From: rorice@nickel.ucs.indiana.edu (rosalyn rice) This section of my injury rules contains detailed rules for enviornmental hazards - specifically burns, hot and cold weather, drowning, and so forth. I might have inadvertently quoted sections of the GURPS Vikings and GURPS Cliff Hanger books as well as the GURPS Basic set rules. Again, apologies for any passing copyright infringement. HOT WEATHER HEAT EXHAUSTION AND HEAT STROKE - In weather of 70 or above, make a HT (or Desert Survival) roll every 30 minutes if you are active. If the weather is very humid, the GM may increase the effective temperature. For each 2 points you failed your roll by subtract 1 point of Fatigue. When ST reaches 3, start subtracting HP instead. This assumes you are wearing appropriate clothing (light and loose-fitting) If you are wearing heavy clothing or armor, subtract its DR or your encumbrance level, whichever is less, from your effective HT. There is a penalty to HT of -1 per every 5 over 90. If the character is thirsty there is a penalty of -1 per quart of water the character needs. If the character is sick, -1 per each 3 HP lost to disease, with an additional -1 if the character is running a fever. Drunk characters are at an additional -1 HT per every 5 levels of drunkeness they have. There is a +1 to HT if the character douses himself with at least a quart of water, +1 if he drinks at least a pint of cool liquid, and +3 if he has at least a pint of ice to apply as icepacks or to suck on. If the character is exherting himself, lost Fatigue is not recovered until the character drinks at least a pint of water and rests for 10 minutes. If a character with Heat Exhaustion or Heat Stroke is being treated by a properly equipped physician he can add +1/2 the TL of the physician's skill if the doctor makes a successful Physician roll. If the character is in a properly equipped hospital, the doctor is at +4 to skill. HEAT CRAMPS - If the character has been sweating profusely, but has drunk nothing but water, or if he drinks a lot of very cold water the GM may require him to roll vs. HT or have a -2 Pain penalty for Heat Cramps. ARMOR AND HEAT - Armor and protective clothing do not protect against heat. In fact, most protective or insulating clothing (such as full plate armor, chemical suits, wet suits or reflec armor) will raise the effective temperature for the wearer by 10. Certain types of airtight battlesuits and vacc suits will have their own integral cooling systems, making their wearers immune to all but the most extreme heat. SUNBURN - A real danger in some places is sunburn. Damage depends on the skin color of the victim and the length and amount of exposure to the sun. The exact amount of damage is up to the GM. In general, dark-skinned (like Negroid, or Dravidian) characters will not burn under an Earth-like sun, but might itch. Lighter-skinned, but dark characters (Arabs, some Asians) who haven't been in the sun for a long time might take 1d6-5 points of damage for 8 hours of exposure to the sun on their full body. Dark-skinned Caucasians might take 1d6-4 damage per 8 hours, and light-skinned Caucasians might take 1d6-3 damage. An albino will take 1d6+2 damage from 8 hours of full exposure to the sun. In addition, the afflicted areas will be painful, and effectively crippled until they heal. Sunburn damage is treated as minor burns. There is no chance that they will get infected unless the character is in a particularly unhealthy enviorment. Covering up the body with clothing and hats, using sun-screen or sun-blocks (or even paint or mud!) and limiting exposure will reduce or eliminate damage. If the character is in the tropics, in the desert, on a body of water, or on a snowfield, or any other highly reflective area devoid of shade, he is more likely to be sunburnt. If it is cloudy, or the character is in the Arctic he is less likely to be burnt. If there is a question of whether or not a character is sunburned, roll vs. IQ, Common Sense, First-Aid, or any Survival skill. A failed roll means that the character is sunburnt. The degree of failure determines the degree of damage. Even if the HT roll is successful, the character suffers some sunburn, unless he rolled a critical success. This sort of sunburn does no damage but gives some pain and crippling effects. JUNGLE ROT - In very moist, humid and hot conditions the character's skin and extremities can literally slough away or become infected. After two weeks in conditions of unrelenting heat and humidity, characters must roll vs. HT or Survival: Jungle once per day or suffer 1 point of damage to some part of their body (usually the feet, but also the armpits, groin or buttocks). This wounded area is numb and raw. The character must also roll vs. HT (at whatever penalty) to avoid infection in the wounded area. Jungle Rot is prevented by regular bathing in clean water with soap, regular changes of clean, dry clothing, and being able to dry out occasionally. Most characters, unless they are in combat or are constantly in the wet can figure out a way to clean off and dry out. HEAT AND FLAME Heat and flame can come from many sources. Fire tends to spread up or along flammable surfaces. It is encouraged by oxygen, fuel, and heat. FLAMMABLE MATERIALS - Materials are classified according to their flammability. CLASS A - Extremely Flammable (gunpowder, vaporized gasoline). These will always burn if they are exposed to a flame or heat source that does at least 1 point of damage. Any open flame source might accidently set them off. CLASS B - Very Flammable (light cloth, dry grass, paper). These have a 50% chance of catching fire if hit by an explosion. They will automatically catch fire if hit by a flame attack. They will light and start to burn in 1-2 seconds if a flame source is held to them. CLASS C - Flammable (wood, heavy cloth). These have a 1/6 chance of catching fire if hit by an explosion. They will automatically catch fire if hit by a flame attack that sticks (napalm) or does 3 or more points of damage in a single turn. They will light and start to burn in 10-20 seconds if a flame source is held to them. They will burn relatively slowly. CLASS D - Slightly Flammable (wet wood, wallboard, insulation). These won't catch fire unless a hot flame is held on them for a long time. They will burn slowly and will tend to extinguish themselves. CLASS E - Non-Flammable (stone, brick). These won't burn. HOW FIRES WORK SPREAD OF FIRES - A fire will spread upwards - up walls and along ceilings in a building, and up hills outdoors. A fire will move along flammable materials faster than it will along less flammable materials. Generally, fire moves slowly, spreading at a hex or so a minute over Class C material. It spreads at 2-4 hexes per turn over Class B material. Class A material explodes. Very hot or wind driven fires can move much faster though. FLASHOVER - Most materials will release hot, flammable gasses when they burn. In an enviornment where there is