In a book I am writing, I want there to be an archer/mage who fires an arrow/magically propels a dagger with a fast-acting, potent poison, which kills one of the main characters. What poison that could be obtained in the mid 17th century that is fast acting should I use?
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Poison Dart Frog's "Lipophilic alkaloid toxins"... is, according to some sources, the group that includes the toxins used by poison dart frogs. They may be able to kill in less than three minutes; you may not be able to achieve any faster. It's unclear when these frogs were first identified, but Europe touched base in the Americas a hundred years prior to your setting. Knowing that some native peoples employed these toxins in, well, poison darts, it's not unreasonable to believe that some supplies could cross the sea. |
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Wolf's BaneApparently used to tip poisoned arrows in China during your time period, fluid from the Aconitum plant, or Wolf's bane, could be nearly instantaneously deadly if used liberally. The symptoms are not pleasant, and the poison can be used separate of an arrow to create the appearance of (accidental) suffocation. |
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Try strychnine. It was used a couple hundred years ago and can be derived from a plant. It isn't an ingested poison and can cause death very quickly. It is a type of poison known as a neurotoxin, meaning that it attacks the nervous system causing seizures and rapid organ failure. There is no known antidote. |
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