The blighted refer to all of the ideogenic species created through Blight's blights. All blights created by Blight require direct or nearly direct transmission from existing species members. Some of the blighted that exist in the present Age of Reunion are listed below. Their CSMA classifications are included.

Alterveins were the original strain of vampire-like entities made by Blight — the first transformative blight that Blight made. They infect others by sharing blood, referred to as Alteric blood, and they have considerable a craving to both drink blood and a minor compulsion to infect others. They develop sharper teeth and pupils that become slits while they are excited or experiencing cravings. They have minor sensitivity to sunlight.

Alterveins have a minor degree of shapeshifting, able to transform into certain animals or creatures. They gain minor powers to manipulate blood.

Genesis

Generally, most new Alterveins are made by turning. Only organic beings with blood that can be "infected" by the Alteric blood can be turned. Turning is typically done by giving an individual Alteric blood (blood of an Altervein) to ingest, and then draining that individual of all the blood in their body. The individual will experience death, and return as an Altervein.

In the case that not all the blood is drained, there are a few possibilities:

• Above a certain threshold, the individual may become ill, but eventually recover with no lasting effects.

• Below that threshold, the original blood will war with the Alteric blood. If the individual does not perish, this will eventually result in the individual experiencing a slow and painful transition. While fledgelings made this way typically exhibit better adjustment to their Alteric state, this method is considered cruel, and has been banned by the Alteric community.

Turning, when consensual, is generally considered a very intimate affair—though it is not at all sexual in nature, at least by default. The process brings the sire and to-be-fledgeling very close physically and mentally; usually, the sire will be the one to drink all of their fledgeling's blood, and this can lead to a profound and euphoric experience for both. The sire will usually stay by their fledgeling's side to soothe and comfort them as they die and rise once more.

When turning is not consensual, it can be terrifying and painful—not to mention dangerous for any hapless individuals to find the new Altervein. Multiple Alterveins can take part in siring a Altervein, if they both give the individual their blood and both take part in draining. It is relatively uncommon.

An existing Altervein can also have their bloodline changed by having another Altervein go through the process of siring them once more, i.e. the sire must feed the individual their blood and then drain the individual of all of theirs. Changing a bloodline requires a significant amount of blood given by the new sire. This is usually done after requesting permission from the original sire unless they are unavailable or have a bad relationship with the individual to be changed. A sire can also be re-sired by one of their progeny, leading to a balanced relationship between the two from a bloodline standpoint.

Upbringing

Generally, the sire of the Altervein is responsible for bringing up the new fledgeling and keeping them from running wild. If the sire is not available (i.e. dead, having run off, or too young to be qualified) the closest older Alteric relative will be asked to take them under their wing. 

For those in united society, the fledgeling becomes a legal dependent of their caretaker. The sire will often sequester the fledgeling away from living beings to prevent them from going into a frenzy. In the first few years of life, the fledgeling can easily be overwhelmed by their bloodthirst and new senses, leading to catastrophic situations for both the fledgeling and others. The sire may bite the fledgeling to comfort and/or restrain them if necessary.

To feed the fledgeling, the sire may hunt on their own or feed from blood bags and have the fledgeling bite and feed from them—fledgelings often have a strong urge to bite, and feeding from their sire can address this need. This will also strengthen the bond between sire and fledgeling.

For united society, the fledgeling should gradually be exposed to situations that test their will against their bloodlust—a living animal, fresh human blood, etc. After five years, if they are able to remain in complete control around humans, they may be authorized to join the public of united society.

Death and Eternal Sleep

Alterveins do not age and are extremely difficult to kill; they generally are active for several hundred years or only a few if they are killed while still vulnerable as a fledgeling.

Alterveins can heal and regenerate from almost any injury so long as they consume or have consumed enough blood. If they bleed out, are unable to feed for a significant time, or are significantly injured by light or holy magic, they will enter a coma from which they can be revived by feeding them blood. They can only absolutely be killed if their body is destroyed such as by burning it to ash, or by permanently separating the soul from the body.

Some Alterveins are content with their immortality, living forever, while others may tire of it. Those who do will usually find a place to rest for eternity. Another trusted Altervein will often be asked to drain them of all their blood, putting them into their coma, and then they will be locked away in their eternal sleep.

