Secondary Damage Types

Poison, Disease, and Void Sickness

In our game, secondary damage types such as Poison, Disease, and Void Sickness introduce strategic layers to combat, requiring players to use specific skills and resources to counter these effects. Each damage type affects different aspects of the character’s Health, Action, and Mind (HAM) pools. Here’s a detailed breakdown of these damage types and their associated mechanics:

Poison Damage

Description and Mechanism:

• Poison Damage inflicts ongoing harm to a character over time. It is typically caused by:
  • Combat Medic Offensive Biochemical Weapons: Combat Medics can deploy biochemical weapons that introduce toxins into the target’s system. These toxins cause Poison Damage by continually depleting the victim’s Health Pool over a specified duration.
  • Infused Melee Weapons: Certain melee weapons can be enhanced with poison, applying Poison Damage upon striking an enemy. This poison gradually depletes the target’s Health Pool, making combat encounters more challenging.

HAM Pool Impact:

• Health Pool: Poison primarily impacts the Health Pool, causing a continuous reduction in health points. This ongoing damage can significantly lower the character’s health if not treated.
• Action Pool: Secondary effects may include a temporary debuff to the Action Pool, reducing the character’s efficiency in performing actions.

Healing Methods:

• Combat Medics: Use antidotes and specialized treatments to neutralize poison effects and restore health.
• Doctors: Provide comprehensive medical treatment, including antidotes and health restoration methods.
• Medics: Offer immediate relief and treatment to mitigate poison effects, stabilizing the character’s condition.

Example: A Combat Medic uses a specialized antidote injector to neutralize poison effects on a teammate, rapidly restoring their health.

Disease Damage

Description and Mechanism:

• Disease Damage represents ailments that impair a character’s health over time. Diseases can be caused by:
  • Combat Medic Biochemical Weapons: Certain biochemical weapons induce diseases that inflict ongoing damage and debilitate the target.
  • Void Sickness: A unique form of Disease Damage tied to the Void, affecting characters exposed to its corrupting influence. It causes continual health degradation and may affect characters who interact with Void-related phenomena.

HAM Pool Impact:

• Health Pool: Disease damage primarily reduces the Health Pool, leading to gradual health loss.
• Action Pool: Diseases often debuff the Action Pool, affecting the character’s ability to perform actions effectively.
• Mind Pool: Some diseases can also impact the Mind Pool, causing mental debuffs that affect cognitive functions.

Healing Methods:

• Combat Medics, Doctors, and Medics: Equipped to treat and cure diseases through medical treatments and specialized medications.
• Entertainers and Musicians: Have the unique ability to heal certain diseases, particularly those influenced by Void Sickness. Their performances can alleviate disease effects beyond traditional medical treatments.

Example: An Entertainer performs a restorative song that cleanses Void Sickness from a character, alleviating the debilitating effects of the disease.

Void Sickness

Description and Mechanism:

• Void Sickness is a specific form of Disease Damage caused by exposure to the Void or its corruptive forces. It represents a unique threat affecting both physical and mental health.
  • Source: Void Sickness results from prolonged exposure to Void-related activities, environments, or creatures, inflicting continuous health degradation.
  • Symptoms: Symptoms include ongoing health loss, reduced effectiveness in combat and skills, and occasionally mental debilitation or hallucinations.

HAM Pool Impact:

• Health Pool: Void Sickness primarily affects the Health Pool, causing continual health degradation.
• Mind Pool: It significantly impacts the Mind Pool, causing mental debuffs, cognitive impairments, and possible hallucinations.
• Action Pool: Secondary effects may reduce the effectiveness of the Action Pool, making it harder to perform actions.

Healing Methods:

• Entertainers and Musicians: Possess specific abilities to address Void Sickness. Their specialized performances offer unique restorative effects that cannot be achieved through standard medical treatments.

Example: A Musician plays a haunting melody that counters the effects of Void Sickness, restoring the afflicted character’s health and mental clarity.

Summary of Healing Mechanisms

• Poison Damage: Treated by Combat Medics, Doctors, and Medics with antidotes or specialized treatments.
• Disease Damage: Treated by Combat Medics, Doctors, and Medics. Entertainers and Musicians also offer healing for specific diseases, particularly those related to Void Sickness.
• Void Sickness: Treated uniquely by Entertainers and Musicians through specialized performances, offering a rare form of healing not available through conventional medical methods.