Alchemy

Alchemy is sorcery and chemistry combined, a primeval chemistry science. Where magic is used often to transform, morph, merge and create objects. These objects created by alchemy will have little spots of Mana around them. Alchemy itself is a hard type of magic as alchemists need to create objects with the perfect combination and use rare materials which are quite hard to get. Alchemy can be helpful or even dangerous because one small accident leads to a tragic event. As sometimes alchemical creation would overload, explode or backfire.

## Rules

Alchemy is a fine line between science and magic so it follows the same ways and laws of these two.

1. Mana is used when making magical objects out of alchemy. (Either summons or weapons)
2. There's a large chance that a creation would fail. Alchemy isn't all easy, expect to fail.
3. Alchemical Creations should have the right procedures and materials.
4. Seals and Talisman can be crafted by using alchemy. Do note: you will be sacrificing mama in return to contain magic.
5. In Alchemy. You can only make one object even with many materials. Only one object can be produced and nothing can be doubled.
6. Alchemy because it's pseudo-science follows most laws of science and it can't be broken.
7. Alchemical creations have consequences be careful on what you make.

## Alchemical Substances

A list of alchemical experiments, recipes, and theoretical substances.

* Algarot - purges the body violently via both vomiting and diarrhoea
* Alkahest - a universal solvent that dissolves anything
* Aqua Fortis - "strong water", an acid that dissolves most metals, but not gold
* Aqua Vitae - "water of life", distilled spirits of wine, or other ethanol solutions
* Arcanum Corallinum - red powder used to treat gout, dropsy, and scurvy
* Arcanum Duplicatum - made from aqua fortis, it's a diuretic
* Arcanum Joviale - used to treat jaundice, distemper, and epilepsy
* Ardent Spirit - made from fermented vegetables, it will take fire and burn nicely
* Azoth - universal medicine, the alpha and the omega, and one of the prime goals of alchemy
* Berith - a demon that can turn other metals to gold; probably a code for some alchemical substance
* Bezoardicum - an alloy of antimony dissolved in aqua fortis
* Cadmia - produced in the furnace, used to desiccate or to treat ulcers
* Caput Mortuum - can refer to either the worthless remains (unwanted residues left over after the experiment) or a pigment made from ground Mummy
* Chalcanthum - copper based pigments in blue, green, or red
* Elixir of Life - a solution that grants immortality or great health
* The four humours - *Blood*, *Phlegm*, *Yellow Bile* and *Black Bile*, and the philosophy and medicine based around them.
* Homunculus- a tiny person, possibly a familiar or golem or even clone
* Iliaster - similar to Prima Materia, this is a primal substance from which both body and soul are formed
* Mosaic Gold - a golden pigment used in bronzing, also given as medicine for nervous convulsions and disorders of the reproductive system
* The Net (substance) - purple alloy, also a great example of a coded myth containing an alchemical recipe
* Oil of Brick - literally a brick dissolved in olive oil, used to treat palsies and tumours, sometimes epilepsy
* Panacea (medicine) - a medicine that cures all known diseases
* Philosopher's Stone - the white stone from which can be derived eternal life and transmutation of the elements, sometimes a metaphor for Christ
* Prima Materia - the formless base matter from which all else is formed
* Principle (chemistry) - five principle substances believed to collectively make up all other substances, there is some disagreement as to which 5 exactly:
	+ Salt
	+ Sulfur or Oil
	+ Mercury or Spirit
	+ Phlegm or Water
	+ Earth or Caput Mortuum
* Spider silk - that of which webs are made - used as crosshairs in telescopes, or in large quantities for it's healing properties
* Spagyric - plant alchemy
* Suns in Alchemy including Sol Niger - related to Magnum Opus (above)
* Verdigris - toxic pigment or patina from weathered copper, used as dye or fungicide

There's a strong temptation when viewing this from the modern lens to ask why some of these substances would be wanted. A few have little or no practical value. But to the alchemist of days gone by, any could be a step towards achieving the end goal of *"The Great Work"* - immortality and enlightenment. Many experiments were done just to learn the process involved, and glean a bit of insight into the way the world works. Alchemy has one foot in science, and one in magic.

