Stilling Charms

Stilling Charms are a class of blessed relics instilled with magics to fight against the Rising Sickness. There are two main types: a warding charm given to warriors fighting the outbreak, intended to prevent them from contracting the disease, and a stasis charm given to victims of the illness, given to the rescued victims of the sickness to slow its progress long enough that they can be healed.   Most stilling charms are very basic enchanted items, imbued with a short term enchantment that will last a week or two at most. These are produced by channeling divine magic into simple holy devices - these can be as simple as a written prayer or a hand carved wooden icon of the caster's deity - this can allow a cleric to produce a number of charms at once. The downside to this approach is that the enchantments will only last a day or two; enchanted items hold their enchantment far better when crafted with particular care and made of particular materials that are most compatible with the enchantment in question. In more populous areas, most religious sites keep a sizable collection of pre-made charms ready to be blessed when an outbreak occurs.  

Effectiveness

Stilling charms were invented in years long past, and have become so ubiquitous that it's almost unheard of for anyone to fight an outbreak of the rising sickness without them. However, there are isolated cases where outbreaks have occurred without a cleric available to weave the necessary enchantment, and each case demonstrates just how important they are. Without the use of stilling charms, it is likely that more than half of those who respond to the outbreak will contract the illness, and that most of those who do will not last long enough to be healed. Conversely, when stilling charms are available, most of those who survive fighting the zombies will do so without ever falling ill, and most of those who reach medical care, be they responder or rescued bystander, can expect a full recovery.