Post/Author/DateTime	Post
TheAnthroDM 07-23-07, 08:18 PM	In my campaign, Taint is a corrupting and destructive force on it's own, it's so destructive that even evil creatures are effected by it(Including outsides, and intelligent undead) now one would have to be insane, or at least, very unwise to use taint as a tool because thought it may give power, it also slowly destroys it's "wielder", but still there are some who do. So my question to this board is, if this force is so vile and destructive that most evil creatures shuns it's use because of the self-destructive nature it has, where does Taint come from?
CryoSilver 07-23-07, 08:30 PM	New Jersey
TheAnthroDM 07-23-07, 08:32 PM	My first thought, but then I remembered that there was no America in my campaign, what a shame. *shakes h'' head*
caeruleus 07-23-07, 09:02 PM	Perhaps the Far Realm?
Vasyek 07-23-07, 09:09 PM	So my question to this board is, if this force is so vile and destructive that most evil creatures shuns it's use because of the self-destructive nature it has, where does Taint come from? It could still easily come from the lower planes for all that the fiends steer clear of it, in much the same way that there are abyssal layers so hostile, corrupting, and/or barren that even the tanar'ri are incapable of surviving within them. Maybe it's just another expression of the lower plane's evil, spawned through no will but that of the planes it afflicts, or maybe fiends created it over the course of the blood war and got more than they bargained for. Or maybe humans/mortals created it through a war of their own, intentionally or as some kind of spiritual backlash from the reckless use of forbidden magic, artifacts, or so forth. Maybe the war itself was so horrific that its legacy manifested the taint without any special tricks or toys behind its emergence. The Taint mechanics came from Oriental Adventures originally, if memory serves, so you could just go with whatever story they have behind it as well.
JulesCARV 07-23-07, 09:10 PM	Possibly it could just be a form of magical pollution -- the floating cities lit by continual flame torches where everyone uses a bit of magic in their everyday profession and food is generated by magical cornucopias often have a Chernobyl-style accident with some bit of high-powered magic, and the land around them becomes tainted. Or possibly it could be a sort of form of the universe itself grieving at something really horrible. The site of a massacre, for instance, might become tainted.
MacrossSD 07-23-07, 09:37 PM	In my campaign, Taint is a corrupting and destructive force on it's own, it's so destructive that even evil creatures are effected by it(Including outsides, and intelligent undead) now one would have to be insane, or at least, very unwise to use taint as a tool because thought it may give power, it also slowly destroys it's "wielder", but still there are some who do. So my question to this board is, if this force is so vile and destructive that most evil creatures shuns it's use because of the self-destructive nature it has, where does Taint come from? The first question I have for you is: Is this world an existing campaign world, such as Greyhawk or Forgotten Realms? If so, there are evil gods who would probably be the source of the taint. Tharizdun springs to mind as one likely candidate (as insanity and things like the taint you describe are his forte). Also, just because evil creatures won't use it themselves, doesn't mean that they won't create it to give it to a power-hungry PC for larfs. A Demon or even a very crafty and sadistic devil might just give a PC the taint, selling (truthfully, to a point) it on the merits of the immense boosts to power it gives, and then would sit back and watch with amusement as the "lucky winner" then writhes in agony/horror/insanity/New Jerseyness/what-have-you. Then, the demon might say "I've had my fun" and leave the poor wretch to his fate, while the Devil might just make a sweetheart deal to remove the taint... in exchange for the PC's soul or service unto death and THEN his/her soul :evillaugh :evillaugh :evillaugh .
ArcTan 07-23-07, 09:53 PM	Well, that's just it. Taint is a Heroes of Horror (and Oriental Adventures) variant rule because it *doesn't* fit well into the standard D&D Great Wheel (where Demogorgon is as Chaotic Evil as Chaotic Evil gets yet apparently has no connection to Taint).
TheAnthroDM 07-23-07, 09:56 PM	Thank you for all your suggestions, because someone asked about the setting I'll sum up the things I think are important. The campaign world is home brew and has multiple religions, one of the oldest religions actually ties into one of the newer ones in which The Spirits of Dargon, overthrew the Ancient Ones and led crusades against their followers against their cults. In the end there are still a few Ancient Ones who have small cults devoted to them, some good, some evil. The worship of a Negative Energy spirit is also a common religion however it's a N god with most CG and CN followers. There has been only on magic catastrophe, in which an evil druid tried to turn all the humanoid races into animals, but that's about it.
TheAnthroDM 07-23-07, 09:59 PM	Well, that's just it. Taint is a Heroes of Horror (and Oriental Adventures) variant rule because it *doesn't* fit well into the standard D&D Great Wheel (where Demogorgon is as Chaotic Evil as Chaotic Evil gets yet apparently has no connection to Taint). Well actually, if you notice there a part where it mentions Undead and Evil Outsiders having a corruption and depravity score equal to 1/2 their Cha score. I want to eliminate that connect and give taint a different source, and taint elements a birthplace. Especially since my current adventure involves acquiring a Artifact that bestows +5 Corruption on touch and +5 Depravity if read.
Thegans 07-23-07, 10:51 PM	Thank you for all your suggestions, because someone asked about the setting I'll sum up the things I think are important. The campaign world is home brew and has multiple religions, one of the oldest religions actually ties into one of the newer ones in which The Spirits of Dargon, overthrew the Ancient Ones and led crusades against their followers against their cults. In the end there are still a few Ancient Ones who have small cults devoted to them, some good, some evil. The worship of a Negative Energy spirit is also a common religion however it's a N god with most CG and CN followers. There has been only on magic catastrophe, in which an evil druid tried to turn all the humanoid races into animals, but that's about it. Perhaps taint is the remains of the Ancient Ones that were destroyed. An echo of there will manifesting upon the world draining life from everything to try to gain enough influence to recreate themselves.
Janusunaj 07-24-07, 03:19 AM	Perhaps taint is something that is created from a fiendish over lord. THe lower demons are repulsed from it because they know that it it is like them, and yet beyond them.
Asra 07-24-07, 09:20 AM	Well if it even harms and damages the evil outsiders, chances are it may be from an alternate reality inhospitable to normal life, a layer of the Abyss far removed due to the fact that no sane demon would go there, or you can just say the Ancient Ones made it.
RealSorceror 07-24-07, 12:33 PM	In our homebrew campaign setting, Taint comes from the Nightmare Realm, and came into being shortly after the Dream World (which was created by the first mortal sentient beings). The primary weilder of the Taint is an Elder Evil who simply calls himself the Nightmare Lord (some Mind Flayers call him "Thoon". Most people don't call him at all). Due to this, Taint is somehow connected to insanity, horror, and negative emotions. Unlike negative energy, it is a purely destructive force, and even corrupts undead and other creatures normally immune to evil substances.