Alchemist Subclass

[Jraynack]

By Joshua Raynack
Page Count: 6 pages (4 pages)

This Game Enhancement presents an innovative new rule for the d20 system: Subclasses.

Similiar in concept to the character kits in 2nd Edition, subclasses offer a new way of enhancing core character classes into a specific role.

Subclasses are also adaptable to any d20 system campaign setting because it can be added to any core class including those of variant player's handbooks.

This game enhancement includes:
- Rules for Subclasses
- The Alchemist Subclass
- The Ciphered Molcajete Wondrous Magic Item crafted by the famous alchemist Nicholas Flamel
- A Real World History section about alchemists
- And a small summary of alchemists in the Hill Lands, a small drop-in region featured in A Question of Honor: A Guidebook to Knights.

 

[Crothian]

This is the second of the sub classes I have seen a reviewed. I like little options like this that add on to characters outside the traditional class and level system. I enjoy the guild options of Bastion Guildcraft, the prestige races of Bastion’s Oathbound, the class oriented Guilds of Fantasy Flight Games’ Path of series, and the fighting options in Mongoose’s Quintessential Fighter. The sub classes area different from these other options but they can be used together and with ease.

The Alchemist Subclass is another of many small PDFs only six total pages long. It does have book makes which is great. The lay out id good and the writing is crisp and easy to follow and understand. The PDF is by Alea Publishing Group who have done a few but high quality PDFs.

The way the subclasses work is they are minor abilities that are gained each level. They gain bonus hit points but not bonus hit dice. They get a small increase to saves and base attack and a few more class skills and a couple of skill points a level. There are some good abilities gained with potions crafting and other alchemical processes.

The Alchemist sub class does not come without a cost. Characters have a negative twenty percent experience penalty for taking the sub class. Certain races do have favored subclasses that only impose a negative ten percent penalty. In the case of the alchemist the gnome has it as a favored subclass.

The true power of the alchemist subclass lies in the potion making. At the third level of the subclass the character gets the Brew Potion Feat. It is not automatically at third character level that this would be gained. The subclass can be started later then character level one if the player chooses to do it that way. The Brew Potion feat is special in that the character need not have any magical ability. The character automatically is considered to know all spells for the purpose of creating potions. The limit of what spells can be made into potions though still exists. At fifth level in the subclass and every three levels after wards the character can make potions of a spell level higher. So, at fifth level the character can craft potions of fourth level or lower, at eight they can craft potions fifth level or lower, etc.

I really like the subclass idea. It gives another layer to the characters and it gives options without having to take certain classes or prestige classes and feats. The subclasses do have a hefty price though with the experience point penalty. That will have the character be lagging about a half level or so lower then the other characters. And with the spending of the characters own experience to make potions that discrepancy can get even worse.

The subclasses will be more useful as more of the get written. At least I am hoping they do write some more of them. I prefer to have options that fit all the player characters instead of just a single character. The subclasses do give power outside the traditional level system so a tenth level character with ten levels of a subclass will be a bit better then other tenth level characters. And it will have taken them longer to get there with the experience penalty.

 

[Wystan]

(reviewer Copy) Alchemist Subclass

Let me start by saying that I really enjoy the idea behind this product. Now on to the review:

Intent of the PDF: This is to introduce a new option for players, the subclass. These are gained by spending one of the players few renewable resources - XP. The subclass costs 20% of your XP and allows you to gain the ability to make potions with a non-magical means. The Gnome race can Subclass with only a 10% XP penalty, but this makes sense in a way ( I would see Item Crafter before Alchemist). They also gain the ability in the end to create gold. This can only be gained if you take all 20 levels of the subclass. You can join a subclass at any level, but it will go up on a 1 for 1 basis from that point foward. So a Lvl 10 fighter taking this will never exceed a 20/10 Fighter/Alchemist and will never gain the top level abilities.


I will grade seperate things about the PDF and then grade it as a whole.

1. Art - Borders and one figure. The figure is depicted well, and the borders are pretty, but on the whole there is not enough art to use as a part of the grading.

