The Cackleblight
"Subject continues to laugh hysterically despite sensations of significant pain. Regular candle flame seems to have little effect, while magically produced flames only haha, excuse me, magical flames only seem to increase the laughter's ferocity. Even hehe, excu- hahaha, ehrm. Even mundane candles lit by magical means, such as the standard Produce Flame cantrip, hahahahaha, ahem. Even those seem to increase the severity of the strange cackling.Cackleblight is a terrible but thankfully quite rare illness that is incredibly contagious once it begins spreading. There are three recorded instances of Cackleblight plagues, one in Cireth, one in Smelyevets, and the worst of all in Agruk. While the first two were contained within days, the plague swept through the dwarves of Agruk in their mountain homes, directly and indirectly killing over half of their population. Scholars are still uncertain why it seems to affect dwarves more than other creatures, but most believe that the disease might be a form of magical madness, noting that the dwarves of Agruk are known to have a long standing relationship with bouts of madness. Regardless, the outbreak of Cackleblight in Agruk in 3742 has made the dwarven peoples far more cautious of anyone who cackles.Oddly, the laughter, though otherwise unremarkable, seems hahaha, to be fairly contagious, hehehe, though whether non-hahahahaha, non-hehehe, non-magicians are affected remains un-hahaha, un-heeheeheeeeeee, un-heeeeehahahahah-"Curators Note: At this point the writing becomes indecipherable as the writer, the research assistant of the famous wizard Lorius, presumably began cackling too vigorously to maintain proper penmanship. Unfortunately, both Lorius and his assistant Hara succumbed to the Cackleblight shortly afterwards, though their research would show to be instrumental in the containment and elimination of the Cackleblight Fever.
Transmission & Vectors
Sentient creatures who hear the the horrid cackling caused by this disease will soon find themselves cackling along with the victim unless they are particularly strong of will. Magic users in particular seem to have trouble resisting the laughing urges and the casting of spells has been known to cause the symptoms to flare up violently with little other warning.
Causes
Nobody knows the exact cause of Cackleblight, but most scholars can agree that it is likely to have one of two primary sources. Hags' curses, or some strange Wild Goblin ritual. While the curses of hags are known to cause any number of ailments, a number of dwarven experiments following the outbreak of 3742 revealed that numerous goblins are already infected with the disease.
For reasons still unknown to arcanists and scholars alike, Cackleblight seems to have little to no effect on wild goblins. Instead forming some kind of strange, symbiotic relationship with the creatures. Interestingly, this is not the case for free goblins, as they are affected just like most humanoids. Oddly, domesticated goblins seem to be completely immune to the Cackleblight, though scholars are unable to determine whether this is simply from lack of exposure or a long term side effect of Elven mind control.
Symptoms
Creatures beset by this illness succumb to irregular bouts of cackling laughter. The sound of the cackles is said to be quite distinct, often hanging in the air after the bout has passed. Over time the cackles become more frequent, until the victim eventually dies of asphyxiation.
It is well documented that magic users are hit particularly hard by this disease, and any attempts to apply magical healing of any kind are likely only to make the situation worse. This is what makes the Cackleblight so dangerous.
It is highly recommended that infected creatures are kept out of hearing of one another, as their cackles can trigger each other, worsening the disease. This resonance has eliminated entire towns before healers could be contacted, so extreme caution is advised.
In-Game Cackleblight Effects
Catching: creatures who hear the laughter caused by Cackleblight must succeed a Charisma Save or contract Cackleblight sickness. Dwarves and magic users (divine, arcane, primal, occult, or otherwise) have Disadvantage on this save, and on any other save they make against the disease.
Curing: a creature is cured of Cackleblight when they successfully resist three bouts of cackling laughter while the disease is in Stage 1 or less. Otherwise, a failed save against the disease increases its stage by 1, and a successful save decreases its stage by 1. Magical healing can reduce the stage of the disease (1 for Lesser Restoration, 3 for Greater Restoration, Heal, or similar), but also triggers the effects of Magical Exposure (see below).
Magical Exposure: when the victim of Cackleblight is exposed to magic (a.k.a. casts a spell, has a spell cast on them, touches a magical item or magical aura, or the like) including healing magic, they must immediately make a Wisdom Save against the disease's Save DC (determined by the GM). For this save, the DC is increased by the level of spell or effect the victim is interacting with. Stage 0: Victims in this stage have just heard the laughter for the first time. Make a Charisma Save against the disease's DC. Success counts toward the 3 curing successes and does not make you laugh. If you fail, you cackle, potentially spreading the disease. Additionally, the disease proceeds to Stage 1.
