Deadly Dust

From: Shadowvine

The lore surrounding Deadly Dust revolves around an ancient order of assassins known for their mastery of poisons and covert techniques. Seeking a method to dispatch their targets swiftly and without a trace, they developed the recipe for Deadly Dust. This lethal concoction, made from a combination of Shadowvine leaves and powdered bone, became a fearsome tool in their arsenal.

The ingredients required to create Deadly Dust are as follows:

• Dried and ground Shadowvine leaves: These leaves are carefully harvested from the shadowy forests where the deadly Shadowvine plant thrives. Known for its toxic properties, the leaves are dried and ground into a fine powder to serve as the base of Deadly Dust.
• Powdered bone: Obtained from various sources such as animal remains or specifically prepared bone fragments, powdered bone is added to enhance the potency of the mixture. The bone acts as a catalyst, facilitating the rapid absorption and circulation of the poison within the victim’s body.
• Small pouch: A compact container or pouch is used to store the Deadly Dust, ensuring its portability and ease of use during covert operations.

The process of creating Deadly Dust involves the following steps:

• Grind dried Shadowvine leaves: The dried leaves are carefully ground into a fine powder using a mortar and pestle or a similar grinding tool. This step requires precision to achieve a consistent texture.
• Mix with powdered bone: The powdered bone is added to the ground Shadowvine leaves, and the two ingredients are thoroughly mixed. This blending process ensures the proper distribution and synergy of the components.
• Store in a small pouch: The resulting mixture is then carefully transferred and stored in a small pouch or container, ready for use in the field.

The use of Deadly Dust is primarily centered around its lethal effects on living organisms. When applied to wounds or inhaled, the dust delivers a potent poison into the bloodstream, leading to rapid poisoning and organ failure. The effects are swift and deadly, causing incapacitation or death within a short period.

Assigning values to the various aspects of Deadly Dust:

Tier One Stats:

• Poisoning duration: 10 minutes.
• Severity of organ failure: High.
• Fatality rate: Moderate.

Skills gained:

• Herbalism: Intermediate.
• Stealth: Beginner.

Preparation:

• Skill required: Herbalism (Intermediate).
• Time required: 3 hours.
• Success rate: 75%.

Cost:

• Dried and ground Shadowvine leaves: Rare and expensive. Sourced from specific regions or specialized suppliers.
• Powdered bone: Moderate cost. Obtainable from various sources, including butchers or alchemical suppliers.
• Small pouch: Low cost. Easily acquired from general marketplaces or specialized suppliers.

Process:

• Harvest and dry Shadowvine leaves.
• Grind the dried leaves into a fine powder.
• Mix the ground Shadowvine leaves with powdered bone.
• Thoroughly blend the ingredients to ensure consistency.
• Transfer the Deadly Dust mixture to a small pouch or container.

Tags:

• Assassination: Deadly Dust is a favored tool for covert eliminations.
• Poison: The dust inflicts a potent poison upon contact or inhalation.
• Covert Operations: Utilized by skilled assassins and operatives for clandestine missions.
• Additional: Lethal Powder, Inhalation Hazard, Fast-Acting, Untraceable, Bone Catalyst, Shadow Arts, Espionage Tool, Black Market Item, Toxic Mixture, Silent Killer

The recipe for Deadly Dust is not openly sold or readily available in conventional marketplaces. Due to its highly dangerous nature and association with clandestine activities, the recipe remains shrouded in secrecy, known only to a select few individuals or organizations.

In order to gain access to the recipe, one would need to establish contact with secretive factions or underground networks that specialize in poisons, assassinations, or covert operations. These networks may operate in the shadows, maintaining a hidden presence within criminal underworlds, exclusive guilds, or underground societies. Proving one’s worth, loyalty, or skills may be required to gain the trust necessary to be initiated into the secrets of Deadly Dust.