2. Layout - The layout is good, the sidebars (text boxes) do well to draw your attention to the important information. Grade - 4

3. Design - I like that the class is described cleanly, but feel that more examples of things like potion making and an extra page would have been justified. Grade - 4

4. Intent - Again the idea is sound, but there is a problem with the class in that unless it is taken as a subclass at lvl 1 you will never get all 20 levels. I like the perks, but I am not sure that a feat could not produce the same idea. Grade - 3

This is a short review as too much will detract from the PDF itself, logging in at only 6 pages.

Overall I like the class and the idea, I give it a solid 3.75 (4)

 

[HellHound]

Interesting review, except you don't once mention what the idea for the PDF is, what the class does, any of the mechanics, etc.

Or, for that matter, what makes a subclass different than a core class.

 

[Jraynack]

First off, thanks for the review - it was unexpected and a pleasure as we are always looking for more exposure for our innovative products.

As to answer HellHound's question: Subclasses are classes that contain concepts that may not be strong enough to be presented as a normal character class or not specific enough to be a prestige class. They are used to hone a character into a generic role coupled with normal character class and prestige class levels.

If anyone else is interested in additional subclasses, they can be found here:

Crusader Subclass

Legacy Heir Subclass

 

[FreeXenon]

[h1]Review of the Alchemist Subclass[/h1]
[h2]Words from the Reviewer[/h2]
This is my first product review for ENWorld. A big "Hello!!" to all of you ENWorlders!!
[h2]Introduction[/h2]
Alchemist Subclass is a 6 page, 2 column, PDF 'Game Enhancement' from the Alea Publishing Group and written by Josuha Raynack. We have 2 pages of OGL at the very end, half of page one is the Title and Credits, about 60% of a page detail the Subclass Mechanic, 60% of a page with a magic item and some background information. We are left with just over 2 pages to detail the Alchemist Subclass. Not a lot of space to detail a class, but I think they get a lot into the few pages.
[h2]Analysis of the Subclass Mechanic (3/5)[/h2]
Upon reading about Subclasses for the first time, I liked the idea, they reminded me of Kits from Second Edition. Low and Behold that is what they say on their product page. So, it seems they are providing a way to emulate the Kit Mechanic from that era of gaming. The execution for the mechanic, I think, has a little room for improvement, or atleast clarity, from what I have seen with the Alchemist Subclass. They have produced one other Subclass at the time of this writing called the Crusader.
[h3]Subclass Synopsis[/h3]
You pay for the Subclass abilities with a 20% experience point 'Fee', as they call it (10% if it is a favored Subclass), which stacks with the existing Multiclassing Penalty (if applicable). Over the course of 20 levels you get bascially 2 levels of saves, and 4 dice of bonus hit points, some free skill points and class skills to match at each level, as well as some neat subclass abilities sprinkled throughout the Subclass' progesssion. You can take the Subclass at any time, even starting out at first level, as it has no prerequisites.

I enjoy well thought out and well tested crunch that merges seemlessly with existing mechanics. When creating something new this can be kind of hit or miss. I think that their explanation of the Subclass Mechanic to be more of a miss. After reading it I had a some questions about how things work like the bonus hitpoints (Can you go above your maximum for your level?) and skill points (Are they quadrupled for first level?). The text was not as clear as they could be. It would definitely be possible to generate a 3 or 4 page PDF product (not including OGL and so on) just on the Subclass Mechanic and guidlines for creating your own which would be a great thing!

If abilities are not too powerful this can be an interesting method for adding flavor to a character and to have a way for them to have a mechanical benefit for a background and a small cost. Something like this should not be overpowering, be easy to integrate, and should never overshadow the abilities of a base class or prestige class. Of course, this is just my opinion, be that as it may...

Over-all rating of the Mechanic 3/5: I like the idea, but the base mechanics could use some more text to clarify. If the mechanics were clearer I would defintely give it a 4.
[h2]Alchemical Crunch (2/5)[/h2][h3]First Thoughts[/h3]
When I first looked over this I thought 3 things:
A. Fighter (Alchemist)... Hell yea!!
B. Why would I not take a subclass at first level!
C. Wow, this is interesting!
[h3]Litmus Test (83 pts)[/h3]
Using TJoneslow's Class Construction Guide, which is mentioned in this ENWorld thread, the Alchemist Subclass weighs in at a hefty 83pts. This is only my second time using this guide so bear with me, mistakes and all, but this should give us some idea of the Subclasses approximate power level even with my mistakes..

