The Alchemist

Alc Mind Psych Hypatia
Alchemist
Alignment	LG NG CG LN N CN LE NE CE

See also: Alchemy in Phaeselis and Alchemy Manual

Whether secreted away in a smoky basement laboratory or gleefully experimenting in a well-respected school of magic, the alchemist is often regarded as being just as unstable, unpredictable, and dangerous as the concoctions he brews. While some creators of alchemical items content themselves with sedentary lives as merchants, providing tindertwigs and smokesticks, the true alchemist answers a deeper calling. Rather than cast magic like a spellcaster, the alchemist captures his own magic potential within liquids and extracts he creates, infusing his chemicals with virulent power to grant him impressive skill with poisons, explosives, and all manner of self-transformative magic.

Role: The alchemist's reputation is not softened by his exuberance (some would say dangerous recklessness) in perfecting his magical extracts and potion-like creations, infusing these substances with magic siphoned from his aura and using his own body as experimental stock. Nor is it mollified by the alchemist's almost gleeful passion for building explosive bombs and discovering strange new poisons and methods for their use. These traits, while making him a liability and risk for most civilized organizations and institutions of higher learning, seem to fit quite well with most adventuring groups.

Alchemist Archetypes

• Beastmorph
• Chirurgeon
• Clone Master
• Crypt Breaker
• Grenadier
• Internal Alchemist
• Mindchemist
• Preservationist
• Psychonaut
• Ragechemist
• Reanimator
• Vivisectionist
• Visionary Researcher

Racial Archetypes

• Bramble Brewer
• Firebomber
• Plague Bringer
• Saboteur

Alchemy

Alchemy (Su): Alchemists are not only masters of creating mundane alchemical substances such as alchemist's fire and smokesticks, but also of fashioning magical potion-like extracts in which they can store spell effects. In effect, an alchemist prepares his spells by mixing ingredients into a number of extracts, and then “casts” his spells by drinking the extract. When an alchemist creates an extract or bomb, he infuses the concoction with a tiny fraction of his own magical power—this enables the creation of powerful effects, but also binds the effects to the creator.

When using Craft (alchemy) to create an alchemical item, an alchemist gains a competence bonus equal to his class level on the Craft (alchemy) check. In addition, an alchemist can use Craft (alchemy) to identify potions as if using detect magic. He must hold the potion for 1 round to make such a check.

An alchemist can create three special types of magical items—extracts, bombs, and mutagens. Bombs are explosive splash weapons, and mutagens are transformative elixirs that the alchemist drinks to enhance his physical abilities—both of these are detailed in their own sections below.

Extracts are the most varied of the three. In many ways, they behave like spells in potion form, and as such their effects can be dispelled by effects like dispel magicusing the alchemist's level as the caster level. Unlike potions, though, extracts can have powerful effects and duplicate spells that a potion normally could not.

An alchemist can create only a certain number of extracts of each level per day. His base daily allotment of extracts is given on Table 2–1. In addition, he receives bonus extracts per day if he has a high Intelligence score, in the same way a wizard receives bonus spells per day.

When an alchemist mixes an extract, he infuses the chemicals and reagents in the extract with magic siphoned from his own magical aura. An extract immediately becomes inert if it leaves the alchemist's possession, reactivating as soon as it returns to his keeping—an alchemist cannot normally pass out his extracts for allies to use (but see the “infusion” discovery below). An extract, once created, remains potent for 1 day before losing its magic, so an alchemist must re-prepare his extracts every day. Mixing an extract takes 1 minute of work—most alchemists prepare many extracts at the start of the day or just before going on an adventure, but it's not uncommon for an alchemist to keep some (or even all) of his daily extract slots open so that he can prepare extracts in the field as needed.

Although the alchemist doesn't actually cast spells, he does have a formulae list that determines what extracts he can create. An alchemist can utilize spell-trigger items if the spell appears on his formuale list, but not spell-completion items (unless he uses Use Magic Device to do so). An extract is “cast” by drinking it, as if imbibing a potion—the effects of an extract exactly duplicate the spell upon which its formula is based, save that the spell always affects only the drinking alchemist. An alchemist can draw and drink an extract as a standard action. The alchemist uses his level as the caster level to determine any effect based on caster level.

Creating extracts consumes raw materials, but the cost of these materials is insignificant—comparable to the valueless material components of most spells. If a spell normally has a costly material component, that component is expended during the consumption of that particular extract. Extracts cannot be made from spells that have focus requirements (alchemist extracts that duplicate divine spells never have a divine focus requirement).

An alchemist can prepare an extract of any formula he knows. To learn or use an extract, an alchemist must have an Intelligence score equal to at least 10 + the extract's level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against an alchemist's extract is 10 + the extract level + the alchemist's Intelligence modifier.

