Venomous Wine

From: Shadowvine

Lore: The recipe for Venomous Wine is steeped in dark legends and tales of betrayal. It is said to have originated in a cursed vineyard located in a forsaken realm, where the Shadowvine plant and its venomous essence thrived. Legends tell of a notorious poisoner known as Malachi the Viper, who discovered the recipe and used it as a tool to exact revenge on those who crossed him. The vineyard, tainted by Malachi’s malevolence, became a place of dread and sorrow, its grapes forever infused with the toxic essence of the Shadowvine. Over time, the recipe for Venomous Wine spread through whispers among assassins, poisoners, and those willing to embrace the darkness.

Use: Venomous Wine is a potent and insidious tool employed by those seeking to eliminate their targets with a slow and agonizing demise. The poisoned wine is typically administered to unsuspecting victims who consume it willingly or are tricked into doing so. The effects of Venomous Wine include:

• Subtle Assassination: The slow-acting poison in the wine takes effect over a period of time, allowing the user to maintain a veil of innocence while their victim succumbs to a lingering demise. This method of assassination is particularly effective when the user wishes to avoid immediate suspicion or desires the target to suffer.
• Social Manipulation: Venomous Wine can be used as a tool for manipulation and control within social settings. By offering the poisoned wine as a gift or in a celebratory context, the user can create alliances, gain trust, or further their own agenda. The unsuspecting individuals who consume the wine remain unaware of the imminent danger until it is too late.
• Symbolic Retribution: In certain circumstances, Venomous Wine can be employed as a form of poetic justice or retribution. It serves as a message to those who have wronged the user or their allies, demonstrating the consequences of their actions through a slow and agonizing demise. This method is often employed by those seeking to strike fear, exact revenge, or establish their dominance in a calculated and theatrical manner.

Stats:

• Level Requirement: Tier 1

Skills:

• Poisoner: Characters proficient in poison preparation and manipulation gain an advantage in infusing Shadowvine venom into the wine without compromising its taste or appearance.
• Deception: Characters skilled in Deception can effectively mask the taste and scent of the poison, ensuring that the victim remains unsuspecting.

Preparation:

• Skill Requirement: Poisoner (DC 12)
• Time Required: 2 hours
• Resources: Shadowvine venom (1 vial), aged red wine (1 bottle), moonflower essence (a few drops)

Cost:

• Shadowvine Venom: 50 gold pieces (GP) per vial (due to its rarity and potency)
• Aged Red Wine: 10 GP per bottle (quality may vary)
• Moonflower Essence: 5 GP per few drops (extracted from rare and delicate flowers)

Process:

• Carefully extract Shadowvine venom from the plant using specialized tools and techniques.
• Infuse the obtained Shadowvine venom into a bottle of aged red wine, ensuring a proper blend without compromising the wine’s integrity.
• Add a few drops of moonflower essence to the wine to mask the taste and scent of the venom.
• Allow the wine to settle and age for a minimum of 24 hours to ensure the full integration of the poison.

Tags:

• Subterfuge: Venomous Wine allows characters to employ subtle methods of assassination, avoiding immediate suspicion or detection.
• Lingering Poison: The slow-acting nature of the poison in the wine leads to a prolonged and painful demise for the victim.
• Luxury Item: Due to the cost and rarity of the ingredients involved, Venomous Wine is considered a luxury item available to those with significant resources or connections.
• Additional: Clandestine Beverage, Assassin’s Vintage, Shadowed Elegance, Toxic Indulgence, Slow Retribution, Poisonous Luxury, Subtle Execution, Dark Alchemy, Forbidden Delicacy, Black Market Exclusive

The recipe for Venomous Wine is not openly sold or readily available in conventional markets due to its highly dangerous and illicit nature. Instead, it circulates in secretive circles and underground networks associated with assassins, poisoners, and individuals who operate on the fringes of society.

