it's the dose that kills... [toxin club]

[Orion]

"It's only a little drop of poison..."

Shattervenom poison arc time! She's going to be doing this on her own for a bit while I work out the kinks—but interested peeps (both those wishing to eat poison and those willing to support them) can submit applications for consideration. If the thought of having your character become immune to toxins is intriguing, come on in for a taste…

Mithridatism is the art of consuming small amounts of poison in order to build a tolerance, and perhaps, eventually, immunity. It requires constant, chronic exposure to the poison of interest—and so those willing to walk its dark path must be dedicated. (Or, perhaps, just a little bit mad?) Shattervenom’s fascination with poisons started when she was young; the warrior narrowly survived what should have been a deadly encounter, and wondered just how far she could push her luck. Think of all the incredible uses one could derive from dangerous toxins! Think of the delicious rush, to walk away from the torment of pain as a stronger cat!

Dubbed “Toxin Club” for now, imagine a fight club for morbid cats—except their opponent is mortality, and their hard-won victories mean a wealth of knowledge to be shared among them. Members live for the rush of danger, the excitement of walking the line and coming out alive, the buzz of poison like fire in their veins. They are fascinated by the implications of becoming immune to substances that would kill other cats, and how these toxins could be utilized for battle or the defense of their Clan. They would form a strong kinship, bound together by shared experiences and the sober fact that all they have is each other… for discovery of their activity may mean the disbanding of it, and they must rely on one another to care for themselves. This is a place of belonging for the curious, the misfits, the misunderstood. And those that enter its brotherhood will protect it tooth and claw.

Toxin club is about secrecy… this is an underground group that suffers in silence for the sake of knowledge. Nobody partaking in this perilous past time should be doing so for glory or recognition, and Shattervenom will be very discerning when it comes to the individuals she'll welcome. Ultimately, all they have is each other… at least until the moment they believe they can reveal themselves to their clan.

This plot is still a WIP, subject to being tweaked or updated. Here is all the information I have now, but more will be to come! Feel free to ask questions, as this helps me fix any holes.

[Orion]

☠ Rules ☠

♦ Shattervenom is the head of the club. All IC requests to join the club must go through her, until such time that the club is approved by high ranks within WindClan.


♦ OOC applications must be sent to me, @xath , before any character is considered for joining.


♦ Once accepted, any character may leave the Toxin Club for any reason. They do not have to explain their reasons for dismissing themselves to Shattervenom, but she would appreciate a heads up to know that they’re all right.


♦ No one may betray the existence or members of the Toxin Club, unless first cleared by me. This includes characters being caught and questioned by those outside of the Toxin Club plot (they shouldn’t even be getting caught!).


♦ Cats that willingly (or unwillingly) leave the club are also forbidden from betraying the ones they leave behind, unless cleared by me.


♦ Any character that attempts to ruin this plot by exposing the Toxin Club without permission accepts that Shattervenom will shut them up via any means necessary to protect its secrecy. Don’t be inconsiderate.


♦ Characters dedicating themselves to the art of mithridatism accept the dangers of doing so. Consequences of ingesting poison and its effects (decided randomly) must be roleplayed out. See the mithridatism guidebook for details.


♦ In order to maintain tolerance to any toxin, characters must make at least 2 posts a month in which they ingest “upkeep” doses. These posts must be at least 100 words; characters may consume multiple toxin doses in a single post.


♦ If a character misses a dose, they start back at level 1 tolerance and must work their way back up, without needing to worry about severe consequences. If more than one dose is missed, it will be as if that cat is consuming the toxin for the first time.


♦ Characters who have willingly left the club may request to rejoin later; characters who have been banned will be welcomed back on a case-by-case basis.


♦ Shattervenom will distribute a special password for Toxin Club members, which is to be guarded closely. I also require a password for applications to prove that you actually read all this stuff. The password for applications is Orion.

[Orion]

☠ Information on Poisons and the Mithridatism Plot ☠

(The official Mithridatism Guidebook is DONE—you can read it here. )

Poisonous plants, their parts, their effects

Poisonous plants and effects

Poison as medicine

[Orion]

☠ FAQ ☠

Q: isn't this getting too much into "medicine cat territory"?
A: unless medicine cats start trying to deliberately murder via poisoning, nope. Toxin club's goal is NOT to duplicate or undermine the role of medicine cats, but to establish an entirely new practice—the applications of poisons in defense and battle. Any beneficial use of poison (or other interesting incidental findings) should be discussed with the clan medic.

Q: can my cat die from participating in the Toxin Club?
A: as with battle, no character will be killed off without player permission. Each time a cat tries a new poison (or new dose), their fate will be randomly rolled—with death only being an option if the player wishes.

Q: what if I don't like the outcome of poison ingestion?
A: any character that does not adhere to the rules of Toxin Club will be banned. Period. Participants must accept dangerous consequences as they occur—that's part of the club's dangerous allure. If your character gets severely ill from their mithridatism practice, the other members of the club should help cover for them in order to mitigate suspicion.

Q: what if my character squeals on the Toxin Club?
A: they can't the club (and the plot of the club itself) is invitation-only, and any attempt to rat the club out to authorities or otherwise disrupt it would be a violation of the plot's "contract." If you want to participate, you are willingly allowing Shattervenom to shut your treacherous character up via any means necessary… unless any such subterfuge has been explicitly cleared with me.

