Homebrew DesignRoll up your sleeves and get working: there's lots of homebrewin' to be done! Post your custom creation for critiques or review those of your peers.
What you are looking at is an overhaul of the D&D 3.5 poison system.
Longer intro:
Spoiler
Poisons in D&D have always been a bit of a disappointment for me.
Mostly because they really aren't all that dangerous. It's possible to kill someone by poison (usually just by piling on the Constitution damage), but it's likely to cost ridiculous amounts of gold unless you cheese it away.
Second, the whole initial + secondary damage model is, in my opinion, a strangely abstracted way to handle poisoning. Upon exposure, you make a fortitude save, and one minute later, you make a secondary save. Once that minute is over, the poison has effectively left your system, and you're fine aside from the damage the poison has already done. And every single poison in the game is handled this way. This strangles all attempts to make poisons that do some truly evil interesting things.
Third, poisons don't scale in any way, and the poisoner's talents have no effect on how likely the poison is to be successful.
Fourth, many poisons are simply useless, due to high cost, low DCs, or just unimpressive damage (which is usually the only effect).
But, to make this something other than a whine, here is an overview of my solution.
I tossed out the whole Initial/Secondary damage model. Instead, each poison has its own statblock (much like that of spells), describing its effects in detail. This allows me to make more or less any kind of poison I want - be it fast-acting combat poisons, agonizingly slow killing poisons, or weird utility poisons that would never be possible otherwise.
This has also allowed me to make poisons that actually kill people dead without them being in the same price range as a pair of magic swords.
Of course, such a change has consequences.
Poisons are more deadly than ever. I (re)wrote a great many poisons that, if left untreated, are likely to result in a character's death. Sometimes within a few rounds, sometimes in a matter of hours or days. This is intended, and how I think poisons should work. 3.5 offers many counters to poison, usually in the form of hard immunity. I say that if the counters are so powerful, the poisons should be as well. If you don't know how to treat poison, you don't have any kind of antivenom handy, there is no spellcaster around to neutralize the poison, and someone picks that moment to stab you with a poisoned dagger... yes, I think you really should be in deep trouble.
On that cheerful note, I present to you my poison overhaul!
Poison
Poisons are a diverse group of natural and alchemical substances whose unifying trait is that they cause creatures some kind of distress, harm, or even death.
Saving against a poison
Most poisons require one or more Fortitude saves to negate or mitigate their effects, although some poisons offer no saving throws at all.
The save DC against a creature's natural poison attack is equal to 10 + ½ poisoning creature's racial HD + poisoning creature's Con modifier. Stronger, larger creatures are generally able to effectively deliver large amounts of poison into creatures' bloodstream.
The exact DC is given in the creature's descriptive text.
The save DC against a manufactured poison is equal to 10 + ½ the craft ranks required to craft the poison + poisoner's Int modifier. While correctly crafted poisons of the same type are all similarly dangerous on their own, a clever poisoner is significantly more likely to successfully deliver the poison's effect.
A trap uses its creator's intelligence modifier for this purpose. If unknown, assume an Intelligence score of 10 + the trap's challenge rating.
Some poisons have increasing (or simply varying) penalties depending on the number of saving throws failed against the poison. In such a case, immunity or resistance against the earlier conditions does not stop the poison, the later effects take place normally if further saves are failed.
Morality and legality
Poisons are illegal in most civilized cultures, and their use seen as dishonorable.
Using poison is not an evil act in and of itself, although the subterfuge and willful risk of collateral damage involved may very well be. Additionally, many sacred vows, such as those sworn by knights, paladins, and some exalted paragons, forbid the use of poison.
Perils Of Using Poison
A character has a 5% chance of exposing himself to a poison whenever he applies it to a weapon or otherwise readies it for use. Additionally, a character who rolls a natural 1 on an attack roll with a poisoned weapon must make a Reflex save or accidentally poison himself with the weapon, DC 15 for Injury potions, and DC 25 for contact poisons. A natural 1 on an attack roll to throw a vial of inhaled poison does not ruin the throw (although it will miss its intended square, as normal), but the thrower is exposed to the trailing fumes of the vial as well.
A creature with a poison attack is immune to its own poison and the poison of others of its kind.
A character with the Poison Use ability suffers none of these dangers.
A Poison Entry
The description of each individual poison contains the following elements:
Cost
The black market cost of one dose (one vial) of the poison. It is not possible to use or apply poison in any quantity smaller than one dose.
Most of a poison's price tag ultimately goes to pay for smugglers, bribes, and the merchant's risk fees. This price is therefore up to 50% lower in places where the use, manufacture, and ownership of poison and its components is legal and readily available (but such communities are rare).
Since poison crafting is quick compared to the crafting of other items of similar value (such as suits of armor), track the progress of poison crafting in gold pieces if tracking by the week, or in silver pieces if tracking progress by the day.
Type
Each poison is of one of four specific types: contact, inhaled, ingested, or injury.
Contact poisons are activated by the merest touch. It can be actively delivered via a weapon or a touch attack. Even if a creature has sufficient damage reduction to avoid taking any damage from the attack, the poison can still affect it. A chest or other object can be smeared with contact poison as part of a trap.