sufficient oxygen, these gasses burn normally. However, in a closed room, superheated smoke and gasses are trapped in an enviornment where there is not enough oxygen to burn them. They collect near the ceiling and the fire "dies down" for lack of oxygen. When more oxygen is suddenly made available (like someone opening a door), the gasses will burn extremely quickly, producing an explosion that will burst through the door (or other opening) and which might blow open doors, break windows and possibly rupture weak walls. In a typical residential room this process takes about 4 minutes. Treat the Flashover as an explosion, doing no shrapnel damage (unless the character was standing in front of a window or other fragile object), but doing 3/4 normal concussion damage as heat and fire damage. The remaining 1/4 damage is normal concussion damage. The intensity of the explosion depends on the size of the room and the amount of oxygen available. Usually the blast will be 3d6 to 6d6 heat and concussion damage, with 1d6 shrapnel damage if there are windows between the fire and the character. Ordinary flames don't flashover, cause knockback, or do shrapnel damage. SMOKE - Fires usually release smoke, which consists of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, various other gasses, and unburnt particles of soot. Smoke is always poisonous to the human body, though some smoke is more dangerous than others. A fire that is mostly fueled by synthetic materials or toxic chemicals is going to produce more dangerous smoke than a fire fuelled by untreated wood or paper. The GM must determine the danger of the smoke to those who breath it. Smoke, like any other hot gas, rises and will fill in a room from the ceiling down. This means that the coolest and cleanest air is found near the floor of a burning room. Very short characters, or characters who think to remain near the floor will take half damage, or no damage at all from smoke, depending on the intensity of the fire. Characters who panic or who insist on standing up in a smoke-filled room will take normal smoke damage, and might even be overcome by the smoke. Smoke kills more people than fire. Smoke also blocks vision, even in the daytime, and it stings your eyes. The GM should assess Vision penalties of -1 to -10 depending on the thickness of the smoke and the amount of lighting. HEAT - Even if a character isn't near enough to a fire to be burnt, large fires still produce enough heat to quickly cause heat injuries. This won't be as much of a factor with characters seeking to escape the flames, as for characters who are fighting fires though. STRUCTURAL COLLAPSE - As a building burns, the heat will damage critical parts of the building. If enough load-bearing beams burn or are softened by the fire the building might collapse. As a general rule this is a special effect of any truly dramatic blaze, since a building will generally only collapse by the time that the interior is so gutted that a normal human being could not survive. However, if the GM wants to put the characters in danger of being caught in a collapsing building he should roll dice for each *minute* of the blaze. If the number rolled is less than some set number (probably 7 or less), then the building collapses, doing some impressively large amount of crushing and burn damage to the character. Alternately, the GM could engineer a smaller structural collapse that would do 1d6 points of damage to the character and require a roll vs. DX to avoid being trapped under a beam or some other piece of debris. Finally, a character on the roof or upper floor of a burning building might step on an area that has been weakened by flames from underneath. The character must roll vs. DX to catch himself before he plunges into the infero below. A character will be able to roughly assess the risk of going into a burning building by making a successful roll vs. Architecture or Fire Fighting. BEING IN A FIRE - Characters who are caught in a large fire face several other threats. First, large fires of any sort are confusing and scary places. The GM should roll for Fright Checks. He should also have characters roll vs. Will to keep their cool rather than running for the nearest exist. (The Fire Fighting skill can be substituted if necessary.) Animals and small children will tend to hide in a "safe" place during a fire rather than trying to flee. The GM should also require IQ rolls (as modified by Fright Checks) for the party to stay together and/or find an exit. In a crowd situation, if enough people fail their Fright Checks the whole crowd will stampede towards the exits, possibly crushing and trampling people in their rush. Additionally, large fires are loud. Characters will have to make Hearing rolls at -1 to -5 depending on the situation. FIRE DAMAGE SUPERHEATED GAS - If a character gets caught in a Flashover or a superheated steam or gas explosion he must roll vs. HT. If he fails this roll he takes 2d6 points of lung damage unless he was wearing airtight armor or protective clothing. He gets +5 to this roll if he has a High Pain Threshold, -5 if he has a Low Pain Threshold. FLASH BLINDING - If the heat or flame hit the character suddenly (like an explosion or fireball) the character must roll vs. DX or be blinded for (Number of points you missed the roll by x 5 - HT. Minimum of 1 second). A critical failure means the character is "crippled" and is permanently blind until the damage heals, if then. SMOKE INHALATION - Most fires generate lots of smoke. In an enclosed room, or a big fire, the GM might rule that the characters are in Smoke (see Poison Gas) and must make HT rolls to function. SUFFOCATION - Fires suck the oxygen out of the air. If the character is in a big fire or is surrounded by fire, the GM might rule that the character starts to suffocate or lose fatigue due to oxygen deprivation. CATCHING ON FIRE - A person's clothing will catch on fire after it ceases to protect against burn damage or immediately if a flame attack did enough damage to penetrate DR in one second. SPREAD OF FIRE - If a person catches on fire, each 5 seconds that they are on fire, the fire will spread to one or more hit locations (spreading upwards). The basic burn damage is for EACH hit location, so having the fire spread to a new hit location effectively doubles the damage. Fire damage for each location is like spending a turn in the fire hex. So, it is considerably more danger to be on fire than to be exposed to fire. Once a fire spreads to a new location, the fire in the old location will go out on a 10 or less. Roll each turn. FRIGHT CHECKS - If a person catches on fire and takes damage from the fire, they must make a Fright Check. If they make their fright check, or when they recover from their fright check they may attempt to put out the fire. BURNS - Burns are nasty. Severe burns are prone to infection, painful, and leave horrible scars. Any burn damage that cripples a limb (or does 1/2 HP damage to the head