Some potion stuff I've been working on...

[Treebore]

Not to necessarily replace what little rules and guidelines we do have, but to add some granularity for anyone who wishes to get a little more in depth with their characters alchemy, and to add some new potion options. So I am intentionally trying to stay "broad" in what I am saying/doing rather than try to narrow it down and restrict...

Ingredients for a variety of potions:

Components universal to all Potions are: Purified Water, “Pure” Alcohol (95%), Fat from any source such as Sesame Oil. The Alcohol and Water are used for potions to be imbibed, the Fats are typically used for Potions that need to be rubbed onto the target. Clays can also be used for nearly anything except poisons, since they typically neutralize poisons. Any potion requires at least 2 components on any given list for the desired effects, one of which must be Supernatural. Supernatural ingredients are typical for more powerful potions and used in spell casting.
Red Earth of Lemnos cures all poisons, tablet form for ingesting.
Green Clay of Benton: topically it stops infection/disease, internally it neutralizes Poisons.
Rusty Nail: Shave off the rust into suppurating wounds to enable wound to heal, specifically a counter to “wounding” enchantments and poisons, etc… that prevent healing.

Curing of Diseases:
The most common components are the burnt hides of giant rats, Hawk Feathers, and the Chitin from large Sea Crabs. The least common component is dust from a Vampire destroyed in the Sunlight

Damaging Poisons:
The more common ingredients are: Rat Tails, Red Roses, Purple Bells, Wolvesbane, Henbane, Nightshade (digitalis), antlers of young elk and deer. Rarer/magical sources known are: Ectoplasm (Ghost residue) Troll Fat, and “Black Salts” that are extracted from the remains of Wraiths and Specters.

Potions that Cause Fear:
Blue Dragonflies, Ground Ivory, Spadetail Fish, Mummy’s Rot Mushrooms. Typical Supernatural ingredient is the heart of a demon/devil type creature and Dragons blood.

Enhanced Charisma:
Butterfly Wings, Dragon Lilly, and Cotton. Supernatural sources are Hag’s Claws, Vampires Blood as well as others.

Enhanced Strength:
Creeping Vines, Hawks Beak, Scaly Mushrooms, and Catfish, are the more common components. Supernatural components are Giants Blood, Mummy wrappings, Dragon Hearts, and others.
Healing Potions:
Violets, Bear Claws, Moss, and Wheat. Supernatural components are Giants Flesh, Moon Mushrooms, and Trolls Blood, among others.

Improved Stealth:
Longfin Tuna, Husk of Bee Hives, Hawk Feathers, Powdered Ivory, and Blue Lillies. Supernatural Sources are: Flesh of a Thief, Blood of a cat, and many others.

Potent Spellcasting:
Increases effective casting level of Arcane Spell casters by 2 levels, all ingredients are “Supernatural”, Duration is typically 6 rounds. Most commonly used Supernatural Ingredients are: “heart” of a Treant”, Ectoplasm, Black Salts, Heart of a Spell caster (of any race/species), Lich Dust, and others.

Superior Archer:
Improves a bow/crossbow users Aim by +2 to hit as well as increases the Damage of their hits by 2, it also adds 20 feet to each range increment, so their short range is now 20 feet longer, as is their Medium Range, and as is their Long range, For an over all increase of 60 feet. Typically lasts 6 rounds. Components are: Juniper Berries, Spider Eggs, Bay Leaves, and Ginger Root. Supernatural Components are: Eyes of an Eagle, Flesh/blood/ heart of renowned Archer (typically 6th level or higher), and others.

Greater Swordsman:
Increases melee attacks (BtH) of the imbiber by 2 and gives them an extra attack every other round. Typically lasts for 6 rounds.
Bear Claws, Ginger Root, Moss, Hawk Feathers, Robins Egg, Small Pearl. Supernatural Ingredients are: Flesh/Blood/heart of renowned Swordsmen (typically 6th level or higher), Skeletal Warrior bone dust, Death Knight remains, etc…

Potent Healing:
Adds 2 points to each dice rolled for a given healing spell. This bonus can exceed the maximum of the dice, so a 1D8 becomes a 1D8+2, to a maximum of 10, not a max of 8. Components are: Spadetail Fish, Salt, young Antlers of Elk or Deer, Small Pearls. Supernatural sources are, flesh, blood or heart of any creature that can “heal”.

Poisons:
Poisons have a wide variety of ingredients, with nearly as wide a variety of effects. Unlike magical potions, the most deadly poisons can contain no magical ingredients or components. Some do, but those can also only be made by a Mage/Assassin, Cleric/Assassin, or two individuals with those skill sets working together, or directly harvested from magical creatures, so are considerably rarer than non magical poisons.

Mushrooms are a very popular source of poisons, such as Reishi, Shitake, Mitake, Turkey Tail, and many others. Most poisons are derived from venomous snakes, insects, snails, lizards, Wyverns, Purple Worms, and other creatures, some of which are, obviously, magical. Another common source are roots, such as the Hangmans root. The above ground plant world also has a large number of poisonous ingredients. Typically, the deadliest are derived from living creatures, but again, the plant and fungus worlds have some very deadly sources as well.

Poisons that are injected or swallowed are typically mixed with purified water, and those that are meant to be contact poisons are typically combined with fats. Unlike potions, which are typically 4 ounces in volume, poisons vary widely in how much, or little, is needed to kill/affect the average humanoid. Some poisons are potent enough to kill with one drop, it is rare for a poison to need more than one full ounce to kill, or affect the target.
The most common non lethal poisons are typically what is called a “Paralytic”. These paralyze their victim for a varying amount of time, but can also kill by paralyzing the target so completely they cannot breathe, so suffocate. Other types can make the victim so lethargic they cannot move, or make them go to sleep. Again, these can kill as well, so the correct dosage is critically important to get right if you wish for the targets to live.

I will not give poison components because there are literally thousands of possibilities and because there are a number of certain guilds out there that would put a contract on my head if I were to do so. I have already given a number of ingredients in my above description of Damaging Poisons.

Waterbreathing Potion:
There is a completely non magical way to make such a potion, and you only need 2 of the 3 possible ingredients to make it. These 3 ingredients are a Chickens Egg, the Mist Carp (a fish), or Sea Barnacles. However, it takes a high degree of Alchemic skill to create it, because the purity of the ingredients needs to be very high. So only Master Alchemists can hope to consistently get it right (10th level/CL 10 checks).

Regenerative Potions:
These potions do not immediately heal injuries or cure poisons, but can greatly increase a humanoids natural abilities to do so. As a general rule, these potions aid the recipient for 3 days, and during that time they double, triple, quadruple, and possibly even more, the rate of natural healing and aid in purifying the patient of poisons and even Disease. This is all dependent on the skill level of the Potion maker. A CL 5 Check will double normal healing. A CL 10 will Triple natural healing rates and force an illness (Disease) that is not permanent, to be purged from the body. Same with Poisons that will eventually end their effects without killing the patient. If the poisons is a slow death type, it will enable the patient to try and naturally purge the poison from their body by the end of the third day, but if they fail, this process will so concentrate the poison, that they will die sooner, rather than later.
The ingredients of Regenerative potions are Garlic, Juniper Berries, Wings of the Lunar Moth, and Sea Barnacles. Magical Components are Vampire Dust, Trolls Blood, and pretty much the blood of any other creature with Regenerative Properties.
Resist Potions: These potions make the imbiber more likely to resist the effects it is against, most often Fire, Electricity, Acids, Cold, Poisons and Magic in general. Unless noted otherwise, these potions reduce the actual damage caused by the spell effect BEFORE the save is made. The CL for creating these types of potions is equal to 1 for every point of damage it reduces the effect by. So a potion that reduces damage taken by 5 would be a CL 5 to create, 10 point reduction would be CL 10, and a 15 point reduction would be a CL 15 to create.

Versus Fire:
The non magical components are Powdered Human Bones, the Golden Lilly, Bay Leaves, Crab Chitin, and Rasberries. Magical components come from any creature known to be resistant to Fire, typically their blood, or heart, or skin.

Versus Frost:
Hawk Beak, Mind Sugar (a narcotic drug), Purple Mountain Flowers, Perch (a type of fresh water fish), Piranha (another type of vicious Fresh Water Fish), Shark Fins, Pearls, and Thistle. Magical components come form any creature known to be resistant to cold, as usual, typically their blood, heart, or skin.

Versus Acids:
Clay, Talc, Salt, and Ground Human bones are the most widely used non magical components, and as usual, the magic components can come from any creature known to be resistant to acid, typically their Blood, heart or skin.

Versus General Magic:
This just adds to saves against spells that are “all or nothing”, most frequently Charm type spells. This confers anywhere from a +1 to +5 to their saves, CL is 3 for every point added to saves, so CL 3= +1, CL 6= +2, CL 9 = +3, then 12 for +4 and finally CL 15 for a +5 bonus.

Versus Poison:
As noted above in the general description, for any poison that causes damage to HP, use the above CL’s to make. For poisons that cause a non damaging affect, such as Paralysis or Death, use the guidelines given for “Versus General Magic”, if a Poison does both, apply both the Damage Reduction and the bonus to the affect.
Non magical components are Beehive Husks, Charred Rat Hides, Garlic, Grass Seeds, Crab Chitin, Piranha Eggs, and Thistle. Magical Compenets are Drow Ears, Troll Fat, the 2 Clays mentioned earlier (Red Earth and Green Clay), as well as the blood, heart or skin of any creature known for being resistant or immune to poisons, including from Dwarves.

Versus Electricity:
Dragon Fly, Hawk Beak, Pearl, Thrush Eggs, Raspberries, Swamp Moss. As usual, magical components come from creatures known to be resistant or immune to Electricity, typically their blood, heart, or Skin.

So what do I do with this stuff? Well, you make specific potion and poison formula for your campaign. You decide actual proportions/amounts, etc... whether you want it to be measured in Drams, Grams, ounces, etc... and add to these lists with what may be unique to your campaign, as well as the monsters you actually use in your given campaign, which is why I didn't try to give an extensive list of monster ingredients. You may never use some of them in your campaign world, so I just mention the ones I figure are most likely to be used, such as Vampires, Trolls, Wights, Dragons, etc...

Recall what I posted above, drinkable potions will always have purified water and Alcohol as the base components, then you will add some form of the listed ingredients, which can be powdered, a distilled liquid, blood, etc... Now when I say heart, skin, etc... I do not mean all of it. it should be an amount that would sensibly fit within a 4 ounce volume limit. So likely in the half to full ounce range. In conjunction with my house rules, spell replicating potions also need to be "touched" with the magic of the spell it is to replicate. I also don't have potions be this super long process akin to the making of magic items like Wands, Staves, etc... A Chemist, in real life, in a appropriately stocked lab, can mix up some of the worlds deadliest toxins within minutes. So I allow a number of batches to be made in a single day. Typically limited by how many times the Alchemist can cast the specific spell effect in a given day, or you can do another limitation, such as 1 +1/3 levels of the Alchemist, or keep it in line with the overly drawn out long process suggested in the M&T and one potion/dose at a time. This is C&C and your game, after all, so adapt it to whatever makes sense to you. Also remember, you can control potion making via how easy or hard you make it to acquire the ingredients, especially the supernatural ones, as well as make everything else a high cost to purchase, etc...

So an example formula for Enhanced Charisma could look like this:

To 1/2 ounce of of Purified Water and 1/2 of Pure Alcohol, add 2 Ounces of Powdered Butterfly Wings and one Ounce of powdered Hag's Claw. Heat and stir until dissolved at an easy boil, while speaking the words of incantation for Enhanced Attribute. If you are making multiple does at the same time, increase the proportions appropriately for each additional dose. Let cool to room temperature, then dispense into the potion containers.

[Tadhg]

Almost missed this thread.

Very interesting, Tree.

May I ask, what are your sources?

[Treebore]

Almost missed this thread.

Very interesting, Tree.

May I ask, what are your sources?

A variety of sources, but primarily inspired and somewhat influenced by the Skyrim video game. Other sources are my wife (She read about the clays in her History research) and an old Herbal book.

[Tadhg]

Nice.

I see a lot of adventuring hooks and mebbe some plot devices as well as a boatload of cool side challenges for druids, wizs and clerics!

Still digesting (hehe) all this.

Well done!

[Treebore]

Nice.

I see a lot of adventuring hooks and mebbe some plot devices as well as a boatload of cool side challenges for druids, wizs and clerics!

Still digesting (hehe) all this.

Well done!

I'm only roughly half finished with what I am currently planning on doing.

[serleran]

I always like to look stuff like this over. I still want to complete a project long on hold....

[Treebore]

I added more ideas.

[Treebore]

Added a "So what do I do with this?" section.

[Daniel]

Added a "So what do I do with this?" section.

I think by tweaking this idea to fit a particular world, I could see whole adventures based on an ingredient gathering trip where the players are hired to protect the alchemist. Think of the fun of collecting rare ingredients, monster parts, or other things.

[Treebore]

Added a "So what do I do with this?" section.

I think by tweaking this idea to fit a particular world, I could see whole adventures based on an ingredient gathering trip where the players are hired to protect the alchemist. Think of the fun of collecting rare ingredients, monster parts, or other things.

Oh yeah, "I need to create some Greater Swordsman potions for the King's army, and I have heard of the location of a perfect rare ingredient, a Death Knight in an old Castle. Go get its remains for me."

[Daniel]

Oh yeah, "I need to create some Greater Swordsman potions for the King's army, and I have heard of the location of a perfect rare ingredient, a Death Knight in an old Castle. Go get its remains for me."

Exactly!

[Captain_K]

Spell book ink.. got a recipient for magical spell book ink? Seems like that has a special formula to it.. possibly one for each color.. you got to have colored inks in your spell book.. and the leather for the book and material of the pages... anyone got fun on these fronts?

[Treebore]

Spell book ink.. got a recipient for magical spell book ink? Seems like that has a special formula to it.. possibly one for each color.. you got to have colored inks in your spell book.. and the leather for the book and material of the pages... anyone got fun on these fronts?

I'll have to check, but I believe I got something on this from Expeditious Retreat Press.

[Treebore]

Plus, the thing is, you can use most of these ingredients for potions as ingredients for inks as well. Ink bases would primarily be pure alcohol, then pure water, then the ingredient(s), so the ink would have the desired evaporative properties. Squid ink can be one of the "color" components. I'd have to look up what else has been typically used for dye's.

[Arduin]

Actual ink as used in medieval & ancient times didn't use strong alcohol. Iron gall ink was popular.

[Treebore]

Actual ink as used in medieval & ancient times didn't use strong alcohol. Iron gall ink was popular.

I know, thats why they had to put them out on drying racks. I'm assuming Wizards are smarter than a bunch of Monks, and use a quick drying alcohol based formula instead.

[Arduin]

Actual ink as used in medieval & ancient times didn't use strong alcohol. Iron gall ink was popular.

I know, thats why they had to put them out on drying racks. I'm assuming Wizards are smarter than a bunch of Monks, and use a quick drying alcohol based formula instead.

Not really. It is what too strong of alcohol could do to parchment/vellum. The wizards aren't that smart.

[Lurker]

I have been wrapped around the axel so haven't been able to throw my 2 cents in


You know, one of my favorite set of books - Watt-Evans' Ethshar books - mentioned some interesting ingredients for spells. You could use them as and interesting addition to the potions etc.

Something like 'tears from a 3 day old girl', "the left hand of a murdered father" stuff like that.

A good scene in one of the books was when one of the characters was needing a spell cast, and the mage was listing all the things like that for the spell. The character finally said something like really, why, it doesn't make any sense. how does it work?" The mage answered something like "it doesn't have to make sense, it just hast to work, and it does".

For giggles throw in some odd stuff like that.

[Treebore]

I have been wrapped around the axel so haven't been able to throw my 2 cents in


You know, one of my favorite set of books - Watt-Evans' Ethshar books - mentioned some interesting ingredients for spells. You could use them as and interesting addition to the potions etc.

Something like 'tears from a 3 day old girl', "the left hand of a murdered father" stuff like that.

A good scene in one of the books was when one of the characters was needing a spell cast, and the mage was listing all the things like that for the spell. The character finally said something like really, why, it doesn't make any sense. how does it work?" The mage answered something like "it doesn't have to make sense, it just hast to work, and it does".

For giggles throw in some odd stuff like that.

Yep, thats why I am doing a base line. If you have favorites you want to add, do it! This isn't meant to be anything comprehensive, its meant to be used as a starting point for any CK that wishes to make use of it.

Feel free to post additional ideas here, so we can all decide what to use, or not.

[Treebore]

For anyone interested, I found a 23 page PDF that collects some of the most common ink making formula. Most are from the 11th to 16th Centuries, with 4 or 5 from the "Early Modern" period.