Polyjuice Potion

[Drakevarg]

I had some of this once in a 2E game years ago. It was a potion that changed your race to whatever you wanted it to be. (Being young at the time, it never occured to me to abuse this, though I'd assume it had some limitations, like "humanoid race only" or something.)

Thing is, I've never seen a bottle of this stuff anywhere since. Was it actually a 2E thing, or did my DM lift it from somewhere else? On a related question, is there anything similar in 3.5?

[Yuki Akuma]

...Potion of Alter Self?

300 gp. Go nuts.

[Morph Bark]

Hmmmmmnope, closest thing I can come up with is a potion of Reincarnate that somehow works while you are still alive - which is good in the sense that if you're dead you can no longer drink and bad in the sense that it is too high level to be made into a potion (though if it wouldn't bring someone back to life, I guess that would bring it down at least 1 level, making it level 3).

Never seen anything official of that sort though.


EDIT: ...or Alter Self (but permanent of course). D'oh.

[Drakevarg]

...Potion of Alter Self?

300 gp. Go nuts.

Isn't Alter Self essentially just a very fancy illusion? This was a permanent race change, right down to all the shiny racial abilities and bonuses.

[Yuki Akuma]

Well if you want it to be permanent you need a bit more rules-finangling. To last a day you can use one of the myriad ways to add metamagic feats to items and get it Persisted, at least.

Edit: Alter Self is shapechanging. If you alter yourself into a race with wings, you can fly.

Disguise Self is the illusion (and also what the Changeling's shapeshifting is based on... oddly.)

[Jack_Simth]

...Potion of Alter Self?

300 gp. Go nuts.

Sadly, Personal-only spells can't be made into Potions.

[Yuki Akuma]

Sadly, Personal-only spells can't be made into Potions.

What?!

...Well, drat.

Someone should research an "Alter Other" spell. I'd say that'd be 3rd level, right?

[holywhippet]

Sadly, Personal-only spells can't be made into Potions.

Where does it say that? According to the SRD:

You can create a potion of any 3rd-level or lower spell that you know and that targets one or more creatures.

Personal spells target one creature (ie. you) so they should be valid.

[Jack_Simth]

Where does it say that? According to the SRD:



Personal spells target one creature (ie. you) so they should be valid.

Here: "Spells with a range of personal cannot be made into potions. "

[holywhippet]

Weird. Ok.

[ArcanistSupreme]

I say we say screw the rules and apply Elan logic in this situation. If you are the DM, I think you are well within your rights to make a potion that alters someone else's self.

On a side note, this is only loosely related to actual polyjuice potion (or is there a version aside from the Harry Potter one?).

[Drakevarg]

On a side note, this is only loosely related to actual polyjuice potion (or is there a version aside from the Harry Potter one?).

I had this potion before Harry Potter came out, so I would assume yes.

[ArcanistSupreme]

I had this potion before Harry Potter came out, so I would assume yes.

Wow, that was a long time ago. I didn't even know D&D existed before 1998.

[Drakevarg]

Hm... maybe it was Tekumel that the DM got it from? I have no way of knowing since I never played Tekumel, but evidently his dad knew the creator of it, and tended to mention it alot. (He also knew Gygax, I think, but that's not relevent to the musings.)

[Yuki Akuma]

It's not as if "Polyjuice" is a particularly difficult construction - it's simply the LatinGreek "poly" (which is also used a lot in D&D - Polymorph, anyone?) and English "juice".

[Nihb]

Just asking...

An Alter Self potion is not possible. But how about an elixir, the wondrous kind? I don't think there's any limit to spells that can be put into an elixir.

Better yet, if you could brew a potion, you'd need to choose what would the race be. With an elixir, I believe you could set the race prior to consumption, using a command word, ingredient, or whatever.

[ArcanistSupreme]

It's not as if "Polyjuice" is a particularly difficult construction - it's simply the Latin "poly" (which is also used a lot in D&D - Polymorph, anyone?) and English "juice".

You are ruining the magic of my childhood.

[Eldan]

Greek, not Latin.
Sorry, pet peeve.

[Yuki Akuma]

Greek, not Latin.
Sorry, pet peeve.

Oh, right.

"Polymorph" just made a whole lot more sense.

[Esser-Z]

Personal-only cannot be potions is a strange rule--those spells seem like perfect candidates for potionification.