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Entropic Rad Levels

by John Walter Biles

100 'Rad' Force: Each year, for one entire day, no one can die and no undead can be created. All Undead become comatose during that period. Anyone who should die merely lingers on the edge of death and can be saved if enough healing magic can be applied in that time. Necromantic magic does not function, nor does disintegrate or other spells which simply destroy things directly. (You can burn something, but you can't make it go 'poof')

This creates certain other complications. For example, Cure Disease doesn't work because you can't kill off what's causing the illness. Your body can't fight off infections because it can't kill any viruses, so no one recovers from getting sick.

500 'Rad' Force: For one week each year the effects of 100 'Rad' force apply. In addition, the effective lifespan of all creatures increases 50%. Aging effects spread proportionally across that span, increasing infancy times and the period before negative aging effects set in. Undead level draining abilities can now be saved against; undead powers which allow a saving throw now allow two saving throws, and both must be failed to suffer the normal affect of failing a saving throw. (Undead who can cast actual spells, such as Nosferatu or Liches, do not suffer this penalty to cast spells, only to their spell-like powers).

1000 'Rad' Force: All life spans effectively double. All non-sentient undead die and can no longer be created. Only Magic-Users or Clerics with a 18 in their prime requisite can cast destructive necromantic or energy draining spells. Would-be Clerics of Entropy must have an 18 wisdom to become clerics (of Entropic immortals). The major Entropic churches collapse within a few years. Only those with a Constitution of 13 or higher can successfully fight off illness, everyone else suffers more and more ailments as they age, and must make a system shock roll each year or become incapacitated (but unable to die) from disease. Sentient undead must make a saving throw vs. death magic each year during the week of no entropy or die permanently.

Society also now begins to become stagnant; change becomes more difficult, and everyone becomes more stubborn, as you cannot get ideas in their heads to 'die'. Physical objects become much harder to damage or change except through magic or psionics.

2,000 'Rad' Force: Sentient undead mostly die out; only those with spell-casting abilities (magical or clerical) survive, and even those are incredibly rare and have a hard time reproducing. No one ever dies of old age, and the only way to permanently kill someone is to eat them. (Although you can be maimed to the point of dysfunctionality). Only those with an 18 constitution can fight off disease; everyone else is overwhelmed by reproducing micro-organisms, and as above, must make a system shock check each year or become incapacitated.

Society stagnates as those at the top never die of old age, never let go of power, and effectively lock out those below them. Social change becomes impossible, as only those with an 18 intelligence can even conceive of the idea of destroying society in order to replace it. But people continue to reproduce, thus increasingly clogging the bottom of the social ladder.

Eating becomes an unpleasant activity; most become vegetarian because eating a still-living animal is more disturbing than eating a still living plant.

5000 'Rad' Force: The Nucleus of the Sphere explodes. All entropy ceases, and everything really goes to hell.