Poison and Acid

[Erebus the Black]

My basic question is what is the difference between poison and acid?

I can imagine that acid is any corrosive substance which is applied to the outside of the body, while poisons are induced by inhalation or being bitten or stabbed by a poisoned weapon/fang/claw etc...

Another thing that makes me go hmmm is the way the game treats poisons as something that creates an ongoing damaging effect while in real life most poisons and venoms have more of a debilitating effect, which would be more on par with the old nausea in exile or more of a "it's just a matter of time before you are dead" effect.

 

Things like CO, ammonia, sarin, mustard gas, cyanide, black mamba venom, box jellyfish stings, etc... are affected slightly by weight but once they are in your bloodstream (in sufficient quantity) it doesn't matter how muscular you are, you are as good as dead unless a proper anti venom is administered within minutes. You can keep walking around, if you can withstand the pain, but you don't suffer damage as much as you feel in pain or numb.

 

And true, there are lesser poisons of spiders, scorpions and snakes which can make you lose an appendage, but that is more of a max hitpoint reduction and a permanent curse than a constant small hit point reduction. (and also really lesser poisons such as of bees, wasps and mosquitoes, but, unless you're allergic, they rather some up more as a nuisance than a hit)

 

Another thing is: isn't an acid (such as cyanide), once it hits your bloodstream, considered a poison? So wouldn't any acid effect (maybe after several turns) would add a poison effect.

[Lilith]

the difference is that acid does more damage

 

To be serious, though, the distinction was clearer back in Exile 3 and Blades of Exile: poison did gradual damage every few turns but took a long time to wear off, while acid did damage every turn but wore off quickly.

[Slawbug]

"You take a little damage every turn" has been the standard way to implement poison in CRPGs for several decades now.

 

Also, how the heck is losing a limb equivalent to just a max HP reduction?

[Erebus the Black]

Originally Posted By: HOUSE of S

Also, how the heck is losing a limb equivalent to just a max HP reduction?

It's not, it's also a permanent curse (reduced chance to hit & increased chance for stun & etc...) (assuming you attach a prosthesis instead (peg leg, hook, permanent shield )