Your Weirdest Alchemist Build


Pathfinder First Edition General Discussion


So I love the alchemist class to death. It's probably my favorite class, next to maybe inquisitor or witch (honorable mention for shaman). It lends itself well to so many weird builds that I haven't really settled on any particular theme or mechanical combination that I like best.

My favorite alchemist, maybe not totally weird, is a gladiator I built, where instead of a net and trident he uses a polearm and tanglefoot bombs (grenadier archetype with a vestigial arm to hold the bomb). He can control the battlefield pretty well with a combination of enlarge person reach and a polearm on top of some mutagen action, plus entangles and staggers from bombs. Recently I threw in the oracle VMC with wolf-scarred face as the curse, and the character got weirder in a way I like ever so much.

What's your favorite/weirdest alchemist build?


Reach user with tentacle back up.

The tentacle threatens close, and if it is your only natural attack it is primary with full attack bonus plus x1.5 str and power attack.

Once you make it viable with that, you can begin to enjoy the goodness of the grab ability. A free no AoO grapple attempt on a successful hit, with a +4 to the attempt, makes grappling a viable strategy when backed up with decent BAB, strength boosting mutagen, and buffs.

At least enough that you can use the tentacle to get all....japanese animes.... with the low BAB/str magical girls (or guys...if that is what you are into).

Anyway, building up the basics of a reach build, and then getting grappling feats (since you have enough int for combat expertise anyway) can be fit together rather well on the same build. You can have everything together by level 9 so that you get even more bonuses to grappling, as well as better action economy with it. All the while, you still have access to a nice 2 handed reach weapon, bombs, and extracts.


The Amazing Spider-Slinger

basically go gunslinger 5 to get dex to damage, then alchemist to get extra arm (or 2) to dual-wield guns (or crossbows with bolt ace).


Does it have to be a legal build or something we wish we could play?

Liberty's Edge

Alchemist [Beastmorph+Vivisectionist] 10/Master Chymist X

Discoveries (feats spent here too): Preserve Organs, Mummification, Rag Doll Mutagen, Feral Mutagen, Vestigial Arms(x2), Tumor Familiar, Parasitic Twin, Tentacle, Wings, Phantom Limb

You are now a split-personality goblin with two claws, a bite, a tentacle, a rubbery mummified body, four arms (five if you count the ghostly one), bat wings, a tumor-like creature that variously merges and separates from you, and a parasitic twin that won't stop asking for someone named "Quaid". Oh, and you have pounce and grab. Process that one for a second.

It's cool, though. I'm sure neither of your personalities have weird fetishes. Especially not ones that involve 9 corporeal limbs and/or 1 incorporeal limb.

The worst part is.. that isn't even using any extracts. And it starts the weird early (lvl 2), scales it up to 11 (at lvl 11) and leaves you with a full 6 levels of maximum "WTF!?" for people to enjoy (if running a standard AP).

Fun fact: An alchemist with both Rag Doll Mutagen and Mummification is immune to falling damage. The former makes falling nonlethal, the latter makes you immune to nonlethal.

I really need to run this some day...


The Indescribable wrote:
Does it have to be a legal build or something we wish we could play?

It can be illegal, but if it is be sure to say so.

StabbittyDoom wrote:
Some weirdness...

Ew.


Similar to Stabbity Doom's, my favorite was Beastmorph+Vivisectionist(CN), with very similar discovery choices. Preserve Organs, mummification Feral Mutagen, Vestigial Arms, Wings (maybe later I would take parasitic twin)

But the flavor of mine was different from his. Mine was an somewhat Egyptian themed Alchemist who believed he had done something that had angered the Gods and as such was trying to do everything to not die. He transformed into a Scarab with his Mutagen, as it was sacred to his people and could keep him alive in combat. He used the shield extract to harden his carapace in that state (purely fluff tbh). After being jumped by a goblin rogue he started taking preserve organs, and eventually mummified himself to try to prolong his life. The Wings were insect like (as that was one of the available options) which allowed for the scarab flavor as well as combat stuff. His endgame goal was to get the Immortality discovery, but his Mutagen self was less self serving, and might have led to him going into Master Chymist (alter ego LG).


I don't have a full build for him. I don't plan that far ahead. It's an alchemist obsessed with the lines between life, death, and undead. It's a Chirurgeon/Vivisectionist/Reanimator alchemist. Three archetypes and the only conflict is that the reanimator drops the damage dice of the bombs while vivisectionist replaces bombs with sneak attack. I loved the idea of turning him into an undead abomination as a continuing advancement of his work.