Theoretically, Alterveins can be revived from eternal sleep, but there are often seals and other deterrents preventing access to the body, and reviving an Altervein from eternal sleep is considered to be a great transgression by other Alterveins.

Characteristics

Appearance and Physiology

Alterveins generally look mostly like their original species, with their natural state having some notable characteristics. They are able to hide some of their Alteric features with their shapeshifting abilities, but this takes some amount of effort. For Alterveins who were originally human: 

• Pale skin: Alterveins generally have very pale skin.

• Cold body temperature: Alterveins do not generate any natural body heat. If they were to take a warm bath/shower or something similar, their body could retain heat for a short time. If they were to walk around in freezing environments, their joints and musculature can actually freeze.

• Fangs: Most Alterveins have extended canines containing their venom. These can be extended or shortened to some extent. Some Alterveins naturally have all their teeth sharp.

• Slit/glowing eyes: In day-to-day activities, an Altervein's pupils may seem round enough to appear normal. When feeding or using their abilities, Alterveins' eyes tend to "activate" — their pupils become slitted and their irises glow. Some may also have the sclera turn red or black.

• Pointed ears: This varies: some have distinctly elongated and pointed ears, some are only slightly pointed, and still others may not have pointed ears at all.

• Pointed nails/claws: This can also vary. Some may have humanlike nails that are just slightly pointed—this is most common. Others may have longer and stronger nails, varying to the point of them becoming actual claws.

Feeding

Alterveins must consume blood to function properly. All the blood in their body is blood consumed by another and transformed into their own through the Alteric essence in their blood. Feeding can be done through a variety of methods. Alterveins may feed from live donors, whether directly through a bite or indirectly through bloodletting or some tool. They can feed from other Alterveins, blood bags, and creatures with blood as well. 

Live donors of the same source species of the Altervein are generally the most satisfying and filling experience. The Altervein will be able to taste unique flavors associated with an individual. In united society, both the Altervein and donor must get approval, either separately (in the case of irregular or random donors) or together (in the case of a regular donor to a single Altervein).

• When done as more of a practical act between two who are not very close, the Altervein will usually bite at a distal location such as the wrist or elbow, as opposed to the neck. The physical and psychological effects associated with a bite are usually less intense in this case.

• It is possible for both a donor and an Altervein to develop a behavioral addiction or dependency in varying degrees to live feeding, sometimes requiring intervention to wean them off each other or reduce feedings to a frequency that is safe for the donor. Altervein venom is not physically addictive due to magical properties, however, and one cannot build a biological resistance to any of its effects.

Abilities

• Immortality: Alterveins do not age. They are also extremely difficult to kill; they can undergo grievous injuries—lose limbs, be beheaded, get stabbed in the heart, etc.—and regenerate by drinking blood. If they bleed out, are unable to feed for a significant time, or are significantly injured by light or holy magic, they will enter a coma from which they can be revived by feeding them blood. They can only absolutely be killed if their body is destroyed such as by burning it to ash, or by permanently separating the soul from the body.

• Optimal health: An Altervein remains in optimal health so long as they have a sufficient blood supply. When an Altervein is turned, they are cured of all infectious, degenerative, and other physical ailments. Limbs can be regenerated, eyesight/hearing loss/other sensory losses can be restored, blemishes on their skin vanish. Moles and freckles may remain unless the skin or the area is damaged or lost and needs to be regenerated. Wounds will heal and scars will fade. If an individual was born with defects, depending on the type, they may or may not persist; in some cases, there can be a process to modify a body with blood magic to guide the Altervein's body to its optimal form.

• Blood sustainment: Alterveins do not need anything besides blood to survive. They do not need to sleep, though they are able to and seem entirely dead when they do so. They do not need to breathe for living, though they do need to in order to speak. (As a fun fact, in cold weather they do not produce foggy breath if they breathe.) They also do not eat or drink; they are able to drink small amounts of fluids but are completely unable to digest food.

• Enhanced senses: Alterveins have sharper senses of sight, smell, hearing, and taste. Only their sense of touch is relatively dulled from their living state.

• Enhanced physical ability: Alterveins have immense strength and excellent agility. They feel very little pain if any, even if they experience extreme physical injuries. They can sense that a temperature is hot or cold, but they do not experience pain or discomfort from it. 

