• DaddleDew@lemmy.world
    74·
    6 months ago

    This just gave me the idea of an item that is secretly highly radioactive. Carrying it and being around it it would slowly give the character increasingly acute symptoms of radiation poisoning.The characters can’t possibly understand what radiation poisoning is so they would think it is some sort of magical curse. However no magic users would be able figure out what it is and how to stop it.

    I’m wondering how long it would take for the players themselves to figure out what it really is, or if they ever would.

    • kakes
      49·
      6 months ago

      “You decipher the runes - they say ‘Drop and Run’.”

      • grue@lemmy.worldEnglish
        56·
        6 months ago

        The dungeon entrance is marked with a message in an ancient language called “English.” It reads as follows:

        This place is a message… and part of a system of messages… pay attention to it!

        Sending this message was important to us. We considered ourselves to be a powerful culture.

        This place is not a place of honor… no highly esteemed deed is commemorated here… nothing valued is here.

        What is here was dangerous and repulsive to us. This message is a warning about danger.

        The danger is in a particular location… it increases towards a center… the center of danger is here… of a particular size and shape, and below us.

        The danger is still present, in your time, as it was in ours.

        The danger is to the body, and it can kill.

        The form of the danger is an emanation of energy.

        The danger is unleashed only if you substantially disturb this place physically. This place is best shunned and left uninhabited.

        $10 says the party decides to delve for treasure anyway.

        • kakes
          14·
          6 months ago

          That’s 100 rounds, seems like plenty of time to me.

    • ryathal
      11·
      6 months ago

      If they do figure it out you could be in for a very long debate about how far away something is inside a bag of holding.

      • mindbleach
        1·
        6 months ago

        “Hey, I speak Infernal! … what tastes like blue?”

    • mindbleach
      2·
      6 months ago

      A modernist version of Spoony’s favorite TTRPG, “Surprise! It’s Call Of Cthulu.”