In the year 283, a veritable maelstrom of chaos swept across the basin: freak weather, creatures made of sand, and most terrifying of all, peace and joy in Acknor. All of this is recorded within the newsboards by some helpful scribe or other and can be recalled in full within Events 210, Events 211, and several public posts around 1440.

The focus of this work shall be on one of the effects elicited by gnomes mucking about with Kethuru's seals: Upon Cankermore, a rock was discovered and titled Illearth. From it sprouted that transformation known as commonly as Skin Rot. Now, I refer to it as a transformation and not a disease to avoid certain implications of the latter term. Skinrot, as it is called, is not a disease, consuming the body and leaving weakness behind. Rather, it acts fundamentally to improve the body from an inferior state from a stronger one. Instead of inhibiting the individual, the transformation strengthens them, bringing them closer to the elemental Earth and making them resilient to physical harm.

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The transformation manifests in several ways, all of which most directly affect the body. It is entirely possible for the mind to be changed in response to prolonged exposure, but the latter has no direct influence upon the former in the sense that a ray composed of Sidiak's energies shall. Rather, all differences which arise within the mind of the changed are due to the natural, unfortunate, and largely immutable connection between a being's sense of self and his physical form.

The symptoms effected upon the affected can be broadly categorized as those within and those without, although the actual changes undergoing the flesh appear to be identical in both cases. First, sections of skin shift, becoming harder and uneven in texture, and losing color. This extends skin deep, so to say, and generally does not correlate with any transformation of the underlying tissues. The second is what gives the transformation its common name, skin rot. Skin which has not hardened may take on a more liquid form, eventually becoming runny enough to simply drop off the arm. While it may be rather unsightly, the process results in no bleeding and in most cases the effect is again skin deep, resulting in the limb, if it should manifest upon a limb, retaining full functionality.

The third outwardly visible symptom is the growth of protrusions in various places beneath the skin, which when dissected prove to contain either hardened, dead flesh of different sorts - instances appearing to be muscle and various organs have been observed, most corresponding to the section of the body that particular protrusion had been located upon - or a substance which appears to be bone, but slightly heavier by volume and always without the porous center column common to limbs and such. Generally these growths are rough spheres and separated from nearby tissue by a thin liquid layer, which is somewhat curious as without exception the interior of the node is completely dry.

Within the body and less visible at a glance, two more changes detectable to the host occur along with one that becomes apparent upon dissection. The accumulation of liquid in the throat and lungs is fairly constant starting almost immediately upon exposure. This serves as the primary infection mechanism[1] as the subject attempts to remove the liquid through coughing, resulting in the dispersal of phlegm throughout the subject's surrounding. Of note is that unlike liquefied skin, the phlegm itself becomes almost indistinguishable from a common rock shortly after leaving the body if it fails to contact a new host. The buildup is not sufficient to inhibit breathing to any serious degree in most cases, but exceptions have been noted. In addition to this, subjects experience short-term paralysis seemingly at random. The only likely correlation to measurable changes within the body would be to the slow accumulation of hardened sections among organs which behave similarly to the aforementioned petrification of the skin, although rather than the rough, pebbled surface skin assumes parts such as a rib or stomach become smooth. Most tissues seem to be susceptible to this, although in no instance did the brain or heart appear to be so affected. An example of the process which a given organ undergoes have been documented at the end of this writing, recording the changes a subject's body underwent over the course of a year.

Unfortunately, preparing the chest cavity for viewing during the entire duration resulted in the subject being remarkable unhelpful when questioned concerning the bouts of muscular paralysis, and thus it was impossible to gather useful information as to whether there was correlation between symptoms. Furthermore, as the paralysis happens largely at random while interior petrification occurs continuously and steadily, it is incredibly hard to determine what, physically, is causing these bouts, although this researcher must admit the possibility of the cause not being physical at all.

1. Several liquids gathered from the body are also capable of causing infection. Blood and lymph have the highest transfer rates but barring exceptional circumstances tend to remain in the body and thus are uncommon as modes of transfer. Urine and most elements of the digestive track do not, while liquified skin can but only for an exceptionally brief period after detachment.

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Some time should be spent looking at the transfer mechanism utilized by the plague. Doubtless, any who were present for its arrival recall how incredibly quickly it spread throughout the entire basin. The transformation is transferred not through touch but mere proximity, as was more fully covered when the symptoms were discussed, and the success rate for infections is incredibly high. If two subjects should be on opposites sides of the same room, one infected and the other not, the second will almost always display noticeable symptoms within half a day. Furthermore, this new carrier is able to spread the contagion themself nearly instantly. Taking the second subject from the previous example and repeating the situation with a fresh uninfected, the time until the third begins to display symptoms is not reliably longer than what the second took to do so.