• Bloodline link: Alterveins are linked to one another through their Alteric bloodline. The strongest bond is between sires and their fledgelings, though all Alterveins are linked to Blight and each other to some extent. The closer the relation, the stronger the link; they can sense when another is in danger or if they die, and some can sense when a new member joins the bloodline.

• Shapeshifting: Alterveins are usually capable of some degree of shapeshifting. For many, this can be limited to changing their appearance to one that is more or less Alteric. Some can take the form of another creature, and some can shapeshift freely.

• Psychic abilities: Alterveins have some degree of psychic ability, with some individuals being better with it than others.

  • Feeding connection: Alterveins can connect psychically to the person they are feeding with. The strength of the connection depends on the level of trust the donor has with the Altervein; the connection can persist even after the feeding is over if the Altervein has fed from the same donor multiple times and the two trust each other greatly.

  • Hypnosis/thrall: Most bloodlines can hypnotize mundane beings by making eye contact. The strength and apparentness of hypnosis varies, with some being able to entirely subjugate the subject's will, some making the individual unable to resist suggestion, some only subtly shifting the individual's will, etc.

• Venom: An Altervein's bite has venom that makes the experience of the bite become painless and/or pleasurable. It can also have effects to paralyze the subject or make them relax, whether physically or mentally. The strength and nature varies between bloodlines. Some "pleasurable" venoms may have aphrodisiac effects, while others may feel good or even euphoric without anything sexual in nature.

• Healing saliva: Altervein's saliva has healing properties; it can rapidly close a wound as well as stimulate the production of more blood.

• Sterility: Alterveins are sterile in all aspects except their infectivity of the Altervein blight; their saliva and other bodily fluids have no other infectious agents. They cannot contract any biological illness, and infectious agents on their body will die or become destroyed quickly. If they drink blood with infectious agents, they may experience something akin to food poisoning, but their Alteric blood will purge the agents from the blood in time. They cannot biologically reproduce.

Lunarwilds are a strain of "were-beings," including werewolves, that have lasted to present day. In their base state they look human and are not infectious, but they can transform by will or under the moonlight into a different form (not necessarily a wolf, but usually an animal) that is much more animalistic and infectious, with any bitten creature also becoming infected with the Lunarwild blight. Lunarwilds have severe reactions to silver.

Genesis

Lunarwilds are an infectious species, with the bite of any Lunarwild having a high likelihood of inducing the transmutation into the species. However, they can only infect organic or semi-organic beings; they cannot infect machines, spirits, and magical constructs. 

Once an individual is bitten, they will experience symptoms of fever, restlessness, and insomnia. They also have more energy, counteracting the typical effects of sleep deprivation. These last for around three days before returning to a mostly stable state, if with gradually increasing strength. When the next full moon comes, around a month after the bite, then a transformation will be triggered. 

Characteristics

When not transformed, Lunarwilds look more or less identical to how they looked before being bitten, save for the presence of tapetum lucidum and the ability to produce certain sounds like purrs and growls. When transformed, Lunarwilds take the form of some kind of beast. Most are reminiscent to real-life animals, with some being more realistic and some having more unusual or unnatural characteristics. The appearance depends on what feels right for the soul, and tends to be stable but can shift over time. Most are mammalian creatures, resembling wolves, cats, bears, etc. but other non-mammalian species are also possible. Their eyes are highly reflective, reminiscent of the moon, and their saliva and other fluids have a shimmering quality like moonlight. 

The most notable characteristic of Lunarwilds is their "Beast." This can almost be thought of as a second personality born of the individual's fundamental emotions and instincts on the night of their first transformation. Some think of their Beast as a separate being, some think of it as another version of themself, and others have other ways of thinking about it. The Beast can overtake or blend with the individual's primary cognition depending on the circumstances: 

• During a full moon, when the Beast form is triggered, the Beast personality takes over entirely. Afterwards, the experience is remembered as dreamlike. The transformation can be prevented if no contact is made with moonlight, though they feel more restless and have a strong desire to run outside on full moons. 

• If the Beast form is voluntarily taken, not during a full moon, the Beast blends with the original cognition, allowing for a fair degree of reasoning and restraint. A Lunarwild experienced with restraint could safely interact with non-blighted individuals, though it is still considered risky. 

• When partially transformed, the mentality blends with the original cognition, which may lead to behaviors such as growling at those disliked. 