Stage 1: Victims in this stage are infected, but still have a chance of recovery. Whenever you hear another creature's Cackleblight laughter or touch something magical, you must succeed a Charisma Save against the disease's DC. If you succeed, reduce the disease to Stage 0. If you fail, you begin to cackle madly, potentially spreading the disease, falling prone and becoming incapacitated for 1 round. Additionally, the disease progresses to Stage 2.
Stage 2: Victims in this stage begin losing themselves in bouts of mad laughter. As Stage 1, except that the cackling lasts for 1 minute. After the first round of laughter, the victim regains some control of themselves and is no longer incapacitated, but counts as Staggered until the laughter ends. Additionally, the disease proceeds to Stage 3.
Stage 3: Victims in this stage are on the edge of death, laughing hysterically without ceasing. Starting the first time you hear another creature's cackles or when you touch anything magical, you begin to cackle madly. For the first round, you are incapacitated and fall prone. After that, you are Nauseated indefinitely. You must attempt another Charisma Save against the disease's DC whenever you interact with something magical, hear another creature's cackles, or are made to fall over because you are nauseated. If you fail the save, you begin Suffocating. Succeeding this save does not reduce the stage of the disease. Instead, it allows you to catch your breath. You regain consciousness and are no longer dying. If you succeed three times in a row, then the disease has run its course. You go down to Stage 2 immediately, but automatically succeed all saves against the disease from that point on.
Curing: a creature is cured of Cackleblight when they successfully resist three bouts of cackling laughter while the disease is in Stage 1 or less. Otherwise, a failed save against the disease increases its stage by 1, and a successful save decreases its stage by 1. Magical healing can reduce the stage of the disease (1 for Lesser Restoration, 3 for Greater Restoration, Heal, or similar), but also triggers the effects of Magical Exposure (see below).
Magical Exposure: when the victim of Cackleblight is exposed to magic (a.k.a. casts a spell, has a spell cast on them, touches a magical item or magical aura, or the like) including healing magic, they must immediately make a Wisdom Save against the disease's Save DC (determined by the GM). For this save, the DC is increased by the level of spell or effect the victim is interacting with. Stage 0: Victims in this stage have just heard the laughter for the first time. Make a Charisma Save against the disease's DC. Success counts toward the 3 curing successes and does not make you laugh. If you fail, you cackle, potentially spreading the disease. Additionally, the disease proceeds to Stage 1.
Stage 1: Victims in this stage are infected, but still have a chance of recovery. Whenever you hear another creature's Cackleblight laughter or touch something magical, you must succeed a Charisma Save against the disease's DC. If you succeed, reduce the disease to Stage 0. If you fail, you begin to cackle madly, potentially spreading the disease, falling prone and becoming incapacitated for 1 round. Additionally, the disease progresses to Stage 2.
Stage 2: Victims in this stage begin losing themselves in bouts of mad laughter. As Stage 1, except that the cackling lasts for 1 minute. After the first round of laughter, the victim regains some control of themselves and is no longer incapacitated, but counts as Staggered until the laughter ends. Additionally, the disease proceeds to Stage 3.
Stage 3: Victims in this stage are on the edge of death, laughing hysterically without ceasing. Starting the first time you hear another creature's cackles or when you touch anything magical, you begin to cackle madly. For the first round, you are incapacitated and fall prone. After that, you are Nauseated indefinitely. You must attempt another Charisma Save against the disease's DC whenever you interact with something magical, hear another creature's cackles, or are made to fall over because you are nauseated. If you fail the save, you begin Suffocating. Succeeding this save does not reduce the stage of the disease. Instead, it allows you to catch your breath. You regain consciousness and are no longer dying. If you succeed three times in a row, then the disease has run its course. You go down to Stage 2 immediately, but automatically succeed all saves against the disease from that point on.
Treatment
With the disease's inflammatory reaction to magic, little treatment is possible. Quick quarantining of the victim is recommended, and a Silence spell, though potentially deadly to the victim, will prevent further spreading of the disease.
Beyond simply quarantining the victim and waiting for them to resist the disease, there is significant evidence to suggest that painting large frowny faces with non-magical paints can act as a sort of suppressant for the disease. Many of the towns that survived the Cirethian Cackleblight claim to have done so by wearing makeup similar to that of mimes, with universally sad and crying faces. These faces were also painted on the walls and doors of buildings throughout the town, seemingly protecting the survivors from further infection.
