Some say that, when decided on poison use, assassins should be allowed to let their creativity flourish. Not to be a killjoy, but assassins are not known for being creative or otherwise groundbreaking in their strategies. Since the beginning of the vocation, the best way to kill someone in a given situation has been documented (if you know where to look) and often discussed between people in the field. Getting wild and crazy with all manner of fantastical ways to poison someone is fun, sure. Effective? Highly questionable. It should be understood that not all assassins use poisons, and perfectly successful ones, to boot. That being said, poisons are, as one might expect, a specialty of sorts.

For example (because everyone loves examples):

1. Contact poisons - Poisons which must be administered through contact with the skin.
2. Ingested poisons - Poisons which must be directly eaten or drunk to be effective.
3. Injury - Poisons which are transfered by injury to get them into the bloodstream.
4. Inhaled - Poisons which much be breathed in after being spread into an area of effect.

Those are the four basic types of ways to administer a poison. I would be hardpressed to think of any other common or respectable measure. So far, so good, right? Right.

Before moving on, allow me to discuss the advantages and limitations that exist for each type of poison.

Contact Poison - Contact poisons are, quite understandably, difficult to avoid, once you are within range. Preventing the absorption through one’s skin is nigh-impossible– let’s go with impossible, on second thought– once contact has been made. Even rinsing it quickly with water will not prevent at least a diluted amount from seeping through. The major disadvantage of this poison is how one might apply it. Using a weapon is an option, or one’s own hands. Of course, the danger of getting it on yourself is very very very real. No, cloth will not stop it, and even gloves are at risk. Unless you are wearing a non-pourous material such as rubber (and I would laugh at each and every assassin who did wear rubber gloves into battle), then it’s tough noogies if you slip or your opponent touches YOU after being poisoned. I am sure we would all like to believe that skilled assassins are in no danger of poisoning themselves, but this simply is not true. The chance is always there, even if decidedly low as one rises in the ranks of skill in poison use.

Ingested Poison - This is pretty simple. If they eat it, they’re SOL. Getting them to eat it is the problem, and, usually, it requires heavy dosage to have any effect. Also, tasteless poison is exceedingly rare, so it will require some creativity to keep them from noticing a bitter tang.

Injury Poison - Again, pretty straightforward. Put it on an open wound, or use a weapon to cause the wound and administer it at the same time. In general, the poison will only be as effective as the wound. This means that it would have to be a pretty deadly cut to give the poison a high chance of killing the opponent. Nicks and needles might make a person sick, but the effect will be slow and not very extensive.

Inhalation Poison - These poisons have a good advantage over others, most of it being that, if the person breathes, they are likely to be affected. Inhalation poisons are known mostly for causing respiratory problems and weakening an opponent. Unfortunately, due to the spreading of the contagion into the air, their effects are rather limited, and the area of effect is almost never larger than several square feet. The employing assassin is also at risk of inhaling his own substance. Of course, flu masks and assassin masks might be worn, but those lack the filtering ability to truly prevent the contagion from reaching them. Without a specifically crafted gas mask, staying far and away is ones best bet to remain safe.

Moving on!

Availability

This is one of the more important aspects, and one that is completely (no, really, completely) looked over, by and large. Are poisons easy to obtain? The simple and truthful answer is, “no.” Now, you might be wonder why this is? For our first argument, I will point you to the wealth and money forums, which explains rather clearly how expensive it is for an alchemist to do his dirty work. Experiments are not cheap, and they are not always successful. Even more important is the black market aspect of any poison producer. The added danger of trafficking the substance would increase its cost, as would any middlemen between the creator and the consumer. For this reason, obtaining poison on the fly is simply not done. It takes time to place an order or find a suitable contact. Preparation is key to availability, as you do not buy this stuff over the counter. Moreso, the exoticness of the poison is even more limited. Poisons that do more than simply make someone sick or weaken them upon effect are exceedingly hard to come by. Keeping this in mind, finding a poison that does anything ELSE is almost unheard of, unless you have amazing connections (connections that warrant an errata, usually), or the poison is rather weak. Poisons any common or moderately skilled assassin makes in their back yard are very unlikely to be up to snuff for serious activity. It is for this very reason that, in general, assassins do not make their own poison.

Poison in RP

No, the attacker does not need to specify what the poison is, or what it does, before attacking with it. Moreso, mentioning that the attack itself is meant to induce poison is also unnecessary. This seems like a worrisome aspect, because of the many ranges of poisons, but the purpose of this post is to set forth the idea that, well, 99 times out of 100, if you are poisoned, there is a pretty high chance you can get the antidote. It may cost you a bit of money, but if you are being targeted by an assassin willing to use poison (an already risky venture), you probably have a bit of dough sitting around. That said, when contact or proper ingestion of the poison is made, the assassin should notify the player of the effects and when they can expect to suffer them.

Poison that is death on-touch is as much a no-no as an instant death bolt from a wizard for reasons that hardly need to be explained here. Being creative is fun, but having your character killed from a needle thrown from some shadow is not. If the poison is not of the mundane type that simply sickens on effect, then you can bet your bottom dollar it needs to be cleared with a GM before use. The few assassin erratas out there (such as Anaconda’s and Asher’s) specifically explain the uses and limitations of their poisons to make sure that no funny business goes on, and that everyone understands what can happen. Simply saying “he knows how to craft poisons” is a dangerous game we are going to do everything to avoid. Again, as a general rule, the poison will -not- kill unless ridiculous amounts are ingested/applied or done so in a manner that would more than likely be fatal anyway.