Drugs
Wealth in Creation | Mundane Equipment | Superior Eq. | Drugs | Weapons | Armor | Shields | Vehicles | Lifestyle | Everyday Wonders | Lesser W. | Hearthstones | Greater W. | Artifacts | Earthshaking W. | Artifact Vehicles | Warstriders | Artifacts and Artifice
| Item | Resources Cost |
|---|---|
| Coca leaves | •• (• in the East) |
| Cocaine | •• |
| Heroin | •• |
| Maiden tea | •• |
| Marijuana | • |
| Opium | • |
| Qat | • |
Coca leaves
Coca leaves are a mild stimulant that only grows in the warm, high altitude portions of the East and the Southeast. Coca grows at an altitude between 1,500 and 6,000 feet. Users typically stick a small handful of fresh or dried leaves in the side of their mouths and slowly chew the slightly bitter mass. Coca is a relatively harmless drug that is far milder than either cocaine or rock cocaine. Coca makes its user slightly more alert and increases the user's initiative by 1 (note: needs converting to 2e). The effects of chewing a single wad of coca leaves lasts for several hours. Chewing coca also grants the user an extra die on rolls to stay awake and to resist the affects of working at high altitude. Chewing coca also allows users to drink limited amounts of salt water.
Coca leaves are normally only available in the East, relatively near to where it is grown. Since coca leaves are a far less concentrated than either cocaine or rock cocaine, the Guild does not find it practical to transport coca leaves outside the boundaries of the East. While a few wealthy nobles in other parts of the world have special green houses where they grow coca leaves, such places are rare, and coca leaves are a difficult to find specialty product outside of the East.
Overdose: Because it is only possible to chew so many leaves at once, it is impossible to overdose on coca. However, habitual users who are suddenly deprived of their access to coca will increase the difficulty of all Stamina + Endurance rolls to stay awake by 1 for the next three days.
Cocaine
While most other drugs are taken to relax and deaden the pain of an unpleasant existence, cocaine allows users to stay awake and to react faster than normal. In short, it is an ideal drug for performing any dull and repetitive activity ranging from standing watch to working at any number of jobs that demand tireless precision. Cocaine is a powder extracted from coca leaves. The leaves are mashed in strong alcohol, the leaf fibers are strained out, and then, the resulting doughy mass is dried and crushed into a fine powder. Coca is relatively common in the East and the Southeast and difficult to find everywhere else. It is one of the major exports of the portions of the Hundred Kingdoms that contain part of the great Eastern forest. The people of Harborhead also cultivate coca, but it is not one of their major exports. One of the most notable things about cocaine is how little is needed to get the user high. A normal dose is a pinch of the white powder. Cocaine is normally snorted using anything from a hollow reed to a beautifully made jade straw.
When using cocaine, add one to a character's Wits score and reduce the difficulty of rolls to stay awake or resist fatigue by 1. Cocaine also makes user feel happy, and in control of their lives. A dose of cocaine lasts for one hour. After this time, reduce the user’s Wits by one, and increase the difficulty of all rolls to stay awake or resist fatigue by 1. These penalties also last for one hour. Users also feel sad and hopeless during this time. However, taking another dose instantly alleviates these penalties and provides the normal bonuses for cocaine. Cocaine is not physically addictive, but regular users will do almost anything to avoid the depression that occurs when it wears off.
Overdose: Snorting more than one dose of cocaine in an hour doubles the bonuses but also reduces the user’s Willpower, Compassion and Temperance by one each and makes the user extremely hyperactive. Increase the difficulty of all tasks involving either stealth or fine manipulation by 1 because the smoker literally can’t stand still. Also, double the severity and duration of all penalties once the drug wears off.
If the user snorts a number of doses of cocaine greater than her Stamina score in one hour, her player must make a Stamina + Resistance roll. On a success, all penalties to Willpower, Compassion and Temperance and difficulty increases to stealth and fine manipulation are doubled for the next four hours after the cocaine wears off. At the end of this time, the character takes a level of bashing damage and must sleep. On a failure, the character’s Willpower also drops to zero. On a botch, the character dies — her heart gives out from the strain of taking too many stimulants. Exalts who overdose on cocaine and roll a botch fall unconscious and take one die of unsoakable lethal damage from convulsions, but they do not die.
Heroin
Widely seen as the prince of intoxicants, far too many users have forgone both adequate food and shelter to obtain this drug. Heroin is an excellent pain killer that also produces a mild stupor filled with exceedingly pleasant daydreams. Heroin's method of manufacture is a carefully guarded secret. It is normally sold as a pure white powder extracted from the highly concentrated urine of one of the Guild's seven huge and immortal beasts of resplendent liquids). Users either smoke or snort this powder. Aristocrats frequently have special gold or silver straws made and sniff measured quantities of this drug off of small jade plates or smoke it in specially made glass or silver pipes. A few of the wealthiest users inject the powder mixed with water under their skin using elegantly made silver and gold syringes. The effects of the drug are no stronger when used in this fashion, but the drug affects the user slightly faster and produces a more intense and enjoyable high.
