When a creature is dropped with dirtydark damage or dealt it while down, they are terrored. This condition ends when they are no longer down. Dirtydark damage also leaves lasting long term health consequences that may take years to be observed. If a creature takes dirtydark damage, roll 1d100 each month. If they took N damage, then a roll of N or lower means they develop stage 1 black rot. For every month that passes without black rot developing, the chance of getting it decreases and the number lowers by 1. But the risk of black rot it never goes away entirely. Unless properly treated, a roll of 1 will always lead to black rot, no matter how it's been since the dirtydark damage was taken. If a creature develops black rot, they start to weaken and age rapidly. For every month with black rot, roll 1d100. On a roll of 50 or less, the black rot progresses to the next stage.
| Stage | Symptoms |
|---|---|
| 1 | Fatigue and shortness of breath. Become permanently lightly encumbered. |
| 2 | Roll 1d4 to determine if the black rot starts in the arm, leg, vitals, or body. The body part becomes permanently hacked and loses all color, becoming a sickly grey instead. If vitals was rolled, roll 1d4 to determine which part of the vitals was affected. |
| 3 | The black rot starts expanding to other parts of the body. Start withering at a rate of 1 per day. And roll 1d4 each week to determine what area of the body black rot expands into. If you roll an area that already has it, progress the hack accordingly. This means adding an additional arm, leg, or vitals hack. If it progresses in the body, take . A creature with stage 3 black rot is also inept at magically powered abilities. |
| 4 | The black rot progresses to all parts of the body. The creature is fully hacked, takes 1d10 wither each day and is incapable of magically powered abilities. They also develop a Thin Soul. |
| 5 | If a creature survives to stage 5 black rot, they become incapable of all resistance, hexproof, hexseal, and immunity effects and they start suffocating. They also develop a Frail Soul. |
Black rot cannot be removed with Cure Illness or Exorcism.