StabbittyDoom wrote:

Alchemist [Beastmorph+Vivisectionist] 10/Master Chymist X

Discoveries (feats spent here too): Preserve Organs, Mummification, Rag Doll Mutagen, Feral Mutagen, Vestigial Arms(x2), Tumor Familiar, Parasitic Twin, Tentacle, Wings, Phantom Limb

You are now a split-personality goblin with two claws, a bite, a tentacle, a rubbery mummified body, four arms (five if you count the ghostly one), bat wings, a tumor-like creature that variously merges and separates from you, and a parasitic twin that won't stop asking for someone named "Quaid". Oh, and you have pounce and grab. Process that one for a second.

It's cool, though. I'm sure neither of your personalities have weird fetishes. Especially not ones that involve 9 corporeal limbs and/or 1 incorporeal limb.

The worst part is.. that isn't even using any extracts. And it starts the weird early (lvl 2), scales it up to 11 (at lvl 11) and leaves you with a full 6 levels of maximum "WTF!?" for people to enjoy (if running a standard AP).

Fun fact: An alchemist with both Rag Doll Mutagen and Mummification is immune to falling damage. The former makes falling nonlethal, the latter makes you immune to nonlethal.

I really need to run this some day...

Ahahem... Yoink!


Ranged one shot alchemist; the art of war

Can be built in many ways but uses extracts and expensive potions/elixirs with alchemical allocation to be a deadly ranged combatant,focusing on Int, only shooting once a round but adding a tonne of riders (vital strike, kirin strike, bombs,, extracts admixtures, hollowed projectiles, etc).
The idea is that it can take down a priority target in one shot and also choose the battlefield. He has a myriad of tools to accomplish the "never fight" and "know your enemy" of the Art of War. A skirmisher, hit and run specialist.

Grand Lodge

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Alchemical Mummy (the burning kind)

Tiefling
Alchemist 10

[Discovery 2] Immolation Bomb
[Discovery 4] Precise Bomb
[Discovery 6] Directed Bomb
[Discovery 7] Preserve Organs
[Discovery 8] Fast Bombs
[Discovery 10] Mummification

[Trait] Fast Drinker (awesome when combined with prehensile tail, Alchemical Allocation, and potions of Good Hope and Improved Invisibility [the ones made by summoners])
[Trait] Unscathed (boost resists by 2)

[Feat 1] Throw Anything
[Feat 1] Brew Potion
[Feat 1] Point Blank Shot
[Feat 3] Rapid Shot
[Feat 5] Two-Weapon Fighting
[Feat 7] Extra Discovery
[Feat 9] Improved Two-Weapon Fighting

Items: The usual, but you'll want either a Darksire Amulet to boost resistances on the cheap, or (better) Major Ring of Energy Fire Resistance.

Resist Fire 12 (20 with ring), Electricity 12, Immune Cold

Combat Methodology:

Step 1) Start by making a full attack on yourself (five attacks at level 10 w/ rapid shot, two-weapon fighting, and improved two-weapon fighting), using Immolation, Precise, Directed, Fast Bombs. Take care if you're using budget build, as you only have 12 fire resist to work with (5 base damage from immolation bomb + int + other mods).

Step 2) In subsequent rounds, do whatever you want, as you now have a 60-damage fire aura/cone (5 @ 12 damage a piece, save for half) for next the five rounds. Damage can scale quite high if you budget for better resistance and high int. And being passive damage allows you to do other things, like drinking one of your unlimited potions of Good Hope to buff the party.

Notes: This hasn't in any way been optimized. Its a rough concept that I've only gotten to try out in a single game so far*, but it was fun. :) I hope to bring a version of it to a PFS game at some point, and to have my character cackle wildly whilst smashing all his bombs over himself and proceeding to immolate everything around him for next several rounds.

* (It was a mythic game, and GM was kind enough to let me take a Mtyhic Discovery for bombs to spontaneously change the damage type to cold)


Warhaven wrote:

Alchemical Mummy (the burning kind)

Tiefling
Alchemist 10

[Discovery 2] Immolation Bomb
[Discovery 4] Precise Bomb
[Discovery 6] Directed Bomb
[Discovery 7] Preserve Organs
[Discovery 8] Fast Bombs
[Discovery 10] Mummification

[Trait] Fast Drinker (awesome when combined with prehensile tail, Alchemical Allocation, and potions of Good Hope and Improved Invisibility [the ones made by summoners])
[Trait] Unscathed (boost resists by 2)

[Feat 1] Throw Anything
[Feat 1] Brew Potion
[Feat 1] Point Blank Shot
[Feat 3] Rapid Shot
[Feat 5] Two-Weapon Fighting
[Feat 7] Extra Discovery
[Feat 9] Improved Two-Weapon Fighting

Items: The usual, but you'll want either a Darksire Amulet to boost resistances on the cheap, or (better) Major Ring of Energy Fire Resistance.

Resist Fire 12 (20 with ring), Electricity 12, Immune Cold

Combat Methodology:

Step 1) Start by making a full attack on yourself (five attacks at level 10 w/ rapid shot, two-weapon fighting, and improved two-weapon fighting), using Immolation, Precise, Directed, Fast Bombs. Take care if you're using budget build, as you only have 12 fire resist to work with (5 base damage from immolation bomb + int + other mods).