Anyone taking heroin reduces all wound penalties by two for the next eight hours. This reduction in pain occurs even if the user only takes a half dose of the drug. Taken in this fashion, heroin is still just as addictive, but it produces no result other than pain relief. Many wealthy people who are in chronic pain from injuries or age use it — and most of these users become heroin addicts because the drug is so highly addictive. If a user takes a full dose, increase the difficulty of all Dexterity, Perception and Wits rolls made by his player by 1 for the next (7 – Stamina) hours. Each time a character takes more doses of heroin in a week than his Stamina, his player must make a Stamina + Resistance roll with a difficulty equal to the number of doses the character has taken in the last week. Exalts reduce the difficulty of this addiction roll by 2. If the player fails or botches this roll, his character is addicted. If the player succeeds in this roll, his character is not addicted — for now.
Once addicted, a character must take at least one dose of heroin every other day or suffer withdrawal. Withdrawal is essentially harmless to anyone who is not already in very poor health — even ill-fed, long-term addicts almost never die from heroin withdrawal. However, the withdrawal process is a deeply unpleasant experience that lasts between six and eight days. Many users believe withdrawal is eventually fatal, and even those who know better often wish to die when they are in the middle of it. Withdrawal doubles all wound penalties for the character (round up) and imposes a one-die reduction on all rolls even if the character is uninjured. Also, the character takes two levels of unsoakable bashing damage that will not heal until withdrawal is over and reduces her Willpower by two and her Valor and Temperance by one each. Going without a dose for more than four days also temporarily reduces both the character's Stamina and Perception by one. Taking a single dose of heroin immediately removes all of these penalties.
Voluntarily quitting heroin once a character is addicted requires the character's player roll at least one success on eight separate Willpower rolls. The player of an addict must roll once a day, starting two days after the first missed dose. If any of these rolls results in three or more successes, the character has overcome her craving for the drug, and her player does not need to make any more rolls. However, the negative effects of withdrawal still last eight full days. Characters whose players fail any of these rolls must immediately seek out a source of the drug. They will attempt to sell anything that isn’t nailed down to get the money to buy more heroin and will become both violent and irrational if they cannot gain access to this drug.
Regardless of whether a character's player succeeds or fails these rolls, after eight days, the character has kicked the addiction, and all withdrawal penalties vanish. Players of Exalts must make the same rolls to end their characters' addiction but only need to make four successful Willpower rolls. Locking someone up and forcing her to go through withdrawal is a highly effective form of interrogation — offering heroin to someone in her fourth day of withdrawal will make all but the most hardened mortal offer her captors everything from the names of her allies to her mother's life. This same technique is also sometimes used as a way to force someone to quit using heroin — nobles and wealthy merchants often pay chirurgeons to perform this type of "cure" on relatives. Unfortunately, even once someone is no longer addicted, she still remembers how good heroin used to make her feel, and most return to the arms of their white angel in time.
Overdose: Taking two or more doses of heroin at once or mixing heroin and small amounts of alcohol doubles both the duration and the intensity of all penalties. If the user takes a number of doses of heroin greater than her Stamina score or takes heroin and drinks heavily, her player must make a Stamina + Resistance roll. If the roll succeeds, the character falls unconscious for half a day and wakes up feeling quite sick (+1 difficulty to all rolls for the next half day). If the roll fails, the character dies unless she is quickly given a stimulant, such as cocaine. Exalts whose players fail this roll are merely rendered unconscious for two full days and only die if a botch is rolled.
Marijuana
Marijuana grows almost everywhere and is widely used recreationally, as a cure for nausea and as an appetite stimulant for the ill. Although the majority of the marijuana trade is in the hands of local growers, the Guild makes money both selling exceptionally fine flower buds and selling marijuana to the residents of places such as the Far North, where it doesn't grow. Low doses of marijuana do little except make the user feel relaxed, happy and somewhat hungry. Higher doses reduce the user's Wits dice pool by one for the next hour or two. Overdoses are essentially impossible. Physical addiction is weak and easily overcome, though many users become psychologically dependent. Marijuana leaves and flower buds are typically dried and then smoked, although they can also be used as a cooking spice.
Overdose: N/A
Maiden Tea
Produced from the bitter fruit of a low bush that grows in warm climates throughout the world, this drug renders a woman infertile for a month or a man infertile for a week. This drug is a favorite of concubines, courtesans, soldiers, travelers, adolescents and men and women who wish to avoid conception as a result of affairs. Taking three or more doses at once makes the user mildly ill (one level of unsoakable bashing damage, and subtract one from all rolls until this heals). This level of dosage also induces abortions. Large overdoses (six or more doses) make the user violently ill (two levels of unsoakable bashing damage, and increase the difficulty of all rolls by one for 12 hours) and renders the user permanently sterile.
