Goblin Pox

Cause

Goblin Pox is caused by the Blue Pinhead Fungus. While there are several species of Pinhead Fungus, the Blue Pinhead Fungus is the only one known to have a severe adverse effect on people. This fungus naturally can be found in Kos and ordinarily lives in the soil. If the spores come into contact with humanoids, it causes a severe illness. Other sapient species aren't affected by it or aren't affected as strongly. Goblinoids in particular seem to be immune to the pox despite carrying the name of the disease.

Transmission

Goblin Pox is transmitted through contact with Blue Pinhead Fungus spores. These microscopic spores often appear as bluish dust on plants. They can be inhaled, ingested, or come into contact with breaks in the skin. In each case, they cause Goblin Pox, though the exact presentation varies depending on how contact was made. Most people who have Goblin Pox show symptoms from multiple types.

Symptoms

Pneumonic Pox

Pneumonic Pox is the most common form of Goblin Pox and is caused by inhaling Blue Pinhead Fungus spores. The spores enter the lungs, and the fungus is able to grow in the dark and moist environment. It secretes a digestive enzyme which kills the lung cells and causes severe coughing. It's very common for spores to get caught in the nose where they are just as happy to thrive. Nosebleeds are common as is coughing up blood. In most cases of Goblin Pox, the nosebleeds are among one of the first identifiable symptoms from having inhaled the spores. The disease also causes itchiness in and around the nose which is exacerbated by seeing other people touch their faces. Seeing other people touch their faces causes the sensation to be felt in the afflicted individual which creates more irritation and a desire to scratch.

Intestinal Pox

Intestinal Pox is one of the least recognized forms of Goblin Pox but is extremely common nonetheless. The spores are extremely hardy and able to survive digestion until they get into the intestines where they attach themselves to the intestinal walls and begin to slowly digest the intestines and consume any food that passes by. It's marked by loose and bloody stool, and there are pustules which develop inside the body and ooze spore ridden pus. Even though the afflicted also experience sensation from seeing others touch their own bodies, the itchiness is often less severe with Intestinal Pox. However, since it's usually accompanied with Pneumonic or Dermal Pox, patients rarely report feeling any relief at this knowledge.

Dermal Pox

Dermal Pox is the most striking form of Goblin Pox. It's defined by the development of pustules that break and ooze pus. The pus is full of more spores, and if allowed to dry, it turns into a fine dust that can easily infect other people. Dermal Pox is caused by spores coming into contact with breaks in the skin. Though most infections start localized, once the spores get into the bloodstream, they are able to travel rapidly throughout the body and begin to grow where ever they end up. This causes the pustules to cover most of the body. They are extremely uncomfortable. Another common symptom is the feeling of sensation seeing other people touch their own bodies. This often leads to scratching which causes more breaks in the skin and helps spread the fungus further.

Treatment

Goblin Pox is notoriously difficult to treat as the fungus spreads throughout the body. It's rarely fatal, but it can take months or years of treatment to fully eliminate traces of the fungus. Doctors are able to create a thick lotion made from Hersperid oil, beef tallow, and chopped Goli leaves. This is applied broadly to the skin and all affected areas. Additionally, Hersperid Root can be ground into a paste and ingested. The oil can be inhaled, and sometimes, Hersperid Root is boiled or steamed, but this is a less effective means of treatment. Boiled Goli leaves create a waxy film on the water which can be used as a concentrate which is snuffed in small doses.

Prognosis

Despite Goblin Pox being fairly difficult to treat, the prognosis with treatment is extremely good. The only people who have been known to die from Goblin Pox also had other underlying conditions or had a history of being sickly. The majority of patients are able to recover to a point where they can continue to lead a normal life with only minimal long term consequences.