or torso) is a third-degree burn. FIRST DEGREE BURNS - These cause redness and pain. A typical first degree burn is a surnburn. Any burn damage that does 0 or 1 points of damage to a hit location is a first degree burn. The Pain penalty from these wounds is doubled (or there is a -1 penalty in the case of Zero points of damage), but there are no special effects. SECOND DEGREE BURNS - Thes cause redness, pain and blistering. A typical second degree burn is a bad sunburn or a burn from a heat source. Any burn that does 2 or more points of damage but does not cripple the limb is a second degree burn. They are treated like First Degree Burns, but roll vs. HT to see if they get infected, like any other wound. THIRD DEGREE BURNS - These are very severe burns, the skin is completely destroyed, and the tissue underneath might also be damaged. They are prone to infection and cause massive scarring even if they heal. Prior to TL 8 or 9 they are very difficult to treat, and most severe burn victims die. Any burn damage over 1/2 HT to the head or torso, or any damage that cripples a limb is a Third Degree burn. INITIAL EFFECTS OF THIRD DEGREE BURNS - Third Degree Burns are treated like First and Second degree burns for the first HT x 10 minutes. The victim has to roll for Shock and Pain normally, but doesn't have to roll for Unconciousness until after this period. At this time the character must immediately check for oligemic shock. If he goes into shock he will goes into a coma in HT x 2 minutes. RECOVERY FROM COMA - A burn victim may roll to recover from coma every 12 hours or when he heals a point of damage. Roll vs. HT - 1/2 burn damage to avoid and to fight off infection. No healing takes place while the wound is infected. FLUID LOSS - Second and Third degree burns cause blistering or weeping of fluid from the body. The character will "bleed" from a burn, losing 1 HP every hour minutes if a HT roll is failed. This roll is at -1 for every hit location that is burnt and is at -2 for every hit location that has a third degree burn. This fluid loss can only be replaced by blood or plasma transfusions if the character is unconcious, or by drinking liquids if the character is concious. This fluid loss can only be stopped by healing. If the character is in hot weather, each point of fatigue he lost to heat, gives -1 to this roll. LOSS OF TEMPERATURE REGULATION - The skin acts as the body's thermometer and cooling system. Severe burns destroy both functions. For each hit location that is burnt with second or third degree burns, the character is at -1 HT to HT to withstand the effects of heat and cold and is at -1 to HT to avoid or recover from Shock. DISFIGURING AND CRIPPLING - There will automatically be scarring and disfiguring damage with Third Degree burns. Burns to parts of the body that are regularly exposed will result in a loss of one level of Attractive Appearance. Burns to the head and face require any character to roll vs. HT. A critical success means that the character loses only one level of appearance. A normal success means that the character loses two levels of appearance. A failure means that the character loses three levels of appearance, and a critical failure means that he loses four levels. A character can have no worse appearance than Horrifying. Roll for other sorts of crippling damage normally. There is no permanent loss of Appearance with First or Second Degree burns, though the character might temporarily look terrible. INTERNAL BURNS - Chemical burns or superheated gasses sucked into the lungs might cause internal burns to the lungs. Damage from lasers might cause internal burns to other parts of the body. LUNG DAMAGE - Damage to the lungs from burns damages the tissues that allow carbon dioxide to be exchanged for oxygen and gradually fills the lungs with fluid exuded from the burned areas. The victim dies from a combination of Suffocation and Drowning. For every point of damage done to the lungs, the character loses 1 Fatigue and is at -1 HT to avoid Shock and Unconciousness. Each point the character loses due to Fluid Loss also takes -1 Fatigue and -1 HT. Furthermore, the character must roll vs. HT each 30 minutes minute or lose 1 Fatigue until he is Unconcious. When fatigue is gone, the character loses HP in the same way until he dies. Removing fluid from the lungs, supplying Oxygen and replacing fluid lost will help a character survive and will keep the character from losing Fatigue. A character will stop losing fatigue when the burns heal. RECOVERY - A character must roll vs. HT - Damage after he heals, or suffer a permanent loss of -1 Fatigue per point he missed the roll by. For each 3 points he missed the roll by he permanently loses 1 HT. OTHER INTERNAL BURNS - Burns from hot shrapnel or lasers do normal damage. They are less likely to bleed, but are at -2 HT to avoid infection, if dirt or bacteria could have gotten into the wound, otherwise they are at +4 to avoid infection. Such wounds take twice as long to heal, unless the cauterized portion of the wound was removed during surgery (as is likely). PUTTING OUT FIRES Roll vs. IQ or Fire-Fighting each turn. A successful roll puts out a hex of fire. This roll is modified by the following table: -8 incredibly hot fire (volcano, oil well fire) -4 super hot fire (large bonfire) +2 cool fire (alcohol fire) +4 small fire (torch) -4 using bare hands -2 using gloved hands 0 roll on ground +2 rolling in snow 0 wrap with blanket +2 wrap in fire blanket +2 smother with blanket (prone person or fire hex) +4 smother with fire blanke (prone person or fire hex) +6 each dry extinguisher shot +3 each bucket of water +2 each garden hose shot +5 each fire-hose shot +4 each bucket of sand +5 each CO2 extinguisher sh3 1, 4h chemical foam shot n/a immersion in water Failure allows the character to roll again, if he still has a method of putting out the fire. Some methods don't work against electrical or flammable liquid fires. RESCUING PEOPLE WHO ARE ON FIRE - Dousing flames on people who are on fire is tricky. If the victim is panicking, then a would-be rescuer must roll to hit (usually vs. DX or Fire-Fighting skill) with a fire extinguisher or a bucket of water or successfully grapple (Wrestling, DX, Martial Arts, or Fire-Fighting skill can all be used) with the victim in order to smother the flames with a blanket. A stationary victim can automatically be grappled, and is at +6 to hit with buckets of water or fire-extinguishers. If the blanket method is used on a standing victim then the rescuer needs to make a roll vs. IQ, First Aid, or Fire-Fighting. A failure (or a critical failure on the grapple roll) results in either fire damage to the rescuer. On a critical failure the flames on the victim's body "candle" and engulf the victim's head, doing another 1d6 damage to the victim's head and face. This will prompt a new Fright Check for the victim. If the grapple or roll to hit is successful, the rescue attempt is successful. The