For purposes of Contact poisons, the poisoner is whoever applies the poison to the object (or creature, in case of a direct exposure).
Ingested poisons are virtually impossible to utilize in a combat situation. A poisoner could administer a potion to a helpless creature or attempt to dupe someone into drinking or eating something poisoned. Assassins and other characters tend to use ingested poisons outside of combat. To slip a poison into a drink or food plate while being observed, make a Sleight of Hand check opposed by the observers' Spot checks as a standard action.
All ingested poisons offer a Wisdom check to notice that something is amiss with the food, listed as "taste DC". If successfully tasted, the poison can be identified (see Crafting, below).
For purposes of Ingested poisons, the poisoner is whoever slips the poison into the drink or food (or administers the poison to a helpless or willing creature).
Inhaled poisons are usually contained in fragile vials or eggshells. They can be thrown as a ranged attack with a range increment of 10 feet at a certain creature or square, as if it were a splash weapon. When it strikes a hard surface (or is struck hard), the container releases its poison. One dose spreads to fill the volume of a 10-foot cube. Each creature within the area must make a saving throw. (Holding one's breath is ineffective against inhaled poisons; they affect the nasal membranes, tear ducts, and other parts of the body.)
For purposes of Inhaled poisons, the poisoner is whoever releases the poison from its container (usually the one who throws the vial).
Injury poisons must be delivered through a wound. If a creature has sufficient damage reduction to avoid taking any damage from the attack, the poison does not affect it, and the poison is wasted. Traps that cause damage from weapons, needles, and the like sometimes contain injury poisons.
For purposes of Injury poisons, the poisoner is whoever makes the attack that deals damage.
Source
Each poison is created from plant, creature, and/or mineral components.
Some poisons require magic as part of its creation process. Such poisons can only be crafted by characters with spellcasting abilities, or by nonspellcasters who succeed on a Use Magic Device check with a DC equal to the poison's crafting DC. Even though magic is used in the creation process, the end product is nonmagical unless otherwise noted.
Spells and powers such as Major Creation can be used to create poison, but never more than one dose per casting. The caster must have the requisite ranks in Craft (poisonmaking), and succeed on the craft skill check to make the poison. Poisons that require a magical component can not be created via such spells alone.
Crafting
Like all mundane items, poisons have craft DC. In addition, in order to make each individual poison, the crafting character must have a minimum number of ranks in the Craft (poisonmaking) skill to craft the poison. Poison recipes are usually closely guarded secrets, even the most gifted layman is unlikely to stumble upon them.
The craft DC is also used as the DC required to identify a dose of poison. To identify a dose of unused poison by smell or appearance, use the Craft (poisonmaking) skill as if it were a knowledge check. To identify a poison from its symptoms or taste (if you're unlucky), or to detect its presence in a corpse, use either the Heal skill or the Craft (poisonmaking) skill.
Duration
A poison's duration denotes the time or conditions under which the poison stops doing further damage . Damage and status conditions the poison has already inflicted do not expire at the end of its duration, however.
Unless otherwise noted, spells such as Neutralize Poison can prematurely end a poison's duration and its temporary effects (a temporary effect is one with a stated duration of its own, not effects that merely heal on their own, such as ability damage).
Some poisons have a duration of Instantaneous. Such poisons do their harm immediately, and can sometimes not be cured directly.
Stacking
Each poison explains the effect of applying additional instances of the that poison before the first poison's duration has expired. Different poisons rarely interact with one another.
__________________
Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
Cost: 300 gp Type: Ingested, taste DC 20 Source: Plant, Magical Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 20 Duration: 1d4 minutes
Suitors with more desperation than moral fiber form the primary market for this insidious poison.
1d4 minutes after ingestion, an Aphrodin victim must make a saving throw or succumb to an uncontrollable desire to get physically intimate. It will seek out the nearest adult creature of compatible gender and race that is not a member of its family, and take any reasonable measures to satisfy the desire (what counts as a reasonable measure depends on the poison's victim). If multiple compatible creatures are present, the victim will seek out the one with the highest Charisma modifier. If the victim fails to persuade that individual, it will seek out the next compatible one. If no compatible individuals are present (or if they have all rejected the victim's advances), the victim will attempt and fail to satisfy the desire on its own.
On a successful saving throw, the victim remains in control its own actions, but the desire still surfaces (potentially altering its behavior regardless).
The desire persists for 1d3 hours.
A DC 25 Sense Motive check reveals that the creature's behavior is being influenced in some way.
Stacking: If two or more doses of Aphrodin are consumed, the desire to get intimate is replaced by the desire to cause the appropriate creatures physical harm. The poison otherwise functions as normal.
Special: This poison affects humanoids and monstrous humanoids only. Further, a creature resistant or immune to Compulsions may apply that defense against this poison.
Arsenic
Spoiler
Cost: 120 gp Type: Ingested, taste DC 10 Source: Mineral Crafting: 4 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: Until 10 saves have been rolled
A danger to miners and alchemists everywhere, Arsenic promises a violent death for the untreated.