The Beast's desires always reflect the individual's deepest desires, if with a significant loss of inhibition and blended with a compulsive desire to infect others. As such, transformed Lunarwilds tend to be violent towards non-infected individuals, though they may be able to refrain from aggression towards those they consider close and trustworthy. That said, they can be playful and affectionate with other Lunarwilds, with many engaging in cuddle piles or grooming sessions. They can also experience mating cycles when transformed; though any children born would match the original biology of the parents, there is a high likelihood of infection through the process of gestation and birth, making it another way for the blight to propagate. 

Behaviors

Lunarwilds typically form packs of 3-20, though multiple packs may live together in a community or be otherwise affiliated. Each pack typically has a leader, though there could be none or multiple. The position is typically a matter of respect—other Lunarwilds will defer to the pack leader if they respect them. Some leaders gain respect through shows of power or dominance, while others may be weak physically but exceptional leaders in maintaining order and peace. 

Lunarwilds each have a unique scent, produced by scent glands around the neck. 

• The scent is weaker in their base form and stronger during a mating cycle. 

• When Lunarwilds experience strong emotions, their scent may change.

• Scenting, or scent-marking, is the act of applying one's scent on another, typically by rubbing the scent gland. It can be done as a mark of familiarity, comfort, or other things depending on the context. It can last from a few hours to a few days.  

• Bonding, or bond-marking, is the act of one Lunarwild biting into the scent glands of another, allowing for one Lunarwild's magical essence to become mixed into another's scent gland. This causes the scent to include a trace of the other Lunarwild's scent. It can be done mutually or on one side, and lasts for approximately a year unless refreshed. It may be done by close members of a pack, or by the pack leader to all their pack members, or mutually between the leader and pack members who live apart. 

• If a bond-mark is undesired, such as if it was given without consent, it can be expunged by "purging" the scent glands. This involves a sudden, explosive release of scent, causing the Lunarwild to become scentless for a few days before their natural scent returns, free of any bonds and other scent marks. However, it can also make the Lunarwild physically stressed or ill for the time it takes their scent to recover.   

The most traditional Lunarwild packs live as nomads, wandering the wilds wherever the winds take them. There is a strong culture of hunting in Lunarwild tradition, whether with teeth and claws, arrows and blades, or both. Traditional Lunarwild packs are also often paired with Carriophor flocks. Every month, Lunarwild packs find and prepare a hunting ground (which, in modern times, would involve putting up warning signs and a scent barrier to ensure that their hunt remains within bounds). They then accept their Beast as the full moon rises, transforming for the Lunar Hunt. 

Less traditional packs may live in permanent villages, towns, or even cities. Some participate in Lunar Hunts, while others do not. Some Lunarwilds may be part of a pack but live or travel separately, with members marked by mutual bond-marking with their leader. 

Abilities

Base form:

• Cognitive Enhancement: Slight enhancement in cognitive abilities. 

• Physical Enhancement: Significant increase in strength, allowing them to lift cars with some effort. 

• Extended Lifespan: Approximately 1.5 to 2 times their original lifespan. 

• Partial Shapeshifting: Partial shapeshifting of beastly characteristics. 

• Full Shift: Full shift to their Beast form. 

Beast form:

• Physical Enhancement: Significant increase in strength, allowing them to lift cars with ease.

• Sensory Enhancement: Significant enhancement in senses of sight, smell, hearing, and taste, and incredible pain resistance. 

• Regeneration: Incredible regeneration abilities, able to recover in seconds to minutes so long as their head is not cut off or their heart is not stabbed with silver. 

• Partial Shapeshifting: Alteration of their shape to change some beastly characteristics. 

• Instinct: Though they lose a significant degree of higher cognitive abilities, they have strong intuition and instinct in regards to who and what is dangerous or safe. 

The Petalkin are those infected by the Anthemia blight, transmitted primarily by semi-magical, semi-biological pollen released by existing Petalkin. When wounded, Petalkin sprout flowers from their injuries instead of bleeding, and they possess extreme regenerative abilities with no sensation of pain. They can have an appearance identical to their appearance prior to blighting or enter a "blooming" state with distinct characteristics. 

