Corpsebloom

> *"It is a disease like any other. It can be treated; it can be prevented. All this superstition just makes it harder to contain." -*Family Hearth doctor dealing with early stage infection in a traveling group
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   Corpsebloom is a fungal species that appears in some unclaimed areas of Soi and most notably haunted forests of Kushan. The fungus infects humans that either inhale enough spores or get the spores directly into their bloodstream. It begins growing throughout the body as it is still alive, and reprograms the brain to become obsessed with spreading more fungal growth to other species, eventually causing the human to become feral and extraordinarily violent.

## Attributes of the Infected

> *"The early stages of Corpsebloom are difficult to detect visually aside from erratic violent behavior in the afflicted. The plant appears to be related to vitae bloom as it clots and heals ruptured tissue, making the afflicted abnormally durable. Normal limits on human exertion seem to be absent giving them tremendous strength and speed" -*Family Hearth doctor, outbreak journal
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> *"Late stages of infection visually are easy to detect as fungal structures will begin poking through the dermis of the afflicted. If unable to find food the fungus will begin consuming the fat, skin, vestigial organs, and non essential parts of the body to feed the afflicted and keep it going in times of starvation. It is due to this effect that the more superstitious mortal nations call this a plague of the undead."* -Family Hearth doctor, outbreak journal
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Corpsebloom absorbs nutrients and feeds them directly into the human body, keeping its host alive even if it cannot find food on its own, and can extend the lifespan and vigor of a human by decades. The afflicted have been noted to take tremendous physical trauma to their bodies without dying, or being able to recover from grievous wounds, indicating that Corpsebloom has a regenerative effect that keeps its host alive.This is due to the clotting effect the fungus imparts onto the blood which prevents them from bleeding out.

   Corpsebloom has been responsible for the disappearance of several large settlements and countries. The only way to truly remove Corpsebloom from an area is to purge the area by fire.

It is theorized that this was designed by the Immortals as a bio weapon.

* Corpsebloom only affects humans, certain ape strains, mice and some pig breeds.
* The infected do not attack each other.
* Corpsebloom not only provides regenerative qualities to the body, but instantly clots wounded blood vessels, making it nearly impossible for an afflicted to bleed out
* While in no way considered conscious, the infected retain basic instinctual knowledge of local architecture, the dwelling places of the uninfected and the ability to use basic doors and locks. Additionally the creatures' circadian rhythm remains intact.
* An innate need to escape the sun causes the infected to escape wherever possible. In the event that it is unable to find a refuge, the infected will burrow
* The fungus itself is killed by direct sunlight, thus it can only survive in dark shadowed places.
* The infection takes eight hours to fully set in. After it has blossomed the infected begins giving off spores wherever it goes.
* The infection can be cured by purgeleaf or constant exposure to sunlight of the infected areas. Curing those with the advanced stages of the infection results in scarring and brain damage.

## CorpseBloom epidemic

**Corpsebloom Epidemic**

> *"The soldiers braced themselves at sundown for the enemy they knew lay just below their feet. As the light faded and the army lowered their visors I saw the fields of dead rising from the ground, clawed hands eagerly bursting from the ground. An ocean of ravenous corpses come to devour the living."* -Refugee journal, found on the corpse of an infected
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   This was the greatest source of casualties during the war and a near extinction event for the human race. During the middle of the war, as the economies of the world became more and more strained, the great nations began getting desperate to break the will of their enemy and speed up the war that had been raging for half a century. During this time a multitude of pestilence were unleashed upon armies and civilian populace alike. Though most plagues were stopped early on by proper quarantine procedures and medicinal stores, the last and most devastating plague to be released was the Corpsebloom epidemic.

The roaming armies of Goran and Tallet forces had left most of the fortified positions in their wake either destroyed or occupied. The Ashed Confederacy remained unaligned and safe behind their high walls and profiting greatly from the conflict as their mercenary guilds reached their capacity sending every professional soldier they had to every far corner of the earth.

The Goran horde at this point had broken through the Circle/Kushan landmass and was fighting the Tallet over the eastern territories while spreading into the western borders of the Ashed city-states. The Tallet, previously remaining neutral to the Ashed, now were directly on the eastern border.

Outbreaks of Corpsebloom began infecting both Goran and Tallet armies, instances reported occurring in fortified locations near water sources. It is unknown where the source of this infection started, however it is assumed by many to be the work of Unbounded forces attempting to hamper the march of the Goran and Tallet. The infection spread through the land as no nation had the resources or spare soldiers to fight the infection. The supplies of purgeleaf had been completely used up fighting off previous weaponized plagues and the a particularly aggressive waterborne strain began taking hold of the forests and jungles of Soi.

The numbers of the dead swelled as war refugees and armies began unknowingly drinking from tainted water sources. War refugees fled to the Ashed city-states in a vain hope of finding shelter, only to find the city gates closed to them with no sympathy or help coming from within the steel gates and stone walls. The dead began piling up around the city walls only to rise again and wander around in search of warm flesh to eat, fouling the crops and farming areas around the fortified cities. Though the Ashed attempted to clear the infected, the Corpsebloom had gotten into their water supply, and began appearing inside the city walls. Some of the cities destroyed during the war are still havens for Corpsebloom often called "Necropolis".

The resulting flood of walking dead followed the armies and refugees throughout the unclaimed territories, overwhelming smaller and less advanced civilizations in a tide of never ending monsters. Even in the case of victorious defenders, the strain often still got into the bodies of the locals through the tainted groundwater and turned them in their sleep. Refugees, prisoners of war, and returning soldiers unknowingly carried the strain into the Tallet and Goran homelands.

    Goran homelands and forests  became infected with the Corpsebloom, leading to the truly terrifying phenomenon of the infection taking hold in other simian species bred by the Goran, leading to the roaming populations of infected gorillas that devastated the homeland of the Fire God.

Among the few nations to successfully fight off the infection were the Kushan due to the country-spanning walls, focus on production of medicinal herbs, and their familiarity with the disease. The Broken Kingdom survived the plague by aggressively purging any land touched by the dead with fire and their high consumption of alcoholic beverages which killed the Corpsebloom in their bloodstream. The Mamutok of the Stargazer Plateau were spared the plague due to the long months of constant sunlight and the fungus-killing cold weather.

A temporary and unofficial cease fire was called as none of the nations could continue fighting each other without being overwhelmed by the hordes of living dead. Entire forests were set ablaze to purge the land and water sources either sealed off or drained to prevent further spread.

This was the beginning of the end of the Great War, as the Goran and Tallet war machines lost momentum, and the Ashed confederacy now unified, recalled their mercenaries into one fighting force bent on retribution for their fallen cities and ending the war.

*"With grim faces and gritted teeth we fought side by side, knowing we would probably be ordered to kill each other if we made it through this alive, if anyone made it through this alive. The Goran warriors and my company who were my enemy are now my allies, defending the living and fighting the undead. The Immortals have gone mad and the world with it, but until it swallows us up I am alive, and I will do my best to make sure as many people as possible stay that way no matter who or what they are. Fuck the gods and fuck their war, we will survive."* -Ashed mercenary journal: entry on the plague

* Most of the war casualties came from this event.
* At this point in the war, most of the protected and fortified cities were abandoned or destroyed, leaving people vulnerable to traveling groups of infected.
* Refugees unknowingly infected themselves by taking refuge in forests infected with Corpsebloom.
* Most purgeleaf had been expended at this point by the previous plagues.
* Fortified cities and towns were intentionally sabotaged by the war effort.