None of us expected to see the Delvers like that. They were inconsolable... twisted into shapes of agony, and glowing like a blue sun.
-- Eleryn, Greater Adjunctite
Wyrd Sickness, or simply the Sickness, is a poorly understood side effect of remaining near potent sources of Wyrd. It causes a range of unpredictable side effects, the most notable being hallucinations and the morphing of flesh.
Some of those that contract Wyrd Sickness are able to slow its effects, or are given fractional power of the Wyrd, and are coloquially referred to as Sojourners, feared by the general public for their perceived differences.
Reported symptoms have included:
- Hallucinations, usually involving recent events or the source of the Wyrd. Some scholars have found that these are traceable to real, physical locations, and can be used to find and Seal Wyrdfissures in some cases.
- Sudden changes in personality, usually aggression, though in many cases it is a shift towards a particular state of mind. One particular report, involving an individual with an unrelated condition causing mania and psychosis, cites that immediately after progression of the sickness, their condition was cured.
- Glowing skin, usually a bluish colour.
- Changes in appearance and general body shape. Some of these changes are humanlike or animalistic, growing additional appendages, but many, especially with advanced Wyrd Sickness, result in the creature's flesh twisting itself into repeating, fractal patterns.
- Rarely, new abilities. Some creatures react more positively to the Sickness, gaining special traits and abilities.