victim takes no more damage from the flames and the fire will be completely extinguished in 10 to 30 seconds, depending on the method used. DAMAGE FROM SOURCES OF FLAME TORCHES - A torch, wielded as a weapon, does ordinary light club damage plus one point for the flame. If the enemy has armor or skin of 2 DR or better, he will not feel the flame and will not take extra damage. If the torch is held to a specific hit location rather than thrust or swung it will do 1 point of burn damage. Pre-modern torches have small, uncertain flames. Roll vs. DX to avoid extinguishing the flame if you use your torch like a club. Modern torches, which use flammable liquids also do 1 point of damage. Some are mounted on longer poles so that they can be used as staves or spears instead of clubs. Treat these as cheap weapons. Roll vs. DX to avoid extinguishing the flame or, worse, spraying torch fuel all over the place. MAGIC - Certain magical weapons or spells create flame which is hotter than ordinary fire. The details are in the description of the weapon or spell. WALKING THROUGH FIRE - Sometimes you will have to walk through fire. The most common sources of fire are "flaming oil", burning rubble, and magic. Hexes are either considered to be on fire, or not on fire. If you run through all but the most intense flames you take no damage, unless you had no protection at all on your feet and legs. Then you take damage as if you walked through flames. If you spend part of your turn in a fire hex you take 1d6-5 points of damage from normal flames unless you had no protection at all on your feet or legs, then you take 1d6-4 points of damage. If you spend your entire turn in a fire hex, you take 1d6-3 points of damage. If the flame was relatively cool (like an alcohol flame) or small then you take 1d6-5 per every 2 seconds you spend in the flames (no damage if you spend just one second unless you had no protection), or 1d6-4 if you spend the entire turn in the flames. If the flames are especially intense or large, or there is a flammable liquid that can stick to clothing (gasoline, napalm) then you take 1d6-4 points per turn for walking through flames, (1d6-3 if you have no protection at all), or 1d6-2 if you stand in the flames. "Sticky" flames will also do damage on the next turn, even after you are out of the flames. It takes a Will check to stand in a fire hex and take damage. A sadistic GM might require a DX check to keep your footing in a slippery or rubble-filled fire hex. If you fall down, you take double damage for lying in the flames and have to spend another turn in the flames picking yourself up. INTENSE HEAT AND FLAMES - Depending on the heat of the material intense flame hexes can do double or triple the damage of ordinary flame. PROTECTION AGAINST FIRE BY CLOTHING - Clothing, hair and flammable armor begins to catch on fire after it ceases to protect against flame - DR x 3 seconds or when it takes triple its DR in fire damage in one turn. Double this time it is wet, triple if it is soaking wet. Double this time for very thick clothing. Commercial synthetic fibers melt or catch fire easily, halve their DR and add +1 to flame damage once they catch fire. Leather doesn't burn easily, triple DR. Flame-retardant treated fabrics double DR. PROTECTION AGAINST FIRE BY ARMOR - Low-tech armor and clothing will protect you against ordinary flame for turns equal to 3 x DR. After that, it will protect against flame, but the wearer must roll vs. HT every turn to resist the heat of the fire and smoke inhalation. A failed roll costs 1 fatigue. You take fire damage according to the lightest armor you have on parts of your body exposed to the flames e.g. leg and foot armor. Clothing and flammable armor begins to catch on fire after it ceases to protect against flame - DR x 3 seconds. Double this time it is wet, triple if it is soaking wet. Some armor can't be soaked, or else it can be only wetted with difficulty. High-tech protective outfits and armor may be airtight; in that case armor of DR 4 or better will protect indefinately against ordinary flame. Reflec armor protects for one minute; after that the wearer must make HT rolls as above, once every 10 seconds as heat builds up. Airtight armor with a DR 3 or less protects like low-tech armor, but might be ruined by the fire (GM's call.) PROTECTION AGAINST FIRE BY SHIELDS - A shield offers no protection if you are walking through flame. It can block a jet of flame (from a flame thrower, dragon, or spell) a it would block any other attack. If you go near a source of intense flame, but not actually in it, the shields PD will count as DR (it reflects the heat). If the shield is made of highly polished metal, its PD is increased 50% (round down.) TOUGHNESS - Against burns Toughness counts as DR. It protects only againt the first 1 or 2 points of damage, then it ceases to protect. ELECTRICAL BURNS Characters in some sorts of campaigns will be exposed to electric shocks. For small shocks due to minor accidents or torture don't bother rolling damage unless the character is doing somthing exceptionally stupid, household current won't normally do damage unless it is held in contact with bare skin by a torturer. For serious electrical shocks use the rules below. BASIC ELECTRIC DAMAGE - Electrical damage is based on voltage and ampherage. Each 100 volts x each 100 amps = 1/2 die of damage (round down) per turn. This is "whole body" damage and is applied as burn damage starting with the part of the body that made contact with the current and following the body until the current reaches a ground. If it matters, to find out if a body part is crippled, divide the dice of damage by the number of hit locations and roll damage for each hit location. TYPICAL DAMAGE FROM ELECTRIC CURRENTS 1 point per minute 110 Volt 20 Amp household current 1d6-3 per minute 220 Volt 20 Amp household current 6d6 per turn 600 Volt 200 Amp industrial current 12d6 per turn Powerline DAMAGE MODIFIERS - Electrical current can do more or less damage depending on the circumstances. +1 damage per die if current passed through head or chest +1 damage per die if character provides a good ground +1 damage per die if current is AC -1 damage per die if character is well insulated -2 damage per die if character is very well insulated and better grounding path is available. GETTING "STUCK ON THE WIRE" - Roll vs. DX. +1 if the electrical current is AC, +1 if the character is well grounded or is extremely conducted. -1 or more if the character is extremely well insulated. If the roll fails, the character is "stuck" to the electrical source (if it is still running) and continues to take damage on the next turn. A Critical Failure means that the character is stuck to the electrical source until the power is turned off. If the roll is successful the character is "thrown" by the shock, Knockback is determined normally. This isn't really Knockback, it is the effect of the character's body spasming. If it is important to