Alchemy & Herbalists

Looking for more wondrous ways to create fantastic new substances, turn lead into gold, or create powerful new magical items? Master alchemists and herbalists have many secrets to reveal, but only those who strive to become truly skilled at their craft can hope to master the art of creating the most powerful of talismans.

Whether you are looking for something to spice up these skills or a book to breathe new life into your worlds alchemical and herbalism offerings, you will find lots of useful materials in A&H.

This is not a playtest review.

Alchemy & Herbalists is another tome in Bastion's rapidly increasing line of rules-orientated accessories.

At $24.95 for 96 pages, A&H is at first sight fairly expensive for this type of sourcebook. However, the book is in full colour and space is used relatively well. Unlike previous Bastion products, the use of full colour is justified here with much better quality of artwork on the whole, much of which shows a distinct Expressionistic influence similar to Franz Marc and Kandinsky. However, some of the art is similar to previous products and really suffers in comparison to the other good pieces. Wisely, Bastion have stuck with what they're good at in this tome - rules; the writing quality reflects this approach, being concise and lucid. Editing is good.

Chapter 1: Basics of Alchemy, gives a general discussion of alchemy within the d20 rules and then begins to expand on the detail of alchemy. The Alchemists Lab of the PHB is broken down into its component parts with explanation of each item, various alchemical processes such as calcination, distillation, and cupellation are explained, and a few of the alchemists activities are discussed such as analysis and identification of potions, and designing various alchemical creations (some of which are exemplified in later chapters). The focus here is on NPC Alchemists and their use to PCs in game terms.

Chapter 2: Saragun's Alcheminary, presents a school for alchemists. The chapter is detailed, covering the building itself, the teachers, the syllabus and three alchemist prestige classes - the Black, White, and Red Alchemists. The colours do not really refer to alignment. Black alchemists concentrate on transmuting inanimate objects (e.g. lead to gold), white alchemists on transforming living organisms (e.g. potions of healing), and the red alchemist concentrates on uniting these two schools of thought (e.g. creating the philosophers stone). There are also sidebars on real world alchemy and GM guidelines for PC students of the the alcheminary.

Chapter 3: Basics of Herbalism, again discusses the items used by herbalists and helpfully gives a clear explanation of the differences between those who use Profession: Herbalist, Profession: Apothecary, Knowledge: Herbalism and Heal skills in terms of herbalism. The chapter continues with detailed information on growing, harvesting and preserving herbs, and finishes with some ideas for creating mundane herbal concoctions.

Chapter 4: Tarasta's School of Herbalism, gives a detailed example of a location where the secrets of herbalism could be taught. Like Chapter 2, information on the buildings, teachers and teaching strategies used by the school is presented. There are also sidebars covering PC students of herbalism and 'crisis creations' - short-cut herbalism using spells such as mage hand, prestidigitation, ray of frost and burning hands to quickly harvest and prepare components. Two prestige classes are offered - the Tarastan Herbalist and the Tarastan Apothecary, the former focusing on the tending of nature, the second focusing on healing and medicines.

Chapter 5: Herbal Catalog, details nearly 60 plants and their uses in herbalism. Each plant has a template which includes stats on its rarity (defining how easy it is to find), environment, harvest times (defining availability), cost, and its use in game terms (both mundane, and magical if relevant). Examples include plants of Earth such as wolfsbane, belladonna, holly, and mistletoe as well as fantasy plants (I think!) such as firesnap, dragons blood and magirosa. Text also includes advice for methods of harvesting and preservation, and expands on the limited game use information. There is also some information on varying costs dependent on the harvesting time for the plant compared to when its being looked for.

Chapter 6: Knowledge & Development, begins by introducing a number of new (mainly Item Creation) feats such as Craft Powders & Dusts, Craft Toxins, and Crisis Creation (see previous). There is some useful detail on synergy bonuses relating to the standard skills from the PHB. The chapter then concentrates on 'Who Makes What' - in other words, a paragraph on each type of item (from acids to potions to toxins, and some of the specialised items discussed in further chapters) in terms of which skill or feat is required to be able to create them. There is also a table summarising this section.

Chapter 7: Catalog Herbala y Alchemica, is obviously named ready for the Spanish translation of Alchemy & Herbalists. That aside, this chapter comprises a large number of new alchemical and herbal items, both magical and mundane. The chapter begins with some new types of items - Alchana (wondrous alchemical items, including such items as the Philosopher's Stone), Chymicals & Compounds (substances used in alchemical processes, such as acids, inks and solvents), Erlcana (including swathes - amalgams of still-living plants that cause magical effects, such as a cocoon swathe that provides healing to those wrapped within it), Ingestibles (such as elixirs and potions), Powders & Dusts, Toxins & Poisons, and Unguents (ointments, oils, pastes, salves and perfumes). There are treasure tables for each of the types. 120 different items are then presented, defined by type and with costings, skill check DCs, and prerequisites for each one. The list of playtesters at the beginning of the book shows that there has been attention paid to detail and balance but as always the GM should thoroughly think through the consequences of introducing some of these items to his campaign, as they could have far-reaching effects. I did notice that there is a missing table in relation to the Philosopher's Stone item. This chapter takes up nearly half of the book.