This blight was created around 1475, not long after Blight's Actualization. Blight's original intention was to destroy a village with their more destructive blights, but they met a person who was kind and soft—but also blind, chronically pained, ostracized, and hurt by others. That person offered kindness even to Blight, even while lamenting the opportunity to see the lovely flowers of their hometown, which they once ran across fields of as a child. Blight decided to offer this person a gift: a new blight that would take away their pain and let them see beautiful flowers every day. That person accepted, and thus became the first Petalkin. 

Genesis and Lifecycle

Anthemia primarily spreads through pollen transmission, primarily affecting those who are badly hurt, chronically injured, frequently ill, and/or experiencing profound emotional pains, including loneliness and heartbreak. The vulnerable become infected by breathing in pollen released by other Petalkin. In united society, most Petalkin have magitechnological implants or enchantments that prevent involuntary pollen production.

The infection manifests differently depending on the nature of the individual's "hurt":

• Physical wounds:  Over 1-2 days, they stop feeling the pain of their wounds. Any persistent or new injuries after that point will bleed less and heal faster, along with bloodied plants growing from the wounds. 5-10 days after infection, with more severe injuries leading to faster transformation, they will no longer shed any blood and the blighting is complete. 

• Emotional wounds: Those afflicted by "heart-wounds" such as loneliness or heartbreak begin coughing up bloody petals within 3 days of infection. They gradually lose their sensation of pain along with the symptoms growing more severe over the course of 1-2 weeks, peaking during the last third of the timeline, where they will cough out full, clean flowers. After this, the individual until the symptoms eventually cease and the blighting is complete. If "heart-wounds" are concurrent with physical wounds, symptoms will follow the physical timeline with the addition of coughing up flowers. 

Anthemia has relatively low infectivity under normal circumstances, but Petalkin experience seasonal cycles where infection becomes more likely. During spring (and rarely during other flowering seasons), Petalkin experience a blooming cycle. This manifests differently for different individuals, including but not limited to the following possibilities: 

• The Petalkin becomes unable to suppress their blooming and releases significant amounts of pollen with higher infectivity than usual. 

• The Petalkin experiences something like a mating cycle, where they have increased urges to engage in intimacy and can release aphrodisiac aromatics when excited. These Petalkin will plant seeds in others' bodies, which become a dormant form of infection. If the individual experiences intense or lasting hurt, then the seed will activate and blight them. 

• The Petalkin's body becomes extremely fragile, leading to easily losing fingers and limbs (which grow back in seconds). Where their body parts fall, a small garden of Anthemia flowers will bloom indefinitely. 

The cycle manifests in ways the individual would be least opposed to, though it cannot be completely avoided.

Petalkin typically have double to triple their original lifespan, though there are rare cases of extreme longevity. They maintain their youthful appearance until death, which feels much like becoming sleepier and sleepier each day until they lay down and cease to wake. They tend to be able to sense when their life is coming to an end. Once they enter their final rest, Anthemia flowers bloom and overtake their body. The body will be completely gone within a week, and the flowers that remain are referred to as an Anthemian Garden. These flowers are infectious, but less so than living Petalkin, and they cannot spread far from the site of where the Petalkin laid to rest.  

Characteristics and Abilities

The most distinct characteristic of Petalkin is their floral regeneration: all physical injuries result in flowers growing from their wounds instead of bleeding. 

• Growth can happen regardless of the kind of injury, including cuts (flowers from wounds), impact (flowers from mouth), and burns (flowers popping up on surface). 

• They may sprout flowers from their mouth and eyes when sad or emotionally hurt, instead of crying. 

• So long as the flowers/plants are still on their body, they can control them, using them for purposes such as self-expression, extra limbs, and weapons. 

• Flower types grown can be influenced by a Petalkin's personal understanding of floral symbolism.

• Flowers can be real or fictional, and have realistic or unnatural colors. Commonly, vines and leaves of plants grown have a particular color for a Petalkin. 

Petalkin do not have any sensation of pain, though they retain other sensations; due to their lack of pain, they tend to injure themselves easily. However, they have extreme regenerative abilities that allow them to recover from nearly any physical injury. 

• Their wounds heal within seconds to minutes, though full incineration or other similar obliteration can still kill them. 

• The flowers they grow will remain on the surface of their skin, though they can fall off easily as well. 

• Their lack of pain and quick regeneration tends to lead them to think little of injuring themselves to access their abilities. They may, for instance, cut the skin of their collar or arms to grow "clothing" made out of the material of petals and leaves. This clothing can have an appearance quite similar to normal clothing if the Petalkin practices with manipulating their plants. 