not be knocked back, the character can roll vs. DX-5 to resist the effects of being "thrown". CARDIAC ARREST AND LOSS OF RESPIRATION - Roll vs. HT+5 -1 per die of damage to see if the character goes into Cardiac Arrestand accompanying loss of respiration. Even if a shock does no damage, roll vs. HT+5 to avoid Cardiac Arrest if the shock went through the chest or head. TORTURE - Low powered shocks aren't immediately lethal, but they are painful. In the modern world electric current is cheap, readily available and leaves few marks, making it a favorite means of interrogation among less-enlightened interrogators. If character is exposed to low-powered shocks then he must roll vs. Will to ignore the pain. High Pain Threshold helps, Low Pain Threshold hurts. Even 220 volt current will do only 1d6-3 points of damage per minute that it is held to exposed skin, so there is little danger of dying from the burns caused by this sort of torture. (Cardiac Arrest is a real danger though.) DIAGNOSING AND TREATING ELECTRICAL BURNS - Electrical burns are hard to diagnose since much of the burn damage is hidden under the skin. All rolls to diagnose the presence or extent of electrical burns are at Diagnosis or First-Aid-2. Electrical burns are also difficult to treat. All Physician or Surgery skills are at -2 to treat electrical burns. Electrical burns are identical to thermal burns in their effects. CHEMICAL BURNS BASIC DAMAGE - Most laboratory acids and bases are only dangerous to the eyes. When splashed on a victim caustic chemicals do 1d6 points of damage over set a period of time, usually 1 point of damage per minute of exposure. Unless the chemical can soak through clothing, even normal clothing will protect against caustic chemicals with its normal DR (minimum of 1). It takes 1 minute per point of DR for a caustic chemical to eat through most normal clothing. Armor will be etched and weakened by caustics but won't allow damage to get through unless the character is immersed in the chemical. These chemicals will eventually "burn themselves out" after they've done 1d6 points of damage. (If there oceans of the chemical, it might do more damage, but for the typical beaker of acid or acid jet from a monster 1d6 is about right.) Immersion in a caustic chemical will cause 1d6 points of damage to the whole body per turn. SUPER CONCENTRATED ACIDS AND BASES - Though rare in real life, vats of incredibly concentrated acid are a staple of pulp adventures and comic books. These will do 1 point of damage per turn over 3d6 turns before neutralizing themselves. They give -1 pain penalty per body location they are on. Immersion in super concentrated acids or bases will do 3d6 points of damage to the whole body per turn. SUPERCONCENTRATED CHEMICALS AND INANIMATE OBJECTS - Super concentrated chemicals will cause modern armor to lose 1d6 DR and 1 PD per acid attack. Other items suffer pitting and corrosion. When used against a lock's pins or other small, vulnerable items, acid requires 3d6 minutes to eat through the item. BURNS TO THE EYES - While it takes time for a caustic to do significant amounts of damage to skin, the eyes are sensitive, and their moisture causes some reactions to happen faster. Harsh chemicals splashed into the eyes immediately do 1 point of damage and give a -4 Stun and Pain penalty. The character is blinded until the eyes are thoroughly flushed with at least 5 gallons of water. If there is less water available, the character can roll vs. HT at a penalty set by the GM to see if enough water got into his eyes to flush out the toxin. If the eyes aren't flushed then they take 1 additional point of damage per minute until they are completely destroyed at 4 hits. If the eyes aren't flushed quickly (within 20 seconds), the character must roll vs. HT-3 per point of damage done or lose sight in that eye. Roll for once for each eye. Goggles or glasses will protect the eyes if the character can roll vs. DX (assuming he failed his defense roll in the first place). The Nictating Membrane allows the eyes to take more damage before they are damaged. Caustics must first get through the DR of the membrane before it can do damage to the eye. The nictating membrane will also negate the first "instant" point of damage. TREATING CHEMICAL BURNS - In order to treat chemical burns first the substance must be neutralized or washed away. Washing away a caustic chemical requires at least a gallon of water or else a solution of mild acid or base to neutralize the caustic substance. In most cases water is the better option, though in some cases it might cause a reaction with the chemical which causes further burns. A roll vs. First-Aid-2, NBC Survival, or Physician skill plus the proper materials is required to neutralize caustic chemicals. If the chemical can't be neutralized, the burn can't be treated. Once the burn is neutralized, it is treated as a regular thermal burn. OTHER BURNS BURNS FROM LIQUIDS Hot liquids, like boiling water, will do 1d6 points of damage for a splash from 1 gallon of boiling water. Immersion in boiling water will do 1d6 points of damage per turn over the whole body. The GM can pro-rate this damage if not all of the body is exposed. These burns are treated just like any other sort of burn. BURNS FROM SUPERHEATED GASSES Superheated gas will do 1d6 points of damage per turn over the entire body for "normal" hot gasses, like steam. Incredibly hot gasses will do more damage. The GM can pro-rate this damage if not all of the body is exposed. In addition to their damage, they also are likely to cause internal burns, see Internal Burns. Damage from these burns is treated like normal burn damage. VOLCANOES AND LAVA LAVA - Lava from volcanos is actually semi-solid and only travels at a few miles per hour. Even a man on foot can outrun it, though this has never stopped writers of fantasy or pulp-fiction from forcing their heroes to flee fast-moving torrents of lava. Realistically, if a character is pinned down in front of lava or falls onto molten lava, he takes 1d6 damage per hit location per turn. If a character attempts to walk across recently hardened lava, he takes damage as if he was walking through a fire hex. Fantasy and pulp characters can fall into pools of boiling lava with the consistancy of pudding. This will do 8d6 whole body damage per turn, resulting in a rapid and gruesome demise. BOILING MUD AND ASH FLOWS - Though far less glamorous than lava, boiling mud or ash flows are actually the real danger of volcanic eruptions. These flows can reach up to 80 mph. They are treated as boiling water. SUPERHEATED GAS - A volcanic explosion can result in a huge cloud of superheated gas and ash being ejected. This superhot air will do 1d6 burn damage to the whole body (roll also for lung damage) and 1d6 concussion damage or more depending on the size of the explosion. ASH - Ash is a common form of fall-out from a volcanic eruption. If the ash is extremely hot it will do 1 point of damage to exposed