Sequela

Even after recovery, a patient who had Goblin Pox remains highly susceptible to catching the disease again. Dry skin is a common condition, and for some people, the mirror touch synesthesia which is most commonly associated with Dermal Pox never goes away. Those who had Intestinal Pox report loose stool persisting for years, and Pneumonic Pox is often followed by quickly experiencing shortness of breath after exercise or difficulty breathing in very humid conditions.

History

Early Cases

The first cases of Goblin Pox appeared among Centaurs where it was known as Carrot Cough. It was an annoying but rarely severe illness, though foals with weaker immune systems seemed to suffer worse effects from the disease. Cases of Carrot Cough have been well documented throughout Centaur history. When the Vranian elves started to seek trade and relations outside of their forest, they first described a rare condition which is more recognizably Goblin Pox. Initially, Intestinal Pox and Dermal Pox were believed to be two separate conditions, and Pneumonic Pox wasn't recognized at all due to the high prevalence of those symptoms in all known cases. They referred to the illness as Goblin Cough and Weeping Toad Disease.
When the elves first began trading with the East Avzdavé people, they introduced the illness to them with similar symptoms. Cases often appeared within families, and the elves were quick to claim that their goods were foreign. As such, the humans believed that the illness came from the "Goblinlands" and named the disease Goblin Pox for the symptoms now commonly associated with Dermal Pox.

Discovery

In 319 EDK, a Crkskji physician named Gregorij Bosric along with his student traveled across the bay to the Goblinlands where this illness appeared to originate. His village had been devastated by the disease, and he sought to find a cure to ensure that it wouldn't happen again. Along the way, he found that none of the people there knew of the illness or the symptoms he described. The exact cause and origin of Goblin Pox was a mystery. He spoke with multiple centaur herds who discussed Carrot Cough with him as the closest equivalent, but that didn't include the striking pustules that appeared on humans.
He noticed that the crops, particularly the carrots which caused Carrot Cough had this strange blue dust on them. His apprentice, a young woman named Vera Lapoliten, recalled seeing a similar blue dust on some of the vegetables purchased from the elven traders. She encouraged her mentor to travel to the elven forest to meet with the traders and inspect their wares. Trusting her judgment, they sailed back across the bay and gained passage into the elven cities. There, they found that some traders who had been beyond the forest possessed goods with the blue dust. Following up with recent cases which were known to come and go in waves, most of the elves were able to report getting similar vegetables on the same day from the same few traders. This opened up the possibility that it was the dust which caused the illness.
Gregorij and Vera continued their experiments with the dust and recording the symptoms and patient history of those they could meet with. They discovered common threads in all the cases and began writing down their findings. They were later compiled into a book which was published several decades after Vera's death by her grandson. Their findings formed the basis for the three distinct forms of Goblin Pox. They retained the name despite knowing that it wasn't accurate because of how familiar it was to people. They also began experimenting with treatments, in particular searching for plants or animals that had natural antifungal properties. They returned to the centaur herds and discovered that the centaurs used Hersperid Root as treatment. Tea made from the root was able to slow and weaken the fungus in their samples. They began working on ways to concentrate the properties of the root. Back in Crkvu, they also discovered the Goli leaf as a plant that was commonly used to treat foot fungus and also proved to be highly effective against Blue Pinhead Fungus.
A year later, Gregorij became ill with the very disease he was trying to cure. He insisted on trying all the treatments, and they only succeeded in prolonging his life but not curing him. He continued to work as best he could through the illness recording his symptoms daily and asking Vera to record them from behind a screen when he was too ill to write. He finally died after three years of battling the fungus. Vera continued his legacy refining the treatments and developing ways to administer them. She discovered how to create a salve for the pustules on the skin and that it could be applied directly to the nose to ease the infection there. She also discovered that Goli leaves formed a waxy concentrated substance when boiled slowly. Thanks to her work, Goblin Pox became treatable. It was still difficult to treat, but her work gave hope to many who otherwise suffered until death, often from secondary infections.