Once the recipe is acquired, the end results of using Deadly Dust can be applied in various ways, depending on the goals and intentions of the user. Some potential uses include:

• Assassinations: Deadly Dust is primarily employed as a lethal tool for assassinations. Covert agents or assassins may sprinkle the dust on an opponent’s wounds or create a cloud of dust to be inhaled, inducing rapid poisoning and organ failure. The targeted individual experiences a swift decline in health, leading to incapacitation or death.
• Covert Operations: In the realm of espionage and covert operations, Deadly Dust can be used to eliminate high-value targets discreetly. It can be strategically applied during infiltration missions or used as a means of ensuring that no traces are left behind after the completion of a mission.
• Manipulation and Intimidation: The knowledge of possessing Deadly Dust can also serve as a tool for manipulation and intimidation. Individuals or organizations may use the threat of the poison’s lethal effects as a means of coercion, gaining leverage or compliance from their adversaries.
• Poison Crafting and Trade: In some instances, those who possess the recipe for Deadly Dust might become involved in the crafting and trade of poisons. They may supply Deadly Dust to other assassins, criminals, or shadowy figures in exchange for favors, information, or financial compensation.

The end results of using Deadly Dust are typically lethal, inducing rapid poisoning and organ failure in the targeted individuals. The severity of the effects can vary depending on factors such as the dosage, the victim’s health, and the specific circumstances of the application. Deadly Dust is considered a potent and dangerous substance, necessitating caution and precision when handling and administering it.

Silent Scourge and the Shadow’s Price

From the crumbling annals of a forgotten age, inscribed on tablets of obsidian, comes this fragmented narrative. It tells of the genesis of a dread substance, known only as the Silent Scourge, the Deadly Dust in modern parlance, a weapon whispered about in the darkest corners of the world.

In the epoch when the stars were young and the shadows held dominion over the mortal realm, there existed a clandestine order, known in the scant surviving texts as the Veiled Hand. They were masters of the unseen, assassins whose skills were honed to a razor’s edge, their very existence a secret guarded more fiercely than any treasure.

The Veiled Hand sought ever more efficient methods to dispatch their targets, to leave no trace, no whisper of their presence. Their leader, a figure shrouded in mystery, known only as the Umbral Master, was obsessed with creating the ultimate weapon of assassination. A weapon that could kill swiftly, silently, and without fail.

The Umbral Master delved into forbidden lore, seeking knowledge in places where even the bravest dared not tread. He consulted with ancient entities, beings of immense power that dwelled in the void between worlds. These entities spoke of the Shadowvine, a plant of deadly potency that grew only in the deepest, darkest forests, where the sun’s rays never touched the earth. They whispered that the plant held the key to the Umbral Master’s desires, but warned that such power came with a terrible cost.

Ignoring the warnings, the Umbral Master, driven by his insatiable ambition, journeyed to the shadowed forests. After a perilous search, he found the Shadowvine, its leaves a deep, ominous green, pulsating with a faint, inner darkness. He harvested the leaves, taking care not to touch them with his bare skin, for even a moment’s contact could bring a swift and agonizing death.

Upon returning to the hidden sanctum of the Veiled Hand, the Umbral Master began his experiments. He learned that the leaves alone were not enough. He needed a catalyst, something to bind the poison and make it even more potent. The ancient texts spoke of bone, ground to dust, as a conduit for dark energies.

The Umbral Master, in his ruthless pursuit of perfection, ordered the bones of their fallen enemies to be collected and ground into a fine powder. He then combined this macabre ingredient with the dried and crushed Shadowvine leaves, chanting incantations learned from the void entities.

The result was the Silent Scourge, a fine, greyish dust that seemed to absorb the light around it. It was a weapon of terrifying efficiency. A mere pinch, applied to a wound or inhaled, brought a swift and silent death, the victim’s organs failing within minutes.

The Veiled Hand used the Silent Scourge to devastating effect, their power and influence growing with each silent assassination. But the Umbral Master soon discovered the truth of the entities’ warning. The Scourge was not merely a weapon; it was a curse. It is said that continued use slowly consumed the souls of those who wielded it, and that the Umbral Master paid the ultimate price. The stories of what happened next are conflicted, poorly translated, and otherwise lost to time.