30 minutes after Arsenic has been ingested, the victim must save or suffer 1d8 points of Constitution damage. The save must be repeated every 1d4 hours after that, until the poison's duration expires.
On the first failed saving throw, the victim is nauseated. It remains so until the poison's duration expires.
Stacking: For every additional dose of Arsenic consumed, the duration is reset, and the save DC increases by 2.
Black Adder Venom
Spoiler
Cost: 1500 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 12 ranks, craft DC 24 Duration: Until cured
The hideous paralyzing properties of the black adder's venom are always lethal if left untreated.
Immediately upon being subjected to the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds after that, the victim must make a saving throw.
On the first failed save, the victim is staggered for the poison's duration.
On a second failed save, the victim is paralyzed for the poison's duration.
On a third failed save, the victim loses its ability to breathe for the poison's duration, and must begin making Constitution checks as if drowning. A DC 20 Heal check can restore the ability to breathe, but further failed saving throws will remove the ability again.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Black Adder Venom increases the poison's save DC by 2.
Black Lotus Extract
Spoiler
Cost: 4500 gp Type: Contact Source: Plant, Magical Crafting: 18 ranks, craft DC 30 Duration: Until cured
By many considered the pinnacle of the art of poisonmaking, Black Lotus Extract provides the quickest, least painful, and most fashionable death imaginable.
Immediately upon contacting Black Lotus Extract, and once per round thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw. On the first failed save, the victim is rendered unconscious. On the second failed save, it dies.
Stacking: Additional doses of Black Lotus Extract have no further effect.
Bloodgate
Spoiler
Cost: 50 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 4 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
A blood-thinner, used by low-grade assassins to make their targets' attempts to escape more useless.
One round after the injury that inflicts this poison is dealt, and on each round thereafter, the victim must save or take a number of dice of damage equal to the base damage die of the weapon that inflicted it. For example, the victim of a Bloodgate delivered via a dagger must save or take 1d4 points of damage each round.
The target receiving any amount of magical healing immediately ends the poison. Fast Healing and Regeneration, however, do not (even if their source is magical), although they offset the hit point damage as normal.
The poison can never be applied to spells, even if they deal damage as a weapon.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Bloodgate increases the save DC by 2, and the damage dealt each round is then equal to the largest damage die of any weapon that has inflicted Bloodgate for the duration.
Blue Acid
Spoiler
Cost: 3000 gp Type: Ingested, taste DC 5 OR Inhaled Source: Mineral Crafting: 14 ranks, craft DC 26 Duration: Until cured
Blue acid is difficult to harvest in large amounts, but it grants a near-certain death.
Immediately upon exposure to the poison, and every 1d4 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or suffer 1d8 points of Constitution damage if it was inhaled, or 2d6 points of Constitution damage if ingested.
The decision of whether to make the poison ingested or inhaled is made at the time of crafting, each dose can only be delivered one way.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Blue Acid increases the poison's save DC by 2 and immediately enforces an additional saving throw.
Centipede Venom
Spoiler
Cost: 90 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 4 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
The venom of centipedes is rarely life-threatening to humanoids, but the pain, swelling, and stiffness can be immense.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d4 points of Dexterity damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Centipede or Wasp Venom (any kind) increases the poison's save DC by 2. If multiple types of Centipede or Wasp Venom are affecting the victim, use the largest damage die.
Centipede Venom, Fortified
Spoiler
Cost: 300 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 20 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Centipede venom can have its potency significantly increased by proper brewing procedures.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d6 points of Dexterity damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Centipede or Wasp Venom (any kind) increases the poison's save DC by 2. If multiple types of Centipede or Wasp Venom are affecting the victim, use the largest damage die.
Deathblade
Spoiler
Cost: 1200 gp Type: Injury Source: Plant, Magical Crafting: 18 ranks, craft DC 30 Duration: Instantaneous
This unique poison draws blood towards a recent wound, greatly increasing the resulting bloodloss.
Immediately upon exposure to Deathblade, the victim must make a saving throw or take a number of points of Constitution damage equal to the weapon's base damage die, up to a maximum of 3d6 or 2d8 (depending on the weapon size advancement). The poison can never be applied to spells, even if they deal damage as a weapon. A successful saving throw halves the Constitution damage.
Stacking: Deathblade is used up in an instant, making stacking impossible.
Special: This poison is unusually potent, making its saving throw 2 higher than it would otherwise be.
Dragon Bile
Spoiler
Cost: 1500 gp Type: Contact Source: Creature, Magical Crafting: 18 ranks, craft DC 30 Duration: Instantaneous
How alchemists first discovered that, when properly treated, the liver secretions of great dragons can turn creatures' muscles to mush remains a subject of discussion, but the the poison definitely works.
Immediately upon contact with Dragon Bile, the victim must make a saving throw or take 3d6 points of Strength damage, or half that on a successful save.
Stacking: Dragon Bile is used up in an instant, making stacking impossible.
