sources. When exposed to Corruption, or engaging in acts that cause corruption, players roll a number of d20s ranging from 2 to 5, based on severity. For each dice that results in a a 10 or less, increases the characters Corruption score by 1 point.

Unpleasant (2d20) Corruption checks

• Prolonged exposure to ghouls
• Direct contact with the "waters" of one of Hell's five rivers
• Wounded by an infernal weapon

Difficult (3d20) Corruption checks

• Exposure to a large amount of material brought up from Hell
• Consuming the flesh of other trapped souls
• Destroying holy relics or shrines
• Drinking the "waters" from one of Hell's five rivers
• Turning free-willed undead

Miserable (4d20) Corruption checks

• Being in the vicinity of a portal to hell
• Eating the flesh of an infernal being
• Direct exposure to the unholy energy of hell
• Controlling free-willed undead

Odius (5d20) Corruption checks

• Exposure to the impossible, reality bending environment of Hell
• Killing a ferryman

As soon as a characters Corruption is equal to, or higher than, either Wisdom or Constitution, whichever is higher, an effect from the Corruption Effects table is rolled.. Each mutation or mental illness on the table has a severity rating, which reduces the characters Corruption score by that amount. Continue to roll on the table until the character Corruption returns to below either Wisdom or Constitution, whichever is higher..

CORRUPTION EFFECTS (roll a d100)

00

Cannibal Hunger (10): You immediately become a member of the Ghoul racial character class. Your XP total is now equal to the minimum amount of XP needed to be a Ghoul of your current level. You must reroll your hit dice.

01-04

Ageless Form (4) Your face becomes smooth and young, but your body shrivels up like a mummy. Any spell or effect which causes you to age will have no effect, as the spell will be absorbed by your body and cause purely cosmetic damage.

05-08

Clawed Hands (2) Your fingers grow gnarled black claws that do d6 damage in melee. Your dexterity counts as 2 points less for purposes of manual dexterity and fine manipulation.

09-12

Distended Limb (2) One of your arms doubles in length, possibly including additional joints, but remains usable. You can attack from the second row without resorting to polearms or spears.

13-16

Malignant Skeleton (6) The hostile intelligence in your bones has fits of wakefulness. If you ever roll a 1 on a twenty sided dice, your skeleton takes control of your body for d3 rounds, which it will use to lash out at any non-skeletal targets it can find using whatever weapons it can find.

17-20

Featureless (6) Your nose, eyes and ears disappear and are replaced by blank skin, and your hairs falls out. You maintain your senses somehow, but you find it difficult to wear glasses without a nose bridge. You cannot be blinded, but you suffer socially. -4 to your Charisma.

21-24

Glowing Eyes (4) Your eyes glow brightly in the dark. Beams of bright light shine 100 feet forward, piercing even magical darkness. You can't turn your spotlights off, so people don't suffer darkness penalties to hit you in combat either. People hate it when you try and make eye contact. 

25-29

Horns (2) Superstitiously, growing horns is a sign of great favor and luck among the devil worshiping people of the Bleaklands. Devils and demons of all sort will assume you are the most important member of your group. You can headbutt with your horns for d6 damage. 

30-33

Corpse Flesh (4) Your armor class is improved by one as your flesh turns grey and lifeless. It costs 3 GP/month to be dewormed, otherwise you permanently lose 1 Constitution each month until you resume. Clerics turning you count as being 2 levels higher.

34-37

Blood Substitution (4) Something deeply unwholesome flows in your veins, which you can use to coat your weapons before battle. You suffer one point of damage, but add +1 to the first three damage rolls you make in combat. At level five, begin suffering three points of damage to coat your weapon, but deal +3 to the first three damage rolls.

38-41

Flaming Skull (2) The flesh on your skull boils away, leaving behind bare bone wreathed in strangely colored flames. The fire burns without fuel, and can not be extinguished by water. You shed light as a torch.

42-45

Emaciated (6) Regardless of the amount you consume, you never feel full. Your body wastes away leaving you gaunt and skeletal. Your strength score is reduced by two, and you must spend twice the amount others do on food.

45-48

Corpulent Immensity (6) Regardless of the amount you consume, you never feel full. Your body bloats up and you become massive and fat. Your dexterity score is reduced by two, and you must spend twice the amount others do on food.

49-52

Frostbitten (4) The chill of the grave permeates your body, leaving patches of frost on your skin and leaving you feeling perpetually chilly. Take half damage from frost based attacks, but double from fire and heat.

53-56

Ectoplasmic Extrusion (2) You can vomit forth a pale, phlegm like substance, and animate it. It retains its structure and can reach up for ten feet away, and acts like the Mage Hand spell, although it remains tethered to your body at all times.

57-60

Flaming Arm (4) One of your limbs warps into a thick, tubular stalk terminating in a fanged orifice, like a lamprey's mouth. You can not use this arm to hold weapons, shields or items, nor can you utilize both hands two hold two handed weapons. You can, however, blast gouts of multi-colored fire from your orrifice as the spell Burning Hands, once per day. At level three, six, and nine you gain an additional use of this fire blast.

61-64

Rotting Body (6) Everyone claims that you look fine, that you don't smell like rotten flesh, and your body is not mouldering. But you know better. You suffer a -1 to all rolls related to physical activities for fear of damaging what you think is decaying flesh, and spend 3 GP per week on various de-worming pills and formaldyhyde lotions. In case it isn't clear, you aren't actually diseased, you're just crazy.

65-68

Suspicious Mind (2) You don't trust anyone anymore. No one is what they seem, and you know this better than anyone. They all conspire to trap you here in the Bleaklands forever, but you'll show them! You are only surprised on a 1 in 6.

69-72

Growing Apathy (6) You're dead and trapped in some horrible half-life. Too much time in the grey wastes, too much time among the broken souls, and too much dread about your inevitable journey to hell has numbed your mind. You suffer a -1 to all saving throws.

72-75

Lethargy (6) The Bleaklands are such a dangerous place. Surely if you just stay here a little while longer, you'll have the energy to face its dangers. Just... maybe not yet. You always act last in initiative, and if left alone too long, will literally melt into the scenery.

76-79

Don't leave me! (6) The most terrifying thing in the world is the idea of being trapped in this hell by yourself. You must never be seperated from your friends and allies. During combat, while lost, in a hazardous environment, or any other situation that would case you to become stressed, you must do everything in your power to end each round within 10' of a character you consider a friend or ally, if not already within close range.

80-83

Manic Fervor (2) You feel great! You've already died once, so you can only go up from here! You gain a +1 to all rolls, forever! What a great day! Don't let people see how forced your smile is!

84-98

Fading Memories (1) You've started losing your memories of your life before dying. You permanently lose one point of Wisdom or Constitution, whichever is higher.

99

Devil Organ (6) You grow a new internal organ the size of a fist, which is shaped like a devil in the lotus position. All devils and demons within 10' feet can smell it in you, or 30' if you are sweaty, or have not recently bathed. This organ is considered the most delicious and rare delicacy in all of the Bleaklands, and simply being in your presence is like catnip for devils. If captured, you may be kept alive a few days to enjoy the smell of the organ, before it is harvested and eaten. Luckily, the organ is deeply magical, and allows you to cast spells as a level one Magic-User. At level six, you can cast as a level two MU, and at level nine, you cast as a level three MU. When you cast a spell, all Magic-Users or creatures with spell-like abilities within 100' per level of the spell can sense your exact location, and that you have a devil organ.