The score of 83pts is about on par with some 5 level prestige classes and comes near that of some 10 level prestige classes which weigh in at 100+ pts (base classes weigh in 200+ pts). Considering you are willing to stay one level behind your group to gain atleast 5 levels worth of abilities, this might be little too good. It's not the skills, BAB, Saves, Armor, Weapons, or the Transmute or Modify Metals that worry me. Its the rapidly increasing brew potions ability that does. I am thinking that a Subclass should run about 30-50 pts to be balanced so, to me, this seems atleast 30 pts over the top.[sblock]

[h3]Ability					Approximate Point Cost[/h3]
[b]HD:[/b]	(4 increases) d6HP/level	4 - [(5 increases x 1.5 per level)/2 (not actual HD increases)]
[b]BAB:[/b] 	Non-Combat		6 (Non Combat[15] is 1/4 levels and this is one every 10 levels)
[b]Saves:[/b]				5
[b]Skills(5): (6-10)[/b]			3 (6-10 is 4 points so one point less)
[b]Armor:[/b]				0
[b]Weapons:[/b]				0
[b]Brew Potions[/b] 			8 (2 Standard [5 improvements) -> Excellent)
[b]Spells[/b] 				51.5 (79 [cleric] + 127 [wizard]  Average and cut in half - canot cast - potions only which requires a sacrifice in money, xp and time)
[b]Modify Metals[/b]			3 Standard Ability (reduced - limited use at higher levels and a cost associated)
[b]Transumute Metals[/b]		4 Standard Ability (reduced due to cost associated with it)

[/sblock][h3]A Closer Look[/h3]
Now, lets take a closer look to see how this works and if it is balanced.

[h4]Experience Fee[/h4]
The 20% of experience payed almost gains you the a little to much of the power of a 10 level prestige class, and the one I am talking about is the 'Master Alchemist' from the Magic of Faerun which gives similar benefits. Hmmmm... Well right now I almost would say this is an obivious choice: Alchemist subclass for everyone, but lets take a further look at how the ramifications:

Assuming you take the Subclass for all of your career you will, for a good portion of the time, be about a level behind your party - annoying, but not so bad. Once you get to 11th level you are fully a level behind and it looks like it repeats every 11 levels (fully 2 levels behind at 22nd). With this knowledge we can feel free to put in a heavy 2 levels worth of abilities (over 20 levels) and not have to worry. Any more than that and we might have some balance problems. As I said before, the Alchemist has some abilities that are given to a 10 level Prestige class so I think we defintely have problems here.[sblock]

[h3]Lvl  Norm XP	With Subclass (20%xp Fee)[/h3]
	(in Thousands)
1	0		0
2	1		1.2
3	3		3.6
4	6		7.2
5	10		12.0
6	15		18.0
7	21		25.2
8	28		33.6
9	36		43.2	
10	45		54.0
			
11	55		[color=darkorange]66.0
12	66[/color]		79.2
13	78		93.6
14	91		109.2
15	105		126.0
16	120		144.0
17	136		163.2
18	153		
19	171		183.6
20	190		228.0
21	210		252.0
22	231		[color=darkorange]277.2
23	253	
24	277[/color]

[/sblock]
Everything looks OK balance wise except for the Brew Potion enhancements. I worried about the BAB increase. My fears will be allayed assuming that this is used within the context of a party or an NPC, as the experience and party levels will balance at some point and the Alchemist will fall behind a little. When an Alchemist with a warrior class finally gets the BAB increase he will be 10 and the rest of the part will be 11th. We will have a problem if the PC is taken out of this context. He will be 10th level character with a BAB of +11. Hmmm... things are going to get kind of wonky with this. Possibly being able to qualify for feats and prestige classes a level early (assuming there are ones to be taken at this level and are aBAB dependant) might make things weird. You can house rule that your BAB can never be higher than your total class levels, this defintely will minimize the weirdness. If a warrior takes a class that does not have a BAB increase for a level then the extra BAB can kick in. Just a thought. Experience Point wonkiness can be minimized a little by applying an ECL of +1 at arround 10th or 11th level of the Alchemist Subclass and every 22 levels afterward. Who will have to worry about that? Not too many people I imagine! Not a really big concern, but something to be aware of. What I have said does not take into account the Brew Potions abilites of the Subclass.