Step 2) In subsequent rounds, do whatever you want, as you now have a 60-damage fire aura/cone (5 @ 12 damage a piece, save for half) for next the five rounds. Damage can scale quite high if you budget for better resistance and high int. And being passive damage allows you to do other things, like drinking one of your unlimited potions of Good Hope to buff the party.

Notes: This hasn't in any way been optimized. Its a rough concept that I've only gotten to try out in a single game so far*, but it was fun. :) I hope to bring a version of it to a PFS game at some point, and to have my character cackle wildly whilst smashing all his bombs over himself and proceeding to immolate everything around...

I loved seeing that character in combat :) Thanks for posting! :D

Dark Archive

Alchemist(Vivisectionist+Beast Rider+Chirurgeon)
He's a goblin alchemist who takes the aforementioned Rag Doll Mutagen + Mummification combo and makes his giant vulture an anthropomorphic giant vulture, along with the new feat from heroes of the wild where you do falling damage to the person you hit and just jumps off his flying bird man to stab people in the head to death.


I would like to make a "hedge maze" bomber.

Briar half elf archtype with brambles and precise bombs. He then traps enemies into place but leaves clear rows of land for allies to get through. Enemies can either stay in the overgrowth or head into your allies. Perhaps the best way to lead enemies.


My group is playing an evil campaign, and my hubby decided to play a goblin alchemist who specializes in fire. I'm not sure what the entire build is, but I do know that because of all his bonuses his stealth at 14th level is above 40. He hides from everything. His character also likes to set everything on fire. From his character sheet I can tell you that he took the fire bombardier, throw anything that's on fire, and master alchemist feat. I think I like this build because of how he plays the character. He's super funny and gets other characters into all kinds of trouble with his flippin' 24 Intelligence and 24 Dexterity, and by burning everything down... even the poor little orphans' orphanage.


I haven't fully figured it out yet, and this requires at least one mythic tier, but:
Half-elf Alchemist (Preservationist) 8 with Half Drow Paragon, Racial Heritage, Mythic (Kasatha) (and take Multi-armed, of course), Spider Summoner
Discoveries: Extra Limb x2, Tanglefoot Bombs, Fast Bombs

so he's got 6 arms (for a total of 8 limbs), uses extracts to summon spiders, and covers enemies with tanglefoot bombs.

I'm torn between Champion (for climb speed) or Trickster (for path dabbling: mighty summons)


Helcack wrote:

Alchemist(Vivisectionist+Beast Rider+Chirurgeon)

He's a goblin alchemist who takes the aforementioned Rag Doll Mutagen + Mummification combo and makes his giant vulture an anthropomorphic giant vulture, along with the new feat from heroes of the wild where you do falling damage to the person you hit and just jumps off his flying bird man to stab people in the head to death.

What feat is that? Sounds like the keystone to making a FF-style dragoon!

Dark Archive

Opuk0 wrote:
Helcack wrote:

Alchemist(Vivisectionist+Beast Rider+Chirurgeon)

He's a goblin alchemist who takes the aforementioned Rag Doll Mutagen + Mummification combo and makes his giant vulture an anthropomorphic giant vulture, along with the new feat from heroes of the wild where you do falling damage to the person you hit and just jumps off his flying bird man to stab people in the head to death.
What feat is that? Sounds like the keystone to making a FF-style dragoon!

Branch Pounce, he also combines it with the Roll With It Goblin feat to make it so people don't want to hit him as he just flies straight up and comes back down to hit them hard.


Helcack wrote:
Opuk0 wrote:
Helcack wrote:

Alchemist(Vivisectionist+Beast Rider+Chirurgeon)

He's a goblin alchemist who takes the aforementioned Rag Doll Mutagen + Mummification combo and makes his giant vulture an anthropomorphic giant vulture, along with the new feat from heroes of the wild where you do falling damage to the person you hit and just jumps off his flying bird man to stab people in the head to death.
What feat is that? Sounds like the keystone to making a FF-style dragoon!
Branch Pounce, he also combines it with the Roll With It Goblin feat to make it so people don't want to hit him as he just flies straight up and comes back down to hit them hard.

Roll With It is a silly feat. Just the fact that a legitimate build can be a rubber goblin that can basically act as a kickball makes me happy.

There are some cool builds here. Extra arms seems pretty common, but so does mummification. I never would've thought of setting yourself on fire with the immolation bomb. That's funky, I may have to turn that into an encounter...

Dark Archive

How does the Alchemist do for necromancy?

After the topic of turning a Way of the Wicked part into sentient undead was brought up in a local store's conversation, I proposed the idea of a skeleton Alchemist that was on a quest to put new flesh around his frame. One organ at a time, of course.

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