[3.5] Alchemy

[Cardea]

What're some of your favorite alchemical items? And can they remain viable in a mid-optimization 16th level game?

[Psyren]

Pathfinder added a bunch (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/equipment---final/goods-and-services/herbs-oils-other-substances) that can be ported back to 3.5 (or vice-versa.)

[Yawgmoth]

Shapesand all the way. Why carry a bag of mundane items when you can carry a pouch of sand and have all the mundane items?

[ArqArturo]

Shapesand all the way. Why carry a bag of mundane items when you can carry a pouch of sand and have all the mundane items?

Because it requires levels in a PrC that only Beguilers, Warmages and Dread Necromancers benefit from :p.

[Dawgmoah]

I have actually found the lowly tanglefoot bag to be useful in higher level groups: no one expects them....

[Ruethgar]

I actually found a mundane alchemist base class somewhere, it got to essentially add metamagic to his creations as well as a flat increase in damage when he used them(to scale alchemist fire with level). I gave him a lot of skill point in engineering and he used powerdered water as fuel for an engine since it was pretty much explosive. Required a lot of work with the DM, but that was a very fun character.

[Vedhin]

Long list forthcoming:

The lowly Smokestick from the Player's Handbook is often overlooked. Blocking line of sight is a pretty nice effect. Eberron's Noxious Smokesticks add the nauseated condition to an already useful item.

MMII has the Desmodu Breathing Mask. It lets you breathe in space.

Blasting Pellets from Races of Stone are pretty handy if you're creative. And Blister Oil from the same book carries an identical qualifier.

Tanglefoot Bags are pure awesome. Ranged touch attack for -2 to-hit and -4 Dex, then DC 15 Reflex save vs immobility. On a successful save, they still move at half speed. The Mad Alchemist feat from PHII lets you create difficult terrain with them.

Speaking of Mad Alchemist, ever checked out Thunderstones? Deaf is quite a powerful condition against casters, and Mad Alchemist allows you to ready an action to force a Concentration check with a skill-based DC to cast a spell.

Also under Mad Alchemist are the Arms & Equipment Guide's Thunder Arrows and Alchemist's Arrows. A nice DM will let you use them with the feat; the latter arrows let you leverage Fiery Blaze in combat much better.

More A&EG goodies include various alchemical sling bullets, dealing extra acid or fire damage, or containing holy water.

The Sprayer from the A&EG, though not alchemical deserves mention-- it turns an alchemical item's effect into a 5ft x 10ft line.

And who can forget Oriental Adventure's donations? The Dust Eggshell Grenade is famous fo no-save blinding. Pepper EGs can stun. Liquid Smoke can be used like a Smokestick, but easier to activate. Ready an action to throw it into a caster's square as he casts a spell for best results. Sleeping Fire requires DM clarification, but can be very handy.

The Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting has Alchemical Sleep Gas, which offers a DC 15 Fortitude save. Waterdeep: City of Splendors has Sleep-Smoke, offering the same effect in up to a 20ft radius.

Dwarfblind from the A&EG can negate darkvision, and Stonebreaker Acid from the save source can deal up to 5d10 damage to stone or metal-- including creatures made from said materials. Depending on how you read Sparkstones, they can do interesting things with sneak attacks. And Instant Rope is just plain cool.

Dragonlance Campaign Setting has Tarmak War Paint, which grants +5 untyped natural armor and fast healing 5. The duration is until the fast healing has healed 20 points of damage.

The Gnome Calculus from the A&EG is an exotic sling that can launch alchemical flasks and such.

Tome and Blood has Healing Salve, a nonmagical CL 0 Cure Light Wounds.

Complete Mage has the Sreaming Flask, which deals sonic damage in a cone.

Another pair of A&EG items is Elven Leafweave and Elven Darkleaf. Both are armor special materials; check them out, they're very nice. Combine with Tesselated Armor from the magic armor section in the same book for druids in full plate as light armor, that also looks awesome putting it on.

Tempo Bloodspike from Magic of Eberron grants an extra move action, usable within one hour of activation.

Dungeonscape has Trollbane, the bane of all critters with regeneration. It also has Ghostwall Shellac, which can make armor and weapons Ghost Touch cheap if you are creative.

Planar Handbook has the Chaos Flask. Read it yourself and bask in the awesomeness. Atramen Oil from the same book is a ranged Touch attack for -4 to Fortitude saves. Liquid Embers is super Alchemist's Fire, but with a hefty price tag. Pure Element has varying effects based on the element.

Bloodflower Salve from Serpent Kingdoms is applied, then activated late by a command word to heal the user. Others can say the word for you.

Magic of Faerun has the Darkberry. Not alchemical, but worth mentioning, as it creates "blackness" as a extraordinay ability. Poorly written, but can be handy. The Fog Rock from the same book is like dry ice, add water for instant fog.

Razor Ice Powder from Frostburn is neat. It creates an area of razor-covered ground.