[h4]Example[/h4]
When looking at the Alchemist Subclass there was one thought that really scared the hell out of me was.A 20th level fighter / 20th level Alchemist. Can we say Shapchange... "Look mommy, I'm a Balor!" "Look Mommy, I'm a Dragon." Similar spells like polymorph at lower levels will make warrior types a terror on the field once they are able to make potions of spells over 3rd level. If you think You might think I am nuts or are overreacting. If you thought the druid was bad with Wild Shape, or a cleric with Divine Favor and Divine Might. Wait until 5th level when the 5th level Fighter/ 5th level Alchemist gets Polymorph Self, Divine Favor, and Divine Power together with his already high strength and BAB. Run! Run, now while you can. Maybe I need my medication. But I do understand that they do not actually cast spells and must create the Potions which cost Time, Money and Experience... and they need to drink the potions. I am being a little bit conservative here, but I am sure that you see what my concern is.

Another problem is that our warrior type who knows nothing about spell casting is making 4rth level potions 2 levels before primary casters area even able to cast them. There is something wrong with this. If we did not have the Brew Potion Improvements this Subclass might be close to balanced - most likely under powered. What the class really needs is more abilities like the Modify metals. That is perfect for what I think this Subclass (and the Subclass menchanic) is trying to do. I would make the abilites more tied to alchemy and craft skills. Give them a lot of things to chose from based of their skills that they choose - Examples Following: .
[sblock]I have not checked any these for balance or other precedents. These are just examples from the top of my head.[h3]Examples:[/h3]

Sharpen Weapon			[b]Prerequisite:[/b] Alchemy 5, Craft Weapon 5
				[b]Cost:[/b] 5 GP DC: 35
				Piercing or Slashing weapon gains a +1 Enhancement bonus to Damage for one encounter or 10 rounds which ever is longer.
Accurate or Balanced Weapon	[b]Prerequisite:[/b]Alchemy 5, Craft Weapon 5
				[b]Cost:[/b] 5 GP DC: 35
				Weapon gains a +1 Enhancement bonus to Hit for one encounter
Transmute Metals		[b]Prerequisite:[/b] Alchemy 15 Ranks; Knowledge (Arcana) 10
				
Empower Alchemical Item		[b]Prerequisite:[/b] Alchemy 8 Ranks; Knowledge (Arcana) 5
				[b]Cost:[/b] +50% base cost of the item, DC +5 
				Damage done by an alchemical item is increased by 50%
Extended Alcemical Item		[b]Prerequisite:[/b] Alchemy 8 Ranks, Knowledge (Arcana) 5
				[b]Cost:[/b] +50% base cost of the item, DC +5 
				An Alchemical item with a duration is extended by 50%
Craft reserve			[b]Prerequisite:[/b] Alchemy 8 Ranks 
				You gain a number of Craft Points equal to your Alchemist level X 5 which may be used to alchemical items
Experience Reserves		[b]Prerequisite:[/b] Minor Study, Alchemy 8 Ranks, Knowledge (Arcana) 5
				You gain a number of Experience points equal to your Alchemist level X 5 to use to create Potions.
Lacing				[b]Prerequisites:[/b] Alchemy 10 and Craft (Weapons) 10
				[b]Cost:[/b] 1/4 of special material.
				You may prepare a weapon to accept a temporary coating of a special material such as Silver, Cold Wrought Iron, or Admantine. You may even coat a weapon such as admantine with other special materials. To lace a weapon not made of a special material the DC is 20. To coat a weapon made of special materials the DC is 25; The lacing remains for 10 rounds of combat or one encounter which ever is longer.

[/sblock]

In their defense they do say to add 1 ECL to the character for every 4 levels, so over 20 levels thats an increase of 5 levels.Assuming you do this, it will offset some of the craziness that is going on here (Potion Brewing). It will help to balance it a little bit but, I do not believe it will be enough (Master Alchemist).

[h3]Last Thoughts[/h3]
I very much like the premise of Subclasses (or atleast what believe it to be). I, however, do not like the Brew Potion advancement and think they are vastly over powered for the price the PC pays. Call me an Iconic Conservative Balance Monger if you will.

[h2]Alchemical Fluff (3/5)[/h2]
The Real World History gave a historical overview of the origins of Alchemy and then the origins of the word Alchemy. I found it very informative and interesting.