Petalkin do not need to eat, though they can; they are able to survive on photosynthesis and water. A little sunlight every day can sustain them, or they may bask in the sun for ten hours to last them several months. If they need water, they can injure themselves to grow roots that extract nutrients and water from the soil. During winter months or other times of dark and/or cold, Petalkin do not feel pain from cold or lack of light; they simply become sleepier and softer. They often gather in piles for warmth and mutual grooming (brushing hair, cleaning each other, etc.). 

In their base state, Petalkin do not necessarily have distinct visual characteristics. They can enter a blooming state, however, that has distinct characteristics. They can also manifest minor or specific characteristics of blooming at will, which include: 

• Petal-like "ears," with shapes and colors varying from individual to individual.

• Hair with colors of flower petals; this commonly affects base form for many Petalkin. 

• Eyes with unusual colors and pupil shapes.

• Hair that behaves like controllable vines, able to grow, shrink, and move at will.

• Flowers blooming in their hair. 

• Small claws. 

The flowers they bloom may also release aromatics based on their emotional state. These are magical-biochemical compounds that induce effects in other beings regardless of species, though they are much less effective for non-biological species. For example, a Petalkin can: 

• release an aromatic that improves mood when they are happy. 

• release aromatics that attract other Petalkin but repel others when they are sad.

• release a sedative aromatic when they are in extreme distress, which has a calming effect on themself and a paralytic effect on others. 

• release an aphrodisiac aromatic when they are aroused. 

The intensity can vary, with some individuals generally having more intense aromatics and some releasing lighter ones. They will only be released if flowers are present, such as if they were hurt or in their blooming state. Many Petalkin will manifest their claws to injure themselves if they want to manifest their flowers. 

Behaviors

In the early years of the Anthemia blight's existence, Petalkin naturally gravitated toward light-rich environments. They often formed peaceful communities in meadows, forest clearings, and other sunny locations. These communities might have simple housing or they may simply live in the wilderness. For the most part, they had simple, peaceful lives away from the sources of their original suffering. In general, Petalkin communities are gentle, with most members lacking a desire to fight others, though they can be formidable in combat if provoked given that the more injuries they sustain, the more material they have to manipulate. Some continued to live amidst in broader society, spreading the blight naturally through daily interactions, intentionally or not. 

As the blight spread and years passed, different societies responded differently to them. Some magical societies accepted them and even saw them as blessings, given their low infectivity and the way they took the pain away from those who were suffering. Blighted communities often accepted them, with the company sometimes leading to multi-blighted individuals. Various stories and myths around them cropped up, including stories similar to the concept of Hanahaki disease; Blight encouraged the spread of many of these stories, as they often led to the blighted seeking deeper connections with others and thus spreading the blight to them as well (which is a happy ending in Blight's books). 

In the present Age of Reunion, Petalkin have employed their abilities for endeavors such as therapeutic gardens and counseling. There are processes for controlled infection, involving proper informed consent, with some individuals (such as those with chronic pain or other health issues) applying to become blighted if they do not have a personal Petalkin contact. 

The Sporavenous are a species of "cognizant zombies" created through the infection of a biological host by the Sporavas fungus. The "Ravenous" broadly refers to all "zombies" created by Blight, though since the Sporavenous are the only extant Ravenous in the Age of Reunion, they are typically simply referred to as the Ravenous. 

When an individual is infected, the fungus integrates with the host's brain and spinal cord, leaving personality and will intact but causing the development of intense urges to consume raw flesh of uninfected individuals. The infection spreads by both body fluids and inhalation of airborne spores. These Ravenous usually do not emit spores, but every month their aggressive urges decrease and they sprout mushrooms, usually out of their back or the sides of their head, that release a large amount of spores. They are compelled to protect the mushrooms until they are done releasing spores, after which the mushrooms fall off. These are actually safe to eat, and are considered a rare delicacy by certain crowds.

Most of the Ravenous of Sporavas exist in a quarantined area consisting of a Sanctuary and a limited area of "hunting grounds." They are immortal, not aging and regenerating from most injuries, so long as they somewhat regularly consume raw flesh of any creature. Manufactured "meat" developed in united society can sustain them, but they tend to feel weak or ill in the long term.