In summary, skinrot spreads quickly. The main drawback of the mechanism skinrot uses is that samples existing outside a live host fail without exception: expelled phlegm turns to stone, bits of tissue harden or liquefy fully, blood curdles. In addition, any host is clearly identifiable and the infection process has no subtlety. Thus, without a less obvious initial infection mechanism - the gnomes, for instance, managed to conceal samples in chocolate, although how exactly the samples were kept effective while hidden is unclear - it may be difficult to use to infect a sizable and unwilling population. Now, as skinrot itself acts but to improve the body, this particular concern matters more for future adaptations. Ideally skinrot's symptoms could be decoupled from the way in which it spreads, and thus the same infection mechanism utilized to deliver various alternative maladies. For the moment, this shall be left as an exercise for the reader.

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Skinrot continues existence through a consumptive process. Most life, of course, does; with an exception for the sufficiently powerful, all mortals must eat to continue living. In such an action, most beings take in organic matter and transform it into energy for themselves and waste. Necromancy is worth noting here, as certain basic rituals enhance the body to the point where nearly any matter which once held 'life' can be broken down. Where skinrot diverges is in the 'waste' it produces. There are two apparent options for the precise mechanism in play: transformation by processing and transformation by exposure. As a reminder, when skinrot is active within a host it causes several effects on most kinds of tissue. The first option, transformation by processing, asserts that the disease directly consumes tissues or an element of at a minuscule scale and releases waste which takes the space of whatever had been used. The second, transformation by exposure, suggests that skinrot grows on something other than the tissues of the body - vital fluids such as blood, perhaps - and in doing so produces some manner of waste which itself induces the observed changes. The observation that skinrot does not stay active for long within a fresh corpse supports the latter, but the transformation seems to have no issues maintaining itself within sentient undead. Zombies, ghouls, and such are however all quite fully immune. Therefor, in place of the aforementioned vital fluids, it seems possible that skinrot feeds on certain energies inherent to all sentient beings. However, since precision devices for measuring this sort of life energy with any degree of accuracy are woefully lacking and what would in fact be tested for is rather vague, such concepts must go untested for the moment.

Two grand categories of transformation have thus far been identified, and whichever mechanism skinrot utilizes, that mechanism must be able to explain both. This researcher shall now attempt to do so using a basic knowledge of the applications and functionality of elemental magic. Several initial descriptions must be made, and they are as follows, each supposition followed by a limited argument in its favor:

1: There are precisely four elemental planes which are combined with various other energies and forms of matter to produce Prime. It is known that every elemental plane is directly adjacent to the realm known as Faethorn which contains within it a certain rectangular structure, at each corner resting a link to a given elemental plane. As rectangles have four corners barring exceptional abnormality, this would appear to be the limit.

2: The stronger any element becomes, the weaker the other three appear relative to it. An aquamancer cannot combine his abilities with a geomancer to create a vast field of mud. A druid can, but in such a case it is a mud composed out of all four elements and drawn quite fully from Prime.

3: The body requires a certain elemental balance and without it will begin to undergo unusual behavior. Death due to lack of fire in the winter, water in the desert, or air in the presence of a displeased telekinetic or monk is hardly uncommon.

From this, I hypothesize the following: skinrot works primarily by reallocating elemental energies within the body. By relocating earthen energy from one location to another, the prevalence of water, fire, and air is strengthened at the former and weakened at the latter. This causes the first location to liquefy and the second to become closer to stone. Due to the first both lacking an element and being closer to that weaker of substances, Water, flesh thusly affected is discarded from the body. As the second both contains all four elements in ample supply and has a greater sample of empowering Earth, it is retained regardless of its change to something not quite fitting the body as a whole.

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Finally, some time should be spent considering the more philosophical ramifications of the transformation. Skinrot is to the memory of this researcher the most widespread significant transformation since the Taint was released during the events of Project Cosmic Hope. It is doubtless somewhat less potent due to not drawing on a soulless god, but that perhaps does not detract. And whatever potency may be lacking is quite fully made up for in the rate of infection. Certainly, no viscanti has ever tainted a being by coughing too loudly. At its core, skinrot opens up the concept of improvements to the self which are quite easily bestowed on others at little to no cost. This is simply an excellent path for the betterment of the basin as a whole, even those who might in their foolishness and ignorance be opposed.

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Contained herein is a record of experiment SKINROT-003, beginning upon the 18th of Dvarsh, year 330.

330 DVARSH 18
Assistants have prepared the next subject for infection. He looks healthy enough. Rashes here and there, left leg is absolutely useless, but walking isn't what he's needed for. Suffers from that stench they all seem to have. Tongue has been removed, so this one shouldn't end things prematurely. Straps all seem to be in place, chervil poultices are prepared, and vivisection will proceed shortly followed by infection.

330 DVARSH 20
Subject is prepared for longterm viewing. Skinrot is quite fully in effect, as determined by one of the assistants upon a rather sizable wad of phlegm impacting his face. If I recall which one it was correctly, he'll probably be a better subject than assistant anyway. All interiors appear normal, except for what appears to be a piece of dead tissue hanging off the subject's digestive track. He won't be using it anyway. Spots of shoulder tissue have begun to harden.

