The Great Plague

Plague / Epidemic

The Great Plague of 329BU decimated the population of North-East M'dia. It produced weeping sores on its victims which leaked infectious plasma and spread by contact or contaminated water.

The Plague killed by secondary infection of sores. The Elders believes diseases were caused by miasma in the air and encouraged the population of the city to wear scarves around their mouths to prevent contamination. In fact, the disease was spread by a parasite in river water. Infected individuals who bathes in the river spread the parasite to those downstream.   The growing movement of religious Pentarchists widely decried the disaster as a sign of the fury of the Gods. The Pentarchists, funded by the wealthy Irao merchant family found their message resonated with the populous and saw their greatest growth in believers during this time. This was the basis of the claim of divine right by the later Irao Kings.   The excess of corpses generated by the plague spurred on the building of the catacombs. The first half of the catacombs had been built with grand vaulted chambers over the course of 7 years, the second half was built in two years with simple columns and bare walls.