Special: This poison is extraordinarily potent, making its saving throw 4 higher than it would otherwise be.
Drow Poison
Spoiler
Cost: 90 gp Type: Injury Source: Plant Crafting: 4 ranks, craft DC 15, creator must be drow Duration: 1 minute
A jealously guarded secret among the drow, no records exist of surface-dwellers mimicking this legendary poison.
The victim of this poison must immediately make a saving throw or fall Unconscious. This save is repeated one minute later, even if it is woken up in the interim. A victim who fails one saving throw (or has not yet attempted the second saving throw) can be awoken by shaking and slapping it as a standard action, otherwise it sleeps for 2d4 hours. A victim who fails both saving throws also sleeps for 2d4 hours, but can not be woken prematurely unless the poison's effects are magically removed or suppressed.
Stacking: Each additional use of Drow Poison increases the save DC by 2.
Ettercap Poison
Spoiler
Cost: 900 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 14 ranks, craft DC 26 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
The poison of the elusive ettercap is stronger than that of any insect.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or suffer 2d6 points of Dexterity damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Ettercap Poison increases the poison's save DC by 2.
Fat Man's Mercy
Spoiler
Cost: 5 gp Type: Ingested, taste DC 15 Source: Plant Crafting: 2 ranks, craft DC 10 Duration: Instantaneous
More commonly used as an aid for a distressed stomach than as a poison, but the opportunist can find uses for the most mundane concoctions.
1d10+10 minutes after ingestion, Fat Man's Mercy inflicts upon its victim an uncontrollable urge to move its bowels. The urge is satisfied at most 2d4 minutes after it first manifests on a failed saving throw, and 4d6 minutes later on a successful saving throw.
Stacking: Two or more ingested doses of Fat Man's Mercy cause the urge to surface immediately, and the saving throw fails automatically.
Special: Unlike most poisons, Fat Man's Mercy is rarely illegal, and is thus not less expensive in communities where poison is legal.
Giant Wasp Venom
Spoiler
Cost: 500 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 10 ranks, craft DC 24 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Wasps are well-known for their poisonous sting. Their giant cousins are even more dangerous.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or suffer 1d8 points of Dexterity damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Centipede or Wasp Venom (any kind) increases the poison's save DC by 2. If multiple types of Centipede or Wasp Venom are affecting the victim, use the largest damage die.
Hemlock
Spoiler
Cost: 25 gp Type: Ingested, taste DC 10 Source: Plant Crafting: 2 ranks, craft DC 10 Duration: 48 hours
The poisonous hemlock is both common and easy to brew into a poison, but that makes it no less dangerous.
30 minutes after ingestion of hemlock, and every 1d4 hours thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d6 points of Dexterity damage. A victim reduced to 0 Dexterity by Hemlock loses its ability to breathe for the poison's duration, and must begin making Constitution checks as if drowning. A DC 20 Heal check can restore the ability to breathe, but a victim at 0 Dexterity must continue to make saving throws every 1d4 hours or lose the ability to breathe again.
Stacking: For every additional dose of Hemlock consumed, the duration is reset, and the save DC increases by 2.
Id Moss
Spoiler
Cost: 125 gp Type: Ingested, taste DC 15 Source: Plant Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Id moss is not particularly common, but it is well known for its ability to drain creatures' strength of mind. Reindeer know to steer clear of it, as it is capable of rendering them comatose in moments.
1d4+1 rounds after ingestion, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim of Id Moss must make a Fortitude save or take 1d6 points of Intelligence damage.
Stacking: For every additional dose of Id Moss consumed, the save DC increases by 2.
Insanity Mist
Spoiler
Cost: 1000 gp Type: Inhaled Source: Plant, Magical Crafting: 6 ranks, craft DC 20 Duration: Until cured or Confusion sets in; see text
This dangerous drug is capable of sending the most stoic man on a murderous rampage.
Immediately upon inhaling Insanity Mist, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d6 points of Wisdom damage, or half that on a successful save.
In addition, 1d4 rounds after inhalation and every 1d4 rounds thereafter, the victim must succeed on a saving throw or be Confused by the mists's effects for 1d4 hours.
Stacking: An additional dose administered to a victim still Confused from a previous dose of Insanity Mist must make a saving throw with a +4 bonus or be rendered permanently Confused (insane).
Irondoom
Spoiler
Cost: 100 gp Type: Ingested, taste DC 5 Source: Mineral Crafting: 6 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: Until cured
The cocktail is heavily laden with cold iron, making it deadly to the fair folk, but harmless to all others.
This poison affects fey creatures only, other creatures are entirely unaffected.
One round after being subjected to the poison, and once per round thereafter, the fey must make a saving throw or be paralyzed with pain for one round, and take 1d6 points of Constitution damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Irondoom increases the poison's save DC by 2.
__________________
Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
Cost: 300 gp Type: Injury Source: Plant Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 22 Duration: Instantaneous
The poison makes the body tense and shaky, making all kinds of precision work all but impossible.