330 TZARIN 10
Subject is still largely healthy. The assistant who got himself infected fled rather than assist with research. Nutritive injections seem to be working well enough, and the infection is progressing  normally. One of the rashes on the left forearm has begun to liquefy, while a handful of grey spots have appeared slightly above it. Shoulders have taken on the characteristic rocky look.  Smell remains about as bad.

330 KLANGIARY 10
Subject's mental state appears to have deteriorated, perhaps due to boredom. The piece of skin with the rash mentioned previously has largely melted off, although a thin layer does remain above the musculature. Other rashes seem to be undergoing similar processes. Shoulders are largely unchanged. Aforementioned spots have expanded into each other, and the skin there has begun to harden. Similar spots have appeared on other limbs as well, but none clearly internal yet.

330 JULIARY 10
Subject appears to have become somewhat thinner, which is both impressive given the initial state and concerning. More skin has sloughed off, and quite a few patches appear to be in the middle of the process on various limbs. Shoulders are still unchanged. Various bits of skin continue to harden, near a quarter of remaining skin. Very little on the face, for some reason. The first protrusion has appeared, pushing out of the lower left jaw. Still almost nothing within the chest cavity, although the interior of the skin layer shows signs of beginning to harden here and there.

330 SHANTHIN 10
Subject is less thin. Apparently, the nutritive solution does fascinating things to certain bugs native to the Asylum. The assistants have been chastised and offered the chance to begin a study on the effects. Most limbs have ceased to lose skin at this point, the left leg alone remaining quite a mess. The greyskin continues to spread here and there. Of note, the first patch of rot that appeared on the left forearm seems to have been regrown with pebbled skin. Grey spots have begun to appear on several interior organs: the stomach and right lung both host a number, although all very small at the moment. The protrusion on the jaw has grown, and the jaw seems to have found a companion in the right arm, although that one is somewhat smaller at the moment.

330 ROARKIAN 10
Left leg has lost nearly all of its skin at this point, down to the muscle in most places. Spots have begun to appear on it. Other limbs grow rougher, but slowly Protrusions on jaw and arm continue to grow as well, with a handful appearing elsewhere. Stomach and right lung have the grey spreading across them, while spots have begun to appear on the left lung as well.

331 ESTAR 10
Disease seems to have slowed. Left leg has little progress, as do other limbs. Both lungs have larger patches here and there, all across the front. Diaphragm remains untouched, along with heart. Tumor on jaw was harvested for dissection, although it took some effort to detach. A rock, wrapped in skin.

331 URLACHMAR 10
Very little progress. Not much more hardening anywhere, no new tumors and the old ones have grown but a little. Something odd has appeared on the small intestine. Geomancers sent tumors back. They said they aren't rocks, but are instead 'rocky', which as information goes is somewhat useless.

331 KIANI 10
It's grown warm lately. Transformation seems to be speeding up again. Perhaps the cold was inhibiting it. The intestine has started to rot, decay spreading outward from that piece of flesh. It has been allowed to continue for observation between it and the transformation. Lungs continue to progress, diaphragm and heart still unaffected. Left leg has progressed as well, with the hardening spreading down from the pelvis and rapidly affecting the muscles. Tumors continue to grow, although the larger ones progress somewhat slower.

331 DIONI 10
That geomancer has explained to me precisely what he meant when he termed the tumors rocky. Apparently the tumors are, in terms of materials, composed of the tissues common to the body: mostly bone, but with a few of muscle. However, the material is, in his words, 'put together differently', mimicking the structure of certain rocks rather than semiporous bone or striated muscles, as well as 'missing some parts' which he neglected to elucidate. The intestinal rot has become quite severe, rather impressively managing to actually worsen the smell the subject continually emits. The left leg has appeared to largely settle, although the foot continues to progress. Lungs are almost fully covered, although the diaphragm and heart remain untouched.

331 VESTIAN 10
Process has largely ceased. Bits of skin detach here and there, generally regrown just as quickly. Left leg appears much the same as the right, if perhaps with fewer tumors. Intestines have decayed up to the connection to the stomach, which at this point is quite fully covered by the transformation. The valve between the two seems to remain largely functional, although the flesh just outside it has begun to liquefy much like the skin. Ribs are unchanged, lungs are unchanged, heart is unchanged, skin is generally unchanged except for increasingly numerous growths.

331 AVECHARY 10
Stomach now connects quite directly to absolutely nothing on the bottom. Intestinal liquefaction has spread back along it, away from the stomach. Other than that, subject remains unchanged.

331 DVARSH 10
As nothing of note has occurred within the last two months today, the experiment is deemed finished. Subject was closed back up. Tests concerning the leg were, unfortunately, unable to be performed as the subject was unable to move in any coordinated manner, even in response to various significant stimuli. As without exception necromantic resurrection results in limbs becoming largely functional, such was deemed an unnecessary procedure. Instead, subject has been transferred to slime feeding. As that is outside the scope of this researcher, this log ends here.