While i love the alchemist, i wish that not every alchemist was a bomb toting roid head, so ive tried to toss together a couple Alternate class features for the Alchemist.
PLAGUE DOCTOR ALCHEMIST
(clearly based on lay on hands, but replaces bombs. I wonder if i should do 1/2class level + int uses per day like lay on hands, or the full class level per day like bombs.)
Healing Salve (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, an Alchemist can Mix a Salve that can heal wounds (his own or those of others) when applied by touch.An alchemist can mix and use a number of Salves each day equal to 1/2 his class level + his Intelligence modifier. Mixing and applying a Tonic requires a standard action that provokes an attack of opportunity. A Healing Salve is applied as a Melee touch attack that Heals 1d6 points of damage + additional damage equal to the alchemist’s Intelligence modifier. The Healing power of an alchemist’s Salve increases by 1d6 points at every odd-numbered alchemist level.
Alternatively, an Alchemist can use salve to deal damage to undead creatures, Dealing damage equal to the amount that the salve would heal a living creature. Using a Healing Salve in this way requires a successful melee touch attack and doesn't provoke an attack of opportunity. Undead do not receive a saving throw against this damage.
Alchemists can new types of Salves as discoveries (see the Discovery ability) as they level up. An alchemist’s Healing Salve, like an extract, becomes inert if used or carried by anyone else. This ability Replaces the alchemists bomb ability, and poison use.
DISCOVERIES
Least Panacea Salve (Su): Whenever the Alchemist uses a Healing Salve to heal damage to one target, the target also receives the additional effects from all of the Panacea Salve Discoveries known by the Alchemist. A Panacea Salve can remove a condition caused by a curse, disease, or poison without curing the affliction. Such conditions return after 1 hour unless the Salve actually removes the affliction that causes the condition. The alchemist may Initially choose from the following Status Effects to remove:
• Fatigued: The target is no longer fatigued.
• Shaken: The target is no longer shaken.
• Sickened: The target is no longer sickened.
The Alchemist may take this Discovery more than once, each time choosing an additional effect to remove with the Panacea Salve. These abilities are cumulative. For example, a 12th-level Alchemist's Healing Salve heals 6d6 points of damage and might also cure fatigued and exhausted conditions as well as removing diseases and neutralizing poisons. Once a condition or spell effect is chosen, it can't be changed.
Lesser Panacea Salve(Su): As Least Panacea Salve, except the Alchemist may now choose from the Following Status Effects as Well:
• Exhausted: The target is no longer exhausted. The alchemist must have the fatigue salve before selecting this salve.
• Frightened: The target is no longer frightened. The alchemist must have the shaken salve before selecting this salve.
• Nauseated: The target is no longer nauseated. The alchemist must have the sickened salve before selecting this salve.
• Poisoned: The Alchemist's Healing Salve also acts as neutralize poison, using the Alchemist's level as the caster level.
The Alchemist may take this Discovery more than once, each time choosing an additional effect to remove with the Healing Salve.
Greater Panacea Salve(Su): As Least Panacea Salve, except the Alchemist may now choose from the following Status Effects as Well:
• Blinded: The target is no longer blinded.
• Deafened: The target is no longer deafened.
• Paralyzed: The target is no longer paralyzed.
• Stunned: The target is no longer stunned.
The Alchemist may take this Discovery more than once, each time choosing an additional effect to remove with the Healing Salve.
JINN ALCHEMIST
(the basic idea here is to get rid of the Mutagen/bruiser thing in favor of a middle-eastern elemental alchemy theme, using the Wizard Elemental Specialty schools form the APG. What you end up with, though, is a better caster, which i tried to limit. Im not sure how balanced it is, so any advice on balancing it would be appreciated.)