character per minute and might set flammable objects on fire. If the ash is cool, then it makes it hard to see and breath. Characters in an ash cloud see as if they were in near or total darkness. Night Vision, IR, UV, or Spectrum Vision doesn't work in clouds of volcanic ash, though magic Dark Vision or Psionic sight does. Characters in an ash cloud must roll vs. HT every minute or gag and cough from the ash that they've breathed in. Putting a rag over your mouth or wearing a gas mask prevents this, but the rag or mask filters will quickly become clogged with dust. Large amounts of dust will collapse the roofs of buildings and clog air filters of machinery. The problems this will cause are up to the GM's imagination. HIGH TEMPERATURES - The inside of an active volcano can reach temperatures of 150 F or more, depending on proximity to the lava. Characters who venture into a live volcano must cope with the effects of extreme heat. POISON GASSES - Volcanic activity also releases noxious gasses, notably sulfur dioxide. Character breathing noxious gasses will take damage. See the section on Poison Gas. COLD WEATHER AND FREEZING COLD WEATHER - Medieval armor gives little protection against cold weather, equivalent to normal clothing. High-tech airtight battlesuits and vacc-suits protect completely against cold (but not super-cold) if they have a 5+ DR. Airtight suits of DR 4 or less give +1 on the wearer's roll to keep warm, unless they were specifically designed to keep the wearer warm. Reflec armor also retains heat, giving a +1. WIND CHILL - High wind lowers the effective temperature. This means that a cool day with a high wind is just as dangerous as a cold day with no wind. In addition to high wind, travelling at high speeds in an unenclosed vehicle can also cause wind chill. Getting out of the wind (even if it is an improvised snow shelter or a foxhole) will reduce or eliminate wind chill. HYPOTHERMIA AND FROSTBITE - Against "normal" freezing weather, make a HT (or Artic Survival) roll every 30 minutes you are outdoors. If you fail the roll you start to get frost-bitten. This roll assumes that you are wearing "normal" winter clothing. +10 if you are wearing a heated vacc suit +6 if you are wearing a normal vacc suit +4 if you are wearing specialized cold weather clothing -5 if you are wearing light clothing -7 if you are nude -5 if you are wearing wet cotton clothing -2 if you are wearing wet clothing -1 if you are wearing damp or sweaty clothing -1 per effective 10 below 0 F (including wind chill) -1 per 10,000 feet of altitude +2 if you are exercising heavily +1 if you are active -1 if you are stationary +1 if you have some form of improvised windbreak or shelter +2 if you have a snow cave, tent, or other shelter +4 if you have cold-weather sleeping bags and tents -1 if holding metal item in bare hands -1 if dealing with gasoline or other volatile fuels -1 per 3 stages of drunkeness -1 if you have previously suffered from frostbite -1 Skinny -1 if you have poor circulation FROSTBITE - Roll vs. HT or Artic Survival to avoid the effects of frost-bite. If you fail the roll, you start to take damage. Roll each 30 minutes, more often in extremely cold conditions. Unless First Aid is administered immediately after frostbite is first detected, the amount you missed your first roll by is retained as a negative modifier to future rolls to avoid frostbite until First Aid is given. Roll missed by: 1-3 Mild Frostbite - No damage, but extremity is extremely numb and painful on rewarming. Extremity crippled for 20-HT days (minimum of 3 days). 4-6 Moderate Frostbite - 1d6-4 points of burn damage, minor scarrring, limb is very painful on rewarming. -2 pain penalty. Limb is crippled for 30-HT days upon rewarming as per serious wound. Roll for infection after HT/2 days at HT+2. If the roll is failed a finger, toe or other minor extremity has been destroyed by frost and must be amputated. On a critical failure, the entire hand or foot must be amputated. 7-9 Severe Frostbite - 1d6 burn damage, scarring, limb is painful and crippled on rewarming. Limb is crippled for 30- HT days on rewarming. -3 Pain penalty. Roll for infection after HT/2 days at HT-4 (unless a Surgery or Physician roll is made). If the roll is failed, a finger, toe, or other mild extremity has been destroyed by frost. If the roll is failed by 3 or more, the entire hand or foot must be amputated. 10+ Very Severe Frostbite - As above, but you take 2d6 burn damage. If a character's feet are take damage due to frostbite (4 or more cumulative failures), then they are crippled in that leg. If the character's hands are crippled due to frostbite, then they are at -2 to DX with that hand per cumulative failure. LOCATION OF FROSTBITE - Frostbite typically affects the ears, nose, lips, hands and feet. The GM should decide which part of the character is most exposed and afflict the character with frostbite in that location if it makes sense to do so. Otherwise, roll 1d6: 1-2 Head (ears, lips, nose) 3-4 Feet and toes 5-6 Hands and fingers Characters with frostbitten hands or fingers are at -1 to DX using that hand per point of damage taken. Minimum of -2 DX penalty. Characters with frostbitten feet are at -1 to DX and Move per 2 points of damage to their feet, minimum of -1 to DX and Move. Frostbitten ears, noses, and lips don't affect the character. TREATMENT AND EFFECTS - A First-Aid, Physician or Artic Survival roll will allow you to rewarm frostbitten body parts. This takes 30 minutes and requires a source of warmth (this can be body heat) and shelter. This "sets the clock back" when determining the effects of cumulative failed rolls, but doesn't undo the damage already caused by frostbite. A successful Physician roll will give +1 to HT per point by which the roll was made to avoid infection (and the need for amputation) and to recover from crippling. A critical failure on either First Aid or Physician roll does 1d6-3 points of damage to the afflicted extremity and -1 to HT to avoid infection. Frostbite damage is treated as burn damage, but there is no bleeding, fluid loss, or shock associated with frostbite. HYPOTHERMIA - If you miss any survival roll by 2 or more points, you also lose 1 point of Fatigue per 2 points you missed the roll by. When fatigue reaches 0 you automatically fall unconcious and start to take damage. In "normal" cold you take 1 point of damage every 10 minutes. In "Artic" cold you take 1 point of damage every 5 minutes. TREATMENT - Treatment for hypothermia (loss of Fatigue or HT) requires shelter and warmth. Roll vs. Physician, First-Aid or Artic Survival-2 skill to properly rewarm the patient. A successful roll allows the victim to stop taking cold damage. If the victim was still concious he recovers 1/2 his fatigue. A critical failure sends the victim into Cardiac Arrest. Rewarming takes 1 hour. Warm drinks give +1 to the roll. TRENCHFOOT - Characters who have to wade or walk through cold, dirty water for long