Pathogen: The Infected

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

A Storytelling Game of Biological Horror.

Pathogen: The Infected is a fan gameline for the New World of Darkness setting, detailing the (mis)adventures of "the Infected," normal people infected with The Virus that grant them Lovecraftian Superpowers. The theme of the game is, obviously, Body Horror.

The Infected are organized by Vector, the mode through which they became infected; Symptom, how the infection manifests itself in their body; and Wing, their factional affiliation.

Vectors:

  • Airborne - Infected through the air by a sneeze or in a crowded place.
  • Bitten - Infected through the bite of a strange bug or wild animal.
  • Endoparasite - Infected through a worm or some other creature burrowing into their body.
  • Infused - Infected through an organ transplant or blood transfusion.
  • Unborn - Infected through the womb from their mother.

Symptoms:

  • Dermis - the Infected's skin develops a rash and an affinity for water.
  • Fever - the Infected's body temperature rises and they can no longer stand cold.
  • Insomnia - The Infected has trouble sleeping, and are plagued by nightmares when they do.
  • Paedomorphosis - The Infected "regresses" in age and retains child-like behaviors.

Wings:

  • Annunaki - Infected who claim descend from ancient gods and worship Eldritch Abominations.
  • Cambions - Infected who revel in their new state, particularly bodily transformation and human predation.
  • Jagda - Infected who believe they are the next stage of human evolution.
  • Neonates - Infected who believe that the future lies in technology and transhumanism.
  • Protectors - Infected who seek to protect normal people from the predations of other Infected.
  • Stemmers - A term for Infected who are not part of any Wing, many of which are unaware of what exactly is going on.

The official website can be found here: https://sites.google.com/site/pathogendump/. Other copies of the draft can be found on Scribd and Google Docs. The author, Adam Thaxton, has stated that he is no longer working on the material at this time.

There is also a wiki.

Needs More Love.


Tropes used in Pathogen: The Infected include: