Alchemy
Alchemy
Alchemy is magical chemistry—it does not require shaping skill to use, only knowledge, proper ingredients, and following the recipe. Medical elixirs, temporary enhancement potions, powerful poisons, mind-affecting brews, exotic alloys, and extra-durable construction materials are all within its scope.
Alchemy is one of the few magical disciplines that does not require any shaping skill. Any sufficiently knowledgeable person with access to alchemical ingredients and equipment can practice it.
See 09 Crafting in the Items and Setup section for specific crafting rules, Time Slot requirements, and material handling.
Tier Examples
| Tier | Example Effect | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Minor Healing Salve | A topical compound that accelerates surface wound healing over 1-2 hours. |
| Tier 2 | Mana Booster Potion | Temporarily increases the rate of mana regeneration for ~30 minutes. |
| Tier 3 | Enhanced Metal Alloy | Forge a material with magical properties, enhanced sharpness, magical conductivity, or heightened durability. |
| Tier 4 | Transformation Potion | A dangerous but accessible path to partial Transformation effects, bottled for use by non-specialists. |
| Tier 5 | Enhancement Elixir Base | A critical component for an Enhancement Ritual, reducing the permanent mana reserve cost substantially. |
Mechanical Focus
Alchemy rolls use the Academics (chemistry/alchemy lore) and Survival (ingredient knowledge) mental attributes rather than any Magical attribute. A mage with high Academics but no shaping skill can be an excellent alchemist. Golemancy cores generally require alchemical materials.
Lore Deep Dive
Alchemy is not a very difficult field to dabble in—if you can follow a recipe, you can brew a basic potion. However, it is incredibly expensive to seriously pursue.
The Barriers to Entry: The raw materials for true alchemy are not cheap, and neither is the highly specialized equipment required to process them safely. Furthermore, alchemy is tightly regulated in most civilized places.
The Workshop Monopolies: The alchemical trade is almost entirely controlled by established alchemical workshops and guilds. These organizations have special access to valuable alchemical ingredients and possess generations of secret methods that make their products cheaper and better than any independent newcomer could possibly manage.
Because of these massive financial and institutional barriers, mages who decide to specialize in alchemy almost always come from families already involved in the alchemical trade, or they are exceptionally wealthy individuals able to finance an attempt to break into the field by brute force.