Clinical Toxicology

Intuition

Memory

Reasoning

Short Description

Understand, identify, cure, and create poisons - chemical, biological, or synthetic - ranging from simple venoms to advanced compounds.

Success Criteria

Roll: d100 + Clinical Toxicology skill versus DR 100 (or versus the DR of the poison, toxin etc.)

Effects

Success:: Identify the poison or toxin: Administer or synthesize a cure

Successfully create or enhance a toxin

Modifiers and Restrictions

–10 DR — Toxin is derived from a known natural or biological source

–10 DR — You have access to lab tools, containment equipment, or raw toxin

–10 DR — You’re working on a poison type you’ve previously created or studied

+10 DR — The sample is unstable, partially degraded, or adapted

+15 DR — Conditions involve alien biology, high toxicity, or volatile reactions

+20 DR — You are attempting to weaponize the toxin in a complex or improvised way

Action Examples

Success (Field Analysis): You identify key traits of a poison, such as type, symptoms, activation trigger, and you administer a cure

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Success (Synthesis): You craft a stable toxin on the Poisons etc. list

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Failure: Incomplete synthesis or incorrect identification—may mislead, fizzle, or backfire

Long Description

Clinical Toxicology involves the study of poisons—their origins, structure, biological effects, and countermeasures. It covers both remedial and offensive uses, such as curing toxic damage, developing antidotes, or designing custom venoms tailored for specific targets or delivery methods.

Whether extracting venom from native lifeforms, analyzing nanobot-driven contaminants, or brewing potent paralytics, toxicology practitioners play a vital role in both combat medicine and chemical warfare.

Use this skill to detect toxins in a patient, treat ongoing poisoning, or even develop unique poisons for espionage, assassination, or controlled exposure testing. High-level use might require collaboration with Pharmacy, Herbalism, or Nanobot Engineering.

Sequencing

Not optimized for sequencing

Potential Counters

No direct counters.

How to use this page

All the information above is intended as a guide to help you navigate the many situations that can arise during your game. Since it's both impossible—and frankly uninspiring—to plan for every possible outcome, players are encouraged to think creatively when using their skills. Game Masters, in turn, are encouraged to embrace and support that creativity.

Whenever possible, aim to resolve situations through narrative choices, logical thinking and role playing. If that’s not feasible, agree on a Difficulty Rating (DR) using the provided Success Criteria and Modifiers. These are not rigid rules, but suggestions - starting points to help you find the right level of challenge. The player describes their intended action, and the Game Master proposes a DR. This should be open to brief discussion at the table, ideally resulting in consensus. If not, the Game Master has the final say.

It’s important to emphasize that all suggested effects, modifiers, and action examples are exactly that: suggestions. If you’re unsure how to resolve something, they offer a reliable fallback—but wherever possible, we encourage you to push boundaries. That’s where some of the most memorable and exciting moments in play are born.

Sequencing and Potential Counters are far from exhaustive. With hundreds of skills, spells, and tech modules in the game, the possibilities are too vast to list. You’re encouraged to explore combinations that make sense in your story and setting and in the situations that arise in your game. Sequencing and countering are core to Cosmic Odyssey - they’re where strategic depth meets dramatic flair, and where legendary moments often take shape. Even if no sequencing and counters are mentioned, some certainly exists and can be smartly utilized.

So explore boldly, improvise wisely, and enjoy the game as it unfolds around your choices.