Calemyr
2012-01-01, 11:27 PM
Please tell me if this works for an archetype for the Alchemist class:
Blackpowder Alchemist
"It is said that black powder was the fruit of alchemy's quest for eternal life. This, my friends, is the ultimate example of Fate's irony."
"Not the alchemists! Not those bloody fireworks merchants!" - Sam Vimes, Men at Arms
Blackpowder alchemists forego fascination with poisons in favor of another obsession classical to their profession: black powder, and the firearms that use it. While these alchemists share their interest in firearms with gunslingers, their pursuit of that interest comes from the opposite direction: while a gunslinger seeks to use a sharp eye and a steady hand to draw more utility from this powerful yet unstable technology, a blackpowder alchemist draws on their understanding of the underlying chemistry and mechanisms to achieve greater stability.
Gunsmithing: At level 2, the blackpowder alchemist gains the ability to craft, maintain, and repair firearms as well as the ability to prepare ammunition, as per the Gunsmithing feat in Ultimate Combat. This ability comes at the cost of the "Poison Use" feature.
Firearm Safety: Starting at level 2, the blackpowder alchemist begins learning how to handle the delicate and temperamental technology, reducing the increased misfire value of a "broken" firearm from 4 to 3. This is reduced to 2 at 5th level, 1 at 8th level, and the increased misfire value is completely mitigated upon reaching level 10, though the standard penalties of a broken weapon remain in effect, however, and a misfire on an unenchanted and broken firearm can still result in the weapon exploding. This ability comes at the cost of the "Poison Resistance" and "Poison Immunity" abilities.
Cartridge Expert: Starting at level 6, the blackpowder alchemist develops the ability to use alchemical cartridges more effectively, reducing the increased misfire value by 1 to a minimum of 0. This ability comes at the cost of the "Swift Poisoning" ability.
So the basic idea here is to allow alchemists (who logically should have some advantage in the use of firearms) to specialize in the technology. It should be noted this archetype neither gives the alchemist proficiency with firearms nor any additional effectiveness, it simply allows them to use the technology a good deal more safely than other classes could.
Does this work as an acceptable archetype? I'm not in a game right now, but I was just reading Ultimate Combat and thought this was an obvious archetype surprisingly wasn't included.
Blackpowder Alchemist
"It is said that black powder was the fruit of alchemy's quest for eternal life. This, my friends, is the ultimate example of Fate's irony."
"Not the alchemists! Not those bloody fireworks merchants!" - Sam Vimes, Men at Arms
Blackpowder alchemists forego fascination with poisons in favor of another obsession classical to their profession: black powder, and the firearms that use it. While these alchemists share their interest in firearms with gunslingers, their pursuit of that interest comes from the opposite direction: while a gunslinger seeks to use a sharp eye and a steady hand to draw more utility from this powerful yet unstable technology, a blackpowder alchemist draws on their understanding of the underlying chemistry and mechanisms to achieve greater stability.
Gunsmithing: At level 2, the blackpowder alchemist gains the ability to craft, maintain, and repair firearms as well as the ability to prepare ammunition, as per the Gunsmithing feat in Ultimate Combat. This ability comes at the cost of the "Poison Use" feature.
Firearm Safety: Starting at level 2, the blackpowder alchemist begins learning how to handle the delicate and temperamental technology, reducing the increased misfire value of a "broken" firearm from 4 to 3. This is reduced to 2 at 5th level, 1 at 8th level, and the increased misfire value is completely mitigated upon reaching level 10, though the standard penalties of a broken weapon remain in effect, however, and a misfire on an unenchanted and broken firearm can still result in the weapon exploding. This ability comes at the cost of the "Poison Resistance" and "Poison Immunity" abilities.
Cartridge Expert: Starting at level 6, the blackpowder alchemist develops the ability to use alchemical cartridges more effectively, reducing the increased misfire value by 1 to a minimum of 0. This ability comes at the cost of the "Swift Poisoning" ability.
So the basic idea here is to allow alchemists (who logically should have some advantage in the use of firearms) to specialize in the technology. It should be noted this archetype neither gives the alchemist proficiency with firearms nor any additional effectiveness, it simply allows them to use the technology a good deal more safely than other classes could.
Does this work as an acceptable archetype? I'm not in a game right now, but I was just reading Ultimate Combat and thought this was an obvious archetype surprisingly wasn't included.