• Black Market Connections:
  • Characters seeking access to the Venomous Wine recipe may need to establish connections within the black market, particularly those involved in the trade of illegal substances, poisons, or specialized alchemical items. This can be achieved through interactions with criminal contacts, underground guilds, or individuals known for their expertise in illicit goods. Gaining the trust of these shady individuals or proving one’s worth may be necessary to gain access to the recipe and its ingredients.
• Dark Alchemical Societies:
  • Within the shadowy corners of the world, secretive alchemical societies or cults may possess knowledge of the Venomous Wine recipe. These enigmatic groups often guard their secrets closely and may require characters to fulfill certain quests, favors, or initiation rites before divulging the recipe. The characters might need to navigate treacherous political landscapes, delve into forbidden knowledge, or prove their commitment to the cause of darkness.
• Occult Bookstores and Hidden Libraries:
  • Characters might stumble upon ancient and forbidden texts that contain the recipe for Venomous Wine in occult bookstores or hidden libraries. These stores and libraries are typically obscure, requiring characters to decipher cryptic clues or undertake dangerous quests to gain access to the knowledge contained within their ancient tomes. The proprietors of such establishments may be eccentric scholars, arcane practitioners, or secretive cultists.

Use: The Venomous Wine serves as a powerful tool of assassination and subterfuge, allowing characters to eliminate their targets discreetly and inflict a slow and agonizing demise. The end results and uses of the Venomous Wine can vary based on the character’s intentions and the nature of the campaign, including:

• Targeted Assassination: Characters may offer the Venomous Wine as a gift, a toast, or a celebratory offering to their intended target. Once consumed, the poison takes effect gradually, causing the victim to experience pain, weakness, and eventual death. This method allows the character to maintain plausible deniability and escape suspicion while their target suffers in secrecy.
• Covert Infiltration: Characters can use the Venomous Wine to gain access to restricted areas or high-security locations. By posing as a wine enthusiast, sommelier, or supplier, they can offer the poisoned wine to influential individuals or attend exclusive gatherings where the wine is expected. The slow-acting poison allows characters to depart the scene unnoticed while their target’s demise unfolds behind the scenes.
• Manipulation and Control: The Venomous Wine can serve as a tool of manipulation and control within political intrigues or power struggles. Characters may use the poisoned wine to compromise key figures, secure alliances, or eliminate rivals, thus shaping the course of events to their advantage. The long-lasting and painful effects of the poison leave a lasting impression on those who witness its consequences, fostering fear and compliance.

It is crucial to consider the ethical and moral implications of utilizing the Venomous Wine within the game’s context. Characters who employ such a deadly and treacherous method of assassination may face severe consequences, including retribution from powerful factions, investigation by law enforcement or rival assassins, and the erosion of their own moral compass.

Shadowvine’s Harvest

In a time when stars whispered secrets and the soil remembered sorrow, there lay a vineyard, shrouded in eternal twilight. It was said the grapes of this cursed land grew from vines fed by the weeping of the earth and the venom of shadows. Among the dark tendrils thrived the Shadowvine, a plant feared for its poison and revered for its beauty.

The tale tells of Malachi, a man whose name dripped with bitterness, known only as “the Viper” by those who dared speak of him. Once a noble vintner, Malachi fell to ruin when betrayal robbed him of his land and family. Consumed by grief, he wandered to the forsaken vineyard, where the Shadowvine whispered promises of vengeance.

Through countless nights, Malachi worked in secret. He crushed the venomous grapes under the pale light of the moon, blending their essence with herbs stolen from forgotten tombs. He created a wine so dark it seemed to drink the light around it, a wine that carried death in every drop. This was Venomous Wine, the nectar of slow retribution.

Legends say Malachi offered the wine to those who wronged him. In lavish feasts and solemn toasts, his enemies drank deeply, unaware of the doom coursing through their veins. Days passed, and they succumbed, their strength withering like vines in frost, their cries echoing as warnings to those who coveted his wrath.

But as with all things born of malice, the wine’s curse did not end with his vengeance. The vineyard became a place of despair, its soil soaked in sorrow and its wine tainted by Malachi’s cruelty. It is said the spirits of those who drank the Venomous Wine linger still, bound to the shadows, warning those who tread too close to the poison’s touch.

Moral of the Story: That which is crafted from bitterness and vengeance will bring ruin not only to others but to the maker as well.

Suggested conversions to other systems:

Call of Cthulhu (7th Edition)

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Alchemical Poison
• Uses per Bottle: 5 servings
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Consuming the wine triggers its effects after 1D4 hours.
  • Effect: The victim must make a CON roll:
    • Success: Mild symptoms (nausea, dizziness).
    • Failure: 1D6 damage per hour for 1D6 hours.
    • Critical Failure: 2D6 damage per hour and paralysis for 1D4 hours.
  • Countermeasure: A successful Medicine roll or antidote administered within the first hour halves the effects.
  • Cost: 200 gp per bottle (black market only).
• Crafting: Requires an Alchemy roll (Hard success) and rare ingredients, including Shadowvine venom.

