Alchemy: Mercury Rings and Potions

Alchemy: Mercury Rings and Potions

Mercury is different from other metals. Typically, it is a liquid that can be made into a single-use potion, just like a normal alchemical elixir. But after three levels of refinement it can be hard enough to make rings and other objects. Here's my conversions of both mercury rings and potions.

Activated Mercury

This activated form of liquid mercury facilitates chemical and alchemical processes, giving +4 to Alchemy, Chemistry, or Metallurgy rolls. A single dose (eight fluid ounces) weighs 7 lbs. and can aid any small-scale process yielding up to a cubic foot of product (120 doses of potion). Mercury can be extracted from the residues of such a process and reactivated; this reduces the materials cost to one-fifth normal but adds two weeks to the preparation time.

Duration: 24 hours.

Cost: $2,400 (singular); $865 (5-batched).

Recipe: $240; 32 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-8.

Statistics: Talent 4 (Alchemy, Chemistry, Metallurgy; Accessibility, Small-scale, -10%; Apparatus, +0%; Magical, -10%) [16 x 5 = 80].

Potion of Escape

The imbiber gains 1d levels of Slippery (p. B85).

Duration: 3dx4 minutes.

Form: Potion.

Cost: $450 (singular); $160 (5-batched).

Recipe: $45; 2 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-2.

Statistics: Affliction 1 (HT; Advantage, Potion of Escape, +80%; Magical, -10%; Potion, -25%) [15]. Notes: «Potion of Escape» is Slippery 4 (Magical, -10%) [8].

Potion of Greed

The imbiber gains Greed (12) (p. B137).

Duration: 1d hours.

Form: Potion.

Cost: $300 (singular); $110 (5-batched).

Recipe: $30; 1 day; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-1.

Statistics: Affliction 1 (HT; Disadvantage, Greed (12), +15%; Extended Duration, 100x, +20%; Magical, -10%; Potion, -25%) [10]. Notes: Extended Duration costs +20% because the Potion meta-enhancement already includes Extended Duration, 30x, +60%.

Potion of Invention

The imbiber gains a mental flexibility that makes him Versatile (p. B96). This inventiveness benefits linguistic creativity, Diplomacy, Fast-Talk, Poetry, Public Speaking, Teaching, and Writing.

Duration: 1d hours.

Form: Potion.

Cost: $420 (singular); $150 (5-batched).

Recipe: $42; 1 day; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-2.

Statistics: Affliction 1 (HT; Advantage, Potion of Invention, +50%; Extended Duration, 100x, +20%; Magical, -10%; Potion, -25%) [14]. Notes: «Potion of Invention» is Versatile (Variant; Magical, -10%) [5]. Extended Duration costs +20% because the Potion meta-enhancement already includes Extended Duration, 30x, +60%.

Potion of Light Fingers

This potion enables the imbiber’s fingers to make small movements swiftly and unobtrusively, giving +2 to Filch, Pickpocket, and Sleight of Hand.

Duration: 1dx10 minutes.

Form: Potion.

Cost: $480 (singular); $170 (5-batched).

Recipe: $48; 2 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-2.

Statistics: Affliction 1 (HT; Advantage, Potion of Light Fingers, +90%; Magical, -10%; Potion, -25%) [16]. Notes: «Potion of Light Fingers» is Talent 2 (Filch, Pickpocket, Sleight of Hand; Magical, -10%) [9].

Potion of Panacea

This form of liquid mercury has been modified to serve as a medication. Administering it requires a roll vs. Esoteric Medicine to judge the proper time and condition of the sufferer. On a success, the substance allows a roll vs. HT at +5 to recover from any one illness, injury, or poison. The roll is at a cumulative -3 penalty for every successful use on the same subject within 24 hours, at a flat -2 penalty if the subject is unconscious, and at an additional modifier to cure disease (see below). The HT roll is at a modifier set by the GM, from +1 for a common cold to -15 for bone marrow cancer. If successful, the subject loses FP equal to twice the absolute value of the penalty, minimum 1. For example, if a kidney infection causes a -3 penalty to HT, the subject would lose 6 FP. On a failure, it confers no benefit and the subject loses 1d FP. On a critical failure, or if the roll to create the potion was a critical failure, the panacea acts as a poison, with effects similar to those of arsenic (p. B439); however, the HT roll to resist is at -5!

When neutralizing poisons, no HT roll is required – the poison flushes automatically, unless the Esoteric Medicine rolls was a failure.

Duration: Instantaneous.

Form: Potion.

Cost: $1,680 (singular); $605 (5-batched).

Recipe: $168; 16 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-6.

