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Hello, all. I have a neat question about poison-making that I don't think has been addressed before.
So we all know that Craft (alchemy) can allow a character to craft poisons (with a Craft DC based on the DC of the poison). My question is this. Can I craft a poison that comes from a special ability? As far as I can tell, a literal reading of the rules says "yes."
Take for example, the serpent's fang ability of the serpentine sorcerer bloodline:
Serpent's Fang (Ex): At 1st level, you can grow fangs as a free action. These fangs are treated as a natural weapon inflicting 1d4 points of damage plus your Strength modifier (1d3 if you are Small) plus poison (Bite—injury; save Fort DC 10 + 1/2 your sorcerer level + your Constitution modifier; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1 Con damage; cure 1 save). At 5th level, these fangs are considered magical for the purpose of overcoming DR and the poison damage increases to 1d2 Con. At 7th level, your poison requires 2 successful saves to cure. At 11th level, your poison damage increases to 1d4 Con. You can use your fangs for a number of rounds per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier.
So, a few theoreticals...
If I'm a serpentine sorcerer, can I craft my own serpent's fang poison? After all, it's a poison just like any other poison I could craft. If yes, is the DC of any given dose dependant on the DC I crafted it at (which, in turn, would have been based on my level and Charisma score at the time).
If I'm not a serpentine sorcerer, can I craft serpent's fang poison anyway? If so, do I have to know the sorcerer whose poison I'm crafting?
Thoughts?
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It's an interesting idea, and I don't see any real problem with it, though I would rule that the DC of the poison is a set number and is not dependant on your level/Con mod since the venom you produce naturally would be more potent than one you have crafted in a lab (just like a poison you craft that is derived from a monster, like Purple Worm poison, the actual venom DC is constitution based but the crafted poison has a set DC).
The second question about not being a serpentine sorcerer I would rule that it depends on how common such a poison is, but unless you had a steady supply (like your own) to test with and work on it seems unlikely that someone would be able to duplicate it's effects with alchemy.
My group did something similar with my Envenomed/Pestilence sorcerer... Basically you just 'milk' your own poison. The DC was set at the natural DC of the poison bottled at the time. Reason this was allowed was because old-world assassins bottled snake and scorpion venoms all the time.
As for actually crafting it without being a serpentine sorc? You'd have to design your own poison, based off what you know of the serpentine's effect...
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My group did something similar with my Envenomed/Pestilence sorcerer... Basically you just 'milk' your own poison. The DC was set at the natural DC of the poison bottled at the time. Reason this was allowed was because old-world assassins bottled snake and scorpion venoms all the time.
As for actually crafting it without being a serpentine sorc? You'd have to design your own poison, based off what you know of the serpentine's effect...
The only issue I have with "milking" your own poison (besides the chance for abuse) is that it isn't stated anywhere how long the poison stays viable for. From what I have seen of almost all poisons created in a method similar to those of the serpentine sorcerer the poison loses it's potency right away or very soon after being produced. Many real world poisons, as Artemis said, can last long after they have been milked from a creature, but in game terms this can create a problem so it is usually a short lived effect.