An alchemist may know any number of formulae. He stores his formulae in a special tome called a formula book. He must refer to this book whenever he prepares an extract but not when he consumes it. An alchemist begins play with two 1st-level formulae of his choice, plus a number of additional forumlae equal to his Intelligence modifier. At each new alchemist level, he gains one new formula of any level that he can create. An alchemist can also add formulae to his book just like a wizard adds spells to his spellbook, using the same costs, pages, and time requirements. An alchemist can study a wizard's spellbook to learn any formula that is equivalent to a spell the spellbook contains. A wizard, however, cannot learn spells from a formula book. An alchemist does not need to decipher arcane writings before copying them.

Note: These rules are, indeed, from a 3rd party source -- More Magic and Mayhem.

Ezren the Alchemist.

Alchemy (Chymistry), Expanded - WoW Style

There are four kinds of products created through the use of true alchemy (as these heightened forms of alchemy are called).

Draughts: Draughts are mixtures that allow the imbiber to recover something that has been depleted. Draughts include healing mixtures, mana tinctures and a small variety of other substances. Draughts work immediately — they do not have a duration. However, draughts are difficult on the constitutions of those who drink them, and cannot be consumed more than once an hour. Attempting to consume another draught before this hour elapses causes the character to vomit up the draught (so it has no effect) and be sickened for 30 minutes.

Philters: A philter either augments already existing abilities or grants entirely new ones. Philters grant their benefits for a specific period of time, though the bonuses that they grant are explicitly non-stacking: Those who gain bonuses to a trait from a philter and any other source at the same time gain only the benefits of the best source. Each philter has a listed duration, and philters may be drunk once per round, with no unpleasant effects.

Alchemical Oils: Alchemical oils are not directly consumed; rather, they are applied to weapons and armors to grant them certain benefits. All alchemical oils last for 30 minutes before the effects wear off. Like philters, the bonuses from alchemical oils are explicitly non-stacking. Note that alchemical oils are not the same as magic oils, which are a category of magic item; thus, oils created through alchemy are always preceded by the word “alchemical.”

Transmutations: The final kind of product is perhaps the strangest of them all. True alchemists are capable of transmuting certain materials into rarer, more alchemically pure materials. All transmutations require the use of the philosopher’s stone, the making of which is the first transmutation the alchemist undertakes. In game mechanics, these processes allow the alchemist to expend experience points, transforming them into a gold piece value that can then be applied toward certain ends. Each transmutation has a base cost listed, which represents the purchase of the raw materials.

Miscelleneous Alchemy Equipment

Item	Cost
Alchemy Kit	50 gp
Alchemy Kit, Masterwork	100 gp
Vial Bandolier	10 gp
Vial Belt	5 gp

Alchemy Kit: This is a small bag filled with the tools for creating alchemical mixtures while in the field or away from a lab. It includes space for a dozen vials. An alchemy kit is required when creating expert or artisan level alchemical items. Alchemy Kit, Masterwork: As the alchemy kit, but it grants a +2 circumstance bonus on Craft (alchemy) checks.

Vial Bandolier: The vial bandolier holds up to 20 vials for potions and alchemical mixtures, allowing such vials to be drawn (but not consumed) as a free action. They are sufficiently braced to avoid breakage in most instances, short of the wearer rolling a 1 on a saving throw.

Alchemist Tracking Sheet

Vial Belt: As the vial bandolier, but the vial belt holds up to 10 vials in easily accessible reach, allowing them to be drawn as a free action.

Alchemical Concoctions

Alchemical concoctions follow the normal Craft rules for creating items. Each also requires an alchemy feat. Remember that bonuses from philters and alchemical oils don’t stack with any other bonuses.

Alchemical products are loosely grouped into four levels of complexity or diffi culty to create; in ascending order, they are Journeyman, Expert, Artisan and Master products. There is a corresponding alchemy feat for each level of diffi culty, which is a prerequisite to the creation of any product of that level.

Each alchemical product lists its effects followed by a line of statistics that includes the following (in this order): type of concoction (draught, philter, alchemical oil or transmutation); prerequisites (including ranks in Craft (alchemy) and alchemy feats); and price (the cost to buy the concoction on the market; the price of the raw materials is usually 1/3 this amount). The creator must meet all prerequisites in order to create the item.

• Journeyman alchemical products: Alchemical products that require the Journeyman Alchemist feat to create.
• Expert alchemical products: Alchemical products that require the Expert alchemist feat to create.
• Artisan alchemical products: Alchemical products that require the Artisan alchemist feat to create.
• Master alchemical products: Alchemical products that require the Master alchemist feat to create. 

Trivia

• Alchemy is an old science, dating back to Egypt.  However, most of the tropes for Alchemists come from the late Renaissance and Age of Reason.
• Sir Isaac Newton was an Alchemist.
• Alchemy has been expressed several times as a skill for any class.  However, only Paizo, inc. made it into a base class for the Pathfinder RPG.

OGL Section 15 -- Copyright Notice

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Advanced Player's Guide. © 2010, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Author: Jason Bulmahn
World of Warcraft: More Magic & Mayhem Copyright 2005, Blizzard Entertainment