Layers

The Layers are a concept introduced in Pathologic 2. A body consists of three Layers: Blood ("Zürkh"), Bones ("Yas"), and Nerves ("Medrel").

Early Concept
In the alpha release of Pathologic 2, the Layers were referred to primarily as "Nyespa" or sometimes "Humors"; however, in the official release, references to Nyespa were removed. Nyespa referred to humors that govern the body, and were likely based on the Nyespas of Tibetan medicine. There were three Nyespa: Bile, Phlegm, and Wind, which seem to correspond to what are now referred to as the Blood, Bone, and Nerve Layers, respectively. While the Ice Pick Lodge store was still available, posters relating to the Nyespa were sold. According to the product descriptions of these posters, Bile was "said to be responsible for hatred and internal cycles"; Phlegm "nests inside one’s head and hinders clear perception"; and Wind was "said to be cold and clingy." It was said that "when illness strikes, there is strife among the trio, and the disease kills." Like in the official release of Pathologic 2, the tinctures brewed by the Haruspex could be used to reveal which of the three Nyespa are affected in those infected with the plague, and each type of antibiotic could target conditions of one of the Nyespa. Conditions related to the bile humor were cured by keto pills; conditions related to the phlegm humor were cured by beta pills; and conditions related to the wind humor were cured by tetra pills.