Plague Rats – Prestige class of the city of Shenth

I have wanted to have a prestige class like this one for awhile. It's specifically only for one area of my game world, the city that once contained a plague that can never be fully eradicated. It exists just beneath the surface, with these rats doing what they can to treat the victims and ensure fewer people are infected.

Plague Rats – Prestige class of the city of Shenth. Named for the rats that carry the deadly plague that once nearly destroyed the city, but have been a constant threat for more than three hundred years. More than half of the members are dwarfs, as they were the ones who originally contracted the disease. They are honoured, despised and pitied by the other citizenry at the same time; these exterminators are needed, but due to the ever-present rotting smell emanating from them, they are more like a secret cabal of the near damned, tolerated as long as they are far away.

Unlike other prestige classes there is only way to join this group; contract the disease. Most people who contact this disease never become plague rats, but the plague carriers when they originally contracted the disease do not resist the contagion, thus their bodies adapts to become stronger with the disease than it ever did before. Most carriers never advance in the prestige class, but they can to enable them use the effects of their disease to their advantage.

Appear as a common person of their race, except they have small red boils on their hands that flare up and drip blood when they are scared or sick. When first infected these boils appear through-out their body but then settle down over a few weeks time as their body adjusts.

Hit Dice: D6 (unless their previous class is higher)
Requirements: To qualify to become a plague rat is to either roll a one on a saving throw or to deliberately forego a saving throw
Class Skills: as original class
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: as original class
Saving Throw: Advance as original class
Spells: If they previously had spells, they advance

1st level: Plague Carrier; Detect Disease; +1 charisma to infected
2nd level: Recognize stage of Disease; speak with animals; +1 level in all abilities of original class 3rd  level: Absorb Disease; +3 charisma to infected; +1 level in all abilities of original class 
4th level: Transmit Disease ; +1 level in all abilities of original class   
5th level: Adapt Disease; +5 charisma to infected; +1 level in all abilities of original class 

Plague Carrier: The individual is infected with the Shenth plague, and outside of divine intervention, they will always carry the plague within themselves. A carrier never suffers ill effects from the plague. They are passive carriers, as anytime a previously unexposed humanoid touches the individual; they must make a Fort save vs DC 2 to avoid catching the plague. If they pass this saving throw, they are immune to the disease, if they fail, see the Shenth plague entry.
Those who pass take an immediate -2 on their constitution and charisma for the next six hours. Those who fail their saving throw slowly starts to blossom with the red boils, and must make a DC 16 every day or suffer -1 cumulative charisma and constitution until either reaches 5, then they reverse and slowly increase to its natural point.

Detect Disease: per the spell in the player’s handbook; as an innate spell.

Charisma bonus: The infected will automatically recognize a carrier, and will respond positively to him or her, gaining extra bonuses as they increase in level.

Recognize Disease: Plague rats may make a spot check (DC 12) to determine if someone has been affected by the disease, how long they have had it and at what stage of infection they are in.

Speak with Animal: used primarily to speak with the rats that inhabit the lower levels of the city

Absorb Disease: Upon laying their hands on an individual affected by the plague, they are able to cure the inflicted and remove the plague from anyone except another plague rat. Any charisma loss however is permanent. If someone doesn't want to be cured, they cannot be cured through this method.

Transmit Disease: While plague rats are always passive carriers, at this stage, a plague rat can infect others with the plague with full effects without touching them. Those whom the plague rat wishes to infect can be within forty feet and the plague rat can see them. Upon two rounds of concentration, the victim must make a Fort DC 15 or be affected with the disease.

Adapt Disease: Perhaps the most insidious of all their powers, at this stage, the plague rat can adapt the disease so that it will affect one type of creature. So, they can change the plague to effect elves or giants only. It takes ten minutes of uninterrupted activity to adjust their body chemistry. They use this so they can more easily blend in.

Along the city path; Adventure six (sorta)

The party sees the oncoming group, and look around and are unsure of what to do next and perhaps even more important, where to go. The cleric hears a feminine whisper in his ears, "Get to a doorway. Quickly." The party begins to increase their pace, Solauder, casts mirror image on himself for protection, as the cleric, wanting to increase the elves pace, picks him up to carry him along. The group reaches the first door they find, they realize there is a number of fairies among them.

Four small blue smurflings hanging on the dwarf, three smaller insect-legged grig on the elf, and a two-foot tall, green skinned winged fairy flying just off the cleric. Looking for assurance, Allfray tries to gauge the fae, and he gets no suspision or worries, so he opens the door and they go through. The room is occupied with two lovers on the bed in midst action, one of the fae casts a spell which changes the doorway, they look out and see a different alleyway than the brothel they came from, all step through. Now they are in that alleyway, a few hundred feet from where they once were, and already the doorway changes back into a door.

The fairy starts berating the group, explaining the urgency of their mission but Soulader turns it around and is showing considerable mistrust, he doesn't understand the mission as they usually have a simple task to complete. The green fairy tells them that the faeries were the ones who had started "hiring" the group, they were the benefactors, because the group did missions for both reward and honour.

Allfray inquires how could they have known, and the fairy explains that it was on the city map provided to them, and they had the messenger deliver it to them and it was written in Dral. Soulauder explains that Dral is an above ground, good-aligned dark skinned fey of Nyssa, this world. He may appear as one, but he is actually from another world, as his people are the Drow, very distinct in personality and outlook, he does not know the language. The fairy now identified as Abyssinia expresses her surprise and embarrassment, and agrees to help them interpret the city map. They take out the map, and places the papyrus holy symbol underneath, as the shows and incites fairy explains what must be touched and spoken to show the magic, as they follow the instructions, a different detail emerges. Allfray, a native of the city recognizes most of the spots identified, as he thinks about the areas, and touches the map, it changes, showing a more detailed view of each location.

Their mission consists of fixing something from each of these four sites:

The Sky Bridge, a little used, and very well maintained bridge over a now non-existent river.
The Shallow Well, a near empty and shallow well.
The third location, Allfray is unsure of
Finally, Sevel Aviary, created from an abandoned Seed Tower.

Since it is late, the group decides to take these missions up tomorrow morning. The Dwarf, has already started resting at a Tenderfoot pub with 17 smurflings as it seems every time one of them laughs, another one seems to come around. The Drow heads back to the pub where their drover allies congregate, joining in their ale and conversation.  The cleric returns to his residence at the small monastery for vespers, but he notices a small crowd already there. He feels uncomfortable as many of the eyes glaring at him. While they are welcome, he believes he is being watched.

Tomorrow, the adventure continues at the four sites.

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We started late, and some of us had been imbibing for far too long, so we cut the game short. Very useful session though.