The magical item Ciphered Molcajete which gives a competance bonus to your alchemy check seems to fit right in with the theme.

Alchemists in the Hill Lands seems to give how they would fit into a specific Game world as which seems to be detailed in their [url='http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=464&products_id=2253&]A Question of Honor: A Guidebook to Knights[/url] which seems to be free from RPGNet.

Overall rating of Alchemical Fluff I would 3/5. The class description and the above seems to pigeon hole the Subclass into a very specific archetype, not that it is a bad thing - as that seems to be what they are aiming for here and it makes sense.

However, I do believe the machanics deviates from the given archetype of a master metallurgist and creator of the alchemical. Two of the nine given abilities support this and then they have the mad abilities to make potions. Potion creation is related to the archetype, but not so focused as the other two abilities. A disparity between the flavor text(s) and the Subclass abilities lowers it a bit for me. I would have like to see more of the history and other flavor text.
[h2]PDF Quality (4/5)[/h2]
Book Marks, I really love book marks in PDF Documents. They make it much easier to find what you are looking for and they have been kind enough to include them as well as Page Images. Rock On!

I really liked the background and page numbering. The graphics and images look crisp and were very easy to look at. The only table was easy to reference and read. The only possible annoying thing might be that either that there is not enough white space between the lines or the font size is to small... or I need new glasses again or I need to decrease my screen resolution...

Overall rating of PDF Quality 4/5.
[h2]Overall Thoughts (3/5) [/h2]
The Alea Publishing Group has a very intersting idea with Subclasses, but I believe the Alchemist is overly powerful. If they can clean up the Subclass mechanic a little and balance this Subclass I might consider using Subclasses in my campaign. I know my players will like the idea! The Brew Potion abilities is the major breaker for me.

If you would like to give it a try, and I suggest you do, it will open up a new world of possibilities for defining your characters and your game world. It is more than worth the price just for the inspiration that the Subclass Mechanic will provide. Jump on over to RPGNow and check it out.

 

[Jraynack]

First of all - thanks for the review - it is the most thorough review I have sen on any one of our products.

The subclass is indeed a new concept and will have a lot of questions such as yours (we will post answers to these question in our September issue of the Poor Gamer's Almanac - It's FREE).


"After reading it I had a some questions about how things work like the bonus hitpoints (Can you go above your maximum for your level?) and skill points (Are they quadrupled for first level?). The text was not as clear as they could be."

These are two good questions - 1st: These hit points you gain are actually bonus hit points and not hit die. So you can go over your normal hit point total but not hit die (A 10th fighter/10th Alchemist subclass is still only a 10 hit die creature). 2nd: You do not actually gain the extra skill points at 1st level - he begin getting the extra skill points each following level beyond the first and that is why they are labled as "skill points at each additional level" just as it is labled for a core class.

Your second concern was this: "When looking at the Alchemist Subclass there was one thought that really scared the hell out of me was.A 20th level fighter / 20th level Alchemist. Can we say Shapchange... "Look mommy, I'm a Balor!" "Look Mommy, I'm a Dragon."

As a DM myself, that will scare the hell out of me as well. But there are a few things to remember - 1st: The caster level of the potion is the minimum level of the caster to cast that spell. For a 9th level shapechange spell - it would be then a caster level of 17. Therefore, a 20th fighter/20th Alchemist subclass would be considered a 17th caster for brewing potions, thus he would not be able to change into a balor or a dragon that is older than Young adult (depending on the type of dragon in the core books).

Lastly, you said ". . . to add 1 ECL to the character for every 4 levels, so over 20 levels thats an increase of 5 levels.Assuming you do this, it will offset some of the craziness that is going on here (Potion Brewing)."

This ECL is added to NPC characters only. PCs do not add this but rather pay the 20% (or 10% is it a favored subclass). However, if you are the DM in any game and you have control - so if you feel that a certain subclass is too powerful for your level of play, then simply dismiss the favored subclass or increase the cost to 30%. Our rules, which we stand-by (though we have be known to make mistakes), are designed (and playtested - thanks to our number crunchers) to be balanced, but merely serve as guidelines.

Thanks again for the review and for inviting me via e-mail to answer a few of these questions and concerns that you have. Please feel free to e-mail us further if you have any other questions.

Josh