Blades in the Dark

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Toxin (Special Item)
• Load: 1 (Small Item, per dose)
• Uses: 1 dose per serving
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Takes one downtime action to craft or obtain. The wine’s effects manifest 1 hour after ingestion.
  • Effect: The victim takes level 2 harm (“Poisoned by Wine”) unless they resist with Resolve.
  • If untreated, the harm escalates to level 3 (“Fatal Poisoning”) within 3 hours.
  • Crafting: Requires access to an alchemical laboratory and Frostbloom venom. Crafting costs 1 Coin and requires a Tier II or higher contact.
• Game Notes: Factions like assassins or poisoners highly value this item, making its crafting or acquisition dangerous.

Dungeons & Dragons (5e)

Item: Venomous Wine

• (Consumable)
• Type: Poison
• Cost: 250 gp per bottle
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Administering the wine requires deception or stealth to avoid detection. The poison activates 1 hour after ingestion.
  • Effect: The victim must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw:
    • Success: 2d6 poison damage.
    • Failure: 4d6 poison damage and the poisoned condition for 24 hours.
    • Critical Failure: 6d6 poison damage and paralysis for 1 minute.
  • Crafting: Requires proficiency in Alchemist’s Supplies, 8 hours of work, and 150 gp in materials, including Shadowvine venom and moonflower essence.
• Game Notes: Mishandling during crafting may result in accidental exposure to the poison’s effects.

Knave

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Consumable
• Usage Die: d4 (one bottle serves four doses)
• Cost: 200 silver per bottle
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Takes 1 round to administer or disguise the wine. The effects manifest 1d4 hours after consumption.
  • Effect: The victim must succeed on a CON save or suffer:
    • Immediate Effect: 1d6 poison damage.
    • Lingering Effect: 1d4 damage each hour for 4 hours.
  • Crafting: Requires a Poison Crafting roll (DC 15), access to Shadowvine venom, and moonflower essence. Crafting takes 6 hours.
• Game Notes: Mishandling the poison during preparation requires the applier to roll a CON save or suffer its effects.

Fate Core

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Consumable
• Uses: Single dose per serving
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Consuming the wine creates an aspect, such as “Weakened by Poison” or “Lingering Shadowvenom,” which can be invoked by the poisoner for a +2 bonus on actions against the target.
  • Effect: After 1-4 hours, the target begins to experience symptoms tied to the aspect, including reduced resistance or impaired abilities.
  • Crafting: Requires a Create an Advantage roll using Poison Crafting or Alchemy. Success provides one dose, while success with style provides two.
• Game Notes: This item is especially useful for social manipulation, where poisoning remains hidden until the effects escalate later in the scene.

Numenera & Cypher System

Item: Venomous Wine

• Level: 5
• Type: Consumable
• Cost: 150 shins per bottle
• Mechanics:
  • Application: The poison takes effect 1 hour after ingestion.
  • Effect: The victim must make a Might defense roll (Difficulty 5):
    • Success: The target takes 3 points of Speed damage.
    • Failure: The target takes 6 points of Speed damage and suffers an asset penalty on all Speed-based tasks for 1 hour.
    • Major Failure: The target takes 9 points of Speed damage and collapses into unconsciousness for 1d6 hours.
  • Crafting: Requires an Intellect roll (Difficulty 5), 100 shins worth of materials, and Frostbloom venom. Crafting takes 6 hours.
• Game Notes: Perfect for political or social intrigue scenarios where overt combat is undesirable.

Pathfinder (2e)

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Alchemical Poison (Consumable)
• Price: 150 gp per bottle
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Administering the poison requires Stealth or Deception. Effects begin 1 hour after ingestion.
  • Effect: The target must succeed on a DC 19 Fortitude save:
    • Critical Success: No effect.
    • Success: 2d6 poison damage.
    • Failure: 4d6 poison damage and the enfeebled 1 condition for 24 hours.
    • Critical Failure: 6d6 poison damage, the enfeebled 2 condition, and unconsciousness for 1d4 hours.
  • Crafting: Requires proficiency in Crafting, alchemical tools, and materials worth 75 gp, including Frostbloom venom. Crafting takes 8 hours.
• Game Notes: Mishandling may expose the crafter to the poison, requiring a DC 19 Fortitude save to avoid the effects.

