KutuluKultist
2012-03-29, 05:37 AM
Alchemical Allocation is a 2nd level alchemist extract that allows you to use a potion or elixir without using it up.
There are a number of interesting elixirs in the core rules that give +10 to a skill for 1 hour costing 250 GP. It seems that it's good advice for alchemists to invest in one of each at some point. +10 is a very substantial bonus that can raise a skill from untrained to adequate.
Now, pretty clearly, elixirs are single use, use activation items. They are also wondrous items, requiring craft wondrous item, not brew potion to craft.
This brings up two ideas. According to the item creation rules, you can add several effects together into one item, but the lower level effect will cost 1.5 times as much as a single item with that effect would cost. Hence it seems reasonable to assume that an elixir that gives +10 to two skills should have a base price of 250+375=625 GP. Affecting a third skill would add another 375 and so on.
By the item creation rules, you could have an elixir that gives +10 to 10 skills for 1 hour for 4000 GP, 2000 GP because you're going to be crafting it yourself.
Now, for 1 feat and 2000 GP an alchemist can get a second level spell that gives him +10 to 10 skills for 1 hour.
It seems legal by raw, but would you think it's too powerful? This could easily be achieved by around level 5.
Here's the second idea. Elixirs are wondrous items and hence not limited by the potion level cap. You can have an elixir of a 4th, 5th,... level spell. Such an elixir would cost as much as a corresponding potion (spell level x caster level x 50 GP). Certainly an alchemist could create an elixir of any extract he himself knows, which effectively allows him to spend gold for the ability to use higher level extract in second level extract slots (at least out of combat, the action cost is a bit high for in combat extract drinking).
But thats not the end of it. The alchemist could get a friendly full caster to supply the spell for the elixir. But wait. It's a use-activation, not a spell-completion or spell-trigger item. And that means that you can create item even if you don't know the spell, if you just accept a +5 on your spellcraft (or craft alchemy) check.
You know what that means? Every single spell on every single spell list just became a 2nd level alchemist extract. All for the price of one feat and an extra standard action.
But wait, there is more. The item creation rules do not stipulate anywhere that you have to actually have the item's caster level (of a wondrous item) in order to craft it. During the creation process, the caster level only determines the DC for the spellcraft check.
This means that not only are all spells ever 2nd level alchemist extracts, but that the alchemists gains access to them long before anyone else. How long? That depends on your spellcraft optimization, but since it's a INT-based class skill of an INT-based class, that's not much of an issue.
Do I have to buy it now?
There are a number of interesting elixirs in the core rules that give +10 to a skill for 1 hour costing 250 GP. It seems that it's good advice for alchemists to invest in one of each at some point. +10 is a very substantial bonus that can raise a skill from untrained to adequate.
Now, pretty clearly, elixirs are single use, use activation items. They are also wondrous items, requiring craft wondrous item, not brew potion to craft.
This brings up two ideas. According to the item creation rules, you can add several effects together into one item, but the lower level effect will cost 1.5 times as much as a single item with that effect would cost. Hence it seems reasonable to assume that an elixir that gives +10 to two skills should have a base price of 250+375=625 GP. Affecting a third skill would add another 375 and so on.
By the item creation rules, you could have an elixir that gives +10 to 10 skills for 1 hour for 4000 GP, 2000 GP because you're going to be crafting it yourself.
Now, for 1 feat and 2000 GP an alchemist can get a second level spell that gives him +10 to 10 skills for 1 hour.
It seems legal by raw, but would you think it's too powerful? This could easily be achieved by around level 5.
Here's the second idea. Elixirs are wondrous items and hence not limited by the potion level cap. You can have an elixir of a 4th, 5th,... level spell. Such an elixir would cost as much as a corresponding potion (spell level x caster level x 50 GP). Certainly an alchemist could create an elixir of any extract he himself knows, which effectively allows him to spend gold for the ability to use higher level extract in second level extract slots (at least out of combat, the action cost is a bit high for in combat extract drinking).
But thats not the end of it. The alchemist could get a friendly full caster to supply the spell for the elixir. But wait. It's a use-activation, not a spell-completion or spell-trigger item. And that means that you can create item even if you don't know the spell, if you just accept a +5 on your spellcraft (or craft alchemy) check.
You know what that means? Every single spell on every single spell list just became a 2nd level alchemist extract. All for the price of one feat and an extra standard action.
But wait, there is more. The item creation rules do not stipulate anywhere that you have to actually have the item's caster level (of a wondrous item) in order to craft it. During the creation process, the caster level only determines the DC for the spellcraft check.
This means that not only are all spells ever 2nd level alchemist extracts, but that the alchemists gains access to them long before anyone else. How long? That depends on your spellcraft optimization, but since it's a INT-based class skill of an INT-based class, that's not much of an issue.
Do I have to buy it now?