periods of time might get trench foot. After 24 hours of such abuse, each character must make a HT (or Artic Survival) roll each day just like for Frostbite, above. If the character fails the roll he has trenchfoot. The effects of this are treated just like the effects of Frostbite, but HT checks are made every 24 hours, rather than every 30 minutes. Treatment for trenchfoot consists of warming, cleaning, and drying the feet and then putting on dry shoes and socks. A successful First-Aid roll is required to correctly warm and dry the feet. ARCTIC HAZARDS WHITEOUT - Whiteouts occur in the artic when the ground is covered with snow and the sky is a low, white overcast. The horizon disappears as the sky and ground merge into a blanket of white causing all sense of depth perception to vanish. Travel in a whiteout is possible at 3/4 normal speed (modified according to terrain) but a roll vs. Orienteering is required every hour to avoid getting lost. It is possible to fly in whiteout conditions, but a roll vs. Navigation is required every hour to avoid getting lost, and a roll vs. Pilot skill is required upon landing, whenever the plane gets within 500' of the ground or if the plane has to violently maneuver or suddenly lose altitude (like in a dogfight, for example) to avoid crashing. Combat is also possible, but ranged attacks are at -3 to hit unless you have range-finding equipment that doesn't depend on the human eye. SUNBURN - Sunburn is the most likely artic hazard. The long daylight and the reflectivity of ice and snow crystals combine to burn face, hands, lips, eyelids, even the roof of the mouth and inside the nose! Unprotected flesh (sunglasses, cream, masks, etc. protect) will be severely burnt. Damage should be assessed based on the degree of risk, degree of exposure, and amount of flesh exposed. A blistering sunburn on a person's face and hands would do 1 point of damage, and give -1 to DX to tasks that require the hands, and to IQ due to pain. SNOW BLINDLESS - This is sunburn of the eyes. If the character takes sunburn damage while in snowy conditions or whiteout he must make a HT (or Artic Survival) roll. If he fails the roll, he is snowblind. The eyes swell shut and exposure to light becomes extremely painful. Anyone without eye protection (such as sunglasses) will go snowblind after 3d6+3 hours in such conditions (or after the first point of damage due to sunburn). He will be blind and at -2 Pain penalty until the swelling goes down and the eyes heal (roll against HT each day after the second day). First Aid for snowblindess is cold packs and total darkness. Pain relievers such as codeine or morphine will negate the IQ penalty. COLD WATER - Anyone suddenly immersed in cold water will be subject to the effects of immersion shock. See Immersion Shock. CREVASSES - Crevasses (cracks) form when large sections of frozen snow and ice move too rapidly for the surrounding ice to keep up. They occur on Arctic pack ice and on glaciers, especially in the spring and the summer. These crevasses may be hundreds of feet deep and a few feet to many yards across. Snow blowing across the gap can bury the crevasse. A successful Mountaineering, Artic Survival-2, or Vision-5 roll will spot this hazard. A character with an ice axe or ski pole can probe ahead of him for crevasses but this cuts speed of travel to 3/4 normal speed. Parties of mountaineers in areas where there are crevasses normally rope themselves together to avoid having one member fall into a crevasse. If a character falls into a crevasse, he gets a DX roll to catch himself on the lip of the crevasse before he falls. GLACIERS AND ICE CLIMBING - Climbing a glacier or other ice slope takes a DX or Climbing roll. This roll is at -2 if the character doesn't have proper ice-climbing equipment. If the character fails a roll, he will start to slide down the slope. He may make an immediate roll vs. Climbing or Mountain Survival to arrest his slide. A successful roll means that the character slides back 1d6 yards before he catches himself. If the character has to arrest himself more quickly so he loses less ground, he is at -2 to his skill roll. If the character fails his roll, he slides 1d6 yards and may try to arrest himself again next turn. On a critical failure, the character slides for 1d6 turns before he gets another chance to stop himself. ARCTIC SURVIVAL Surviving in sub-freezing temperatures is difficult - even for a seasoned veteran. Successful Survival (Arctic/Cold Weather) rolls are necessary to find/thaw fresh wter, resist freezing effects, locate food sources (berries, game, plant life) and build shelter from the elements. Most cold weather hazards are worsened if the victim is wet. Cooling by evaporation and increased heat loss make survival in such a state nearly impossible (-5 to HT roll to survive). First Aid for cold weather ailments usually requires warmth. A successful First Aid or Survival roll to treat cold injuries will only work if adequate shelter and heat is available. A heat source in this context may include flame, electric heat, or body warmth. Without shelter or heat First Aid and Survival rolls are at -5. If neither is present, roll at-10. BUILDING SHELTER - Shelter eliminates the hazards of wind chill and sunburn. A successful Survival (Arctic/Cold Weather) roll is required to build any of the shelters listed below. A failure means the time spent is lost and the shelter is useless. TRENCHES - A trench is simple and quick to build. Dig a hole deep enough to lie down in and cover it with a tarp or a roof of intertwined branches. It negates the wind chill factor, but does not significantly increase temperature. SNOW CAVE - A snow cave is built by tunnelling into packed snow bank and hollowing out an area to rest in. One man can build a snow cave large enough for three people in 1d6-3 hours (minimum 1). Without a shovel, he is at -2 to his roll and takes twice as long. IGLOO - An igloo is made by stacking blocks of ice or compacted snow into a small rounded structure, then coating the outside with loose snow. An ice house eliminates the wind chill factor and internal temperatures can reach 40 degrees from body heat. The warmth inside the house welds the blocks firmly together, enabling it to stand up to extremely high winds. All rolls to build an igloo are at -2 to skill. It takes 2d6 man-hours per person accommodated to build an igloo. GUNS IN COLD WEATHER - In extremely cold weather guns which are not prepared for cold weather fighting will jam on a 14+ or -2 to their normal rate of jamming, whichever is worst. It takes a successful Guns roll and 30 minutes to prepare a gun for use in cold weather. Immediate action can fix the problem, but only VEHICLES IN COLD WEATHER - Vehicles in extremely cold weather will be hard to start and might malfunction. If a vehicle hasn't been prepared for operations in cold weather it takes a successful Driver roll to start the vehicle in Arctic conditions. If the vehicle doesn't