Appendix One: Monsters, gives two new monsters - the Alchemunculus (an alchemical homunculus) which can be used as an alchemist's familiar, and the Erlmantle (an intelligent bundle of thorny plants) which can also be used as a familiar, by a herbalist. A new template, Kin o' the Green, a type of half-animal/humanoid-half-plant, created by the magical process of 'greengifting' eventually develops into a kind of treant. Appendix Two gives a table of the feats introduced in the book, and their powers.

Conclusion:
Alchemy & Herbalists is a detailed and well-written book, with plenty of ideas on the subjects of the title. For those idea-starved GMs, Chapter 7 gives a wealth of new alchemical and herbal items to introduce into her campaign. The rest of the book gives plenty of background information for GMs to develop NPCs focused on alchemy and herbalism. Apart from Chapter 7, the book is less useful for players.

I found the rules to be a little too detailed for smooth PC use. For example, the entry for the plant 'Bryony' gives different DCs for saves against poison depending if the toxin was made from the roots, leaves and flowers, or berries. This unnecessary depth is a feature throughout much of the book. The detail often makes for interesting reading, but I would question how effectively the information could actually be used in-game. Instead, I would have preferred to have seen a table, much like the poison table in the DMG, listing game effects of the various plants - this could have covered more plants and would have been more useful than detail about which time of the month and with what metal the plant should be harvested. That said, the detail presented could be used to add atmosphere to a game.

Overall, this is useful only as long as you know the two subjects covered are going to be an important part of your campaign. Though well-written and with much improved artwork, its limited usefulness is reflected in my final rating.

I found the layout of this book extremely confusing. I don't think I can even conceive of a less logical organization. For example, there is a section in the first chapter listing common jobs that both Herbalists and Alchemist do. However, there isn't a single DC value or rule associtated with any of these common tasks. I was expecting rule later on but nothing.

Chapter 7 was worse. Again, I was expecting at least -some- new items that can be created with the plain ol' Alchemy skill but, if there are any, I couldn't find them. It sucks that you have to get one of a whole bunch of lame feats just to use your skill. And some of the new "items" require a feat but have rediculously low DC (12-15). If these items are so easy to make (compared to the ones in the PHB), what's with all the feat requirements.

I was very disappointed.


Aaron

This review is for Alchemy and Herbalists by Steven Schend and published by Bastion Press. This is a 96-page sourcebook that retails for $24.95. Alchemy and Herbalists gives an all-new perspective to the "brainer" side of the game.

The book is essentially two books wrapped up into one. The first part focuses on the science of alchemy. The terminology and processes are explained in understandable terms, especially as they apply to d20 game mechanics. "Saragun's Alcheminary" is a school of alchemy that is thoroughly detailed right down to the individual buildings and towers. Each tower represents a different school of learning. The Black Wing represents the School of Transformation, the White Tower is the School of Enlightenment, and the Red Tower symbolizes the School of Unified Alchemy. Each school produces its own individualized prestige class that makes excellent NPCs.

On the herbalism side of the book, "Tarasta's School of Herbalism" is the place to be. Described in the same format as the alchemical school, this is the perfect setting to use as a jumping off point for a new adventure. Two new prestige classes and a very extensive catalog of herbs round out the information on herbalism.

The remaining portions of Alchemy and Herbalists provide the new "crunchies" to go with everything you've read so far. There are new feats, chemical compounds, magic items and alchemical-based wondrous items. New monsters can be found in the appendix.

Overall, Alchemy and Herbalists is a fascinating book that should really appeal to the "intellectual" players. (We have a gamer in our group who is a pharmacist, and he really likes the book.) Most of the information in the book is more useful to GMs and for NPCs, but players who are looking for something different than your run-of-the-mill class choices just might want to take a good look at this book. It may not be for everyone out there, but I recommend that you at least take a minute to examine it. You just might buy it.

To see the graded evaluation of this product, go to The Critic's Corner at www.d20zines.com.

Alchemy & Herbalists
Bastion Press
96 pages, full color
$24.95

For an explanation of the scoring given below, please visit http://www.cooleys.org/ogc/scoring.asp

Executive Summary: Alchemy & Herbalists is an exhaustive look at two disciplines that are staples in a low-magic fantasy world; Alchemy (making minor, almost magic items from inorganic materials) and Herbalism (doing the same from organic matter). It contains Prestige Classes and Feats (of the item creation variety, for the most part) centered around the two disciplines (White, Red, and Black Alchemists take care of alchemy, for instance - all of these classes are basically built around picking up extra Alchemy Feats), but the bulk of the book is basically a "how-to" guide and a "what you can make/do with Alchemy and Herbalism."

Adaptability 10
The sheer volume of herbal and alchemical substances found in this volume gives you such a wide variety of things to choose from that you can't go wrong. You're sure to find things - probably many things - that you can adapt to your campaign with little difficulty. The section on plants and their in-game uses as part of the herbalism section is a nice little extra for rangers and druids, too.