Moral: The pursuit of power, especially through dark and forbidden means, often leads to unforeseen consequences. Every bargain has a price, and the cost of ultimate power may be far greater than one can imagine, consuming not only the body but also the soul. The deadliest weapons are often those that destroy not only the target but also the wielder.

Suggested conversions to other systems:

Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition

Deadly Dust

• Description: A fine, greyish powder that seems to absorb light. It is stored in small, inconspicuous pouches and has a faint, acrid smell.
• Sanity Loss: 0/1d3 (upon witnessing the effects of the dust or realizing its true nature).
• Effects: When inhaled or applied to an open wound, the Deadly Dust acts as a potent poison. The victim must make a CON roll.
• On a failure: The victim takes 1d10 damage immediately and begins to suffer from organ failure, losing 1d4 CON per round. Death occurs when CON reaches 0.
• On a hard success: The victim takes half the initial damage (rounded down) and loses 1 CON per round.
• On an extreme success: They are unaffected.
• First Aid/Medicine: A successful First Aid or Medicine roll can stabilize a victim, halting the CON loss, but it does not cure the poison. Only magical healing can restore lost CON and remove the poison’s effects.
• Availability: Extremely rare; likely found only in the possession of ancient cults, secretive assassin organizations, or in forgotten, dangerous locales.
• Cost: Priceless (or an exorbitant amount, if found for sale).
• Build: 0
• Example Use in Game: An investigator, pursuing a cult, discovers a pouch of Deadly Dust. Later, they witness a cultist sprinkle the dust on a captive’s wound. The captive suffers immediate damage and begins to rapidly deteriorate, losing CON each round until they are stabilized with a successful Medicine roll, but they will need magic to recover fully.

Blades in the Dark

Deadly Dust

• Item Type: Alchemical
• Quality: Tier IV (reflecting the rarity and potency of the ingredients)
• Usage: Applied to wounds or inhaled.
• Effect: When applied to a target, the Deadly Dust inflicts the level 4 harm “Swift and Agonizing Death.” A character suffering this harm dies within a few ticks of the clock unless they receive immediate and potent magical or alchemical intervention, as determined by the GM.
• Delivery: The dust can be placed on a weapon to be delivered with a successful attack, or blown into the face of a target with a successful Prowl or Finesse roll, with the level of effect determining the potency, if any.
• Tags: Delicate, Single Use, Lethal, Silent
• Availability: Extremely rare; acquired through special opportunities or crafted by those with access to lost lore and rare ingredients.
• Crafting:
  • Requirements: A character must have access to an alchemical lab and expend one downtime activity. They must also make an appropriate roll (e.g., Study or Tinker) with a standard effect of creating a Tier II version of the dust. The difficulty and tier of the roll can be adjusted based on the resources available and the character’s connections. Each attempt to increase the Tier requires rare ingredients and another downtime activity.
  • Cost: The cost of acquiring dried Shadowvine leaves and powdered bone. This could range from 6 to 8 coin or more, depending on the circumstances.
• Example Use in Game: A Cutter coats their blade with Deadly Dust before an assassination attempt. If they successfully wound their target, the target suffers the level 4 harm “Swift and Agonizing Death” and will die quickly unless they receive immediate and powerful aid.

Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition

Deadly Dust

• Item Type: Poison (inhaled or injury)
• Description: A fine, grey powder stored in a small pouch. It is almost imperceptible when বাতাসে (in the air) and has a faint, earthy smell.
• Effect: A creature subjected to this poison must make a DC 17 Constitution saving throw.
• On a failed save: The creature takes 22 (4d10) poison damage and is poisoned for 1 minute. While poisoned in this way, the target’s internal organs begin to fail, and at the start of each of its turns, it takes 11 (2d10) poison damage.
• On a successful save: The creature takes half as much damage and is poisoned for 1 round.
• Application: The dust can be applied to a weapon as an action. It retains its potency for 1 minute before dissipating. It can also be thrown into the face of a creature as an action. That creature is within 5 feet of a point you can see, you can throw a pinch of dust at that point. Each creature within 5 feet of that point must succeed on a saving throw or suffer the effects.
• Crafting: Crafting Deadly Dust requires proficiency with the Poisoner’s Kit and access to rare and dangerous ingredients, including dried Shadowvine leaves and specially prepared powdered bone, valued at no less than 800 gp total. The process typically requires 1 workweek of effort and a successful DC 20 Intelligence (Nature) check.
• Example Use in Game: An assassin throws a pouch of Deadly Dust into a group of guards. Each guard within 5 feet must make a DC 17 Constitution saving throw, taking significant poison damage and suffering organ failure on a failed save.