The victim of this poison must immediately make a fortitude save or its hands begin to shake uncontrollably for 2d6 minutes. On a failed save, the victim can not write or cast spells with somatic components, and it takes a -4 penalty on all dexterity-based skill checks and on ranged attack rolls. Even on a successful save, the victim suffers a 20% failure chance on all spells with somatic components for the duration of the effect, and takes a -2 penalty on the beforementioned checks and rolls.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Jitter refreshes the duration of the poison's effects.
Lich Dust
Spoiler
Cost: 1500 gp Type: Contact Source: Creature, Magical Crafting: 18 ranks, craft DC 30 Duration: Instantaneous
With the correct procedure, the paralyzing properties of the bodies of destroyed liches can be re-activated.
Immediately upon contact with Lich Dust, the victim must make a saving throw or be permanently Paralyzed.
Stacking: Lich Dust is used up in an instant, making stacking impossible.
Nitharit
Spoiler
Cost: 650 gp Type: Contact Source: Mineral Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 20 Duration: Until 3 successive saves are made
The poison is absorbed by the skin and quickly causes massive bleeding from every orifice.
Immediately upon contact with Nitharit, and every 1d4 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or suffer 1d6 points of Constitution damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Nitharit increases the poison's save DC by 2.
Oil of Taggit
Spoiler
Cost: 75 gp Type: Injury Source: Plant Crafting: 6 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: Until 6 saves have been rolled
Surface-dwelling alchemists have not managed to replicate the fast-acting intravenous poison of the Drow, but they still know tricks to put people to sleep.
A victim of this poison must immediately make a fortitude save or start slipping into unconsciousness. The save is repeated every round thereafter. A failed save has the following effects:
An unharmed victim is rendered fatigued for one minute.
A fatigued victim is rendered exhausted for one minute. An exhausted victim is rendered unconscious for one minute, but it can be woken up prematurely by shaking and slapping it as a standard action.
An alread unconscious victim remains unconscious for 24 hours, and can not be woken prematurely unless the poison's effects are magically removed or suppressed.
Stacking: Each additional use of Oil of Taggit increases the save DC by 2.
Purple Worm Poison
Spoiler
Cost: 800 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 18 ranks, craft DC 28 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Purple Worms are hard to capture, and nightmarish to harvest poison from, but most find the trouble to be worth it.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 2d6 points of Strength damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Purple Worm Poison increases the poison's save DC by 2.
Scorpion Venom
Spoiler
Cost: 200 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 20 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Scorpion venom is much like that of the spider, only stronger and more deadly.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d6 points of Strength damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Spider or Scorpion Venom (any kind) increases the poison's save DC by 2. If multiple types of Spider or Scorpion Venom are affecting the victim, use the largest damage die.
Spider Venom
Spoiler
Cost: 100 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 6 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Spider venom is difficult to harvest, either requiring scores of the smaller creatures or braving an encounter with their monstrous cousins.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d4 points of Strength damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Spider or Scorpion Venom (any kind) increases the poison's save DC by 2. If multiple types of Spider Venom are affecting the victim, use the largest damage die.
Spider Venom, Purified
Spoiler
Cost: 500 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 10 ranks, craft DC 24 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Nature has given spiders a great ability to sap others' strength, but there's nothing that alchemists haven't been able to improve on.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d8 points of Strength damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Spider or Scorpion Venom (any kind) increases the poison's save DC by 2. If multiple types of Spider or Scorpion Venom are affecting the victim, use the largest damage die.
Striped Toadstool
Spoiler
Cost: 180 gp Type: Ingested, taste DC 10 Source: Plant Crafting: 4 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: 1 minute
The infamous Striped Toadstool has ruined many a great mind.
One minute after ingestion, the victim must make a saving throw or take 2d6 points of Wisdom damage and 1d4 points of Intelligence damage. A successful saving throw halves the damage.
Stacking: An additional dose administered to a victim with uncured ability damage from the Striped Toadstool transforms the remaining damage into permanent drain.
Tonguelock
Spoiler
Cost: 300 gp Type: Contact Source: Plant Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 22 Duration: Instantaneous
The curious poison instantly paralyzes its victim's tongue and mouth, making speech impossible and causing it to drool uncontrollably.
The victim of this poison must immediately make a fortitude save or lose all use of its mouth for 2d6 minutes. On a failed save, the victim can not speak intelligibly, use a bite attack, or cast a spell with a verbal component. Even on a successful save, the victim suffers a 20% failure chance on all spells with verbal components for the duration of the effect.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Tonguelock refreshes the duration of the poison's effects.
Ungol Dust
Spoiler
Cost: 300 gp Type: Inhaled Source: Plant, Mineral Crafting: 4 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: 2d4 hours
More popular as a recreational drug than as a poison, Ungol Dust can nevertheless be useful when you need to make sure someone stays put for a while.
Immediately upon inhaling Ungol Dust, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d6 points of Charisma damage, or half that on a successful save.
In addition, 1d4 rounds after inhalation, the victim must succeed on a saving throw or be Fascinated by the dust's effects for the remainder of its duration. If the effect is broken by a distraction, the victim must save again 1d4 rounds later or be Fascinated again. Even if the save is successful (after initial contact or after being disturbed), it must be re-attempted every 1d4 rounds after, until the poison's duration expires or the victim succumbs to be Fascinated.
