Alchemy

Alchemy

Origin

Ancient as the veil itself, the potential of alchemy has been bound to matter for all recorded history. Whilst some might point to the ancient tower of Llull, the land of Camnius, the world of Val’Garis as proposed points of origination for the craft’s acceleration into a definable study, throughout all ages Men and later Descendants with a desire to measure and quantify this mortal plane and others like it have found the signs and symbols of creation, as well as means of harnessing them, to varying levels of success.

The signs and symbols of alchemy are old, visualised by the material alphabet a set of runes identical to many vast scripts – such as runesmithing and blood magic – which bend and manipulate the veil itself, without true ‘magical’ influence from the void nor deities. Debate naturally rages on between natural philosophers, then, as to which iteration of the language came first, its true purpose and its origin, with each proposed explanation more outlandish than the last.

The only constant in this speculation is that the craft belongs to the material, completely alien to freshly breached Voidal Horrors and Aengudaemons not versed in the more constant physical planes beyond their own. A concept – and potential – exclusively tied to the sculptable mundane.

Explanation

Natural philosophy - ‘alchemy’ - can be defined as the study of all mundane energy and matter that makes up the material realms contained within the veil. At its core it is what we in our world would call science: chemistry, biology and physics all rolled into a singular discipline.

Whilst some dabble in niche extremes like tinkering, mutation and taboo experiments with flesh and the soul (oft identified as ‘further alchemy’), the core of the field is split between its three main pillars:

Symbols and signs: the periodic table identifying elemental and metaphysical modifiers behind all matter.

Botany, reagents and processing: wherein signs and symbols are identified in extra potent matter for extraction and use.

Potioncraft: in which the aforementioned are paired and exploited to achieve countless ends.

Tier Progression

Alchemy is staggered into three tiers, rather than the usual five seen in most magic. These determine an Alchemist’s level of experience, dictating what sorts of alchemical processes they can access and to what extent.

Note: Below the word ‘measure’ when used in this context refers to what would equal that which RPly equates an MC item representing a product of alchemy in a character’s possession (usually a bottle of something).

Tier One

Apprentice level alchemists are those in their first two saint’s weeks of study. They are capable of making a number of base level potions though must depend on others to identify reagent properties for them (either by use of written instruction or with a teacher’s supervision), unable to yet deduce signs and symbols from botany and other sources by themselves.

The material alphabet, whilst possessing the same loose meaning as it does to all creatures native to the mortal plane, will still be lacking complex interpretation for an apprentice alchemist.

Apprentice level alchemists can only create batches of one measures from one recipe at a time, over the period of a saint’s day.

• Tier one begins in the first two OOC weeks following an app’s approval.
• Cannot identify signs and symbols in a substance by themself.
• Can make one potion or equivalent alchemic creation per IRL day. This does not factor in recipes achieved with further alchemy pieces and their own established cooldowns.
• Can access tier one recipes.

Tier Two

Journeyman alchemists are those who have studied alchemy for upwards of three saint’s weeks. They are capable of making a number of intermediate level potions and can also deduce signs and symbols from reagents by themselves, becoming a lot more self sufficient and less reliant on textbooks or instructors.

The material alphabet can be read and understood at considerably more depth to the journeyman alchemist, who will easily be able to utilise ‘reagent rings’ and ‘transmutation circles’ for the purpose of decoding recipes.

Journeyman alchemists can create batches of two from two recipes at a time, over the period of a saint’s day.

• Tier two begins in the third OOC week following an app’s approval.
• Can make two potions or equivalent alchemic creations per IRL day. This does not factor in recipes achieved with further alchemy pieces and their own established cooldowns.
• Can access tier one and tier two recipes.

Tier Three

Masterful alchemists are those who have studied alchemy for upwards of eight saint’s weeks. They are capable of decoding almost any recipe put before them with enough trial and error to understand its uses.

