I spent 50gp on these alchemist's supplies and there's only two items in the PHB that I could make! I want more options!
So I'm trying to come up with additional alchemical items based on things the real-life alchemists made, since I'm not the DM so I can't homebrew the fictional ones. So far I've got:
-Gunpowder
-Liquor
-Antitoxin/disease-curing elixir
-Imitation gold, silver, and gemstone
-Gold and silver ink
-Metals extracted from minerals
-Aqua Regia
-Holy water, possibly
-No real world alchemist succeeded at this, but some attempted to make homunculi, which exist in D&D already. So... maybe?
What else could I craft, and what could I use some of these things for?
Plenty of stuff, especially if you got into greater, i.e. classical, alchemy where you can transmute materials into other materials. Imagine being able to create special materials like glass-steel, orichalcum, admantite, etc.
The problem is that even when DnD bothers with a crafting system alchemy gets the shaft.
In my setting you pay alchemists for
Acids
Alchemist's fire
Antitoxins
Booze
Explosives
False metals
Firestarter/tindetwigs
Flashpowder
Plastics
Puremetals
Rare metals
Refrigerants
Smoke powders/liquids
Sunrod
Thunderstones
Tanglefoot bags
Those items mentioned by Orzel plus:
Healing potions
Various other common and uncommon potions and scrolls
Magic rings
Various traps
Explosive rockets and bombs
Construct siege engines on high levels
Create golems and summon elementals
I love the idea of an alchemist class with own gameplay.
My goal is to mixture different ideas from the Pathfinder alchemist, the artificier from Eberron, the prestige class "ironsoul forgemaster" from "Magic of Incarnum", Phrometean: the Created and Alchemy path from Mummy: resurection by White Wolf Publishing with some source of inspiration like the anime/mange, for example "Full Metal Alchemist".
I remember some alchemy item from 3rd Guide of armas and equipment.
The key is.,.... why the alchemist PC is in the battlefiend and not crafting item in a safe place? Think about that, a with a simple catrip, hand of wizard, a bomb in the pocket of the enemy could explote easily.
My idea of alchemist is a spellcaster without magic, more than a true but boring craftman. His first power is to "seal" their own products to be only active when he wants (to avoid be fired by enemy powers). He would spend "points of essentia" to "break the seal" and then the explosive ammunition can be used. Residium/incarnum would be used like the points of maná from magic: the gathering. A special "essentia" could be spent to get metamagic effects, for example "subtitution of energy" (acid instead of electricity, for example).
Luis_Carlos wrote:
An alchemist could probably get a good sideline going making and selling drugs. Buy a wagon and outfit it so that it's a mobile lab. Get a thieves' guild on board for distribution.
arnwolf666 wrote:
iserith wrote:
Don't use the thieves guild, cut a deal with the merchants or the seamstresses or the farmers, someone with a legit distribution network and the prestige/experience to keep people from asking awkward questions.
What if a alchemist guild is the D&D version of Umbrella corporation? 
Alchemist and transmutator wizards are too different. The alchemist use chemical products, it is a almost no-spellcaster.
* The alchemist can´t be only a craftman. How to explain it better?
Let's imagine a group of spriggans, the evil gnomes cousins. The leader is a crazy alchemist who is creating potions to transforms spriggans into fomorians giants. The final fight starts, and the boss is the first to be KO. If the rest of spirggans can use the potions.. it is like the alchemist still could cast spells. Do you undersantd? The alchemist could create oil for explosive arrows, and when they were used by minions, not ever would be in the same building.
What if a spellcaster use "hand of wizard" to break a bottle with acid? Or a simple catrip like a match would be enought to fire the enemy's gunpowers or another explosive item.
That is the reason I imagine my version of D&D alchemist with a pool of points of maná to "active" their chemical products.
iserith wrote:
Yeah, I've been confused on the difference between Alchemist's Supplies and Herbalism Kits. Both of these seem to be essentially the same thing (or close enough as to not need two separate tool kits). I hope the DMG has rules for making things with all of those special tool kits in the PH! Because currently, I feel the tool kits are generally underwhelming. I've love to see more use out of them.
Luis_Carlos wrote:
Ramzour wrote:
Joe_the_Rat wrote:
I think maybe there's some overlap in what various artisan's tools can craft. You can concoct herbal remedies with an herbalism kit and alcoholic drinks with brewer's supplies, but buying the more-expensive alchemy equipment lets you do all this and then some.
One thing I never see included in alchemist-type classes is the spiritual part of alchemy. People always seem to go the "old timey scientist" angle, which is plenty of fun, but historically alchemy was actually a pretty spiritual philosophy. The alchemists believed that even nonliving things had the complete trinity of mind, body, and spirit( sulfur, salt, and mercury respectively), just on a much lower level. In alchemy, every physical process that works on "inanimate" matter works on people as well. A lot of them weren't trying to turn lead into gold to get rich; they believed that if they could discover a procedure for transmuting lesser metals into the "purest" metal of all, they could apply the same principles to their souls. It could be interesting to treat alchemy in D&D as an attempt to unite the divine with the arcane. What if we gave alchemist's supplies some more spiritual crafting options to go alongside the scientific ones?
Also, I was able to convince my DM to let me make a homunculus! I suppose if I want to use this character in other Adventurer's League games, I should check with their respective DMs whether they're OK with the homunculus... I can always just change it to a reflavored owl familiar if not. But still! I think it's pretty cool. It saved the lives of three party members in its first fight by delivering and administering healing potions to unconscious allies. I think it needs a name. Maybe something symbolic, like Hope? I dunno.