I felt embarrassed after being included in Phlox's list of glog blogs despite not having posted for several months, so I put together this little post.
As the weather continues to heat up in my locality I've been thinking more about UV protection and how to keep myself safe from the sky's invisible danger rays. So, here are some exposure effects for overland travel.
Perhaps every day of travel without adequate protection in a scorched place you could roll on this table.
1. The UVX rays of the double suns infiltrate your skin, twisting your exposed cells into something... stranger. The skin on your arms and face forms deep loose wrinkles, with hard patches that glint in the light. This new skin provides protection equivalent to a leather jerkin and is painful to the touch. If you do not receive expensive and complex treatment to restore your skin within one year, all of it will slough off and you will die.
2. The heat weighs down on you like a sack of bricks as your body reaches an especially unsafe temperature. You experience blurred vision, nausea and dizziness and move at half speed. If you do not find substantial shade or other notable source of coolness within one hour, your brain will boil in your skull, and your speech will be reduced to grunting monosyllables.
3. The many-pointed sun takes a particular interest in you, whispering promises of peace and safety. You see a small and shaded garden in the far distance: a mirage. Make a WIS check or wander off to pursue this lovely vision.
4. The UVZ rays of the distant moon creep over the horizon, pale as fingers. If you do not have the correct goggles, sight lens, shade screen, etc, you must, within ten minutes, shut your eyes and wrap several layers of fabric around your head for the rest of the day. Otherwise your eyes will fall out of your head, leaving only bleached sockets behind.
5. A small and deadly hole in your water canteen has leaked all your personal water out over the past several hours. Your party must share their precious and limited water with you within the day or your tongue will swell up and you will fall face down in the dirt, immobile and easy prey for the local wildlife.
6. You see a rare prism-vulture gliding on a thermal. These ancient scavengers reflect the sun's light through their translucent bodies, scattering bands of colored light onto the land below. It is a sign of very good luck. You suffer no ill effects from the landscape today despite your unprepared foolishness.
