Talona, Lady of Poison

Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Domains: Chaos, Destruction, Evil [Plague], Envy, Serpent, Suffering, Venom (Scalykind).
Favored Weapon: Unarmed Strike

Talona is often depicted as a withered old crone with a scarred, tattooed face in religious texts. Where she walks, misfortune and death follow. She has the personality of a petulant, greedy child trapped in the body of a once-beautiful woman now scarred by horrific disease and ravaged by age. She alternately desires attention at any cost like a small child and becomes aloof like a wounded paramour who has been discarded by her love. Talona is one of the Dark Deities, having served Bhaal alongside Loviatar, whom she hates for her cruel teasing. Since the death of the Bhaal during the Time of Troubles, both Loviatar and Talona have slowly fallen under the sway of Shar. However, the return of Bane, who was Bhaal’s superior, presages a conflict for both lesser goddesses’ loyalty.

Dogma: Let pain be as pleasure, for life and death are in balance, but death is the more powerful and should be paid proper homage and respect. Death is the true power, the great equalizer, and the lesson that waits for all. If it falls to you to drive home the point with the tip of a dagger, so be it. The Mother of All Plagues works upon you from within, and weakness and wasting is her strength. Talona’s breath is forever and always with you, whomever you or the rest of the world believes in or serves. Let all living things learn respect from Talona and pay homage to her in goods and in fervent worship. If they do so, intercede for them so that Talona will not claim them — this time. Go and work in Talona’s name and let your doings be subtle spectacular, but make them known as the will of the Mistress of Disease.

For Deific Obedience

Obedience: Induce the spread of disease into a population, either by befouling a well, encouraging the fecundity of disease-carrying pests, handing out contaminated clothing, or directly spreading a disease you carry to others by whatever means. Gain a +4 profane bonus on saving throws against diseases and poisons.

Boons
1: Plague’s Blessing (Sp) ray of sickening 3/day, blindness/ deafness 2/day, or contagion 1/day
2: Breath of Flies (Su) Once per minute as a standard action (up to three times a day), you can exhale a cloud of biting, stinging insects in a 20-foot cone. Creatures caught in the cone take swarm damage of a swarm equal to your own hit dice. A victim can reduce this damage by half with a successful Reflex save (DC = 10 + half your Hit Dice + your Constitution modifier), but any creature that takes any damage at all from this effect is sickened for 1 minute. The cloud of flies lingers for 1d4+1 rounds, congealing into a buzzing, 20-foot-square cloud centered on the cone’s original point of origin. A creature that ends its turn in this cloud must succeed at a Reflex save or take swarm damage as above and be sickened for 1 minute. Any area effect that deals damage or creates strong or stronger wind disperses this cloud. You are immune to all effects of these flies while you are in the cloud.
3: Fallow Flesh (Ex) Infused with Talona’s grace, you are immune to the negative effects of disease, yet you can still carry diseases in your body and infect others with them. Disease effects you create take effect at once, with the first day of damage happening immediately; the disease then progresses as normal. The saving throw DCs of disease effects you generate increase by 1, and victims can’t recover from those effects naturally through rest; only magic can cure the diseases you create (although those who contract a disease from someone you infect treat the disease as normal). Any creature that is immune to disease as a result of a class feature or a nonartifact magic item is not immune to disease effects you create, but it gains a +4 bonus on its saving throw to resist the disease. Any creature that is immune to disease via a racial feature or as a feature of its creature type remains immune to your diseases.

For Followers of Talona

Archetypes: Blight Druid (Druid), Blighted Myrmidon† (Antipaladin), Eldritch Poisoner (Alchemist), Plague Bringer (Alchemist), Plague Scion (Vigilante), Poisoner (Rogue), Putrefactor (Witch), Venom Siphoner (Witch)

Specialty Priest: Malagent (Cleric)

• Poisoner: The Malagent gains the poison use rogue talent, and further, she gains a bonus of half her level to Appraise and Craft checks to identify and create poisons. This replaces the lesser power of one of the Cleric’s domains.
• Touch of Corruption: The Malagent gains the Antipaladin’s ability of the same name, treating her Cleric level as her Antipaladin level for its damage dice, and can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + her Charisma bonus. This replaces the Cleric’s channel energy ability.
• Cruelties: At 3rd level, the Malagent chooses a cruelty from the antipaladin’s list. At 6th level and every third level thereafter she may choose another cruelty to add to her touch of corruption, treating her Cleric level as her antipaladin level for which cruelty she may choose. This replaces the Cleric’s spontaneous casting.
• Plague Bringer: At 6th level, the Malagent gains the Antipaladin’s ability of the same name. This replaces one of the Cleric’s greater domain powers.

Divine Fighting Technique: Talona’s Poisoned Lash

Feats: Breaker of Barriers, Conversion Channel, Channel Viciousness, Destroyer’s Blessing, Fearsome Finish, Flagellant, Shatter Resolve, Squash Flat, Poisoner’s Channel, Reject Poison, To the Last, Welcome Pain.

Magic Items: Blackfingers Apron, Gossamer Amberstone, Poison Gum

Prestige Classes: Arcane Devotee, Divine Champion, Divine Disciple, Divine Scion (Unchained), Divine Seeker

Spells: Plague Bearer, Poisoned Egg, Vengeful Stinger

Traits: Child of Nature, Demoralizing Presence, Destructive Blows, Diseased Heart, Eyes of the Wild, Inoculated, Know the Land, Natural Philosopher, Plaguebearer†, Poisonous Slayer, Potent Concoctions, Sacred Smasher, Serpentine Squeeze, Pain Is Pleasure, Venom-Drenched, Wasp Whisperer†, Wisdom in the Flesh, Wise Teacher, Wrecking Wrath.

Unique Spell Rules

• Pernicious Poison can be prepared as a 2nd-level Cleric or Inquisitor spell
• Venomous Bolt can be prepared as a 4th-level Cleric, Druid or Inquisitor spell [arrow or bolt appears to be a rigid viper that bites its target with poisoned fangs]

Clergy & Temples

Aside from selling poisons, antidotes, and medicines, the Talonites travel Faerûn as quietly as possible, constantly seeking out new diseases and afflictions and spreading rumors so as to augment the reputation of Talona. What seems to motivate Talonites in their day-to-day behavior is a quest for respect: respect that is due Talona for her potentially devastating abilities and due them as her representatives in Faerûn.

Throughout their careers, Talona’s clerics work with magic and study to build their personal immunities to various poisons and diseases. Thus protected, they treat the diseased, take employment as food tasters for paranoid rulers, wealthy merchants, and nobles, and bury those who have died from diseases. Whenever a realm or city-state casts out or punishes any Talonites, for any reason, clerics of Talona work to cause a plague in that place to exact “Talona’s price” for such insults. Rumors have circulated that certain unscrupulous Talonites have occasionally chosen wealthy folk as targets for disease so that wealth and properties can be seized by the church upon the death of these wealthy owners, with the threat of contracting disease keeping rightful heirs and claimants at bay.

Those who actively worship Talona tend to gather in secret in the catacombs beneath cities or in wilderness ruins. Underground temples are often built above reeking, overflowing sewers or in humid grottoes overgrown with fungi and mold. Wilderness shrines are typically located in stagnant swamps and marshes rife with disease-laden mosquitoes and rich with the sickly sweet scent of decay. Twisted gargoyles carved to resemble mortals wracked with various diseases or poisons are positioned prominently throughout such structures.