Savage Worlds (Adventure Edition)

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Consumable (Poison)
• Cost: 200 gold per bottle
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Administering the poison requires a Persuasion or Stealth roll. Effects manifest after 1 hour.
  • Effect: The victim must make a Vigor roll (TN 8):
    • Success: The target suffers a level of Fatigue.
    • Failure: The target takes 2d8 poison damage and gains 2 levels of Fatigue.
    • Critical Failure: The target suffers 3d8 poison damage, 2 levels of Fatigue, and collapses unconscious for 1d6 hours.
  • Crafting: Requires an Alchemy roll (TN 6) and 100 gold worth of materials, including Frostbloom venom. Crafting takes 8 hours.
• Game Notes: Mishandling during crafting may result in the applier needing to make a Vigor roll to avoid poisoning themselves.

Shadowrun (6th Edition)

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Toxin (Illegal)
• Availability: 16F
• Cost: 1,500 nuyen per bottle
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Administering the poison requires a Con (Charisma + Influence) roll or Stealth to avoid detection. The effects activate 1 hour after ingestion.
  • Effect: The victim resists with Body + Willpower against a Toxin Resistance Threshold of 6:
    • Success: Mild nausea and discomfort (-1 dice pool modifier for 1 hour).
    • Failure: 8P damage (unresisted) over 3 hours.
    • Critical Failure: 10P damage over 1 hour and incapacitation for 1d6 Combat Turns.
  • Crafting: Requires a Biotech (Toxicology) + Logic test (Threshold 8, 12 hours) and rare materials like Shadowvine venom.
• Game Notes: Mishandling may expose the poisoner to its effects, requiring the same resistance test.

Starfinder

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Alchemical Poison (Consumable)
• Price: 2,000 credits per bottle
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Administering the poison requires Stealth or Bluff to remain undetected. The poison activates after 1 hour.
  • Effect: The target must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC 22) or suffer the following effects:
    • Stage 1: 3d6 poison damage and the Weakened Condition (1 round).
    • Stage 2: 4d6 poison damage and Enfeebled 2 (2 rounds).
    • Stage 3: 5d6 poison damage and unconsciousness for 1d6 hours.
  • Crafting: Requires Medicine or Life Science check (DC 22) and 1,000 credits in materials. Crafting takes 12 hours.
• Game Notes: Use of this poison is highly illegal and draws heavy criminal penalties if discovered.

Traveller (Mongoose 2nd Edition)

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Poison (Consumable)
• Tech Level (TL): 9
• Cost: Cr2,000 per bottle (5 doses per bottle)
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Administering the poison requires a successful Deception or Stealth roll. The effects begin after 1d6 hours.
  • Effect: The target must make an Endurance check (DM -4):
    • Success: 2D damage and mild nausea for 1d6 hours.
    • Failure: 4D damage over 3 hours and a -2 penalty to all physical checks.
    • Critical Failure: 6D damage over 1 hour and incapacitation for 1d6 hours.
  • Crafting: Requires a Medic or Science (Biology) check (10+), Frostbloom venom, and Cr1,000 worth of materials. Crafting takes 12 hours.
• Game Notes: Mishandling during crafting or application requires the poisoner to roll the same Endurance check to avoid self-contamination.

Warhammer (Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition)

Item: Venomous Wine

• Type: Poison (Consumable)
• Encumbrance: 0 (bottle of wine)
• Price: 100 gold crowns
• Mechanics:
  • Application: Serving or administering the wine requires a Charm or Stealth Test (Average, +20). Effects manifest 1 hour after ingestion.
  • Effect: The target must make a Toughness Test (Challenging, +0):
    • Critical Success: No effect.
    • Success: 2 Wounds and minor nausea.
    • Failure: 4 Wounds and Poisoned Condition for 1d10 rounds.
    • Critical Failure: 6 Wounds, Poisoned Condition, and unconsciousness for 1d10 hours.
  • Crafting: Requires a successful Trade (Apothecary) Test (Challenging, +0) and Frostbloom venom. Crafting takes 1 day and costs 50 gold crowns in materials.
• Game Notes: Mishandling may expose the crafter to the poison, requiring the same Toughness Test.