Drastholopy

Drastholopy is the name of a contractable disease that gradually turns those afflicted by it into a member of the morpher race, losing their original form in the process. Morpher bites are considered one of the reasons that the morpher race is so highly stigmatized, and many laws have made it illegal for a morpher to bite another creature, even in self-defense or even when the subject of the bite desires to become a morpher. In the latter case, morphers who bite willing victims tend to keep themselves anonymous so as to avoid legal reprisal.
==Drastholopy Mechanics (D&D 3.5e/Pathfinder)==
Drastholopy is a disease that can only affect creatures with the Kylian creature typing and that are not immune to diseases. It is inflicted when a morpher succeeds on an attack roll using the bite attack granted by the Jawmorph racial ability against a creature that can contract drastholopy. A failed attack roll means that drastholopy cannot be contracted, and morphers cannot contract drastholopy.
When drastholopy is contracted, the affected creature immediately makes a DC 20 Fortitude saving throw. If they succeed on this saving throw, they are considered to not be affected by drastholopy. If they fail this saving throw, the disease progresses according to the rules below.
===Drastholopy Stage 1===
: Onset: 1d6 days after contracting the disease.
: Effects: 1d4 Constitution damage (does not stack).
: Frequency: 1/day
: Saving Throw: DC 25 Fortitude
: Special: Shape-shifter characters have a DC 30 Fortitude saving throw and an onset of 1d2 days instead.
It is typical for those who feel drastholopy's effects to never recover; however, it is possible, albeit very rare, for victims in the first stage of the disease to receive medical attention in time and recover. Those who do not recover tend to feel short of breath and almost more frail as their body tries, and fails, to fight off the disease that is changing them from the inside. It has been noted that shape-shifters that contract drastholopy succumb to it not only much more easily, but also much more rapidly.
After Drastholopy Stage 1 ends, spells such as remove disease or other abilities that normally allow the removal of diseases cannot truly remove drastholopy; such abilities or spells will remove anything listed under "Effects" of a given stage if the subject is suffering those effects, but it does not stop the progression of the disease or remove anything listed under "Special" in a given stage.
===Drastholopy Stage 2===
: Onset: 1d6+2 days after the onset of Drastholopy Stage 1.
: Effects: 1d4 Strength damage (does not stack) and 1d4 Dexterity damage (does not stack).
: Frequency: 1/day
: Special: Creature becomes dazzled in bright light or within the effects of spells such as daylight.
As the disease progresses, the victim is physically weakened, often struggling to so much as walk or lift themselves out of bed. At this point, their body begins to change in small, but noticeable ways -- their skin becomes smoother, and they lose hair, fur, or scales as time goes on. It is also common for skin pigment to start to disappear at this time, resulting in a vulnerability to sunburns if the victim pushes themselves through their physical weakness and tries to go outside.
===Drastholopy Stage 3===
: Onset: 1d6+3 days after the onset of Drastholopy Stage 2.
: Effects: 1d2 Strength damage (does not stack) and 1d2 Dexterity damage (does not stack).
: Frequency: 1/day
: Special: Creature subtyping changes to alterum if it was not already.
As the drastholopy seems to "settle" into the body, its effects become gradually less noticeable on the victim's body. They seem to subconsciously adjust to their new form's internal workings, though externally, they may seem physically similar to their original self, just a bit more sickly. It is common for the uninformed to believe at this point that they have overcome the disease, as they feel more physically well, which can make subsequent progression of the disease all the more traumatic, especially as they might find their bodies changing form uncontrollably in various ways.
===Drastholopy Stage 4===
: Onset: 1d6+3 days after the onset of Drastholopy Stage 3.
: Effects: 1d4 Charisma damage (does not stack).
: Frequency: 1/day
: Special: Creature typing becomes Kylian (Sigzlorian) if it was not already and the creature gains morpher natural abilities, losing any current natural abilities granted by their race.
The creature fully becomes a morpher, though they are often unable to change their form effectively, and they may still bear uncanny aspects of their original form. In more mild cases, this could simply manifest in the number of digits they have in cases of species with a different number of fingers or toes from a morpher. On the other hand, extreme cases might have various aspects of the original form "mutated" into the morpher, such as parts of their face being tied to their original form and other parts of their face being morpher-typical.
===Drastholopy Stage 5===
Though not truly considered a "stage" of the disease itself, new morphers who wish to truly adjust to their new forms and reap its benefits often need to learn from another morpher to learn how to control their body's new capabilities. After 60 days of training and learning with another individual with the Morph racial ability, the trainee, if they are a morpher themselves, gains the Morph racial ability and loses any previous extraordinary abilities gained from their previous race. Morphers who were previously shape-shifters gain this ability and lose any existing extraordinary abilities once granted by their former race after 30 days of training.
Category:Ealdremen Diseases