Alchemy > Ritual Caster

[Dausuul]

Alchemy seems a bit underwhelming so far. Of the items given, the only ones that seem at all cost effective are:
1) Smokesticks, and they're still not that great.
2) Low-level Alchemist's Fire, simply to light buildings and stuff on fire quickly.

Alchemist's Fire is for killing minions. (At any level. Remember how fast PC wealth scales - 45K sounds like a lot, but it's peanuts by level 30 standards.)

 

[Runestar]

Alchemist's fire lets your fighter area-mark without having to multclass for scorching burst. Might be worth looking into.

 

[Saeviomagy]

There's no doubt that it's a good feat (unless someone else in the party already has it). It's not anywhere close to overpowered from the preview though.

 

[IceFractal]

Alchemist's Fire might be somewhat useful for a Controller-less group, but even then it's an expensive proposition. And more importantly, based on the way 4E crafting works, you're spending the full market price to craft it yourself - so just buying your alchemical items costs the same as having the feat.

 

[Baron Opal]

My wish is that the alchemy rules, in concept, introduce the Compleat Alchemist to 4e. I realize that isn't going to happen, and I'll probably have to wait for the Artificer to be released to get what I hope for.

 

[Stogoe]

Alchemist's Fire might be somewhat useful for a Controller-less group, but even then it's an expensive proposition. And more importantly, based on the way 4E crafting works, you're spending the full market price to craft it yourself - so just buying your alchemical items costs the same as having the feat.

Ah, but when you're not in range of an alchemist's shop, the feat's the thing.

 

[BendBars/LiftGates]

Alchemy is way cool, I agree. But, there's another thing to consider, in addition to what everyone else has already said. The biggest ritual users right now are Clerics (who get Ritual Casting for free and a free ritual book) and Wizards (who get Ritual Casting, a ritual book, and several free rituals for the rest of their lives). That's a lot of free stuff, and it's certainly enough to make rituals more appealing to those characters. I'm sure Druids will have something similar, and other "primary spellcasters" (to use a 3e legacy term), or classes that have some controller-ness to them will continue to get free Ritual Casting, to reinforce that niche.

Nobody gets the alchemy feat for free. So far, of course. Artificers are probably going to get it for free, which will make them the alchemy masters just as Wizards are the kings of rituals.

 

[Ahglock]

Ah, but when you're not in range of an alchemist's shop, the feat's the thing.

That sounds fairly situational for a mediocre benefit at best.

 

[Seeker_of_Truth]

Nobody gets the alchemy feat for free. So far, of course. Artificers are probably going to get it for free, which will make them the alchemy masters just as Wizards are the kings of rituals.

You can substitute alchemy for ritual caster when it's provided by your class per the "Special" entry under the feat.

 

[Keenath]

It doesn't have to be an either-or thing. If you have one or two ritual casters already, you might decide to go alchemist instead to broaden the party's abilities.

I'd need to see more alchemical items before I made any sort of decision about which one I'd rather have.

By the way, the "alchemist shop" argument makes no sense. You can buy ritual scrolls or pre-made alchemy with equal ease.