start then it is assumed to have frozen up somewhere. A chacter using weapons mounted on or in a non-winterized vehicle must roll vs. Driver or Gunner skill the first time that he attempts to use a given weapon. Failure means that the weapon or its turret is frozen in place. A critical failure on any of these rolls means that some part has failed due to the cold. It takes a successful Mechanic roll and a source of heat to fix most cold related problems. Each problem will take 1d6-3 hours (minimum 1 hour) to fix. These problems can be prevented by winterizing a vehicle before the problem develops. This takes a successful Mechanic roll and 1d6 hours per vehicle. SUPER-COLD Cold can be deadly, but only magic or super-science can produce cold quickly enough to affect a combat. Medieval style armor and normal clothing offer normal protection against such isome sort of physical feat under such conditions. If the character's life support equipment fails they will begin to take cold damage just as if they were exposed to normal cold weather, but the temperature will eventually drop to the "temperature" of the surrounding space. If it gets cold enough the atmosphere inside the character's vacc suit or space ship will liquify, then freeze, but the character will be long dead by the time that that happens. WATER DROWNING If you fail a Swimming roll, you lose 1 Fatigue and must immediately make another swimming roll. If you fail that roll, you must make yet another roll and so on. When your fatigue reaches 0 you start to drown. This is the same as Suffocation, but somebody must make a successful First-Aid or Physician skill roll on you for you to recover. You must make two rolls to stop drowning. First you must make a Swimming or Will roll to stop panicking. Then you must make a Swimming roll (or an IQ-3 roll to float if you can't swim due to lack of knowledge or energy) to stop drowning. FRIGHT CHECKS - If you fall in very cold water, or you don't know how to swim, or you fail two consecutive Swimming rolls, you must make a Fright Check. If you fail the Fright Check you flail about in the water and are at -3 to further swimming rolls, and are at -3 to be rescued. DROWNING REFLEX - Before the character dies due to suffocation, the GM may allow a roll vs. HT. A critical success on this roll means that the "Drowning Reflex" has kicked in. The character will not die for HT/2 x 10 minutes. Add +1 to the roll if the character is a small child, +1 if the water is cold. A First-Aid roll is still needed to revive the character and the character must roll vs. HT to avoid Brain Damage. UNCONCIOUSNESS - If you are knocked unconcious and fall into water then you start to drown immediately. You get 1 roll vs. HT to regain conciousness when you hit the water. If you are wearing a floatation vest you will still drown. If you are wearing a life vest or are propped up in a life ring then you will not drown. ENCUMBRANCE AND OTHER MODIFIERS - Twice encumbrance is subtracted from the Swimming roll. You are at +2 if you are Overweight, +4 if you are Fat, +6 if you are Very Fat, -1 if you are Skinny. +3 if you entered the water intentionally. +4 if you have an improvised float or life ring, +6 if you are wearing a floatation vest, +8 if you are wearing a life jacket. -1 in cold water, -4 in very cold water. LIFE-SAVING - If you can reach someone from shore with a rope roll vs. DX, Lasso or Throwing skill to get to the drowning character. If you can reach with a pole, roll vs. DX, pole arm, spear, or staff skill. Once the drowning character gets hold of the rope or pole they can be pulled in if you can roll vs. ST+4. If you have a boat, roll vs. the appropriate skill to reach the drowning person and to get them in the boat without them tipping it over. A drowning person must roll vs. DX to catch a boat, pole or rope. They must roll vs. ST to hang on. If you have to swim to rescue someone, make a Swimming roll at -5, plus or minus the difference between your ST and the victim. A failed roll means that you fail a swimming roll. A critical failure means that the victim panicks and grabs ahold of you, so you start to drown yourself. Roll a contest of ST each turn to break free, and then make a successful Swimming roll to escape. You must break off your rescue attempt. If you come up with a clever technique to assist you, the GM may give a bonus to you roll. COLD WATER AND THERMAL SHOCK - A character suddenly immersed in water must make a HT roll. A failure reduces DX and DX-based skills by -3 because of the shock to the system from the sub-freezing temperatures. They must also roll vs. HT each second or lose 1 Fatigue. When fatigue reaches 3 the character starts to lose HP. He must also make all swimming rolls at -4. If the character is rescued, he must be rewarmed as he had hypothermia. If the character had a wet-suit or other watertight clothing on, he gets +4 to HT. If he had a special cold-water diving, or survival suit on he is immume to the effects of Thermal Shock. LONG TERM IMMERSION IN WATER - Human beings cannot survive for long periods of time in water, except in the warmest of conditions. In most cases you will eventually die of hypothermia, even if you don't drown, unless you have special equipment. Roll vs. HT every 30 minutes in all but the warmest water. In water below 50 you immediately start to suffer from Termal Shock as well, and must roll vs. HT every 15 minutes. In supercold water the Thermal Shock will kill you long before immersion will. In water above 70 roll once per hour. In water above 90 there is no risk of hypothermia. In any water roll for trenchfoot after 24 hours and every 24 hours thereafter. Roll randomly for which limb is affected by trenchfoot (if you're in water, your hands are as likely to be affected as your feet!). The following modifiers apply to the HT roll to avoid Hypothermia due to immersion: +4 wearing wetsuit (no effect on rolls to avoid trenchfoot) +8 wearing heated wetsuit (including rolls for trenchfoot) +6 wearing hard diving suit or vacc suit (inc. trenchfoot) +10 wearing heated hard diving suit or vacc suit (inc. trenchfoot) THE BENDS - The Bends is caused when a person using compressed air in a high pressure enviorment returns to a normal atmosphere too quickly causing nitrogen bubbles to form in the blood. It is most common among SCUBA or hard hat divers, but workers who work deep underground in compressed air enviorments can get a variant of the condition called "caisson disease". Any time a diver goes below 60 feet below the surface, he is in danger of getting the bends. It takes 10 minutes of decompression for every 20' underwater (or an equivalent amount of time in a decompression chamber) to ascend safely. Roll vs. SCUBA, or Hard Hat Diving skill to safely decompress. Roll vs. HT at -1 for every stage or 5 minutes of decompression beyond the first stage skipped if proper decomprMass (tons) x Velocity (mph) = Damage dice = mass (lbs.) x velocity (yds./sec)/400