Balance 4
This is probably the biggest failing of A&H - the plethora of Feats needed to create all of the alchemical and herbal creations makes it all but impossible to have a master alchemist who can whip up just about anything at the drop of a hat. In addition, the costs for producing items the labor cost and raw materials cost are out of proportion with the market value of the materials (and the book does not suggest that a different system than the Core rules Craft Checks should be used). Finally, some of the costs for the various items seem to be "off" when compared with the potential game mechanical utility. The mechanics and items are "neat" but just don't seem balanced with the Core rules.

Clarity 6
A&H suffers a bit when trying to present their material as well, particularly as it relates to the different types of alchemical items. The lines of "what Feat is required to make this item" are not particularly well-drawn, and their attempt to incorporate some of the Wondrous Items from the Core Rules into their system - and yet still make these items able to be created using the Craft Wondrous Item Feat - makes the system seem unclear. In the Core Rules, lines are clearly drawn between wands and potions, staves and rods, wondrous items and weapons. Here, the lines between "Chymicals" and "Powders" and "Unguents" seem less clear. Because a major focus of this work is "how to create these items," this is a bigger issue that it might otherwise have been. The remainder of the book is more or less clear (once you get past some of the odd choices for naming item categories, such as "Chymicals" instead of "Chemicals").

Focus 10
For all the problems they have with clarity, Bastion never loses sight of the goal - to explore Alchemy and Herbalism (two separate disciplines). Everything in this book, from the Feats to the Prestige Classes to the new items to the new monsters, is done with an eye towards being either a tool for building the system on which they present the alchemy and herbalist disciplines or a product that a character conversant with these disciplines can produce.

Granularity 8
While any of the items or plants presented in this work can easily be picked up and dropped solo into a game, the process for creating them requires either the adoption of Bastion's Feat chains (and suffers the clarity problems discussed above) or a wholesale discarding of such things and a manual tweak to the creation DCs of items (read: conversion). This dependency (you really must use the system presented to get to the end result of the alchemical items and such) detracts somewhat from the book's granularity.

OGC 10
One of my favorite companies as far as OGC designation goes, the entire text of this one (except the Bastion Press name) is Open Game Content. Simple and effective and generous.

Originality 10
I have always been fascinated by the possible applications of alchemy (in a low-magic world, for instance), and this book knocks the ball out of the park in terms of depth, breadth, and new twists. While the "uses for plants" may have been old hat, the rest of the book breaks a lot of new ground in bringing the A&H disciplines, and all their attendant possibilities, to the d20 system.

Presentation 8
This is a full-color book, and has quite a few nice illustrations of the plants and so forth. However, some of the sinewy, distorted people depicted in this work (particularly in the prestige class chapter and typical of early Bastion Press products) are visually jarring and distract from the content. I like the understated cover, though. And that name, "chymicals" instead of "chemicals" throws me for a loop every time - it got distracting and knocks the Presentation score down a tiny peg, too.

Price To Content 4
Make no mistake, there is a TON of content in here. However, the $25 pricetag is a bit steep. Bastion products to this point (I know they are changing in the near future) have been full-color affairs throughout, and that extra expense is passed on to the consumer. While I love the color, I'm not a fan of all the artwork they use (see Presentation) so I don't know that I want to pay for that. This is good stuff, but it is expensive - $20 seems to me to be "about right."

Wow 10
I couldn't wait to include this stuff in my campaigns once I bought this book. I had all sorts of visions for different alchemist shops with different specialties, and it's especially good for the awkward "tweener" levels of 2-5 - levels where permanent magic items proper are still in short supply, but where the party already has plenty of masterwork equipment. I was floored by this one. It gets maximum points for "wowing" me.

HIGHLIGHTS:
Swathes are symbiotic magical plants - they can provide a character with benefits and protection. I saw these as wonderful potential additions for druids - a character literally wrapped in ivy that gives him benefits would make a fascinating druid. Also among my favorites are the various "alchemical waxes" for use in making seals - if the seal is broken without applying the right type of counteragent, the wax can burst into flame, or change into acid, or otherwise ruin the parchment it was attached to. Great for "subterfuge/intrigue" campaigns. And of course, my personal favorite - the Lash of Saumar - bascially a whip made out of magical mercury.

THE FINAL WORD:
If you are looking for a bazaar of alchemical/herbal items for your world, this is IMO the definitive work. The rules for creating such items could probably use a little tweaking, but the list of "finished products" is unparallelled. This book dislays the roughness around the edges of earlier d20 offerings, but has been among my favorites since its advent. If price is no object to you, definitely add this book to your collection. A valuable resource to DMs for ideas and new items to throw at a party, and a lot of fun for the "MacGyver" type character who wants to have 100 different tricks at his disposal.

TOTAL: 80 ( -- Four stars

A late comment, but the items in chapter 7 should use the chart on page 49 (ie all the feats below alchana in power are optional). I treat the feats as specialized skill focus feats. For how old it is, I still haven't found anything better for alchemy. There are several books with herbalism rules that integrate well with those found in A&H with Verdant World coming to mind.

I reference it so much that my copy is beaten up, but then I love the idea of alchemy.