Opium
This drug is the Guild's most popular and one of the most common drugs in the Age of Sorrows. Opium is a gum exuded by the ripe pods of opium poppies. Unlike most drug-producing plants, opium poppies can grow almost everyplace in Creation. Opium is everything from an excellent painkiller and a cure for dysentery to a terrible and life-consuming addiction. Anyone taking opium reduces all wound penalties by two for the next eight hours. This reduction in pain happens even if the user only takes a half dose of the drug. When used solely as a pain reliever, opium is most commonly drunk mixed with alcohol. Taken in this fashion, opium is still just as addictive, but it produces no result other than pain relief. Many people who are in chronic pain from injuries or age use it regularly — most of these users become addicts. Each time a character takes more doses of opium in a week than his Stamina, his player must roll at least one success on Stamina + Resistance roll. Failure at this roll means that the user is addicted. Exalts only become addicted to opium if their players botch this roll. Long-term addicts often take one dose a day.
When using opium recreationally, it is normally smoked. Smoking opium affects the user both faster and in a more intense fashion than drinking it. The character subtracts one die from all Dexterity, Perception and Wits dice pools for the next (7 – Stamina) hours. Users feel powerful, confident and happy. Many users experience pleasant daydreams or enjoyable hallucinations. Most users are content simply to lie around and feel good.
Once addicted, a character must take at least one dose of opium every three days or suffer withdrawal. Withdrawal is harmless to anyone who is not already in very poor health, but it is a deeply unpleasant experience that lasts approximately eight days. Many users believe withdrawal is eventually fatal, and even those who know better often wish to die when they are in the middle of it. Withdrawal dou-5bles all wound penalties for the character (round up) and imposes a one-die reduction in all rolls even if the character is uninjured. Also, the character takes one level of unsoakable bashing damage that will not heal until withdrawal is over and reduces her Willpower, Valor and Temperance by one each. Taking a single dose of opium immediately removes all of these penalties.
Voluntarily quitting opium once a character is addicted requires the character's player roll at least one success on four separate Willpower rolls. Rolls are made every other day, starting two days after the first missed dose. If any of these rolls results in three or more successes, the character has overcome her craving for the drug, and her player does not need to make any more rolls. However, the negative effects of withdrawal still last eight full days. Characters whose players fail any of these rolls must immediately seek out a source of the drug. They will attempt to sell or steal anything that isn’t nailed down to get the money to buy more opium and will become both violent and irrational if they cannot gain access to this drug. However, regardless of whether the character succeeds or fails these rolls, after eight days, the character has kicked the addiction, and all withdrawal penalties vanish. Exalts only need to make two rolls (also made every other day) to kick opium addiction.
Overdose: If the character takes two or more doses of opium at once or mixes opium and significant quantities of alcohol, she increases the difficulty of all Dexterity, Perception and Wits rolls by 1 and can move at no faster than a walk. These effects last for (14 – Stamina) hours. If the user takes a number of doses of opium greater than her Stamina score, her player must make a Stamina + Resistance roll. If the roll fails or botches, the character falls unconscious for half a day (two full days on a botch) and wakes up feeling quite sick (+1 difficulty to all rolls for the next full day). If the roll succeeds, she merely doubles the above penalties. Exalts whose players fail this roll only fall unconscious for four hours.
Qat
Qat is a common euphoric and a mild opiate. Qat is made from the leaves of a small leafy plant that grows extensively in both Great Forks and the Hundred Kingdoms. Users can either chew on the fresh leaves or brew them into a tea — chewing is more common since it requires fewer leaves and is said to produce a better high. Regular users all have pale-green stains on their lips and teeth. When he’s under the influence of qat, reduce all of a character's wound penalties by one and subtract one from the character’s Wits. Each dose of qat lasts for two or three hours. Qat is only mildly addictive, but its pain-deadening qualities are much in demand — few of its users are willing to do without regular doses. Taking too many doses of qat merely sends the user into a mindless stupor that lasts six to eight hours. The user awakens sluggish and with a hangover (increase the difficulty of all rolls by 1 for the first four hours after the character awakens), but it has no other ill effects.
Qat is exceedingly plentiful in the East, and most of the market is in the hands of local growers. Unfortunately, qat leaves become useless when they are dried. As a result, qat cannot normally be shipped outside of the East. However, the Guild has developed a method of preserving these leaves. The leaves are coated with a shiny edible gum. The gum is a rubber-like sap from trees that are common in the Far Southeast. This gum is one of the more popular commodities collected or purchased by expeditions to the Southeast. Qat treated with this gum is either sold as whole dried leaves, or it is compressed into small chewy nuggets that are quite popular with sailors in the West. The Guild owns the vast majority of qat that is shipped outside of the East.
Overdose: N/A