Stonemuscle

Many people working in the mines have fallen to this treacherous disease. The notorious ailment known as 'Stonemuscle' is a painful and lethal condition that many miners have to deal with. The constant exposure of dust in the mining shafts clings to the lungs, flows into the bloodstream and at last settles inside the muscles of the individual, resulting in mineral deposits inside the muscles. These grow over time and hinder the person to use their strength properly.

Characteristics
People that work in mines or are exposed to larger amounts of dust in the air (industrial areas and the downpour area of the ashes etc.) start with strong coughing and breathing problems. After a while, they feel stiff and their muscles tense much more under pressure.

By the time muscles cannot relax anymore and the body feels heavier, the person suffers from chronic joint aches, quick exhaustion and permanent muscle tension.

The disease riddles the muscle tissue with minerals up to the point that the physiology cannot compensate for the solid material anymore. The heart fails, lungs cannot move anymore, the body stiffens to the point that the person is trapped inside their own body and suffocate.

Rules
After long-term exposure to mineral dust in mining-shafts or in metal industry areas (normally roughly a week), the character suffers from coughing (-1 to all DEX and CON based skills). After two days of constant coughing and more exposure to mineral dust, blood fills with particles and stores them in muscles. At that point, the character receives on a weekly basis a +1 to Natural Armor while suffering -1 on DEX and CON up to the point where either DEX or CON reach 0. Once DEX or CON has reached 0, the character is either unable to move (Dex = 0) or the body shuts down due to condition problems (Con = 0).

The disease can be counteracted with medical herbs to reduce the exposure of mineral dust to the body. In the initial phase, the body expels all dust within three days.