Knave

Deadly Dust

• Item: Poison
• Description: A small pouch filled with a fine, grey powder that is almost invisible when dispersed in the air.
• Effect: When inhaled or applied to an open wound, the Deadly Dust forces the victim to make a দুর্গ্রহ (Misfortune) save.
• On a failure: The victim immediately takes 1d6 damage per round for 1d4 rounds. Death occurs if the victim takes damage greater than their remaining HP.
• On a success: The victim takes half damage each round.
• Delivery: The dust can be applied to a weapon, adding its effects to a successful attack. It can also be thrown into the air as an action, affecting all creatures within a 5-foot radius.
• Inventory Slot: 1
• Cost: 800 sp (if found for sale, which is highly unlikely)
• Crafting: Crafting Deadly Dust in Knave would be a major undertaking, likely the focus of an entire adventure. The GM would need to determine the specific challenges involved in acquiring the rare ingredients and the knowledge needed to brew the poison.
• Example Use in Game: A thief throws a pinch of Deadly Dust into the face of a guard. The guard must make a Misfortune save, taking damage each round on a failed save, potentially leading to a swift and silent death.

Fate (Fate Core)

Deadly Dust

• Aspect: Silent Killer Dust
• Description: A fine, insidious powder that delivers a lethal dose of poison, swiftly and silently.
• Permissions: Can be used by anyone, though characters with skills related to stealth, poisons, or assassination might gain additional benefits or insights when using or creating the dust.
• Cost: Creating the dust would likely require overcoming a significant challenge to acquire rare ingredients like dried Shadowvine leaves and specially prepared powdered bone (using Lore, Contacts, or other appropriate skills). The difficulty should reflect the campaign’s power level.
• Effect:
  • Create an Advantage: When used against a target, Deadly Dust can create an advantage aspect like “Poisoned” or “Organ Failure” on them. The difficulty of creating the advantage depends on how the dust is used, with direct application to wounds or inhalation being easier than trying to poison food or drink subtly.
  • Invoke: Once the target has a related aspect, the dust’s aspect can be invoked for a +2 bonus or a reroll on any roll related to the poison’s effects, such as increasing damage or overcoming the target’s resistance.
  • Overcome: The “Poisoned” or similar aspect can be overcome with an action, reflecting the target’s attempts to fight off the poison’s effects. The difficulty to overcome the aspect should be high, reflecting the potency of the Deadly Dust. A character might need to make a Physique roll to resist the poison’s effects, or a Lore roll to find a way to counteract it.
  • Consequences: If the target fails to overcome the poison and takes consequences, they could be severe, reflecting the deadly nature of the dust. Examples include “Failing Organs” (Mild), “Internal Hemorrhaging” (Moderate), or even ” ಸಾವಿನ ಅంచు” (On the Brink of Death) (Severe).
• Example Use in Game: A character throws a pinch of Deadly Dust into a guard’s face, creating the advantage “Poisoned” on the guard with two free invokes. They then invoke the “Silent Killer Dust” aspect to increase the severity of the poison’s effects, potentially inflicting a severe consequence on the guard.

