Prepare

Prepare
Skill type:	Item creation
Skill subtype:	Debuff, Poison, Sleep, Skill penalty
Primary user:	Assassin
Duration:	Varies, see text
Casting cost:	12 Mana
Range:	User Only
Syntax:	Prepare <# of vials of catalyst> <type of poison>

In order to use darts, envenom weapons, or to taint food or water, a specialized vial of poison is required. Preparing these vials of poison requires the use of a catalyst, which will effect the duration of the taint, venom, or the dart (the more catalyst used, the more powerful the poison). Catalyst can typically be purchased by the vial from one's guildmaster. There is no limit beyond the assassin's budget to how many vials of catalyst may be used.

The detoxify skill and certain capabilities of Nightfall magi provide a resistance to these poisons, and assassins themselves carry immunity to their own works.

Assassins have formulated several standardized poisons which may be used in conjunction with the envenom, taint, and dart skills. Each has both a full success and partial success effect, dependent on the following factors: the method of delivery (envenom, taint, or dart), the constitution score of the target, and if the target has some manner of poison resistance or immunity. As a result, there may also be cases where the poison used has no effect at all. Sufficiently powerful poisons are capable of overcoming such resistances as the detoxify skill.

Assassin-specific poisons are divided into the following types:

Sleep poison

Puts the victim to sleep when it succeeds. On a full success, the victim will sleep for two hours; on a partial success, only one hour. This poison is not effective when used with envenom, and should only be used with taint or dart.

Trembling poison

Causes the victim to convulse, resulting in the dropping of items they are wearing. The likelihood of the victim dropping an item is higher on a full success, and less otherwise. Like sleep poison, the length of time this affect persists is also linked to either a full or partial success.

Erosive poison

An acidic concoction designed to injure the target. The amount of damage this poison deals is linked to if the hit was a full or partial success.

While possessing a vial of erosive poison in open inventory, an assassin with the prepare skill may remove identifying marks from a corpse via the 'disfigure' command.

Pain poison

One of the more dangerous poisons available to the assassin, as it far exceeds the potential debilitation of its magical sister, the poison spell. On a full success, the poison will strongly reduce the victim's hitroll and damroll, halve their percentages in all skills, and cause them to frequently fail commands. On a partial success, the same scores will be reduced, but to lesser effect.

Exhaustion poison

Afflicts the target with fatigue, causing a vast increase in the cost of movement and a lowering of their strength and dexterity scores. On a full success, the target's movement costs are quadrupled, while otherwise, it is merely doubled.

Delusion poison

Penalizes the target's wisdom score, the amount of which is determined by if the delivery was a full or partial success. Additionally, a target affected by this poison will hallucinate, seeing places he has visited before rather than his current surroundings.

Death poison

One of the most dangerous poisons used by an assassin, as it has the capability of instantly killing the target on a full success. Even when it does not achieve its full potential, it penalizes the constitution score of the target so afflicted. Like sleep poison, this will never reach its full effect when delivered via envenom; however, there is the possibility that it will apply its secondary constitution penalty.