Statistics: Healing (Based on HT, +20%; Blood Agent, -40%; Disease Only, -40%; Link, +10%; Magical, -10%; Nuisance Effect, Critical Failure, -15%; Reliable 5, +25%; Requires Esoteric Medicine Roll, -10%; Takes Extra Time 1, -10%; Xeno-Healing, Anything Alive, +80%) [33/5=7] + Affliction 1 (HT; Advantage, Potion of Panacea, +540%; Link, +10%; Magical, -10%; Nuisance Effect, Critical Failure, -15%; Potion, No Extended Duration, -85%; Reduced Duration, 1/180, -40%; Requires Esoteric Medicine Roll, -10%) [49]. Notes: Since the potion is considered to be the “caster”, we do not apply Affects Self, +50% here. Also, because this ability is not based on Affliction, we only take parts of the Potion meta-enhancement. «Potion of Panacea» is Unusual Training (Body Control, only to flush poisons) [1] + Body Control (VH) HT [8] modified with 2 x Cosmic, No die roll required, +100%, Magical, -10%, and Reduced Time 15, +300% for a final cost of 54 points.

Potion of Swiftness

The imbiber gains +2 to Basic Speed.

Duration: 3dx4 minutes.

Form: Potion.

Cost: $1,290 (singular); $465 (5-batched).

Recipe: $129; 10 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-5.

Statistics: Affliction 1 (HT; Advantage, Potion of Swiftness, +360%; Magical, -10%; Potion, -25%) [43]. Notes: «Potion of Swiftness» is Basic Speed +2.00 (Magical, -10%) [36].

Potion of Tongues

The effect conferred by this potion is comparable to that of Language Talent, but more general. To a Native speaker of a language, it grants Native fluency in any dialect of that language that the speaker has been exposed to for at least two hours. To an Accented or Broken speaker, it enhances fluency one step. To a nonspeaker, it allows gaining Broken fluency in two hours of exposure. The benefits apply only to the spoken language, and are lost when the effect ends.

Duration: 6 hours.

Form: Potion.

Cost: $750 (singular); $270 (5-batched).

Recipe: $75; 4 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-3.

Statistics: Affliction 1 (HT; Advantage, Potion of Tongues, +140%; Extended Duration, 300x, +40%; Magical, -10%; Potion, -25%) [25]. Notes: «Potion of Tongues» is Language Talent (Cosmic, General Benefits, +50%; Magical, -10%) [14]. Extended Duration costs +40% because the Potion meta-enhancement already includes Extended Duration, 30x, +60%.

Ring of Escape

The wearer gains 1d levels of Slippery (p. B85).

Duration: 3dx4 minutes.

Cost: $840.

Recipe: $84; 4 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-3.

Statistics: Slippery 4 (Extended Duration, 100x, +80%; Magical, -10%) [14 x 2 = 28].

Ring of Greed

Grants the wearer the ability to afflict another character with the condition of Greed (12) (p. B137). This requires a Quick Contest of Will. The range modifier is -1 per yard of range.

Duration: 1d hours.

Cost: $1,380.

Recipe: $138; 11 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-5.

Statistics: Affliction 1 (Will; Apparatus, +0%; Based on Will, +20%; Disadvantage, Greed (12), +15%; Extended Duration, 100x, +80%; Fixed Duration, +0%; Magical, -10%; Malediction 1, +100%; No Signature, +20%) [23 x 2 = 46].

  

Ring of Invention

The wearer gains a mental flexibility that makes him Versatile (p. B96). This inventiveness benefits linguistic creativity, Diplomacy, Fast-Talk, Poetry, Public Speaking, Teaching, and Writing.

Duration: 1d hours.

Cost: $600.

Recipe: $60; 2 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-2.

Statistics: Versatile (Variant; Extended Duration, 300x, +100%; Magical, -10%) [10 x 2 = 20].

Ring of Light Fingers

This ring enables the wearer’s fingers to make small movements swiftly and unobtrusively, giving +2 to Filch, Pickpocket, and Sleight of Hand.

Duration: 1dx10 minutes.

Cost: $900.

Recipe: $90; 5 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-3.

Statistics: Talent 2 (Filch, Pickpocket, Sleight of Hand; Extended Duration, 30x, +60%; Magical, -10%) [15 x 2 = 30].

Ring of Swiftness

The wearer gains +2 to Basic Speed.

Duration: 3dx4 minutes.

Cost: $1,800.

Recipe: $180; 18 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-6.

Statistics: Basic Speed +2.00 (Extended Duration, 30x, +60%; Magical, -10%) [30 x 2 = 60].

Ring of Tongues

The effect conferred by this ring is comparable to that of Language Talent, but more general. To a Native speaker of a language, it grants Native fluency in any dialect of that language that the speaker has been exposed to for at least two hours. To an Accented or Broken speaker, it enhances fluency one step. To a nonspeaker, it allows gaining Broken fluency in two hours of exposure. The benefits apply only to the spoken language, and are lost when the effect ends.

Duration: 6 hours.

Cost: $1,440.

Recipe: $144; 12 days; defaults to Alchemy (Metallic)-5.

Statistics: Language Talent (Cosmic, General Benefits, +50%; Extended Duration, 300x, +100%; Magical, -10%) [24 x 2 = 48].