And someone is bound to mention Shapesand from Sandstorm. I could write a huge list about all the mundane items that are woefully underused. Shapesand gives you all of them.


Told you it would be long.

[Maginomicon]

Powdered Water (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=16053801&postcount=9)
Because it makes Tippyverse even easier in some ways.

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Alchemist’s Mercy
1gp, 1 oz.; Alchemy DC 10
A fine powder that, when mixed with water or fruit juice and consumed, eliminates the effects of a hangover.

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Truth serum:

Truth Wine
75gp, 8 oz. not including the container; Alchemy DC 30
This sweet white wine of elven origin loosens the tongue more effectively than other alcohol-based drinks. In addition to suffering the wine’s normal intoxicating effects, those who drink truth wine must make a Will Save (DC 15) to tell a lie. The wine’s effects are short-lived, lasting only 10 rounds -1 round per point of the drinker's Constitution bonus. (For example, a character with a +2 Constitution bonus would suffer truth wine’s effects for 8 rounds.) Creatures must drink at least 1 glass (8 oz.) of truth wine to suffer its effects.
Elves are unaffected by truth wine.

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Healing Salve
50gp, 8 oz.; Alchemy DC 25 or DC 23 with 5+ ranks in in Profession (herbalist)
Rubbing this stinky green paste into wounds promotes rapid healing. Applying the salve is a full-round action. One dose cures 1d8 points of damage to a living creature. Only one dose may be applied per round, and there is no limit on how many salves can be applied over time.Because this makes psionic party healing intrinsically viable.

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Chloroform:


Vapors of Sleep
50gp, 3 oz. including the vial; Alchemy DC 25
When applied to a cloth and held over the nose and mouth (or other breathing orifices), this liquid forces the target to make a Fortitude save (DC 13) or sleep as if affected by a sleep spell for 1d4 hours. The attacker must successfully grapple the target in order to use the vapors on her. A vial of the liquid can also be thrown as a grenadelike weapon. It does not cause victims to fall asleep, but they must make a Fortitude Save (DC 13) on a direct hit or suffer a -2 circumstance penalty on all actions due to drowsiness and disorientation for 1d4 rounds.

[Pluto!]

And who can forget Oriental Adventure's donations? The Dust Eggshell Grenade is famous fo no-save blinding.
I basically came in here to post this. These are just ridiculously good, and dirt cheap to boot. Definitely one of the easiest ways to do things like ensure full sneak attacks or just keep a weak character or familiar contributing at higher levels.

[Yogibear41]

Someone should make a splat book that has a load of useful alchemical items that are an actual viable way to play at higher levels.

[Vizzerdrix]

Because it requires levels in a PrC that only Beguilers, Warmages and Dread Necromancers benefit from :p.

Your information is wrong. You do not need the Sandshaper PrC to make use of shapesand. In fact, in the description of the class, it says that the alchemical item is different from the ability to manipulate sand granted by the class.

my favorite has to be the gnome calculus from Arms and Equipment guide.

[skyth]

My favorite alchemical item...Liquid Pain :) (And yes, an Alchemist can make it. No need to torture someone).

[Yogibear41]

Would still cost 66.67 gold to make a single dose(1/3 of 200 gp). Not sure if 67 gold is worth 3 experience points. Suppose if you had the feat that reduces creation cost by 25% you could take it down to 50 gold but still.

[Captnq]

Someone should make a splat book that has a load of useful alchemical items that are an actual viable way to play at higher levels.

I only looked at it from the perspective of, Is It A Weapon?
If so, it's in The Weapon Handbook (http://www.minmaxboards.com/index.php?topic=9053.msg183871#msg183871).

Although I have some new stuff to add when the next edition comes out. I'm adding augment crystals, shields, armor, Armor special abilities. Hopefully I'll have time to add the intelligent item section.

Next time it comes out it will be the COMBAT EQUIPMENT HANDBOOK v1.01.

but yeah, bunch of alchemy weapon crap in the weapon handbook right now. Have fun.

[skyth]

Would still cost 66.67 gold to make a single dose(1/3 of 200 gp). Not sure if 67 gold is worth 3 experience points. Suppose if you had the feat that reduces creation cost by 25% you could take it down to 50 gold but still.

Well, I would rule that if it was Alchemically made, it doesn't detect as evil.

[ArqArturo]

Your information is wrong. You do not need the Sandshaper PrC to make use of shapesand. In fact, in the description of the class, it says that the alchemical item is different from the ability to manipulate sand granted by the class.

my favorite has to be the gnome calculus from Arms and Equipment guide.

Oh, that being said, that would be cool. But weird, since you're drinking sand :smallbiggrin:.

[mabriss lethe]

I have a fondness for Grell Crystal from Lords of Madness and Blister Oil from... Complete Scoundrel? Adventurer? Dungeonscape? I forget. Both are lower level options, but can be very fun and cost effective.