Chapter 1 - Non-weapon Proficiencies
Concocting Non-weapon Proficiency
(Only useable by Apothecaries)
This proficiency enables the character to concoct chemical compounds with specific uses - such as medicines and poisons. It also allows the apothecary to identify various materials - including magical consumables (potions, salves, lotions, and so on). This identification is nonmagical in nature. The apothecary can determine only the general nature of the material (for example, this is a poison, this is a healing potion) and not its strength or duration. The identification process is quite long; it takes the apothecary 1d6 hours to identify nonmagical mixtures and 2d12 hours to identify magical potions and such.
In addition, the materials required for each accurate identification are quite expensive (at least one-thenth of the item's XP value). This is why most apothecaries charge a great deal of money to identify potions and other mixtures.
If the apothecary rolls a 1 when trying to concoct something, he manages to create a particularly potent brew. A potent concoction has double its normal duration. Alternately, the DM can increase its effectiveness in some other way. However, increasing a potion's strength by more than half is not recommended.
If the apothecary rolls a 20 when concocting something, he critically fails to create his intended mixture. Because of the extremely volatile nature of the apothecary's chemicals, a critical concoction failure can be quite dangerous. When an apothecary makes such a spectacular failure, the DM should roll another 20-sided die and consult the Eureka Table for the results. Smart apothecaries always identify the results of a failed concoction before tossing it out, as some of the most important concoctions have been discovered by mistake.
If the apothecary rolls a 20 when identifying a particular material, his result will be significantly inaccurate. Sometimes, this means that he identifies a healing potion as a poison or vice versa, but it could also mean that he identifies a potion of ESP as a potion of red dragon control. In these cases, the DM should do his absolute best to convince the players that the apothecary correctly identified the material. To use the Concocting non-weapon proficiency, the apothecary must have a well-appointed lab at his disposal. Additionally, if the apothecary wishes to concoct something, he must have all of the ingredients on hand.
An apothecary must make a proficiency check only when attempting to identify a magical potion or devise a new or particularly complicated concoction (this automatically includes any and all magical concoctions). Substantially strange or more complicated concoctions may demand a penalty to the proficiency check at the DM's discretion.
