Some locations are inherently dangerous to be in, regardless of any enemies or other challenges they might contain. Such environmental hazards might force your party to bring more equipment or effectively put a timer on something you're trying to accomplish. All are quantified in degrees, and the effects of each degree replace all lesser degrees.

Heat    Hot environments put your characters at risk of hyperthermia, and are quantified in 3 degrees of heat hazard. Note that all heat hazard rules describe dangers much different than heat energy damage; this heat is a gradual danger over time, and does not actually burn your character. As such, energy shielding has no effect against heat hazards.

Effects of Armor    The above chart assumes a character is not wearing armor. If wearing armor, a character takes 50% more exhaustion from heat hazard (that is, 6 instead of 4 in the above effects). This rule does not apply to Standux armor that is currently folded.A character wearing cold weather gear treats heat hazards as 1 degree more severe.

Effects of Dehydration    If a character currently has minimum exhaustion as a result of dehydration (see Water), they take double exhaustion from heat hazards.

Taking Shelter    Deploying one's camping equipment can allow a character to take shelter from hot weather while resting; this allows a heat hazard below 3rd-degree to be treated as 1 degree lower. The same rule can apply to characters without camping equipment who are able to find substantial shade or natural shelter.
    Aside from this rule, rest has no special effect against heat hazards; a resting character will both remove exhaustion from rest, and gain it from the heat hazard.

Different Species & Heat Hazards    Anthrosaurs and dryads, though not cold-blooded, are resistant to the heat of their home realm. When resolving heat hazard for these species, consider a heat hazard below 3rd-degree to be 1 degree lower. Animals that hail from warmer climates will have similar reductions. This reduction stacks with the reduction from camping equipment or shelter.
    All non-organics are immune to heat hazards.

Cold    Cold environments put your characters at risk of hypothermia, and are quantified in 5 degrees of cold hazard. Note that all cold hazard rules describe dangers much more gradual than frost energy damage. As such, energy shielding has no effect against cold hazards.

Effects of Clothing & Equipment    The above chart assumes a character is wearing normal adventuring clothing for their species. Such clothing is assumed to be durable and decently water-resistant. Additional clothing to endure colder environments can be found in General Equipment, and is referred to as cold weather gear.
    If a character is without clothing for some reason, or if their clothing is compromised in some way (for example, non-adventuring formal wear that has gotten wet), they must treat any cold hazard as 1 degree higher. Species with fur (such as Koh-Trr, minotaurs, and Adlet) ignore this rule.
    Armor has no effect on cold hazards.

Effects of Starvation    If a character currently has minimum exhaustion as a result of starvation (see Food), they take 50% more exhaustion from cold hazards.

Taking Shelter    Deploying one's camping equipment can allow a character to take shelter from cold weather while resting; this allows a cold hazard below 5th-degree to be treated as 1 degree lower. The same rule can apply to characters without camping equipment who are able to find natural shelter. This reduction stacks with the reduction from cold weather gear.  
    Aside from this rule, rest has no special effect against cold hazards; a resting character will both remove exhaustion from rest, and gain it from the cold hazard.

Different Species & Cold Hazards     Vitur Roc are fully immune to cold hazards. Elves are highly resistant, and consider all cold hazards to be 2 degrees lower. Animals that hail from colder climates have similar reductions. This reduction stacks with the reductions from cold weather gear and camping equipment.
    All non-organics are immune to cold hazards.

Fire    Proximity to large fires puts characters in danger of the ignited status (see Status). It may also constitute a heat hazard, but a fire hazard describes a more immediately pressing concern than the slow exhaustion of high temperatures.

    Each degree of fire hazard lists both fire and smoke effects. For unusually enclosed environments, or for certain dirty-burning fuel types, the GM may use the smoke effect listed for the next-highest degree. Non-organics are immune to smoke effects, as are characters with Respirator devices. Each degree also lists a visual range limit; characters can only see that far through the flames and smoke, unless they have echolocation or another non-visual sense. This is not considered a smoke effect (and is thus not blocked by respirators), but may be varied by the GM like smoke effects. The final degree limits sight to such an extent that 1 Hindrance is added to DEX and movement rolls, and 2 Easing to rolls versus bright light; this is equivalent to and does not stack with the effect of smoke grenades.

    Fire hazards can be gradually ignited and spread naturally, but they are also instantly created by some heat or electric AoEs and ZAoEs; see Combat for energy damage rules, and see below for how they create fire hazards, as well as how fires spread based on the environment.

Size & Timing    Fire hazards can be either engagement-sized or zone-sized. Engagement-sized fire hazards affect all characters within engagement range, even if they were not struck by an AoE that created the hazard. If combat rules are in use, ignition chances and visual range reductions happen at the beginning of the action phase, possibly giving characters a chance to leave the area during that round's movement phase.

Maximum Degree    Any given area has a maximum possible fire hazard degree, based on how much flammable material is present. The maximum degrees and example environments are:

    Some zone features may have a maximum degree different from the zone in general - for example, a wooden village hut in a zone that otherwise consists of stone streets.

