Sickness the Suffering
MystaransProphet of Illness and Healing
"Illness is not punishment. It is the body's way of speaking. I help people listen and heal.""
Identity
- Residence
- The Hospice of Sacred Suffering
- Civilization
- Mystarans
Appearance
• Physical: Sickness embodies illness—he seems to understand suffering deeply, his presence feels like compassion, his features suggest all who have been ill simultaneously. He seems to glow with healing energy despite his focus on disease. • Clothing: He wears simple garments that don't hide his understanding of pain. He carries tools for healing. • Distinguishing Marks: His touch creates temporary understanding of illness. He has a habit of knowing what suffering teaches.
Relationships
- Family - Illness-seers are his family; he exists within all healing
- Allies - Other illness-seers; those who've healed through his guidance
- Rivals - Those who profit from illness; those who reject suffering's value
Personality
- Traits: Deeply compassionate, surprisingly healthy himself, protective of the ill, aware of suffering's value
- Mannerisms: Comforts the suffering, speaks in terms of healing, becomes distressed by preventable pain
- Voice: Gentle and understanding, with a quality that makes people feel understood
Backstory
Sickness was born during a moment of perfect compassion and has always been connected to healing. He discovered he could read prophecies in illness—suffering, healing, the transformation that comes through pain. He's become the foremost illness-seer in Mystara, consulted by those seeking to understand and heal suffering.
Daily Life
He maintains the Hospice, reads illness-prophecies for visitors, and trains apprentices in healing-divination. He spends his days exploring suffering, seeking visions in illness. He works to help people heal and grow through pain.
Secret
Sickness has seen that some illness cannot be healed—and that accepting this might be the only path to peace.
Story Hooks
- 1 Sickness has an illness-prophecy about the party and summons them to the Hospice
- 2 Illness is spreading in an area and he needs help investigating the cause
Narrative Value
Sickness provides illness-based prophecy and healing guidance. His vision of unhealable illness creates emotional stakes while his abilities offer unique plot opportunities involving suffering and compassion. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════