Numenera & Cypher System (Cypher System Rulebook)

Deadly Dust

• Type: Cypher (consumable)
• Level: 1d6 + 4
• Effect: When inhaled or applied to an open wound, the Deadly Dust inflicts a potent toxin. The target must succeed at a Might defense roll with a difficulty equal to the cypher’s level or take the level of the cypher in damage, ignoring armor, as their organs begin to fail. The target continues to take half the damage amount, rounded down, at the start of each of their turns. This effect lasts for a number of rounds equal to the cypher’s level. A successful Intellect defense roll (difficulty equal to the cypher’s level) is needed to identify the poison and administer an antidote, if one is available.
• Form: A small pouch filled with a fine, greyish powder.
• Depletion: 1 (single use)
• Example Use in Game: A Glaive applies Deadly Dust (level 6) to their blade and wounds an enemy. The enemy must make a Might defense roll (difficulty 6) or take 6 points of damage, ignoring armor, and an additional 3 points of damage each round for 6 rounds.

Pathfinder (Pathfinder 2nd Edition)

Deadly Dust

• Item Type: Alchemical Item (Consumable, Poison, Inhaled or Injury)
• Level: 9
• Price: 1,000 gp
• Usage: Held in 1 hand; Bulk: L
• Activate: Interact
• Description: This small pouch contains a fine, grey powder made from ground Shadowvine leaves and powdered bone. It is a potent and fast-acting poison.
• Effect:
  • Saving Throw: DC 22 Fortitude
  • Onset: Immediate
  • Maximum Duration: 4 rounds
  • Stage 1: 4d6 poison damage and drained 1 (1 round)
  • Stage 2: 6d6 poison damage and drained 2 (1 round)
  • Stage 3: 8d6 poison damage and dead
• Crafting: To craft Deadly Dust, you must have the Alchemical Crafting feat and be at least 9th level. You need a formula for the dust, access to an alchemist’s lab, and raw materials worth 400 gp, including dried Shadowvine leaves and specially prepared powdered bone. The Craft activity takes 4 days.
• Example Use in Game: An assassin throws a pouch of Deadly Dust at an enemy. The enemy must make a DC 22 Fortitude save. On a failure, they immediately take 4d6 poison damage and are drained 1. Each subsequent round, they must repeat the save, suffering increasing damage and drained condition on each failure, ultimately leading to death at stage 3.

Savage Worlds (Savage Worlds Adventure Edition)

Deadly Dust

• Type: Poison (Special)
• Description: A small pouch of fine, grey powder that is incredibly lethal when inhaled or applied to wounds.
• Effects: When a character is exposed to Deadly Dust (either through inhalation or by being applied to a wound), they must make a Vigor roll at -4.
• Success: The character resists the worst effects of the poison but is Shaken.
• Failure: The character suffers 4d6 damage and is Incapacitated.
• Critical Failure: The character immediately dies.
• Delivery: Deadly Dust can be thrown as an action, affecting a single target within Short range. It can also be applied to a weapon, adding its effects to a successful attack. If a character is wearing a gas mask or similar protection, they have a +4 bonus on their Vigor roll to resist.
• Cost: 800 (reflecting the rarity and lethality of the ingredients)
• Availability: Very Rare; found only in black markets or in the possession of master assassins.
• Example Use in Game: An assassin throws a pinch of Deadly Dust at a target. The target must make a Vigor roll at -4. On a failure, they take 4d6 damage and are Incapacitated, while on a Critical Failure, they die instantly. On a success, they are merely Shaken, but still alive.

Shadowrun (Shadowrun, Sixth World)

Deadly Dust

• Type: Chemical Toxin (Inhalation, Contact)
• Description: A highly potent, refined poison in dust form, created from rare alchemical ingredients. It is designed to be swift and untraceable, causing rapid organ failure.
• Vector: Inhalation or Contact. The dust can be thrown at a target (using the Throwing Weapons skill) or applied to a weapon (requiring a melee attack).
• Speed: 1 Combat Turn (Immediate)
• Penetration: -4
• Power: 14
• Effect: When a target is exposed to Deadly Dust, they must resist with Body + Toxin Resistance. Each net hit reduces the damage by 1. Failure inflicts 14 boxes of Physical damage. Each three boxes of damage not resisted inflicts 1 box of Physical damage that is not resisted by armor, as internal organs begin to shut down.
• Special: This toxin is designed to be difficult to detect and counteract. Apply a -4 dice pool modifier to any tests to detect or identify the poison using magical or technological means.
• Availability: 16F (Forbidden)
• Cost: 1,200¥
• Street Index: 3
• Example Use in Game: A Street Samurai throws a vial of Deadly Dust at a target. The target must resist the toxin’s effects with Body + Toxin Resistance. Each net hit scored by the attacker increases the damage, potentially leading to swift incapacitation or death.

