Not the fact that I get them, but I just don't like the idea of binge drinking for strength. Has anyone had any success, or ideas on re-flavoring extracts? I have an idea for the one alchemist I have currently, but I'd like to make more than one in the future, and the investigator has the same problem.
Reflavor them as spells.
Boom, done.
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Combinations of assorted 'power crystals" you crush on your hand and absorb the essence from. Some crystals are rare and expemsive, hence the material component cost.
Magic tobacco.
Pixie dust you sprinkle over yourself.
Eldritch face paint, henna, woad, body paint, or even hair product.
Basicly other physical components you need to physically manipulate and ingest or apply to your body, that keeps the flavor and limitations in place.
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Injections, for the mad scientist vibe.
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Nanite Packets if you're an Android.
Pills and alcohol are the ones I've most often seen, (besides standard) but I've always been interested in a tech based one (gizmos, devices, nanites as suggested above), maybe tell us about the character? Like tech wouldn't work if you were going for a savage, but war paint, tattoos or scars would)
Special scrolls could work, or mystical items.
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Metamorph Alchemist trades out Extracts entirely (actually trades out Alchemy, but then gets back Mutagen; unfortunately this also means no Bombs and no Throw Anything).
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Pick pretty much any other Craft skill, and have the spellcrafter make items that contain magic, to be released later, like temporary scrolls (instead of temporary crystals) or edible snacks or origami or paintings or calligraphy or tiny clockwork gizmos or some sort of woven doilies or beadwork. Instead of drinking the extract, read the koan or unravel the doily or activate the gizmo or whatever.
We had this as a 2nd edition AD&D wizard variant, that instead of preparing spells, spent a certain amount of the morning painting / writing / crafting / etc. to 'prepare' his spells. The one I played was a 'clockwork mage' who made little gadgets from a backpack full of gears and sprockets and whatnot (and when they fell apart after casting whatever spell they'd been assembled to produce, could be used the next day to assemble something new).
As long as the mechanics are unchanged (only work for you, unless you buy infusion, for example), there shouldn't be a problem. Some things will change, by nature. You can drink an elixir in the dark, for instance, but if you are using some sort of written 'temporary scrolls' or something, not so much...
using one-use crazy inventions, which mechanism is too complicate to explain to other PC (except if you have de inffusion discovery.
Inventions can be chemicals, bombs, holograms, etc, depending on magic schools.
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My Alchemist's infusions take all kinds of forms - draughts, salves, pellets, little cakes, sticks of putty you stick in your nose, you name it. You can scan some of his posts for examples. It's a fun creative exercise.
I made a homebrew artificer archetype for alchemist that makes their extracts stored in little one-use wondrous items (think feather tokens) that are used as spell-trigger items.
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It doesn't help Alchemist directly, but for Investigator there's always the Psychic Detective which makes you an actual spontaneous psychic spellcaster instead of the alchemy thing. It's really quite solid mechanically if you don't mind losing access to Empiricist.
This is obviously in addition to the 'just reflavor things' approach, which is pretty valid in its own right.
You could go full Persona 3 on them and use spell bullets if you don't mind firearms.
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Elaborate spell diagrams drawn on paper. When the paper is torn, it activates the spell.
Trapped spirits bargained with such that when they are released, they will perform a minor service. Bombs can even be spirits of destruction, and they various mutation discoveries (wings, tumor familiar, etc.) can be long-term minor possessions by spirits.
Thanks for the ideas everyone, I got a few thoughts going. I have this one Alchemist, who, while he's well-dressed and perfectly polite to folks, sometimes too polite even, he has a predilection to inflict far more pain on his enemies than they want to do to him. I think I could give him a necklace of finger bones he breaks periodically, suffusing himself with the small amount of life force still bound to the bones. Maybe he traps it there.
He'd be an evil character, of course.
eye drops, inhalants, sniffing powders, snuff, injections
Throwing cards with slashing damage.