Stacking: An additional dose administered to a victim with uncured Charisma damage from the dust transforms the remaining damage into permanent drain.
Veritas
Spoiler
Cost: 300 gp Type: Ingested Source: Plant, Magical Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 22 Duration: 2d4 hours
The bright, thick fluid ravages the mind in a way that makes it difficult to say anything but the plainest truth.
Immediately upon ingesting the poison, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d4 points of Charisma damage.
In addition, at any time the victim attempts a Bluff check during the poison's duration, it must make an additional saving throw or take 1d4 points of Charisma damage, as well as a -20 penalty on the Bluff check. A successful save negates the Charisma damage and reduces the Bluff check penalty to -5.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Veritas enforces an additional initial save against Charisma damage, and refreshes the poison's duration.
Viper Venom, Crude
Spoiler
Cost: 120 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 6 ranks, craft DC 15 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Although it loses some of its potency when extracted from the creature, the venom of a viper should not be taken lightly by anyone.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d4 points of Constitution damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Viper Venom (any kind) increases the poison's save DC by 2. If multiple types of Viper Venom are affecting the victim, use the largest damage die.
Viper Venom
Spoiler
Cost: 300 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 20 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
The killing power of properly extracted viper venom is just as great as that of the predator itself.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d6 points of Constitution damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Viper Venom (any kind) increases the poison's save DC by 2. If multiple types of Viper Venom are affecting the victim, use the largest damage die.
Viper Venom, Purified
Spoiler
Cost: 600 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 10 ranks, craft DC 24 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Expert alchemists have found ways to not only harness the power of the deadly viper poison, but to enhance it.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 1d8 points of Constitution damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Viper Venom (any kind) increases the poison's save DC by 2. If multiple types of Viper Venom are affecting the victim, use the largest damage die.
Wolfbane
Spoiler
Cost: 150 gp Type: Ingested, taste DC 5 Source: Mineral, Plant Crafting: 8 ranks, craft DC 20 Duration: 24 hours
The drink, brewed with silver and rare plants, has the rare power to neuter lycanthropes.
A lycanthrope who consumes this poison finds its ability to assume animalistic forms sharply reduced.
If the lycanthrope is in animal or hybrid form when the poison is consumed, it must immediately make a saving throw or be shifted back to humanoid (or giant) form. A lycanthrope in humanoid form must make a saving throw or have any attempt it makes to shift into animal or hybrid form fail. Should the lycanthrope successfully shift into animal or hybrid form, or succeed on the initial save to remain in hybrid form, it must make a saving throw every 1d4 rounds thereafter or be shifted back into humanoid form.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Wolfbane increases the poison's save DC by 2.
Wyvern Poison
Spoiler
Cost: 1400 gp Type: Injury Source: Creature Crafting: 14 ranks, craft DC 26 Duration: Until 2 successive saves are made
Even more difficult to brew than to harvest the material, Wyvern Poison is the last word in viper-like poisons.
Immediately upon suffering the poison, and every 1d4+1 rounds thereafter, the victim must make a saving throw or take 2d6 points of Constitution damage.
Stacking: Each additional dose of Wyvern Poison increases the poison's save DC by 2.
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Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
The poison attacks of creatures refer to "initial damage" and "secondary damage". To obtain a full poison statblock from this limited information, fill in the following:
Immediately upon suffering the poison, make a saving throw against the poison's initial damage. One minute later, make a saving throw against the poison's secondary damage.
Stacking: This poison does not interact with others. Roll both initial and secondary saving throws indepently of other poison instances affecting the victim.
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Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
Poisoner's Dagger
This double-edged dagger contains two furrows along each edge, designed to better contain poison. Each furrow can contain one dose of poison.
When using the dagger as a piercing weapon, both doses of poison are discharged at once upon a successful attack. When using it as a slashing weapon, only one dose is released at a time. When only one furrow is filled, the dagger can be used as a slashing weapon without releasing the poison.
The furrows render a Poisoner's Dagger less aerodynamic, making it unsuitable as a throwing weapon.
You get a +2 bonus on Sleight of Hand checks made to conceal a Poisoner's Dagger on your body (see the Sleight of Hand skill).
A character who is proficient in the use of Daggers and has the Poison Use ability is automatically proficient in the use of Poisoner's Daggers as well.
Poisoner's Needle
This weapon is so tiny it can barely be called a weapon at all, resembling a sewing needle more than an actual dagger. It is slightly hollowed out, and strengthened to better fulfil its purpose.
When attacking a flat-footed (or unaware) target with this weapon as a standard action, you may roll a Sleight of Hand check opposed by the target's Spot check as part of the attack. If you succeed, the target does not immediately realize it has been stung, although it does realize you touched it.
The size and frailty of the weapon means you can never add your strength score or any other damage bonuses on to your damage roll with the weapon (not even Sneak Attack damage).