The material alphabet can be utilised at a level almost like a second language to a masterful alchemist, to the extent where its runes can also be recorded down with precision enough for others native to the mortal plane to read and interpret them.

Masterful alchemists can create batches of three from three recipes at a time, over the period of a saint’s day.

• Tier three is achieved in the eighth OOC week following an app’s approval.
• Can make three potions or equivalent alchemic creations per IRL day. This does not factor in recipes achieved with further alchemy pieces and their own established cooldowns.
• Can access tier one, two and three recipes.
• Can experiment with common potions or equivalent alchemic creations to deduce its recipe for themselves.

Self Teaching

Self Teaching is an option when it comes to alchemy, acting in an identical manner to the self teaching system in place for voidal magic.

Self teaching exists in two forms:

“Teacher Guidance”

Teacher guidance is effectively normal teaching, but with added distancing. In this format, one is learning recipes from one with an accepted TA but by their own practice; and goes back to their teacher ICly or OOCly to confirm they had done their alchemy correctly. This eliminates the need for consistent scheduling or working around where some teachers may be burnt out of teaching, due to real life obligations and so on.

Ex. of “Normal Teaching”

Jim extracts the proper signs and symbols from the right reagents, teaching their apprentice student “John” how to process the reagent as well.

Ex. of “Teacher Guidance”

While Jim is away, and gives permission OOCly for this to be executed, John practices himself how to collect and process new reagents. Afterward, he goes to Jim to show him, or shows Jim OOCly (through screenshots) how such was done.

“Book Teaching”

Book Teaching is what truly may come to mind with “Self Teaching”. In this sense, a person seeking to learn alchemy would find story-approved and supervised texts that serve as in depth instructional guides as to how to practice alchemy. This is a true “Self Teaching”, where the player learns to do alchemy on their own; with of course, creation of the Alchemy Feat application referencing the book as a teacher.

• You may have one book-teaching app across all personas.
• Book teaching will require an ST approved book for each of the three tiers, either provided by the ST itself or to be submitted as a MArt for ST approval by players with an accepted TA.
• Self Teaching will lengthen tier progression, meaning self-taught alchemists will remain Tier One for three OOC weeks, Tier Two beginning in the fourth OOC week and Tier Three being achieved in the twelfth OOC week following an app’s approval.

Redlines

• All recipes in Alchemy – as well as the ability to draw symbols from reagents and botany – require an accepted Feat to create, as well as a tier level equating the complexity of said recipe.
• A TA in Alchemy is required to teach the Feat to another player.
• A feat is not required to use items created with alchemy or to utilise botany. That said being blacklisted from alchemy will render someone unable to benefit in any way from items made with alchemy.
• All products of alchemy and botany (with the exception of IRL plants without provide poisonous or medicinal uses) used in roleplay must adhere to the redlines and explanation of their specific lore piece and will require up to date approved lore to be used. New recipes cannot be made through roleplay experimentation alone in this regard.
• All recipes in Alchemy are divided into ‘common’ and ‘rare’ (currently accepted pieces will be updated to accommodate this). Whilst ‘common’ recipes can be self taught through the means outlined in tier three, ‘rare’ pertains to recipes gated behind Further Alchemy or explicitly requiring IC instruction to learn in said recipe’s lore.
• In order to practice Alchemy one must be capable of study, meaning it cannot be practised by children before adolescence, Ologs and those with mental deficiencies significant enough to strip them of object permanence.
• Alchemy belongs to no set ideology nor culture, though is still bound by logic and reason, impossible to fathom in those without such capacities (IE Voidal Horrors who have not taken several years to adjust to the Veil and its ordering).
• Dreams experienced by Alchemists are always (unless used as a vehicle for invention or rediscovery of lore where approved by the ST) inconsequential visions of Alchemic Legends and their potential, solely meant for inspiration. They should not be taken literally and can not be used to metagame otherwise unknown aspects of Alchemy.