Elemental Tonic (Su): At 1st level, an alchemist discovers how to create a tonic of elemental essence that he can imbibe in order to heighten his magical prowess at the cost of his personality. It takes 1 hour to brew a dose of Elemental Tonic, and once brewed, it remains potent until used. An alchemist can only maintain one dose of Elemental Tonic at a time—if he brews a second dose, any existing Tonic becomes inert. As with an extract or bomb, a mutagen that is not in an alchemist’s possession becomes inert until an alchemist picks it up again. When an alchemist brews an Elemental Tonic, he selects one of the Wizard's four Elemental Specialty Schools, Air, Earth, Fire or Water. It’s a standard action to drink a Tonic. Upon being imbibed, the tonic causes the alchemist to enter a state of elemental attunement, which lasts for 10 minutes per alchemist level. While in this state, the alchemist may nt gain the normal benefits of ant extract, however, whenever the alchemist consumes an extract, he may spontaneously cast a spell of the same level from the Elemental Wizard Specialty to which he is attuned, so long as the spell he is casting is the same level or lower than the extract consumed. Both casting and consuming an extract can be done with the same standard Action. The caster level for spells cast this way is equal to the alchemists level, and save DC's are Intelligence based.
While under the effects of a tonic, the Alchemist takes a -2 penalty to one attribute. When attuned to Air, you take a -2con. When attuned to fire you take a -2 wis. When attuned to earth you take a -2 dex, and when attuned to water you take a -2 cha. A non-alchemist who drinks an Elemental tonic must make a Fortitude save (DC 10 + 1/2 the alchemist’s level + the alchemist’s Intelligence modifier) or become nauseated for 1 hour—a non-alchemist can never gain the benefit of an Elemental Tonic, but an alchemist can gain the effects of another alchemist’s Tonic if he drinks it. (Although if the other alchemist creates a different tonic, the effects of the “stolen” tonic immediately cease.) The effects of a tonic do not stack. Whenever an alchemist drinks a tonic, the effects of any previous tonic immediately end.
This ability replaces the Mutagen ability.
DISCOVERIES:
Favored Attunement: Choose one of the four Elemental Specialty Schools, Air, Earth, Fire, or Water. When you have consumed a tonic to become attuned to this element, you gain one of the two Specialty School Powers for that element.
You may take this discovery multiple times, each time selecting a different school power, or element.
Greater Attunement: Choose one of the four Elements, Air, Earth, Fire, or Water. You may now use the 8th level School Power for that Element. You must be at least 8th level to take this discovery and may only take it for an element for which you have both of the first level powers.
Elemental Immunities: While under the effects of an Elemental tonic you dont need to breathe and gain Immunity to bleed, paralysis, poison, sleep effects, and stunning.
While i love the alchemist, i wish that not every alchemist was a bomb toting roid head, so ive tried to toss together a couple Alternate class features for the Alchemist.
PLAGUE DOCTOR ALCHEMIST
(clearly based on lay on hands, but replaces bombs. I wonder if i should do 1/2class level + int uses per day like lay on hands, or the full class level per day like bombs.)
Aw man, I was just thinking about something like this for RPG Superstar 2011! Well I'm glad I checked now.
I think it's a great idea though, it might be tough to balance, sort of a strange mix of skill, arcane buffs, and healing. I just wonder how he's going to work in combat without the bombs. I guess he's still got the mutagen which should shore up his combat.
Is there anyway he could "hold a charge" with his salve so he could avoid provoking an attack of opportunity?
CONSTRUCTOR ALCHEMIST
This would be a mix between the Alchemist (in the way they master technology-related things) and the Summoner (in the way of having a combat-oriented "friend")
Their main abilities would be centered on building and improving a construct to help them. They would also gain bonuses against constructs and other mechanical things (traps, etc.)
IIRC, there's a 3.5 prestige class about this, but I don't remember its details or sourcebook.
The anti-paladin is an entirely inverted class. A similar example would be a blighter, or druid that destroys everything.
CONSTRUCTOR ALCHEMIST
This would be a mix between the Alchemist (in the way they master technology-related things) and the Summoner (in the way of having a combat-oriented "friend")
Their main abilities would be centered on building and improving a construct to help them. They would also gain bonuses against constructs and other mechanical things (traps, etc.)
IIRC, there's a 3.5 prestige class about this, but I don't remember its details or sourcebook.
personally i'd use the summoner as a basis for this idea, change some things around and he makes constructs instead of summoning things.
For me I love the Alchemist tho in UC I felt they were jipt on arch type they should have gotten a 3rd like an Artifcher where it replace the Extracts for device and dropped the Mutigen feature but got knowledge engineering and got bonus feat instead of the discorveries.