### Processes and Experiments

Methods and Experiments are just as important as the end results.

* Adsorption - the removal of chemicals from a gas by means of condensation on a surface or filter
* Calcination - crushing and roasting a substance to remove certain components
* Ceration - adding liquid to a substance in stages while you heat it, tends to make substance softer and waxier
* Chromatography - using filters to separate and analyse the components of a solution or chemical
* Chrysopoeia - transmuting into gold
* Congelation - causing something to congeal or become more viscous
* Cupellation - heating process by which noble metals (gold and silver) are extracted from ores and alloys
* Distillation - separating liquids by boiling them
* Fusion - not typically in the modern physics "nuclear fusion" sense, but more likely just melting things together
* Fixation - process by which a volatile substance is made to be resistant or immune to fire
* Sublimation - turning a solid into a gas without going to liquid stage first. Also can refer to boiling or vaporizing something, then cooling it quickly to resolidify.
* Vegetation of Metal - experiments where crystals or metals are "grown" in solution like a plant.
* the four stages of the Magnum Opus - the Great Work - these are the steps to the Philosopher's Stone, Chrysopoeia, and the Elixer of Life
	+ Nigredo - blackening, corruption and dissolution
	+ Albedo - whitening, purification, the burning of impurity
	+ Citrinitas - yellowing, spiritualization and enlightenment
	+ Rubedo - reddening, unification, and communion with the divine

## Laboratory Trappings:

Other things you may find in an Alchemist's lab:

* Acari - tiny mites theoretically born out of electrical experiments
* Books, scrolls, and papers full of formulas, coded formulas, and observations on experiments.
	+ Such notebooks are often written in code. (See also Coded Myth)
	+ Recent notes may also take the form of chalkboards or wax tablets
	+ One of the founding books of the alchemical art is The Emerald Tablet aka *The Secret of Hermes*
	+ The Chrysopoeia of Cleopatra is an alchemical text from Hellenic Egypt.
	+ The Musaeum Hermeticum is a 1600s compilation of many earlier alchemical writings.
* Canary or other small animal in a cage. Like a Canary In A Coal Mine, this may give you a warning of the emission of toxic gas before the concentration level is at a lethal dose.
* Centrifuge (manually-operated via crank or kick-operated like a potters wheel)
* Charcoal Biscuits, to aid in minor cases of ingestion of toxic chemicals.
* Crucible (clay bowls to hold items being heated in the furnace) and similar items:
	+ Aludel - A series of stacked or nested ceramic tubes of descending size, to condense evaporated substances in a furnace.
	+ Cupel - A shallow cone-shaped crucible with a layer of bone ash, wood ash, or crushed seashells. Used for cupellation (see Processes, above).
* Filters made of heavy paper or cloth. Also used filter paper with colourful bands of sediment from previous experiments.
* Forge, Furnace or Oven. Alchemists often have many of these in different forms for different purposes.
	+ Athanor - a slow-burning, self-feeding furnace
	+ Descensory Furnace - built with a funnel on top, intended for heating liquids
* Gasmask, Filtermask or Plaguedoctor's Mask
* Glassware in various strange shapes and sizes:
	+ Alembic - two (often large) vessels connected by a (narrower) tube
	+ Beaker - cylindrical, with a flat bottom and a pouring lip
	+ Burette - cylindrical, with a spigot or stopcock at the bottom
	+ Retort - spherical, with an extremely long downward-pointing neck
	+ Vial - small glassware to hold liquids or powders
* Gold, Lead, Gold-plated Lead, or various experimental nuggets or alloys suggesting success or failure.
* Mortar and Pestle
* Occult Symbols and Alchemist's Symbols
	+ Circle with a point at its centre - the alchemical symbol for gold
	+ Monas Hieroglyphica - an occult symbol created by John Dee
	+ Work of art praising Vulcan of the alchemists
* Sand Bath, Water Bath, or Dung Bath for keeping items and experiments at temperature, regulating cool-down, etc.
* Still - More likely to produce dangerous alcohols for cleaning or experimenting than to have tasty homebrew.
* Table top or workspace with a hard and smooth surface, such as granite, marble, or beaten metal.
* Weighing Scale and/or Balance.