You get a +4 bonus on Sleight of Hand checks made to conceal a Poisoner's Needle on your body (see the Sleight of Hand skill)
A character who has at least 4 ranks in Sleight of Hand as well as the Poison Use ability is automatically proficient in the use of Poisoner's Needles.
Other Tools
Goods
Cost
Weight
Antivenom
100 gp
1/5 lb
Antivenom
Poisons are rarely dangerous to the well-prepared. By administering a dose of antivenom as part of making a Heal check to treat Poison, the poison is immediately ended as if its duration had expired should the Heal check succeed.
Each dose of antivenom affects only one type of poison, or in the case of creature poisons, all poisons derived from one type of creature.
Antivenoms do not generally exist for poisons that require magic to create. Some such poisons may have rare, special, or even unique antivenoms.
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Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
Lolth's Caress [DIVINE] (Feat, updated from Drow of the Underdark) You can channel negative energy to accelerate poisonous effects. Prerequisite: Rebuke undead, drow or Lolth as patron deity. Benefit: You can spend a rebuke undead attempt to speed up the effects of a non-instantaneous poison, affecting all creatures within 20 feet of you. Any poisoned creature in the area that has yet to make saving throws due to a poison whose duration has not yet expired must make the next saving throw immediately. This may shorten the poison's total duration. Normal: Non-instantaneous poisons enforce saving throws at set intervals, or when certain conditions arise.
Virulent (Weapon enhancement, updated from Drow of the Underdark) Price: +1 bonus Property: Melee weapon or ammunition Caster Level: 7th Aura: Moderate; (DC 18) necromancy Activation: - Oozing pits mar the surface of this weapon.
When you apply contact or injury poison to a virulent weapon, the poison becomes fast acting.
Targets struck by a virulent weapon coated by a poison that enforces saving throws on certain intervals has the length of those intervals halved (to a minimum of 1 round). If the length of the intervals is random, roll the appropriate die and divide the result by two. Prerequisite: Craft Magic Arms and Armor, poison. Cost to Create: Varies.
Heal (Skill, updated from the Player's Handbook) Treat Poison
To treat poison means to tend a single character who has been poisoned and who is going to take more damage from the poison (or suffer some other effect). Every time the poisoned character makes a saving throw against the poison, you make a Heal check. The poisoned character uses your check result or his or her saving throw, whichever is higher.
If you succeed on your Heal check to treat poison by ten or more, the poison is instead immediately ended, as if its duration had expired. Identify Poison
To identify a poison from its symptoms or taste, or to detect its presence when examining a corpse, make a Heal check with a DC equal to the poison's craft DC. Much like a Knowledge skill, this use of the Heal skill does not require an action of its own. No retry.
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Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
I just got off a 14 hour shift, so I don't have time to read all the stat-blocks right now, but I want to go on record saying that I've always hated the 1-save, 2-save (red-save, blue-save) mechanic as well, and that I like your solution to the problem. I'll be back in to look this over some more when I wake up.
Well, I look forward to seeing what you have to say.
I have made some minor adjustments and typo corrections to the text above. Most notably, I nerfed (Psionic) Minor/Major Creation to the ground when it comes to making poisons.
(Although they are still probably the best way to get some.)
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Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
Are there rules for mitigating the costs of crafting poisons? Like, a Beast Heart Adept can have a Wyvern as a pet, which would seem to make the harvesting of wyvern venom much much easier.
Also, one problem I noticed: under Oil of Taggit, you have the type listed as "injury" but the description says "One minute after ingestion".
__________________ The Good Reverend
Just call me PPR, no need to type the whole thing.
Are there rules for mitigating the costs of crafting poisons? Like, a Beast Heart Adept can have a Wyvern as a pet, which would seem to make the harvesting of wyvern venom much much easier.
Having a pet Wyvern to milk should qualify you for the "materials available without going through the black market" discount.
I should probably just make that explicit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by peterpaulrubens
Also, one problem I noticed: under Oil of Taggit, you have the type listed as "injury" but the description says "One minute after ingestion".
I think it's the "one minute after ingestion" that's the copypasta error.
Will fix.
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Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
This is really nicely made, I never liked the poison rules. Also, a mixture of aphrodin and fat man's mercy is possibly the most evil ingested toxin on the planet.
Fatigue makes me wax philosophic and/or babble. If I've posted something strange and tangential, that is probably the cause. This entry would be an example.
I really like this, it actually makes poisons useful. I'll definitely be using this in my game.
In addition it improves the power of my Spider Blood Assassins which rely on poisons.
__________________ My Homebrew (180+ and still counting) Horribly Out of Date
Quote:
Originally Posted by Crasical
I once had a DM shoot down my wizard with an octopus familiar idea when I pointed out the ink loophole and declared my intention to escape bad situations by holding my pet above my head and shouting "BEHOLD, THE OCTOPUS!" before disappearing in a cloud of chemical darkness.
I see a lot of poisons that might as well be "die, no save" if you don't have a magical cure handy. You might want to at the very least provide a manner for Heal checks to help cure even those poisons that have a duration of "until cured".
