Alchemical pharms

[DMH]

Pharms use animals and plants to grow medical drugs and other useful chemicals. I have been thinking of what animals could be used and how. Cows are an obvious choice since they can produce the alchemical substance in place of milk, but what about things like alchemist's fire and other substances that that effect in air? How about giant starfish? They require an expensive habitat and feed, but they can have their substance containing limbs removed, which then regenerate.

Obviously feeding pharm animals must include the reagents so the costs for the substances are not going to change, but the need for die rolls in the creation of the substances are eliminated. They are also a weak point since if they are killed, a heck of a lot of money is gone. The same applies if they are stolen.

The one thing I am not sure of is allowing them to breed. Should they be sterile, breed back to a normal state or breed true? And why.

 

[Romnipotent]

farm? or pharm as an abbreviation of pharmacuticals (spelling?)
Also have a look into Chinese herbal and traditional medecine. In D&D you can use Wizards to mutate a cow to lactate all the time without pregnancy, and have that milk be alchemists fire, a point of note is never to kick this cow in the udders.

 

[Warehouse23]

"Pharming" is the use of bioengineered animals to produce useful products (like modifying E. coli to make insulin, or cows to produce spider-silk-rich milk). Classically, this shows up in fantasy tropes as creatures like geese that lay golden eggs. I would not use animal-created alchemical items as a mainstay of my game unless I wanted my adventurers being followed around by a bubbling, oozing barnyard (then again, with a high enough leadership score....). As a plot hook, though, a cow that you could milk for potions of cure minor wounds, or a chicken that layed eggs of alchemists fire would make an entertaining game.

I guess that would make "egging" a house rather dangerous....

 

[Hussar]

Obviously this would be better suited to a high magic game. But, it has some interesting ideas. And some cool plot hooks too.

Really, there are a number of creatures that could be farmed without any modifications. Giant spiders could produce spider silk, and there are a number of creatures whose hides or organs can be used for this or that. All it would take is a small breeding number and you have a business set up.

 

[the Jester]

This reminds me of the slaad farming thread from way back for some perverse reason.

 

[VirgilCaine]

As a plot hook, though, a cow that you could milk for potions of cure minor wounds, or a chicken that layed eggs of alchemists fire would make an entertaining game.

Very Brothers Grimm.

 

[DMH]

Obviously this would be better suited to a high magic game. But, it has some interesting ideas. And some cool plot hooks too.

I see some use in a political game- "We do not have, not ever will have glitterstars!" Glitterstars being starfish that produce alchemical fire or something similar.

Really, there are a number of creatures that could be farmed without any modifications. Giant spiders could produce spider silk, and there are a number of creatures whose hides or organs can be used for this or that. All it would take is a small breeding number and you have a business set up.

Farming spiders would be difficult, not only for food, but also for silk collection since there are different types of silk for each species (and how does one collect it anyways?). Commanding the spider would take a expensive midlevel spellcaster. Raising shocker lizards (and the similar beetles from Minions) would be much cheaper and the hides and electric organ(s) have value beyond the spellcasting community in a higher tech society. But those are not really pharming- the animals have to produce alchemical substances for that.

I forgot that MEG's The Deep does have an even better animal than starfish for saltwater pharms- jellyfish. So easy to process and raise that any peasant can do it.