Q: how does "dosing" work?
A: dosing must be done at least twice a month in order for a cat to upkeep their immunity to certain toxins. If a dose is missed, that cat must start back at level 1. Characters who've reached tolerance before will not be subject to severe negative effects unless several toxin doses are missed. Each dosing upkeep post must be a minimum of 100 words, and characters may consume multiple toxin doses in a single post.

Q: can cats from other clans join?
A: Toxin Club will be an exclusively WindClan cat thing until it is either openly accepted or forbidden by clan high ranks; at that time, Shattervenom may consider opening Toxin Club to more cats as a “master class.”

Q: is the Toxin Club a new faction of roles, like the Tunnelers?
A: until such time that mithridatism is accepted by WindClan high ranks as a legitimate practice, no. This is a clandestine research project by cats with morbid curiosity.

Q: how can I learn more about Shattervenom’s mithridatism and Toxic Club?
A: I’m working on a mithridatism handbook for participants to refer to! It will cover which plants the Toxin Club will focus on, any listed uses (e.g. anti-toxin, battle applications, aesthetic purposes), dosing regimens, toxin effects, etc. There will also be a document to keep track of participants and their tolerance levels to different poisons.

[Orion]

Spaces in Toxin Club will be limited until more details are hammered out. Spaces will increase dramatically if WindClan accepts mithridatism as a legitimate practice. I will message you when it’s time for your character to join in!

Slot 1: @poppy. | Dustypaw
Slot 2: @R0WAN | Ratwhisper
Slot 3: @Mercury | Flutterpaw
Slot 4: @starry. | Skunkblaze
Slot 5: @NinjaBloss | Meadowkit/paw



[More slots will be added as interest grows <3 Please message me if you'd like your character to be considered for future openings--and thank you to all that applied!

☠ Application - WINDCLAN ONLY at this time ☠

♦ Character name
♦ Character age & rank
♦ Brief physical & personality description
♦ Why the character would want to join Toxin Club—or why they’d want to support it, even if they did not consume toxins themselves
♦ Writing example (must be a minimum of 100 words - no single-liners, please)
♦ What’s the password?

[poppy]

♦ Dustypaw/Cardinalkit
♦ 6 moons/will be an apprentice soon, that's preferably when she'll join ^^
♦ A lanky youth, Dusty finds herself in an awkward stage. Her paws are large, but her legs are spindly, and she has no idea what's going on. She has cinnamon patched fur, but the fur is turning more of a dust color as she ages. She has yellow eyes.
♦ Because she wants to be the best warrior ever for her mom. She also has a fear of death, and anything she can do to avoid Windclan deaths or save lives, would be worth it. Don't underestimate her, she's a strong cat for her build and age. She can handle the poison- in smaller doses at first
♦ here
♦ Orion

[R0WAN]

♦ Ratwhisper
♦ 14 moons, warrior
♦ They are a short and buff light-grey feline with short fur and jade-colored eyes. After being attacked by a hawk as a kit, they got scars covering their back and neck, and a part of their right ear missing. Ever since the attack, they have had a need to prove to others that they are capable of taking care of themselves and getting out of any challenge. They have even become battle-hungry, desperate to feel so close to death and come out alive.
♦ They would probably want to join because the mere idea of being close to death gets their blood rushing. Being able to just take a bite of a poisonous plant willingly, even though you might be risking your life, is something Ratwhisper would 100% do.
♦ A recent example of my roleplaying can be found here
♦ Orion
[ @xath ]

[Orion]

@poppy.
Dustypaw is accepted! (And once she's of age, I'd be happy to welcome Cardinalkit into the fold as well.) I love the notion of her joining the club to make herself both physically and mentally stronger; Shatter would respect that Dusty has pure motivations and do her best to watch over this spunky apprentice.

@R0WAN
Ratwhisper is accepted! Dang, attacked by a hawk? That's hardcore. Shattervenom would probably have a massive case of starstruck-by-senpai syndrome in their presence, hardly able to believe that someone like RATWHISPER wants to walk the poison path with her.




I'll be sure to message both of you when the plot and threads are ready to go! In the meantime, I'm happy to fling Shattervenom at Dustypaw and Ratwhisper to get them acquainted, so she knows she can approach them later as potential recruits <3 Thank you so much for stopping by to check out the plot!

[Mercury]

♦ Flutterpaw
♦ ~8 moons + apprentice
♦ Flutterpaw is a curly-furred albino molly with red eyes and a set of faux ears behind her working two - little anomaly there!
♦ Flutterpaw is going to rejoin WindClan in the near future. She’s extremely curious and a bit ditzy, but was on the patrol that discovered the WindClan patrol ShadowClan massacred a few months back. Ever since, she’s had a strong resolve to do her best to fight back against the other Clans’ tyranny. She, with little other experience on the field, would jump headfirst into an adventure like this. New friends and cool poisons? She couldn’t resist! What’s a little bit of pain now if it helps everyone in the future? And the thrill of cheating death is something she couldn’t pass up.
♦ Here
♦ Orion
[ @xath ]

[Orion]

@Mercury
Flutterpaw is adorable... and accepted! It seems despite her airy mentality, she's made of some tough stuff and determination; her brightness would be very welcome in Toxin Club. I'll be sure to message you when this plot gets up and running--and would love for Shattervenom and Flutter to meet sometime, so Flutter can impress Shatter with her excellent attitude (and probably make the stoic warrior go "awww")