Ever want to try your hand at optimizing, but dislike heavy emphasis on splatbooks and/or the rocket tag phenomenon?
Come visit the Core Coliseum today, for a totally different style of optimization.
Heal checks already let you substitute them for saves vs. Poison...
And it wouldn't be that hard to just have a skill trick that let's you give a person saves against poisons, or that let's you remove a poison if they successfully save against that poison twice.
Really, we need to buff up the Heal skill, and not just in making it heal HP damage (I actually think that it should, in the short term, give you Temporary HP, which converts into real HP with a night's rest; not much, just enough to get you up and running.)
Ever want to try your hand at optimizing, but dislike heavy emphasis on splatbooks and/or the rocket tag phenomenon?
Come visit the Core Coliseum today, for a totally different style of optimization.
Hmm, fair point about the Heal skill not being useful enough against these.
Added a special use update to the Heal skill. Should be difficult/impossible to pull off with nothing but the raw Wisdom modifier, but hardly if you're actually good at healing.
Also added mundane antivenom. Should be easier to stock up on that than Neutralize Poison potions when you know you're heading off towards Monstrous Scorpion territory.
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Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
Deathblade+Poisoner's Needle+Palm Toss (Master Thrower PrC)=6-8 Con damage a round, depending on how many attacks land.
Hmm, problems I see with that:
Cost. Throwing a 1200gp poison multiple times per round gets expensive fast.
The needle is not a throwing weapon, it does not have a range increment.
Plain efficiency. Deathblade deals more damage the larger the delivering weapon's die, I imagined that one would be put on Blackguards' enlarged greatswords, not needles.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Amechra
Also, can Poisoner's Needles be enchanted?
Yes, they are weapons.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Amechra
And roughly how large is one dose?
I guess they'd be stored in a D&D vial. Some abstraction has to happen, though, unless you like the idea of a dose always being measured by volume, rather than the minimum amount required to make a poison deliver its intended effect.
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Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
Would like to add:
Manufactured Poison Alcohol
Cost: 2cp
Type: Ingested, taste DC 5
Source: Plant matter (Varies by type and region)
Craft DC: 5
Onset: 3d4 minutes.
Duration: 1d4 hours
Effect: 1 point of temporary Wisdom and constitution damage. Fortitude negates.
Additional doses are cumulative, and each additional dose within a 24 hour period gives +1 to the save DC. (This effect stacks)
Special: Alcohol can also be created with Craft: Brewmaking. Profession: Brewer adds a synergy bonus. There is no minimum ranks neccesary to craft Alcohol, although nonproficient attempts to do so take a -4 penalty.
Alcohol is made in vats, kegs, or stills, and is rarely made as a single dose, and is the most common form of poison, only illegal in the most restrictive communities.
Deathblade is plant-based; minor creation can create single doses of it for pretty much free.
Plus, (and this is what I was getting at with the whole "can you enchant it"), what about enchantments that add damage? Because I don't see them as being something that the fragility of the item would prevent.
Other than that... Throw Anything is your fwiend.
Still, yeah, you would want to put it on a greatsword, but still...
Or, if you really want to be silly, use Expansion to hit Huge, and wield a Poisoner's Needle that has been resized so that it is large enough to be a 2-handed weapon.
Attack as a standard action.
They didn't notice you impale them with the needle.
Would like to add:
Manufactured Poison Alcohol
Cost: 2cp
Type: Ingested, taste DC 5
Source: Plant matter (Varies by type and region)
Craft DC: 5
Onset: 3d4 minutes.
Duration: 1d4 hours
Effect: 1 point of temporary Wisdom and constitution damage. Fortitude negates.
Additional doses are cumulative, and each additional dose within a 24 hour period gives +1 to the save DC. (This effect stacks)
Special: Alcohol can also be created with Craft: Brewmaking. Profession: Brewer adds a synergy bonus. There is no minimum ranks neccesary to craft Alcohol, although nonproficient attempts to do so take a -4 penalty.
Alcohol is made in vats, kegs, or stills, and is rarely made as a single dose, and is the most common form of poison, only illegal in the most restrictive communities.
Hmm, interesting. There's a thread about how to handle alcohol (poisoning) is going on in the 3.5 subforum, going to see what comes out of that. Will probably add something like this.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Amechra
Deathblade is plant-based; minor creation can create single doses of it for pretty much free.
Plus, (and this is what I was getting at with the whole "can you enchant it"), what about enchantments that add damage? Because I don't see them as being something that the fragility of the item would prevent.
Other than that... Throw Anything is your fwiend.
Still, yeah, you would want to put it on a greatsword, but still...
Or, if you really want to be silly, use Expansion to hit Huge, and wield a Poisoner's Needle that has been resized so that it is large enough to be a 2-handed weapon.
Attack as a standard action.
They didn't notice you impale them with the needle.
Deathblade requires magic as part of its creation process, no Minor Creation for you.
But yes, oversized, super-enchanted needles can get very funny.
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Halfling healer avatar by Akrim.elf.
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Poisons for Advanced Scoundrels
By Aruius.
