Alchemy is the study of change- the transformation of one material into another. It is a philosophy as much as anything else, involving the identification of a material’s spiritual essence, a discovery of its true purpose, and a transformation into its potential. Those who study alchemy work to distill ingredients into cures or toxins and create chemical reactions for good or ill.

Herbalism, meanwhile, is the term we use today for the gathering of the materials for alchemy. While the vast majority of these items are herbs, expert herbalists are also well versed in the gathering of various fungi, tubers, and even insects that can be used in alchemical concoctions.

The title of Apothecary is given to those who have mastered the intermediate alchemical schematics listed within the Book of Fire and Gold.  There is not, to my understanding, a comprehensive treatise of complex schematics in the way of the Green Book or the Book of Fire and Gold, as many of these schematics have been lost and those that remain are carefully guarded by the Grand Alchemists who keep them.  Those who come across a complex schematic would be wise to keep it close to their chest, for many are those who seek such rare finds. 

It is one of my greater joys that we have managed to catalog and develop so many different alchemical ingredients, although it is common for students to throw up their hands when first presented with the full liber herbarum. Thankfully memorization is not necessary, as our schematics call not for the particular ingredient, but instead the nature of the ingredient. Thus our schematics will not call specifically for Goldspore, but rather for an herb with the nature of Stimulant, or Focus Aid.

It is perhaps most interesting that the more common ingredients found in herbalism have only two natures, while the more rare herbs have four natures. Of course the rarest of ingredients gathered by herbalists, typically those insects which nest within our plants, do not have any natures that are useful for alchemy at all- but possess instead spiritual or magical natures which make them useful to magicians and cultists.

However, not all natures work well together- and herb ingredients must be combined in a particular order. It is not possible to mix natures at will and alchemists are bound by the limits of the schematics, whether those are the ones contained in the Green Book of Changes, the Book of Fire and Gold, or in schematics they have within their possession. In addition, all alchemists, no matter their level, require alchemist professional tools in order to properly create alchemical concoctions. The work simply cannot be performed without the necessary equipment.

There are four different delivery methods for alchemical concoctions: Injury, Inhalation, Ingestion, and Contact.  Injury requires that a wound be taken for the preparation to enter their bloodstream, inhalation affects anyone within melee weapon range of the substance, ingestion requires the consumption of the concoction through the mouth, while contact requires only that an individual touch the concoction with their bare skin for it to take effect.  

Each alchemical schematic details which method of delivery is appropriate for the specific concoction. Besides the method of delivery, there is also the speed of onset to be aware of- concoctions that are delivered via inhalation or injury take immediate effect, while those that are delivered via ingestion or contact take fifteen minutes before the patient starts to feel the effects.

While certain alchemical concoctions can increase an individual’s abilities beyond that which they normally may achieve (a boost to one’s strength, for example), such a benefit comes with a cost. All enhancements to a subject’s attributes are matched by a period in which the same attributes are depleted, and the patient finds themselves experiencing a weakness of the same trait they increased. This depletion is called Withdrawal, and can be quite dangerous.

In their natural state, most alchemical effects take place instantly and last for the space of one hour. During the next hour, the target finds themselves once again in their normal state, but in the hour following, if the individual had their attributes increased, they are then decreased by the same amount of the enhancement. Assuming the individual survives, they will then return to normal once more. The overall effects of the attribute increase, decrease, withdrawal, and a return to normalcy will take a total of three hours. For example, a concoction that has a single Steroid effect, the Anesthetic effect, and a double Clarifier effect will have various changes on the patient in proportion to the level of enhancement to each attribute in the concoction over the subsequent three hours, as per this table:

An alchemical concoction that has a negative effect on attributes does not have a withdrawal.

As such, it is extremely important for alchemists to understand their patient’s abilities and not raise someone’s attributes to a level that they cannot sustain in Withdrawal, for in some patients Withdrawal could lead to debilitating effects, including death. This is perhaps why the title of Pharmacist is so highly prized among alchemists, for it is granted to those who understand how to mitigate Withdrawal and remove it from concoctions altogether.

While an individual may choose to take many potions at once, it is not typically beneficial to do so without due care. Once an Attribute has been affected, it cannot be affected again until a potion has fully run its course and any withdrawal from the concoction has been completed. For example, if an individual is under the effect of a single Steroid (which increases Strength), taking any other Steroid or Relaxant (which decreases Strength) will have no effect. This is because effects that target the same Attribute cannot be stacked.

However, a careful alchemist will see a benefit in this process. Say, for example, that one has two concoctions. One which has a single Steroid effect and the Anesthetic effect, and a second which has a single Relaxant effect and a single Clarifier. Taking the first potion first means that the individual is immediately under the effects of +1 Strength and Anesthetic. If they then take the second potion their Strength remains at +1, as the second concoction’s Relaxant has no effect, and will also gain the benefit of the Clarifier and find their Faith at +1 as well.

This only holds true for alchemical concoctions, however. It does seem as if arcane spells or rituals that affect Attributes can be stacked with alchemical concoctions which also affect Attributes- although there are no known factors that can take a human beyond the mortal maximum of 3 in any Attribute. It is said, however, that the stacking of alchemical effects and arcane effects can increase the risk of anacrusis – although I know too little about the work of those who murdered Benalus to say so with any certainty.

Perhaps the most important task for the alchemy student, then, is to learn to recognize the different natures, or qualities, which can be present in their ingredients. Some of these are more or less common depending on the area, but it is wise for the student to learn the uses of all of them.

Here ends the first part of my treatise.  While this information is quite in-depth for the beginner, I dearly hope that I have managed to clarify some of the mystery that surrounds the alchemical arts- enough so that when the reader engages with alchemists and herbalists in the future, they might better understand the real strengths and abilities that these professionals possess.  Such knowledge ultimately assists all of us, as it is this knowledge that helps keep the populace safe from charlatans and grifters, while also helping us to understand the limits by which we are bound.  On the next pages I shall start with my understanding of the Green Book of Changes, as well as some of the alchemical concoctions that are unique to the Salgothic enclaves…

[The rest of this document is illegible.]