Energy Damage & Fires    Fire hazards are unavoidably created by sufficiently powerful heat damage AoEs (both deliberate and overeffect) and ZAoEs, as well as electric ones to a lesser extent. An AoE will create an engagement-sized fire hazard, while a ZAoE will create a zone-sized hazard. For AoEs, consider only the area damage, not impact damage; for cluster or lesser point ZAoEs, use the average of their high and low damage values. At least 60 heat damage or 120 electric damage is sufficient to create a fire hazard of the environment's maximum possible degree. If the maximum is greater than 1 degree, a lesser amount of damage will cause a proportionally lesser degree. For example, 30 heat damage would cause a 2nd-degree hazard if the maximum is 4, or a 1st-degree hazard if the maximum is 2.

    If any of these rules affect an area already containing a fire hazard, the hazard is increased by the called-for amount of degrees. Degrees stack, but damage contributions do not; repeating small damage amounts over multiple attacks will not add up to a degree.

    The GM may modify these rules to make fires easier to start if carelessness or deliberate preparations have occurred (for example, dousing an area in lamp oil or gunpowder).

Spreading & Dying    Without outside intervention, fire hazards are liable to spread, particularly in environments with high maximum degrees. After a fire hazard has burned for 1 minute, and once every minute thereafter, the GM will roll a die, the size depending on the maximum hazard degree for that zone or area: d4 for a 4th-degree maximum, d6 for 3rd, d8 for 2nd, or d12 for 1st. On a result of 3 or less, the fire itself will intensify by 1 degree (if allowed by its maximum). On a result of 2 or 1, an area fire will additionally spread to the rest of its zone, or a zone fire will spread to all neighboring flammable zones (starting their fires at 1st-degree, which will begin rolling separately). Any result higher than 3 will neither spread nor raise its degree.

    Once any given zone or area has rolled higher than 3 on any two of its rolls (or when it has already reached its maximum degree and spread to all neighboring flammable zones), no more rolling for that zone or area is necessary. At this point, the fire begins dying down as it exhausts its fuel; this generally happens at a rate of 1 degree every 5 minutes, though this may be varied by the GM based on the amount of flammable material. Flammable structures that 4th-degree fire for at least 2 minutes will collapse (see Demolition & Collapses).
Wildfires    If an outdoor fire hazard has reached 4th-degree and spread into many zones, the GM may rule that a wildfire has started. Rather than continuing the roll for zone spreading, they will set an effective mph speed for the fire's spread. They may base this on their own judgment of the peculiarities of the environment, or simply roll d12. If the party is unfortunate enough to still be in the area, they must escape using travel rules. Zones overtaken by the wildfire immediately burn at 3rd-degree, reaching 4th-degree after 10 seconds (2 rounds). Characters might still survive if they can immunize themselves to both smoke and ignition, or perhaps find a less-flammable zone or body of water.

Extinguishing Fires    To extinguish fire hazards via conventional means - beating them out or carrying water from a water source - characters may use a General Labor process action, with a roll interval of 1 minute (roll before the spread chances are rolled, if an extinguishing attempt begins immediately). The exhaustion cost is 1 per roll. Point goals are tracked by zone, or by engagement-sized hazard for smaller fires. A zone-sized fire will have its degree decreased by 1 for every 100 points, while an engagement-sized one will have it decreased by 1 for every 20 points. If at least half this many points (50 or 10) are contributed in a single minute, that fire does not roll for spread or degree increase. Water sources with an available means of transport (such as buckets or pseudogravity) are required for fires of 3rd-degree or higher, and cause double points to apply toward 1st- and 2nd-degree fires. Pseudogravitic general labor is usually valid, as it can either smother the fire with dirt or move water.

    Fires can also be extinguished by frost damage AoEs and ZAoEs. For every 25 ZAoE damage or 125 AoE area damage, a zone-sized fire is reduced by 1 degree. Engagement-sized fires are reduced by 1 degree for every 25 damage of either kind. For cluster ZAoEs, as well as lesser point ZAoEs targeting a zone fire, use the average of their high and low damage values. Unlike fire-starting damage, fire-extinguishing damage can stack with all previous damage over the previous 2 rounds (for example, multiple attacks using smaller frost weapons to put out one degree). Some chemistry devices copy the extinguishing effects of frost damage, without actually risking the environment further with more damage.

    Psychic hazard from any source is quantified in 3 degrees; see below the chart for rules specific to particular sources of hazard. If multiple areas overlap, consider only the more severe degree (they do not stack into a more severe one).

Radiation    The radiation used by particle weapons does not typically remain in the environment, sickening only those it strikes. Likewise, the explosion sites of the Nucleonic War have long since decayed into safety. However, some ruined Alacrian industrial sites continue to emit dangerous radiation, and nucleonic weapons could theoretically be used outside the range of the ancient nucleonic silencers placed throughout Lur-Asko. Such environments risk afflicting characters with Alacrian war fever (radiation sickness); see Disease.