Of Bards and Poisons

Below are some Edges associated with Athas' unique Bardic traditions. In addition to this I've taken a crack at coming up with a poison system that focuses on the risks of acquiring dangerous and illegal ingredients and manufacturing toxins. I've listed three example poisons, though I definitely don't want to stop there--as these are ideal of an novice Bard. I realize that in some way, especially when compared to toadpooka's Savage Sun system, this is overly complex. I do this because I know my players and they are constantly testing the boundaries of assassination and other potentially game-changing strategies.

Athasian Bard:
Requirements: Knowledge (Athasian Lore) d6+, Persuade d6+
Benefits: You tell or sing the tales of an Athas under a Green, or even Blue, Sun. You may use lore ability to entertain with a +2 to social tests. May also use a lore ability to identify magical artifacts and locations with a +2 bonus.

War Singer:
Requirements: Athasian Bard, Fighting d8+, Persuade d8+, Intimidate d8+
Benefits: Grant +2 to the damage done by all allies within your command radius by playing and singing songs of battle. You must do nothing but play during this time (no attacks or other actions). You can move at your normal pace, but you may not Run.

Poisoner: Athasian Bard, Knowledge (Poison) d6+
Benefits: Gain +2 to all tests for manufacturing and concealing poisons. Your poison-making is skilled enough that your materials go further, allowing you to make an extra application of each poison you create (in addition to that created by a Raise).

Poisons of Athas
Each Athasian poison has ingredient and preparation penalties, it also has legal and self-harm limits that make mastering poisons a dangerous profession. A Bard rolls her best social skill (Persuade or Intimidate), attempting to achieve success in spite of the creation penalty. After this, the Bard rolls Knowledge (Poisons) and attempts a similar success despite the penalty. If both rolls succeed, the ingredients are acquired for the listed price and the poison is made. Reduce the price of the Ingredients by 5cr (minimum price 1cr) for each Raise. Poison-makers manufacture an additional application of their poison on Raise (only one additional application, no matter the number of Raises received). If either of the rolls fail, a myriad of things can go wrong depending on the depth of that failure. A buyer failing an Ingredient roll by the degree mentioned attracts the attention of the local authorities. A poison-maker failing a Preparation roll by the given number is harmed by her own creation and loses the batch and her ingredients through an accident of some kind.

Example
Poison: Milkywart
Ingredients: -2 (Snake Eyes)(5cr)
Preparation: +0 (Snake Eyes) Poison-maker is temporarily blinded—a nuisance more than anything.
Affect: This poison, when introduced into the victim’s blood by a coated needle or blade, induces a state of Temporary Blindness. If the Vigor check is failed the victim is treated as though he is in Dark Lighting for d4+1 rounds. After the initial attack the effects start to wear off and the victim is treated as being in Dim Lighting for d6+1 rounds. Note: The poison’s effects are identical among all humanoids and Thri-Kreen. Victims receive no help from Low-Light Vision or similar inborn characteristics.

Poison: Kank Venom
Ingredients: -2 (Snake Eyes) (15cr)
Preparation: +0 (1, no matter Wild Die amount) Poison-maker suffers 2d4 damage from the venom that bypasses all armor and affects toughness alone.
Affect: This poison, when it breaks the skin through the use of a coated needle or blade, causes a lasting burning pain that causes the flesh around the wound to blacken and die. The victim failing a Vigor roll suffers 2d4 damage that bypasses armor, both die can Ace.

Poison: Greenshade
Ingredients: -2 (1) (25cr)
Preparation: -2 (1, no matter Wild Die amount) Poison-maker suffers -1 all actions for 1 day.
Affect: Greenshade must be imbibed (Notice -2 to detect its presence in an alcoholic drink) and when a victim fails a Vigor check it begins to induce mild shadow-like hallucinations that distract the victim during all activities. Greenshade must be administered in multiple doses to become truly affective. A single dose will last three hours, a second dose administered in the time will make the penalty a -2 that will last 1 day. A third dose within a day’s time however causes the affect to increase to -4 and the victim must roll Vigor -2 every 3 days; a success indicates the sickness passes. Greenshade is a poison used by assassins to make dangerous target less of the threat.


As a matter of "Credit Where Credit is Due", I should note that the ideas for Milkywart and Greenshade came from the Crimson Valley site at (http://www.oocities.org/Tyrad.geo/index.html).