Starfinder (Starfinder Core Rulebook)

Deadly Dust

• Item Type: Poison (Drug, Inhaled or Injury)
• Level: 10
• Price: 1,800 credits
• Description: This fine, grey powder is a potent, fast-acting poison that causes rapid organ failure.
• Saving Throw: Fortitude DC 18
• Track: Physical
• Frequency: 1/round for 6 rounds
• Effect:
• Initial Effect: 2d6 Constitution damage
• Secondary Effect: 1d6 Constitution damage and 1d6 Dexterity damage
• Cure: 2 consecutive saves
• Delivery:
• Inhaled: The dust can be thrown as a ranged attack against a single target’s EAC (energy armor class) within 10 feet. On a hit, the target is affected by the inhaled version of the poison.
• Injury: The dust can be applied to a melee weapon as a standard action. The next successful attack with the weapon within 1 minute delivers the poison.
• Bulk: L
• Example Use in Game: An Operative applies Deadly Dust to their weapon. On a successful attack, the target must make a DC 18 Fortitude save. Failure means they suffer initial and secondary effects, taking Constitution and Dexterity damage each round until they make two consecutive saves or are cured by other means.

Traveller (Mongoose Traveller 2nd Edition)

Deadly Dust

• Item: Toxin (Inhalation or Injury), TL 12
• Description: This highly illegal substance is a potent, fast-acting poison that causes rapid organ failure when inhaled or introduced to the bloodstream.
• Effect: When a target is exposed to Deadly Dust, they must make an Endurance check (difficulty 10+).
• Inhalation: If inhaled, the dust affects all individuals within a 2-meter radius.
• Injury: If introduced via a wound, the dust affects only the injured individual.
• Failure: The target suffers 3d6 damage and must make another Endurance check each round. Each subsequent failure inflicts an additional 2d6 damage.
• Success: The target takes half damage rounded down and does not need to make further checks.
• Special: Detecting or identifying this toxin imposes a -2 DM on any relevant checks due to its refined nature.
• Availability: 14
• Cost: Cr1,600
• Mass: Negligible
• Legality Class: 6 (highly illegal)
• Example Use in Game: An assassin throws a vial of Deadly Dust into a room, affecting all individuals within a 2-meter radius. Each target must make an Endurance check, suffering significant damage on a failure and continuing to take damage each round until they succeed or are treated.

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition)

Deadly Dust

• Type: Poison (Inhaled, Injury)
• Description: A finely ground mixture of deadly Shadowvine leaves and other alchemical ingredients, this dust is a swift and silent killer.
• Availability: Extremely Rare
• Cost: 12 GC (if found for sale)
• Encumbrance: 0
• Effects: When a creature inhales or is wounded by a weapon coated in Deadly Dust, it must make a Hard (-20) Endurance Test.
• Failure: The creature suffers 6 Wounds ignoring Toughness Bonus and armour. Additionally, the creature must make a further Challenging (+0) Endurance Test each round for the next 1d10 rounds. Each failure inflicts an additional 3 Wounds, ignoring Toughness Bonus and armour.
• Success: The creature suffers half the initial damage (rounded down) and does not need to make further tests.
• Special: Due to its refined nature, any attempts to identify or counteract the effects of Deadly Dust suffer a -20 penalty.
• Preparation Time: 1 Round to apply to a weapon.
• Trade: Unlikely to be found for sale.
• Example Use in Game: An assassin coats their blade with Deadly Dust and successfully wounds a target. The target must make a Hard (-20) Endurance Test, suffering significant damage on a failure and potentially taking further damage each round until they succeed or are treated.