Epidemic of 235 IA

In 230 IA, Otorveia invaded Nazara and conquered part of the region. This brought them into contact with Crkvu and the Vranian elves as their merchants sought out new markets. The countries established trade with one another, and shipping routes that hugged the coast were able to carry goods back and forth even easier. In early spring of 235 IA, a ship from Crkvu docked in Polta Island carrying with it exotic fruits and vegetables that were magically preserved through the voyage. They became particularly sought after by nobles, and even tavern owners sought to purchase what they could. However, the crates were contaminated with fungal spores, and it wasn't long before the first cases of Goblin Pox appeared across the island. At first, no one knew exactly what the disease was. Though there were other species of Pinhead Fungus around Polta Island, none of them caused symptoms quite like what everyone was coming down with. The disease spread rapidly from people eating contaminated food, and as individuals came down with Dermal Pox, the dried pus became dust and infected even more.
Even the emperor and his family came down with the strange illness and remained bedridden for months. Physicians were left clueless at this new disease, and the ships which brought the contaminated food were seized for inspection. By chance, the ship's doctor who was brought in for questioning two minor cycles after the outbreak started had a copy of Vera's book in his possession and was able to disclose the nature of the illness and its treatment. However, the plants needed didn't grow so far north, and the Otorim government issued a decree to buy up as much Hersperid Root and Goli Leaves as they could. It took six months before the merchants returned, and the ship doctor could begin working on producing the treatment.
However, even buying as much as they could, it still wasn't enough to treat everyone. Fights broke out among those who were well in order to obtain the treatment no matter how long it took to cure the illness, and chaos ruled the streets. As per tradition, those that died were burned on pyres to prevent further spread of the fungus. Merchants were continually pressured into buying more plants for the cure as they could, and they nearly depleted the stock throughout @avzd in their desperation. More people continued to come down sick, and the city suffered greatly for the remainder of the year.
However, for those that were immune to the illness, they were able to thrive and carry much of the economy. This built up significant resentment, and some of the goblins who lived in Polta Island were subject to blame for introducing the disease even though nearly everyone was aware that it had come from contaminated food. Famine spread out of fear of the dust, and even ordinary and harmless dust was seen as carrying the spores. It took three years to be able to treat enough cases to where the humans were mostly recovered. The emperor survived, but he remained sickly for the remainder of his life and never made public appearances after the incident.

Alternative Name

Carrot Cough, Gobin Cough, Weeping Toad Disease

Type

Fungal

Origin

Natural

Cycle

Short-term

Rarity

Uncommon

Affected Species

• Elf
• Dwarf
• Centaur
• Human

Prevention

The best way to prevent Goblin Pox is to make sure to thoroughly wash all fruits and vegetables before consumption and to avoid touching the face or open wounds when cooking. Farmers should be mindful to look for fungal dust on the roots or the lower part of any plants that are near to the ground. The dust has a slightly bluish hue and brushes off easily. Traders should be mindful to ask locals if there has been an increase in Pinhead Fungus in the area and be sure to thoroughly inspect any goods prior to purchase.

Cultural Reception

The name Goblin Pox comes from the name "Goblinlands" which refers to the area just north of the Vrania Forest and across the Bay of moh Urvandi. There have never been any reported cases of Goblin Pox among goblin populations, and the fungus only seems to have a strong adverse effect on humanoids. However, the name has stuck, and it is commonly attributed to goblins despite there being no reason for it. The elves who introduced the fungus to human settlements do not attempt to correct this misconception due to the fear that it would impact trade. There have also been historical rivalries between human adventurers and goblins with the former seeing goblins and goblinoids as savage and uncivilized.

Occurrence in Centaurs

Centaurs with their human upper bodies are susceptible to Goblin Pox, but they have a much milder version of the illness. Typically, they only develop hives and a cough with some nosebleeds. They are able to treat it using a poultice made from Hersperid Root and Honey. It's applied to affected areas and wrapped in place if possible. Centaurs appear to be able to make full recoveries without any lasting effects.